Going Home

For my last weekend in Kenya, I went up to Teso once more to see my host mom Immaculate (who has been taking a government management class for the last two weeks and so has not been home). I traveled with Sarah on Saturday morning. I couldn’t help but feel while on the piki ride from Busia that I was going home and it was such a great feeling. It loved pulling in and seeing Beatrice. Joy, Marian, and Betty (the two youngest daughters and a cousin) were also home for the weekend to see me and go to their neighbor’s funeral. I had a lot of fun getting to know them better and even taught them the soldier boy dance! I was able to go around and visit the neighboring homes to say hi to my friends from the first trip. I was welcomed with a soda and some biscuits at each home. Rebecca gave both Immaculate and I a watermelon. The amount of hospitality in Kenya never ceases to amaze me. Immaculate even said that if I ever come back and visit the homes of all of the women we greeted on the way to church, I would leave with more chickens than I could carry! At the end of a great weekend, I said final goodbyes to Immaculate and everyone in Teso. They sang a song, said a prayer, and thanked me profusely. I couldn’t help but tear up and tried to express my gratitude. While on the piki ride back to Busia, I realized that I now have so many new Kenyan homes, homes with people that I will miss more than I initially realized. I couldn’t help but think of the saying, “don’t cry because its over, smile because it happened.” For the moment at least, I decided I’d smile through the tears.

                My last week of work consisted of continuing to work on the sponsorship program and tying up the loose ends of all of my other projects. Well, that and trying to get as much playing in as possible with the kids. I decided to give the teachers, staff, and the sisters a good meal as a thank you gift. I went over shopping with Sr. Ven and got 6 chickens, 7 cakes, and about 60 drinks. On Tuesday, I had lunch with the teachers and gave the staff their food as well. They were very appreciative, so much so that Sarah heard people talking about “the bash the muzungu who works at Albertos threw the teachers” while getting her hair done at Amalemba the next day. Tuesday evening, I had a farewell dinner with the sisters. They sang a song of thanks, presented me with gifts, and Sr. Mary, Sr. Regina, and Sr. Caro all gave me a short speech of thanks. The extra large card was to represent how thankful they were. I was able to thank them as well, although I’m not sure I could fully express my gratitude, at least not without a huge card. They really have taken me into their community while I have been here and made Divine Providence another home. Hanging out with them is always a great time and I was glad we had my dinner when I still had a few more days.

                Thursday was a day of final goodbyes. After all-school mass in the morning, I went to each of the classrooms and gave every student a pencil and a piece of candy as a thank you gift. I was able to get class pictures as well. I know that what I will doubtlessly miss the most once back in the states will be the lack of kids around me. I have gotten used to always being able to stop whatever I’m doing and just go play.  By the end of a weekend away I’m ready to go back to see them, so I’m a little concerned how leaving will be. I gave hugs to all of the sisters. Sr. Mary said, “for now”, which I really appreciated. I walked through the fields where all of the kids and teachers were playing soccer in their end of term tournament. I had every child wanting to shake my hand to say goodbye so I was almost dragging a group of kids with me towards the gate. It made me smile. I managed to make it to the gate and gave Sr. Caro another hug without starting to cry. Back home I finished packing and had Sarah’s incredible pancakes one last time while waiting for Peter to come pick us up. Very late, but still all too soon, I was forced to say goodbye to the girl who has my companion and go-to girl in almost everything. I still don’t think I fully comprehend that I’m going home and leaving Kenya for good, well at least for now.

                All of the interns met up at Sheywe for dinner and one last night of dancing before our early morning flights. The goodbyes from there were spread out as we headed to Nairobi and spent a day mainly waiting in the horrible traffic and squeezing a few hours in at the National Museum. Each party broke off separately from there and we are now down to 5 as I sit here in Amsterdam.

                I have officially left Kenya. I have just lived abroad for 9 weeks. I have worked from 8-5 everyday like a real job. I have made and carried out projects. I have realized how little I need to be content in life (who needs a toilet?). I have done countless new things. I have met incredible people. I have built great friendships. I have grown as a person. I have faced and overcome challenges.  I have I have learned that despite differences, people are all fundamentally the same. I have learned to appreciate the smallest things in life. I have fallen in love with a new place and new people. I have found a home. I have left Kenya, but a part of my heart remains.

Safari Season

                Sorry it has been so long since I’ve blogged. The internet has been spotty and I’ve been busy since I have been on two safaris since my last update. Two weekends ago was our midterm retreat. I was quite ready for some R & R after a short three-day week of work which consisted of implementing my nutrition project and visiting all of the Divine Providence kids in secondary schools all around the Kakamega area. All of the interns and I headed out on Thursday morning to go to Naivasha, a town about 6 hours away between Nakuru and Nairobi. After a long, bumpy ride, we arrived at Fisherman’s Camp Ground and moved into our tents. I felt quite pampered this weekend despite “camping” as we had warm showers, flush toilets, and even a pizza oven at the lodge (which we were fortunate enough to be able to use Saturday night). It was great to catch up with the other interns since I hadn’t seen them in over a week.

                After a rather cold night, we headed to Crater Lake. Inside the park, we herded zebras, gazelles, buffalos, and even giraffes. The park was gorgeous itself and it was exhilarating following the animals in pursuit of the perfect picture. We descended into the crater basin and then climbed back up the other side to eat lunch with a beautiful view of the lake. I spent the rest of the afternoon doing yoga, relaxing, and halfway working on filing pictures of the kids at Divine. 

We woke up early on Saturday morning to go to Hell’s Gate National Park. We biked into the park and down to the canyon. Unfortunately, my gears were not cooperative. Inside the park there are countless bluffs with incredible water-carved faces. After a 15 km bike, we got to Hell’s Gate Gorge. We descended into the gorge and walked around for an hour or so. It was really fun because we would have to climb up and down according to the water’s path. There were a few spots with volcanic hot springs. After a refreshing walk, we ate lunch at a gorgeous overlook. When I got back on the bike, I honestly didn’t think I would make it back. I was really missing my padded biker shorts! On the way back, we saw baboons and giraffes up close.

 

I am amazed by the awkward gracefulness of giraffes. They may be my new favorite animal. I made it back to the hotel after a long ride, tired, but glad I had finished. That night we enjoyed pizzas and watched The Lion King on Lauren’s computer. I had forgotten how much I love that movie! We had a long drive back on Sunday, but all in all it was a great retreat. I loved my first taste of exotic animals in the wild, well at least natural habitats. I don’t think I’ll ever like zoos as much from now on.

                By Monday, I was very ready to see my babies again. I spent the majority of the week teaching a library lesson for each class. The students all enjoyed having some free time to simply sit and read. I did too, as I read plenty of picture books while supervising. The organizational system and using numbered rulers to mark where students pulled books from worked well. I also enlisted the help of three social work interns in helping me scan in documents for a computerized filing system. I also worked a lot on a secondary school sponsorship program I am trying to start as school fees are such a drain to Divine Providence’s financial resources. If you would be interested in being a sponsor, please let me know and I will get you more information.

On a more sad note, I found out that Immaculate will be gone for the remainder of my internship, because she must attend a management class about 6-7 hours away. I was super upset when I had to say goodbye, which makes me dread having to go home since leaving everything will be much worse. That day is quickly approaching as I'll be home 10 days from now! I can't believe it! Hopefully Immaculate will be able to come down this weekend (my last weekend) to see me! Fingers crossed! 

                Thursday night, I met up with all of the other interns to take the overnight bus to Nairobi. We were joined by Alex, Femke, and Alena who are volunteer teachers at a fellow children’s home and primary school from the University of Kentucky (really? But, we managed to overcome the rivalry) and Holland.  The ride was quite miserable but my inability to sleep did allow me to make a phone call to the U.S. in the evening  their time. We arrived around 4:30 and waited in the bus waiting room for our safari vehicles to come. In Nairobi, we were joined by Talisha, one of Dylan’s friends. It was about a 6 hour drive down to Masai Mara over some pretty rough roads, but it felt like much less because we laughed so much. I was in a van with Kurt, Dylan, and then all of the non FSDers. It was so much fun getting to know new people, especially since we all have such different backgrounds. We were yet again quite pampered in “tents” (more like bungalows) with beds, toilets, and showers.

                We popped the top of the safari vehicle and headed into the Masai Mara Reserve. It started raining, giving us the gift of a rainbow. It was awesome seeing all of the wildebeests (it is the beginning of their migration) and zebras. We were also able to see a large pride of lions, cheetahs, dickies, and topies. 

It was also very interesting watching the hoards of safari vehicles. I am annoyed by all the tourists around despite being one myself because I feel like I have somehow earned the right to be on safari since I have a much better cultural understanding than most of them. I was intrigued, however, by how many different ethnic groups were represented in all of the safari vehicles.

                Saturday allowed us to go farther into the park and escape from the other safari vehicles. We saw more wildebeests, zebras, and lions but added elephants, giraffes, ostriches, hippos, and crocodiles to the list. We were incredibly close to the elephants and they definitely threatened the giraffes for the throne of my favorite animal.

 I was constantly in awe of the views of the rolling plains of the Serengeti against a blue sky filled with puffy clouds, the beauty of the animals, and the great sense of peace I felt standing feeling the wind against my face. Before lunch, we entered Tanzania and took pictures by the border. 

 I can technically say I’ve been in all of East Africa, although that’s being very technical. Bruno took us around the river, showing us the hippos and where the wildebeests cross the river from Tanzania. I enjoyed the best chicken I have had in Kenya for lunch and then we headed back. We saw a pack of giraffes walking across the plains, but the highlight of the ride back had to be almost getting hit by another safari vehicle. A passenger less vehicle came barreling, started spinning out, almost tipped over when correcting and then headed straight for us. Luckily, they were able to swerve back to their side just in time, but I couldn’t help but laugh at the irony of almost getting into a car accident by the only other car we had seen in 10 minutes.


 We stopped at a Masai village on the way back to learn about their culture. I was excited to learn more about one of the most distinct tribal cultures of Kenya, marked by their bright red robes, beaded jewelry, and stretched ear-lobes. The men danced for us before grabbing the guys to join them. I especially enjoyed the dance that was a jumping contest.
 

A man who can jump high gains the attention of the ladies and lessens the price he must pay for dowry. We entered within the circle of homes, where the women danced for us. The girls joined in, but I must say the men’s dance was much more exciting. We then watched a demonstration of how they begin fire with just wood and a blade. We were split into groups of two to go and see and home. Kurt and I entered a very dark, smoky room and sat around a fire where a young girl was making tea. There were two bedrooms, or bed platforms off of the main room in addition to a closet and storage/entrance room. I learned the mud huts are created and remade by the women every 9 years and so each wife will have her own home (the Masai are polygamous). Having many children is common and makes it difficult to pay for secondary school fees. The Masai are primarily herdsman of cattle and goats as they believe every cow on Earth descends from theirs and so they technically own it. Tourism and safari camps that have developed in the area over the last 30-40 years have become another main source of employment. After answering countless questions, our host Solomon guided us to the village’s tourist market. I bought a Masai club and then started playing with the children. I always miss the Divine kids so much when I’m gone that I end up playing with the kids almost everywhere I go.  I was dancing and spinning with a little girl who had a club foot, but we had a great time. Seeing her huge smile really made my day. We walked back to the camp and hung out before bed.

                Sunday morning was straight from the Lion King. We were in the park for the sunrise (twice because of moving in front of a larger mountain). The animals are much more active in the morning. We had to cross through a stream of running wildebeests to get to the lions. I can see why Mufasa died in the stampede. The lion cubs were playing and wrestling in the long grass. Their somersaults were awesome! We also saw some lions eating breakfast and a lion stalking a particularly stupid wildebeest although she never went in for the kill. A mother of three month-old cubs simultaneously watched them and kept the vultures away from her wildebeest carcass. You could see her indecision when the cubs started wandering farther, though she ultimately decided she could eat later. After watching the simbas for most of the morning, we headed back for breakfast before hitting the road to go home. Masai Mara was amazing and I highly recommend it if you’re ever in Kenya or looking for a safari. Chasing lions has finally been successful! 

Kelly