Last couple of days in Africa

After hanging out with my friend Rose and her husband Paul on Saturday, Paul invited me to go to Arusha with him on Monday and attend one of the UN court trials for the Rwanda Genocide. Paul is a very well educated teacher, and very interested in scholarly things like the courts. So, I woke up very early monday morning, and met Paul at the dala dala stand (bus station) in Moshi at 6:30AM, and we rode the cramped dala dala all the way to Arusha. We arrived in town around 8:30, and went right over to the Arusha International Convention Center, where the UN has a wing for their war tribunal court. The security was very high, at least by African standards, but we did get very lucky, as there were two cases going on that day. The court is not trying low level murderers from the Rwandan Conflict, only the high ranking people that ordered the mass killings, torture, and rapes. So the two cases on our day were both men charged with at least 6 counts of genocide each. The proceedings were really amazing. Each court room was set up in a very formal way, there were three judges, and several attorneys on each side. Everyone in the court, with the exception of the defendant, wore a long black robe with a ruffly white tie. The judges' robes were red. Everyone in the court room also had on headsets, as there are so many different languages being spoken, no one is really listening to anyone actually talking, they are listening to the interpreter in the headset. So the proceedings were really interesting, one of the attorneys would ask a question, and then there would be a pause, as the witness waited for the translation, and then another pause, as everyone waited for the translation of the testimony, and so on. The audience was in the court, but separated by plate glass, so without the headset, I couldn't hear anything. On the headset, there were 6 language options, French, English, Swahili, Kinarwanda, Hutu, Tutsi, and then you could also just listen to the live testimony without translation. This was pretty interesting, because in both courts, all three judges were speaking different languages, the witnesses were all speaking Rwandan dialects, and the attorneys were speaking English and French. It was truly an international court. The testimony was difficult to listen to, as is any details surrounding the conflict that took place in 1994. There was a piece of me that was really nervous about actually seeing the men that were charged with these crimes, and in some way expecting that I would be face to face with a monster. But at one point in the proceedings, one of the defendants looked right at me, and we made eye contact, and all I saw was the face of a man, not some two-headed monster, looking back at me, well dressed, in a suit. And to hear the details of what happened there, it's so unfathomable to think what human beings are capable of doing to one another. There was also some irony, for me, of sitting in this very formal UN court proceeding, trying to deal with the mess that was made in Rwanda, all these years later, when the UN was the very organization that could have stopped the genocide from happening, but got too mixed up in politics and faltered. After about four hours of testimony, there was a young woman that testified in a very detailed way about some of the horrors she experienced during those years, and while it was interesting, when she finished, I had had enough. So we spent the rest of the day wandering around Arusha, grabbing lunch, getting some TShirts, and then walking around the Arusha Market, which was the busiest, most crowded chaotic marketplace I have ever seen in my life. We arrived back in Moshi around 6, and after quickly going home, Father Antipas, Father Innocent, one of the teachers from Moshi Airport School, and I headed out to dinner. I had invited to take the two priests that had become such good friends of mine out to a 'high end' restaurant as a thank you to them. There's a place called the Salzburger Inn that we went to, as it was recommended in the Lonely Planet Guide. Most 'restaurants' in Tanzania don't use menus, the food is already made, so when you do order off a menu, it takes a VERY long time. It was okay though, the hour and a half that it took for our food to arrive was really fun. The two priests enjoy a few beers every now and then, and it was fun to just sit with them, tell jokes, laugh, and enjoy spending time together. As I've said before, these guys have truly become friends. The food was really good, definitely on the high end for Africa, and the bill was 38,000 shillings, or about 28 US dollars, for four people, and the three of them each had a couple of beers! The next day was my final day, and Father Antipas and I had a pretty full day planned. There was a Maasai boy that was interested in going to school that I had met with a couple of weeks ago, and we needed to meet with him again. So we drove to Boma Ng'ombe, and met the young man and his entourage (the Maasai always travel around in groups). The first time we interviewed this boy, he wasn't sure how old he was, somewhere between 16 and 20. He had completed primary school, and done VERY well, but wasn't able to go to secondary school because his father died and he had to work. A few years had passed, and his mother wanted him to go to secondary school, as did he. The problem is that all secondary schools in Tanzania are English medium schools, meaning all the lessons, outside of Kiswahili, are taught in English. This young man does not speak any English at all so I had come up with an alternative. There are several vocational training centers (VTCs) in Tanzania where young men and women can go and learn a trade. Father Antipas loved the idea, so this was why we were meeting with the young man, to present it. Unfortunately, the young man didn't like the idea at all. He is dead set on going to secondary school. So we spent a few hours running around looking at different programs, trying to find a pre-secondary school program for him to study and learn some English so he'll be able to pass the exam to get into secondary school. This whole situation really illustrated for me the complexity of the problems in East Africa. It's easy to think that all that is needed is money, but I have found a sponsor for this young man. The reality is that he will not be able to go to secondary school, money or no money, until he is able to pass the exam. There are a bunch of people looking into solutions, Father Antipas included, so just because I have left the continent doesn't mean I won't continue to try and find this kid a way into school. In the afternoon, the group of us went to look at a school that I had heard about called the O'brien School for the Maasai. It was started a few years ago by a woman from the Chicago suburbs, and I had really wanted to take a look at it. I was impressed, and I always love to see primary school kids. After touring the school, and speaking with one of the administrators about the young man we were trying to assist, we headed back to Moshi. On our drive back, the weather took a turn, and the sky just started dumping water on us. The rain in Africa is different from anything I've ever seen - the droplets of water are HUGE, so it makes the rain very heavy. By the time we got back to Soweto, the rain was intense, and I sat outside and watched it for a little while. I was really surprised when hail started coming down, and took a bunch of pictures of all the ice on the ground, IN AFRICA! My friend Paul came by to say goodbye, as did my buddy Eli. Eli is a guide on Mt. Kilimanjaro, so I was really excited to give to him a lot of the adventure gear that I had brought with me, and didn't really need anymore. I packed my bags and was pretty much ready to go, when Frs. Antipas and Innocent pulled me aside. They sat me down at a table, and each made a nice speech that really touched my heart about how I always have a place to stay in Africa, and friends waiting for me there. Afterwards they blessed me through a song, resting their hands on my head at the end, a custom here in Africa that I have really come to appreciate deeply. Father Antipas drove me to the airport, and I was off. The flight was very long, making a stop in Dar Es Salaam, but thanks to my buddy Rob who works for KLM, I was very comfortable on the plane. I flew all night, and landed this morning here in Amsterdam. It goes without saying that it's all been a little jarring, the hustle and bustle of a metropolitan city, all the white faces, the cars and on and on. I'm sure it will take me a few days to readjust to the western world. I was really happy to see Rob waiting for me outside of the baggage area, and he gave me the keys to his place, and instructions on how to get back, unfortunately he's gotta work today. So, I can say now that Africa was 100% a success. I achieved the goals I had there, both personal and otherwise, and walked away without any incidents, no malaria, no stomach problems to speak of, no theft, nothing, just a purely amazing, life altering experience, for which I am so grateful. I'll be in Amsterdam with Rob for the next few days, and Monday morning will take the long flight home, from Amsterdam to San Francisco!