Well-wishers commonly advise me to "Be Safe." While I'm not eager to take unnecessary risks, if safety was my primary issue, I'd have stayed home. When traveling in foreign lands, one follows some simple rules; keep your money safe, be friendly, and try not to break cultural taboos. In Kenya I can't help but stand out. After all, I'm nearly the only white face in all of Kisii. (There's a very small minority of Indians). They call white skinned folks "Mazungos." I've walked through downtown Kisii so many times with Angela that I'm known as "Angela's Mazungo." People smile and wave and shake my hand. Everyone here shakes hands -- even four-year-olds will rush up to me and say "How are you?" and shake my hand. Every now and then someone doesn't like white men and will lecture Angela in rapid Swahili to be careful about me. She snubs them.
Safety here is a minor issue. Not everyone is honest, that is, they will quote me a price for something that is twice or three times what they'd charge a native, but they are trustworthy. That is, they will not rob or steal. Not EVERYONE is that trustworthy. There was an article in the paper yesterday about someone who left his laptop on the bus when it stopped for lunch and someone ran off with it, but it was in the paper because thievery is so uncommon. In fact, if the community suspects a person of being a thief they'll come to their house in the night, rouse them out and murder them, leaving their heads on the roadway.
Not that life is that safe in general. Walking down the roads (which everyone does) is likely to get you hit by a wild driving taxi driver, matatu (bus), or motorcycle. Cost per transport for these three run, respectively, $2, 40 cents, and 10 cents. That is, for a dime you can get on the back of a motorcycle and they'll take you anywhere in town you want to go. I prefer walking.
In America people used to be identified by nationality; Irish, German, Spanish, etc., though now with the "melting pot" this is less common. In Kenya everyone belongs to a tribe. Kisii town is the center of the Kisii tribe. Most Africans can tell what tribe a person is from just by looking at them. Kisii's are known for their industriousness. The streets are lined with vendors selling everything imaginable; oranges, rice, corn, wallets, shoes, and people walking around selling magazines and peanuts and locks, and tailors on the sidewalk with their old Singer machines, and little hole-in-the-wall shops with specialties of all types. The sidewalk vendors group by type, so sitting on one wall there are 20 orange sellers, while at their feet on the sidewalk sit a dozen onion saleswomen. Bananas are 5 cents each. Newspapers 40 cents. They're all laughing and talking with each other and passerbys. Nobody's fat, as they're underfed and tend to walk everywhere.
Angela and I spent last weekend in Masai Mara preserve and the one before in Nakuru Lake reserve. All poaching, that is, killing of all wild animals, was outlawed in 1976. The exception is when the lions leave the reserve and start killing chickens or cows of the Masai (the tribe around the Masai Mara area), in which case they are allowed to kill the lion, but not with a gun. It used to be custom for a Masai boy to prove his manhood by going out to kill a lion. They ran a pretty even ratio, that is, one lion killed for every boy killed, but the government forbids that now. The Masai, unlike the Kisiis, are not industrious. They're herders, counting their fortunes by the size of their herds. Masai Mara preserve is 1,600 sq km, so the area is quite large. This visit wasn't as photogenic as last trip, though I have many pictures of elephants, zebras, and giraffes to show. I'll post when I get back.
I'm looking forward to my return to the states. Last year when I returned one of the most striking difference was driving on the roads. In Kenya there are no streetlights, the roads have no speed limits, there are speed bumps to keep people down, most of the roads are unpaved, people walk on the sides of the roads all hours and in all weather, there are no lane markings, vehicles swerve all over the roads and pass slower moving vehicles even on curves and hills, and small villages with their marketplaces pop up every few kilometers. There are no wild animals on the sides of the road, even at night.
But what I'm looking forward to most is food. I haven't lost weight this trip, I think. It's hard to tell because there are no scales around. Well, you can pay 10 Ksh and get weighed by a vendor on the sidewalk, yes, he sits there all day next to his scale collecting money to weigh people. But I haven't done that. Mostly I'm looking forward to a menu variety. I'm tired of chicken and fish. It's a healthy diet. We eat a lot of fresh fruit and vegetables; bananas, carrots, tomatoes, avocados, mango, and papaya are frequent. No chocolate, Mexican, seafood (other than baked whole fish), or lettuce.
Today was my last day at the hospital. I paid $35 and had people bring up two crates of soft drinks, a box of milk cartons, and 30 loaves of bread. That's a party in Keumbu! Thirty people or so gathered on the lawn and we had speeches and took photographs. I'll miss the good friends I've made, but most of all Angela. As head physician at the hospital she's educated, beautiful, spunky, and all-over amazing! Last year when I left I thought I could bring her for a visit to America to show western culture, and perhaps get some educational opportunities. Twice she went to the American Embassy to apply for a visa, but she was rejected each time. Even though the second time I had Senator Wicker's office write a letter of personal appeal. Apparently the bureaucrats don't care. They won't grant a single Kenya woman a visa.
I'm leaving with a great sense of accomplishment. The project is not finished. When I get back I'll send about $1500 by Western Union for replacement of the gutters. With that, water will flow! With another $250 I'll be purchasing one large purifier and three small ones so the water will be drinkable. People might wonder why I spent $10,000 of my money on traveling to Kenya and on the water project. To me, I can't think of a better way to spend my money than saving the lives of thousands.
Thanks for following my blog. I'll be continuing it for a bit once I return.
Philip
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