Year 12 Updates from Tanzania - 2 Dec, 2019

Group 1 Ms. Lucy Thompson

We arrived back from Safari this afternoon. We had a fantastic 2 days and saw everything we could have hoped for. We entered the park after lunch on Sunday and were lucky enough to see warthogs, zebra, impala, giraffe and lots of different bird species all within the first hour. We then received word of a lion sighting so sped across the park to find them. We encountered two young Male lions under a cloud of circling vultures which suggested they had just made a kill (although we could not see the carcass). One of them had a very large wound on his face which prompted lots of discussion about lion social structures and hunting behaviours. From that point on it was elephants galore. Due to the intermittent rain it was perfect conditions to spot them and we saw lots of families around the park.

We made our way to camp for the night and after dinner and an intense downpour we went to bed ready for a 4am start for sunrise. Luckily the rain held off and after breakfast we saw even more elephants (extremely close), more giraffe, a herd of buffalo and spent time watching a large troop of baboons play by the river. After lunch we left the park and had a spot of gift shopping at a local craft shop. On the way back to Shamba Kipara we visited Shanga. This is a craft business that employs people with disabilities and creates lovely items from recycled materials. Students had a tour, tried their hand at glass blowing and had the opportunity to buy some items. We then headed back to camp for a much needed shower!

Group 2 Ms. Sarah Donnelly

It’s been an eventful couple of days for Group 2 in Tanzania! Yesterday they started the day by visiting a coffee plantation and learning the coffee growing and roasting process. This included getting to taste some fresh coffee too! The group then went to Dolly Bush to set up camp. As we arrived we were treated to the sight of zebra and antelope! Students worked in teams to pitch their own tents and then cooked a dinner for the entire group. The evening was then spent by a campfire or playing card games.

In the morning, the students worked together to clear the campsite and got ready to take part in the Community goat shed project. Students worked together to put up solar lights in the house, create a smokeless stove, and build a goat shed for a local family. Once the work was finished, they completed the project by donating a goat that they named Trudy! It was hard work but a deeply rewarding experience. Tomorrow they will be ending the week on Safari. Fingers crossed that we see lions!

Group 3 Mr. Darren Mumford

Seeway Project Day 2. Today was the second day helping build a new secondary school for the local people of Arusha. Students were excellent, worked very hard and a real credit to our school - despite the high temperatures during the day. The picture hopefully shows the progress made on the new building from the stone foundations we started with yesterday. We were also very fortunate to visit a school that our students helped build in 2017 and 2018 that opened in January this year. A very rewarding experience!

Group 4 have no internet access.

Click here to see yesterday's updates