On Sunday, I finally got a chance to meet with Hekima again at their weekly meeting. I made a survey for all of them to fill out and worked with my mama's daughter to translate everything properly. I learned that almost all of the 37 members are small business owners. Whether it be selling vegetables at Tengeru market twice a week or selling second hand clothes and shoes in Arusha, all remain super busy every day of the week struggling to expand their businesses even further. I also met the group coordinator who started up Hekima as well as over 10 other micro groups in surrounding villages. She saw a need for a common meeting place and support group for small business women. Once she learned the benefits of microfinance, she started her first groups three years ago and they're now growing and supporting more and more people. 

After the surveys were filled out and their meeting was coming to an end, I passed out the mardi gras beads I brought from NOLA, because last year my mama loved them! The group enjoyed them just as much and started singing while I was passing them out - I love Tanzanian songs! It was certainly a fun way to end the meeting and I'm hoping to visit some of the women at their businesses before we leave.

Today was also a sad day because it marked our last official "cooking class" where we made grilled meat, banana cake, potato salad, fried bananas, and rice cakes. I am really going to miss spending afternoons in Makumira with our wonderful Tanzanian family!  I feel like the luckiest person having been placed at my mama's house last year. I'm glad with the cookbook, I have a chance to help them in return. It also makes me happy knowing I always have a place to stay whenever I have the chance to come back! Farida and Mama Glory are both single ladies, and despite how hard it is to keep a steady job here, they've managed to make due with what they have, send their eldest daughters to university, and have the most welcoming homes you could ask for.

On July 4th-5th Colin, Daniel and I headed out to Babati - a more rural town about 3 hours west of Arusha. We wanted to get some field data for the jamming problem the shellers have been showing and it was just a good way to see the machine working with more than a few cobs in the workshop. After a long bus ride, we quickly found a guest house and explored the area. Since it was already evening by the time we got there and I wasn't feeling too well (although I love Tanzania, my stomach usually doesn't!) we went to bed early and left the next day for setting up and shelling. Tanganyika Farmers Association (TFA) let us borrow their already set up bike and found a willing farm about 15 minutes outside of town to let us shell some of their  maize - you can imagine it'd be a hard decision ;) . By the time we were all set up, there was a crowd ready to do our work for us! Turns out, when you don't have any "toys," bikes and a new maize shelling machine are fun and interesting. Within an hour of shelling, we had about 6 jams where cobs were lodged in good right before the exit point.  

Since then, we have been brainstorming ways to fix this problem and have recently made a new plate to insert in the front piece of the sheller. The only difficulty is being able to test on a large enough sample to make any conclusive results. Since it isn't harvest season yet in Arusha, it's necessary to continue going out to other villages who have their harvest a bit earlier (why we went to Babati). 

Other than jamming, the biggest issue is complaints of thread ware, since if it occurs, the machine is completely unusable. It is very hard to pinpoint the problem because it could take maybe 30 sacks of maize or 1000 for any thread ware to occur! Jamming could be causing the thread ware or it may be machining in China. Since we're not here for much longer, Colin and I are trying to summarize all the things that need to be looked at and figure out the best ways to do solid testing when more corn is available.

Sneaky Colin  made a wooden ring prior to heading over to join me in Tanzania. He stored it in a sock so I wouldn't find it and decided  Zanzibar was the right place to bring it out. It turns out it was :) !  It is safe to say I wasn't expecting it, but I couldn't have asked for a better place nor a better person to enjoy such an important moment in my life. 

We were living luxuriously for the night, trying out the Tembo Hotel in Stone Town. One of our neighbors suggested it , although  was a bit "pricey,"we decided to go for a beach front room (a whopping $100) . One of the balconies was empty so we went out to watch the sunset- Zanzibar proved to have the most beautiful sunsets every single night. As I was leaning against the balcony wall casually chatting, all of a sudden a ring was in front of me!  And of course I said yes :) Colin was so nervous that he forgot to get on one knee, but I didn't even realize it until he brought it up later that night! I was also filled in that he had asked my mom and dad for approval prior to leaving. I can't believe my mom kept it a secret... she was pretty relieved when she heard and could let it out! He also showed me a picture of the ring I'd be getting when we are back in the US, it is too beautiful. I am so lucky to have Colin in my life, two beautiful rings, and amazing future in-laws! I can't help but think how crazy the world works with how  I met him in the first place! Thank goodness for Webb ship yard winter work, the fact that I go to school on the Gulf ,and just so happened to be roommates with his high school's valedictorian freshman year... 

 We spent 5 days in Zanzibar exploring Stone Town, the north shore, and of course trying all of the fresh seafood at the night market!  I don't think I could ever get sick of food in Zanzibar. Ocean front meals almost every night, seafood for 1/4 of the price in the U.S. and everything guaranteed fresh! It is my goal to recreate Zanzibar pizza- my new favorite treat. Unfortunately, it's more of an acquired skill and the men at the night market have it down to a T. So I'm crossing my fingers I can add it to the cookbook. 

It's safe to say we were on tourist mode when we were in Zanzibar, just enjoying being there without the stress of work and busy Arusha life! Parasailing, snorkeling and a spice tour were all squeezed in and made for an even more memorable trip!

So, here is the official cookbook cover and table of contents, along with some very delicious food we've cooked up so far! Having Colin here now (He arrived June 28th) is extra nice because when my hands are covered in flour or fruit juice, he can be taking pictures and writing recipes down. The first few weeks were a bit hectic, especially when the idea of "measuring ingredients" wasn't a necessary thing to Farida and mama. Now they know and Colin brought over some more cooking utensils to make it all easier (Thanks mom and Linda for sending them over with him!).

Today, Daniel, Colin, and I left cooking temporarily to give a quick talk for the Engineering World Health students about what we've been up to and how GCS was started. It was really nice visiting TCDC again and reminiscing about my Swahili and technical classes last summer. We brought them some maandazi to try - the "doughnuts"  in the slide show above, which definitely was a crowd pleaser :D Then heading back to Makumira to continue our cooking "lesson" of the day, we ended finishing 6 recipes - most definitely a record breaking day!   

I've also been showing Colin around so we spent the past two weekends playing with babies at Cradle of Love, visiting the Meserani snake park, and the Arusha Cultural Center