Jambo!

Kenya has been quite an experience so far.

A summary of the past few days:

Day 1, Saturday, 31/7

Arrived in Nairobi at 8am at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Ran into travel document issues at the immigration. Threatened with deportation because I did not own a passport. An hour of drama later (which involved a crash course into the idiosyncrasies of Brunei's citizenship laws, some puppy-eyed pleading on my part, and divine intervention), I finally got through immigration. Picked up by Oliver, the coordinator from Fadhili Community (my host organization). Taken to his flat (which a volunteer described as "an island in a sea of slums") in Kawangware, a quickly expanding shanty about half an hour from Nairobi city, where I was to be housed temporarily until assigned to my project.

My first impressions of Kenya (as far as the drive from the airport to Kawangware is concerned)? Nairobi's a fairly "modern-looking" city in terms of architecture, and the highway connecting the airport to the city was in excellent condition. Billboards along the highway and shop signs flaunted fluent English (surprisingly, I haven't seen any that's in Swahili). I was also a little overwhelmed by the air pollution, and the fact that the weather's much chillier than I expected (low 20s).

My first experience of Africa was ironically a western one. In the afternoon, I went with other volunteers (who hailed mainly from the US, UK, and Australia) to Nakumatt Junction (the Kenyan version of Walmart) to stock up on necessities. Then we had lunch at Java, a multi-cuisine restaurant that catered mainly to local expats and foreigners. For a second, I thought I was in Europe; there were lots of mzungus (Swahili for white people), and several volunteers ordered scones and drank tea. I ordered an Indonesian curry dish that somewhat reminded me of home.

The rich-poor divide somewhat took me by surprise. Just a few minutes off the orderly, concrete highway, the roads rapidly deteriorated into a series of muddy and rocky paths. Glass-paneled buildings quickly gave way to little shacks constructed out of corrugated iron and planks of decaying wood. The traffic, especially in Kawangware, was extremely chaotic as the ubiquitous matatus (passenger vans) weaved in and out of traffic and pedestrians crossed the roads in a haphazard fashion. At Nakumatt Junction, on the other hand, BMWs and Mercedes graced the parking lot, and several traffic lights promised some measure of order and safety.

Later that night, we hired a matatu to go clubbing in the city. African beer is pretty cheap (around $2 for a bottle of Tusker). After drinks, we grooved to African music on a small dance floor. The mzungu girls in our group were hit on repeatedly by the locals (one girl was simply grabbed and kissed on the cheek by an intoxicated middle-aged man, and I had to help "extricate" her).

It was a tiring, but good first day.

Day 2, Sunday, 1/8

Watched orphaned elephants getting fed out of humongous milk bottles. Kissed (photo evidence to be uploaded later) a giraffe named Daisy (who wasn't always nice, as she dismissed another volunteer with a "head-butt" when she did not have any food to offer). Held a baby crocodile. Fed a bunch of somewhat aggressive monkeys out of my palms (several volunteers simply had their peanut packages yanked out of their hands). Went shopping at a Maasai market, but left early when a somewhat dramatic argument broke out (cause unclear) between two sellers. What an eventful day.

Day 3, Monday, 2/8

Orientation day. Found out I'd be working with the HIV Foundation with another volunteer, Amy from Canada, and staying with Naomi. Transported to my permanent lodging in Ngong town, about an hour from Nairobi city.

Day 4, Tuesday, 3/8

First day of work. In the morning, we met up with the project coordinator, Kinyua, and took the matatu to Providence VCT (Voluntary Counseling and Testing Center, more details later) in Karen. Veronica (a local volunteer at Providence) taught us how to use a HIV/AIDS testing kit. In the afternoon, Judith (another Providence worker) took us to visit her home and her four children. She showed us how to make ugali, a traditional Kenyan dish prepared by stirring maize flour above a charcoal stove. Later, her children (3 girls and a boy, ages 3-15) attempted to teach Amy and me hip-hop (ALL the Kenyan youth I've met so far can do hip-hop!). Later in the evening, we were invited for dinner in the home of Nicholas and Peninah, the founders of Providence VCT. We were treated to a delicious meal of rice, spicy beef, beans and maize, peas, collard greens, and fruits. The hospitality was truly amazing =)

Day 5, Wednesday, 4/8

As a safety precaution, all volunteers are staying indoors in view of the Kenyan elections that are taking place today (the 2007 Kenyan Elections ended with a lot of violence and bloodshed on the streets). Which gives me some time to update my blog.

My host mother's name is Naomi. She keeps the apartment extremely clean, and cooks for the volunteers with the help of her cousin, Aminah, the single mother of an infant child. Naomi's two nephews (Izzo and Isaac, 16 and 20 respectively) and niece (Josephine, 12) are also staying with us. Right now, there are seven volunteers (myself included) living in the apartment. More details about the family later.



I'm fairly excited about my project placement. We had a "coordination meeting" yesterday to plan out our activities for the next two weeks. Amy and I will be visiting several slums (Kambikisii, Matassia, Lenana) to do HIV/AIDS outreach. We will be talking to HIV-positive patients about the importance of nutrition, tracking their treatment adherence, as well as providing home-based care (cooking and cleaning?) for PLWAs (People Living with AIDS).