It's good to be back in the US of A. My travels left me weary but safe. When I first got off of the plane in Heathrow, I hopped on the tube to the center of London. I stepped outside and was overwhelmed by rainfall, electricity, infrastructure, and people EVERYWHERE. I nearly cried. Thankfully I had Mimi and James' familiar faces to greet me and Japanese food to appease my stomach. I spent the night at their flat which I was so thankful for. I would hate to have been stuck in the airport for 19 hours waiting for my next flight. James told me it was the least he could do for his best man.
The next morning I woke at 5:30 am London time, 8:30 am Kenya time and headed to the airport via 2 hours of various forms of London public transportation. As I was sitting on the double decker bus in the early morning, I thought about the independence that I have gained from my travels the past month. I thought about all of the times where I had to "just figure it out" and did. My fellow American students often talked about how this quality is not seen with strong presence in the people of Kenya. Kenyans rely on their brothers and sisters, but do not have unrealistic expectations for others. If something isn't done at the end of the day, hakuna mata (no worries), it will get done eventually. I find this way of life appealing. Maybe we should lean on each other more. We might find more satisfaction with our everyday lives.
There's nothing like seeing your family for the first time after living for weeks in the bush. I had a beautiful homecoming, complete with Claussen kosher dill pickles and lots of cheese (ah life is good in Wisconsin). The past few days have been absolutely refreshing and gave me another opportunity to appreciate just how lucky I am to have my family who support me with everything that I could possibly need and Josh who would still be right by my side, cheering me on if I wanted to fly to the moon or join the circus.
Thank you for following me to Kenya and back. Your comments helped motivate me in so many ways while I was there and I probably would have lost my mind if it hadn't been for your support. I hope I could paint a little picture of my experience in Kenya for you and that you find your adventure bone and go on one yourself someday. It's never too late and I can promise that you won't regret the people you meet, the places you see, and the lessons you learn. Peace!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Sunday, August 9, 2009
all i really want to do is baby be friends with you
Hello! Today was the culmination of weeks of hard work, blood (from thorns in the bush), sweat(from long walks between bomas to collect data in the hot sun), and tears (from frustration, exhaustation, and joy). We presented our results and recommendations to over 80 community members of the Mbirikani Group Ranch, stakeholders, and representatives from the Mbirikani Aid Clinic. Mostly babas (husbands) were representing their households. Unfortunately, only a handful of mamas came. This was slightly expected because of the role that the woman plays in this culture as the housekeeper and caregiver. Many of our recommendations were well received by our audience, others not. Topics of pesticide use, diet, and HIV lead to heated debates between community members.
In my time here, I have noticed that a lot of "this is what we have done for years" thrown around. Unfortunately, "what has been done for years" doesn't work with other modern practices that have been adopted by the Maasai. For example, I spoke with a nurse yesterday who informed me that many women do not exclusively breast feed their children anymore simply because Western culture is abandoning the practice. In an area where disease spreads like wildfire, babies can't afford to not have the essential immunities that only breast milk provides.
Our presentation stressed that in order to preserve this society, Maasai must be flexible to change certain practices. They cannot assume all of the burden however; cooperation from NGOS, government officials and the local community must exist. Indeed, public health cannot be addressed by only one sector.
You could not ignore the fact that these people were passionate about the status of their community. They would not have traveled so far on a Sunday, when nearly everyone spends the majority of the day at church, if they didn't.
I'm going to bed tonight feeling incredibly proud to be part of this project. Though I feel like my time has passed without any mercy of slowing down, I know it is time for me to leave. For my first trip in Africa, five weeks provided me with nearly more than I could handle at times. I saw more than I wanted to but didn't really see enough. I'll be back though.
In my time here, I have noticed that a lot of "this is what we have done for years" thrown around. Unfortunately, "what has been done for years" doesn't work with other modern practices that have been adopted by the Maasai. For example, I spoke with a nurse yesterday who informed me that many women do not exclusively breast feed their children anymore simply because Western culture is abandoning the practice. In an area where disease spreads like wildfire, babies can't afford to not have the essential immunities that only breast milk provides.
Our presentation stressed that in order to preserve this society, Maasai must be flexible to change certain practices. They cannot assume all of the burden however; cooperation from NGOS, government officials and the local community must exist. Indeed, public health cannot be addressed by only one sector.
You could not ignore the fact that these people were passionate about the status of their community. They would not have traveled so far on a Sunday, when nearly everyone spends the majority of the day at church, if they didn't.
I'm going to bed tonight feeling incredibly proud to be part of this project. Though I feel like my time has passed without any mercy of slowing down, I know it is time for me to leave. For my first trip in Africa, five weeks provided me with nearly more than I could handle at times. I saw more than I wanted to but didn't really see enough. I'll be back though.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
busier than santa at christmas
It’s crunch time at KBC! We have been working long days to write our papers and get ready for our presentation on Sunday. I’m really excited to present our results and our recommendations for the community. My group examined hand hygiene and food preparation practices. Our suggested interventions are low cost, sustainable, and have the potential to reduce rates of diarrhea and respiratory illnesses in the area (google Tippy Tap and Lorena stove). I can’t believe I leave in a week. I imagine it will be difficult for me to adjust back to my old ways and lifestyle. This experience has truly changed my perceptions and values, all for the good! I’m so glad my parents raised me and Kelly to be adventuresome and explore the wider world. I wouldn’t be here otherwise! Sorry this is short, back to work!
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
rolling, rolling, rolling on the river
Hi All! Sorry I haven't posted in awhile, we're really busy here at KBC! Last week we completed our data collection and we have been busy entering our data ever since. We are finally sitting down tomorrow to start some analysis. My second day in the field was a stressful one. We were not welcomed at our second boma to say the least. The Mama did not want to be interviewed because she said that people come through all the time, use her for information, and nothing comes of it. She said that she would not give us any of her time unless we give her something. Our guide Solomon explained to her that we are students and we came with nothing. He told her who his family was and that he was a teacher at the local school. She said she knew his parents and she respected him so she allowed us to interview her. It had taken nearly an hour to get her consent for the questionnaire. Throughout the whole interview she kept saying she had no confidence in us and that she didn't want to waste her time, but Solomon insisted that if she were to continue and attend our presentation on August 9th that she would be proud to have been a part of our research. Solomon knew exactly what to say and my partner Annie and I were so thankful to have him as our interpreter and guide. At the next boma, none of the wives wanted to be interviewed so we asked the husband if we could interview him. About half way through the interview, the husband said he did not want to continue and we had to throw out the data he had given us since we can only include questionnaires that are 90% complete. At another boma the wives were also reluctant to be interview so we tried to interview the husband only to discover he was drunk. Finally one of the wives agreed but she stopped about 80% of the way and we had to throw out that data as well. Feeling defeated and exhausted we rested under a tree to have some lunch. Not shortly after we sat down, 6 kids and a young woman came over to our shade. We gave them the rest of our lunches and talked to them through Solomon. It turned out that the young woman was the next person on our list to interview. She was 21 years old with 1 son and 8 months pregnant. I didn't even know that she was pregnant until she told us during the questionnaire. One of our questions about nutrition revealed that she only eats one meal a day. Maasai women purposefully eat less during pregnancy to keep their babies small and make childbirth less painful. A "good weight" for a baby is about 4.4 pounds. I tried to imagine myself living as this woman, who is my own age, does. I can barely take care of a houseplant at this point in my life. It really opened my eyes to a much larger world than I am exposed to in America and made me appreciate the fact that I am able to go to college and get a good education.
On a much lighter note, yesterday was a free day so we decided to go back to Loitokitok to go on a hike. Our group was escorted by the Kenyan Wildlife Service who carried rifles to protect us from any harm. I was a little frightened by the fact that something may need to be shot on this hike, but thankfully we didn't encounter any troubles. We hiked through a dried up river and actually crossed the border into Tanzania! The scenery was beautiful and we had the most incredible view of Kilimanjaro; the elevation made us all huff and puff a little harder than normal. Just taking a deep breath down in the riverbed was enough to rejuvenate me for the next two weeks because the air was so clean and cool in my dusty lungs.
Today we had a celebration (just because!) complete with slaughtering and roasting a goat, sodas, peanut butter bars, and a dance party in the chumba lit by a soccer ball turned disco ball (all you need is a little tinfoil and a flashlight!) It just goes to show that all you really need to have a good time is good company and we have all found that in each other here. That's all for now, take it easy!
On a much lighter note, yesterday was a free day so we decided to go back to Loitokitok to go on a hike. Our group was escorted by the Kenyan Wildlife Service who carried rifles to protect us from any harm. I was a little frightened by the fact that something may need to be shot on this hike, but thankfully we didn't encounter any troubles. We hiked through a dried up river and actually crossed the border into Tanzania! The scenery was beautiful and we had the most incredible view of Kilimanjaro; the elevation made us all huff and puff a little harder than normal. Just taking a deep breath down in the riverbed was enough to rejuvenate me for the next two weeks because the air was so clean and cool in my dusty lungs.
Today we had a celebration (just because!) complete with slaughtering and roasting a goat, sodas, peanut butter bars, and a dance party in the chumba lit by a soccer ball turned disco ball (all you need is a little tinfoil and a flashlight!) It just goes to show that all you really need to have a good time is good company and we have all found that in each other here. That's all for now, take it easy!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
team teamwork!
Today was our first day in the field! I traveled with my partner in crime, Dan, and our translator John. John has been working for SFS for 7 years. Before joining SFS, he worked for an NGO in Kenya that raised money to send Maasai girls to school and to promote their attendance in secondary schools. Traditionally Massai girls are not sent to school, but the community is trying to change that in order to empower their women. I was able to see the impact of the lack of education of women today as we were collecting data.
The questionnaire we developed has 6 sections: demographics, water storage and collection, agricultural practices, household sanitation, hand hygiene and food preparation practices, and household illnesses and episodes. We are viewing these topics through a “health lens” with a goal to identify causes of health problems, low cost, sustainable interventions, and any barriers to interventions. Many of our questions inquire about sensitive issues like HIV, opportunistic infections associated with HIV (tuberculosis), sexually transmitted infections, toileting practices, etc. We had to throw out a lot of these questions in our initial drafts of the questionnaire and be careful with how we word certain questions. Some of the information given to us contradicted what we saw as we conducted the questionnaire. Many of the children we saw had runny noses and were coughing violently, but when the mother was asked if her family members had any of these symptoms in the last month, she responded that they hadn’t. Also, some of our repetitive questions had contradicting answers so when it comes time to analyze our data, it’s going to be a difficult task. Another problem is the communication barrier. One of our questions, “How are people who have HIV/AIDS viewed by the community?” is translating as “How are people who have HIV/AIDS seen by the community?” and the response we are getting is “The mobile clinic sees them.” When we asked how HIV was transmitted, many of the women didn’t know. When we asked why they didn’t have a latrine, many of the women said that their husband would not allow one, even though they would like to have one. Another question asked “Do you think that diseases can spread among people who practice polygamy?” and only one woman thought that to be true. Many of the women don’t believe that they can get HIV from their husband even though he has multiple sexual partners. What is the solution here? You can’t expect the Maasai to stop practicing polygamy. Our goal is to preserve Maasai culture while educating people about how they can protect themselves, which is why programs like the one John was a part of are so important to developing nations.
My favorite part of the questionnaire is asking the women if they would like to come to our camp on August 9th when we present our research and suggestions for interventions to key stakeholders and community members. Most of the women said they would like to come and we took their name so we could send a car for them. It was great to see these women wanting to learn about what is going on in their community and what needs to be going on. My heart will be so happy when that day finally comes!
The questionnaire we developed has 6 sections: demographics, water storage and collection, agricultural practices, household sanitation, hand hygiene and food preparation practices, and household illnesses and episodes. We are viewing these topics through a “health lens” with a goal to identify causes of health problems, low cost, sustainable interventions, and any barriers to interventions. Many of our questions inquire about sensitive issues like HIV, opportunistic infections associated with HIV (tuberculosis), sexually transmitted infections, toileting practices, etc. We had to throw out a lot of these questions in our initial drafts of the questionnaire and be careful with how we word certain questions. Some of the information given to us contradicted what we saw as we conducted the questionnaire. Many of the children we saw had runny noses and were coughing violently, but when the mother was asked if her family members had any of these symptoms in the last month, she responded that they hadn’t. Also, some of our repetitive questions had contradicting answers so when it comes time to analyze our data, it’s going to be a difficult task. Another problem is the communication barrier. One of our questions, “How are people who have HIV/AIDS viewed by the community?” is translating as “How are people who have HIV/AIDS seen by the community?” and the response we are getting is “The mobile clinic sees them.” When we asked how HIV was transmitted, many of the women didn’t know. When we asked why they didn’t have a latrine, many of the women said that their husband would not allow one, even though they would like to have one. Another question asked “Do you think that diseases can spread among people who practice polygamy?” and only one woman thought that to be true. Many of the women don’t believe that they can get HIV from their husband even though he has multiple sexual partners. What is the solution here? You can’t expect the Maasai to stop practicing polygamy. Our goal is to preserve Maasai culture while educating people about how they can protect themselves, which is why programs like the one John was a part of are so important to developing nations.
My favorite part of the questionnaire is asking the women if they would like to come to our camp on August 9th when we present our research and suggestions for interventions to key stakeholders and community members. Most of the women said they would like to come and we took their name so we could send a car for them. It was great to see these women wanting to learn about what is going on in their community and what needs to be going on. My heart will be so happy when that day finally comes!
Sunday, July 19, 2009
"come in," she said, "i'll give you shelter from the storm"
Hey folks! Here’s an update of what’s going on in Kenya:
Yesterday was a free day for the students so we decided to visit an orphanage in Loitokitok. Many of us brought books to donate and we all chipped in 100 shillings (1.30 US dollars) to buy food for the kids. When I stepped out of the Land Cruiser, a young girl named Nankinyi took me by the hand and sat next to me on a bench. Every one of my peers had been “designated” a kid to hang out with for the day. The children greeted us with a song and dance and many of us were moved with a mixture of emotions.
The mother of the 20 children, Phyllis, explained how she and her husband started the orphanage back in 2003. She had each of the kids introduce themselves and share their class rankings. We were all very impressed by their intelligence. They were all at the top of their classes and Nankinyi had her report card to prove it. She also showed me a photo album which had a picture of her when she was found abandoned and pictures from each school year. When I asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up, she said she wanted to be the President of Kenya. I told her she had my vote.
Phyllis handed out papers with contact information for the orphanage and asked us to fill out a form with our addresses so the kids can write to us. The form also asked for institutions that may be able to contribute to the orphanage.
Then the kids gave us the grand tour of the orphanage, which was pretty disheartening. The kids have to share beds with one another and they didn’t have a lot of space to run around. Also, the structural integrity of their shelter was less than adequate. The kids are responsible for taking care of chickens, dogs, goats and a couple cows for which they sell the milk to make money for food.
A game of net ball (basketball but no dribbling) was rapidly arranged and we all enjoyed running around the kids and using our height to help our team. They were fascinated with our digital cameras and it was hard to take mine away from some of them! Looking at the pictures they took was pretty hilarious.
Before we knew it, it was time for me to say goodbye to Nankinyi. She said she would write me a letter and then asked me to send her money for a mattress and sheets for boarding school next year. After talking with my fellow students, I understood that nearly everyone had been asked by their kid for money. Some had been asked for their watches and jewelry. Our experience at the orphanage taught us a lot about how destitute Kenya is. Many students felt like the song and dance was not so much a greeting as it was a performance. That being said, there is no doubt in my mind that those kids are being well taken care of by Phyllis, who rescued and raised these kids to be polite, responsible, intelligent young men and women.
After we left the orphanage, we went to the VCT in Loitokitok, where people can come and get free HIV counseling and testing. We were introduced to some members of the support group for the VCT, who spoke about their personal struggles with accepting HIV positive status and how the VCT has helped them to cope with it. They all introduced themselves by name and the statement “I am living positively.” It was truly incredible for these people to open up to complete strangers and talk about something that comes with huge stigma. Many people don’t even know their status, which is why free educational counseling is necessary in an area like Kenya where HIV prevalence is so high. Another problem in Kenya is that many people do know their positive status but don’t know where to get support and are often in denial or don’t attempt to get treatment. One of the members, Nancy, told us that her friend was being buried that day because she had not been educated early on in her diagnosis about treatment. Another member, Joan, passed around a picture of herself from 5 years ago when she was in the hospital. She probably weighed about 90 pounds and she was paralyzed on part of her right side. The picture had hands coming from all directions, indicating people praying over her. I could barely look at it because the woman in the picture was not the Joan I saw before my eyes. The Joan that I saw was healthy, happy and living positively.
The support group also makes and sells BEAUTIFUL beadwork with a mission to help provide financial stability to its members living with HIV/AIDS, who often do not have enough money to pay for their treatments. The group is currently struggling with marketing their product and is trying to make their project appealing to investors. I have contact information if you or anyone you know is interested in helping this group with their very important cause.
Though this day shed some moments of despair, it also shone with moments of hope. Kenya is FULL of intelligent and willing people that can make a significant change in their country, but are not given the necessary resources to bring their vision to life. What makes Kenya unique to me is that even though it borders countries characterized by civil wars, genocide, rebellion, corruption, famine, and violence, Kenya has managed to outshine most of these evils. You cannot deny the hope that Kenyans have for themselves, their families, their neighbors, and their country. Kenya will always have a special place in my heart. I hope to see the day when the people of Kenya start influencing the countries around them, instead of those countries influencing the people of Kenya.
Yesterday was a free day for the students so we decided to visit an orphanage in Loitokitok. Many of us brought books to donate and we all chipped in 100 shillings (1.30 US dollars) to buy food for the kids. When I stepped out of the Land Cruiser, a young girl named Nankinyi took me by the hand and sat next to me on a bench. Every one of my peers had been “designated” a kid to hang out with for the day. The children greeted us with a song and dance and many of us were moved with a mixture of emotions.
The mother of the 20 children, Phyllis, explained how she and her husband started the orphanage back in 2003. She had each of the kids introduce themselves and share their class rankings. We were all very impressed by their intelligence. They were all at the top of their classes and Nankinyi had her report card to prove it. She also showed me a photo album which had a picture of her when she was found abandoned and pictures from each school year. When I asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up, she said she wanted to be the President of Kenya. I told her she had my vote.
Phyllis handed out papers with contact information for the orphanage and asked us to fill out a form with our addresses so the kids can write to us. The form also asked for institutions that may be able to contribute to the orphanage.
Then the kids gave us the grand tour of the orphanage, which was pretty disheartening. The kids have to share beds with one another and they didn’t have a lot of space to run around. Also, the structural integrity of their shelter was less than adequate. The kids are responsible for taking care of chickens, dogs, goats and a couple cows for which they sell the milk to make money for food.
A game of net ball (basketball but no dribbling) was rapidly arranged and we all enjoyed running around the kids and using our height to help our team. They were fascinated with our digital cameras and it was hard to take mine away from some of them! Looking at the pictures they took was pretty hilarious.
Before we knew it, it was time for me to say goodbye to Nankinyi. She said she would write me a letter and then asked me to send her money for a mattress and sheets for boarding school next year. After talking with my fellow students, I understood that nearly everyone had been asked by their kid for money. Some had been asked for their watches and jewelry. Our experience at the orphanage taught us a lot about how destitute Kenya is. Many students felt like the song and dance was not so much a greeting as it was a performance. That being said, there is no doubt in my mind that those kids are being well taken care of by Phyllis, who rescued and raised these kids to be polite, responsible, intelligent young men and women.
After we left the orphanage, we went to the VCT in Loitokitok, where people can come and get free HIV counseling and testing. We were introduced to some members of the support group for the VCT, who spoke about their personal struggles with accepting HIV positive status and how the VCT has helped them to cope with it. They all introduced themselves by name and the statement “I am living positively.” It was truly incredible for these people to open up to complete strangers and talk about something that comes with huge stigma. Many people don’t even know their status, which is why free educational counseling is necessary in an area like Kenya where HIV prevalence is so high. Another problem in Kenya is that many people do know their positive status but don’t know where to get support and are often in denial or don’t attempt to get treatment. One of the members, Nancy, told us that her friend was being buried that day because she had not been educated early on in her diagnosis about treatment. Another member, Joan, passed around a picture of herself from 5 years ago when she was in the hospital. She probably weighed about 90 pounds and she was paralyzed on part of her right side. The picture had hands coming from all directions, indicating people praying over her. I could barely look at it because the woman in the picture was not the Joan I saw before my eyes. The Joan that I saw was healthy, happy and living positively.
The support group also makes and sells BEAUTIFUL beadwork with a mission to help provide financial stability to its members living with HIV/AIDS, who often do not have enough money to pay for their treatments. The group is currently struggling with marketing their product and is trying to make their project appealing to investors. I have contact information if you or anyone you know is interested in helping this group with their very important cause.
Though this day shed some moments of despair, it also shone with moments of hope. Kenya is FULL of intelligent and willing people that can make a significant change in their country, but are not given the necessary resources to bring their vision to life. What makes Kenya unique to me is that even though it borders countries characterized by civil wars, genocide, rebellion, corruption, famine, and violence, Kenya has managed to outshine most of these evils. You cannot deny the hope that Kenyans have for themselves, their families, their neighbors, and their country. Kenya will always have a special place in my heart. I hope to see the day when the people of Kenya start influencing the countries around them, instead of those countries influencing the people of Kenya.
Friday, July 17, 2009
Sawa sawa?
Mercy! What a tiring day! Today was a community service day. We went to work on the Kimana Water Project, which is a project funded by the European Union dedicated to using natural springs in Kimana in a sustainable way and to keep the water clean. In order to do this, many troughs and many fences must be built to keep out animals. We built a section of fence out of large rocks and cement, so I can now add masonry to my resume.
No one can say that we haven’t learned anything here. We were offered tea but we all heard our professors screaming “no!” inside our heads. We politely refused but the workers kept telling us that the water was clean, which is perfect evidence for the level of understanding the water quality.
Today was really hard but also rewarding work. The “general contractor” asked who was paying us. When we replied that we were not being paid by anyone, he corrected us and said the God will be paying us for our hard work. He gave a Maasai prayer and asked for blessings for all of us. Our work was very much appreciated.
At one point a woman walked by with her 20 liter water jug to collect from the river. She said something to one of the workers which he translated for us as “I didn’t know you people did hard work like this, I only see you in the markets.” It’s amazing that those workers do this every day. The only equipment we had were wheelbarrows for the cement, and shovels… no gloves, no construction hats, and most of the workers were wearing sandals.
I’m going to go rest my bones. Lala salama (goodnight!) Here’s a little ditty by Little Feat that Dad was playing before I left.
Oh, I am just a vagabond
A drifter on the run
Eloquent profanity, it rolls right off my tongue
And I have dined in palaces
Drunk wine with kings and queens
But darling, oh darling,
You’re the best thing I have ever seen
Won’t you roll me easy
Oh, slow and easy
Take my independence
With no apprehension
No tension
You’re walking, talking
Mmm paradise, sweet paradise
No one can say that we haven’t learned anything here. We were offered tea but we all heard our professors screaming “no!” inside our heads. We politely refused but the workers kept telling us that the water was clean, which is perfect evidence for the level of understanding the water quality.
Today was really hard but also rewarding work. The “general contractor” asked who was paying us. When we replied that we were not being paid by anyone, he corrected us and said the God will be paying us for our hard work. He gave a Maasai prayer and asked for blessings for all of us. Our work was very much appreciated.
At one point a woman walked by with her 20 liter water jug to collect from the river. She said something to one of the workers which he translated for us as “I didn’t know you people did hard work like this, I only see you in the markets.” It’s amazing that those workers do this every day. The only equipment we had were wheelbarrows for the cement, and shovels… no gloves, no construction hats, and most of the workers were wearing sandals.
I’m going to go rest my bones. Lala salama (goodnight!) Here’s a little ditty by Little Feat that Dad was playing before I left.
Oh, I am just a vagabond
A drifter on the run
Eloquent profanity, it rolls right off my tongue
And I have dined in palaces
Drunk wine with kings and queens
But darling, oh darling,
You’re the best thing I have ever seen
Won’t you roll me easy
Oh, slow and easy
Take my independence
With no apprehension
No tension
You’re walking, talking
Mmm paradise, sweet paradise
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
all the small things
Jambo! It’s been awhile since I have updated so here’s what’s been going on in Kenya the last couple days.
On Sunday we got up early to go to Amboseli National Park for a safari. It was SO fun standing up in the Land Cruisers and zooming all around the park. A convertible that you can stand in? Sounds like a good time right? We saw zebras, wildebeests, hippos, gazelles, lions, a cheetah, waterbucks, and lots of elephants! At one point we saw a waterbuck charge a lion and a lioness. Then we went to a manyatta, which is like a boma but it’s more for tourists. The chief’s son, William, showed us some traditional medicine, including their version of Viagra made from a root. I’m not sure I believed him. The manyatta was much different from the boma we went to earlier; the boma was much more authentic. I think William was trying to “ham up” life as a Maasai. A Maasai man told us that his son was born the day after the presidential elections and he named him Obama. Obama is loved here in Kenya. We see lots of art with his name and "yes we can."
After the manyatta, we went to have lunch at a 5-star lodge in the park. The lunch was delicious and it was nice to have desserts since we don’t have those here at camp. We also don’t have beer, so I indulged in a Tusker. Tusker is the local brew in East Africa and it’s an acronym for the countries (Tanzania, Uganda, Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Rwanda). It was a great way for us to re-charge for the busy week ahead. I’ll be coming back with many souvenirs, so I plan to leave a lot of my clothes and some other equipment stuff here for the center.
On Monday we had class in the morning and then we gave presentations on a paper that we wrote in groups. My group is responsible for researching hand hygiene and food preparation practices and how they may affect the declining health of the Maasai. At night, we made a homemade version of Apples to Apples, which ensued a giggle fest until midnight.
Today we had more class and worked on our objectives for our research in groups. After lunch we were told that there was a hippo stuck in the mud in a nearby swamp. Kenyan Wildlife Service was coming to euthanize the hippo and we went to go take a look at it before they came. It was a terribly sad sight since the hippo was emaciated and would have drowned anyway. Had KWS tried to get the hippo out of the water, they would be risking their own lives. It was pretty incredible to get so close to it.
We also went to the market (Tuesday is market day in Kimana) which I found to be very overwhelming. We stick out like sore thumbs and people harass us constantly to buy things. At one point a man exposed himself to one of the students from UW, but she didn’t realize it at the time. He began kissing her hand so I grabbed her from him and a fellow Kenyan student started to yell at him. Only later did we learn that he had exposed himself. It was pretty traumatizing for my friend and we decided that neither of us will go back to the market. It’s a shame that the experience had to be spoiled by that.
Today I am the MOD which stands for mwanafunzi of the day, or, student of the day. I am responsible for ringing the bell for class, rotating the solar panels, and hosting RAP after dinner. RAP stands for reflection, announcements, and presentation. I’m going to be reading a poem by Robert Frost and showing a slide show of some of the pictures I have taken here. We have a lot of assignments due tomorrow so I have a long night ahead of me.
Speaking of pictures, I have already taken over 500. Unfortunately, our internet is so fragile that uploading pictures makes it crash. I promise to upload pictures and share them with you when I get back to the states.
Tomorrow a bunch of us are paying the mamas to do our laundry. We are so busy that we never have time during the day to do it and it’s good to support the local community. Plus, I know that I won’t do as good of a job as the mamas.
Everything else is going really well. We have a lot of work to do and I can't wait to share all of it with you! Thanks for reading!
On Sunday we got up early to go to Amboseli National Park for a safari. It was SO fun standing up in the Land Cruisers and zooming all around the park. A convertible that you can stand in? Sounds like a good time right? We saw zebras, wildebeests, hippos, gazelles, lions, a cheetah, waterbucks, and lots of elephants! At one point we saw a waterbuck charge a lion and a lioness. Then we went to a manyatta, which is like a boma but it’s more for tourists. The chief’s son, William, showed us some traditional medicine, including their version of Viagra made from a root. I’m not sure I believed him. The manyatta was much different from the boma we went to earlier; the boma was much more authentic. I think William was trying to “ham up” life as a Maasai. A Maasai man told us that his son was born the day after the presidential elections and he named him Obama. Obama is loved here in Kenya. We see lots of art with his name and "yes we can."
After the manyatta, we went to have lunch at a 5-star lodge in the park. The lunch was delicious and it was nice to have desserts since we don’t have those here at camp. We also don’t have beer, so I indulged in a Tusker. Tusker is the local brew in East Africa and it’s an acronym for the countries (Tanzania, Uganda, Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Rwanda). It was a great way for us to re-charge for the busy week ahead. I’ll be coming back with many souvenirs, so I plan to leave a lot of my clothes and some other equipment stuff here for the center.
On Monday we had class in the morning and then we gave presentations on a paper that we wrote in groups. My group is responsible for researching hand hygiene and food preparation practices and how they may affect the declining health of the Maasai. At night, we made a homemade version of Apples to Apples, which ensued a giggle fest until midnight.
Today we had more class and worked on our objectives for our research in groups. After lunch we were told that there was a hippo stuck in the mud in a nearby swamp. Kenyan Wildlife Service was coming to euthanize the hippo and we went to go take a look at it before they came. It was a terribly sad sight since the hippo was emaciated and would have drowned anyway. Had KWS tried to get the hippo out of the water, they would be risking their own lives. It was pretty incredible to get so close to it.
We also went to the market (Tuesday is market day in Kimana) which I found to be very overwhelming. We stick out like sore thumbs and people harass us constantly to buy things. At one point a man exposed himself to one of the students from UW, but she didn’t realize it at the time. He began kissing her hand so I grabbed her from him and a fellow Kenyan student started to yell at him. Only later did we learn that he had exposed himself. It was pretty traumatizing for my friend and we decided that neither of us will go back to the market. It’s a shame that the experience had to be spoiled by that.
Today I am the MOD which stands for mwanafunzi of the day, or, student of the day. I am responsible for ringing the bell for class, rotating the solar panels, and hosting RAP after dinner. RAP stands for reflection, announcements, and presentation. I’m going to be reading a poem by Robert Frost and showing a slide show of some of the pictures I have taken here. We have a lot of assignments due tomorrow so I have a long night ahead of me.
Speaking of pictures, I have already taken over 500. Unfortunately, our internet is so fragile that uploading pictures makes it crash. I promise to upload pictures and share them with you when I get back to the states.
Tomorrow a bunch of us are paying the mamas to do our laundry. We are so busy that we never have time during the day to do it and it’s good to support the local community. Plus, I know that I won’t do as good of a job as the mamas.
Everything else is going really well. We have a lot of work to do and I can't wait to share all of it with you! Thanks for reading!
Saturday, July 11, 2009
sky blue sky
Hello! I can’t believe it is already Saturday! Class on Saturdays is not something I am accustomed to, but I don’t really keep track of the days here so I didn’t give it too much attention, especially because the classes here are so interesting and informative. Today we were lectured by Moses Okello, the new center director here. He did his undergrad here in Kenya at Moi University, his grad school work at Iowa, and he earned his PhD in Canada. He is native to Kenya and is an expert in wildlife management among many other fields. I probably learned more from Okello in our 4 hours with him than I learned in entire courses at UW. Okello described the many components that affect water scarcity and it’s implications on wildlife, humans, politics, agriculture, pastoralism, and how all of this affects health needs. I’ll try to explain as best I can, but I know I won’t be able to do justice to the issue at hand.
I already wrote about the core of the problem. Global warming over the last 100 years has reduced the amount of glaciers on Mt. Kilimanjaro by 90%. It is estimated by the year 2024 that the glaciers will be completely melted. The glaciers are the main source of water for not only Kenya, but much of Eastern Africa. Watch for the term “climatic refugees” in the next few years.
What little water that is available is not being used in a sustainable manner. Because of the corruption in Kenya, water is distributed unevenly. The focus of the Kenyan government is to become more wealthy which, as is true for most developing countries, means expanding on tourism. Therefore the Kenyan government has put into place special programs to protect wildlife by establishing national parks, without consulting the people who live in these areas (the goal of the national parks being to bring in tourism). Therefore, tribes such as the Maasai have been forced to move out of the places they called home, which are also the areas that have access to water. Another way in which wildlife impacts the livelihood of pastoralists and agriculturalists is that they destroy crops and kill cows and goats, essentially removing the only source of money for many people. Now arises and issue of meeting the basic needs of a person. When needs are not met, it is difficult to explain conservation, therefore education alone will not promote domestic conservation.
Poverty must also be eliminated. More on the human-wildlife conflict: many agriculturalists work two jobs. They are also poachers who create traps with to lure wildlife into a hut and then kill them.
Another theme here arises; the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer. Smaller farmers cannot compete with the more wealthy farmers who can afford technology to pump water from streams into their farms for irrigation. Okello showed us areas right outside our fence where this is the case. Wealthy farmers have tapped a small river fed by springs that runs through Kimana. Some pipelines are placed underground and we could identify one by wet soil in spots, indicating a leak in the pipe—another waste of water! In one area, a farmer damned the spring, forcing it to run straight into his water pumping system and essentially blocking any flow of the river. This means that the further downstream you are, the less water you get until the last drop is absorbed. This type of damming is illegal in Kenya, but is not enforced.
Speaking of illegal activity, farmers use land markers to declare where their land ends. By law, this marker can not extend within 30 feet of a water source. But today we saw a land marker literally 2 feet from the river, something very common around here. Part of the problem is that some people do not know the laws and the other part is that they laws are not enforced by the government.
The beliefs of the Maasai create issues as well. For instance, the Maasai believe that water can do no harm, therefore, they don’t treat their water. On our field trip we saw the stream that most people get their drinking water from. The stream collects agricultural runoff, human waste, and it is the site where many people wash their clothes. It is not surprising to see why so many people are sick here. You can see how complex the problem is but there are SO many more issues that come into play here that I haven’t even mentioned.
Our other field trip was to the Kimana Health Clinic, which was a much bleaker picture than Mburikani Village Clinic. Kimana has an outpatient clinic, a maternity ward, a pharmacy, a public health outreach program, and a lab. The resources available here are bare, outdated, nearly non-existent. There are no doctors here, just one health supervisor and 5 nurses. I was so overloaded with information today, I will just share 3 things that I took home and really made me appreciate what I am so fortunate to have:
1. Women are offered family planning in the forms of birth control (oral and injections) and male condoms. Women often opt for the injections so that their partners don’t know they are on it (if the man knew, it could have physically violent consequences for the woman). Also, women are the only people involved in education about condom use and how it protects against HIV and other STDs. When women come back to their husbands with condoms, the men refuse to wear them.
2. Currently, the Kenyan government gives clinics treated mosquito nets to disperse to pregnant women and children. Though they are given to these vulnerable groups to protect themselves from malaria, once the women come home with the nets, the men take them for themselves.
3. Pregnant women deliver at Kimana clinic. The women are not given any type of pain medication during labor and the labor process is left nearly untouched by the nurses. Women have perfectly healthy deliveries here and before the medicalization of birth in the United States, this is how things were. Instead, we are seeing a high rate of c-sections, which research indicates is largely unnecessary and come with severe health risks for both mother and baby.
That’s all for now. Sorry if this was depressing, but I think people will be interested to hear some of what is really going on in Kenya and most parts of Africa. Tomorrow we are going on a game watch at Amboseli National Park so I hope to have some fun stories about the animals we see! Love to all! Amani (peace).
I already wrote about the core of the problem. Global warming over the last 100 years has reduced the amount of glaciers on Mt. Kilimanjaro by 90%. It is estimated by the year 2024 that the glaciers will be completely melted. The glaciers are the main source of water for not only Kenya, but much of Eastern Africa. Watch for the term “climatic refugees” in the next few years.
What little water that is available is not being used in a sustainable manner. Because of the corruption in Kenya, water is distributed unevenly. The focus of the Kenyan government is to become more wealthy which, as is true for most developing countries, means expanding on tourism. Therefore the Kenyan government has put into place special programs to protect wildlife by establishing national parks, without consulting the people who live in these areas (the goal of the national parks being to bring in tourism). Therefore, tribes such as the Maasai have been forced to move out of the places they called home, which are also the areas that have access to water. Another way in which wildlife impacts the livelihood of pastoralists and agriculturalists is that they destroy crops and kill cows and goats, essentially removing the only source of money for many people. Now arises and issue of meeting the basic needs of a person. When needs are not met, it is difficult to explain conservation, therefore education alone will not promote domestic conservation.
Poverty must also be eliminated. More on the human-wildlife conflict: many agriculturalists work two jobs. They are also poachers who create traps with to lure wildlife into a hut and then kill them.
Another theme here arises; the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer. Smaller farmers cannot compete with the more wealthy farmers who can afford technology to pump water from streams into their farms for irrigation. Okello showed us areas right outside our fence where this is the case. Wealthy farmers have tapped a small river fed by springs that runs through Kimana. Some pipelines are placed underground and we could identify one by wet soil in spots, indicating a leak in the pipe—another waste of water! In one area, a farmer damned the spring, forcing it to run straight into his water pumping system and essentially blocking any flow of the river. This means that the further downstream you are, the less water you get until the last drop is absorbed. This type of damming is illegal in Kenya, but is not enforced.
Speaking of illegal activity, farmers use land markers to declare where their land ends. By law, this marker can not extend within 30 feet of a water source. But today we saw a land marker literally 2 feet from the river, something very common around here. Part of the problem is that some people do not know the laws and the other part is that they laws are not enforced by the government.
The beliefs of the Maasai create issues as well. For instance, the Maasai believe that water can do no harm, therefore, they don’t treat their water. On our field trip we saw the stream that most people get their drinking water from. The stream collects agricultural runoff, human waste, and it is the site where many people wash their clothes. It is not surprising to see why so many people are sick here. You can see how complex the problem is but there are SO many more issues that come into play here that I haven’t even mentioned.
Our other field trip was to the Kimana Health Clinic, which was a much bleaker picture than Mburikani Village Clinic. Kimana has an outpatient clinic, a maternity ward, a pharmacy, a public health outreach program, and a lab. The resources available here are bare, outdated, nearly non-existent. There are no doctors here, just one health supervisor and 5 nurses. I was so overloaded with information today, I will just share 3 things that I took home and really made me appreciate what I am so fortunate to have:
1. Women are offered family planning in the forms of birth control (oral and injections) and male condoms. Women often opt for the injections so that their partners don’t know they are on it (if the man knew, it could have physically violent consequences for the woman). Also, women are the only people involved in education about condom use and how it protects against HIV and other STDs. When women come back to their husbands with condoms, the men refuse to wear them.
2. Currently, the Kenyan government gives clinics treated mosquito nets to disperse to pregnant women and children. Though they are given to these vulnerable groups to protect themselves from malaria, once the women come home with the nets, the men take them for themselves.
3. Pregnant women deliver at Kimana clinic. The women are not given any type of pain medication during labor and the labor process is left nearly untouched by the nurses. Women have perfectly healthy deliveries here and before the medicalization of birth in the United States, this is how things were. Instead, we are seeing a high rate of c-sections, which research indicates is largely unnecessary and come with severe health risks for both mother and baby.
That’s all for now. Sorry if this was depressing, but I think people will be interested to hear some of what is really going on in Kenya and most parts of Africa. Tomorrow we are going on a game watch at Amboseli National Park so I hope to have some fun stories about the animals we see! Love to all! Amani (peace).
Friday, July 10, 2009
wish you were here
There's nothing like reflecting on your day while watching the sun set behind the acacia trees. Indeed, today is a day that I need to reflect on. We visited Mburikani Village Clinic, the most unique health care service not only in this area, but probably in the world. The clinic provides completely free health care to anyone. Literally. If your premiums are too high or you can't afford co-pays, come to Mburikani, come one come all. I can say without a doubt in my mind that the care is exceptional, better than some clinics in the United States. The clinic was started by a woman from Chicago who had visited the area many years ago and was so touched by the people of Mburikani, she asked what she can do for them. Her offer started a mobile clinic, operating out of a single vehicle and has expanded into an inpatient ward, and outpatient ward, a pharmacy, a lab, x-ray and diagnostic center, a community outreach program, and more recently a voluntary testing center where people can come and get free testing and education for HIV. But there are rules. You can't get tested for HIV without first getting educated about it. Hello primary prevention! And it doesn't stop there. In the waiting area for the clinic, patients view slides in the local language about essential primary preventative measures to promote healthy behaviors.
The director of the clinic took us on a tour, with our first stop in the pharmacy, which interestingly had boxes of some sort of medicine from Hospira (Midwest represent!). One of the best pictures I took in the pharmacy was rows upon rows upon rows of folic acid supplements for pregnant women. My maternal nursing professors would be proud.
Then we checked out the garage which housed about 20 motorcycles which staff use to travel all over to provide basic medical care and education, compromising the community outreach program. The motorcycles had cases attached to the back of them to keep medical equipment and medicine. We also saw the new mobile clinic, which they had just got only 2 weeks ago. This was probably one of the most impressive operations I have ever seen. The trailer had an examination room, complete with examination table and sink, a pharmacy window and a waiting area and it's all on wheels! Interestingly, it had an Illinois license plate (again, Midwest represent!)
We then checked out one of the interventions developed uniquely by the clinic called mobilets (mobile toilet) which is essentially a port-a-potty that the clinic provides free to villages to help reduce the contamination of river water by human waste. All the village members have to do is dig the hole!
The lab had everything that a lab in a US hospital had, but more specific instruments for the types of diseases and illnesses specific to the area, such as measurements for CD4 cell count to monitor the progression of AIDS.
The inpatient area housed 4 wards staffed by about 10 nurses. It was a great opportunity for me to see the nurses here in Kenya at work and the resources they have. Many nurses who are educated here often go to Europe or the US to work as it is a better opportunity for them, but maybe someday I will come back to Mburikani as a nurse.
The staff at Mburikani Village Clinic live on site in dormitories. They work 6 days a week, 8 hours a day. There are about 22 nurses, 5 physicians, 1 pharmacist, 3 pharmacy techs, 8 physician assistants, 1 radiologist, and 4 lab techs. Mburikani fills over 200 perscriptions per day and have about 40 beds in the wards. They are building a larger ward that will hold 80 beds.
Much of what Mburikani sees daily is malnurtrition, diarrheal disorders, HIV, TB, respiratory problems, hypertention, and a bit of diabetes. I mentioned before that one of the largest threats to Kenya (the people, wildlife, and agriculture) is the drought. The drought has made malnutrition a huge problem, especially for children and elderly. This is the face of global warming, and whoever says that global warming doesn't exist needs to come to Mburikani. The glaciers on Kilimanjaro are nearly non existent, cutting off the water supply to much of southern Kenya and Tanzania. No water, no grass, no crops, no animals, no food. But Mburikani recognizes the issue at hand and has implemented environmentally sustainable resources to maintain their clinic, including solar power.
Seeing Mburikani is like seeing a dream come true and it should be happening in more places. Tomorrow we are visiting a government run clinic and I am interested to see how the two compare. Certainly that is where I will be bringing a handful of blood pressure cuffs that were donated by Linda Mulligan because this is where they are needed. The government run facilities don't compare the the privately operating Mburikani and of course, they don't provide free care.
Every day I am getting a bigger picture of the state of health care in Kenya and it makes me more and more passionate about public health in developing countries. Certainly this experience will show me path that I hope to take my career as a health care provider.
I'd love to hear from you all about what's going on in your lives. Hope all is well!
The director of the clinic took us on a tour, with our first stop in the pharmacy, which interestingly had boxes of some sort of medicine from Hospira (Midwest represent!). One of the best pictures I took in the pharmacy was rows upon rows upon rows of folic acid supplements for pregnant women. My maternal nursing professors would be proud.
Then we checked out the garage which housed about 20 motorcycles which staff use to travel all over to provide basic medical care and education, compromising the community outreach program. The motorcycles had cases attached to the back of them to keep medical equipment and medicine. We also saw the new mobile clinic, which they had just got only 2 weeks ago. This was probably one of the most impressive operations I have ever seen. The trailer had an examination room, complete with examination table and sink, a pharmacy window and a waiting area and it's all on wheels! Interestingly, it had an Illinois license plate (again, Midwest represent!)
We then checked out one of the interventions developed uniquely by the clinic called mobilets (mobile toilet) which is essentially a port-a-potty that the clinic provides free to villages to help reduce the contamination of river water by human waste. All the village members have to do is dig the hole!
The lab had everything that a lab in a US hospital had, but more specific instruments for the types of diseases and illnesses specific to the area, such as measurements for CD4 cell count to monitor the progression of AIDS.
The inpatient area housed 4 wards staffed by about 10 nurses. It was a great opportunity for me to see the nurses here in Kenya at work and the resources they have. Many nurses who are educated here often go to Europe or the US to work as it is a better opportunity for them, but maybe someday I will come back to Mburikani as a nurse.
The staff at Mburikani Village Clinic live on site in dormitories. They work 6 days a week, 8 hours a day. There are about 22 nurses, 5 physicians, 1 pharmacist, 3 pharmacy techs, 8 physician assistants, 1 radiologist, and 4 lab techs. Mburikani fills over 200 perscriptions per day and have about 40 beds in the wards. They are building a larger ward that will hold 80 beds.
Much of what Mburikani sees daily is malnurtrition, diarrheal disorders, HIV, TB, respiratory problems, hypertention, and a bit of diabetes. I mentioned before that one of the largest threats to Kenya (the people, wildlife, and agriculture) is the drought. The drought has made malnutrition a huge problem, especially for children and elderly. This is the face of global warming, and whoever says that global warming doesn't exist needs to come to Mburikani. The glaciers on Kilimanjaro are nearly non existent, cutting off the water supply to much of southern Kenya and Tanzania. No water, no grass, no crops, no animals, no food. But Mburikani recognizes the issue at hand and has implemented environmentally sustainable resources to maintain their clinic, including solar power.
Seeing Mburikani is like seeing a dream come true and it should be happening in more places. Tomorrow we are visiting a government run clinic and I am interested to see how the two compare. Certainly that is where I will be bringing a handful of blood pressure cuffs that were donated by Linda Mulligan because this is where they are needed. The government run facilities don't compare the the privately operating Mburikani and of course, they don't provide free care.
Every day I am getting a bigger picture of the state of health care in Kenya and it makes me more and more passionate about public health in developing countries. Certainly this experience will show me path that I hope to take my career as a health care provider.
I'd love to hear from you all about what's going on in your lives. Hope all is well!
Thursday, July 9, 2009
that's what it's all about
Another incredible day here in Kenya. I woke up early this morning to take a nature walk with some fellow students in hopes of seeing some wildlife. Morning is the best time to view Mt. Kilimanjaro because there is little cloud coverage. We are so close to the border of Tanzania that looking at Kili is literally looking at Tanzania. There was a hippo just on the other side of the fence, though it was pretty difficult to see behind the bushes.
We had our first class today which was taught by Simon ole Seno, the center director for the past 9 years. Seno retired in June this year, but he will give us a few lectures throughout the course. Today we were introduced to the many tribes of Kenya (there are 42 and over 120 sub groups within those tribes). We focused on the Maasai, as they are the people that we will be researching. The social system works such that the Maasai men are the herders and the policy makers, while the women own the house. I was very impressed by all the responsibilities of the Maasai women or the “mamas”. She is the builder and maintainer of the house. Maasai men are usually married to 4 or 5 mamas and they all live together in a boma. A boma is an area where each of the mamas has a home for herself, her husband, and her children to live in. The homes are built of dung, dirt, and sticks and can take 1-2 months to build and they can last for up to 6 years.
After our class we hopped in the land cruisers to visit a boma nearby. The Maasai believe that they should be welcoming to all guests otherwise they will be cursed. When we arrived we were warmly greeted by about 25 mamas by shaking hands and saying “soapa.” The mamas performed a dance and song for us. Their spirited voices nearly brought me and my classmates to tears. It is customary for the guests to also show their appreciation of the hospitality by performing a song and dance. We settled on the hokey pokey and the mamas were thoroughly entertained and even participated.
Then, one of the mamas invited us into her home. Walking into it, I could not see anything so I had to feel my way around and the mama grabbed me and sat me down on her bed, a piece of cow leather. Only about 5 of us could fit it at one time. The homes are built of dung and dirt and can take 1-2 months to build and they can last for up to 6 years. The mamas cook in the home and the only ventilation are some small holes in the walls. One of the children was coughing quite violently and we were informed that because of the smoke from cooking and the poor ventilation, many of the children have respiratory problems. We thanked the mama for inviting us in her home and walked around the boma to take pictures of the kids. They loved looking at the pictures of themselves on our digital cameras.
The mamas set out blankets and placed hand made jewelry, cloths, figurines and spears for us to purchase. They grabbed your arms and put bracelets on them, wrapped cloths around our waists and offered their price. We made sure that each mama had something bought from her and we all walked away with quite a load. We all felt proud about buying directly from the mamas and supporting the Maasai community. I purchased a large cloth (potential skirt, tapestry, or table cloth?) with some Maasai writing on it. The writing doesn't translate to English very well, but Sapaya (one of the staff who speaks Maa language) told me that it means "someone who has everything, cannot say they have everything, but someone who has nothing, can say they can have everything." I will ponder that tonight as I try to fall asleep.
Everything about the boma was truly authentic. We will likely go back to that boma and have the mamas teach us how to bead jewelry and then give them the pieces we finish for them to sell.
Today was a beautiful and truly meaningful introduction to the Maasai and I feel so fortunate to learn about them; it was only a taste of what’s to come and thank goodness for that.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
the dusty and bumpy road
Jambo! Hello! So much to say I don’t even know where to begin! I arrived in London on Monday morning with my travel companion Lindsey, a biology major at UW who is also here in Kenya with me. We had about 14 hours to burn before our flight so we ventured into the center of London via “the tube.” With little direction and a free map from the airport, we decided to “just go and explore.” Indeed we did! It took about 45 minutes to get from Heathrow to Green Park (I think?) where we walked to see Buckingham Palace. (yes I got to see the guards). It began to rain so we ducked into Café Mario for some Greek yogurt and Americanos. Then we went up to Picadilly Circus, which reminded me of a very mini Times Square. Now after living in Madison for the past 3 years, I have gotten accustomed to the “pedestrian has the right of way” idea. Not so in London! Lindsey nearly was run over by a bus at one point and it showed no sign of slowing down at all! And of course looking at traffic from the other direction took some getting used to. We really didn’t have any destination so we just walked aimlessly, which in hind sight probably wasn’t the best idea for a few reasons. First, we were exhausted from the flight and jet lag as neither of us slept on the plane. Second we had our carry-on luggage, which was a pain (literally on my collarbones because of my backpack) to carry around. Third, we ended up in an area comprised mainly of adult bookstores, sex shops, and peep shows. Good thing it was 10:00 am! After that adventure we made our way to Trafalgar’s Sqaure and rested our bodies on the pavement. Lindsey fell asleep sitting up and I was in what I assume was a state of delirium. We decided to go to a pub for some sustenance in hopes it would rejuvenate us. Although I wanted to get some fish and chips, I settled on a burger and a beer. You can take the girl out of Wisconsin but you can’t take Wisconsin out of the girl. We then made our way back to the tube because we heard it gets really crowded around 5 and we didn’t want to risk missing our flight. At Heathrow, we waited for about 4 hours before our flight boarded. I have to say, I really didn’t like Heathrow. They have it set up so that you have to wait by all the shops and stores to see what gate to go to for your flight and don’t show what gate you go to until about 20 minutes before the flight boards. There weren’t many places to sit and it was terribly uncomfortable. I guess that’s the way they get you to buy stuff. Sorry, I don’t think I need Prada shoes where I am going. Lindsey and I met with several other SFS students at the gate and we boarded the plane. I was sitting in the “premium economy” and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The meals were great and the seats were so much more comfortable. They really try to satisfy one’s alcohol tooth! Champagne before dinner, beer and wine with your meal, and then Bailey’s after dinner. Don’t worry, I didn’t indulge in all of them. I saw the most stunning, bright, beautiful moon when we were flying over Italy at about 1:00 am with all the clouds below us. I slept very well and woke up excited to arrive in Kenya. We were picked up in Land Cruisers and made our way from Nairobi to Kimana. Though the distance isn’t far, it took a long time to travel because the roads (if you can even call them that) were so bad. Everything is two lanes (but no lane lines). Someone called it “a constant game of chicken” because people pass other cars constantly and drive 80 miles an hour at you head on to pass. Also, there are people standing everywhere on the sides of the roads waiting to be picked up by the public transport. There is lots of road construction going on (more so than in Madison right now). Workers don’t wear construction hats, bright yellow vests, and no one is there to tell you to slow down for their safety. After talking with some locals, I found out that people have been handing money over for the past 10 years for the construction of roads but corruption prevails and they pocket the money. The danger of driving became real when we passed a semi truck toppled over in the middle of the road. There are no guard rails here, just rocks on the sides of the road and many roads were blocked by piles of rocks to signal that they were having construction being done in that area. Saying it was a bumpy ride is being modest. We stopped at an open air shop in a village about half way to our destination where we were greeted warmly by about 6 men. They tried their hardest to sell us anything possible. Wrote down our names and tried to get lots of information from us offering a “special student discount.” I don’t quite have the exchange rate down and I have zero bartering skills so I decided not to buy anything, but assured them that we would be back in a few weeks. Word must have spread that we arrived because I turned around and there was about 30 staring at us. They waved and smiled and we exchanged “jambos.” The second time I turned around they were signaling the international symbol of money by rubbing their thumbs against their index and middle fingers. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t break my heart to see children as young as three begging for money. The store owners chased the kids away and we hopped into the Land Cruisers to make our way back on the “road.” The kids waved and chased us as we drove away, leaving them literally in the dust. This was a “very real” moment for me. Speaking of dust, there is a lot of it here. Nearly all of Kenya is dust. This poses serious problems for the agriculture, wildlife, and people of Kenya. The main source of water is from the melting glaciers of Kilimanjaro, but it is not nearly enough for survival here. Herders walk their cattle for eight days to Nairobi to find grass for them to feed, sometimes longer. On the plane ride from London, I sat next to a man who lives here and makes a living off a growing roses in Kenya. At first I found this interesting, but then I came to the sad realization that a portion of the small amount of water here goes toward growing roses to be sold in Europe. What a shame. After nearly 5 hours of travel in the Land Cruiser, donkeys, zebras, hippos, baboons, and giraffes, we finally made it to our final destination, Kilimanjaro Bush Camp in Kimana. I can say with full confidence that this is the most beautiful place in the world and it is my home for the next 5 weeks. We have landscape that puts others to shame, with towering Acacia trees and Mount Kilimanjaro in plain site. The staff was waiting for us as we pulled up and greeted us warmly. The cooks had chai tea ready to serve and we settled into the chumba. The chumba is an open air classroom/dining room connecting the kitchen and the library. We received our banda assignments and began unpacking. I am living with two beautiful girls, one a nursing student (Stacy) with a personality to boot and one a nutritional sciences major (Sarah). Stacy warned us that she is a snorer and she brought ear plugs for us (bless her heart). After unpacking we had dinner, which was absolutely delicious--soup, lentils, fried beef, fruit, green beans, and salad. At dinner we were warned to wear closed toed shoes at night and long pants because of snakes and scorpions. It was a nice heads up. Everyone hit the hay as we all were exhausted. I had a great night’s sleep, it was the longest I had in 4 days. Today was mostly orientation stuff and some getting to know you activities.A word about the wild: This is it. We really are in the wild here. There are wild dogs and wild cats that roam through the chumba, baboons walking across the field between bandas and monkeys along the running path. I took a run with some other girls and we were sprayed on from above, assuming that it was a monkey peeing on us. I feel very safe here. There is always an ascari (guard) at our gate and we are surrounded by a fence, though I am told we have been broken into by elephants in the past. I don’t know how to describe how I feel except that I am perfectly content here. Hope all is well on your side. Kwa heri! Goodbye!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
over the hills and far away
My dear family and friends,
I hope the summer months find you refreshed. I know the Midwest hasn't been granted its hard earned blue skies and warm winds, but I trust it is on the way. I am currently in Kenosha enjoying some much deserved time with family and friends before I leave on Sunday.
I was lucky enough to catch Aunt Karen and Uncle Mike on their way back from Racine last weekend as we enjoyed a beautiful June day poolside. Both had wise words and advice for me to keep in mind as I travel abroad.
On Monday I escorted G'Pa back to DeKalb after his stay at l'Hotel de Fulton. We enjoyed navigating a new route from Wisconsin to Illinois as construction season is upon us (wait, when isn't it construction season?) He took me out for lunch at Portillo's for my "taxi" service, but I really just enjoyed spending time with him. Upon our arrival to the condo, I picked out 2 of G'Ma's bandanas to protect me from Kenya's dusty winds and I thanked him for the donation. He promptly replied, "thank your Grandma." And I did.
I spent time on Tuesday getting ready for my last year of nursing school by brushing up on hospital policies and completing many an online training module. Next semester I will be completing my clinical at the research clinic at UW-Hospital and I am really excited for it! I hope to apply some of the techniques I will learn from the School for Field Studies in Kenya to the clinic. It's hard to believe I am approaching my senior year. I'm thrilled to see what avenues my college experiece will lead me to.
On another note...my Mom has been SuperWoman this week! She's not only helping me get ready for my trip but she is getting ready for her own trip to the cabin with good pals Sue and Linda. Today, we zoom-zoomed (literally) all around Kenosha to pick up some last minute equipment. Then I enjoyed a delicious dinner with Josh and his family. The Griffey's have always been supportive and generous and I feel so fortunate to have them in my life.
Dad and Pete hosted open mic tonight at TG's and of course I was sitting at Table #1! I was delighted to hear some of my favorite songs by my favorite musicians one last time before I leave. A few of my partners in crime (Josh, Aly and Rista) accompanied me as we listened to tunes and recited lines from Arrested Development.
Tonight also hosted a benefit for Sarah, my other partner in crime who is traveling to Mauritius (look near Madagascar) to teach English. Coincidentally, Sarah and I will be abroad at the same time and needless to say, the two of us have been non-stop chatting about our future adventures all semester long. Here we are! About to embark upon a life changing experience!
As my final days in the states begin to close in, I am overwhelmed by the amount of support I have been given by my family and friends. Sitting with my Mom at TG's, I commented on how her and Dad surround themselves with good souls. She reminded me that I do the same and how true! Positivity is a beautiful thing!
I hope the summer months find you refreshed. I know the Midwest hasn't been granted its hard earned blue skies and warm winds, but I trust it is on the way. I am currently in Kenosha enjoying some much deserved time with family and friends before I leave on Sunday.
I was lucky enough to catch Aunt Karen and Uncle Mike on their way back from Racine last weekend as we enjoyed a beautiful June day poolside. Both had wise words and advice for me to keep in mind as I travel abroad.
On Monday I escorted G'Pa back to DeKalb after his stay at l'Hotel de Fulton. We enjoyed navigating a new route from Wisconsin to Illinois as construction season is upon us (wait, when isn't it construction season?) He took me out for lunch at Portillo's for my "taxi" service, but I really just enjoyed spending time with him. Upon our arrival to the condo, I picked out 2 of G'Ma's bandanas to protect me from Kenya's dusty winds and I thanked him for the donation. He promptly replied, "thank your Grandma." And I did.
I spent time on Tuesday getting ready for my last year of nursing school by brushing up on hospital policies and completing many an online training module. Next semester I will be completing my clinical at the research clinic at UW-Hospital and I am really excited for it! I hope to apply some of the techniques I will learn from the School for Field Studies in Kenya to the clinic. It's hard to believe I am approaching my senior year. I'm thrilled to see what avenues my college experiece will lead me to.
On another note...my Mom has been SuperWoman this week! She's not only helping me get ready for my trip but she is getting ready for her own trip to the cabin with good pals Sue and Linda. Today, we zoom-zoomed (literally) all around Kenosha to pick up some last minute equipment. Then I enjoyed a delicious dinner with Josh and his family. The Griffey's have always been supportive and generous and I feel so fortunate to have them in my life.
Dad and Pete hosted open mic tonight at TG's and of course I was sitting at Table #1! I was delighted to hear some of my favorite songs by my favorite musicians one last time before I leave. A few of my partners in crime (Josh, Aly and Rista) accompanied me as we listened to tunes and recited lines from Arrested Development.
Tonight also hosted a benefit for Sarah, my other partner in crime who is traveling to Mauritius (look near Madagascar) to teach English. Coincidentally, Sarah and I will be abroad at the same time and needless to say, the two of us have been non-stop chatting about our future adventures all semester long. Here we are! About to embark upon a life changing experience!
As my final days in the states begin to close in, I am overwhelmed by the amount of support I have been given by my family and friends. Sitting with my Mom at TG's, I commented on how her and Dad surround themselves with good souls. She reminded me that I do the same and how true! Positivity is a beautiful thing!
Monday, June 15, 2009
The rains down in Africa
My first blog post and I'm three weeks away from being Kenya bound! I may be getting ahead of myself here but every day I grow more and more excited for my first international trip (hopefully not my last). Stayed tuned for new developments in my preparations the next couple weeks before my departure on July 5th. Here's what's going on for now!
1. I started taking my malaria pills last night. For those of you who have taken mefloquine before, you may know that the medicine comes with some hefty side effects, the most annoying (so far) being lucid dreaming. From the little research that I did (i.e. Wikipedia), it's my understanding that lucid dreaming means that the dreamer is aware they are dreaming and can actively participate in the dreams. The "actively participate" part made me scratch my head when I read it before I fell asleep. Late last night, I understood. I woke up sporatically throughout the night snapping my jaw at the air and making attempts to crawl on the wall my bed shares. My dreams were all events that could have happened at random points in my life, in situations that I had been in with people I knew. Normally, I never remember my dreams, but last night I had so many that I was constantly waking up and falling back asleep. It was an absolutely terrifying and exhausting experience. Luckily, I only have to take the pill once a week, but I do need to take it for the next 11 weeks. After a quick convo with my Mom (who reassured me with her sympathy and wisdom), I realized that there will probably be similar moments during my stay in Kenya where I won't be able to press the speed dial for my Mom and get her instant comfort. However, my Mom is an incredible woman, who has taught Kelly and I a lot about independence and figuring things out for ourselves (someone give this woman a book deal!).
2. My boyfriend, Josh, has been nothing but supportive of my trip this summer. He quickly organized a benefit show featuring local favorite bands to raise money for the drought relief fund for the Maasai. It's this Saturday, June 20th in Kenosha at the Danish Brotherhood starting at 6:00 pm and entrance into the festival of retired ska bands is $5. If you're in the area, your attendence is invaluable to me and the Maasai whose sons and daughters go hungry while they are at school. We all know a good meal helps kids focus more in school (frosted mini-wheats commercial anyone?) but due to the drought, resources are low and the school lunch programs have been cut. If you are interested in more info about the drought relief fund, you can check out the Maasai Association's website at http://www.maasai-association.org/
I hope to see you at the show! A lucky girl I am for having such a dear man in my life :)
3. While you are checking out the Maasai Association website, you can take a look at the program that I am undergoing at
http://www.fieldstudies.org/pages/4163_environmental_health_in_kenya.cfm
4. I had a tearful goodbye with my sister a few weeks ago when she dropped me off in Madison. That was the last time we would see each other until I come back mid-August and I didn't realize how emotional it would be. Kelly is the greatest sister anyone could ever have and she always has the best advice and somehow always know the right thing to say (again, someone give this girl a book deal!)
That's all for now, I'm going to go hang out with my awesome roomies since we only have a short time together before I take off. Goodnight all!
1. I started taking my malaria pills last night. For those of you who have taken mefloquine before, you may know that the medicine comes with some hefty side effects, the most annoying (so far) being lucid dreaming. From the little research that I did (i.e. Wikipedia), it's my understanding that lucid dreaming means that the dreamer is aware they are dreaming and can actively participate in the dreams. The "actively participate" part made me scratch my head when I read it before I fell asleep. Late last night, I understood. I woke up sporatically throughout the night snapping my jaw at the air and making attempts to crawl on the wall my bed shares. My dreams were all events that could have happened at random points in my life, in situations that I had been in with people I knew. Normally, I never remember my dreams, but last night I had so many that I was constantly waking up and falling back asleep. It was an absolutely terrifying and exhausting experience. Luckily, I only have to take the pill once a week, but I do need to take it for the next 11 weeks. After a quick convo with my Mom (who reassured me with her sympathy and wisdom), I realized that there will probably be similar moments during my stay in Kenya where I won't be able to press the speed dial for my Mom and get her instant comfort. However, my Mom is an incredible woman, who has taught Kelly and I a lot about independence and figuring things out for ourselves (someone give this woman a book deal!).
2. My boyfriend, Josh, has been nothing but supportive of my trip this summer. He quickly organized a benefit show featuring local favorite bands to raise money for the drought relief fund for the Maasai. It's this Saturday, June 20th in Kenosha at the Danish Brotherhood starting at 6:00 pm and entrance into the festival of retired ska bands is $5. If you're in the area, your attendence is invaluable to me and the Maasai whose sons and daughters go hungry while they are at school. We all know a good meal helps kids focus more in school (frosted mini-wheats commercial anyone?) but due to the drought, resources are low and the school lunch programs have been cut. If you are interested in more info about the drought relief fund, you can check out the Maasai Association's website at
I hope to see you at the show! A lucky girl I am for having such a dear man in my life :)
3. While you are checking out the Maasai Association website, you can take a look at the program that I am undergoing at
http://www.fieldstudies.org/pages/4163_environmental_health_in_kenya.cfm
4. I had a tearful goodbye with my sister a few weeks ago when she dropped me off in Madison. That was the last time we would see each other until I come back mid-August and I didn't realize how emotional it would be. Kelly is the greatest sister anyone could ever have and she always has the best advice and somehow always know the right thing to say (again, someone give this girl a book deal!)
That's all for now, I'm going to go hang out with my awesome roomies since we only have a short time together before I take off. Goodnight all!
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