Narok Hospital

While we were in Narok we took a boy who is sponsored by Kids in Kenya to the Hospital. Peter, the chief of Ole Keene, brought the boy into town because he had been sick for a while. The hospital, though, is not really a “hospital”. It seemed like something that you find a summer camp. There were outdoor seating areas running down the side of the building, which was their “waiting room”. Directly across from the seating area there were the patient rooms, which basically had a table, chair, and sink (if you were lucky) inside. There definitely were not any particular measures being taken to remain sanitary. We waited with about 20 or so other people all waiting to see the same doctor. Near us, there was a group of 15 women with babies waiting for checkups. They would call 5 or 6 mothers in together and I assume they were giving the babies inoculations, especially since I heard a bunch of crying!

It is a long process to be seen at the hospital. You must first wait in line to buy a patient card, which is basically like your health records. Then you give your card to the nurse who puts you in line to be seen by the doctor. Then, like all doctor’s offices, you wait, and wait, and wait. Finally they took the boy in to be seen by the doctor. We were then sent over to the pharmacy at the hospital to buy his prescription. At the pharmacy, we submit our prescription, are given a receipt, take the receipt and pay at a different window, then go back to get the prescription. Some of the prescriptions were not available at the hospital pharmacy so we had to the “chemist” in town for the rest. It seems like there are a lot of hoops to jump through in order to be treated.

It was hard to believe that this is one of the better hospitals in the area. I can see why people do not want to mess with coming to be treated. It takes so much effort and money to be seen by a doctor. Many people from the villages cannot afford to go to a bigger city for treatment. Jamey is working on a mobile Medical clinic for the villages in the Mara. I think this is a much-needed resource for this area. It is sad that there are not more mobile clinics set up here.

I am glad to see that the Kids in Kenya Fund is not only helping provide education for a child but they are taking care of the whole child – food, education, and health. We must first satisfy their basic needs before we can begin to educate them.

Masai Mara

On Monday night we headed out into the Masai Mara. I don’t think I ever could have prepared myself appropriately for the trip. Surprisingly there were “roads” most of the way but these roads would not hold up to American standards. Many times we drove off the side of the road because it was smoother than the potholes on the road. Along the way we saw some gazelles, wildebeests, and giraffes. The two giraffes were just a few feet from the car…it was amazing! We arrived to our camp in almost pitch dark. It was at this point that I realized that I was out in the middle of nowhere with no way home. To tell you the truth I was scared out of my mind. It was overwhelming to realize that I would be sharing my campsite with wild animals. I felt a little better after meeting the warriors that were going to be watching the tent at night. But, I don’t think I got that much sleep the first night!

I have come to realize that life on Mara moves at its own pace….very, very slowly. I am used to the fast paced American life- schedules, appointments, and deadlines. This is the un-American life. We eat, sit around, drink some tea, eat again, take a walk, sit, and eat again. Did you notice the trend of eating? I think I eat more here than I do at home. My first morning in the Mara I was survived French Toast and we even had Maple syrup (brought from the states of course). I am bummed my camera is not hooking up to the computer correctly. I took a picture to post so my mom doesn’t get worried that I will starve here. Really, no worries Mom, Mama Cynthia is feeding me plates and plates of food.

Sometimes I wonder how they can get anything done with how slowly they seem to accomplish things. The things they need to get done, though, are much different from our tasks. The Mara have so much pride in their way of life. If we try to Americanize them it would ruin everything. Mama Cynthia, for example, spends most of her day cooking our meals but it is not a burden for her. She finds joy and happiness in being able to cook for us. As Americans, we should take some lessons from the Mara on finding pleasure in the simple way of life.

So, as you would suspect, our business here moves very slowly. We are planning with the head chief, Peter, on building a campground that will be run by the villages. Usually a meeting like this would take a few hours, but here it will take us 4 days. Jamey and I are the first ones to stay in this proposed campground. They have built a Latrine in preparation for the tented part of the camp. We walked some of Peter’s land to make plans for the guest houses. I told Jamey that I would return to the Mara once the camp was built so that I can see the end result. Who knows when that will be considering how slowly things go here.

Tomorrow we are going on a game drive to see some animals. I am looking forward to becoming a tourist for a few hours and snapping some photos of some animals.

Narok Town

Last night we left the busy city life and drove to Narok, about 2 hours away. The drive was an experience….I tried not to watch Jared because I would have gotten very nervous. Their “highway” driving consists of a 2 lane road where people pass each other often. Jared swerved in and out of traffic flashing his lights and putting his blinker on to signal that he was passing. We drove into the Rift Valley through the Escrapment, a long narrow road along the side of the mountain. It was getting a little dark but I could still see some of the valley below. It was quite an amazing sight…and a little scary as I looked over the side of the mountain.

We arrived in Narok, a little town that seems to be out in the middle of nowhere. Dirt roads run throughout the city causing a lot of dust to rise around you. For those of you wondering, yes there is electricity, cell phones, television, and running water, but it is a simple way of life. People live simply in one-room houses but they are all very happy. Americans always want bigger, better, and more expensive things but never discover true happiness. Here people enjoy life without getting caught up in superficial things.

The Kids in Kenya Fund has done some good business while in Nairobi and Narok. We are working to get 2 projects started while I am here. The first project involves showing Togetherness Supreme, a movie about 4 Kibera youth during the post election violence, to communities around Kenya. There is a lot of division here between the tribes so the Kids in Kenya Fund is working to create relationships with the tribes so that they can work peacefully together. The second project involves starting micro businesses within the Mara Region. These businesses sponsored through the Kids in Kenya Fund will be selling Tough Stuff Solar Panels, which can charge Cell phones and lights. Cell phones are HUGE here so a solar panel will help ease their use of Kerosene and save them money charging their phones. The money that is made from these Solar Panels will be reinvested in the communities.

During my first few days here I have already discovered that the Kids in Kenya Fund is very different from most volunteer efforts I have been involved with. Many of my prior experiences have involved going into a community and helping through painting, cleaning, serving food, etc. and then picking up and leaving. Although this kind of charity is good I don’t believe that it helps to provide them with opportunities to improve their own way of life. The Kids in Kenya Fund, however, seems to be really working to empower villages to create more opportunities for growth. I like that we are helping to create opportunities to spread peace and build relationships between villages.

Tomorrow we officially head out to Maasai Mara and will be staying in the village of Olekenne. We will see how if I will survive camping out in the Bush. After visiting the snake exhibit at the Nairobi National Museum the other day I’m not so sure I will get out of the car.

Nairobi

After a 24 hour layover in Brussels and 2 missing bags, I finally made it to my destination in Nairobi. The city of Nairobi can be summed up in three words – people, cars, and walls.

People are everywhere, filling the sidewalks, walking on the road, weaving through traffic. They line the streets selling everything from shoes to clothes to food to suitcases. We visited Kibera, Africa’s second largest slum and I felt like I was watching a movie where they show the slums from above and all you can see are the roofs of the shanty houses. But this was not a movie, it was their reality. We walked through the Toi Market which consisted of a maze of vendors with a sidewalk sized walkway and a narrow rain drain littered with trash running throughout the maze of vendors. It is hard to understand how anyone could make money in this market. I saw tons of vendors all selling hundreds of the same food like tomatoes. How can you move that many goods before it goes rotten? Children, many of whom were orphans, wondered throughout the market and down the streets. The road was lined with trash and of course people. But, I have felt very safe and welcomed by the people of Kenya. In the city, everyone speaks English which has made things very easy when talking to people.

I have never seen driving quite like what I have seen in Nairobi. I have driven through downtown Chicago but it pales in comparison to Nairobi. Cars, buses, trucks, and taxi’s jam the streets. I only saw a few traffic lights but drivers ignored them. It was a frenzy of merging, weaving, and cutting people off. It is surprising that people get anywhere but amazingly everyone seemed to move in unison. With a wave and a smile, Jared cut through oncoming traffic and worked his way throughout the city. The amount of traffic created a continuous smell of exhaust. The mix of smell of dirt and exhaust was overwhelming.

Downtown Nairobi is similar to other cities…large buildings, lots of people but as soon as you drive out of Nairobi it drastically changes. Everything – houses, apartments, restaurants, businesses are all surrounded by walls. Walls made of barbed wire or bricks surround all buildings. The only way in is through a gate with a guard. It feels so uninviting to me…to drive down the street and only see walls.

Now we head out of the Nairobi to Narok….from the city to the Rift valley…it will be a huge change but every day here brings something new and unexpected.

The Countdown Begins

It finally hit me that in just a 7 days I will be boarding a plane to travel to the other side of the world. Goodbye comfy bed, warm shower, drinkable tap water, electricity, television, and all other American plush living. Hello tent guarded by a warrior, NO shower, warm bottled water, boiled goat and rice meals, and zero amenities. What am I thinking?? Did I experience some lapse in judgement when I signed up for the trip? Am I crazy?

Once my minor panic attack passes after a few deep, soothing breaths I realize that I am ready to step out of my Mason bubble and open my eyes to the world around me. I can’t wait to begin my journey in Kenya. I hope that I will be able to post some pictures and thoughts during my trip so that I can share my experiences with all of you.

Before I leave I want to take this opportunity to say thank you to everyone who has offered me support as I prepared for my trip. A huge thank you to everyone that made a donation and attended my fundraisers. A special thank you goes to my Direct Sales group for their help in organizing fundraisers at Skyline and at our Quarter Auction. I also appreciate all the words of encouragement and prayers everyone has offered for me. It is an amazing feeling to know that I have so much love and support from my family and friends.

The countdown to Kenya has begun. Look out Kenya, here I come!