Keith's Dad and Luke climbing rocks by Lake Victoria

 

What does it take to get clean water here in Musoma, Tanzania?

First, where does our water come from?

The water comes from Lake Victoria. So, unlike many parts of Tanzania which don’t have easy access to water, we have lots of water.

Picture from friend, during rainy season here

You have lots of water- So what’s the problem?

It’s not clean!

Not only can’t we drink the water from the lake, it’s not safe to touch it! This is because there is bacteria in the lake that can make us very sick. It is worse close to the edge of the lake because it is carried by snails. If the water sits (in a container) for 3 days, then this bacteria will die and the water is safe to handle, but not to drink. We could also get things like Typhoid or ameba from drinking unfiltered water.

We need to have filtered water for drinking and brushing teeth. We also need to be careful when we take showers, because if we get any water in our mouth, it could make us sick. This can be a challenge for children to understand and be careful of.

The town of Musoma pumps water out of the lake and it is piped into our homes.

So, there are two issues with the water.


Whole house water filter with string filter

1. The dirt in the water.
    
    
2. Health risks in the water. The waters of Lake Victoria have bacteria, viruses, parasites, and other pollutants. We used to buy fresh fish from neighbors, until we found out they used poison to 'catch' their fish.  



We use a variety of methods to deal with dirt. First we use ‘whole house’ filters which are directly in the water lines. This helps reduce the dirt, but not by much. I usually use string filters. I have tried higher end filters, but the water was so dirty it clogged them within a day. I can’t afford to put in a new high end filter every day!

For general water use, washing hands, showers, washing floors, we just know the water is already dirty. During the raining season the water is really dirty. This is because the storms stir up the dirt in the lake. See the picture of water being run into a bath tub. It’s not usually this bad, but this is what we are trying to clean up!

First we run the water through a sand filter.


Sand filter, dirty water in top, drains into bucket



Next we run that water through a ceramic filter, such as a Katadyn filter system. There are various other options (such as Tulip Filters from India, and Iodine filters).





3 Ceremic filters

Katadyn ceremic filter, dirty water in top

After that the drinking water is stored in used water bottles (which are only cleaned with filtered water). We have to make sure that we have a good supply on hand at all times. If you have company over, you can go through a lot of drinking water quickly. This water also needs to be used for brushing teeth. We also always try to have 4-5 bottles in the refrigerator.


 So- If you live in a part of the world where you can safely brush your teeth or drink water directly from the faucet, Don’t take it for granted!



stock pile of water in water bottles


More info on the filters:

This is what the inside of the sand filter looks like.

 

For more info on sand filters, just Google sand filters in Africa. Here is one sample site.

http://practicalaction.org/appeal_community_info

Katadyn Water Drip Filters

http://www.katadyn.com/usen/katadyn-products/products/katadynshopconnect/katadyn-water-filters-endurance-series-products/katadyn-drip-ceradyn/

Tulip Water Filters around $15, but would need to have 3 to be similar to Katadyn)

http://www.tulipwaterfilters.com/

There are also some filter units that use iodine to help purify the water.

 

Grandma and Grandpa Yoder's visit

Here are some pictures from our time with my parents. We loved having both parents come visit so we could show them our little corner of the world.

Out for a walk

We found 3 chameleons in one day

This one we found in a parking lot and brought it home

enjoying the view from our lodge in the Serengeti Park

For those that know mom know she was not happy about having to do this.
We had to cross the river to get to our lodge. The water was too high to drive through so we had to use the bridge.

Our safari truck and tour guide.

Roasting Marshmallows!!

Dad talking to Peter

At James' home

Luke pushing kids on the swing. The last two on the right are James' children.

 

Bitikofer Grandparents visit

Finally have the cooperation of my computer, the internet and time to put together some pictures of our visit with Keith's parents.


Doing some hiking



Supper at Peter's home

Phares praying for the offering

Talking with Waynse after church
Waynse is one of the translators

Showing the kids the pictures he just took of them



We were able to get away and do some swimming

We loved our time with them and showing them our life in Musoma.

Nikki's trip to the village

Last week Nikki went with several other people from the office to deliver school supplies and uniforms to a kendergarden aged class. She had a wonderful time.

Below are her comments and memories from that day:

One of the first classes that is learning to read and write in Jita. (the local language)

No desk or chair in the front of the class for the teacher

Only a few benches, not enough for all the kids

Delivered uniforms, shoes and school supplies

The ladies received help to carry their things but not Nikki's

Kids were a little scared of them

They talked in Jita not Swahili

Lizard fell from the roof while the items were being presented

it was a 2 hour drive to the school

Showing off their new uniforms

Magesa, Kim, Ronit, Tirzah and Nikki

The class greeted them in unison

On the way home they passed a wedding and there was a cow being butchered. The head was cut off and it was skinned and gutted.

---Nikki

Simbiti Scripture Dedication

all dressed up and ready to go

Sorry it took me so long to post about the simbiti dedication. On November 2 we attended the dedication of the books of Jonah and Luke in the Simbiti language. It was the first 2 books in their heart language. There are now books of the Bible in all languages getting scripture translations at our office.

Clash  of two worlds but he was loving the music

It was a dreary rainy morning and a little cool. It was great that it wasn’t so hot but would have been nice to have sunny weather and have the dedication service outside.

Thhe things on the guys legs is an instrument. It sounded like there was rice inside

It all started with dancing outside the church. It was so much fun watching them dance and play their traditional instruments.

One of two choirs, they love color
 

We then moved inside the church for the 3 hour dedication service with lots of singing and dancing. The kids did great during the service. Because the church was also the school, there were lots of kids in attendance as well.

rejoicing over receiving Luke and Jonah in their language

It was an honor to be a part of this dedication.

Selling books

Reading scripture in their heart language for the first time

The translation team

One of the traslators bought books for these two boys

Nairobi Vacation

During the mid-semester break we took a vacation in Nairobi. On a good day it is a 9 hour drive. I love getting up early and starting our trip before sun up. It is so pretty watching the sun rise and seeing the country side come to life.

The highlights from our trip are a visit to the Giraffe Reserve, a tour of Kazuri bead factory, visiting with friends and for Nikki getting her hair cut.

There is a Giraffe Reserve just outside of Nairobi where you can feed the giraffes. One of the popular methods is putting the food between your lips and then the giraffe will take it. It looks like you are kissing the giraffe. The giraffe tongue is very rough and long.

We saw several Kazuri Jewelry stores in Nairobi and discovered the factory was really close to the giraffe reserve so we took a tour. What a cool place. They make all their beads from clay. They employ around 340 women, mostly single mothers who really need a job. The beads are then used for jewelry. They also make pottery and animals. The kids even loved seeing how it was all made. The jewelry and beads are shipped worldwide. For you Mennonites out there 10,000 Villages sells it in Canada.

We enjoyed our stay at the Mennonite Guesthouse where we got to visit with some friends that know my parents and lived in my home area for several years. We got to know them in July when we stayed at the guesthouse and enjoyed visiting with them again.

Below are pictures of sights from our trip.

 

Meet Coco

It has been a week now since we got a third dog. We had been thinking about getting another dog, one that would grow bigger than the other two and hopefully one not so hyper and a better watch dog. One of the missionary’s dogs had puppies and 3 weeks ago we went to look at them. We picked a female and Nikki instantly fell in love with her.

Coco has spent a lot of time sleeping on Nikki

Last Saturday Keith and Nikki picked her up and brought her home. Nikki loved being able to hold her in the car. We spent all day Saturday holding her and trying to get her used to us.

Within 2 days of her being with us she had proven to be smarter than the other dogs. The other two dogs are Tanzanian mutts. Coco is, actually I’m not sure what she is. Within a day of being her she figured out how to get the doors open so she could come into the house. The other two dogs only tried to get in when the door was open enough for them to squeeze through. She loves playing with sticks and tug of war. Something the other two dogs never had any interest in.

It didn’t take long for her to become comfortable here and show her true personality. She is very playful and loves attention. She will follow us around the yard and she likes to bite at your toes, crocs, flip flops or pants/long skirts. We’re hoping she will grow out of biting.

We love having her around. The kids don’t like how she bites their toes or clothes but we are trying to teach her not to.

We haven’t introduced Coco to the other two dogs yet. They have met through the wood slats of the dog pen but that is it so far. We are going to wait until Coco is much bigger.