Perthena and me talking with Mama Chaquila and Grandmama (balancing 10 liters of water) on the pathway up the mountain. They are both wonderful ladies and shared many stories with us.
posted by medtechtravel | 10:39 AM
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Saturday, September 05, 2009
Perthena and me talking with Mama Chaquila and Grandmama (balancing 10 liters of water) on the pathway up the mountain. They are both wonderful ladies and shared many stories with us.
10 Comments:
Tara James (Section 072I)
Even though we've never met, after reading your blogs, I feel like I've known you forever. Let me first start off by saying how much I admire what you're doing and what an inspiration you are to me! I don't think I could carry 10 L of water down my driveway, muchless on my head, walking on a mountain! I do have a question that I hope you won't find ridiculous, but honestly I don't know much about other countries and their ways of life, so I figured now is as good a time as any to find out what I want to know. Where does there water supply come from? I don't know how primitive the country is, but I would assume there is no utilities, so does it come from rivers or lakes? Why do they carry so much at one time? Is it because the source of the water is so far away from where they live? I'd really love to meet you in person, so please let us know when you will be back so I can come by and introduce myself. Although this is a self taught class,as well as the first internet course I have ever taken, I am learning a tremendous amount and I appreciate the lagniappe exercises that keep it from being so mundane! I hope the rest of your trip is memorable and that we get to meet soon!
Tara
Tara,
Thank you for your comments. Mama Chaquile took us the water purification plant in the mountain as that is where her husband works.
The source of their water is a lake that runs down the mountain, goes thru the water plant and then down to the city of Morogoro. Many homes are not plumbed for water so they must take their plastic jugs (10 Liter) to a water source to fill. This must be done daily to have fresh clean water for families. For families livingin town- it is not such a big deal- but for families living out of town or in the mountains- this is a daily trip to provide water for drinking, cooking, bathing, etc. To go one step further- if a family has one or both parents sick (HIV or other)- the children may have to choose who will go to school and who will walk to get water for the family. Tough choices, but real life situations.
Micah Hicks (071I) That basket looks really big for 10Liters, that is only like 2.5 gallons,right? Does she use it to haul other stuff as well? Hope your trip goes well. I have taken internet classes before, but I feel that I am actually getting something out of this one. I better, otherwise how would I understand anything as a nurse. Godspeed on your adventures.
Julie Roe (Section 071I)
What an amazing adventure you're on! I can't imagine not having the "luxuries" in life that we are so blessed to have. The ability to see into another's culture can help us truly appreciate the small things that we take for granted everyday. Thank you for the opportunity to learn through you!
Micah,
Yes- 10 liters is roughly equal to 2.65 gallons which is also equal to about 22 pounds. Good question and answer to put the weight in perspective!
Yes to your other question as well- what ever is needed to purchase for family/personal use is generally carried on women's heads- it's tradition. I also learned that different cities, villages, areas all have their own specific basket weave pattern so you can tell where a person is from by the basket weave of the basket they use. Young girls can't wait to be old enough to begin carrying rice or anything else on their heads- like mother like daughter!! It's a sign of growing up and becoming stronger!
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Tia Volter (072I)I think that it is wonderful what you are doing. It is fascinating to see other cultures and be immersed in them with a hand-on approach.You are indeed a wonderful person. You are an educator and yet you are still open to learning new things. i admit...the thought of having a 10L water jug on my head would not make very far. i wonder what we Americans would do if we had to travel distances with our drinking water on our heads or would we even drink any water for that matter? i am learning a lot more than i expected to learn so far this semester. i hope that you have a wonderful and safe journey that is filled with limitless discoveries...and i hope that your son enjoys his trip as well.
Hello my name is Stacey Mayeux and I'm in your HESC 1010 Medical Terminology for the Health Professional class. I am in school to become a registered nurse and I would love to be able to travel the world and help people. I am so inspired by you. It is truly amazing that you devote your time and expertise to the unfortunate countries. By you helping them you are also teaching us greatly about the different cultures and their way of living.
DeShonka Fulton (071I) I can't imagine trying to balance a filled bucket of any size on my head. This just makes me realize just how fortunate we really are. I tell my 4th grade students all the time that they are so not aware of how the children and their parents of other cultures live. We as people take the smallest things for granted. Just being able to turn on a faucet to get water is a luxury to people of other countries. I would love to take a trip to another country to experience their culture.
I just love this picture. I can't even begin to imagine trying to balance a bucket of water on my head, I would spill it everywhere. Thanks for sharing your pictures with our class, it gives us a chance to see other parts of the world and how you are helping to make a positive impact.
Lindsey Rogers
HESC 1010
Spring 2010
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