Monday, May 30, 2011

Take a Walk

Please. Come take a walk with me. Out the house, down the path. Wave good-bye to baby Natalie and Maggie hanging laundry on the line. Scare the chickens out of the way... watch how they run. Don’t forget to duck at the gate. Many a head have been hit on the metal rusting bar. Turn left down the muddy path, jump over the ditch at the end and wave hello/mirembe to the lazy men hanging out at the small general store to the right. Ignore their leering stares and obvious discussion about us as we walk by. Watch out – a piki-piki driver is zooming past. Listen as the two men aboard shout ‘wazunguuuuuuus’ as they speed on.

Monday, May 23, 2011

A Precarious Outing

My fabulous roomies and I decided to try our adventure caps out on the weekend, and selected the tropical Kakamega rainforest as our first destination. To get there, we voted for a stop in Kakamega to load up on food staples and Kenyan shillings. We settled on the disgusting, yet filling ‘Supaloaf’ bread and jam (from which launched a re-mix version of the Internet sensation “Peanut-butter Jelly Time” – “Supaloaf and Jelly Time” at every meal) for lunch, dinner AND breakfast the next morning. This, sadly, with the addition of 50 shilling crackers and a bottle of water each, was the maximum our daily food budget allowed.

Friday, May 20, 2011

The Blahs and the Big D

Imagine. You crash land on a remote island. All that survives, besides you, is a large tin of kale and a tin of maize flour. You are pleased at the discovery at first, because you know that you can make Sakuma and Ugali (which really does the trick to fill an empty stomach) if you can just manage to build a fire. The first week, all seems fine and well. You eat your Sakuma and Ugali every day. Twice a day. By the time the second week rolls around, you are starting to notice that your stomach protrudes slightly. By the beginning of the third week, you appear to be 3 months pregnant, though you know that is not a possibility. It is an Ugali baby. Growing inside at a rapid rate. And those rumbles? Yes, the big D – a result of extreme malnutrition, inadequate water supply, and adjusting to a new diet.

Welcome to my life as I know it (minus the plane crash on a remote island).

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Mazungu = Money

Everywhere we go it seems we are asked for money. If I told you it was somewhat exhausting, it would be an extreme understatement. It is also indescribably gut-wrenching and disheartening to have to say no to people who so obviously need money for their next meal. Other times, it is so incredibly easy: the already large woman in the market asking us to buy her some meat; the old woman we pass while walking, who at first to appears to be friendly saying “Merembe” and coming to shake our hands, only to grip tightly and ask for “Kumi” (10) bob; the school children we pass who shout with laughter saying, “How are you? Can you give me 5 bob?”; the man in the shop down the street who brings his child over to shake our hands only to later ask for me to pay for his flight to Canada and fees for Med school. Please, remember I am a nice person. Just a bit pessimistic today.

Monday, May 16, 2011

The School

Where do I start? The kids at Fairview CDC Academy are the happiest welcoming children I have ever encountered. Every time we visit we are swarmed by children that want to shake our hands, and never let go. Some have to settle for holding on to our arms as we weave our way through the mob. Now I know how the Beatles felt. The school itself has five and a half separate classrooms. One room houses the very young kids: babies, nursery age, and preschool. Another four accommodate Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 and Class 4. The ‘half’ is a part storage for text books and supplies along with the two Class 5 students. (For all of those teachers reading, it is pretty close to our ‘Grade’ equivalent). Some children share single-seated desks, and in the youngest classroom students sit on tables, chairs, and even the floor. At the very least we will try to cement the floor so that it is easier on the younger kids as they crawl/move around, but more furniture would be ideal.

Thursday, May 12, 2011

The Village

We live about a 15 minute walk away from Mudete, where there is a small daily market that transforms into a much larger one on Mondays and Thursdays. I purposefully avoid the stalls with fish (stinky!) and always feel a bit sad for the chickens (cuckoos) in the cages. Our main targets are vegetables – cabbage/kale/tomatoes/onions/beans and lentils/rice/or maize flour to make ugale. We are slowly getting to know the local prices so that we are not given the muzungu price when we purchase our own groceries. It is a weird feeling to be a minority and to have people stare at you without shame as you pass. Our limited (though increasing) number of Kimaragoli greetings produce smiles from many, and lots of handshakes follow (thank goodness for hand-sani). Even Allison who is of Jamaican origin is identified as a muzungu (though many people assume she can speak Swahili... I think she is getting tired of explaining that she can’t...).

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Accommodations

Mme Jean’s house is fairly large... we have our own room – 2 bunk beds and a single (which, somehow I scored... really, who actually chooses a bunk bed over a single??), and get this... A REAL TOILET!!! We are the only house lucky enough to have one, and as word spread to the rest of the team we became known as ‘the number 2 house’... though I am not really cool with everyone using us for that purpose... There is also a separate room to bathe with the infamous bucket showers that I am slowly becoming an expert on. The sitting room can fit 16 people comfortably for dinners (just enough space) and is equipped with a small TV that runs on a battery (and that is the first to re-boot when a power outage occurs... priorities right?) so that the ever so popular Mexican soaps can be the dinner entertainment... A separate fire kitchen area outside is where the majority of the cooking is done. Since it is currently the rainy season, the family is not conserving water too much, though the three of us are sticking to the ‘if it’s yellow let it mellow’ philosophy. I’m sure this will change throughout the summer as raining becomes less frequent and water conservation becomes a priority. At this point we may insist that we use the outdoor latrine (though we have already offered, we could try to be more persistent...)

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Arrival

An arrival in Chavakali... not the safest location. One man shouting “hey idiots, want to buy some crack” repeatedly while we attempted to keep track of all of the bags we were carrying. We were very fortunate to have had another one of Chief Mangwala’s sons, Patrick, meet us on this end to help secure transport to Wasundi, where the Chief’s house is. His friend and neighbour, Martin, who also works with SID on some projects (and whose smile I am kinda in love with) also came to lend a hand. A crazy ride in the back of a truck with all of the luggage.... up a very steep hill... where Martin and another passenger had to get out to help push the poor truck up the hill... at one point we were rolling backwards... aieeeeee!

Saturday, May 7, 2011

A Second Chance

Second day Nairobi. Had a well-deserved sleep-in. Challenged Dukoral vaccine by splurging on a yummy 3-fruit smoothie. Did not regret it. Frantically headed to airport via same city bus to pick up the rest of the team. An hour behind schedule, but we found them and succeeded in hiring a matatu and taxi to hotel. Took completely different route and saw ‘wealthy’ side of Nairobi. Extreme contrast. The rest of the team had a false sense of security as a result and Tricia and I attempted to drill into them the dangers of the city. So many snapping cameras. Weird to be surrounded by so many wazungus. Tricia and I left for Chavakali on a night bus after George, one of the sons of the chief in the village we will be staying in helped us carry our luggage to the station. Had a scary security stop where we were searched by police carrying AK-47s... felt strangely secure afterwards knowing that now no one on the bus was carrying a gun. No sleep though... very bumpy road. Apparently a nice drive in the day time through the Rift Valley... will experience it at some point this summer I’m sure.

Friday, May 6, 2011

Nairobi at a Glance

Safe after first day in Nairobi. Drove through very poor area of city on way in. Bus in fender-bender on way home from airport and guy beside me had phone pick-pocketed so being very careful. Lots of women balancing various things on heads or strapped to foreheads. Met friend on bus (guy who got phone stolen) who helped us find hotel and carry bags. Too much stuff. Very tired. Not a fan of the city. Saw first mosquito. Drivers are nuts. Had walk around city, got phones and internet cards. Raining now. Going to bed after very looong day. First night under the canopy of the mosquito net.