We recently took a fun and exciting journey to Tanzania at our momstown Milton Trip Around the World program!
We started the program by learning a Swahili phrase "Jambo Rafiki", which means "Hello Friends". We listened to a song called "Jambo Bwana" so that we could hear what the Swahili language sounds like. This is a very catchy tune, and a fun song to get kids dancing! We also looked at a World map, and found Tanzania on the east coast of Africa.
Next we learned about the beautiful pieces of fabric called "kangas" that are worn by women in Tanzania. Kangas have special meaning, and every single one has a Swahili Phrase written on it. "Furaha ya maisha ni upendo" means "love is the joy of life". Kangas are given as gifts, new born babies are wrapped in a kanga, and newly married couples are wrapped in a kanga. They are made of very colourful cotton, and sold with two identical pieces that can be cut down the centre - a skirt and a top, or maybe to be used to tie a baby on to mamas back for carrying. I brought home several kangas from a trip to Tanzania. The kids and mamas had fun trying them on!
We moved on to creating the flag of Tanzania, a very colourful and beautiful flag that is blue, black, yellow and green.
No Trip Around the World is complete without a sampling of food! The "official" food of Tanzania is ugali and rice. Ugali is very similar to polenta, but made with white cornmeal instead of yellow. I decided to make a simple dish called "chips mayai". This is a very popular dish that is eaten frequently in Tanzania, sold in restaurants as well as road side stalls. Chips mayi is translated as "chips and eggs", and it is basically reheated fries that are cooked with eggs, similar to a fritatta. Our little travelers enjoyed this snack, many asking for seconds!
Lastly, I showed the kids a picture of the school that I worked in while volunteering in Moshi, Tanzania. The school is called Kilemehewa and it is a volunteer run school for kids who are not able to afford to attend public school (eg. cost of uniforms, books etc.). It is run by the community with local teacher volunteers as well as international volunteers. It is a wonderful place, and holds a special place in my heart!
We moved on to creating the flag of Tanzania, a very colourful and beautiful flag that is blue, black, yellow and green.
No Trip Around the World is complete without a sampling of food! The "official" food of Tanzania is ugali and rice. Ugali is very similar to polenta, but made with white cornmeal instead of yellow. I decided to make a simple dish called "chips mayai". This is a very popular dish that is eaten frequently in Tanzania, sold in restaurants as well as road side stalls. Chips mayi is translated as "chips and eggs", and it is basically reheated fries that are cooked with eggs, similar to a fritatta. Our little travelers enjoyed this snack, many asking for seconds!
Trip Around the World is a fun program that the kids always enjoy. It is great to learn about other places, and this group always sparks fun conversations among the moms. Everyone enjoyed their trip to Tanzania! Asante sana (thank you very much), little travelers for coming and bravely trying new tastes and experiences!
Kwaheri! (Goodbye!)
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Submitted by Paula Porter, a momstown Milton member and
mother of two amazing girls.
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