Karibu! (Welcome in Swahili)

Yesterday was the most exhilirating moment of the Plenary Assembly here in Dar es Salaam so far. We got a day off to visit local churches and basic communities and see how they lived and prayed the Bible as groups. We left very early - 6.30am and my group of 16 were driven to Immaculate Conception Church in Upanga - surprise! it was manned by Franciscan friars (Capuchins). We concelebrated an early 7.30am Mass with a nice big crowd of locals and were treated to a lovely local breakfast (sweet potatoes, boiled eggs). There was the superior Fr Mario and two other friars working there. Tanzania has 150 Capuchin franciscans in all and many many franciscan sisters of various congregations. Even the bishop here is a Franciscan Capuchin.

Then we visited the museum of houses where we saw 23 different types of traditional houses used by the various tribes of Tanzania - very very interesting! Each type of hut tells of its culture and values. Very enlghtening!

Unfortunately 3 guys from my group fell sick and returned home after the museum trip. The rest of us continued to the arts and cratfts market where we saw people carving wooden statues. It was a very local scene. You could see the poverty of the people but also their joy! We then had a lovely lunch with the two basic community groups. Very very lovely simple people. They told us about their methods of prayer, their work in the community and Church. There were many youths and children in the group. You can see the Church in Dars as a vibrant young entity.

But my highlight was to see the Masai people. They were gathered in little groups under trees along the roads - tall slim people wrapped in striking red cloth. The men keep very long hair (corn-rowed) while the women are bald. And as warriors the guys carry sticks and of course are famous for their jumping (go check out a website to see what I'm talking about). Anyway its stuff you see in magazines and TV but yesterday I saw real life Masai! It was so exciting! But we could not stop the car to photograph them so I was a bit disappointed (I don't have a camera myself but ask the others to help me do it). Anyway it's become the joke of my group because every corner we turn I'll shout "Masai masai" and everyone starts taking photos! Our Thai Sister Chan is the really funny one! Anyway we stopped at a modern shopping Mall (like in the States or anywhere else in the world! Unbelievable!) to use the toilets and I found they sold Masai cloth. Jeannie Lee (Korean-American) bought it as a gift to me and I'm so happy I got a bit of Masai culture! I didn't buy the beaded necklaces though - they were expensive! Well at the end of the day as we were walking to the Church to say the rosary with the group and parishioners, I thought that was the end of my Masai adventure and I couldn't take a photo with one. Then right at the corner came a Masai warrior. I told our host to ask if he would take a photo with me but refused, After some coaxing he agreed. WOW! I'll show you the photo soon! It was so exciting and everyone in the group was so happy for me. Then as we walked on, chatting and laughing at this unexpected twist, another Masai warrior showed up! This time everyone else wanted their photos to be taken with him. It was really fun. Now the word among my group is "masai masai!"

We also ended the day by taking a walk along the shore of the Indian Ocean facing Zanzibar. Many guys in my group wanted to see and touch it and now they fulfilled their dream - and David Cotter from Scotland was overwhlemed because he saw a real life dhow (traditional sail boat - fantastic things!) sailing across the straits where we were. The other guys were also really excited and photos were taken like crazy! So everyone got what they wanted - David and his dhow, the ther guys touching the Indian Ocean, Jeanne and her gang with shopping (oh big time!) and I got my Masai. It was a really successful day and we all became so much closer after that. We're now known as the Upanga gang (sounds like "Survivors"!) and definitely we were the most successful field trip group among the 16 that was organised yesterday.

So I want to thank our wonderful hosts who made it all possible - Fr Mario and his friars, the Magdalene of Canossa group and the St Jude Thaddeus group for their wonderful organisation and hospitality and generosity - and God! for letting me see a real life Masai warrior! Asante ("Thank you" in swahili)