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!
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
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!
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!
Monday, November 23, 2009
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!
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!
Saturday, November 7, 2009
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!
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!
Sunday, November 1, 2009
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!
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!
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
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!
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!
Friday, October 23, 2009
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
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
The 46 and 4W take
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.
So Mama Tracy was holding
I am excited to move to Kisumu but I’m really going to miss my host family in
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
“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
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