Into the Chaos

A lot has happened in my short time here in Kenya. Since it would be impossible to tell every anecdote, here is a basic play by play of my adventures so far: 

Triumph of Love: It has been a week since I moved into my host family’s house. At first everything was really hectic with three little sisters and a cousin. I have been nicknamed Mazungu Hannah and so I have nicknamed them thus: The Oldest (10 years old), The Sass-master (4 years old), and Little one (1 year old). My life there is filled with pillow fights, playing hair salon, Spanish soap operas dubbed over in English and lots of chaos. Like I said, I’m learning to just go with it. Every night we watch Spanish soap operas that have been dubbed over in English (Triumph of Love is Oldest’s favorite) I’m really getting into them, so dramatic. It is a house packed full with eight people, and I share a room with two others.  I have a feeling this will lead to many stories of crazy adventures throughout the semester, so stay tuned. 

                                                           Sass-master and Youngest

Superbowl: During our orientation week at SIT the US embassy came and talked to us. During the talk they invited us to watch the Superbowl at the embassy with the Marines stationed there. At 2:30 am we all piled into our favorite taxi driver’s car and made our way to the compound. We went through security and entered paradise. They had running water/plumbing, snacks and a TV. I could not have been more excited. Even after a week of semi dysfunctional toilets, a running one seems like paradise. Even though the Pats couldn’t hold it together it was a worthwhile experience-there is nothing like watching your team lose in the US embassy.

NGOs: So far we have visited WOFAK to speak with a woman infected with HIV aids. This was incredible because her husband had died a year earlier and her thirteen year-old daughter still does not know that either of her parents were infected. This organization helps women and children who are infected maintain their health for as long as possible by providing food assistance, shelter and in some cases a job.

            Carolina for Kibera was another of our visits last week. I think by far this is the one that has made the most impact on me. This is an organization that provides health care to the largest and most dangerous slum in Africa. It usually takes around 30 mins for someone living in Kibera to get to the hospital, and even then they may not be able to afford the treatment. Carolina for a Kibera built clinics inside the slum. We walked through the small openings between houses- there are no roads, and little sanitation. There are rivers of human feces and roads made of plastic bags. I don’t think I could even take it in because I’m sure if I had I would have responded more strongly.

            MYSA and AMREF were also on the list. MYSA is basically a boys and girls club for children of Mathare, another slum in Kenya. They provide a library, soccer programs, and arts for children. They provide a safe place for kids to hang out after school. AMREF is a health research foundation. Both were interesting to visit and will help a lot of us with our independent research projects.

                                                          A little taste of slum life

Rift Valley Fail: This weekend a group of my friends and I attempted to journey out on our own. We set our sights on Nakuru in the Rift Valley. We hired a driver, Paul, who drove us two hours to the Chester hotel. After fighting with the staff on how much we should pay (we get ripped off a lot because we are mazungu) we finally got a fair price. On Sunday we decided to go on a Safari and after more bargaining we ended up at Hells Gate where we saw lots of Zebras and Warthogs…and that’s it. Paul also got the van stuck in the dirt (including the exhaust pipe) Eventually we were able to push it out and make our way back to Nairobi. It was definitely a learning experience, and memories I wouldn’t trade. But next time maybe we will plan before we try to voyage out of Nairobi. 

                                            Surprise! A picture of Zebras... Welcome to Nakuru.

As a side note: My style has also evolved. The only way to describe it is by picture. So here it is: