Tuesday April 8th 2008: The first day

Arrived in Dar Es Salaam at 6:30 am. Mama Bakhita, the founder of the Amani center, greeted me. There were 2 other guests, Dr Ken and Dr Anne who are from the main source of fundraising for Amani. They form a support group in the UK called Friends of Amani.
We embark on a 3-hour journey back to Morogoro, Chamwino, where the Amani headquarters are.
On the way, I can see villagers, Masai men walking along the road. I can see into the alleys converging onto the main street. A lot of ads here are painted in fun drawing styles. There are also a lot of little shops selling fruit along the way. Instantly, I am fascinated. Everyone walks in a peaceful, relaxed pace. Many walk for miles from their home to work or school. People have a reserved yet intense look in their eyes but maybe I am just very romantic and jetlagged.
As we got deeper into the countryside, away from Dar Es Salaam, the vegetation grew more dense and varied. I could recognize the trees I have only seen in movies about Africa like for example a Baobab tree. We even see a Baboon walking alongside of the road. We stop along the way for lunch. I doubt my conversation is very interesting as I am so jetlagged!
When we arrive at the Amani center, we are greeted by the youth at the center who are singing a song and have bouquets for us. It is really nice and I am just taking it all in. I meet the other volunteers: Alice, Rachel, Michael and Nicole, from the U.K and Tara from the U.S. Then we are invited to sign the guest book, which I later on find out you have to do whenever visiting any institution here. I walk around the center. It is modest and charming. There is a small garden inside the compound and around the different rooms as well as a hall where they hold masses, day care and meetings. My bedroom is at the corner of the building and has 2 windows. I can hear all the sounds of the nature surrounding us ranging from birds singing to monkeys to dogs fighting…. Then I hear the choir sing. It is so beautiful, it sounds like the soundtrack to the movie Mission, but in Swahili.
I feel so happy to be here and not scared at all. If anything, I really feel at peace.