Before and After: Two Months in Kenya

I cannot believe it’s been just over two months that I’ve been in Kenya! Time flies! I am with my new host family in Ahero, Kenya!  Ahero is a rural town (about 7,000 people) about 24 kilometers outside of Kisumu (the third largest city in Kenya).  I have an internship at a local adult education institution where students are working towards completing primary and secondary school.  They are preparing for the national exams in hopes of moving on to the next level of education! I will have another post later this week or next week talking more about my new home.  But before that, I wanted to let you know about some of the transformations I have had in the two months I have been in Kenya!  

Hakuna Matata: Our Weekend in Mombasa

Last weekend (March 7-9) we had a mini spring break in Mombasa since our program doesn't have a spring break.  Mombasa is a Kenyan city located on the coast of the Indian Ocean.  It’s a very popular tourist and vacation destination for Kenyans and Europeans.  We were all really excited to go because the MSID staff told us at the beginning of the semester we wouldn’t be able to visit because of recent isolated Somali terrorists incidents.  (Usually MSID places people in Mombasa for the internship phase of the semester, but for safety reasons no one is being placed there this semester.) Since things had seemed to calm down since the beginning of the semester, the MSID staff (after a lot of begging and pleading) let us go for the weekend. 

            The last couple weeks of class the MSID staff decided to give us Fridays off to write the four or five papers that are due at the end of the semester.  Though we always intend to do our homework, we always seem to be traveling somewhere :) I figure I might as well take advantage of the opportunity to see as much as I can while I’m here because I don’t know when I’ll be able to come back!  And I’m sure my papers will get done eventually! Anyway, since we didn’t have class Friday some of use flew out of Nairobi Thursday night.  After only about an hour we landed in Mombasa.  Immediately when we stepped off the plane we could feel the change in temperature.  We heard it was hot along the coast, but we had no idea it was going to be so humid!  Even at midnight, we couldn't stand to sit in our van without the windows wide open.  It reminded me of July in Washington, D.C.  After about an hour and a half, we finally arrived at our hostel around 1:00 AM.  Our hostel, South Coast Backpackers, was more like a resort!  It has a big pool, a bar, a kitchen, nice bathrooms, a TV room, and lots of space outside to hang out.    

            On Friday morning we woke up and went straight to the beach, which was about a five minute walk from our hostel.  The beach was the most beautiful beach I had ever seen! The sand was pure white and packed down so it wasn’t hard to walk through at all!  And unlike beaches on the east coast in the US, I didn’t step on one sharp rock or seashell.  The water was also so blue and warm!  I actually wished the water was a bit cooler as it was so hot and humid outside!  We pretty much soaked up the sun all day as different Kenyans came up to talk to us.  Often times they wanted us to buy things, but some times they were just welcoming us.  The people in Mombasa were all so nice and accommodating.  They wouldn’t stop saying “Karibu! (Welcome!)” and “Hakuna Matata (No worries/No problem)!” (Hakuna Matata actually means “No chaos” in Swahili and was made a popular saying from The Lion King despite being incorrect.  Most Kenyans will say “Hakuna Shida” instead and will just say “Hakuna Matata” to tourists.)

 On Friday afternoon, we decided to ride camels!  It was such an awesome experience riding such a majestic animal along the gorgeous beach.  I was surprised how calm and well behaved they were.  They pretty much listened to anything their owners told them.  I thought it was funny how the camels sit on the beach…they fold their legs under them.  I’m not sure how they bend that way!! The owners had the camels lay down so we could get on and off more easily and it was crazy how much height they lose when they collapse their legs!  I definitely thought I was going to fall off!

Friday night we just hung around the hostel and swam in the pool.  The only complaint I have about the whole weekend was sleeping in the humidity.  We had fans in our dormitory, but it didn’t help much!  I slept in a t-shirt and shorts and woke up sweating! I honestly considered sleeping in the pool :)
  

 

Saturday we got up and went back to the beach to go snorkeling.  I had never been snorkeling so it was a lot of fun!  I didn’t see any big fish, but I saw a lot of colorful little fish swimming through the beautiful coral reef.  I wish I had a underwater camera!  At night, we arranged with a local restaurant to feed us a meal of fish, rice, potatoes, and a cabbage salad.  It was sooo delicious.  It was probably the best fish I have ever had (Dad, I bet you're jealous!).  We also bought some local famous coconut wine which was not as great :/ When they brought it to our table in an old coke bottle, I could tell it wasn’t exactly what we were expecting.  I had one sip and that was enough for me! Saturday night I just went to bed early as our flight was leaving early in the morning on Sunday!  Though it was a relatively short trip, it was a nice break from school and the chaos of Nairobi.  It was fun to be lazy tourists for the weekend.

The Local Coconut Wine

       

The delicious samaki (fish), bones and all!

Schools in Kenya: The Good and the Bad

***Sorry, this post is really long!  But I thought some of my Mom's friends in education might be interested :) Read as you wish!***

As part of our study abroad program, we all pick a different track to specialize in while we are here.  We can pick from public health, social services, education, environment, or business.  Because of my interest in education and my future as a teacher, I naturally decided to choose the education track.  My internship (starting on March 24^th) will be in at an adult education center in a town named Ahero about 20 kilometers outside of Kisumu.  During the classroom phase in Nairobi, we meet with our track professors about once or twice a week.  My professor is the sweetest lady I have met!  Her name is Jane and she is a professor at the University of Nairobi in their teacher-training program.  She always comes to class with a huge smile on her face excited to teach us and learn about our own experiences in education.  My friend Jenni, an Elementary Education major at the University of Minnesota is my only classmate in the track.  Though the smallest class I have ever had, it has been one of my favorites! 

            Last week on Thursday, we had the opportunity to see firsthand the Kenyan education system that we have been studying all semester.  Throughout the day, we visited three different schools to compare and contrast the disparity found within the education system.  First, we visited a girls school located in Kibera, Africa’s largest slum.  Kibera, located just a five minute walk from my estate, is geographically one percent of Nairobi, but holds over 25 percent of the population.  Though numbers aren’t exact, about one million people live in Kibera.   Conditions vary throughout Kibera, but most people live in shacks with tin roofs without running water or functioning toilets.  It’s not rare to see babies walking around without shoes in the narrow streets, which are covered with garbage.  While walking through Kibera to visit my host uncle one evening, I saw kids playing with a soccer ball that looked like it was made out of plastic grocery bags.  I then learned the children blow up condoms and wrap them with plastic grocery bags until it’s big enough to kick around.  There are many saddening stories of people in Kibera I won’t burden you with, but in short, the source of most problems in Kibera is poverty.  Most people are honest citizens that traveled from rural areas in Kenya to Nairobi in hopes of making a better life for their families.  As the American Dream today seems to elude many immigrants and Americans, the “Nairobi Dream” eludes thousands of Kenyans.  

Kibera Girls Soccer Academy

http://www.kiberagirlssocceracademy.org/

Pictures courtesy of KGSA website.

            Walking through homes of dirt walls and tin roofs, we reached Kibera Girls Soccer Academy (KGSA).  KGSA is a secondary school (high school) run by a non-profit in America.  Right now, the school has about 130 girls and just recently added 30 boys.  All of the children at KGSA are from Kibera and in great need of assistance.  In Kenya, secondary education is not free so many students from Kibera or other needy families cannot afford to move on from primary school.  The school admits their students on a first come first serve basis and they said each year they send many girls away crying.  Because the school is sponsored and is completely free for students, many girls in Kibera feel like KGSA is their last chance to achieve a better future and different destiny.  

The headmistress was sharing with us that many students are orphans and live with abusive relatives in Kibera that require them to do hours of housework every day after school.  Other students don’t have access to meals outside of lunch, which is provided every day at school.  Because all of the teachers were volunteers initially when the school was started in 2006, most of the teachers are not trained professionally though some are attending school right now.  All teachers also come from Kibera.  The school had two small buildings made out of cement and tin with about eight classrooms and one lunchroom.  The classrooms were simple rooms with desks and a blackboard.  I saw an old desktop computer in the headmistresses office, but otherwise the students worked without technology from workbooks.
When we walked into the room of freshman girls, their eyes lit up as we introduced ourselves.  They seemed thankful for a short break from their mathematics :) After a few minutes of introductions and sweet remarks from the girls, I didn’t want to leave.  I wanted to stay and get to know them and all of their stories.  From all of their life experiences, I’m sure they are wise beyond their years.  Overall, the Kenyan government has failed to serve the people of Kibera especially in terms of secondary education.  And even though primary school is free and supposed to be equally accessible to all, there are not enough primary schools in Kibera.  Some primary schools and all secondary schools are sponsored by non-profits or NGOs.  Even if there were more government sponsored schools in Kibera, most students would not be able to attend because of additional fees and uniform fees. 

St. Christopher’s

http://www.scslearning.com/

Pictures of St. Christopher's

Immediately after visiting KGSA, we visited a private school on the outskirts of Nairobi.  When we drove up to the huge gates manned by several security officers, the contrast between KGSA and St. Christopher’s was overwhelming.  This school looked like a resort.  The architecture was beautiful and elaborate with skywalks crossing back and forth between different wings.  Beyond the classrooms was a recreational swimming pool fit for a fancy hotel with two lanes for swimming laps.  On the other side of the building sat a beautiful jungle gym for the students to play on.  The classrooms themselves looked a lot like America classrooms:  a lot of colors, projectors, desks, lots of space, posters, children’s artwork, etc.  After seeing the whole primary school facility, I asked how many students attended St. Christopher’s.  Expecting the teacher to say 500 or 600, I was appalled when I learned the whole facility held 200 students.  Most parents in Kenya will send their students to private schools if they can afford it because of the lack of resources and funding in government funded schools.  Many great teachers also flee government-funded schools because they will be paid much better at private schools.  

This particularly private school adheres to the British system.  Consequently, the students are immune from the strenuous Kenyan exam system (There are national exams after 8^th grade to move on to high school and an exam at the end of high school to enter college).  Most students come from lower- upper class to upper class families and will most likely go to college in the US or the UK.  Fees per term (there are three terms per year) are about $1,500.  $1,500 doesn’t sound like too much in America, but here in Kenya it is probably equivalent to $4,000 in the US.  Though it was difficult to see the necessity and justice in the extravagance in the school’s facilities, I agree with the ideals and overall philosophy of the school.  The school believes in developing talents outside of academics and championing each student for their individuality.  In the Kenyan system, all of the focus in placed on succeeding on the national exams.  Most schools even list their students in order from 1 to last in public.  I can only imagine how demoralizing that can be for students who have other talents outside of academics or taking tests. 

Though we have standardized tests in the US, in most states they don’t have a big impact on students’ futures.  In Kenyan, if you don’t score well at the end of 8^th grade, you could be shut out of the education system all together.  The highest scoring students go to the best schools as the lowest scoring students that still pass go to very poor community schools that are not well funded.  From high school to university, the situation is the same.  The students who score well get to automatically go to the best colleges and are sponsored by the government while other lower performing students must go to lesser colleges, technical schools, or must simply enter the job force. 

Ngong Village School

            After visiting St. Christopher’s we went to visit a village school in Ngong Hills (about an hour outside of Nairobi).  It was actually the primary school one of our MSID staff member, Simon, attended when he was little!  The school is a government sponsored school and serves a mostly Masaai community.  The Masaai are pastoralists in Kenya and are known for training young men to fight lions, polygamy, and having a diet of meat, milk, and animal blood. 

The school reminded me a lot of the Kibera Girls Soccer Academy except there were about 400 students.  The school was originally started by the community in the 1980s when class was held under one of the big trees in the front of the school.  Over the past decades the school has grown to about three small, modest buildings again with simple classrooms without technology.  The school has 9 teachers all paid meager salaries by the government.  With only nine teachers, class sizes are about 50 to 60 students.  Though most students in this school eat well at home due to their families’ livestock, they have the challenges of rural living.  About half the students ages 5-13 walk six miles one way to school every day.  These students leave their home at 4:00am or 4:30am to arrive at school at 7:00am. 

After talking to the principal for some time, Jenni and I walked outside to see some classrooms when we ended up in a group of over 50 little kindergarten students.  At first they looked at us they like we were aliens.  After we outstretched our hands a couple students came forward and then they all started stroking our arms.  We then broke away to see a special classroom the school at prepared for the government laptop initiative.  The government has promised every child in Kenya a laptop.  At first, the idea of the laptop initiative seemed absurd to me as so many schools in Kenya don’t even have basic necessities and facilities, but after seeing the excited teachers and administrators I feel as if implemented effectively it could ultimately benefit the children.  I just hope the government will follow through and it won’t be another broken political campaign promise. 

After we came out of the classroom we didn’t see the children and thought they had all decided to go home.  We soon realized we were wrong, as they had moved to surround the bus we had driven (so cute!)!  Then the stroking of the arms started all over again.  One little girl even started feeling the hair on my arms with curiosity. (haha)  Jenni later made fun of me as she heard me say, “Yes, my arms are furry!”  The same little girl then went over to Jenni to see if she was the same!  And a little boy even rubbed Jenni’s leg to investigate.  Once we finally made it back into the van, our professor Jane told us it was probably the first time those children had ever seen a mzunugu (white person) and it will be a memory they will never forget.  She said they will be talking about it for days to their parents and friends.  At first, this seemed sweet, but then Jenni and I realized the weight of the social implications of what Jane had said.  The children seemed to put us on a pedestal like famous celebrities because of our skin.  I’ll go more in-depth about my experience as a minority while still having privilege in a later blog post!

Overall, we had an amazing and eye-opening day learning from different schools across Kenya.

Nilibusu twiga! (I kissed a giraffe!)

     Two weeks ago, I took a break from traveling and spent the weekend in Nairobi.  On Saturday, I decided to take my brothers to the Giraffe Center just outside of Nairobi.  In the 120 acres of protected land, the center breeds endangered Rothschild Giraffes.  After about two years, all of the giraffes are introduced back into the wild in selected protected Kenyan lands.  We all had a lot of fun petting and especially feeding the giraffes.  My little brother Kyle (6 years old) was scared of the big giraffes and decided to make sure the baby giraffe was completely full by the time we left (he didn’t stop running back to get more food for a full twenty minutes)!  He also was scared of touching the tongue so he would throw the food at the baby’s tongue expecting the giraffe to be able to quickly maneuver his tongue to catch the small piece of food. (haha) Leanew (11 years old) had fun feeding the giraffes too, but I think he had even more fun taking pictures and videos of all of the people and giraffes!  He’s the one who captured my kiss with the giraffe!  The poor giraffe….I had to kiss him about six times before Leanew got it on camera!  

At least the giraffe got plenty of food out of the deal (I had to place a piece of food in my lips and the giraffes grabs it with his tongue).  Besides a little slobber and a slightly scratchy tongue, I’d say the giraffe was a decent kisser! : P  After we read about the giraffes and fed the giraffes one more time, we enjoyed some KFC (KFC is the only American fast food chain in Kenya. There are rumors of a McDonalds in Nairobi coming soon, but I’m not sure if that’s true.)  Because chicken is pretty expensive here in Kenya, the boys usually only have chicken for special occasions so they were excited to be eating some fried chicken!  Overall, it was a great day with my two little brothers!  (My parents decided I shouldn’t bring TJ (two years old) as he is only two and they weren’t sure how he’d react to giraffes.)

    

A Weekend of Hiking and Biking

Each weekend I seem to transform from a student and resident of Nairobi into an American tourist!  Though I am becoming more accustomed to living in Nairobi each day, it’s still a lot of fun to get out of the chaotic city and soak in the clean air, sun, and beautiful scenery in Kenya!  Last weekend we took a two separate day trips to Mount Longonot and Hell’s Gate, which are both about an hour from Nairobi by bus. 

Mt. Longonot 

Mt. Longonot is an extinct volcano located just 90 km outside of Nairobi.  With fresh legs and full water bottles, we were all ready to conquer Mt. Longonot at about 10 AM on Saturday.  The hike started off great as the trail leading up to the crater rim was relatively easy.  The last ten or fifteen minutes were pretty steep, but we thought for sure that would be the worst of the hike for the whole day so we pushed through it.   

After reaching the top, we decided to eat our packed lunches under an acacia tree (the trees most people think of in the Lion King or an African safari).  Following lunch we were looking forward to a nice stroll around the rim of the crater.  Though we knew it’d take three or fours hours to make it around the whole crater, we didn’t think there would be much intense hiking.  We couldn’t have been more wrong! We have learned that Kenyans and Americans have very definitions of the word “hike.”  To us a hike is a trail with some moderate inclines.  Here a hike is a trail path with steep inclines and some moderate rock climbing.  For an example, our two Kenyan bus drivers came with us on the hike and I don’t think they sweat or breathed hard for one moment of the hike.  They also only shared a half a bottle of water the whole day!  We all definitely felt incompetent in comparison as we were dripping in sweat and had about three water bottles each!

Exhibit A of Climbing Skills: 
Using every limb I have

Our leisurely stroll around the crater quickly turned into quite the hike.  The crater itself is 2150 meters above sea level and the highest peak along the rim is 2776 meters.  The hardest part about the hike to the top was the areas of ash and loose rocks.  We seemed to be slipping and sliding everywhere!  I was on all fours most of the time! And I’m not going to lie…I did not look graceful or the least bit athletic! 




It was definitely all worth it though once we reached the top.  The view was breathtaking!  After reaching the peak, there was a lot of downhill terrain in the same ash and uneven rocks.  This was my least favorite of the hike! I’ve always known that I don’t like downhill hiking (or running), but this brought my dislike to a whole new level! My two friends, Maggie and Jenni, and I were always pretty far behind the rest of the group as we carefully tried to maneuver the downhill terrain without falling off or down the crater! At one point, we were hysterically laughing as we realized how ridiculous we looked scooting down the rocks on our butts or walking so gingerly between and around rocks that we looked like grandmas walking with walkers.  After three hours, we finally made it around the crater and started to make our way down the crater.

Exhibit B of Climbing Skills:  At this moment I was stuck with my legs in a split still deciding what to do next. 

On our way down, we saw the neck of a giraffe off in the distance snacking on some of the tree leaves.  It was such a surreal moment as we weren’t expecting to see a giraffe.  Shortly after the giraffe sighting, we finally made it to the main gate.  I had never been so happy to see flat land, water to clean off all the ash on my legs/feet/hands, and pop and tomato chips (they have these delicious chips that are tomato flavored…it sounds gross, but they are so good, especially after a six hour hike!).  Though the hike was a lot more difficult than we expected, it was a beautiful day and I wouldn’t have wanted to be doing anything else.

Hell’s Gate

Hell’s Gate is a national park not far from Mt. Longonot outside of Nairobi.  The park was actually the inspiration of the setting in The Lion King!  Crew members for the film were even sent to the park to gain a sense of the environment for the movie.  It is home to zebras, giraffes, water buffalo, warthogs, impalas, and baboons amongst others!  Most people go to Hell’s Gate to see the beautiful wildlife or go rock climbing.  Many people rent bikes to ride through the park to see the wildlife.  I had been looking forward to this day ever since I had heard a previous MSID student talk about it this fall.  I definitely was not disappointed!   

The moment I started riding my bike in the beautiful park, I couldn’t help but smile from ear to ear!  The weather was absolutely perfect, sunny with a little breeze and it was a lot of fun being back on a bike again!  Along our 8 km ride through the park, I saw zebras, giraffes, water buffalo, and impalas.  The zebras were so close I felt like I could reach out and touch them!  At the end of the 8 km I was so disappointed because I could’ve ridden that bike all day!  At the end of the trail, we ate lunch under a picnic area at the park.  About two minutes into our lunch, we noticed there were baboons hanging around the picnic tables.  They looked and acted a lot like the ones at Lake Nakuru.  All of the sudden, my friend Matt was pointing and said, “Jenna! Look out, behind you!”  Within a split second, before any of us could react, a baboon jumped onto the picnic table and stole my friend Maggie’s mango right off of the table! Oh my goodness!   

We didn’t know if we should be mortified or laugh at the absurdity of what had just happened.  After lunch, we were led on a two-hour hike in the gorge.  Hell’s Gate Gorge is said to be the home of the devil!  Throughout the tour we were shown the devil’s kitchen, bedroom, and shower.  His shower comes from hot springs flowing down the rocks.  The water was so hot the rocks were actually steaming.  Walking in the gorge with the rocks towering on either side was gorgeous!  This hike was a lot less strenuous than Mt. Longonot, but we did rock climb a little because what’s a Kenyan hike without some rock climbing?!  After a short stay in the devil’s home, we climbed up a gorgeous viewpoint overlooking the park and were painted (paint=water and orange dirt) in the Maasai traditional fashion (like Simba in the Lion King!).  My pictures can’t completely capture the breath taking scenery.

Moments like standing on the highest peak of Mt. Longonot soaking in the sun or riding through Hell’s Gate with the wind against my face make me feel especially thankful and blessed to be having such an amazing, once in a life time experience.  I am so lucky to not only be learning from living and studying in Nairobi, but also to have the opportunity to travel and experience all the beautiful places in Kenya.