Namelok, Massai

Here are some pictures from my recent trip to Namelok. Namelok is a small Massai village near the base of Mt. Kilimanjaro. The landscape was similar to Oldonyonyokie, Namelok is also in the Rift Valley. It was extremely dry, lack of water is a major concern in Namelok. We drove by fields and fields of dead corn, caked in dust. The picture with the trees and hut gives a feel of the landscape. The hut in the picture is a typical Massai hut, the Massai live much as they did hundreds of years ago. The Massai herd cattle, they don't practice agriculture. Most of the Massai live in the Rift Valley which is very dry and barren, not conducive to growing crops.
The trip to Namelok was similar to the trip to Meru; we presented health seminars, performed HIV testing, and played with the children. The health seminars often get intense. We break the villagers into groups to do the health presentations. Although we almost always have the seminars at schools, we invite the parents and elders to come for presentations as well. I worked with the children, the presentation was fairly straightforward. We talked about HIV, stigma associated with HIV and the importance of being kind to those who are positive, emotions that might accompany illness, and hand washing. Most of the children know how HIV is transmitted, but talking about stigma and reinforcing the knowledge that you can't get HIV from playing with a friend who is positive is really important. It is also good to talk about emotions, culturally it is not acceptable to cry.
After talking with the children we played. I can't tell you how many times I was asked how many children I have, one girl asked me if I was a spinster when I told her that I wasn't married. Massai girls typically marry between the ages of 15 and 18. The children nicknamed me "Bisquick" because my hair is apparently the color of Bisquick. I don't know how they know what Bisquick is, but apparently they do. They loved to stroke and play with my hair. I was absolutely mobbed by the children. They loved to hear me sing, I sang "Bananas", "The Hokey Pokey", and "Head Shoulders Knees and Toes" repeatedly. I have also learned a Swahili song called "Hakuna Mungu" which they all know and love. A sure way to get a laugh out of the children is to try to speak either Swahili or their tribal language, I am so bad at it!
The children's presentation wasn't very intense, although the young boys seminar got heated. Isaac, a HEART staff member did the the young ( 11-16) boys presentation. Out of the fifty some odd boys that were there, 34 were sexually active.
Overall the trip was a success, out of the 195 people we tested only 2 were HIV positive. Both of the people who tested positive are younger than 14, they received counseling and ARVS are readily available for free. There is still stigma surrounding HIV but hopefully the children will take ARVS and get follow up medical attention.
Tomorrow is a relaxing day at the HEART compound but Wednesday we go to the US Embassy. I'll post and account and pictures of my adventures.
Best,
Margaret

Random Thoughts

So far my trip has been wonderful and challenging. Several things about Kenya and the Kenyan people have really struck me. The Kenyan people are, by and large, very joyful. This is most evident when they dance or perform. Everywhere I have been children have performed for us. The dancing is amazing, even the young children move beautifully. Another striking aspect of Kenyan people is their faith in and love of God. Obviously not all Kenyans believe in God or are Christians, but the vast majority of the people I have encountered have vocalized their deep love of Jesus.This trend is of course more evident to me because I am working with HEART, a Christian organization. All of the staff at HEART are Christian and most of the people that HEART works with are Christian.
Another aspect of Kenya that is prominent is the poverty. The poverty is intense. When I was in Oldonyonyokie a girl asked me for a bottle of water. Even though the school we visited in Oldonyonyokie has a water tank and is connected to a water pipeline they frequently do not have water. The day that we visited was the first day that the children had lunch in three days; they had rice and ugali in the storage room but no water to cook the food with.
On my trip upcountry to Meru a councilman walked up to me as I was playing with a group of children and asked me if I wanted to "take the children home". I cannot fathom reaching a place of desperation where I would ask people to take my children away.
I continue to enjoy my time here in Kenya, and I will post my thoughts and impressions here. This coming week is going to be pretty low key; there is an election on Wednesday and we are staying at the HEART compound to avoid potential disturbances.
Best,
Margaret

Maasai , Oldonyonyokie

I'm just back from a trip to Oldonyonyokie, Massai land. The Massai are an interesting people; they are one of the last tribes in Kenya to maintain their traditional culture. Oldonyonyokie is in the Rift Valley. The Rift Valley is certainly an inhospitable place, it is difficult to imagine that it is the birthplace of humanity. It is barren. There is no water, the only vegetation is scrub brush and the occasional lonesome tree.
We visited a school; we gave health education seminars to the children, young adults and adults. HEART has an established relationship with this village, through HEART the school has received a water tank with a hookup to a pipeline, several new classrooms, and a library. The school was vibrant, the children and administrators have taken many steps to improve their situation. The head administrator and chief were clearly bright and effective. The school received an award for most improved school in its district last year, and 28 of the 35 students who stood for the nationwide form 8 exams passed last year.
When we first arrived we played with the students, usually we play with the children after we give the health seminars but it was so hot we wanted to play first. I played volleyball; my team won! The students are impressive athletes. A number of the older (13 year old) children were able to spike the ball (the net wasn't regulation height, but close). I was also impressed with how seriously the children took the rules of the game; there was a child with a whistle who made all the calls and kept score. Two younger children also stood on the sidelines and helped the referee make out of bounds calls.
After the health seminars the school children sang and danced for us; it was the most beautiful thing I have seen in Kenya. The songs were choreographed elaborately, the other performances we have seen involved dancing and swaying but the Massai didn't just dance, they performed. They performed three different dances, a dance traditionally performed by young people at weddings, a modern worship song, and a dance performed by young men. The students danced in line formations, there were three columns, they rearranged their lines throughout the dance. They moved in a unique way, they didn't moved their hips so much as their necks. They also slowly lowered themselves into lunges periodically, they did this as they moved their necks. I can't adequately describe it. They sang as they danced. They sang in a call and response system, the music was not melodic. The sound reminded me of a sea chantey, it had a mournful quality. The combination of their song and dance was powerful, it had a religious quality. I was near to tears.
The Massai are an interesting people. You know the pictures of women with stretched necks with elaborate beading? Those are the Massai peoples. The men wear red cloth draped around them and they carry spears. Traditional Massai culture has several unfortunate aspects, polygamy is accepted, girls marry young, and female circumcision is a right of passage. I was asked several times how many children I have, it was assumed that I was married. The girls were shocked when I told the that not only did I not have children, I was not married!
I will have another opportunity to interact with Massai people, I leave tomorrow to go up country for four days, we will be staying in a Massai village near Mt. Kilimanjaro. I will also take some pictures of people in traditional garb, I didn't really have an opportunity to take many pictures on my trip to Oldonyonyokie (playing volleyball is not conducive to taking pictures. . . ).
Best,
Margaret

Random Photos

Here are some random photos from my trip. It is not uncommon to see graffiti like the "Free with God's Love" scrawled on a building or door. The picture of the little boy holding his hand up was actually taken by another orphan, I showed the children how to take pictures and let them use my camera. I ended up with many pictures of the ground but I also got this beauty! The children love to take pictures, they call them "snaps". The picture of the buildings was taken from the car, but it gives an idea of the urban landscape of the slums.
I am headed to Massai land tomorrow. We are going to Oldonyonyokie, affectionately called Old Donkey. The Massai are a tribal group, they are among the last tribal groups in Kenya to preserve their traditional customs. I will post an account of my adventures.
Best,
Margaret

Meru

Hi All-
I just got back from "upcountry", we visited Meru. Meru is a small village on the slopes of Mt. Kenya. It was stunning, the mountain is covered in tropical vegetation. (Unfortunately I didn't get a good picture of the scenery, if I find one as I'm going through my photos I'll post it.) It is surreal to see banana trees and bugambilia in the mountains.
We traveled with a team from Bayside Church, although the interns stayed an extra day.
I stayed at the pastor's house along with two other interns and two Bayside team members. I shared a bed with Katelyn, a fellow intern. The conditions were rustic; water is scarce. Today was my first shower in three days! We cleaned up with baby wipes every night. It was so dusty that a wipe was completely brown just from cleaning my face.
Pastor Joshua and his wife Unis fed us very well. We had chapati pancakes, oranges, bananas, hard boiled eggs, and chai for breakfast. Chapati and chai are both staples, chapati is like a tortilla, but it is fried and more moist. Dinner consisted of rice, potato and goat stew, kale, chapati, and chai. The food was delicious.
We participated in several projects while we we in Meru. We opened a Kids for School office, had a Freedom for Girls workshop, did health education for the children, and played with the kids. It was intense. Many of the children had never seen, let alone interacted with, a white person before. The kids kept running up to us, they wanted to touch our skin and hair. I felt constant little tugs throughout the day from kids pulling my hair. Some of the kids were shy and I would catch them looking at me if I turned around; but with coaxing they would usually approach us.
The children all spoke English well, some of the adults were not as proficient. The kids kept asking us to sing to them; I will be dreaming the song Bananas. (Grow bananas, grow grow bananas / peel bananas, peel peel bananas, eat bananas etc..)The Hokey Pokey was also popular.
The workshops went well. The children probably know more about HIV/ AIDS than I do, although I'm sure a reminder didn't hurt. We also did a hand washing demonstration, they knew far more about HIV than they do about basic sanitation. Culturally simply rinsing your hands is considered sufficient. To compound the problem, water is very scarce. Last year there was a drought and HEART launched a feeding program just to keep people alive.
The Freedom for Girls workshop is basically sex education. Through the FFG program girls receive health education and a year's supply of feminine hygiene products. This program has been especially effective; girls often drop out of school because they have no way to deal with their periods. The intern coordinator, Katie, did the presentation and Lydia, a HEART staff member, translated. They did a basic health education, showed how to use sanitary napkins, and took questions. The girls wrote their questions down on little slips of paper because many of them are embarassed to ask the questions in front of the group. Most of the questions were fairly routine, "how long will my period last?", "can I get pregnant on my period?", etc. The questions at this seminar were pretty tame, but at other presentations they have gotten pretty intense. One girl once asked an intern if she could get pregnant even though she had been raped seven times.
We also opened a HEART office in the town. The office is designed so that local HEART representatives can collect and communicate data and information to the main HEART office in Nairobi. The office is an 8 by 12 cube, it has a concrete floor and wood walls. There are two desks and a computer. Both the opening of the office and the presentations were big deals. The local chieftain came to both events, each event was opened with a long period of introductions. The first day we spent a little over an hour doing introductions, the HEART staff, the teachers, the HEART team, the HEART interns, and the local officials, were all introduced. It wasn't just a presentation, it was a ceremony.
The students also performed for us. Eleven schools came to the HEART seminars, each school prepared a performance for us. The performances were moving, many schools presented poems (all of the poems were about AIDS. One poem was called "AIDS the Destroyer"; I was impressed with how open the children were about AIDS. The children were not ashamed or bashful to talk about AIDS. Other schools performed songs, dances, and skits.
Tomorrow we are just hanging around the compound, I plan on doing laundry! We go to the Massai land on Tuesday, I'll post pictures and an account.
Best,
Margaret

Mombasa

I went to Mombasa. HEART has a WEEP center there, we spent a day at the WEEP center and then played tourist for two days. Vickie really wanted to visit the Mombasa WEEP ladies, a women from the program died recently. Sarah (the woman who died) left behind two children. Her children will be cared for by her family. This is not an uncommon phenomenon, more than half of the women in the WEEP program take care of not only their own children, but the children of dead relatives as well. I got the impression that it is pretty rare for a woman in the program to die; with ARVs and proper nutrition most of the women are healthy. The women at the Mombasa WEEP are fairly traumatized and it was really important that Vickie visit them.
I really bonded with a woman named Janet, she didn't speak much English but she taught me Swahili. I am terrible at Swahili, I mean absolutely terrible! I need to see a word before I learn it, I'm not an auditory learner. Janet had quite a bit of fun at my expense.
After we visited the center we spent two days playing in Mombasa. Mombasa is beautiful, it is right on the Indian Ocean. Mombasa is also significantly hotter than Nairobi, Nairobi is high in the mountains and not nearly as humid. Whenever I would comment on the heat a local would give me a puzzled look and inform me that it was, in fact, quite cold. It is their winter, it was easily eighty five degrees with eighty percent humidity. I cannot imagine how hot the summers are!
We had a ton of fun, I rode a camel named Mr. George, swam in the ocean, and took several naps under palm trees. We stayed at a beautiful hotel, the owner is a friend of HEART so we got a really great rate. We also did quite a bit of shopping on the beach. One of the pictures shows another intern and me wearing various scarves and wraps we bought from beach vendors.
I am going upcountry to Meru for the next three days. Meru is a really rural area in the mountains. We are putting on a fun day for school children, doing health education, HIV testing, and opening an office for the HEART Kids for School program. I'll post an account and pictures once I get back.

Orphanages

Over the last two days I have gone to two orphanages. The first orphanage we went to was Jehovah Jira. We went as part of HEART's Freedom For Girls project. Through the Freedom For Girls project HEART provides feminine hygiene products to poor girls. Through its ministry HEART discovered that many girls stop attending school not because they get pregnant but because they get their period and have no way to deal with it. We went to the orphanage to deliver sanitary towels and talk to the girls about health issues. Unfortunately we were not able to deliver the hygiene products because, due to miss communication the older girls were not at the orphanage that day. The orphanage was devastating, the building looked like a run down warehouse. The children sleep on tiny bunk beds in poorly ventilated rooms. Some of the children did not even have sleeping pads, they sleep on chicken wire. I would not be at all surprised if the children didn't eat every day.
The children greeted us with a performance, it was somewhat subdued. A general malaise permeated the place. Last year a child died at that orphanage, he was playing on roof and he stuck a piece of metal scrap metal on the electrical wires. I cannot imagine the trauma of watching your playmate being electrocuted and then fall from the roof into the play yard. After the boy's death a church took over the management of the orphanage, but the center is still really struggling. The children looked haunted.
Today we went to another orphanage called the Brydges Center. This orphanage was the polar opposite of the Jehova Jirah orphanage. The children were healthy, hopeful, and very lively. I attached a video of the children performing a song for us. The singing and dancing was amazing! When we arrived the younger children greeted us with a musical performance, "Welcome Visitors". I also got to hold the youngest member of the center, David. He kept stealing my sun glasses! The children were all wearing matching t shirts with the center's logo on it as well as jeans. It was the first place that I have seen where girls wore pants. Not all the girls wore jeans, however, some of the young girls wore wat looked like old party dresses. They were poofy with ribbons. The children were increasingly well behaved (as they were at Jehova Jira orphanage as well, but the children at Brydges had spirit, hope). We hung out at Brydges for over three hours, the children performed skits, and songs for us. We even had an impromptu dance party! After the older children arrived (they had been out at classes) they announced that they needed to 'loosen up'. They then proceeded to start singing and dancing. One young man was playing a guitar/ harp like instrument (you can see him playing in the video which I attached), and everyone started dancing. The younger children quickly got up out of their chairs to join the older kids in dancing, we followed soon after that. The younger children tried to teach me how to dance, I was less than successful.
The Brydges Center is a fantastic place, the children are very well taken care of. The dormitories are comfortable and well ventilated, there is a library, and they are very well fed. We ate with them, they fed the children very generous portions of rice with vegetables, they had cookies with juice with Koolaid for dessert. We ate with them, I went for seconds, it was delicious.
The older kids also performed a skit, it was clearly based on a true story. The skit was about a young girl who was abused by her alcoholic father and thrown out of her house by her father and step mother. The girl was then taken in and brought to the Brydges Center. The story was both moving and obviously true (the older children also threw in funny bits about a witch doctor to keep the younger children amused). It struck me as an excellent way to process their situations. Several young children also recited Bible verses for us. A five year old recited Psalm 40 and another said Psalm 23. Visiting the Brydges Center was an uplifting experience, the center has had some financial difficulties lately, but it is getting back on its feet and the children are all healthy and hopeful.
I will not be posting for the next few days, I am going to Mombasa. I am really excited! I will get to see the Indian Ocean and ride a camel on the beach!
Best,
Margaret

July 7th, Korogotho Slum

Today I went to the Korogotho Slum. We went to deliver books to two schools and participate in a ground breaking ceremony for a kitchen at a school. We went with Osnet, a friend of Vickie Winkler (the founder of HEART). Osnet is the wife of the Israeli ambassador to Kenya, as Vickie says, she is not the typical diplomats wife. She is involved with several schools in the Nairobi area; she has worked to improve health education and to bring clean water to 11 schools. As a result of Osnet's programs school attendance is much higher and the ranking of each of the schools has improved. Osnet is now working to expand the programs, she is are working on nutrition, self sufficiency, and general education.
It was a great experience to get to go into the schools. One of the pictures shows kids sitting against a school building the other shows a teacher dancing with students in the background. The schools were all extremely clean and had posters on the walls. (Clean considering they were in slums, they still had dirt floors in many areas). The students all shout out "how are you?" when you arrive, they exaggerate the you so it sounds like "how are youuu?". It is charming. The students performed for us at every school. At the first school one class sang a traditional song and then two students performed a poem. The school had a drama program and it was obvious in the way that the students performed that they were taking full advantage of the program. One of the poems was entitled "Silence". Two girls announced their poem, struck a pose and then thanked us for our attention; their comedic timing was perfect. At another school they danced for us, I can not fathom moving my hips that way!
The students were enthusiastic, grateful and clearly healthy. The kitchen will be really important for the school, it is going to be well constructed (not slum construction) and the students will be able to get a nutritious meal while they are at school. The school administrators are working out the lunch program so that the parents pay around 10 shillings (it is 80 KSH per dollar) for their child's meal. I didn't get the details but the parents are paying for the food and the upkeep of the kitchen, an assortment of NGOs and private individuals are funding the construction of the kitchen. The lending library is also going to be run by the school. They have worked out a system so that students from sister schools are able to check out books. The kids who have access to books do much better on their eighth grade exams.
Tomorrow I am going to an orphanage. I am going as part of HEART's Freedom For Girls program. HEART discovered that girls stopped going to school, not, as commonly assumed, because they got pregnant, but because they got their period. Girls are often forced to miss up to a week of school a month because they have no way to deal with their periods. HEART has partnered with Proctor and Gamble to provide girls with a years supply of feminine hygiene products. We will also be talking to the girls about general health issues.
I will post pictures and a report of my trip to the orphanage.
Best,
Margaret

July 7th, Kibera Slum

We went to the Kibera Slum yesterday, we visited a WEEP (Woman's Empowerment and Equality Project) center. Kibera is one of the largest slums in the world, around 1.5 million people live there. The streets were lined with piles of burning trash, there was mud and human waste everywhere. The slum did have navigable streets, we drove through to the WEEP center. Shacks lined the road, people were selling clothes, shoes, household items, and food stuffs. There were also a number of beauty parlors and pre schools.
The women at the WEEP center were inspiring. Gladys runs the WEEP center, she opened it in 2005. The center helps women with AIDS, there are currently 15 women at the center. When the women first arrive they are given food and taken to the hospital to get ARVs. Once the women are healthy Gladys teaches them how to sew. The women support themselves by sewing school uniforms.
One women, Lilian, just arrived. She recounted how she had arrived at the WEEP center. She was very weak but she traveled to Nairobi to live with her brother. Rhonda, a women from the center, befriended her. Rhoda convinced Lilian to go to the hospital and get tested, that way she "would know her status". Lilian was given ARVs with specific instructions to take them at the same time everyday, this presented a problem because Lilian had no way to tell time. Lilian was forced to ask her brother the time, once her brother discovered that Lilian had AIDS he threw her out of the house. Lilian traveled to go live with her sister but had the same experience.
Lilian is now at the WEEP center, she is getting healthy.
The women who have been there longer have assumed leadership roles in their communities. One women, Jane, has several businesses. Jane owns two houses and rents one out and she also has a tailoring business.
The women are truly inspiring. Most of them were left for dead by their families but they are now not only surviving but beginning to thrive.
Today I am going to another slum, the wife of the Israeli ambassador to Kenya is distributing aid to the people there. I will post pictures from my excursion.
Margaret

Lunch at the Riverforest Cafe

We had lunch at a lovely outdoor cafe. It was quiet and beautiful. There was a playground which had a miniature car; the car had slogans written on it. One of the slogans read "Children Obey your Parents in the Lord: For this is Right" another said "God is Love."The garden also had a metal sculpture of an alligator, you can see the picture of Katelyn (another HEART intern) and me on the alligator.
There are a number of nice restaurants in Nairobi, I have already gone to two of them. On Sunday we went to Java House. Java House is a celebrated Kenyan tradition. It is safe to have the ice there! There are several Java Houses in Nairobi, as the name indicates they serve coffee, but they serve a host of other things as well. I had a burger with a salad (salads can be dangerous. . . you can only eat them from certain restaurants). The Riverforest Cafe is more upscale than Java House, they serve steak, seafood, curries, sandwiches, quesadillas, and salads. The prices are quite similar to America, it was 950 KSH (Kenyan Shillings, the exchange rate is 80 KSH per dollar) for a steak panini and a salad. This is all to say that Nairobi is an economically diverse city, the majority of the inhabitants are very poor but jobs are available and there is an upper middle class.
I will see much more of the poverty tomorrow, I will be visiting a WEEP center in the Kibera slum; Kibera is one of the largest slums in the world.
Best,
Margaret

July 4th, Church

Happy 4th of July! It was strange being away from home on Independence Day, but we had our own celebration. We put red and blue streamers up over the fireplace, and we put up flags around the house. I also listened to patriotic music (not really out of the ordinary for me, I listen to God Bless the USA at least once a day anyways). Overall it was a pretty good 4th, I missed the BBQ and the fireworks, but we still had patriotic spirit.
We also went to church, we worshiped with Bishop Able's congregation in the Kyole slum in Nairobi. Church was definitely an experience, it certainly wasn't the "Father Flash" experience. We arrived at 9:30 and left at 1:30. We helped with the Sunday school, there were around 35 kids packed into a six by 10 metal shed. The children were well behaved and sang with gusto. We did the Creation story, a puppet show, and a craft. The kids were very excited about the craft, there was quite a bit of jostling for the stickers.
The church service itself was somewhat typical. There was much more participation by the congregation than I am used to. Many members of the church performed songs or gave little talks. The service was held in a tent with plastic lawn chairs. It was moving to see so many people praising God, especially under such materially wretched circumstances. Many of the parishioners are HIV positive, the Bishop's brother died last week of AIDS. I will probably go to Bishop Able's church again before I head home, although typically the HEART staff goes to Ridgeway Baptist.
Tomorrow I am going to the Kibera slum. HEART has a WEEP center there. I look forward to meeting the women who work there, I will post pictures from the excursion.
Margaret

Wedding, July 3rd

Jambo
Today was my first full day in Kenya! We arrived safely, the flights were uneventful. Today we got the opportunity to go to a wedding; it was a great introduction to Kenya. It was a fairly typical wedding, complete with unflattering bridesmaid dresses. The bride wore a typical white dress and the groom wore a suit. The guests were very welcoming, several people came up and introduced themselves. We were invited by a friend of the bride, we were a little reluctant to go because we didn't know the couple but we were assured that 'everyone goes to weddings' and we were not 'wedding crashers'. They were unfamiliar with the concept of crashing a wedding, apparently everyone, invited or not, really does go to weddings.
The Kenyan people have been incredibly welcoming and kind. On the way home from the airport we drove through many parts of Nairobi, it amounted to a driving tour of the city. (It took us over three hours to reach the HEART compound, the traffic was unusually horrible). Nairobi is large, according to our driver around four million people. It is definitely a city, there are hospitals, markets, restaurants, and hardware stores. There is a considerable amount of infrastructure, although there is also significant poverty. On the way back from the airport we saw many shacks by the road where people live and work. There were also chickens and goats running around by the side of the road. On Tuesday I will go to the Kibera slum. It is one of the largest slums in the world, around 1.5 million people live there. I'll keep you posted on my adventures,
Margaret