About doria

doria

Location:

Los Angeles (90049, USA)

Joined on:

02/27/08

Occupation:

photographer

Contact:

doria@photobydoria.com

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  response to  Patrick James's post How I Spent My Winter Vacation

  Volunteer Vacation in Africa

  I think Angelina Jolie is so cool.

  Seriously, perhaps that’s why I spent my winter break in Tanzania, Africa. I wanted to imitate her third world efforts (and maybe snag a Brad Pitt look-a-like along the way). I really wanted to do something good and thought, “Hey, look at me! I’m going to volunteer at an orphanage in Africa for my vacation!” I have to admit, it wasn’t just a selfless volunteer mission; the group I went with practiced yoga twice a day, went on a three-day safari, spent the night in a primitive Masaai village, and hiked part of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Also, being an aspiring photojournalist, I thought I would come back with the most beautiful photographs ever.

  How cool.

  I signed up for the trip before I realized I needed five vaccination shots and a supply of malaria pills. Had I known about the needles, I may have chickened out of the trip. I guess this is where Angelina and I differ.

  I put together 3-ring binders crammed full of World Wide Web information. All that research couldn’t possibly have prepared me for this journey. Is there anywhere on the internet that explains what you are supposed to do when a child looks up at you not begging for money, but simply asking for water? An overwhelming number of people spend hours every day searching for a water source, only to carry back one bucket on their head to their families, if they find this liquid gold at all.

  Being a woman in my mid-thirties, the thought did cross my mind to adopt one of these children (now I would really be on a Jolie-path) until I learned it’s not possible in Tanzania unless you live there for at least 6 months and become a dual citizen. Ok, let’s see how the vacation goes first.

  Finally the day had arrived during the trip to volunteer at The Tunahaki Centre, a home for former street children. Many in our group brought gifts. I brought cameras, a laptop and an ipod to donate. I taught the kids how to use my big Canon 5d and take self-portraits of each other. I brought pen pal letters with me from 3rd graders in California. I was sure to be the hit bearing suitcases full of goodies, but again I was unprepared; it was the children who taught me.

  These children have so little in ways of material goods, yet they smile from ear to ear. They are happy singing, dancing and performing acrobatics. There is an honest sense of community and a bond these children share. I soon found out I was the one lacking, not them.

  One of the highlights of the trip had to be walking for hours hand-in-hand with these children up Mt. Kilimanjaro; the tallest, freestanding mountain in the world at 15,100 feet. We brought 15 of the kids from Tunahaki with us to hike to the first base camp on Kili (this is what the locals call it.) The trek lasted approximately 6 hours. Most of the children lacked tennis shoes and walked in sandals and flip-flops. None of the children complained when they got tired, or when it started to get cold. In fact, they offered to carry our bags—wanting nothing in exchange—out of respect for us, their “elders.”

  Shivering through the rain while wearing my $200 hiking shoes from REI, I performed my best Lara Croft tough girl impression, and pressed on up the mountain until we reached the Maundi Crater. ALL of the 15 former street orphans made it to the rim. HALF of the people from our group made it this far.

  But really, was this a “volunteer” vacation? Sure I felt good about myself for going, and I felt a little less guilty than sitting on a beach somewhere sipping Piña Colada’s for my winter break, but did I really make a difference?

  I’m trying. I will talk about the trip to anyone that will listen, and encourage others to visit and donate to http://www.tunahaki.org Most of these kids have been orphaned by AIDS or simply abandoned. I’ve held one fundraiser. I'm looking into how water wells get installed in Africa. But in no way should my efforts be applauded, (but every little bit helps, right?) The real heroes are the original founders of Tunahaki, David Ryatula and his wife Mary. They started taking care of 4 orphans, having next to nothing themselves, and now house close to 30 kids.

  Another person to recognize is Scott Fifer, a man from Venice, California who is now the Director of the Tunahaki Foundation. After a volunteer vacation in to Tanzania a couple of years ago, he fell in love with the children of Tunahaki and has since raised over $250,000 to better their living conditions, pay for their education, and put plans in motion for a new “green” home to be built that will house nearly 100 street children and contain a real theatre for them to perform in. He also brought these acrobatic-loving children on a trip to the US to train with Cirque du Soleil. No small feat, as orphans from Tanzania had never before been granted visas to travel to the United States. Wow, what a difference one person can make.

  Angelina Jolie I am not, but hopefully after a “volunteer vacation” I am on the path to helping others. I plan to return to Tunahaki for my summer vacation in 2008—more days volunteering at the orphanage—sans safari.

  -by Doria Anselmo; personal photos from the winter vacation in December 2007 can be seen at: http://www.AFRICAphotobydoria.com

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  Commented on March 3, 2008 by - doria