Day 3 - Arusha: The Ngarenaro School, Natural History Museum, and Cultural Heritage Center
We visited Ngarenaro School in Arusha where we met 4th through 6th graders. They were really excited to see us and greeted us with high fives and fist bumps. We visited a classroom and learned about the school. We were introduced to our classmate Jordana's project with the school to fund their dining hall. We also asked the kids questions about their favorite subject and what they wanted to be when they grew up. Before we left the classroom they sang us a song, it was adorable (see video below). Once we walked outside the kids swarmed us with hugs, high fives, and were eager to ask us for our names and where we were from. It was the most unique experience we have had so far.
After we visited Ngarenaro, we walked through Arusha with tour guides who pointed out significant buildings. The vendors were really friendly and tried to politely get us to buy their products.
Next, we went to a Natural History Museum in Arusha where we learned about the evolution of humans. They had artifacts like footprints and photos of the first humans in Tanzania. In the museum we also saw a ginormous, 160 year old, tortoise, he will live up to about 300 years. We loved the tortoise and got to feed and pet it, some people got to hold baby tortoises. Then they talked about the wild life conservation in the animal exhibits. Specifically, we learned about black rhinos who were endangered for years and they protected a few rhinos. We were able to see the skeleton and the taxidermy version of their rhino.
We ate lunch at the Cultural Heritage Center and the lunch was super good. After lunch, we went to the shopping center to restock on snacks and other necessities. We stayed super safe and traveled in groups of 3 or more AT ALL times.
When we got to the hotel there was down time where some took naps, played cards, and refreshed ourselves. Before dinner, Tim (our world leadership guide) taught us about the history of Tanzania and the culture. Also, Nolan and Sareena shared their experiences at the homestay, which was comforting and insightful surrounding the tribes, culture, and overall homestay.
The highlights of today for us:
Hanging out with the kids
Meeting the Tortoise
- Amina & Audrey
