One of my lectures made an interesting comment a few days ago. He said something to the effect of “Tanzania has become an instant society. We have instant news, instant coffee and fast food.” I had to contain a chuckle. If he thinks that those tings in a Tanzanian context are “instant,” what does that make my corner of the world? The reality is “instant news” is CNN for half an hour broadcast a few times a day and local news nightly. “Instant coffee” is king of true; it the granules you dissolve in hot water. Fast food is a laughable concept. When I think about “instant” in this context it is CNN, MSNBC, and Fox available 24/7, Starbucks in less than three minutes, and McDonald’s with the goal of the minute and a half drive through. Instant is such a contextual word!
While the culture is changing in Tanzania to be faster paced and convenience oriented it is nothing compared to the hustle and bustle I left behind several months ago. Going home I am left to ponder how I will adjust back into this lifestyle. From what others have said it comes naturally. The bigger question is do I want to go back to this way of living? Tanzania has put the brakes on my personality in many ways. Waiting is something I am much better at now. Just today I stood for 20 minutes waiting for a dala dala. I would have never done that before. Here there is no other option so you just wait. It’s amazing how much time I can use up by just sitting and watching and thinking about nothing. It’s really relaxing.
With the speeding up of the Tanzanian lifestyle, especially in urban areas, it is causing a bit of a generation clash. These are to be expected as one group transitions with new technology and culture changes. Even so, this one seems to be a bit more pronounced. Young people walk around connected to their friends via cell phones and text messages. They are on the move to get places and see things. They are following more media trends in their lifestyle choices. Even though these changes are taking place I feel like they are happening in Tanzania more slowly than they have in other parts of the world. People, whether for reasons of apprehension or lack of finances, seem to be interested in the changes taking place in their society yet are slow to join in. It seems that the financial situation has a lot to do with it.
The average Tanzanian has no comparison point for the pace of life outside of Tanzania unless they have traveled there. There are few sub cultures based around workplaces, schools or community organizations that have adapted the Western pace. The biggest contributing factor to that is they still have to interact with the rest of Tanzania that is not on their timetable.
Going home the effects of my time in Tanzania on my scheduling and lifestyle remain to be seen. Will I take more time getting from place to place? Will I schedule back to back appointments leaving little room for deviation from my schedule? How will my friends and family react to my adjusted concept of time? I think all remains to be seen. It’ll have to be a re-entry blog.
While the culture is changing in Tanzania to be faster paced and convenience oriented it is nothing compared to the hustle and bustle I left behind several months ago. Going home I am left to ponder how I will adjust back into this lifestyle. From what others have said it comes naturally. The bigger question is do I want to go back to this way of living? Tanzania has put the brakes on my personality in many ways. Waiting is something I am much better at now. Just today I stood for 20 minutes waiting for a dala dala. I would have never done that before. Here there is no other option so you just wait. It’s amazing how much time I can use up by just sitting and watching and thinking about nothing. It’s really relaxing.
With the speeding up of the Tanzanian lifestyle, especially in urban areas, it is causing a bit of a generation clash. These are to be expected as one group transitions with new technology and culture changes. Even so, this one seems to be a bit more pronounced. Young people walk around connected to their friends via cell phones and text messages. They are on the move to get places and see things. They are following more media trends in their lifestyle choices. Even though these changes are taking place I feel like they are happening in Tanzania more slowly than they have in other parts of the world. People, whether for reasons of apprehension or lack of finances, seem to be interested in the changes taking place in their society yet are slow to join in. It seems that the financial situation has a lot to do with it.
The average Tanzanian has no comparison point for the pace of life outside of Tanzania unless they have traveled there. There are few sub cultures based around workplaces, schools or community organizations that have adapted the Western pace. The biggest contributing factor to that is they still have to interact with the rest of Tanzania that is not on their timetable.
Going home the effects of my time in Tanzania on my scheduling and lifestyle remain to be seen. Will I take more time getting from place to place? Will I schedule back to back appointments leaving little room for deviation from my schedule? How will my friends and family react to my adjusted concept of time? I think all remains to be seen. It’ll have to be a re-entry blog.
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