"Hakuna Matata"... means "no worries"

Every day may not be good, but there's something good in every day. ~Author Unknown

Hakuna Matata ya'll, I am doing well and I know that this time in my life is all part of the bigger picture!
I don't want you to worry about me as I am doing well and trying to take in every experience that comes my way... A few happy things from the past week...
We took a morning drive on Friday to the town of Moshi which is where Mt. Kilimanjaro is... Sadly the gigantic mountain was hidden behind the clouds and I really only got a glimpse of the base. I will try again before I leave as I know it will be an amazing sight! I did get the chance to see a lot of "untouched" Tanzania as we drove and passed many villages and beautiful green hills between Arusha and Moshi.

I took this to show how strong and hard working the women here are... You see them daily walking with buckets of water, baskets of bananas, piles of laundry, or sacks of rice!

Africa's lush greenery from the road trip to Moshi

Neema's 3rd Birthday ~ Mama Heath and Neema



Snuggling with Prey and Martine at Neema's party

Saturday I spent most of the day with my new pals, Heath & Neema, Amy & Prey, Liza, Vincent and a slew of precious kids to celebrate Neema's 3rd birthday. Several of the village kids came and we had pizza and cake, true American style as Tanzanians don't celebrate birthdays like we do. It was a fun afternoon and a great boost for my spirit!

On my way home, I was waiting at the Impala Round-a-bout for my Dalla Dalla van and had the chance to witness fun wedding traditions of Tanzania. It was truly a sight to see as Saturdays are all about weddings here!! Bridal parties drive in big caravans of decorated cars and trucks full of people and a band that plays music as they pass thought the streets. They go through the circle and then they park their cars and line up to march down the street into the greenery inside the round-a-bout and take pictures... I saw this taking place and tried to snap a picture and was baffled to see three other wedding parties do this same thing in a matter of minutes... They had a "battle of the bands" as they waited to have their turns to march! So fun!

A few happy and random moments from the week, but wanted to share :-)

I am blessed to be here and I know that this experience in Africa is bigger than I know or can comprehend. Thank you for sharing in this journey with me ~

xoxo,

Mandy