Tanzania Life, Part 1

While in the States, lots of people asked what life is like in Dar es Salaam. I often find it so hard to describe, since it’s so unlike anything in the States, yet not nearly as primitive as some people expect. So I plan to make a few posts of pictures that will show little pieces of life here, starting with….

Our house. This picture is looking through the gate into our driveway. Our house is on the right. Most houses in Dar es Salaam are completely surrounded by a wall. You can also see our car in this picture–a Suzuki Escudo. A four wheel drive vehicle is practically a necessity here!

Here you can see our driveway, with a little guest house to the left. Guest houses on property are also very common here. Often a guard or houseworker will live there. Our good friend Janelle is living there this year. Janelle is also with ReachGlobal (EFCA) and teaches 3rd grade at HOPAC. I love having her so close by!

Our back yard

Our side yard and patio. We love all this space, and it’s fantastic on Friday nights when we have 30 kids here for youth group!

Our front room. I especially love the doors that open up onto the patio. We would eat on the patio all the time, except the mosquitoes drive us away.

Our bedroom. The mosquito net is not just for show!

Our guest room. Karibu! (Welcome!)

I don’t have a picture of Grace’s room, so I’ll add that later. Our house is pretty typical of other houses in this area, though a majority of our students (esp. the Tanzanians, since they are upper class) live in houses that are a lot nicer than ours. I absolutely love this house–I love all the plants, the windows, the “openness” and because it is “normal” looking. Many houses in this area have some rather odd architecture–triangular rooms, cone shaped ceilings, things like that. Or metallic gold painted cabinets, pink floor tiles….we’ve seen some interesting things!