Updates from Tanzania

Habari - Greetings,

Here is some information about Language School and the area where we are staying: 

·         The Catholic Diocese of Musoma has a large piece of property on Lake Victoria which includes Epheta Retreat Center, which is operated by Franciscan Friars;

·         the Seminary for young men in high school is located next to the retreat center,

·         the Language School is next door to the Novitiate and Mother House, where the outdoor Stations of the Cross are located.  There is an artist named Ndege who has painted several murals on these properties.  By the way, ndege is Swahili for bird and airplane. 

In the pictures Frank is in front of the mural on the outside of the church at Epheta.  The Franciscan priest in the mural on the right is now stationed in Rome, but his brother is a Franciscan Brother still at Epheta.  The large mural is in the Chapel at the Language School.  Many missionaries come to the school to learn Swahili, so the mural represents missionaries from many countries to go forth and spread the Gospel.  There are also paintings by the same artist on the outdoor Stations of the Cross at the Novitiate, next door to the Language School. There is a painting by the same artist in the dining room of the Language School; he has managed to capture the local spirit of the people.  Also, since we are in Lent we are posting two of the beautiful Stations of the Cross outside the school.

After our trip to Bukoba, we have been back at the study routine and school schedule.

The visit with Regina, Rachael, and Polina couldn't have been better. We have a good sense about the activities of BUWEA and can see where our contributions would be helpful. So, we are anxious to get settled there. Besides Regina, there is one other person looking for suitable housing for us. We are optimistic with initial reports from this other person.  Bukoba is totally different than here, having more of a hilly terrain and significantly more rain in the wet season. It is also much cooler; we saw winter coats for sale....go figure!

Regina is an absolute delight and we are having some very productive visits with her.  Her English is better than many of our fellow students in language school, who speak English as a second language.  Today we went to the BUWEA office and tomorrow we will see some of the projects, as well as have a tour of Bukoba. 

As you look at the photos you will see the progress on the future soy processing factory.  In the one where everyone is single file Frank and the women are going to check out the water supply that will service the factory.

The visa issue is still a work in progress. We had to get an extension as a student here at school which was not in our plan, but we can get over it.

These 4 months here are well worth the effort as it will give us a better foundation not only with the language but with the culture. Part of the curriculum here is learning the culture.   We are adding some photos of the wonderful aftrenoons we spend with the orphans here.

So, that's it from Musoma TZ.  We pray that all of you in San Antonio are well.

Blessings,

Frank & Karen Wimbush, IWM Candidates