Swahili: 48, Alannah: 3.
I've been trying to learn Swahili, hoping to grow my knowledge of the language further than "My name is Alannah. I am twenty years old." Alex has also been trying to learn the new language (she's so much better than me!). Last year, we had crash courses in Swahili, and as described in my last post, conversation isn't needed to feel such a real, emotional connection to others. I am hoping to learn a lot more from this very fascinating language and be able to talk to the mamas of the communities who may not have had the chance to go to school, to learn English. Part of the intrigue of travelling is to immerse yourself into a culture that you know next to nothing about, to not be able to lean on cultural norms, technology, or even the language. You come out on the other side with new knowledge, less ignorance, more worldly perspectives. Slowly, this very confusing language is becoming less complicated, the sounds are easier to make, the sentences are easier to structure. Learning, travelling, seeing, being. 'Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.'
