x mass and new year festivals... a bit january

As we are winding up this month…..after a xmass and happy new year vacations which almost good to me. Few days before xmass I hav an opportunity to attend sarakasi mama Africa which was happening here in town, one of my friend have free tickets and he gave to me and the show was nyc as acrobatics were flying high and high in fantastic style..What happens in xmass at home ,mama went to the church and was late,hence we were havin our xmass lunch in the evening,that’s was funny… few days before newyear I had a chance to visit monduli juu, and havin a funny with my former high school classmate,we spent the whole day there and it was raining ,which brought a kind of adventure to us..it was nyc .
New year celebrations almost find me in bed…I was awaked by our neighbours celebrations and cheers across our street….
We pop in back to college in the eve of January and find myself with a lot of assignments and tests, means I had to spend most of my time in library for exploring.

Almost the whole month of January was a bit busy…though I attended few occasions,like cycling around Africa lecture by elvis munis at CRC, elvis is the guy who did cycling from arusha to capetown,then he did from arusha to Rwanda and Burundi and then from arusha up to Ethiopia. And CRC is the institution dealing with environmental conservation found at Serengeti road @ sopa plaza building ,the lecture was good ,elvis was trying to share with us experiences he got during cycling whch almost changed him from the old elvis to the new one…since he started cycling I was a follower of this man and I try to encourage him coz I know how it feel to be away from home and how it feel to know that there is people behind you ,what I notice is that most of youth in Africa they are not traveling to gain new experience this hav beeen due to the fear of budget,who know you,where are you going and lack of information about your destination….as most of us we don’t hav the habit of reading and exploring other nations culture and the way of living..

I also hav atime to visit moshi and havin good time with orphans try to teach them and help them with some questions which seems to be difficult to them,,but was easy questions..some childrens asked me if students at university are punished using sticks…was funny but the answer was no!

Later in the afternoon we have a lunch with a young gal known as aggy who is in high school there at moshi, we discussed several issues pertaining education and school life…the gal is bright and have a great mastering of English language, something which is difficult to find in many of Tanzanians students..this gal have the dreams to study info technology only because she likes computer..but as the wise saying goes, the dreams come true..that was nyc..atleast she knows what she want to become ..after lunch we say goodbye to each other and she likes my hood sweater and my novel..i had no means I had to give her coz she was bright and cooperative and I had no any other gift at that time..

Back to school,me and my roommates we shifted from the old house to the new one located at kilala area ,this new house is different from the old one ,coz it has full access of power…oohh thanks lord , now we can use our devices include our subwoofer,guess what?boom! boom! Boom!…of course..the house is in beautiful surroundings with a lot of tree and fresh air,the road which goes to where we stay is a tarmac road, which continue to the district hospital known as mkoaranga…so no muds in my shoes…
Now we are lookin forward for univesirty exams in February which will mark the end of this semester.

YOUNG TEACHER EXPERIENCE SEASON ONE........

VOLUNTEERING AT KISONGO ACADEMIC COLLEGE
This school is located at kisongo area before you reach dukabovu and its a boarding school for boys and girls. After finishing my taching practice at sekei sec school…I had less work at camping so I feel like I have to find the school so that I can volunteer and gain more experience….and know better about teaching career.

One days Sunday in the afternoon after coming from mount meru ,I planned to go to this school to ask for the chance of teaching , with me I carry a bottle of water , my diary, my ipod and my field assessment report, I arrived there about 3 in the afternoon and ask for Professor calvin marealle {the managing director of the school} and we talk a bit ,but the headmaster was not around , so he told me to comeback on Wednesday.

Wednesday :

I arrived there it was about 8 in the morning ,and met with professor who introduced me to the headmaster of the school, the headmaster first took me to the staff room and introduce me to other staff members and then we start moving one class to another for the introduction, after we have done with that ,I started selecting the necessary books for preparing my lessons…I was teaching history form one and two, and civics form one up to four, but I taught form four for two weeks only ,then they had they national final exam…that’s atleast reduce the burden on my side ,I had 32 periods per week..

The teaching situation was not as much difficult though I face some problems coz some student could not understand English at all,hence difficult and sometime you need to use both languages, English and Swahili to make easy understanding ,especially for form one who most of them they come from maasai society And Swahili medium school.

The school time table start about 7:30 in the morning and ends about 4:45 in the evening after that other activities like debates and clubs also sports took place… I was in entertainment club where by me and Mr hans {from Cameroon} we taught students how to dance and steps, with a help from Salim and Beatrice..though the students were feelin shy to join dancing but many of them like to try ,but the steps were quite difficult and it need a sharp mind to memorize them.

I used to prepare and set weekly test and midterm exams,for the last days I have been there..and to my surprise the teacher of Swahili left without setting the exam,so I had to set also the Swahili exam..
The form two class ,were about to do their national exam,so I set their exam according to national exams format and most of them manage to perform well, students like jaquiline, Beatrice ,said, Ezekiel and many more.

What I came to discover about this class is that they use their extra time to read and help each other.
The school environment is good for learning and attracts different birds ,due to different trees found in the surroundings , luckly enough the school has foreign teachers who teach students computer ,and French language something which is better for their future..

For the whole month being there I learned a lot of things, which reshape and build my teaching experience to some extent and I came to realize to run and manage school is a serious business and it need a lot of effort and volunteering rather then claiming for money and a kind of stuffs..
That’s is my experience at KISONGO ACADEMIC COLLEGE…

THANKS :
Prof ,Calvin Marealle
The whole staff members, students and school administration.



MESERANI SNAKE PARK AND THE STORY OF TWO GUYS………………….
As we didn’t have classes,on the following day which was Thursday we decided to visit meserani snake park at duka bovu area in the afternoon to watch snakes..

The guys( Alfred and giovvan ) were a bit late coz we planned to meet exactly 2 at clock tower but that was nothing , we went straight to the bus stand and we took the daladala which goes to monduli, We reached meserani it was around 3 and some mins , there we met Florence and other gal waitin for us ..we pay the entrance ,one thousand for citizens and ten thousand for foreigners (probably a big range between..)

We entered inside and have a short break and relaxation of the body and mind and then we start watchin snakes , other snakes were big and other small snakes ,we also saw tortoise (female tortoise who was preparing the hole to lay the eggs) ,also we saw crocodiles and a owl..

We repeated several times to watch till we got satisfied and then we pose a while for some snaps and we walked out side to watch camels ,the camel ground was full of students who were there for picnic ( probably the secondary school students) , and in that group there were two students from my school which I was doing my teaching practice field, that makes me ask ma self what are they doin there while in school the classes are still goin on? when they saw me ,they tried to hide ,. But I decide to spare them …coz I know these thing happens I have pass through also…my fellows didn’t saw them coz they were busy watchn camels, we entered maasai village also located in meserani grounds and the place was very attractive , and nice….

About 6 in the evening the min buses with heavy music came to collect these students who were there and what makes me happy and gave me smile is that they pray before leaving the place…that’s was nice …

We also stay for a while and catch a bus to arusha town coz we were havin classes the following day…the day was the last day for Florence who was goin back home in france so we say goodbye each other, Florence was volunteering at the orphan center at kisongo.

We reached town it was already dark ,we took the daladala which drop me at sanawari and giovann and Alfred continue to kimandolu wherr they were havin their accommodation there..

MY TEACHING PRACTICE SEASON ONE...........

Realy I had good ,a good time in my teaching practice at my 0 –level former school, sekei sec school .
The first day we arrive me and my fellow,7:30 in the morning and report directly to the academic master ,Mr mziray who lead us to the headmaster office where we sign the school visitors book,then we pass to the staff room for introducing ourselves to other teachers/staff members.
After the introduction we go to the academic office ,who instruct and gave us subjects and classes to handle, my fellow was given form two and three, and I awas given form five and six,teaching language ,history and general study.
I had thirteen students in form five class and only six students in form six class,who I taught them history and general study , ican remember few names especially those who participate well in ansering question and also asking, like Antonia, neema ,Kelvin ,anna ,Sheila ,Vivian and others.
In the first week we were only three practice teachers from college with three volunteer from Uk, Canada and Holland ,later on two volunteer from Italy Alfred and giovann joined the school and they were teaching form fouir and form five, giovann became friend of mine,and he introduced me to Alfred , so we starts going out lunch ,and internet together at different places like café bamboo,viavia ,and pub Norberto, also at pepe Italian food, near the school we teach.

On Friday of 28 august , giovann invite me to a dinner at pepe Italian restaurant , after dinner we wnt to sega world to play pool table then we went to club AQ ,near the main bus stand for havin fun.
In the Sunday of 30th august we went to monduli maasai market and we bought maasai shuka and other stuffs, we also visist my A-level school classmate, Marta at her home and we had lunch together at monduli town.

Later in the afternoon we visited Moringe secondary school were I had my A- level secondary education and we happen to meet my fellow college mates who were doing their field teaching practice there, and we had a hot discussion about why the passing level at that school is dropping day after day ,teachers suggested that students ,were havin much feedom and the issue of minazi (this is the word famous in boarding school ,which describe the illegal love affairs between students)
We left teachers rest house it was about six in the evening and Marta escort us at the bus stand and we say goodbye to each other.
We are in the bus,giovann and Alfred sat in the sit which is infront of me and im the back sit ,in my left side there is a drunk man ,who I cant understand what he is talking about and in my right side there is a gal,which later we came to know her as Jennifer.

MY STORY WITH JENNIFER.

The gal started the conversation by asking where are we comin from and I told her ,we were from Arusha and we come to monduli for visiting my former school and maasai market, she started telling us that she love friends and she would like to be our friend,we replied no problem we also like friends.
What I came to realize in this conversation between us ,is that the gal was almost 90 percent a liar .we reached town and alfredd and giovann went for dinner with SOK guide, and me and Jennifer we were trying to catch abus to home ,I hugged her and I promise to call her the next day.

Monday afternoon:
I called Jennifer and invite her to hav lunch with us at café bamboo near clock tower , she accept the offer and we went to café bamboo me , Alfred and giovann and later she joined us ,but she didn’t ate anything she just drank my coke ,
Later we went together to shoprite for shoping and then we stop at sports empire bar ,located at TFA grounds for havin drinks and chatting each other.

We left early ,there it was about six and forty five minutes ,because we have early classes at the following day and Jennifer was rushing to prepare food at her home and she told us in the following day she will be at job up to 3,in the afternoon.
The following day during break time at school, me and giovann also Alfred , we went to buy different things at this n that shop,located at gymcana grounds ., when we were out of the shop we decide To have drinks befor e we go back to school for classes….oooooh my GOD..to my surprise Jennifer came out of the bar near the shop with three guys who were emotinaly drunk and say hi to us , I also great her with a dry smile coz w e noticed and prove that Jennifer was a great liar and a gold-digger , she left with the guys in a small car and that was my last day to see her ,she aleays send me sms but I cant reply coz I don’t wanna be in trouble.

THANKS GALZ ...............I SALUTE YOUR WORK

Among the volunteer who have dedicated their hearts to help and support Tanzanian children to achieve their goals and dreams as well, these two gals are the nice example,for a couple of month i have been working with volunteers from different countries but these ones i can say they real deserve to be praised and encouraged to work and help our young boys and galz......keep it up galz

TRIP TO MESERANI SNAKE PARK WITH floarum,liberity,giovan and alfred

maasai with punda outside meserani road

meserani snakes

outside meserani snake park,waiting for the car to town

floarum(france),liberity(uk),me,giovann and alfred from italy .

MY TEACHING PRACTICE FIELD.....

is going good,i will post pictures soon.

kisongo accademic college ,tour with judit hagner from german last year in june,july...

me and judit hagner from german with other artists

professor marealle provide an opening speech,to welcome the guests behind him its me.

kisongo academic college students,judit hagner ,professor marealle,rasta, me and other artists

LEAVING HIS FAMILY....STEP OUTSIDE THE DOOR ...HE IS IN THE ROAD CYCLING AROUND AFRICA WITH DESTINATION TO JOHANESBURG S. A.. ....AMAZING!

I leftArusha 9:30am friday 5 June.It was raing whwn we left the predicted point of half way from Caaro Egypt to Cape town South Africa. Cycling towards south east of Arusha. I felt strong as I was shaking hands with the couple of people who came to say "GOOD LUCK ELVIS", actually, they real energyze me. Some of them accompany me for few kilometers despite the fact that it was raiing and the road was mad. Thank you all.

Thirty kilomoter from clock tower the tarmac road end up and I started to cycle through rough road. I passed through few Maasai villages and comiphora-acacia bush land which covered most of the part.Half of the way was down slope and terrran. Another half was sand, escapment and up hills such Komolo hills.

In this savanah plains/bushland is heaven of of birds. In the edge of mountains I saw baboons and dick. I enjoy the tranquel and calmness of the area as I cycle for long time before meet any one in the road. sometime I had the seen of fear but the cow bell from the bush give me hope that I'm not alone.

I arived at the Nabikito village 6:30pm. Here I went to the certain boma and asked the elder man for the parmition to camp within his large tertory. As he knew some one like me I was in this need he gave the pamition. I liked the place for some reason some I'll write letter but one is that; Maasai huts doe not have much defferent with my tent.

In the next day I left Maasai boma 7:00am bit late for me this is because I was forced to wait for fresh milk from cow. Maasai mama told me is not good to let some body who is going for such long jorney leave without some ernegy drink such as milk. The elder man wanted to give me fresh blood but I aploguse for that.

It was nice riding through this bit high alevation bush land with some plain where i was able to see Zebras, Ostrichs, Wildbeests and gazelles. As i was enjoying this wonderfull moment unkind tsetse flys force me to leave the place. Thanks for them because I stll have couple of kilomiters aheard of me. In this day riding was more challenge up hills rocks and sand was limit my spead to 10km/hr. I passed Naberera village and Namalulu where I had wonderfull and breath taking landscape. At 6:00pm I arive at Engasumenti villange after 2hours of up hill climbing. Here I camp at police station.

In the next day early in the morning i left engasumente village which situated in the top of the hill, inhabited by Maasai pastoralist. Here the town start to show the sign as I can saw some shops and other services imegide in this Simanjiro district in new Manyara region. I discent the town where it was 10c very cold. cycled throuh the plains with the enjoyable speed of 25km/hr. in the other places road is very sand whereby I had to push my havy louded bicycle. The road is very long stretch as far as my eyes can see. It is very hot more than 3hrs without meet any one. I felt like bushes and birds used to talk and now they talking about this strenger with his bicycle. When i met Maasai, they are in the group and ecuped with spears here i had the seens of dager in this plains. Theis Maasai stoped and start wonder about me speach less. After 70km I made to Ndedo village the first village since I started to cycle in the morning. I went to the shop for drinks.As shopekeper offer me a drink he i saw the sign of fear in his face at lat he asked me, "where are going my friend?" I told him I'm going to Kibaya Kiteto. He said "You shoud be crayze!"He told me where I come from in the certain hill there is one Maasai killed by lions few days ago. He add that where I'm I'm going it is more dangerous. As we was talking a lory which was delivare drinks to Kibaya came. The man run out from his shoop and stoped the lory. He talk with lory drive something which I couldn't hear but as I sow lory looded at me I gessed the man asked the the lory drive to give me free ride. After few minutes the man come back and told me "Brother it's better you cross this plains with this lory, the drive is okey. I ride with the lory up to Kibaya Kiteto where I reached in the everning.

At kibaya Kiteto I overninght at Riverine Hotel where the owner, certain woman offered me free accomodation.

In the next day 6:30am I start riding, climbed the the up hills then decent to the plains. The road was very nice whereby I cycled for 25 to 35km/hr. I climbed Dosidosi hills (1819m), passed through chains of villages. The road was very nice. I manege to cycle for 35-40km/hr. At 2:47pm I met the high way from Morogoro to Dodoma. From here to Dodoma is 77km which I coverd for 3hrs and half. This day I cycled about 160km. I arrive at Dodoma 6:30pm. After long serch for affodarable accomodation as everthing in town is expensive. I foud CCT a christian center, the receptinist was drunked, told me the the chage will be in the next day morning and it'll be resonale. I camped there. In the next day another man come and told me he is inchage, when I asked him about chages he said it is tmelve thousads for camping.I wondered if this was reasonable. After long negotioation i payed 5000Tsh. I left the place 10:00am cycling around the town and left the town 11:15am to Mtera .I cycled through the semi-desert of central TanzaniaDodoma. The village situated in the border between Iringa region and Dodoma. Also in this village there is Mtere dam (Reservoi)which is hydro-power station.

The road from Mtera to Iringa It's not good for bicycle such as my which is heavy louded. due to this and some roumers that there are some roberers in the vertain mountain. This might not be good for sole ride to pass alone. I asked free ride from Electricsal Company lory drive who agree to ride me up to Iringa town. I arrive in Iringa town 7:00pm. I overnight at the guest house. I left guest house in the morning, cycled to town where I found the internet. Here is where I post this article.

After Maasai Steppe and semi-desert of central Tanzania now I start riding through southern highland of Tanzania which will take me to the border of Tanzania and zambia. I will come up again when I'll hit internet.

LETS DEVELOP THE HABIT TO READ MY FELLOWS.......

Its obviously that it wont be the first time to you to hear that saying,it has been used for so many years as a means of discrediting Africans.

When you try to examine what is real within that phrase of words, you will come up with the conclusion that most of Africans do not like to read the books,but if we knew it we could have ran to libraries to open the books so that we can enjoy the intercourse with superior minds. The president of United States of America Barrack Obama has benefited form the practice of consulting the books and in his witness he said that “I thank the books because they opened my mind”....and I think that is why he is the leading speech maker in the world as most of his speeches has been ranked as the best speeches.

Most of us and especially students in higher learning institutions in Tanzania are somehow narrow minded because of our behaviors of not reading the books and we are used to “madesas” given by our tutors and lecturers....and we misses extra knowledges obtained in the books and that is why we fails in making some analyses to some important aspects of life. Also we fails to make relevant references to our arguments in our normal life and we are the same as laymen when it comes to analysis of different life phenomenas.

I here come before you to urge you that books are the best places we can enjoy the pool of knowledges and precious thoughts.

It is chiefly through books that we enjoy intercourse with superior minds. In the best books,great men talk to us,give us their most precious thoughts, and pour their souls into ours. God be thanked for books. They are voices of the distant and the dead, and make us heirs of the spiritual life of past ages. Books are true levelers. They give all who will faithfully use them, the society, the spiritual presence of the best and greatest race.
Source:vyuotz.blogspot.com

THIS IS ALL ABOUT TRAVEL......

So travel is above all a stimulant for the brain. A mind tonic. A soul revitaliserTravel offers a repite from serious life citizenship....forget the mortgage, weeding the garden, feeding the cat and how much fibre you have in your diet. Just go. Free at last, if only for three weeks.Travel also provides soul food for those who journey. The image we have are given of the world by the media is often of despair and destruction. But to travel is to stumble across scene after scene of such rugged splendour and timeless magnificence that your emotions overwhelm your senses. If this place exists then there is hope yet for the world.To travel is to explore the many shadows of your psyche, for different people find beauty in different things....soul food comes in different packages.The magic of travel is everywhere. The tragedy, the drama, the pathos of past human life haunts every grand ruin, and you feel the haunted or triumphant ghosts echoing in your every step.Travel renews your sense of childlike wonder because the world indeed has many wonders. Sometimes wonder can be found on a small scale, a universe reflected on a drop of dew. Sometimes wonder is seen on a spectacular scale. To stand and absorb the massive prehistoric form of a mountain, is to feel for a moment like a mere speck of existence in the infinite continuum of the universe. To be humbled.And to travel is to experience irony. The boredom on the face of the gondolier in Venice. A cleaner yawning as they sweep the floor of the Louvre

Source.http://www.zionafrikasafaris.blogspot.com

PAUL SWEEZY AND MAURICE DOBB DEBATE ON TRANSITION FROM FEUDALISM TO CAPITALISM

I've been promising some content here of a very different type than what I've posted so far. So here goes.
Recently I read the main documents in the Dobb-Sweezy debate on the transition from feudalism to capitalism. I wanted to open up discussion here on this if anyone is interested. From a Marxist perspective it's important to understand how feudalism fell, and the nature of the transition from feudalism to capitalism, in order to gain some potential insight into how capitalism will fall and what some of the important questions are in the transition from capitalism to socialism.
The main documents in the debate that I read are Maurice Dobb's The Decline of Feudalism and the Growth of Towns in Studies in the Development of Capitalism (1946), and Paul Sweezy's Critique of Dobb in The Transition from Feudalism to Capitalism, ed. R.H. Hilton (1976). Then there is Dobb's A Reply and A Further Comment and Sweezy's A Rejoinder, which are also in The Transition from Feudalism to Capitalism.
In this debate a main point of contention is between Dobb's attempt to demonstrate that capitalism emerged from contradictions internal to feudalism itself; while Sweezy more takes the position that capitalism developed independently of feudalism and overtook it as an external force because of its dynamism in contrast to feudalism's stagnancy. They also debate over what exactly defines feudalism. Dobb says that feudalism is essentially defined by the existence of serfdom. Sweezy says this definition is inadequate and that it may apply to Western European feudalism but shouldn't be generalized beyond that, as he accuses Dobb of doing.
Sweezy also raises the point that serfdom was ended in England in the 1500s, but feudalism didn't end until 1644-1645 - so how can Dobb explain that and how does he characterize that period in between. They disagree about how to characterize the period of the 1500's and 1600's in Western Europe, during the transition from feudalism to capitalism. Sweezy calls that period pre-capitalist commodity production. Dobb defines it as feudalism in an advanced state of dissolution.
Of course there is more to both of their arguments than this over-simplified summary, and I may have even unintentionally mischaracterized their positions in this quick recap. But I think this gets at some of the biggest points of contention between them. They both claim to be analyzing this history from a Marxist perspective, but come to different conclusions about the transition from feudalism to capitalism.
While reading these essays, I thought that both made some good points and at times I found myself convinced by things both of them said. But as someone who has studied Mao Zedong's essay On Contradiction a great deal, I found myself being pulled toward Dobb's argument that capitalism developed from contradictions internal to feudualism. It is a key point of Marxist philosophy (of dialectical and historical materialism), which Mao explains brilliantly in On Contradiction, that the primary basis of contradiction is internal.
In On Contradiction, Mao writes:
As opposed to the metaphysical world outlook, the world outlook of materialist dialectics holds that in order to understand the development of a thing we should study it internally and in its relations with other things; in other words, the development of things should be seen as their internal and necessary self-movement, while each thing in its movement is interrelated with and interacts on the things around it. The fundamental cause of the development of a thing is not external but internal; it lies in the contradictoriness within the thing. There is internal contradiction in every single thing, hence its motion and development. Contradictoriness within a thing is the fundamental cause of its development, while its interrelations and interactions with other things are secondary causes. Thus materialist dialectics effectively combats the theory of external causes, or of an external motive force, advanced by metaphysical mechanical materialism and vulgar evolutionism. It is evident that purely external causes can only give rise to mechanical motion, that is, to changes in scale or quantity, but cannot explain why things differ qualitatively in thousands of ways and why one thing changes into another.
Mao also writes:
Changes in society are due chiefly to the development of the internal contradictions in society, that is, the contradiction between the productive forces and the relations of production, the contradiction between classes and the contradiction between the old and the new; it is the development of these contradictions that pushes society forward and gives the impetus for the supersession of the old society by the new. Does materialist dialectics exdude external causes? Not at all. It holds that external causes are the condition of change and internal causes are the basis of change, and that external causes become operative through internal causes. In a suitable temperature an egg changes into a chicken, but no temperature can change a stone into a chicken, because each has a different basis.
From those quotes one could guess where Mao would weigh in, at least on the specific question of whether capitalism developed from contradictions internal to feudalism or whether capitalism emerged outside of feudalism.
Also of interest to this discussion, a website called Resistance mp3s has some mp3's of a debate on Feudalism and a Transition to Capitalism between Robert Brenner and Chris Harman. (the debate is on a site run by supporters of the British Socialist Workers Party, a Trot group - I think the mp3s are from an event sponsored by them).

THE DON IS BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK

Hi ladies an gentleman ,around the world,plz welcome to ma blog,to share hot topics and events about music.as u know ma name is vallerian but u can shortly call me djvalle,aha ha ha thats great.Welcome to this blog,and i want to hear from you wat u got to share with me,by now im studying at TUMAINI UNIVERSITY,ARUSHA.HOPE TO HEAR FROM YOU ALL