I woke up today with a start when my iPhone alarm went off at 7:00 a.m.  I usually awaken on my own around 6:30, but the very long travel day wore me out, and I slept like a zombie. My room was pretty nice.  It’s very big and has a huge bed draped with mosquito netting.

Had a very nice breakfast with Helena, Amy, and the volunteers that were already here (Mike, Courtney, Jane) as well as Susan, who is here for a concurrent spay/neuter project.  

I discovered that there was a cat who hung out at the hotel.  She was a little skittish about people patting her, but I had a few breakthroughs where she let me pat her, and once she even sat on my lap for a bit.  (This cat would be the recipient of some portion of my breakfast every day.) 

After breakfast, a few of us decided to walk out to the main highway and then turn right, where we would encounter a few local stores and markets.  

We headed down the road, passing a few local outdoor bars/cafes.

We passed what almost looked like a mall, but was actually just a small shopping center with mostly offices inside.  

We took a detour down a dirt road that appeared to have some potentially interesting sites.  There was a small market where I snagged a few photos. 

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We continued down the road and ran into a few more fruit and vegetable stalls and small shops.  Bananas are a main crop here, and there were tons of them everywhere.   

We then passed by a school, and I was quickly reminded of how friendly and open African children are.  

We were greeted and waved at, and when I tried to take photos, the kids immediately smiled and posed.  

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We headed back to the hotel for lunch.  We weren’t sure how we were going to spend the rest of the day, but Amy arranged for us to have a small outing. It was a “coffee tour” at a small coffee plantation nearby.  A driver picked us up and took us to another guesthouse/hotel, where we could order drinks and relax by a pool.  A few of the gals went swimming, and we all had either wine or cider.  

After a few drinks, we were met by our guide who took us on a walk through some back roads, where we passed a few interesting buildings, plants, and animals, including mango and banana trees.  

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We arrived at the coffee farm where a woman showed us coffee plants, demonstrated how to remove their outer shell, roasted the coffee beans, and ground them up.  

She then made coffee from those beans. I’m not a coffee drinker.  Courtnie tried it but didn’t like it.  Susan loved it and had a second cup.  Mike and Jane also had a cup.

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We then went back to this guesthouse for some more drinks and chatting before coming back to our hotel.

On the walk back, we passed some kids, including this little girl who wanted to give Mike a high-five.  Pretty cute.  

Before we left the guesthouse, I noticed a sign in their lobby that I thought was pretty neat, and probably very true.

When we arrived back at our hotel, we were greeted by the newly arrived second batch of volunteers – Rob and his wife Mandy, Nick, Erica, Sherrie, and Joanna. Then it was off to bed.  Tomorrow is the formal Mission Rabies Tanzania 2021 orientation followed by another free afternoon.

CONTINUE TO MISSION RABIES TANZANIA PART 4

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We smashed all records from previous Mission Rabies Tanzania trips, vaccinating 7,657 dogs and 1,229 cats.  Total number of animals vaccinated against rabies: 8,886.  It’s an incredible accomplishment.  To continue to do this kind of work is expensive. If you like reading these blog posts and you support this kind of work, I humbly ask for you to make a small donation if you can.  Every little bit helps.  Thank you.