A few days ago was one of many big days for animal deliveries and I got to go along for the ride! I got told I was going and then jumped into a small truck crammed full of pigs and chickens (they were on separate levels of the truck so they wouldn't attack each other and I was in the cab section - not in the back). We then headed out on the road. The truck was from the US so I finally got to be in the driver's seat after getting my license three months ago (ha ha ha!).
The man in charge of the deliveries stopped off at his place to transfer the critters to a massive lorry so I was happy they had some more room, though pigs make a lot of noise when they get forced to go places they don't want to and we had a few chickens making a break for freedom, resulting in us having to chase them around the yard to catch them.
We headed to another farm to pick up more pigs and chickens. I was lucky enough to get to see two new born litters of piglets. They were so cute! Sadly one of them had died and it was kind of disturbing to see the mother try to eat it. (Awesome-Doug comment) She wasn't a very good pig mum and lay on her piglets a couple of times while we were there, despite her having heaps of room. The famer kept jumping into the pen to rescue them. Would be good if someone would invent a way for pigs to feed without getting squished - and I'm not suggesting sow crates!
I got the job of official pig and poultry counter which sounds easy, but keeping a record of animals going into a lorry while trying to stop them escaping was a bit tricky. After loading up we headed out to Rombo region, stopping very quickly for lunch (we had to get the animals delivered fast!). The group I was with got nyama choma which seems to be a favourite with people here. Basically it's a quick barbeque with grissly pieces of meat. There was some boiled green banana too so I had some of that. It tastes a bit like very mild parsnip. I think people in Samoa might eat something similar. While we were eating, the chickens kept peeking out of the lorry and I had to keep racing across the road to shoo them back in. They're very curious creatures.
Finally we made the journey to Mwika for the first delivery. The road was really bumpy and I felt sorry for the animals in the back - just as well the weather had cooled down a bit.
When we were arrived people cheered and sang. I felt so happy for them. They'd been waiting for a long time to get their animals and had built huts to house the animals months ago. It's hard because the organisation I'm working for relies on donor funding and sometimes we have to wait for a while because it comes through in installments. We can't buy animals or give the training until the funds are there so people in the villages have high hopes and then start losing heart because they have to wait.
My young colleague met us at Mwika. He'd been driving a separate lorry of animal feed and had arrived there before us and completed all the paper work with the people receiving animals.
When we opened the back of the lorry the pigs were resting on the floor of the truck and the chickens were pretty relaxed. Just was well because unloading them all was pretty crazy. People didn’t have any cages or vehicles to transport the animals and bags of feed home and our lorry was far too big to make pit stops down the little pathways to each person's house. People seemed to get by though and used pieces of flax and rope to guide their pigs home by tugging at their back leg. I felt a bit uncomfortable about this, especially because of all the squealing that the pigs were doing. I couldn't tell if they were in pain or it they were just annoyed. I helped unload the chickens, holding them upside down by the legs. It seemed a bit mean but they tended to relax when I held them that way.
With just over half the pigs and all the chickens now at their new stomping grounds we headed off to Kitirima King'achi to deliver the remaining animals. It was about 5:45 pm by this stage and it was starting to get dark. The days are really different here. It's light from 6am – 6pm and then suddenly it's totally dark. I guess being so close to the Equator.
My young work mate had arrived before us and was doing the paper work with the groups when we arrived. The people had been waiting most of the day but they were in high spirits to finally see their animals. (People here seem to just sit and wait very patiently. I guess part of it is because roads and modes of transport are not always reliable and people don’t have the modern time saving conveniences of people back home. I know I'm not known for my punctuality (e.g. late to my wedding etc) but I do feel really bad when I know I've kept people waiting, especially people who have HIV/AIDS. The first time I went out in the field and we were late, I raced around apologising to everyone. I don't think I'll ever feel comfortable with the waiting/late thing and just because I'm adjusting to a different culture doesn't mean I have to accept everything. I'm going to take on board the things I like, try to understand the things I don't like, and leave the rest.)
This group of people were better prepared and had ropes to tie their pigs' back legs. (I really do wonder if this is the best way to lead a pig around, I would have thought a rope around the neck or the middle would work better?). I might check this out on the internet and let my work mates know if there's a better way.
My young colleague asked me to take heaps of photos this time. So I went crazy with the camera. The only problem was, some young people from the villages had started to gather around to watch what was going on and seeing me with my camera they assumed I was a tourist and started asking me for money. They were actually really cheeky and my temper was wearing thin after the long day. Now I know by Tanzanian standards I'm wealthy, but I've also given up a good salary to come here to work for the year. It bothers me when wazungu (white people) are seen as money on legs. I think it probably doesn't help when short term tourists come here and hand out cash either. I'd much rather buy something from a local and support their business. Handouts are unsustainable, increase dependence and just dissempower local people who are putting their fate into the hands of a white person as well as reducing themselves to beggars. Anyway, I'll get off my soap-box now.
With all the animals dropped off we got back in the lorry and headed home. We had a welcome stop off at Kiboro Loni where we dropped off the lorry and my young work mate met me with our organisation's driver - and a car! The smooth 15 minute drive back to Moshi was luxury on my bottom after the bumpy Rombo roads. I arrived home around 9pm and I slept fofofo (like a log).
