People often ask me what a day in Kenya is like. When I say that I "live" in Africa for part of the year, it conjures up so many different mental images in peoples' minds and many people instantly assume (incorrectly!) that I live in a mud hut and that I have to watch out for lions attacking at night.
But the confusion is understandable. Despite the fact that over the past few years, Africa has become the "hip" place for celebrity humanitarians like Brad Pitt, Madonna and Bono; what most people perceive Africa to be comes largely from movies like "Hotel Rwanda","Lion King" and "Blood Diamond" .
The truth is that Africa...well, Kenya and more specifically, Kitale...is a place where the modern world sits side by side with the ancient world. Kitale is a busy little "town"...and that is the word that people use when saying, "I think I will go into town today." I still am not completely sure of the population. I have heard numbers ranging from 20 to 50 thousand...but, it is difficult to pinpoint the geographical area that is covered in this estimate. Like Los Angeles...there is the actual town itself and the area immediately around it..but, the "suburbs" of Kenya (I have to laugh as I apply that term!) spread out and encompass many densely populated slum areas like Mitume, Matisi, Namanjalala, Tuani, Kipsongo, and Shimo La Tewa. So, it is difficult to give an actual number.
Suffice it to say that Kitale is a bustling little town. During the day and into the evening hours; the streets are full of people: selling vegetables piled on a piece of fabric by the roadside, walking to the shops, stopping to greet a friend every few feet, hailing a boda-boda (bicycle "taxi") or, in the case of the street kids, begging each passer-by for a few shillings or some "bread and milk". Businessmen in suits and ties and smartly dressed women walk side-by-side with people in more traditional clothing. The barefoot, raggedly dressed street kids mingle with them all. But, the modern world has crept in too. "Supermarkets" like Transmattress, Blue House and the Gigamart are the Kenyan equivalents to Walmart...selling food, clothing, electronics (including flatscreen televisions!) furniture, bicycles and hardware.
shops and cars in town
The Gigamart (from the 2nd floor)
the "fresh" market
walking through town with Martin and Joseph
So, for me, a day in Kitale starts early. Being on the equator, the days and nights are pretty much equal in length. The sun comes up between 6 and 6:30 all year long and goes down about the same time in the evening. There is no need for an alarm clock...the calls of the tropical birds combine with the roosters crowing and the mooing of my cow, Maua....waiting impatiently for the morning milking.
As I get out of bed...my sweet little dog Sky gets up from his bed on the floor and wags his tail in a morning greeting. Sky may be the only dog in Kitale that sleeps inside the house. People think I am quite crazy for having a dog in the house....but, to me it isn't really home without a dog sleeping nearby. I let Sky outside and I go to the kitchen to boil some milk for the morning "tea".
I learned that the term "tea" really refers to any hot beverage (tea, coffee, cocoa) and when one is referring to real tea...there are two variations: "Milk tea" made with 2/3 milk, 1/3 water, tea leaves and LOTS of sugar. The other option (preferred by nobody except the lactose intolerant it seems) is Strong tea which is made the same...but, with no milk. My beverage of choice is coffee. Most people think that Kenya is the land of excellent coffee and I guess it is....there is sure alot of Kenyan coffee at Starbucks, after all. But, Kenyans typically drink instant Nefcafe (prounounced Nes-Kaf)....to my mind, a horrible instant coffee drink. So, I bring my own ground coffee from the US and prepare my coffee in a stainless steel french press. I froth my milk with a little battery operated hand mixer.....and end up with the perfect Cafe Latte. Indulgent, yeah....but, one of the few luxuries that I give myself while in Kenya.
my "caretaker" Onesmus milking Maua
Good Morning, Sky!
I love spending my morning at home ....doing little projects around the house like hanging photos, organizing the kitchen, or just sitting and chatting with Onesmus or Phoebe (my housekeeper) or one of the kids that has dropped by. So, before I know it...the morning has gotten away from me and invariably, I am rushing around trying to shower and get dressed before it is time to leave for work at Oasis.
So, then the choices are: walk or ride into town. The walk is about 2 miles or so to Oasis. On a nice day...with the company of some of the kids...I love the walk. It is the perfect time to really talk to the kids about what is going on in their lives and there is something so wonderful to me about walking down a red dirt road...greeting people along the way. It is the perfect embodiment of the sentiment that life should be more about the journey than the destination!
a little video taken by Martin (Boy's House 2) as he, Johnstone, Ajix, Janet, Onesmus (not seen) and I walk down the dirt road in front of my house...on our way to town and Oasis of Hope one morning in August.
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