My New Home

How does one begin to describe life in Africa? Shall I first tell about the bugs that crawl around your feet when utilizing the facilities, the streets which are lined with trash and filth, or the children who shriek mzungu! mzungu! everytime you pass? Maybe I should portray the beautiful scenery, my first taste of real wildlife, or the unconditional kindness of the Kenyan people. I believe it is best if I just begin with my arrival in Nairobi after a long and exhausting journey.

After receiving my visa and collecting my bags I was greeted by two men holding a sign with my name.  On the car ride to the house, Calvin and Gems described Kenyan culture and how children are raised.  By the time a child is 7, they can speak 3 languages: their local dialect, Swahili, and English.  Impressive. Although it was dark, I could nonetheless sense that I was in a different world and surrounded by immense poverty. Gems house, however, was in a nice neighborhood and I was welcomed by his wife, Alice, and children 4 year old girl Gewell and 7 year old boy Gayang. Alice had prepared a big delicious meal for me and they all did their best to make me feel comfortable on my first night in Kenya.  I played a bit with the children, read Jack and the Beanstalk to Gewell, and then retired to my bed. 

The bus ride to Kisumu took about 8 hours and after my sleepless nights, it was extremely draining. Nonetheless, I attempted to remain conscious and was rewarded with the most beautiful scenery (as well as my sighting of zebras along the road!). Silas and Patrick, the chairman of the dispensary, were at the bus station to collect me and took me to the house where I will be staying for the next 6 months.  The first night in the house was very difficult for me. I was exhausted, homesick, and realized how different my life will be in Africa.

Getting a table this week!

After starting my day, however, my emotions drastically improved and I began to become accustomed to this new way of life.  I am living with Francesca and Andrea, both 26 and from Chile. Francesca is here working as a journalist and Andrea is a doctor working in the clinic. The house also belongs to Kenneth and Lily who are natives and are helping me adapt to the Kenyan culture. At 8pm every evening, we all become engrossed in Andrea’s favorite Spanish soap opera. It has terrible English voice-overs and highly exaggerated drama.  It is quite possibly the most horrendous show I have ever seen and I absolutely love it. We laugh hysterically at the actors and constantly strive to mimic their “acting skills.” The house is very big and nice by Kenyan standards but there is no running water and we must collect rain water from the big tank outside to shower.  This is also the water that we use for cooking, washing our hands, drinking, dishes, etc.  We boil the water for 2 minutes to make sure it is safe. No need for exercise in Kenya, lugging in buckets of water every day might possibly use more effort than I’ve exerted in years ;-). We purchase most of our food at the market located around the corner of our house and eat LOTS of cabbage, tomatoes, avocados and Ugali (flour and water mix). Definitely not my favorite.  

Today, Francesca took me to Kisumu to buy some essentials that I needed.  We took a Matatu which is basically a bus crammed with as many people as possible.  They attempted to charge us the “mzungu rate”, but Francesca refused to pay any more than the locals.  I am learning from her how to be stubborn and firm with the people here when it comes to negotiating prices.   It is a very good skill to have.  We strolled through the second largest market in Africa and I experienced the poverty first hand.  Kenyan people also rarely use a trash can so the streets are filled with trash, flies, and dead fish.  On a more positive note, all the people here are extremely kind and I am looking forward to my first day of work tomorrow.

Things are not perfect but I am quickly adapting.  I am on an amazing adventure and have been blessed with this opportunity. There are many obstacles that I must tackle but I have faith I will prevail. I learn from each experience and will become a better and stronger person because of it.  For the meantime, I am a Kenyan and this is my home.

Love, Saskia

 “When we make a change, it’s so easy to interpret our unsettledness as unhappiness, and our unhappiness as a result of having made the wrong decision.  Our mental and emotional states fluctuate madly when we make big changes in our lives, and some days we could tight rope across Manhattan, and other days we are too weary to clean our teeth.  This is normal.  This is natural.  This is change.”

                                                                                                                -Jeanette Winterson