James Phelps – The final blog entry means the trip is also coming to an end. This opportunity has definitely caused a change in my mind. The poverty and struggle we have seen in the past several days for the people living in the Same region is something that is extremely difficult to put into words. To see things that leave one speechless and realizing that they are not the only ones in this region who struggle to survive each and every day is difficult to wrap your mind around. There are more than likely endless communities in need of assistance. Walking 50+ kilometers one way for water is difficult to completely comprehend for me as a person who has been lucky enough to have running water in their own house since birth. Despite all that we have seen, I have noticed that there is opportunity for me to make a difference in these communities moving forward. There is a great need for technical assistance which I, along with my peers, have the ability to give. One of the communities we visited spoke of how there was only one district engineer and due to the volume of projects he is responsible for, has been unable to come to the community and provide assistance. With all of our knowledge we have gained via The Ohio State University, it seems we may be able to fill that void for technical assistance. This is extremely empowering to know that there is a chance that we as engineers can help people in need. Every community we visited said that by just helping them gain access to water, we would change their lives significantly. It is important to thank all that have contributed to this opportunity to travel to Tanzania and have this experience. I know that for me personally this trip has been an experience that drastically changed the way I thought about rural water systems in Africa. Seeing the look in community leaders’ eyes and the passion that they show towards having us there is something I will never forget. Each and every person I came in contact with have been welcoming and I have felt that they are definitely happy to see us. A big shout out to those who have helped this trip come together and make this possible for not only myself, but all off the others who came with me.

Kyle Bramman – Friday was our last day of business after professor H made the decision to take a day off and spend some time at the seminary. This came after a few long, stressful days in the Same region where we were all challenged emotionally and physically. Thursday in particular was hard on everyone. We began with another community that was comparable to many of the ones we had been visiting; it was a very productive visit. After we stopped at one about 20 minutes away and deeper into the sandy region. This village left everyone a little shook up. We first took a tour of a small part that consisted of an elder husband and wife, their sons, their son’s multiple wives, and their many grandchildren. Here we also walked into one of the houses which was overwhelming and hard to see. One thing that really bothered me was a kitten that was smaller than any I had ever seen. It was dirty and already malnourished despite its very young age. We also learned how poorly women were treated in this community. They handled most of the hard work which included building houses, retrieving water from the river, and taking care of the children. If they disappointed their husband they were mistreated. This community literally was one bad day away from losing members from not enough food or water. It was hard to stomach our lunches after that. Other than a frightening drive up a mountain and some questionable food in the communities Friday was relatively uneventful. I am excited to see what the rest of the trip brings. I have had a blast, but I certainly am excited to get back to the States.

Tyler Pica – Yesterday was a day that none of us will forget.  We have seen some malnourished communities, but none of them stack up to one of the communities we visited yesterday.  This was poverty on another level, I wondered how some of them were surviving, they could barely feed themselves and I was wondering how they were sustainably feeding their livestock.  But to contrast Thursday, Friday we went to the higher lands, where availability of water was not such an issue, but more of an infrastructure problem.  The ride going up this mountain was quite the thrill, some of us were stunned by the heights that we were traveling to.  Once up there it was amazing view after amazing view.  After such busy days while being in Same, it was so nice to wind down and have a relaxing day at the seminary.  We all got to sleep in a little bit, followed by a delicious lunch, and proceeded to get absolutely embarrassed in a game of soccer.  It was amazing playing soccer with the students here and we actually only lost 5-3 but all three of our scores were from one of the students from the seminary.  The next few days are going to be relaxing days where we can put our mind to rest and enjoy a few safaris and buy some souvenirs from the market.  I’m extremely excited to see what the next few days bring.

John Conteh – We’ve looked at the diverse water stations ranging from rain harvesting, surface water, bore holes, and existing network. To finally wrap up on the goal of this trip, in comparison to the two regions between Dodoma and Same, I’ve had more take in the Same region. We go to this communities with the assumption that they are in need of water and in most times that is the case.  As the guys have already explained, Thursday really put things into perspective. After witnessing the lifestyle of one of the local tribes, the group was completely drained, leaving the technical aspect of the trip aside. It is fair to say that over the years, I’ve been taking my stay in the U.S. for granted. I feel privileged giving this opportunity to come back to Africa and see how difficult life can be without water. Though the objective isn’t quite fulfilled, this visit is definitely a start. I along with the rest of the guys on this trip have the capacity to make a difference in these communities.

Kyle Krieger – It’s really difficult to sit here and type these words, mostly because it is signaling the end of the trip. There has been days where I wondered why I was here and what was the point of leaving the comforts of my home in Columbus and really immerse myself into the culture of Africa. It hasn’t always been roughing it in the woods like I expected going into this trip, but it has been assimilation into a culture that I had no idea about. The people here in Tanzania work so incredibly hard… I say that as someone has performed manual labor for many jobs. This life in many parts of the rural areas is a day by day routine. One day without food or water could spell disaster and could result in the death of a person or of livestock. Each of which play such an integral part of the life in here in Africa. For me, I grew up in a well off household in the best part of town, day to day life only revolved around all of the extra activities I was involved in. I am a middle class American living the easy life. This trip has been one of evolution for me, to be completely honestly I thought I was totally prepared to see poverty at the worst levels… I was completely wrong. When I saw the families in each community struggling just to make it by at any level, it brought out complete sadness in my heart. I’ve received a new outlook and a new fire to add to my life. The group of people I came with on this trip, and don’t get me wrong we are all different and many days we don’t see eye to eye on a lot of things, are a completely eclectic and brilliant group of engineers and humanitarians. I’m sure with the impact this trip has made on our lives we will be able to go back as better engineers and even better people. The world won’t change without people who are willing to take a stand and want to fix the problems that face the human race.  I am an engineer, I am here to solve problems and with the right type of teamwork we will make a difference. Thank you Tanzania for letting me find myself in a world full of hate.

Anna Apostel – The last few days have been a lot more than I expected. I was warned coming in that I would undergo a very large culture shock, but I never believed that it would have such a strong impact on me. I’m a woman in a primarily male dominated field so I know that I have had privileges given to me that are very rare even in the United States. We recently visited a wide range of communities in the Same region, but one made profound impact on me which I never expected. While visited one of the communities in the Lowlands of Same, primarily comprised of a very arid environment we had a woman speak out about the difficulties the local woman faced in the community. The women there were in charge of collecting water from sources several kilometers away, cooking meals, taking care of children, building homes and so much more. The woman was describe all of the tasks being completed and I could not help but feel that this was a powerful woman who could do so much more than I could ever fathom. She showed us here arm which many interpreted are her showing her strength by flexing her arm. When the translator finished the look of shock was present on all of our faces. She was showing the lash marks on her arm she received from the days she had not completed her tasks. What I felt then is very difficult to put into words. I came to the region expecting to be presented with water issues which I knew the region faced, but the impact the water issues have on the community weighed so much deeper than I expected. It drained me completely and the rest of the day was spent in a haze of trying to remain professional and trying to understand what I had seen and heard. I still am processing the experience and I doubt I will ever be able to fully understand the different social norms our world are accustomed to. It was the first time this trip I found being the only woman here to be difficult. I was in a world completely different than mine without anyone to truly understand what I was going through. I leave here wanting to help.  How does one help the diversity of communities we saw on this trip? How does one choose which communities need help the most help? How am I a graduate student in engineering while someone else suffers from back breaking chores and domestic violence? I want to help, but I’m more lost than ever. I never thought I would say this, but the engineering is the easy part.

Andrew Goldfarb – Since we have come to the Himo region our work and days have been lengthy and full of meetings and greetings. The region and the problems are different and similar than Dodoma, but there we have ben interacting on a much more personal level with the communities. The past few days I have experienced things that I never imagined I would experience on a level beyond the pages of National Geographic. Our guide threw us in the deep end with communities who were experiencing problems and suffering that I don’t know if I was mentally ready to handle. I thought I had prepared myself appropriately for what rural Africa was going to throw at us, but I think I had an unrealistic level of the suffering that occurs solely because I have never experienced anything quite like this. The contradiction of the beautiful landscape that I was admiring on the drive out suddenly was the furthest thing from my mind when I was watching a man and woman pull murky water from a small puddle next to one of the most astounding trees I have ever seen. I started thinking of the conflict of interest that photographers often have in scenarios like this. Do I continue to coldly take photos to document this suffering and make this trip feel like we are collecting photos for a museum exhibit or do I stop and take a step back to make myself feel better? This issue really started to bother me and grew even more during our time with the Masai people. My internal struggles grew as we went and visited a small Masai community. We entered a hut and I never felt more like an intruder in my life. We were welcomed but I didn’t feel welcome. We learned of their suffering and their struggles from varying elders, men, and women of the community and the desperation and struggles became even more real hearing them explain in detail what they do on a daily basis just to survive. It blew my mind and broke my heart. I know from this point on I will forever keep them in mind.

Robbie Pesarchick – It seems irresponsible to add my two cents to the tired discussion of water in Africa, but I’ll try to explain how I’m feeling. While previous posts may have seemed enthusiastic and hopeful, this experience beat me up.  It has been very frustrating.

The fact is that there are millions and millions of people who suffer from water scarcity.  Yesterday, we spent the entire day on a mountain; up and down, meeting communities that lack infrastructure, policy, or source for reliable water.  The leaders we met with collectively represented upwards of 15,000 upland mountain-dwellers, and that was just in the three communities we stopped.  As we eventually returned to the asphalt road below, I could look up and see some two dozen identical mountain sides; presumably with identical thirsty smiles.

And all of that is to say nothing of the lowlands.  What I saw down in the Masai flatlands is a suffering entirely its own; the type that couldn’t be clarified using words.  Repeatedly, I heard frustration towards the crawling pace of developmental progress.  I saw projects and technologies (hap hazardously prescribed by the well-intentioned) which have failed mechanically or systemically.  The problems here don’t know boundary either.  Rural water issues in the developing world are nearly universal.

These issues won’t be resolved with the assistance of one student, one university, or one country.  People are very thirsty and we all need to figure out our place in the solution.

End of tirade.  I’ve always preferred good news come second.

Progress is being made.  We’ve seen communities with good storage, reliable sources, and effective economic models.  These people are thriving with good schools, healthier people, and enough agricultural product to take much to market.  We’ve met brilliant NGO’s with organized effective systems designed to methodically improve water infrastructure and access in their neighborhoods.  The fact of the matter, then, is that there exist do-able, if exhaustingly delicate solutions to rural water shortages.  My take away from this experience is that, like the impossibly strong Masai women, our path to water will require some many thousand steps; one by one.

I’d like to thank our sponsors at OSU and GWI, our new friends in Tanzania: Nevtal, MKAJI, Simavi, KiHO, every community that welcomed us with happy faces and warm food, our hosts at the Four Point Hotel, the Maua Seminary, local government officials of Same, and most warmly of all, our drivers Richard and Joseph, who endured many tiring 14 hour days and brought us to whichever cliff side we asked.

Jonathan Ogland-Hand – Hello world. I am writing this from our nice hotel – our rural community portion of the trip has concluded. As I am typing this I am shocked at how unfamiliar my keyboard feels unfamiliar to my fingers. It’s hard to believe we have only been gone for 11 days – it feels like lifetime ago.

During the past few days we have been meeting with rural communities that are in need of an engineering solution to a water related problem. Overall, we ended up meeting with nine different communities over the past three days. I saw poverty like I have never seen before and it was emotionally draining and exhausting.

The most difficult community to meet with was the Masai, which was on Wednesday. The Masai are historically nomadic people who associate illness with water bodies and thus have been living as far away as possible from large bodies of water since they moved (by foot) from northern Africa (across the Sahara desert) in the 1700’s. These people had literally no possessions besides the clothes on their back and lived in dirt huts they built out of sticks, dirt, and dung. They were so remote that most people did not even speak Swahili (so we had another layer of translation in our conversations).

In the Masai culture (from how I understood it) the men look after the livestock and the women do everything else. A man can have up to 10 wives, each of which is responsible for building a dirt hut. From what we were told they use knives (about a foot long) to dig holes about a yard deep in the ground for vertical posts (small trees about 6 inches in diameter) and then they weave smaller twigs/branches in between these and enclose everything in dirt mixed with dung, cow urine, or water if available. In addition to building these huts women are also responsible for getting water, which is a day journey (it look us over an hour to drive from their homes to the river).

I was aware that poverty at this level existed but being there in person, covered in dirt (I felt like I was in the middle of a windy desert), smelling the smells (which are hard to describe, but they were bad), and knowing that there is zero possibility for any these people to change their situation on their own was one of the most difficult and most shocking experiences on my life. It was really hard to keep down lunch that day and I was unable to eat more than a small bowl of rice for dinner. That night the group talked about how we were feeling and everyone was pretty overwhelmed. There was so much to comprehend and it was so impossible to put into words.

I left that community unsure I would be able to help them if a project was started simply because how difficult it was for me to interact with them and see how they live. Everyone got the sense that these people were just one bad day away from not making it – like if something happened that prevented them from their daily tasks of survival just once, they might die. I honestly think the only way people are able to live a western lifestyle after seeing something like this is to deny that it exists. Prof Hagenberger told all of us that from his experience and the experience of all the previous students he has brought to rural Africa, we would fall back into our lives very quickly once we return. I am interested to see what happens.

Tyler Pica – After a long day of travel yesterday, we were all very excited to arrive in Himo late last night.  We arrived at the seminary late last night, and to describe the scenery here would be an understatement.  All of the landscaping here is absolutely incredible and all of the people we have met here have been extremely welcoming.  For dinner last night, we started with banana soup, followed by rice, chicken, and a plethora of vegetables.  I was extremely skeptical of the food here, but honestly it has been some of the best tasting food I have had in months.  Everything is very fresh with amazing flavor.  I am looking forward to the meals to come, which is not something that I have said since we have been here.  Travel from Himo to Same was quite the journey, and it was much different than what we have seen in the southern region.  In the southern region it is very dry and dessert like, and today we actually went inside a small forest to reach a watering hole which surprised me, I never expected to see that coming here.  The communities were all very welcoming and it was more of an introduction today than anything.  I am really looking forward to furthering the relationships here and seeing the facilities in the rest of the neighboring communities.

Kyle Krieger- Today was another day of back and forth travel but it was a good day of research. In the Himo region, it is obvious that the rainy season is sufficient to supply a village with a sufficient amount of water for a community for both agricultural and domestic use. All of the villages we saw today were small. There is a real sense of community and need in these areas and for me personally I can see the application of our engineering skills to a project one of these. I also loved the NGO today (KIHO) they were extremely prepared and I think they would be a great match for the type of projects that capstone encapsulates. Maybe coming from a small town I have a soft spot for smaller areas but I really think the smaller group of people in Himo would be able to really thrive with a water system we could design. With the proper implementation and continued education I think this is where we start as a university in making a lasting impact in Tanzania.

Anna – The Himo region is night and day from Dodoma. Compared to the arid and dessert like climate we saw in Dodoma, we are now surrounded by lush vegetation and significantly more water. That being said, within a few kilometers, due to the drastic elevation changes, we go from villages of adequate water resources and poor infrastructure to those in drier lowland areas with limited access to water. The diversity here makes the problems unique for every community and requires innovative thinking and ideas to solve each individual problem in the best possible way for the community. The NGO we met with, KIHO, has established good relationships throughout the communities in the Same region which made today a successful day of meeting communities and seeing the projects in development. I am excited to continue to explore this region and get to know the communities and at KIHO better.

Andy Goldfarb- After waking up to the extremely lush and green seminary in the Himo region, our day was under way after a drive over to the town of Same. We met with a new NGO who was very prepared with schedules and pre planned communities with a widely differing range of completion. After visiting the communities in Dodoma and visiting these new communities in Himo it became clear to me that there was a lot of potential in these communities to progress them forward either with design to bring water to a wider region or to develop a progressive community system to effectively collect funds from the successful water development. These first two villages we had lengthy community meetings with the leaders who were eager to show us their water sources. They were on opposite ends of the spectrum and really got me thinking about exactly how we can utilize our engineering skills to help these communities in a positive way and develop their systems both technically and at a community level.

James Phelps – The food and beverage at the seminary was a vast increase in quality and volume compared with meals earlier in the week. The members of the seminary couldn’t be nicer to us. They are very excited to have us stay with them. That welcome to the region has made the beginning of the Himo region part of the trip much more comfortable for all of us. We met with a new NGO who led us through the steps to put every step in the right direction. The manager took us to several villages where we were able to meet with community leaders and take opportunities to get to know people. This getting to know process is long and tough due to communication and language issues, but is well worth it due to the opportunity to help people. That is what is most important in these short windows we get to have face to face interaction. I know that the longer I stay here, the more I feel invested in completing something that genuinely improves the lives of people who live here.

Kyle Bramman – Northern Tanzania (Himo region and Same town) is much different than what we saw in Dodoma. Here it is much more vegetated, even more so than Moshi the first night. On the seminary grounds where we are staying, there are gardens with banana trees, avocado trees, and many others. The living conditions are much better than we expected, and the food is very abundant and very tasty.

Today, we drove to Same town which is about two hours away from the seminary, and we met with an NGO there that has a group of potential communities that could use an upgraded water sanitary and distribution system. We met with a few different people in the local government and brought the district engineer out with us to the sites. Despite not seeing much today, I was impressed with this NGO and think there are communities with situations that have the potential for better system implementation. I am excited to see what the last three days of site visits will bring.

John Conteh – Himo compared to Dodoma region is definitely different. After resting up from the long drive back, some of us were able to get up for mass the following morning. It was an experience for me because I haven’t been in one of those ever. As for the sites visits, I was overwhelmed at the same time sadden by what I saw. The fact that in some communities, the local citizens had to walk an x amount of miles to fetch water. Overall, I believe the NGO who is leading us to these sites could help us identify a potential solution for improved water systems.

Jonathan Ogland-Hand – Today we met with an NGO, met with two different rural communities, and saw a little of their respective water systems. Seeing people in such poverty was difficult but the hardest part was witnessing a man drinking directly from what I would call a large murky puddle. This “large puddle” was a spring fed water source that is approximately 15 feet in diameter. It took us about 10-15 minutes to drive to it and, according to the two community members that were with us, provides water to over 700 people. After drinking the equivalent of over a glass of water from this source, the man said that he did not see a need to boil it before drinking because the community does not boil any water from this source when they are using it in their homes. I have never had a more eye-opening experience that made me consider how much I take easy and unlimited access to clean water for granted.

Robert Pesarchick – Today felt very productive.  We seek to form relationships in the region; so introducing ourselves to the NGO, the public works office, and a few communities felt like the most effective way to start.  In learning a bit of Swahili before the trip, it was emphasized through several sources that introductions and pleasantries are crucial to the culture.  It felt like the mood of the group was anxious.  Anxious to get into the meat of the issues; anxious to weigh, measure, and calculate a scenario.  Above and beyond that, I think everyone was taken aback by their surroundings.  I know I was.  Kilimanjaro Hope Organization is a brilliant set of workers, who are as compassionate as they are thoroughly organized.   We’re unfathomably fortunate that people are willing to take time out of their schedules to show us their country.

This morning we traveled to a community outside of the University of Dodoma: eighty-thousand people divided into two sub regions.  The community has had several issues with their current water supply system.  Their new gasoline powered submergible pump consumes more fuel than the old diesel pump, which has been running since the 70’s.  With a rapidly expanding population, the new pump is being found insufficient to meet current and speculative future demands.  In addition, their infrastructure only provides water to each distribution center when both: the pump is turned on and the distribution point (of which there are seven,) is unlocked and the valve is opened.  This means that each subsection of the village only has access to potable water every other day.  In addition, the pump has been found to provide insufficient pressure to the far end of the network.  There is a storage tank in the system but, at the far end, it remains dry.  The community leaders were so hospitable with their time concerns, and ideas.  We came to look at the issues, and gather insight on what sorts of problems rural water systems may meet.

With technical background out of the way, we’ll open to individual reflections.

Robert Pesarchick – Today felt like, so far, the most fantastic hours of my life.  Our contact and facilitator set up an amazing Q & A forum for us with many figures in the community, including chairpersons, water attendant, and a primary school teacher.  With the interpreter, we were able to ask so many questions first hand to the people we’ve all wanted to work with.

During the drive in, the road was lined with houses where all of the residents would stop what they were doing to wave and smile.  It’s easy to feel home in a place where everyone is so enthusiastically friendly.  I’d be lying to say I didn’t fantasize for a few moments about moving.

I’m struck by the resilience of the people.  They’d mentioned that their pump was once down for two years, in which time they all got their water from a singular hand dug well a half day’s walk from the other end of the community.

Kyle Krieger- Wow, where to start today… Basically today was the culmination of all the hard work we had put into last semester. An up close and personal look at a community with a water system designed by outside engineers and then implemented into the culture.

The community had two areas, with over 8,000 people. That is a lot of people to serve, but that has been made possible by a deep well drilled in 1971. The output of the well has been able to keep up with the demands of the people for the most part, however today also was the side of the project I felt like we had the most unknowns about. Those unknowns included things like how the water system would fare once it was built and outside influence was gone. Maintenance of the pump and of the distribution was also a key piece the group received insight on, as well as being able to see the actual system in person.

Rob has mentioned it but I will repeat it, the fact these people have to work so hard every day just to get by is a testament to the human spirit. The people here have had some of the most genuine smiles I have ever seen in my life. It honestly has been the biggest joy to see the kids smile… I hope that I can help bring more of those smiles to communities like the one we saw today.

Kyle Bramman-The word has been used a lot today, but I think it is safe to say insightful best describes the community we visited this afternoon and how it impacted what our capstone project entailed and what we are trying to accomplish while we are here. Today we were able to grasp more of an understanding of how the village worked as a whole. For example, we got to see different groups of livestock be brought over to the livestock well for their drink in what seemed like a very well thought out system. There was never a bottleneck while we were there nor no one to drink at all.

I also was impressed at how friendly and optimistic everyone we encountered was. They laid out their problems to us but did so in a way that wasn’t complaining. The children were also some of the happiest kids I have ever seen. Despite the language barrier we tried to communicate and were still capable of having fun with them. It is really a shame: how people people act when they have so much to thankful for. I can’t wait to visit some more communities and make our way north to Himo.

James Phelps – I know that I personally was overwhelmed regarding the cost of water for the community and how many people are very dependent on funds over time. The money in my wallet throughout the day would have been enough money to sustain that community for over a month, if not many months. Seeing this poverty in a community with such good ideas and plans for the future, but left without due to the low opportunity to increase their wealth for the implementation of these ideas was definitely a new perspective for many. It shows us that many of the issues at hand are not singularly engineering issues. This thought is exactly what first hand experiences can teach.

Tyler Pica – I just wanted to point out one very rewarding thing that I/we have come across since we have visited the last two communities.  Yesterday once we left the community we were in the car ride back and I was having a conversation with Rob and Kyle about how the tank layout used in the community was very similar to the design their group had suggested in their prototype.  Today, we visited a different community that used the pump that our group had decided to use in our prototype design.  It was just a very rewarding experience seeing that our research was validated and plausible to use in real world situations.  To me, that was one of the most rewarding experiences of the trip thus far: we’re on the right track.

Thanks!  

Anna – After getting a full night of sleep, we embarked on our first day of no travel. Meeting with a local NGO, we journeyed to a rural community outside of Dodoma to observe a health clinic which has recently undergone restructuring. My first experience with a community in the flesh and seeing an implemented water system was truly extraordinary. One can only understand so much about these communities and their needs, as well as what systems will work or how successful they will be, while sitting behind a computer screen and crunching numbers. This community experience was different in that support and education in the community for the health clinic is not something that is readily found as many communities have not been as exposed to NGOs and other sources of sustainable development. The community however was very welcoming and excited not only to meet us and show us the clinic, but also, to my surprise, eager for suggestions and insight from a group of students for improvements. This just showcased and the level of education the community leaders had in advancing the health and wellbeing of the community and how open they were in engaging in further education. I am very interesting to observe the contrasts that may exist between this communities and those we will be visiting up north next week.

Tyler – The one thing that continues to impress me with this journey is just how welcoming all the members of the community are.  The community that we visited today was extremely welcoming and willing to give their time.  We observed the water system put in place for the health care facility implemented for a community housing nearly 8,000.  The health care facility welcomes people from near and far, whether they are a part of the same community or not.  My favorite part was talking to the head nurse herself, she was very eager to hear our suggestions and helped us immensely by showing us the downstream effect of the water supplied by the implemented system.  After observing the water system in the community, we visited the University of Dodoma, the facilities were breathtaking.  Seeing the amount of infrastructure being thrown up in such a short amount of time was amazing (and I thought the construction at OSU was bad).  All of the growth this university is experiencing just goes to show the bright future that is being provided here by the government funding.  I am looking forward to keeping up with the university, it is obvious that great things are to come from this growing nation.

Jonathan Ogland-Hand – As Tyler mentioned the amount of development going into the University was insane. According to Beno (the director of the Health Clinic development project) the University is split into 5 colleges and total enrollment is projected to be 40,000 people. The construction is being funded by the Tanzanian government and Chinese companies have won all the bids for the work, which also includes all the road construction that is occurring. But, Richard (one of our drivers/interpreters) has made comments about the low quality of Chinese work in Tanzania, which we all found really interesting. Another interesting thing I noticed is the culture around cell phones. From the observations I saw tonight at dinner and driving around this afternoon it appears cell phones conversations take priority over face to face conversations in Tanzania. There were multiple times today that someone in our group was talking to a Tanzanian whose cell phone rang, which then temporarily stalled the conversation. Lastly, (and most interestingly to me) was the news on TV tonight at dinner. A restaurant named Dodoma Carnival was recommended to us and when we arrived there was soccer playing on the TV. About halfway through the first half of the (very close and exciting) game the channel was switched to the news. There is an important election coming up in Tanzania and all the politicians were being interviewed. Even more interesting than the fact that the sports channel was turned off for the news was that the Tanzanians stopped their conversations to listen. Even our Joseph and Richard (our two drivers/interpreters) stopped eating and left our table to move closer to listen. We Americans all found the choice to learn about important politics instead of eating food and watching sports very bizarre.

Kyle B – Today was interesting to say the least…We left the hotel and got haggled in Arusha while we exchanged money, Mr Professor bought some phones, and purchased our first few cases of bottled water. Our lunch consisted of a buffet of pretty authentic Tanzanian cuisine. Little did we know we were eating without the knowledge that we weren’t going to be on paved road for nearly five hours after. We made it out through the “shortcut” and arrived in Dodoma. Despite the many wrong turns and bumpy ride we had the opportunity to drive through a lot of remote communities where everyone was excited to see us. I’m definitely happy we experienced this as it will be something I will never forget.

John C. – In expanding to what KB wrote down, the food was pretty good. Although, it seems some of the guys are still skeptical about the food. I feel it’s just a matter of time they will definitely get over the hump. Now what I thought was going to be an eight hour ride to Dodoma didn’t quite go as scheduled. As KB elaborated, the unpaved road was no joke. The first couple of hours were okay, but as we got to the unpaved road that’s when things got all bad in a good way. Luckily our driver was quite alert on keeping me up personally riding as “co-pilot” by pointing out some important settings in the regions we passed by on this “massage” like feel ride. We finally got to Dodoma and overall I feel somewhat settled.

Andrew G – After waking up and finally getting a good look at what the African landscape and environment looked like it finally hit me what it’s like to be out of the states. Going up to the fifth floor viewpoint of our first hotel I was amazed at our proximity to a enormous mountain and a small, but bustling city center. From there my excitement and interest only grew as we traveled through rural stretches to Arusha, our first taste of a city in Tanzania. It was amazing. After we had spent some time exchanging cash, getting hussled,a nd purchasing water we started our 8 hour journey to Dodoma on what our Driver joseph called the “free massage road. He wasn’t kidding. Even though the road was rough and bumpy I had a blast riding along sight seeing the heart of rural Africa. The faces of people as we drove by was cool enough, but paired with some obsevational learning of their lifestyle it only increased the value. I’ve gotten my first taste of what our two weeks is going to be like and I couldn’t be more excited

After a total of three flights: starting in Columbus and finally ending at Kilimanjaro International the group made their way to Africa. Then crossing several time zones the travelers showed a little bit of fatigue after the almost two days of flying. Getting off the plane at Kilimanjaro, the group was welcomed with a clear night and 70 degree weather. A smooth transition through customs, landed the students with their two drivers Richard and Joseph. The drive from the airport to the hotel was about forty minutes and the weary travelers celebrated a successful first half of travel.

Kyle Krieger – Where to begin… that was a lot of flying in a short amount of time. Short layovers didn’t give the group much time to recover but we battled on. So I’m going to continue with my food. Delta flight to Amsterdam was ravioli and it was pretty good, can’t really complain as it filled the hole. Breakfast on that flight was your basic yogurt and croissant also pretty solid. I didn’t know what to expect once we got on the KLM flight out of Amsterdam, but I was pleasantly surprised. I had chicken fried rice and it had raisins, which was a little weird  but it tasted good. Then I got my favorite surprise of the trip when they gave us pizza for dinner. Overall I give it a solid C+. But I’m just happy to be off the plane.

Jonathan Ogland-Hand – Hello world! We are all very tired from a long day of travel and are wrapping up the night because we have to leave at 7am tomorrow morning for a 9 hour car ride. Im going to write this post about the time after we landed in Tanzania. We stepped off our 747 directly down some stairs on wheels and onto the tarmac. Immediately the air smelled like wood fires and as soon as we stepped inside the airport to go through customs there were two signs warnings us about Ebola. After standing in line for a while we all made it out and quickly into our transportation vehicles for the week. We have two drivers that are also our interpreters for the 2 weeks: Joseph and Richard. They both seem like great guys and are full of stories. Prof Hagenberger knows both of them from past trips to Tanzania. It is light here from 6am to 6pm so it was dark our whole drive to the hotel, which was a bummer because we couldn’t see a lot of the countryside but wow was the sky dark. There was zero light pollution and the stars were absolutely gorgeous. Some of the houses/shops that were on the side of the road had electricity and I was very surprised at the amount of advertising. Multiple buildings had coca-cola painting on all the exterior walls, and only one had Pepsi. The other surprising fact is the amount of English signs that exist both in the Amsterdam airport and in Tanzania so far.

Rob Pesarchick – Last entry for the night.  I’m sitting in what you’d consider an outdoor lobby at the Bristol Cottages.  Everyone else has gone to wash the flight-funk off of themselves so I get a minute to think.  The past day has been surreal, thrown through one airport terminal then another.  Finally, landing in the dark; in a place with just as many familiar sights as foreign.  Billboards, gas stations, and air conditioning all serve to make this place seem comfortably familiar.  A market of a dozen individual produce stands stood somewhere along the street, unprotected in just the sort of way our grand parents describe a more trusting society they had grown up in.  Right now, facing a courtyard of exotic trees, hearing crickets chirping, and with a belly full of sensational ugali, I have little room for thought or sensation beyond thankfulness to be here.  Tomorrow morning the roosters will crow at dawn, and I can’t wait to see the country unfold lit up by day.  Midnight just beeped, so that’s a wrap for today.

We’ll start uploading photos soon, for now (no one feel photogenic after such a flight) this yellowed and blurry picture of the courtyard will have to do.

We are the nine students (along with professor Hagenberger) on our way to Tanzania in association with The Ohio State University and the Global Water Institute.  We’re currently waiting for our connecting flight in Detroit towards Amsterdam.  We’d like to take the time to introduce ourselves and maybe share some initial thoughts.

Anna Apostel- Graduate student at The Ohio State University studying Environmental Engineering with a focus on hydrology – I’m teetering between nervous and excited at the moment. I never enjoy the commuting portion of traveling, but I have always loved going to new places and enjoying new cultures. I’m excited for the prospect of tacking a new continent on my travel map and am beyond excited for the potential new relationships to be built in an on going effort to improve water access and quality in a sustainable way, as well as all that Tanzania has to teach me.

Kyle Bramman – Senior at Ohio State studying Civil engineering with a focus on construction. – I have some experience travelling abroad, but nothing to the extreme of Tanzania. I am very excited to travel around the northern half of the country and complete the trip with a mini safari to one of the most highly regarded parks in Africa.

John Conteh – Senior at the The Ohio State University studying Civil Engineering mainly focusing on the Water Resource aspect. I haven’t really been to East Africa before but I’ve traveled mostly in the Western parts. I look forward to this trip and learning a new culture in Tanzania.

Andrew Goldfarb- Is a senior at The Ohio State University studying Civil Engineering with a focus in structures. This trip will be my first time leaving the United States and I’ve really never been more nervous and excited for any trip I’ve taken previously. I feel like I’ll be able to settle into the ways of traveling abroad quickly and get over being nervous soon after. I can’t wait to interact and learn the lives of the people we’re going to meet who are natives and those also staying with us in the hotels.

Kyle Krieger- Also a senior at The Ohio State University studying Civil Engineering with a focus on Construction Management. I have flown out of the country one time to Cancun, Mexico so I look forward to seeing more of the world. I like to eat and I’d consider myself a monsieur of fine food, I’m talking about Skyline Chili mostly. So I am interested to see what the food selection is like in Tanzania. I’ll be honest, I will probably lose a couple pounds on this trip. On a serious note though I am looking forward to this trip and all of the great sites and scenes I will get to take in.

Jonathan Ogland-Hand – I am entering my second year in the Environmental Science Graduate Program. I was involved with Engineers Without Borders as an undergrad and I have definitely missed participating in humanitarian service this past year. My past international travel experience includes a vacation to Denmark and a service trip to Nicaragua. I am very exited for this trip and to help and interact with people of different cultures.

Rob Pesarchick – Is a senior at The Ohio State University studying Civil engineering and focusing in Water Resources. – I haven’t flown since I was around three years old, so this feels like a first for me.  I don’t really know the rules, like leaving my boarding pass in the machine and having to go get a new one.  Looking forward to being done with the flights now, as the novelty of flying wore off within the first thirty minute connection.

James Phelps – Undergraduate at The Ohio State University studying Civil Engineering with a focus in construction. Last time I was out of the country was when I traveled to Andros Island in the Bahamas to do a field study at the Forfar Field Station. I’m excited to travel to Europe and Africa to see how things are on other continents. It will be interesting for me to be immersed in a culture and language that I have absolutely no knowledge of. This should be a lot of fun for all of us!

Tyler Pica – Senior at The Ohio State University studying Civil Engineering with a focus in Water Resources.  – Have enjoyed the group of guys and gal that we are traveling with a lot, look forward to what this trip has to bring.  We have only made it to Detroit and I can tell it is going to be a great trip.  We are trying our best to stay entertained with the long travel hours whether that be watching Rob on his first flight, long colorful tunnels in the airport, or convincing Kyle that monsieur means the same thing as connoisseur (in case you had trouble reading his above bio).

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