Ian's Tanzania Blog: Swahili Catholic Mass Sunday

At the orphanage last weekend (BTW Augusto returned yesterday with Francis and a few others to donate some of our clothes - I contributed my running shoes, a golf jacket and addidas shirt) we asked Dr. Simba for a Swahili church recommendation for today. Jonathon and I left at 8:00 for the 8:30 service. The earlier Mass was well attended, it ran late, and the crowd outside listened on speakers broadcast from inside. I am sure Des, high on the idea of church efficiency, would have felt the 2 hour service was a little long.

Bicycle's just inside the church gates

Waiting while earlier mass finishes up.

We all went in as others came out and waited for things to commence. Men
on the right... women on the left... good thing we picked the right by
coincidence!! Blind luck!!

I was on the isle and got lucky as I poked the camera out into the isle and
took this one from waist high. Lot so incense.. hey there was a balcony!!

I quite liked the choir directors recognition that a Canadian
was in the house

Seemed to me there were a few priests
to handle the crowd

I personally really like this one... taken again descreetly from the hip. This lady had a new
baby on her lap. I really like the crosses on the pews.

Best we could figure we believe the about 15 new members
joined the church when they and their sponsors went to the alter

Jonathon and I were hoping
for a bit more singing and
swaying but the Swahili service
seemed to progress along
traditional Catholic service
lines

Communion and everything else was accompanied by a lot of incense.

Something new... after filing up one by one to put collection in the top slot
of the brown box above.... a number of people came forward carrying very
heavy sacks of what may be rice or other grains. We thought this was a
donation instead of traditional money... not sure though? But an
added a twist to our traditional proceedings

More signing!! Then followed by  what I thought
was announcements  ... came a 15 minute plus  speaker
who read a multipage document. It ended  and
we were  invited up .. kind of communion style ... to make
another donation. I was happy to do so and  we discussed
that we would depart on our way back to our seats.

There was a beautiful stain glass window from floor to celling on the right at the

front of the church and a series of matching glass in small windows down

the sides of the church.

These little girls were waiting for the next service to start.. it would be late as ours took more than 2 hours.

Out on the street we called our driver and waited while watching this lady (there was another on the other side of the street) clean the road ... think she was part of road maintenance... not sure.

Phil's drivers car was there to pick us up and we headed back to the Arc. The driver pulled over 100 meters from the start of the 1K road to the hotel and turned of the car... we thought air conditioning was needed and after a bit of confusion due to swahili / english discussion ... we realized the vehicle had run out of gas.. at least it was on EMPTY. A bit of a surprised but undeterred we stepped out and around the deceased dog beside the car and hoofed it back to the hotel.