Mama I'm coming home...

Hey all!

I'm finishing my last week in Kenya. Last week was amazing- went to my family's homeland in Kisii and it is as beautiful as Mfangano. I finished teaching and got the journalism club set up with advertisers. I finished2.5 of 4 papers and then took two finals yesterday.
We've had seminars and been staying at a guest house in nairobi, sharing experiences and illnesses- theres a bit of the stomach flu going around, but again I got it first so I think I'm over it.
BUT I have to run- we're packing tonight and leaving to climb part of Mt. Kenya tomorrow! (still have papers to finish but this is experiential learning right?!)

I fly out Saturday night and get in Sunday afternoon. Can't wait to see you all!

Thanksgiving starts with a live turkey

We all know thanksgiving starts with a live turkey...I guess us city-folks just aren't the ones who usually kick off the process~
Well, this time we did. On Friday Seth and I went to Joe's house (on his newly purchased motorcycle) to meet our turkey. He was 20kgs (maybe...) and running around the yard. So never having prepared our own turkey we stalled a little by watching a beautiful Lake Victoria sunset. Then we returned to Joe's, and his family was ready to go. So two of Joe's Kenyan brothers grabbed the turkey and held him down by wings and feet, and Seth was given a giant knife. We approached the poor bird and Seth grabbed onto its head---And in about 5 seconds we had a headless turkey squirming around and with blood shooting out of its neck at a pulses rate. (I'm sorry if that was graphic. But personally, I am much more in touch with my food here, literally.)
Then the defeathering- I was reading the Prodigal Summer last week by Barbara Kingsolver, its a novel, and in the chapter I was reading on Friday the characters actually catch and roast a turkey, what are the odds! - so with my newly acquired knowledge on defeathering, I got to casually mention that we would need scalding water to loosen the feathers and other fun facts like that. Us mzungus were pretty useless in the process though, other than Seth's work, Joe's family jumped to it and defeathered the whole thing while we were still trying to figure out where to start.
Saturday was the big feast- Lo and I went to Amanda's in the morning and cooked literally all day (new found respect for all you Tday preparers out there! love you mom), the turkey was an exciting challenge as none of us had ever prepared one before. We made sweet potatoes, sweet corn, pies, stuffing, everything and finished cooking around 5- all on two burners and one oven mind you, which made it all the more exciting and like one of those awful word-math problems. The oven was not temperature controlled, and only one burner on the stove worked, so we also had a cylinder of gas with a burner in the middle of the kitchen- and we only knocked it over twice. We botched the gravy- but everything else came out great. The day was a lot of work, but so much fun.
We all gathered around the table and said what we were thankful for, then after serving our guests we dug in. We thought we would be short on food but there was more than enough to go around. No football, but we watched our rafting video instead :)
Last night we went to our favorite spot in town- Ivy G's- a small coffee house/sports bar and shared stories all night (we had friends come from Meru and Nairobi). However, not having eaten any of these food for a long time really put my stomach in a bind- I had rolling cramps all night, probably from eating real butter, sugar, and all those other rich american foods. I'm not looking forward to the harsh transition back to American food right in the middle of the holiday season- I'll really have to pace myself- really, cabbage and flour/water to start.

Last weekend we went to Mfangano island in Lake Victoria. My friend from high school, Annika, and her friend Kelsey are working out there for an NGO. The NGO is building a community center, with a computer lab, VCT, radio station, etc, and the only requirement to become a member is to know your HIV status, still confidential, and be retested every 6 months. (40% of the population is HIV+).
To get to the island we had to take a bus, literally packed two people a seat with 15 more standing in the aisles, a few chickens, and we even saw a sheep get tossed on the top with the rest of peoples luggage. Next was a very across a straight of water, to another part of the mainland. And then we took a smaller passenger boat for a two hour ride to Mfangano itself. Like always, we didn't exactly know where we were going- all we knew was Luanda-Otieno, Mbita, and Kitawi Beach, the three towns where we needed to change modes of transport. After traveling all day and multiple false beach stops we got to Kitawi and Annika met us. She showed us the community center and then we went for a swim in Lake Victoria while the sun set just over the tip of the island- beautiful.
We stayed with Joel, the man who is heading up the project and where Annika also stays. Joel is the oldest son in his family so he inherited the family land- with multiple houses. There was an empty house on the land so the 6 of us travelers stayed there. We talked with Joel all evening and cooked spagetti and sauce by moonlight. We slept in our open air house, a mud and stick structure with a tin hip roof and quite the termite population (the rafters and collar ties were about shot). We all had mosquito nets- and I tell you, they give you this strange feeling of invincibility- like hey I'm sleeping under this net, so that spider I just saw that could kill me or that python that shed its skin outside definitely can't get me- its funny, but my friends here feel the same way.
The next morning we got up early to begin our hike. We were only going to climb to a lookout, but upon reaching there we decided to go higher. We hiked and rock climbed all the way to the top, it took about 2 hours to climb up, and it was the most intense workout I've had here. It was well worth it. There are communities at the top of the island who climb up and down like its no big deal- but we were wiped. Joel decided we wouldnt be able to make it down the way we came up so we took a tour of the ridge and came down a few beach communities over. The hike lasted about 5 hours.
We got back to the homested and realized our boat was leaving shortly, so no time for a lake dip, we headed down to the beach. As we were waiting we saw a boat fly by and realize it was the one we needed! We attempted to flag it down, but were not successful. So we had to sprint up to the road, Joel called us motorbikes and we had to race the boat to the last beach stop on the island. I have never gone so fast or gotten so much air on a piki-piki! But luckily we made it, and began our trip home.

I will have photos from all of this to share when I get back. For the time being I'm not using my flash drive anywhere because at school last week I got a virus that wiped all my photos and papers off their only storage space!
I have a friend who knows a guy who was able to recover everything, thank goodness, after an hour of tampering with it. And as it turned out, the virus was named Raila Odinga (the prime minister) and who's name and election results was the cause of terror and many lives lost in the country. And now it's making the rounds on word documents and photos- horrible, haha.

This is my last week in Kisumu :(
I'm excited to see everyone at home, but not quite ready to leave Kenya. I will go to Nairobi on saturday, take finals on sun-tues and then a few of us are going to climb mt. kenya. And I get home two weeks from today.
I don't know where ANY of my winter stuff is so hopefully it will be a mild december day. :)

Can't wait to see everyone and show you photos and share stories!

So this is life

I've been super busy so sorry it's been awhile. I have a lot to catch you up on!

Two weekends ago we took a little adventure to a well-known river: The Nile! There were 13 of us, so we filled up a matatu which was good for organizing. We took a matatu up to the border at Busia and crossed into Uganda. No crazy border drama like Tanzania- just a $50 visa and a long line. From there we walked through the border town to the stage and grabbed another matat. We were going to Jinja and our camp was just outside of town. So of course we didn't really know where we were going-like most of our trips :) We had the driver take us to Jinja, but once we crossed the border I lost cell phone contact and I was the one who set everything up and was communicating with the camp and the contact, Nash. Ha well, we got into Jinja but our driver didnt know where the camp was when we told him the name of it. All of a sudden Janel's phone rings, and the guy asks for me! and its Nash- how did he get Janel's number?! we have no idea. But this is fantastic, Nash now talks to our driver and directs us to the camp.

We got to camp late, but the place was beautiful. It was up on a bluff overlooking the Nile. with a wonderful porch that they also call "the porch". Early in the morning we got up for breakfast, and coffee thank god, and got all geared up and on the bus to head for our launching spot. The rafts hold 7 people plus the guide. We only had 6 so we had strangers keep hopping in, a Finnish woman, a guy from California, and they were great to talk to. Our guide, Jeffry, was awesome! So entertaining and knew the boys liked to flip so we did that a few times (SCARY!). We made it safely down all the rapids, only flipping a few times, with the best lunch ever-Ugandan pineapple- and it was a fantastic day. That night we had a few Nile Specials (local brew, that I once called the Nile Perch- nice huh?), and hung out on the porch. We have a video of rafting circulating somewhere so I'll do my best to get a copy.

One of the most frustrating parts was trying to get a matatu back to the border. We had to bargain down our mzungu price- of course just to get to Jinja. In Jinja we found another matatu, and agreed on a price with the driver and conducter. But there were like 5 guys standing there and they started arguing over our money. So were sitting in the matat, it is so hot, the men are yelling at eachother and we have to get back because some of had to catch a bus. So we drive away, but this guy follows us and when we stop on the side of the road he runs over to the matat and starts yelling at the conductor. we think they were fighting over how to split up the fare-or commision for finding us or something. But the guy jumps on the matat and refuses to get off until the conductor gives him 1,000Ush, which is like $0.40. He is screaming at the man, and another man comes over and is yelling at our driver and this goes on for a good 10 minutes. So a few of us start yelling at them, because we need to go go go! It was quite intense, but finally the conductor gave the guy the money and we were able to leave. I tell you, public transportation is quite different here. ahaha ok.

Last week was so busy- we're trying to get a newsletter published and it is a lot of coordinating, students are taking exams all day every day for two weeks, and they don't have a lot of time to do anything but study. It's coming along, the kids will show up at my desk with articles they want me to read. They are great creative writers and starting to get the hang of reporting.

On Wednesday I stayed late after school because it was pouring. So I was talking to one of my journalism students, and we were just talking about things-music, tv, etc and then we started talking about voting. And he told me he will never vote. And I used that "Oh, you have to vote, your vote counts" line blah blah because it surprised me. And as we kept talking about it he asked me if I had ever seen a chicken killed- how they ring its neck. He was telling me he'll never vote here, because sometimes when you vote here, you get killed. Just like that. And his mom died from AIDS and his dad has it too, and he came to Kisumu on his own during the post election violence- because his tribe was being persecuted in Nairobi. And he is 18.

Then I was talking to another teacher about Kenya and the U.S. He just kept saying that hopefully one day the country will figure it out, and corruption will end- but its so deeply rooted he doesn't know how or when. He's just a guy trying to do his job, doens't get paid on a regular basis, but is in the classroom everyday. And I just had this overwhelming 'its not fair' feeling come over me that hasn't left yet.

Then I walked home in the rain and when I got to my fence gate it was locked so I had to wait until someone saw me. It was pouring, and across the dirt road there was a flock of sheep waiting at their respective gate as well. And there I was, standing in the rain, just like the sheep, waiting for my gate to be opened.


On Friday I went to Ring Road Primary/Secondary in the afternoon with all of our primary kids to play soccer. On the way there one of my flip-flops broke, and of course it was like the muddiest day and the muddiest field. As soon as I stopped, ALL the kids (probably 40) turned around, and at least 10 of them offered me their shoes, from their little primary feet. I declined and walked barefoot for a bit until one girl insisted and I gladly accepted her offer of a tire sandal (great reuse of materials ey?). Her name was Gloria, and we walked together the rest of the way, she is in Class 6. The last obstacle to the field was a little stream that you have to leap over. Of course all the kids are watching me, and a couple of them who didn't make it are soaking wet. I've got two different shoes on, a purse, and am wearing a skirt, so I take a running start and land my footing on the otherside. BARELY. but they all cheered for me, and then Gloria asked me if I did ballet, because I guess it was a really big leap haha. I watched the games- our girls lost, and so did our boys, they were much smaller than the Ring Road kids. During the games the kids took my broken shoes and sewed them back together by hand. Then Gloria walked me through the slums to find a piki piki to town and helped me negotiate the mzungu price down :) It was a great afternoon.

This past weekend I went to Mfangano Island in Lake Victoria- it was amazing, beautiful, and I have a million things to say about it so I'll write on it later. But it was an amazing weekend with great people and my roller coaster week definitely ended on a high. I know I will go back to visit Mfangano at some point in life-

Thanks for reading!

I am not a mzungu.

I decided to take up running....well occasionally. Last weekend when I got home, I laced up my running shoes and went to the gate to leave. Little did I expect my 9 and 12 year old brothers and 18 year old houseboy to accompany me in their flip-flops...well they did! So here I am, mzungu running down dirt/rock roads and attracting the attention of everyone because even though Kenyans are good runners- you never see anyone running (Nike has set up a lot of camps in the areas where the fastest runners live-apparently not Dunga Beach- where I am). And the little kids already call out my name when I pass them, so when I run past them they yell "MZUNGU. YOGGING. HOW AH YOU?" and jog in place. Needless to say, I don't run outside the compound often anymore.

They say if you have bug bites in a line on your body they are probably bed bugs. ha great! I mean if you take two points- there is always a line between them! I don't think I have bed bugs...but I am getting bit up by something. Thus I apply more DEET, often. yuuck. OK, enough of that.

Teaching was fine this week. I had to buy chalk and red pens because they didn't have any for me, let alone the permanent teachers. They all use my chalk everyday- chalk costs about .4 USD and there isn't any for the teachers.
The teachers play this fun game where if you aren't in for your lesson, someone else will jump in so they can teach the lesson they missed yesterday or their afternoon lesson so they can leave early. It is a little more informal than the U.S. ;)
My cooperating teacher came two hours late Monday so I missed my class, because sometimes I don't get teaching materials until the morning of the lesson. But, everything is running on Kenyan time, so it is what it is.

The journalism club is up and running. The kids held elections (not sure I agree with they're system, but it's their club, and I didn't exactly want to mess with elections in Kenya- ok that was was not PC. but regardless.) I guest lectured the foundations of media writing and will be lecturing again on Monday. They have their Saturday meetings without me and I go on Mondays. They seem very eager to get started on something, I think a newsletter is first on their list.

This week I was completely mzungu-ed out. I mean, it's strange how we have come to respond to the name. Also, "How ah YOU?" is the question everyone asks us. It's fine when you respond and they do too, but some kids don't know what they are saying and just repeat the question over and over and over and over, like a broken record, but you probably already got my point.
A man yelled wazungu at as on Friday (and it means European traveler) so Joe and I yelled back: "Who? Us? We are NOT mzungus. We have names!" and went on our way.
It is very frustrating to be only seen for your skin (wow deep I know), but it gets old.
On the other side of it, Joe was talking about how when he shakes little kids hands, they will rub your hand to feel your skin. I was on a matatu yesterday and the little girl next to me kept pretending to fall asleep and would drop her hand with her head and try to touch my knee. So I shook her hand and talked to her a little bit in Swahili. I am fine with this, lets all touch each others skin and realize we're the same (profound).
This weekend we have been disgustingly overcharged so many times I've lost count. First we agreed to a taxi fare home, and when Emily and I got to my gate the driver demanded 200 shillings. We had agreed on 150. Well what do you do when a driver is at your gate demanding money...I gave it to him because I didn't want any hard feelings. And obviously will never use his services again. Yesterday I tried to get a piki-piki home, normally 30-40 bob, and the first guy said 100! So I laughed and walked away, the next guy said 80! Ha! So I walked away from him too. And as soon as I said "Kila siku, hununua alhamisi" (every day I pay 40), one of them agreed. Now yesterday I was also dressed especially touristy because I we went to the rain forest...so I probably didn't look as "smart" as usual. But, nonetheless, double my price, I've got a dollar sign on my forehead.

I don't know how that came off, but really I think there are two general types of travelers who come to Africa- big tourists/spenders and peacecorps/student types (I dont know where to put missionaries...don't be offended by that). Now both are wealthier than most Africans by absolute standards, and in-continent. But back in the U.S. there seems to be quite the dichotomy between the types of people who travel here. I know that was not all inclusive but I think that the big touriism industry, colonial roots and stratification from that system, paint the picture that mzungus are rich. What is rich? I don't know anymore.

And finally, we went to Kakamega forest yesterday. The only remaining area of rain forest in Kenya- I guess the Brits didn't want this part of the country. It was beautiful! We hiked all day, ran into countless monkeys and learned a lot about the plants and trees there. When we were watching the monkeys, I couldn't help but think of my 7th/8th grade English teacher who got bit by a monkey while in a forest in SE Asia. What DO you do if a monkey comes at you? ha I have no idea, glad they didn't. (we did have a guide with us so don't worry too much) verdict on kakamega: recommend it!

OH! and one more thing. On Friday night we went to this little beach bar by our houses, its right on the shores of lake victoria and we go for sunsets often. We'll we just sat down and a guard came up to us and said "Do you want to see people?" I was like what, people, i hope this isn't a prostitution thing (look how jaded I am), but what he said was HIPPO! there was a hippo that came up to feed in the grass around the outdoor bar. So we just sat there and watched this huge creature feed, when it finally did run away, it was the funniest thing! they are fast, and I guess like to snap people in half- but them don't eat them. What show-offs :)

Thanks for reading! planning a rafting trip to Uganda for next weekend! holler- the nile!

This is my wife! We have been married for 10 years!-EH 5 years!

My new not-best friend is the rooster who lives in a coop directly outside my bedroom window which is right next to my bed. He wakes up and announces this to everyone at 4am every morning. every morning! I mean we are trying to be friends, but we're not off to a good start...the 6 puppies on the other hand are another story. Their whimpering may wake me up at in the morning, but they are the cutest things ever.

Kisumu is HOT! Each night I crawl into bed, tuck in my mosquito net and then fall asleep on my back before I can read or even decide whether or not to sleep with a sheet because it is so hot in there and teaching wears me out. Although, I would rather have this problem than be in a freezing college apartment, so I'll take it for sure.

I taught Form 1 all week and the kids are very good. The lessons are a bit bland right now because testing is over so they are in school for 4 more weeks with nothing really on the line. Kind of like when we take IB/AP tests a month before school is over...you think we could plan these things better, ay? So we have a high school full of students just waiting for their exam scores. In Form 3 there are 36 kids, and only the top twenty Exam scores will be promoted to Form 4...very interesting.

My favorite story from the week was I think Wed evening. I came into town to meet Seth and we hung out for awhile and just caught up. Then Joe came over and after a bit, Joe and I went to my mom's shop for a ride back to Dunga (our neighborhood). While Joe and I were waiting this guy approached Joe and asked for his phone number, or any phone number of a girl friend because he desperately wants to marry a mzungu. So I walked over to Joe and the guy started to ask me for my number.
"Hello, my friend, can I please have your phone number? I want to marry a mzungu."
"How do you know you want to marry a mzungu?" Joe and I asked.
"I just know, please your number, your sisters number, your friends," the guy said.

"Actually, we're married!" I told him, pointing to Joe.
"Yeah, we've been married for 10 years!-EH 5 years!" Joe told him, hoping to make it a more realistic number.
"Oh please, the number of your sister."
"Sorry man, I only have brothers- do you want their number??" I asked him
"NO NO. what about your friends?"
"Again, only have male friends, do you want THEIR numbers??" I asked him again.
"No no."
"OH look! there are some other mzungus, maybe you can try them." We said, pointing to two white girls walking toward us.

Well now we thought that was over...but the girls were walking right toward us...and directly toward us. AND it was Annika! A girl who went to my high school in Minneapolis and studied in Kenya two years ago. ! So we went and had a beer and caught up- Joe, Seth, Annika, her friend Kelsey and I.

Annika and Kelsey are working on an island-Mfangano- in Lake Victoria. They are helping raise awareness about a community center that is going to open and have a VCT clinic, cyber cafe, radio station etc. On the island, 40% of the population is HIV+. In order to join the comm center you have to have a VCT test and know your status, and renew every 6 months. An American couple started an organic farm there after buying land and it has now evolved to the building of the center. pretty awesome, right?! So one weekend I'm going to go visit her and see the island and everything. The grand opening for the center is Dec 1 (world AIDS day) so I may go back for that as well- looking forward to it!

This weekend Dumes (Emily), who lives 45 minutes away, spent the weekend at my place, which is great because I have two double beds in a room I have to myself. Friday night we went to the Kisumu Institute Bar, which is a great outdoor place where you can sit and talk and we all just caught up on each others lives. Its weird that we don't all see each other everyday, but its also refreshing to be more independent. Then we had dinner at an Italian place, omg pizza/well really cheese, is amazing, it was great. Then we went to a local Luo bar called what we thought was FlemLive when we asked the waiter over loud music. Turned out to be the FlameLeaf. Entertaining none-the-less, and we were quite the mzungu spectacle when dancing I'm sure.

Saturday we walked along the shore of Lake Victoria and then went to a very sad Impala Reserve...aka Como Zoo of the 60s with tiny cages. It was fun to see the animals, but not an impressive reserve at all. I much prefer the Mara where the people come to the animals...no the animals being brought and caged for the people. After animal watching and deciding to enter the 'Beware of Hippos' zone we found a railway trail. It is part of the old track which was built by the British from Lake Victoria to the coast in Mombasa in 1901. My friend Seth's host family lives in one of the homes that was constructed by the British for railway workers. The railway caused a lot of problems across the nation.

Railway brief: There was one tribe (cant remember who) that would absolutely not allow the line to be built through their territory and gave the Brits a run for their money. All the work that was done by British workers, that didn't get killed by this tribe, was dug up at night so essentially nothing was getting done. So what did the British do?? Well, they brought in Indians to do the labor. The railway cost many Indian lives and after its completion workers were allowed to stay in Kenya or return to India- this is why you'll find pockets of Indian communities around Kenya. Especially on the coast. wow- that deserves much more than a brief. so wikipedia it or something-OK educational brief over- :)

In celebration of Halloween, Dumes, Joe and I carved a baby green pumpkin while watching a sunset over Lake Victoria on Saturday night. So Dumes and I returned to my place for dinner and then had to explain to my family why we had carved a face in something people eat! They met us with grins and exploded into laughter when we told them what we had done and showed them the pumpkin, it was a lot of fun. Can you imagine someone coming into your house for dinner with a steak that has a face carved in it?? Ha, no its weird...and neither of us could remember the significance of carving pumpkins, so that didn't help. it was great to have a little piece of Halloween in Kenya. (And I bet we will be having pumpkin something for dinner :) )


Need a idea for a vacation spot? Kisumu, Kisumu, Kisumu. really you all have to come here at some point!

More from the field later!

Land of 1 lake and 10,000 mosquitos

Hello!

I have arrived in Kisumu on the shores of Lake Victoria. I am living with a new host family and our home is about 3 "blocks" from the lake. I have already seen two of the most spectacular sunsets here right on the lake.

I am working in a school, http://www.covenanthome.co.uk/about-us.php , check it out. Today was my second day. Yesterday I graded Form 1 (freshman) compositions all day and today I taught form 1 english! They told me an hour before the lesson that I would be teaching- crazy. But the lesson went well and the kids were very well behaved. I read a short story and then we had a discussion about tribalism and the harambee spirit and how harambee has the potential to defuse tribalism. Tribalism has divided the nation, created tribally aligned political parties and as you can imagine has given the largest tribe- the Kikuyu's- the most power historically and presently.

I am helping the kids restart their Journalism Club. I came to the cyber today to copy some old J202 notes (thanks Katy) and prepare a lecture for our next meeting. The kids are great and want to have a self-sufficient org when I leave- fantastic. I hope to get a newspaper up and running, but really don't know about printing facilities or if that is realistic at all...I'm sure I'll find out much more in the coming days.

Am I teaching tomorrow you ask? Well don't worry I don't know the answer either, they told me I'll find out in the morning. So the internship is a bit informal, but I'm ok with it as long as they are.
Today I met a mzungu at the school who is volunteering somewhere near here. She is a middle-aged woman from IL and immediately she tried to philanthropically show me up...telling me how often she donates/volunteers/comes to africa/what countries, man, she was like a firehouse of self-righteous volunteerism- anyways, I dont think I'll see her again, but I thought I'd mention that.

I took a motorcycle taxi to town today for the first time. Its about a 10/15 minute ride depending on road conditions. They are a little nerve racking...but that is public transportation here so I guess I'll roll with it (oh gross pun, disregard that).

oh ha! i almost forgot this! Apparently since we live so close to the lake, hippos walk up on shore at night and graze all around our fenced in yard! they are just there, that close, just like cows grazing, I haven't seen them yet, but hopefully I'll get some good photos when they do come. and believe me they are huge!

I have my own bedroom here and sleep under a mosquito net. I also spray down with DEET at night. I'm sure that's not good for me, but I don't really want malaria or any of that. And every morning (well twice now) that I wake up there is one mosquito inside the net....hopefully there will be no more. I bet everyone thinks I stink, "No I swear, its the DEET."

Everything is going well, internet is a little less available here, but I'll try to keep this updated.
:)

Miss and love you all!

Thursdays are the best days. and an LCD monitor could do your job.

I love Thursdays. It is the one day my host mom has off work and Tracy is always in such a good mood when they get to spend time together. Mama Tracy works usually 14 hours a day, and 6 days a week. And she told me today she makes about $300 a month.

Think.

Wednesday was our last day of class, we had our Swahili final- which I think went well, and the rest of the day off. I went to the University of Nairobi and studied in the International Development Studies library for like 5 hours, just reading books upon books- and found good stuff for my papers. And I know I’ve already said this but a book published after I was born is a rare find there. I have 3 term papers that aren’t due until December but I’m trying to get a head start. I left at around 5 and walked to the Posta stop to grab a bus. I waited for about half an hour while numerous 46s and 4Ws passed, but no 32s which take me closest to my house. Sitting at this bus stop I grew quite frustrated with efficiency in Nairobi. There is SO much work here being done by people that has been mechanized in other countries. Not to say their work isn’t valuable, but it most likely poorly paid and as my professor would say, a waste of people’s time. They could be working in r&d, going to school, or in a specialized trade- is holding a sign with a number on it out of a bus window and collecting fare- things that can be done by (a) an LCD screen and (b) an automated change counter- really a positive contribution to the nations economy and development? (This question can also be expanded to things like laundry, dishwashing, lugging jugs of water around, storing water to use during rationing, the list goes on, but I’ll stop here.)

The 46 and 4W take Ngong Rd and then I have to walk a ways into my gate. The 32 goes through Kibera, Nairobi’s biggest slum, but drops me off just on the other side of the wall. I prefer the 32.. We turn off Ngong and weave away from the city and pass the wall which separates Nairobi from its slum. About 15 minutes on this main, two lane and very narrow street, filled with shops not contributing to the GNP. The informal sector is quite large here, and its unfortunate that this time and energy expended by people does not factor in to measurements like the GNP, which many people use to define a developed nation. We come to a stop at the end of the line, I exit and walk through a tiny open air shop, where mostly fruit and vegetables are sold, and the mud cakes my shoes to a standstill. I pass a large pot of githeri over mkaa (charcoal) and many people sitting around it. Then I hop over the railroad tracks, looking both ways first, even though I think I’m the only person who does this. Step over the wires which switch the tracks, through a guardrail I have to turn sideways to pass through, two more barbed wire fences and I’m home free.

I spent most of today organizing notes and outlining the papers at a café near my house. I came home early afternoon because I like to be home on Thursdays.

We had mokimo tonight (no idea if that spelling is right?), basically mashed potatoes with maize and some green vegetable that I can’t translate to English, with a fantastic stew and cabbage on the side. I love the food here. It is so simple, but always so flavorful. I am going to miss Eda’s home cooked meals. In Kisumu, where I’m moving to, they eat A LOT of fish. Now I like fish, but…I have a feeling I’ll run into some pretty interesting meals.

Tracy was upset because she had to eat a whole cup of uji before dinner. Uji is essentially porridge, but if you ask me its like cold biscuits-and-gravy gravy, and also my family informed me that they put fish in theirs :) It has a uniquely chalking taste, and even though you would eat it with a spoon in the states, here they say they drink uji, and think it’s hilarious that we would “eat” it. Well, I skipped on the uji, it’s the one thing I haven’t been able to stomach so far.

So Mama Tracy was holding Tracy and feeding her the uji and we were all joking around. Tracy told me that instead of leaving in December I should stay until January 14^th (her birthday). She said if I stay she will have “thank you for sending us marta, she was a very good girl” written on her cake, and she’ll cut 3 pieces to send home for my mom, dad, and sister on a plate. “and you can carry the plate on the plane,” she said. :)

I am excited to move to Kisumu but I’m really going to miss my host family in Nairobi, Nairobi itself, and Jamhuri (my neighborhood).

Today I was walking home and thinking about all the things that I see everyday but don’t ‘see’ really anymore. A herd of cattle grazing along the sidewalk and “boulevard” and stopping traffic. A man in a Cowboys starter jacket, a man wearing a two-piece teal jogging suit with pink strips, walking alongside young professionals. A man grabs my wrist “madame, I have shirts.” “Hapana,” I reply as I release his grip and answer next week to his inquiry of when I’ll return. A matatu driver that has evidently decided the sidewalk is ok for him to drive on to beat the jam. An 8-year-old carrying a jug of water bigger than my upper body. 4 men controlling a wheelbarrow that has a flat tire carrying a 40 gallon water drum. Cars on the left side of the street- and I still look right. Everytime. STILL. Kids walking home in school uniforms. Street vendors selling snacks, mandazi, chai, fruit, vegetables, SAFARICOM signs everywhere I look. The butcher shop with fresh cuts hanging in the window. Dinner. A man welding an iron gate with no goggles on. A man cutting rebar with a hacksaw. More stray dogs than Appalachia- though none of them ever seem to bark here. Mud, everywhere. The tailor who made my skirts. “mzungu.” All-the-while hop-scotching puddles and manure. A bus passing so close to my right shoulder it gives me goosebumps in 80 degree sun, and then sputtering exhaust and clouds of dust in my path. Me, the only person wearing sunglasses, with white skin that conversation follows. The group of men always standing under the lightpole, some leaning on a car. The red kiosk where Mike works.

“Habari yako?” my Maasai guard asks everyday. “Mzuri, na wewe?” I reply. “Mzuri.” Our routine, sometimes a handshake. Chickens, roosters, and chicks in my courtyard-owner unknown. The chicks are getting big. Novell and Kafura sitting outside our gate. Novell swinging on the top iron bar, hands gripped in between spikes meant to deter unwanted guests. Kafu, probably saying “I’ll pinch you” to someone or another, most likely an authority figure. Through my blue gate, ducking under clotheslines and through the narrow corridor. Around the corner I know the coals will be hot and dinner on already, and it is. Eda in the kitchen, and Tracy on the couch with a smile on her face. “How was your day?”

Sidewalks, Rugby, and Typhoid?

This will be my last week in Nairobi. One week from today I leave for Kisumu to begin my internship!

This weekend was great! On Friday I went to a lecture at the University of Nairobi, given my Enrique Penalosa, former mayor of Bogota, Columbia. He was advocating public/green space in cities and lectured on its importance for safety, to help reduce class stratification, as better investments than highway infrastructure, etc. He criticized Nairobi for its startling lack of pedestrian/bike space. I mean sidewalks here, if you can find one, are no wider than 3 feet and now that El Nino has come, are many times impassable.

El Nino has come, my host family told me today. The short rains have started and come intermittently throughout the day- it will pour for like 15 minutes and then stop. Our underground water tank is finally starting to fill back up I guess. We have had one day of running water since I left for Tanzania...so like a little over a month on straight bucket bathes now. I am craving the chance to wash my hair under running water.

On Saturday I worked a little bit on 3 big papers I have due in December, they want us to get a good jump on them before we leave for our internships. We went to the U library after the lecture and they had some good sources- though its still catalog cards there and we cant check anything out as visitors, and most books are pre-1990...but we'll make do.
Then out for Chinese food to change up the pace a little bit. We sat at a window table in the Hong Kong restaurant downtown and older British men kept walking in one at a time and staring at our table. The 4th guy turned to us and said something to the effect of "a bevy of beauties has taken our regular spot!" I guess we overtook the usual British-Chinese Friday afternoon dinner in Nairobi. The food was great.
Friday afternoon I went home to learn how to make Chapati- the best flat bread ever, so now I can make it at home- hopefully.

On Saturday we decided it was time for a little Americana so we got together to watch I Love You Man and make grilled cheese (we literally never eat cheese here, so all of us have been craving it.) After the relaxing afternoon we went out to the Harlequin Rugby Club Bar. The rugby team won their game that day and are going to the final next weekend, so they were all in a great mood! It was great conversation and the tables outside were really nice so we just talked to rugby players all night and had samosas (deep fried triangle shaped appetizer-like snack with either veggies or meat).

And today its been pouring on and off all day. I may trek to the cafe to meet a few others and study for our Swahili final, its on Wednesday.

However it is also a bit like Oregon Trail over here: one of our friends, James, has typhoid, maybe. The doc said James will be better within the week so hopefully that is the case. We seem to be dropping like flies, someone new is sick almost everyday. Just colds, and more sinus infections though, so I hope I can avoid getting sick again.

Oh also, I finished The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver and highly recommend it. or try Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight by Fuller if you're looking for another read.

Hope all is well in the states, love and miss you all!

Habari Muzungu?!

What's the news white traveler? Well, I figured you were all wondering that. And apparently the man who asked me that at the market was too.
Typically you say "Habari ya asubuhi?" or "Habari ya mchana?" What's the news this morning/afternoon. But I guess what's the news white traveler works too.
My favorite part of being called a muzungu is that people think I don't know it. Well I do, you can pick up that word from a mile away. In Swahili, nouns are pluralized by the prefix, so mwanafunzi means student and dropping the m for wanafunzi means students. So we like to call ourselves wazungus, and people usually get a kick out of that :)

On Monday, a week ago, we took a field trip to a few schools in the area. One was an informal school that is not funded by anyone but all volunteer run. Its exactly as you'd picture an informal school, with tin walls and roof, a concrete slab 12' square for a floor and anywhere from 3-6 students sitting on bench like desks. 20-40 kids per classroom, though I had classes in Minneapolis that ran upwards of 45 students. And volunteer run means inconsistent teachers and teaching styles, but the children still take the national exams that every other student takes.

Then we went to a school in Ngong, a town in the middle of Maasai land. The community had built about 12 classrooms from concrete block and tin roofs keep the rain (what rain? right) and sun from the learning environment. This school has no electricity, but they do have water. We were there over lunch break, but not a single child was eating lunch. They all walk to school and for most it is too far to return for a noon-time meal, and they do not bring lunches- for reasons I do not know. When we (3 students and our professor) got out of the van there, the students swarmed us, little 5 and 7 year olds, and all grabbed our hands and touched our skin. While we stood and talked to teachers the students would come and lean against us, and one played with Doug's elbow for about 10 minutes. The government provides I think 8 teachers and the parents fund the rest- about 4.

We continued on to a high-tuition public school in Nairobi. This school was typically reserved for more affluent families, but with the introduction of Universal Primary Education in Kenya in 2003, they now open their doors to all and the school has become much more diversified. Now, you ask what a high-tuition PUBLIC school is? Well I'm not sure. Our professor isn't exactly good at answering questions. In fact today, I asked him if there was any provincial funding for schools- you know, a basic yes or no/short answer question, and it took him 27, yep 27!, minutes to answer that. He talked the entire time and none of the 3 of us got in a word. He likes to give long-winded answers, that cover things he talked about multiple times before. Lets just say I wouldn't say stellar things on ratemyprofessor.com about this guy.

Well enough of that. I had a very "this is Africa" night last night. At about 8pm I decided to walk to our local kiosk, literally a stone's throw away from our security gate. As I left, Tracy, my 6-year-0ld host sister decided to come too. We passed through our yard and walked in our dimly lit courtyard. As I contemplated stepping over a puddle, suddenly, the puddle jumped to life and I almost tripped over the stray dog that had been laying there all evening. Then we passed through our security gate. And as we walked between the two cinder block walls that run alongside the driveway a cat matched our pace upon the top of the wall. All the while I'm hoping the thing doesn't jump on/at me or Tracy, wouldn't a cat bite in Kenya be fun?
We reach the kiosk and Mike the owner invites us in to sit. I know Mike just from stopping there every day, he's a nice guy and asks me everyday "How do you find Kenya?"
So last night I said "mzuri sana", (or very good), I told him I traveled to maasai mara and then we talked a little bit about Obama. Then out of nowhere comes the Christian cannons: "how is christianity in america?" "do you read the bible everyday?" "is Jesus your personal savior?"

All of this in a stop for a candy bar. A lot of people in Kenya think Christianity in America is like the Joel Ostein (is that his name?), TV pastor, who preaches to congregations of 10,000 plus- because they broadcast it here all the time.
Also, I feel like people try to prove to me they are Christian. Now I don't know why this happens, but it happens often.

On the walk back from the kiosk I was holding Tracy's hand and a man coming toward us veered in our direction. I don't like having to be on my toes at every moment, and the reality is that Jamhuri is a safe neighborhood and lots of people were out, but anyone veering toward me is a little nerve wracking. I'm thinking, 'I've got 100 bob, a cell phone, and a 6-year-old' and I'm hoping this guy isn't interested in any of them. He stops right next to us as we pass, and turns his head to watch us walk away. That's it. It's just weird interactions like this that bring the TIA feeling. And we went right home to watch Tusker Project Fame Season 3 Finale- Alpha won, by the way, I'm sure you were wondering ;)
(also note 100 b0b is about $1.30.)

That's all I have time for now. We had a great weekend in Nairobi- went to the Westlands- a totally Americanized richer night club area, but the dancing was good and I mean, who doesn't love hearing Top 40 hits over and over until 3am. Though the presence of older white men and younger african women together is a little unsettling- business as usual I guess (this is an observation many of us have had, but I think its a little deep to get into now. we all know it happens, and it happens for different reasons-none of which I can personally explain.)

Great weekend though- I went all around the city with Eda, our househelp, on Sunday to go shopping. And I bought a Chiapati pan, my absolute favorite flatbread here- now I just have to learn how to make it.

Sawa sawa! (basically ok ok, we say it all the time though ;)

Tanzania and Masai Mara!

Hello!

I just got back from a fantastic weekend in Masai Mara, Kenya's largest (and best) game reserve- where we saw...::pause for dramatic effect:: elephants! lions! more zebras than there are lakes in MN, ostriches, cheetahs, hippos and more. We were in vans with pop tops so we could easily watch for game, though our driver was much better at spotting animals- especially when we found what our driver calls "bush lions" meaning bushes that look like lions from far off. We left Friday and took a private matatu van up to the park. We arrived pretty late, as the other van we traveled with broke down like 3 times, but nothing a fan belt from a stranger wouldn't fix. We had two person tents, that were all set up for us and had beds with mosquito nets and that were also covered with little tin roof carports, so they were great!

Saturday we got up early, had Kenyan "pancakes"- really crepes, but they were good- and left for the day. We were in the park all day and saw lots of the animals listed above. We took a walk down by the river, saw hippos and crocodiles up close and we got to pet them! (no I'm kidding, don't worry, I'm not petting wild animals on game reserves- ;) )

We had a picnic lunch, and continued on our way. It rained on and off all day, but it was nice because it stayed cool. In the afternoon though it got rather sunny, so hot in fact, that we were able to catch lions napping on the savanna- photos to come soon I promise. We were on the game drive all day, and went back to camp at about 6:30.
-In Kenya, it is illegal for vehicles carrying tourists to be driving after 6:30. My host dad is a tour guide, and told me this was to protect tourists and the industry- sounds like a good plan to me.
The camp we stayed at was guarded by Masai watchmen, they stay up all night and guard the tents from any unwanted visitors.
This morning we got up for an early game drive, had a lion walk literally 5 feet in front of our van- awesome! and drove around for a bit before another round of pancakes and then headed home. The drive home was exciting- no breakdowns this time, but sometimes in Kenya, drivers decide there should be three lanes on the highway when there are only two. So as described, that makes for some exciting/terrifying moments.
All in all the trip was great!

Last week was fine, classes as usual- and last weekend I went to Tanzania!

A group of 13 of us took a shuttle to Arusha, Tanzania. (same crazy roads but I dont think I need to say anymore). Arusha is a smaller city about 2 hours from the border. Speaking of the border, when we got there we learned visas were not $50, but $100. So that was a fun scramble trying to make sure everyone could pay and cross. (They charge Americans $100 because we charge them $100 to come to America- fair trade I figure).
We stayed in the Meru House Inn, it was a great hostel- clean, the beds were comfortable, and only $7 a night. We went out both nights to the Masai Camp- a now restaurant/bar that used to be a camp where tourists came to stay and watch/learn about the Masai. They had great music and one night a preview to the Mama Africa show- which included amazing gymnastics and very flexible people- very entertaining.
Arusha was awesome, the atmosphere was a lot different than Nairobi- much calmer, the people were very nice. I bought a lot of fabric which I'm having made into skirts here! My house help, Eda, went to the tailor for me so that I wouldn't get the muzungo (white traveler) price- so that was really nice of her. And I should get them this week.

The rains have started to come now, they are short and infrequent but hopefully they will start up in full soon. We didn't have running water all of last week- because of the drought+ my host mom said the local fair was using lots of water.
Hopefully we have water today-- I'm heading home now- I do all of my blogging from a cyber cafe because I didn't bring my computer here. But the cyber cafes are great, and its nice to not have to worry about a computer.

I'll write soon!

questions/comments?!

On the side bar I've included a short essay I wrote for my development class (POR #1)- feel free to shoot ideas back or comments- I'd love to hear what you think (not necessarily about grammar, style, or structure- but the ideas at hand)
and if you have questions- anything I'm not writing about that you want to know about- feel free to ask!

Below is my latest, super-long post from the Mombasa and this week~

Weekend in Mombasa and deeper thoughts on soccer

I spent the holiday weekend on the coast of Kenya in the city of Mombasa. I went with 11 other students, and we rented two cottages on Tiwi Beach on the Indian Ocean. The place was absolutely gorgeous! The sun was great, water was warm, and we had a great time. Along the side of the blog are photos from the weekend.
We left Nairobi on Friday night and took the night bus to Mombasa. Now, I like to think I'm an easy traveler, BUT this ride definitely tested my limits. We left Nairobi at 930pm and the first hour was interesting as our entertainment was something like the Michael Jackson lifetime music video collection- we all got a kick out of this. At about 1am our bus stopped and did a U-turn on the paved highway, we proceeded to cross over a rocky median and began driving parallel to the highway on a dirt road. I thought we were for sure going to get a flat tire. All the while the air conditioning on the bus has stopped and we are all sweating through our clothes as we are trying to sleep. The dirt path we had decided to drive on was so bumpy that none of us could sleep, and I think it was at least 90 degrees on that bus. It was so hot not one part of your body could be touching another or the person next to you-it was even grosser than your hottest day of runs, in overalls, in Appalachian heat. Well I suppose I've made this point very clear. The dirt road situation put us into Mombasa about 2 hours late, this was good however, because in Kenya you are never supposed to get off your bus before about 7am for security reasons.

We got off the bus and took a tuk-tuk to the Nakumatt (Kenya's chain grocery store). Tuk tuk's are three wheeled vehicles mainly used as cabs. At the Nakumatt we bought food for the weekend and of course, a crate of Tusker, Kenya's favorite beer (Their version of American Idol is even called Tusker's Project Fame). From there we walked to the ferry and got in line at the gates. There are literally two flood gates that fill with people and when they open everyone sprints down to the ferry, quite an awakening experience at 7 in the morning. But we all made it safely on and over, the trip is only about 5 minutes. We were a little apprehensive about the ferry because we were told that ferries here sometimes sink, but this seems like a problem that is too costly to not figure out the cause of- I don't know if they were overloaded or what, but we did not encounter this problem (obviously).

After the ferry we took a Matatu to Maweni Cottages were we had rented two cottages. The resort had a private beach and we basically did the beach thing all day Saturday and Sunday. The Indian Ocean is beautiful and very warm. The high tide and low tide are very drastic. The high tide made for a great swim and during low tide we took a boat out to a sand bar and sat with hundreds of starfish (photos coming soon I promise). This relaxing weekend on the beach was exactly what I needed after being sick. My congestion was essentially gone in Mombasa (and is back now in Nairobi, I'm going to assume this is largely due to the dust- and I've already made my case about dust).
We checked out Monday morning (Monday was a national holiday-the end of Ramadan) and had 10 hours to kill in Mombasa before our night bus home. We went to Fort Jesus, a fort built by Portugal, and also shopping in the Old Town- kangas (wraps with swahili sayings) and scarves were our favorites. Dumes (my friend Emily) and I bought a kanga we are going to have made into a skirt. They sell Kangas in doubles and they cost about 300 shillings or $4, and having them made into a skirt here is only 500 shillings- so hopefully I'll do that soon. :)

This week class has been alright. We started our "tracks", I'm in the education track. Our first lecture was pretty dry but I'm hoping they get more interesting. I really want to learn about private v. public education in Kenya, as it appears no one attends the public schools. I also want to learn about the Christian influence on formal education-my host sister goes to a Pentecostal school and last week she brought home a quarterly exam, in between all the math and reading questions there was one question that read "Who is your best friend?", and the answers to choose from were 'Teacher, Satan, Jesus'. Now I think we can all guess what was marked as the right answer- but this was so interesting to me. Also there was a question that read "My mother, father and I make up a ____" and the answer options were 'community, family, clan' and family was the correct answer- from here I'm sure you can guess the cultural implications of this, and the absolutism that is so overwhelming in questions like this for a six year old. Feel free to post thoughts/comments in the comments of this blog~

So ed. class is going alright, Swahili is going well- I'm not great but learn more every day. My host mom likes to quiz me, and they think its funny that in the US we 'eat' porridge because here they 'drink' it. I love the development and country analysis professors. For those classes we have logs that are due weekly about our experiences, observations and how they relate to development. I'll include a sample POR or Personal Observation Report on a side bar-- check it out.

We played the Kibera girls in soccer again- they beat us 5-1 this time. Half of them play without shoes and we played again on a dirt dirt field. This got me thinking about how soccer is such a simple game, yet we have made it so elaborate in the US. You really don't need shoes or shin guards to play, yet that is how we define soccer. For what its worth we have essentially 'developed' the game of soccer, and then by our definition of the game, drawn conclusions of others style of play. If you saw the two kids I saw yesterday playing with plastic bags balled together and tied with rope barefoot in the street would you consider it undeveloped? Now on face value, I think most of us would, but really we are comparing it against the image we have of soccer-something we have made into a best cleats, green fields game. Just some food for thought, I hope I'm not getting too preachy.
I think soccer is a great metaphor for development, I'm writing my POR #2 on it so I'll try to post that later.

Well that about sums everything up, wow this was a long post, I'm happy your still reading :) This weekend I'm 90% sure I'm going to Tanzania (no travel warnings) for a little adventure. One of the students on the trip, Molly, studied there earlier in her college career and knows a great hostel to stay in and is pretty versed in traveling there. So I figured I'd like to see Tanzania with Molly rather than go it alone at a later date. There are about 10 of us going and we leave tomorrow afternoon. We'll stay in the hostel she knows, enjoy soon food and a reggae festival and come back Sunday. I'm looking forward to it :)

I'll write again soon, love and miss you all!

Dust and Family Bonding

The dust here is overwhelming. Because of the drought and the natural end of the dry season, the dust has been quite a nuisance these last two weeks.
My host family and I all managed to come down with something, they attributed it to the dust, but I had a fever on Tuesday night so I spent a good portion of Wednesday afternoon in Urgent Care. Don't worry though, they said its just a sinus infection, not malaria or anything, so I started antibiotics and will hopefully break this cold-feeling soon.

As for the health care system, my experience was relatively inexpensive- about $14 to register and see a doctor, $12 for a blood test, and $25 dollars for antibiotics- so not too bad overall. And the facility was great, basically the same as Southdale, and much more organized and efficient that the Man Community Clinic or Logan County Hospital (but we've all heard those logan county stories...). So clearly it falls into the range of acceptable American facilities, though I'd question whether the Logan facilities should, or if they just do because no one seems to notice (just an observation I thought I'd voice).

Other than the sinus stuff this week has been good. We have decided to play soccer on Mondays and Wednesdays, and when we got to class on Monday one of the MSID staff said he had set up a match for us. It was against a Kibera high school girls team (Kibera is the biggest slum in Kenya). We arrived in mix-matched clothes, thankfully one of my friends had sweats I could wear as I only had a skirt, though the pants were green and my shirt was red so I think I looked pretty ridiculous on the field. It was a dirt field, nicer than the one we've been playing on, with goals constructed from tree trunks. Out of nowhere a referee showed up and we realized this was the real deal. It was a lot of fun, I scored once on a great pass, and we won 7-3. The girls were really good though, we had two of our program staff play on our team and without them I don't know if we could have beaten them. It was great though, and we are playing them again on Wednesday.

On Monday night I got home and my host mom was home (she's usually at work) so it was great to spend time with her. And Tracy (my 6 year old host sister) was being so goofy that night that we all ended up on the floor laughing after a competition to see who could jump the highest and touch the ceiling. The dust is so bad that I don't spend much time extra time outside because walking 45 minutes each way to school on Ngong Road and playing on a dirt soccer field are about all my system can handle on the dust count.

Tuesday was class again, and I found myself sketching up plans for the chicken coop my internship wants me to build. However, these plans looked more like a room addition than anything and would probably be a bit overkill for chickens, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

This coming Monday is a national holiday, the end of Ramadan, so we do not have classes. A group of decided to travel to the coastal city of Mombasa. It is supposed to be hot and muggy, but I'm very excited for the beach. We are taking the bus and arriving Saturday morning. We've rented a few small cottages on the beach and are all pretty excited about a weekend away. We'll arrive back in Nairobi on Tuesday morning and probably head straight to class. Other groups of students are traveling to Mt. Kenya and a group wanted to go to Uganda, but their trip was canceled because of violence.

A note on cattle in the city: we are learning a lot about the impacts of colonization as well as seeing it everyday. The area Nairobi is in used to be occupied by the Maasai. The Maasai still rely on cattle and the market and slaughterhouses are a few miles further out of town than my neighborhood. The location of these and the consequences of the drought bring herds of cattle into town to graze on their way down Ngong Road. The herds also find their way into the neighborhood and it is not uncommon for us to walk along side them on our way to school.

Ngong Road runs from the city center, downtown, past the small university where we have class, intersects Suna Road and continues out of town. I live off Suna Road in Jamhuri, Suna is dotted with vendors and we usually but fruit on the way to school (yep. mom and dad, I love bananas again), then we turn onto Ngong and pass a few grocery stores, Java- our favorite coffee shop, and many other stores. I don't mind the walk to school, though hot, it is always in good company which I enjoy.

A Day in the Life

I have finished my first week of classes and can now fill you in a little more on our routine :)

I get up at 6:30, have breakfast, usually Wheatabix and toast, with coffee, then take a shower (showering consists of one pot full of hot water, which the house-help Eda puts in my basin, and then I can add cold water from the spigot in the bathroom as a wish), and get ready to leave. I get a fresh Nalgene of treated water for the day, and then treat it again myself. I leave the house at 7:30 to meet with 5 others girls around the corner and we walk to school together~about a 45 minute walk.

We discovered this great coffee place called Java, we like to grab coffee again there in the morning if we aren't running too late. Its one of those spots that feels like home considering how much time we spend in coffee shops during the year, and it was nice to find after living without one all summer in Jonesville (wow I really sound like a coffee shop junkie, but I'll be honest, I love the place).

Class starts at 8:30 and we have three classes throughout the day. 8:30-10:30, a fifteen minute tea break, 10:45-12:45, a 45 minute lunch break and then one more class in the afternoon, 1:30-3:30. We don't find out which classes we will have in which time periods until the week before- they change slots week to week and it is a very different feel from the structure of UW.

After class we head home. On Mondays and Wednesdays we have decided to play soccer. About 20 of the 32 of us go, and usually some locals play too. Yesterday we played after class and the MSID staff came as well (and they are really good!). I'm a little rusty, but this is definitely my favorite way to exercise so I'm glad others are excited about it as well. The field we play on is all dirt, the grass has been grazed over by cows and they have also left behind unpleasant additions to the field. Sometimes the dust clouds are so think you can't see the rest of your team, but this seems to be a general trend across the city in the wake of no rain.

Speaking of the city...the neighborhood I live in is called Jamhuri. There is a main road between the University and Jamhuri called Ngong road. We walk for probably 2-3 miles down this paved road with varying sidewalks and then turn into Jamhuri which has lots of local vendors lining the streets. And the roads turn to dirt roads that would beach the Smart Car in a second. On our walks we are usually accompanied by herds of cattle, or goats, all grazing and fighting for what's left of the greenery here.

After school and soccer or shopping, we head home and are in for the night. We are not allowed to leave our homes after the sun sets. I live in a gated area and so do most other MSID students, we have a security guard on 24hours (the day guard always wears a Twins hat! though I dont think he understands my excitement ;)) Crime in the city is really bad, and muzungos are especially targeted, through we haven't had any problems so far. Street children will ask us for money, but one of the first things we learned to say was "Mimi ni mwanafunzi, sina pesa." or "I am a student, I have no money."

Last night we went out to Smart Village, the Ethiopian restaurant my host mom manages. There were about 20 of us, and we all shared food. Ethiopian food can be really spicy (especially for us Midwestern kids) but it is very good. Mama Tracy's boss also made us a cake which we all shared too. Afterwards we all shared cabs downtown to a restaurant with live music. The music was Kikuyo (one of Kenya's 42 tribes, and also the one my host mother descends from). I went home around midnight, as I usually go to bed around 9, and am also getting over a cold (some nasty sinus thing I picked up at the end of the week, but don't worry ma, no fever or anything so I'm pretty sure its just a cold). The cab driver who brought us home is pretty much the resident MSID driver, he is friends with the program staff and knows all about the program. A cab from downtown to the front door is only 400/= which is like $4, so not bad regardless, but especially when you split if four ways.

Last night my host father came home! Papa Tracy is a tour guide and is gone for days at a time so I had not met him yet. We sat and talked for quite a while and he is very nice. (Note for Pete: he said Tenant should check out Nakumat (the chain grocer/everything store here), and that they would hop on to the new technology. I mean I have no idea how this would play out but I thought I'd pass along the message).

Papa Tracy told me about a weekend long trip to one of the national state game parks where you camp in large tents that have beds provided for you, and that we would for sure see elephants and lions, so a few friends and I might to that in two weekends.

As for the upcoming weekend, the 21st will most likely be declared a national holiday (though they haven't declared it yet...) so celebrate the end of Ramadan. So we won't have class on Monday. The other students who had internships in Kisumu and I are thinking of going to the coast for a weekend, most likely the city of Mombassa. Papa Tracy said the beach is great, and it would be nice to be in some hot weather for a change.

With the early curfew I have a lot of time to read. I am in for the night at 6:30, and don't have too much homework (yet...) so I've already finished three books. If you have any recommendations, send them my way! Being able to read this much is fantastic, and because I think I read literally only 20 pages of one book all summer. Another contributing factor is that I am not so into the TV shows my family watches. They include: Storms over Paradise (a spanish soap opera dubbed back in English), and an east african rendition of American Idol, so yay, lots of ready time :)

I finally found out my address, it will be the same for the whole semester even though I move:
Marta Jewson
c/o MSID Kenya
PO Box 66731
00800 Westlands
Nairobi, Kenya

Thanks for reading!

In Nairobi

I am settling into the Nairobi scene after two days of traveling, a week at Nakuru national park with fellow students and moving into my host family's home on Saturday.

We arrived in Nairobi after 30 some hours of traveling. I was on a group flight with other students and we had a 4 hour layover in Amsterdam. Hopefully on the way back our layover will be long enough to explore the city. We then flew direct from Amsterdam to Nairobi and got in around 6pm, Monday the 31st. After all 32 of us were in Nairobi, we boarded a tour bus and headed to a hostile nearby. Right away we were thrown into the reality of cautious water drinking, and not exactly what you would expect for showering and bathroom facilities- but this was to be expected.

We stayed at the hostile for one night and then continued on to Nakuru national park. The park was gorgeous! We stayed in a small compound within the park that consisted of 3 bunk houses, a kitchen and dining area, and a few stalls with holes in the ground that doubled as showers and toilets. We eased into the program with short sessions throughout the three days we were there, lots of tea breaks, great meals, game drives, and hanging out in the evenings. The compound was right in the park so it was not uncommon to wake up with zebras standing at the gate, or water buffalo grazing along the fence. Though we were able to easily coexist with most of the animals the baboons were another story.

They would raid our camp, usually during meal time, and open the doors to bunk houeses, bathrooms, the kitchen, whatever they felt like! One morning we were eating in the dining area, and the back door swung open, a baboon jumped in and grabbed a banana off the plate of the girl sitting next to me. I am told they are scared of humans, as long as you dont jump up, scream and run away like all of us at the table did- but it was quite startling.

We saw lots of animals on our game drives: flamingos, monkeys, packs of giraffes, rhinos, and much more- I have photos that hopefully I will get up at some point.

After our three days in Nakuru, and one practice outing at Nakuru's market place, we left for Nairobi. We arrived in Nairobi early Saturday morning and our host families came to pick us up.
My host mother Jennifer, or Mama Tracy as I call her, and her daughter Tracy, 6, came to get me in a cab and we were off to their place. They live in a modest apartment/villa in Jamhuri, a neighborhood in the city. There I met Eda, the house help who also lives with the family and I share a bedroom with. My host father is a tour guide and left Saturday morning so I have not met him yet, but he will return on Thursday.
The villa has 2 bedrooms, one bath, one sitting room and a 5' by 5' kitchen. All in all I'd say its about 30ft sq.

The country is experiencing a harsh drought right now. Today someone told me that the rains that were supposed to come in April never came, and they will not start again until October. There are many people starving across the country and many animals are dying. I think the news does a better job covering these issues here than the national news does at home-but I'm sure that is open for debate.
As a result of the drought, there is water and electric rationing throughout the city. My neighborhood has no electricity MWF from 7am-6pm when the sun sets, and water is in and out. I guess a lot of the electricity is hydro-power- still checking into that though.

We began classes on Tuesday and they all seem really interesting so far. A lot of our assignments are reflections and observations about what is happening around us, and then relating this back to international development. I'm taking Swahili, International Development: Critical Perspectives and Theory, A History of Kenya, and eventually a course specifically relating to education in Kenya. We have classes until October 23rd when we will all move to different places in the country. I will be right outside of Kisumu.

I hear Kisumu has 100 degree weather and is really muggy....ha not my favorite but I'm excited to see the rural side of things. I will be working in a school, probably teaching some and helping with after school clubs/activities. The school administration read my resume and saw I have experience in construction, so i've been told they are going to ask me to design a chicken coop! A little different than ASP but I'm definitely up for it.

All in all everything is wonderful here! Thanks everyone for your support, messages, help packing and everything! I will write again when I can :)