I met Flora when I stayed with my first
couchsurfing host family in Tanzania. She was my host’s relative and lived 3
hours away but came over to stay for a few days because she loved to meet
different couchsurfers and helped with the cooking during out stay. The first
impression Flora gave me was a happy bubbly lady. I took out my bottle of tea
powder from Kashmir and she tried it immediately. She was also the one who spent
one whole day to braid my African hair too.
Lifelong
Learning
Flora said she has been a happy person
since young and didn’t like to argue with others. She likes to make new
friends. Although Flora only completed her primary school qualification, she
speaks very good English. She said she has been working as a housemaid with
different house owners from different countries all these years and gotta
practice her spoken English.
She learned to braid hair since she was in
primary school. All her neighbors know she can braid hair well. She is now a
housemaid 3 days a week, other days she has free time to braid hair for her
neighbors.
Innocence
led a Single Mother Life
Flora is 30 but she has a 10 years old
daughter. She quitted school after she finished her 7 years of primary school
because her mom couldn’t afford the school fee for all 5 of her siblings. She
was staying at a relative’s home and was helping out cleaning the house. She didn’t
know much and met the bad guy and got pregnant when she was 19. The guy didn’t
care about her anymore after she told him she was pregnant. All these years she
worked hard to earn money to take care of her daughter as a single mother. Her
daughter is in P.5 now and she plans to send her daughter to the neighboring
country Uganda to attend a private boarding school next year. The school fee
costs lesser in Uganda than Tanzania. She hope her daughter could have better
education and better life. She will miss her daughter for sure but it is good
for her daughter. Her daughter is very mature and understands her hard work.
Live
a Simple Happy Life
Flora’s dream is to have a little house and
do some small business than to go far away and work for someone else. She loves
cooking and wants to open a restaurant but it will cost lots of money to buy
the cooking utensils. Instead, she may open a small shop which sells clothes for
children. When there is no business at the shop she can then do people’s hair
too. All she wants is to live a simple and happy life with her daughter.
.
Flora gave me a hair band as a present for
exchange. She really loves to braid people’s hair. It is also a good job to
earn quick money.
我在第一個坦桑尼亞借宿的家庭認識了Flora，她是我沙發主人的親戚，為了認識不同的背包客所以她決定從自己家坐上三個小時巴士來到這邊住上幾天及幫忙煮飯。Flora給我的第一個印象是一個快樂的傻大姐，我跟我的沙發主人分享我在喀什米爾購買的特產香料茶，她卻是第一個立即拿來品嚐的人。另外，她也花了一整天時間幫我編了一個漂亮的非洲頭。
自學英語 自強不息
Flora自少就是一個很開朗的人，她不喜歡跟人吵架，喜歡結交新朋友。雖然她只有小學程度學歷，但她卻說得一口流利的英語，原來她一直以來幫不同國籍的僱主當家傭，於是有很多機會練習英語。她自少就學會了編織頭髮，鄰居都知道她的手藝好，現在她每週當三天家傭，其餘時間都會幫鄰居們弄頭髮賺外快。
因為無知 遇上負心漢子
Flora今年三十歲卻已經有一個十歲大的女兒，她小學七年級便輟學了，因為那時候媽媽沒能力負擔五兄弟姐妹的學費。後來她住在一個親戚家幫忙打理家務，由於年紀少結果結交了一個壞男人，令她十九歲就懷孕了，但是那男生得知後也不再理會她。這些年來Flora努力賺錢照顧女兒，女兒現在唸小五，她打算明年送女兒到鄰國烏干達唸寄宿學校，因為那裏的學費較坦桑尼亞平宜。為了女兒的前途，她希望女兒可以有更好的教育機會，女兒也很懂事也明白她的苦心，但想念女兒是必定的了。
簡單快樂過生活
Flora的夢想是有一間自己的房子和做一些小生意，她喜歡下廚希望能開一間餐館，但買廚具卻需要很多錢。或許，她可以先開一間小店專售賣兒童服裝，當沒有生意時她可以幫別人編織頭髮，她只希望能夠和女兒過著簡單快樂的生活。
Flora送了一個束頭髮飾物給我作交換禮物，她很喜歡幫別人編織頭髮，對她來說，這同時也是一個賺快錢的工作啊！
