Say Hello to Mwanza

My last few weeks in Mwanza have been filled with new sights and sounds as I orient myself to the city. Dinners out are a regular occurrence here, as it's a time where everyone can meet and relax after a long day. Some of the restaurants I have been to include Sizzlers, the New Mwanza Hotel, the Richman, Goldcrest, and Isamilo Lodge. These restaurants all have similar food selections- most with Indian/Chinese/Authentic African options. Goldcrest, my new favourite place, is a rooftop restaurant overlooking the city. Most nights there is a keyboard player that sings the oldies (to my delight many of CD 98.9's set list was played) with female vocal accompaniment. This pair is a delight to hear. 




Some daytime views from the top of Goldcrest Hotel...

I have started to work with the APYN staff on some of the projects that they are focusing on at the moment. These include packaging for the yoghurt, business and marketing strategies for new kitchens, as well as some financial analysis. Ana and Esther have been so welcoming to Kate and I as new interns, and I think we are all excited to be working together. 

A few days ago, Esther was talking about the impacts that she has seen the project have on people in the community, and the communities themselves. Listening to her stories and seeing the excitement she had gave me goosebumps and reaffirmed my belief in the project. 

Ana and Kate

This past Friday night during a lovely Mexican fiesta with Kate, Emily, Sarah (researcher from Cornell), Megan and Shannon (researchers from Western hosting the event), the power went out. Luckily we had already lit candles to create an ambiance for our dinner, which turned into a necessity by the end of the meal. We all ended up back at our apartment for a candle lit party that included some other expats from the US, Germany and India. The party ended late in the night when our last candle burnt out. The next morning we woke up to the humming of the generators from hotels next to us, which confirmed that we were still without power. We had no other choice but to hit up the pool that day at Isamilo Lodge to pass the time. 

View from Isamilo Lodge

Megan riding a concrete elephant

 Almost 24 hours after the power went out, we were blessed with electricity once more. Locals have said these outages are irregular and hope as much as we do that they stop happening soon. Back in the APYN office, power outages also caused some problems, but didn't stop us from getting some work done. The latest excursion was to the Isamilo Lodge restaurant where we sat atop the hotel to dine while watching the beautiful sunset. 

Now you are caught up to the present, and I hope my posts can be fairly regular to avoid lengthy entries. Pictures are the best part anyways!

Asante!