Morning. The sun sprinkles on the
Uluguru mountains and clouds wisp around them. The sounds of a
Morogoro morning – nearby roosters crowing, birds in their air
conditioning unit nest outside the window, goats and cows protesting
as they're herded out from the pen on the other side of the hotel
wall -- often wake us before our alarms. A few of us have been
jogging some mornings, and others of us have been going for morning
walks.
The stream of people along the hotel
road seems to start at early dawn and continues well past our 7:30ish
start, as people head to work and school. We stand aside for
motorcycle taxis and a few cars as they swoosh past, moving from side
to side on the road, searching for the least bumpy route. Secondary
students head to the school down the road and a few say hello. Our
attempts in Swahili are matched by their attempts in English
resulting in smiles, gestures, and laughter.
Off the main road, we wander in a
nearby neighborhood as it prepares for the day. Small buses packed
with waving school children go by. Chickens wander and scratch in the
gardens, yards, and road. The sun beats across the small fields and
house gardens
We attempt the correct response to the
greetings from the friendly residents tidying up their yards, sending
their children off, opening their shops, and starting their day --
Habari. Nzuri. Mambo. Poa. -- and call greetings of our own.
A drumbeat sounds from down the road. A
private school owned by a US-based church is assembling its students.
They line up as the small student band plays and then fall in line to
their morning classes. Latecomers slip past the gate and join the
line. A teacher calls us over and is interested in why we are here.
Before he heads to class he invites us to Easter dinner, an
invitation we can't consider since we leave Morogoro this Wednesday.
Which is hard to believe. There are
only a a few days left for morning walks in Morogoro.
