Its been a while since my last update, so this will be a long one.
First, two weekends ago, I went to Mombasa. It was HOT in Mombasa, think 90 degrees 80% humidity hot. We stayed in the town, which was itself ok. We saw the tourist things, and got a tour from some really friendly locals. It was Friday, which is prayer day for Muslims, and that was interesting to see. Mombasa is majority Muslim, so it was a very different environment, though everyone was very nice, and despite the guidebook warnings, we saw no Osama bin Laden graffiti or t-shirts. The transportation there is of course matatu, but also tuk-tuks, which were these fun 3-wheeled taxis, with a tent like covering and handle bars to steer. The second day, we went to the actually coast, which was amazing. When my classes are over for good, we are going to take another trip and spend a few days going down the coast from Lamu to Mombasa again. The Indian Ocean is a gorgeous blue color, and the sand is white. We went to a little beach bar that was full of other mzungus, was still lovely. The beach wasn’t crowded, and the water warm. The heat was also not so deadly there also, which was nice. One part that was memorable was the ferry ride over to the south coast, which is free, meaning it was jam packed with locals. In line, a bunch of locals with big bags on their head started barging to the front of the line, making “tsk” noises. Realizing that we had to be aggressive to get anywhere, the guys put their bags on their heads and started making “tsk” noises – the whole loading ramp exploded in laughter!! Back on the beach, we had a really awesome and relaxing day swimming and enjoying the water. I even rode a camel on the beach, which although a little anticlimactic, was still quite fun. We even found the play we want to stay when we come back, a small backpacker hotel across from the beach bar we were at where the rooms are tree houses!!!
My last week in Nairobi was pretty uneventful. I went to the doctors to get antibiotics for a cough that wasn’t doing well, which was pretty painless. I also went to the post office to pick up a package, which was one of the more frustrating experiences I’ve had. For one, after my mom spent $40 dollars to send the package, I had to pay the equivalent of $30 to pick it up in duty fees. How do they assess this fee? Someone literally, when you are not even present, opens your package and goes through everything, even opening envelopes. Then this random person decided how much they think it’s worth and charge you an exorbitant fee based on that. It’s ridiculous!!! Maybe if government officials could keep their grimy hands out of government funds, there wouldn’t be a need to charge someone $30 dollars for a t-shirt, some candy, and some instant coffee. As much as I really do love Kenya, the blatant impunity of the political elite here makes me sick.
Finally, on Sunday, I moved from Nairobi to Nyeri, which is about two hours north of Nairobi. The town I actually live in is called Thunguma, and it is quite rural. To get anything I have to take a matatu into Nyeri, which is only about 5 or so kilometers away, so its not bad. This area is gorgeous. Our town is almost on a plateau of sorts, so we are surrounded by hills, which are covered be trees, cut through by lakes and quarries, and of course, the ubiquitous shambas (small farms). There is really only like 2 main roads, plus small lanes, and only one road is paved, the rest are the red dirt found in this area. In the horizon you can see the mountains in the distance, and when it’s clear, the snow covered top of Mt. Kenya, Kenya’s largest mountain. Also, the air is cleaner than in Nairobi, which is a nice change. My new host family is very nice, and it feels much more Kenyan than my Nairobi family. We do have water and electricity, but other luxuries are scarce. There is no stove or oven like we have in America, and we cook on small cooking stoves that run on gas. I help with the cooking and dishes, and I am enjoying learning to cook Kenyan food. I live on a small shamba, so we have chickens and goats, as well as a dog and 3 puppies! During the day our neighbor’s sheep graze in our yard. We get fresh milk every morning from the neighbor as well! I have a host brother and a host sister, but they are away at school. I haven’t met the brother who is 14 or 15, but the sister who is 21 I met briefly, and I liked her a lot. I also like the place where I am interning. It’s a home for street children. During the day the younger kids go to local schools, and the older kids do vocational training. I’m working on the farm, and it’s quite exhausting. I’m currently learning the basics, doing things like making beds, planting, watering, weeding, transplanting. Water is a big issue here, and in the 2 days I’ve been here, the pump has had to be fixed 3 times! Hopefully soon well figure out a specific project I can do, hopefully focusing on food production to improve nutrition. I wake up and go running from 630-7, shower, eat, and do some school work until I go to work at about 9, take lunch back at home from 1-3 (when it’s too hot to work), and then go back from 3-5 or 6. After this, I do some more school work, help with dinner, and relax a little. It turns out to be a very exhausting day, and last night I went to sleep at 9pm! But, the work is fun, and the kids at the center are adorable an so much fun to play with!
