This time only with Alphonce as a companion and without the team we take the bus to Arusha. At the end of a long avenue in the middle of the greenery, one of the sisters of the St. Francis Vocational Training Center already welcomes us. Here we will stay for the next two nights. We are surprised by the beautiful and well-kept grounds, because we did not know what to expect here.
After a cup of coffee, the nun takes us on a tour around the school grounds. This is a private school for future electronic technicians, cooks, and tailors. The annual school fees are 350 euros. Only girls attend the school, most of them belong to the Maasai tribe. We are impressed by the beautifully maintained gardens as well as the well-equipped classrooms.
The Maasai girls welcome us with some of their traditional dances. As a matter of course, as we have not experienced it differently in Tanzania, we are quickly asked to dance. Last but not least, we introduce ourselves to each other and are surprised by the girls‘ good knowledge of German.
Afterwards we visit the Precious Blood Girl‘ Secondary School, which is located right next to the Training Centre. It is highly zeitgemäß, very well equipped and can absolutely keep up with the level of schools in Europe. It has been awarded several times as the best school in Tanzania. In order to enjoy the education of this boarding school, the more than 500 students had to pass an entrance test and the parents have to pay 1,200 dollars annually.
Arriving at the dining hall, the students are having dinner and welcome us with loud cheers as we enter the room. The introduction of our group proceeds hbetagtingly as the director finds it difficult to calm the chattering crowd. They are particularly taken with Kristof. Then we are shown the biology, physics, chemistry rooms, library and the teachers‘ room, all of which could be found in exactly the same way in the schools of Europe. Finally, we visit the bedrooms, where the girls share a room in groups of six.
After an excellent dinner, we relax and look forward to tomorrow’s safari.
Blog der Pfarre Hildegard Burjan 