Homework with the children and Yakini

On our second day we decided to have a lie in with us having very little sleep the day before. Once we got up with had black tea and sweet bread for breakfast, the bread is made fresh at the house. We then went up to the center around half ten, which was just in time for their tea time, which would be the equivalent of break time back home in the UK. We got to spend some time with the children before they headed back to their lessons, which we sat in on, seeing the teaching styles was an eye opener it is very different to the schooling in England, there is very little activity from the children and not much involvement, they mainly get taught at. At the center there are about 45 orphaned children who are taught during the day with day students from the local village who attend the school.

Intermediate class at the Center. 

Then we went to visit the main school Yakini which also has Living Water children that board as well as paying students but mainly it's a private school for children in the area, it schools over 500 children. We were then showed the town of Arusha which was interesting we were able to change our money too, we came back to the house to write down information we have learnt and then the power cut out for three hours which was an experience in its self, we had to eat in the dark which was interesting it also meant no internet for three hours which was not fun when I want to inform family of everything. It was amazing to see how the women who cooked our food the 'dadas' just carried on with everything, they are so used to it as it happens very often apparently.

                              Children from Yakini.    

Finally arrived in Tanzania

So after three flights and 16 hours later I arrived in Kilimanjaro airport, after only 2 hours sleep whilst travelling I was exhausted! W were met with a sign with my name on by the friendliest guy called Deo (Just like in the movies), he was so happy to see us! 
We had a 40 minutes drive to Arusha, we drove down some of the longest and straightest roads I have ever seen! We picked up David who was the guy we had been in contact for the placement he was really lovely. Everyone we have met have been so happy and cheerful. After arriving at the center we just spent some time relaxing and met everyone that lives here we were taught a few phrases that I really need to remember! In the afternoon we went to meet the children at the center which is only a five minute walk from the house, the children were so welcoming, they call me Teacher Amanda, they loved showing us around the center and their classrooms and their bedrooms, they asked so many questions about England's Queen and and Princesses. We were offered lunch which we had to accept as it is seen as rude to reject a gift it was interesting to try but wasn't very nice we had maize and a meat stew which wasn't a very nice texture!
We met all the other volunteers in the evening who were so lovely too us, and offered to take us shopping so we could buy snacks. Tiredness hit me rather harshly, so we headed to bed rather early that night, it felt amazing to be in a bed, even with a mosquito net up.             


Photo on the left is the top of Mount Kilimanjaro. 

One month until Tanzania

Today is exactly one month until embark on a sixteen hour, 6,872 mile journey from Manchester airport to Kilimanjaro airport to take part in a three week volunteer opportunity through my university. I'll be working with Living Water Children's Centre and i am so excited to get there and start. I have volunteered before in Thailand at a orphanage for a couple of days and wished i could of stayed much longer so i am thoroughly looking forward to spending a longer time volunteering. I have been trying to volunteer to be able to go on this adventure and i am so close to my target! 

For anyone wanting to volunteer in Tanzania a heads for you is that you have to get two Visa's wish come to around £170, when we first chose or charity to volunteer through we weren't that clued up on the visa system so finding out we had to pay that much was bit of a shock. 

I've linked my fundraising page just in case any of you sympathies with me and know how difficult it is to fund raise when you're a student trying to hold down a job too!

http://www.youcaring.com/other/help-living-water-children-s-centre-/246591

Countdown to Tanzania

So I have 54 days until i set off on a 16 hour journey to Tanzania. So far I have realised raising money is pretty damn hard especially around Christmas time. But my excitement about going out there and helping so many young lives is a lot greater then the worry about not being able to raise all the money, I know some how it will work out. 
But if any one that is reading this can spare a few pounds to a wonderful charity that helps and loves so many young children that have had grown up with no family other than the wonderful people at Living Water Children's Centre, here is my fundraising page if any one can spare a little bit of money. 
https://www.youcaring.com/other/help-living-water-children-s-centre-/246591

Volunteering In Tanzania

I am going to be Volunterring in Arusha, Tanzania help out at a children's centre that supports, teaches, feeds, clothes and cares for orphans and children so have nothing. the organiasation is call Living Water Children's Centre.
http://www.livingwaterchildren.org/. 
This is a plea for help, I don't have many followers on this blog but if any one that see's this page donates a couple of pound to this amazing cause that I am going to be visiting in March 2015 to help it would mean a great lot to me! 
Go to my youcaring page http://www.youcaring.com/other/help-living-water-children-s-centre-/246591 and donate what you can, you will be helping brings supplies to the children as well as helping myself be able to go and volunteer. Thank you.

Dublin Zoo and Temple Bar

After a nice relaxed evening we woke up to a lovely day with thankfully no rain. After the most delicious breakfast at the hotel we headed on a short walk to Dublin Zoo, I felt like a little kid as we got closer to the zoo, I was so excited after not being to a zoo in years and having a love for animals my perfect day was about to begin. 

I do not agree with zoo's where the animals look cooped up, but Dublin zoo is anything but, it is the biggest zoo in Europe and all with in the beautiful grounds of Phoenix Park. 
It was great to see huge enclosures and the animals being looked after very well.It was great to see that some of the animals were even in the same enclosures, such as giraffes, zebras, rhinos and ostriches'.

You can spend hours looking at one enclosure, walking past the rhino's just as we were about to carry on to the next enclosure the rhino's started to fight, it was so interesting noticing the ways they communicate. 

The cutest animals there in my opinion were the penguins and the red pandas. Walking past the Red Panda's you couldn't even notice that the panda was there i just thought it was an empty enclosure, it was so open you wouldn't of imagined that there was an animal even there, it was asleep at first and we caught a glimpse when it was waking up and yawning, the moment it was stretching was a ridiculous amount of cuteness! I wanted to take the ball of fluff home with me.                                                
We headed back to the hotel after the best day at the zoo! To relax before our romantic evening celebrating our 1 year anniversary, we were heading to a beautiful Italian restaurant  which was in Temple Bar. We both got dolled up for the evening, we decided to walk along the river side to get to Temple Bar. Temple Bar is one of my favourite places I have been, after staying there for my 18th Birthday with my best friend a few years back it was lovely to go back, the atmosphere alone is just worth going for, the buskers playing out in the streets, seeing so many people piling into a pub to listen to the live musicians. We had the most perfect evening. Couldn't believe it was our last night in Dublin, we didn't want it to end. 

Arrived in Dublin.

After a very quick flight from Manchester to Dublin, which only took us 30 minutes we had arrived, it wasn't the best weather but it wasn't raining so couldn't complain. After grabbing a bit to eat we headed to our hotel. Of course the day i had chosen to fly is the day of a big hurling match so we were greeted with traffic and road shut off that would of got us to our hotel so much quicker, so begrudgingly parting with €45 we were finally at our beautiful hotel. We were staying

at the Ashling Hotel, which was a stunning hotel, with amazing food. We were staying in a Deluxe King size Room, which was just perfect, we even had our own little balcony over looking the Guinness Factory, which we later visited. We were just around the corner from Phoenix Park which is the biggest park in Europe and has it's own zoo which of course we visited. 

We dropped our bags off and decided we would walk around a bit before we could properly check in, no more than a two minute walk we spotted a museum, at first I was not very enthusiastic about going, but when we were there and finding out there was a whole section on the war history made it a whole lot better, both me and John (my boyfriend) find history on war fascinated so it was a perfect unexpected visit. 
Part of the museum is actually in a old army barracks called Collins Barracks.

It was just my luck that I had left my camera  back at the hotel not expecting to be in such an interesting place. 

After are little trip out we headed back to the hotel to go and jump on our ridiculously big bed and have a little rest, before heading down to the hotel restaurant where we had the most delicious meal, both having steak which was the best steak i had ever eaten with a lovely crème brûlée.