Silly Mzungu

Mzungu is a Swahili word all of the volunteers here are becoming more and more familiar with everyday.  People shout it as we pass, our students call us it, and numerous restaurants and bars use it in their title.  A mzungu is a white person.  The more appropriate translation is actually “foreigner”; however, I’ve also heard it translated as “one who is perfect” and according to my Tanzanian cultural guide book, literally translated, mzungu means “one who walks in circles”.

Although mzungu is mostly thought of as foreigner, it’s a term that’s almost strictly reserved for westerners.  I am definitely a mzungu.  I get lost, I can’t speak Swahili, I NEED sunscreen, I love to wear shorts that show my knees, and I can’t understand why a diet coke is so hard to find!

 At first I thought it was kind of derogatory, but I hear it so often that I’ve abandoned any ideas of being irritated with it.  In fact, the volunteers around here have really adopted the term and we now throw it around quite loosely.  A common phrase you can hear around the home base goes, “how would I know, I’m just a silly mzungu!”  Or when anyone does or says something pretty American or first world you might get a reply of “you’re such a mzungu.”  Making it into a joke has somehow made everyone much more comfortable with the idea that we are all obviously, and inescapably mzungus for the next few weeks.   

The other day we went on a field trip to a few different places.  We stopped at a Boabo tree, which is the biggest tree in Africa and can have a diameter as large as 49 ft!  It was raining so we all stayed in the vans to listen to the cultural and historical significance of the tree, a speech delivered by our driver.  As we sat in the 13 passenger van on this side road by a huge tree we must have drawn some attention to ourselves because suddenly the face of a local Tanzanian woman was pressed up against the wet foggy window.  She peered in at us and we watched as her mouth formed the word “mzungu” in a whisper.  Let me tell you, I felt like a mzungu in a zoo!  Soon we peaked the interest of a few more locals and we had several pairs of eyes quite focused on the mzungu display inside the vans.  Other than the diameter, I honestly can’t tell you anything else about the Boabo tree because I couldn’t stop nervously laughing!  Ooohhh, memories! 

Today I took my camera to Watoto Rau.  I would hold the camera up and get myself and the kids in the picture.  They love seeing themselves in the pictures so you always have to turn the camera around to show them.  My students, Majeliwa in particular, would laugh and say “mzungu” when I showed him the pictures of us! As if I didn’t realize how incredibly white I am in the sunlight next to a bunch of Tanzanian children without someone pointing it out!  Like I said, you just have to get over it.  I’m a mzungu and there’s no getting around it. 

 This is Yokshan (right next to me) and Zena (and I think Imakalata in the backgroud).  Total mzungu.

 

Brayson and I (and I think Sharon on the side). You can see the brick building which is our school house behind me.