Class is over!

Thursday I finished up my language course. We had a large final written and oral exam and a project to hand in for our last week of class. After 4 months of studying Swahili I feel like I have a good grasp of grammar but my vocabulary is still very limited. I think it will take a few more months of daily speaking before I am able to have a regular conversation. It will help when I move to town and no longer am surrounded by people that are able to speak English. Chuma arranged for the school to go into town together to celebrate. The mamas in the kitchen made lots of yummy food and we ate a place near the river. We received certificates of completion for the course.
Construction hasn’t begun on a house I had hoped to move into at the Bungo church. I have a meeting with the pastor later this week to talk about if/when construction will start. Linda and I looked at 2 houses last week but neither was promising. Both houses were too large for one person and very far from town. As I hope to be able to get around on foot or using a daladala being close to town is important. I’ve been assured that I am able to live in the language school housing for as long as needed. While it is a relief to know I won’t be homeless any time soon, I am ready to move and begin working in town.
Surprisingly the temperature has felt cool. I know that it is winter in Tanzania, but I didn’t expect to feel cold at all for at least the first year here. There have been a few nights where I’ve needed to pull out a blanket to sleep. I don’t bundle up in winter coats and hats like the Tanzanians but I have pulled out pants and a few long sleeve shirts for sitting outside at night. Now that the rains have mainly stopped the number of mosquitoes seems to have decreased, which is a relief. Unfortunately there are a crazy amount of spiders all over campus now. Yesterday on the way to church my friend walking on the path next to me walked through a giant web that hadn’t been there the day before. Thankfully the spider didn’t land on him since he expected me to help pull the pieces of web out of his hair!