Author: JB

As you may have seen the title of my blog has changed from Kenya to Namibia.  That’s right folks…I’m off to Opuwo, Namibia in early April.  The paperwork is in and I’m just waiting it out.  I’m sorry that things turned out the way they did; however, I feel that ultimately it was for the best.  I was able to come home and take care of some things in my life and now I’m ready to complete my journey.  I hope you’re looking forward to it as much as I am.

As many of you know, I have been back in the states for roughly 2 weeks after being displaced from Kenya due to the violence following the December 07 election.  I have been patiently waiting and deciding what to do…even after having been given the green light to return.  I received news today that the program in Kenya has been suspended for at least 4 weeks with a further review pending.  I’m sure this is the right move on the program’s part and has now left me in a quandary.  Perhaps you will find the next time you read my blog that I will be off to another country.  You may find that I have returned to work.  I’m not sure right now.  I’ll keep you posted and sorry for leaving you hanging for those who are reading.

I can tell you one thing about Cairo.  It’s huge.  25 million people huge.  Crazy crazy driving huge.  Lots of koshery (yummy food) huge.  Longest river in the world (Nile) huge.  I recommend a trip not for the pyramids, the mummies, the sphinx…but just for the culture and life of the city.

I am now officially added to the number of 250,000 displaced individuals as a result of the Kenyan elections of 2007.  My vacation has been extended in Egypt due my inability to return to Kenya per instruction.  We’ll see what happens.  I hope to share my tales from the past 4 weeks soon, but you’ve waited this long so perhaps you can wait just a little bit longer.

That’s right. I did it.  I bought me a car.  Now I just need to figure out how to get a license to drive here. I bought an old beat up Land Rover from a guy from South Carolina.  I actually knew the guy because I saw him in pictures from a friend I met here.  Small world.  I got a pretty good deal on a car that definitely has some age, but should be great for some weekend safaris and getting around town to actually see this city.  I’ll be sure and post the pics as soon as I get the car in my possession. 

I am currently on holiday and decided to join a fellow volunteer on a trip to the Mukuru slums in south eastern Nairobi.  The organization is Hope Worldwide and is actually an organization based in Philadelphia.  The day was designed to do a clean up of the neighborhood as well as providing some food for a couple of the families in the area.  It was a nice change of pace from my stuffy office life that I have even here in Kenya…can’t seem to escape it. Visiting the homes of the people was quite amazing.  The homes are no bigger than a 10 x 10 foot square and is only one room which is separated by a sheet.  Often there are 4 or 5 people living in this home.  One woman we met with told of us how she is currently HIV-positive and is happy to know her status.  Before she was getting sick and wasn’t sure of the cause.  She has since been able to get medication to help her feel better and is really happy to know that her latest child did not have the virus passed onto him with the help of medications and information.  This slum houses roughly 700,000 people, so I was told, and is the third largest in Nairobi.   I then spent the afternoon playing run away from the local kids who love to climb on JB.  They found my arms fascinating as though they couldn’t get enough.  I’d have 2 at a time hanging from my arms and I’d pick them up off the ground.  They also loved stealing my hat…good times.  I did finally escape the children for long enough to play a game of football (soccer).  Wasn’t the best because of my hiking boots, but I think I showed them that a mzungu can play at the game as well…I also now have a group I can play with more regularly at Nairobi university…awesome.   

Just wanted to alert you of some new videos that I have uploaded to my website. https://www.jbwoodruff.com/videos.php

An interesting phenomena that I have come across is the ritual of naming one’s matatu (mini-bus).  The owners have christened their vehicles with such fine names such as Casanova, Cold as Ice, Crunk Juice, Ludicrous, Nucleur and Gangsta…just to name a few.  As you can see in the picture it has moved beyond a simple name.

   

Matatus are being outfitted with plush pleather seats (yes, I wrote pleather), video screens and ear busting sounds systems. It’s the 21st century.

We set off on Friday (Nov 30) to go visit a volunteer couple (Alan and Sara) who are located at a school in Tala. It’s about 1 1/2 hours outside of Nairobi. It was great to see the eastern side of Nairobi…definitely a poorer area of town, highly populated and was really amazing to see the ‘real’ Kenya. The matatu ride was pretty painless…for a matatu ride. Roads weren’t too bad.

Tala is a small town of about 4000 people and there are definitely no white people around as determined by the number of stares received. It has one small supermarket and a couple other small shops and restaurants. The hotel looked like it was going to fall down. On the walk from the matatu stop we experienced the children who were amazed to see us with frequent calls of ‘mzungu’ and ‘british…hey british.’ Pretty funny stuff.

Students at the school made dinner for us that night. It rained a lot. We saw a hedgehog. I played some ping pong and showed off my skills on the table. No matter where I am in the world playing ping pong there’s always one certainty…Mike, you know what I’m talking about. Ate way too much ugali and promptly had a stomach ache. It was great being out in a quiet place and in a place that was basically free of people. Lots of bugs…. the largest moth known to man and some hedgehogs munching on some bugs.

The next day we made our way back toward Nairobi on an invitation to have lunch at one of the student’s homes in Eastlands, Nairobi. Eastlands is known as an area that is not very safe, highly populated and generally what life is like for most people in Nairobi…I found it to be pretty nice. The streets were mud streets with tons of puddles. Most of the homes were half completed…2-3 stories with a top story that was never finished. The dinner was great…tons of food that i have at every ‘traditional’ meal. Boiled chicken, beef stew with potatoes and carrots, cabbage, kale/spinach, ugali, potatoes, chapati and rice…really…every meal I have is this….every meal.

We walked around Eastlands and saw what it had to offer…plenty of funny looks and mzungu statements. Many were very eager to say hello, sell us items and just touch us…mainly the kids. I hit my head on a gate.

Getting back to Tala was where things got interesting. It was dark when we left…not ideal. We were in a bad part of town…another strike against us. There were 9 of us traveling together…virtually impossible to travel together. We split up and agreed to meet at the matatu stop. We got there first. We looked for a ride, but the girls were being picky and wanted a matatu with music for our 45 min ride….that was frustrating as we just wanted to get home. Then after convincing them that it didn’t matter we piled into one with broken lights…get back out. Wait some more. I was then offered beer, quat (mira), and other various illegal substances. Beer sounded good, but he mentioned they drug the beer…no beer. A matatu arrived with a bargain rate of 500ksh…it’s normally 100. Our friends argued it down to 150ksh. We pile in and enjoy a fast ride through the darkness…head lights are nominal. We arrive safely and Alan relates that there is a guard who has a bow and arrow with poison darts…good times. Enjoy another evening at Alan and Sara’s messing around, drinking some Tusker beers, and get to bed.

Next morning I have to leave early to get back to Nairobi for my trip to Kitui. Wake up toa mosquito outside of my net waiting to bite me…he fails. On the road back we pass a body on the side of the road which is surrounded by many people…clearly the gentleman in question is not alive. Kind of spooky. Traffic was miserable…it’s always miserable. We had to get out of the matatu and walk through downtown just to get back…extremely crowded…hawkers are making life difficult. Get back to my place alive and leave within 30 minutes for another safari (journey).

Something I’ve been meaning to mention for quite some time is the act of burning trash.  It’s common place among Kenyans, as there is very little infrastructure regarding waste management.  I have not had to do this myself…I just leave my garbage on my backdoor step and it magically disappears…but numerous other volunteers have mentioned it’s what they do.  At work we have a large pile out back that has clearly been burned many times.

Scraped my ankle this morning when getting out of the matatu. No worries…I won’t be bleeding to death and no rusty metal touched my skin. What hurts more right now is the singing coming from the kitchen at work.

Refrigeration is mine at last!!!!  Wahahahaha.  A cold beer has never tasted so good.  I can have leftovers.  Dairy products are back in my life.  Ice will soon chill my water.

If you’re looking to have a little taste of Kenya, but won’t be making the trip to join me. Head to your local specialty beer mart and pick yourself up some Tusker. It’s about $2 a bottle (500ml) and it’s tasty.

Got some more meat today. Thought I’d share the experience with you all. Forgot to get a shot of the butchers, but I’m sure I’ll be going back soon.

Nyamachoma = Roasted Meat