Kenya, an introduction

Ok, Kenya. First off, I am typing this in word and then will hopefully be able to paste it into the blog later or tomorrow, or when I can be bothered faffing with the really slow internet cable. So any references to today or yesterday may be inaccurate, I am writing this on 25th June.

When I first got to Kenya I was picked up from the Airport by Zack and Edith (Geoffrey’s brother and wife, Geoffrey is the owner or manager or founder of the organization). They drove me to the orphanage, about 1 hour away. First impressions of Kenya were not good as we drove through the outskirts of Nairobi, slums everywhere, the roads were in a state, in some areas it was common practice for all the cars to drive on the pavements (just dirt and gravel, not pavements like at home) because they were in better condition. The area surrounding the orphanage, probably similar to most of Kenya, is amazing though, just farmland everywhere, the people are all really friendly (mainly because we are white I think). Any kids that you walk past on the dirt roads will say “How are you?” constantly, not looking for a response as they keep saying it after you reply, I think they just like to say something that they think we will understand.

The orphanage has about 25 kids, I know most of the names now, but I still get confused between some of the girls. The kids are all great, if a little bit spoilt. It’s strange that they can have so little and yet still come across that way, but I guess that some volunteers give them everything they want. A few nights ago I made the mistake of making a paper plane, then I was bombarded with requests for more from other kids, and no matter how many I made I had to stop at some point, so I was always going to come across as the bad guy that stopped making planes.

There are a few buildings on the compound, the boys dorm, the girls dorm, the volunteer rooms, an office, a hall and a kitchen. There are two classrooms, one of which has recently been completed apart from the windows. The toilets and showers don’t really count as buildings. Or even as toilets and showers come to think of it. The toilets are just holes (think more permanent Leeds fest toilets, but without a seat, not that anyone wants to sit on one here or at leeds fest anway) and the showers are just rooms with a drain in one corner and you use a bucket of water.

On Saturday I think it was, we completed a biogas project that was started a few months ago, basically we had to mix cow poo and water together and then let it drain into a hole into a huge room underground where it produces methane, which is then piped into the kitchen for cooking, which until now had been done on wood. Now that the biogas chamber is full, the idea is that the four cows (one of which I helped to buy and walk back to the orphanage on my second day here) will produce enough manure to sustain it.

Aswell as helping with the biogas and painting the classroom, I’ve helped at the farm, which is about 10 mins walk from the orphanage and grows a lot of the food that the kids and volunteers eat. Which brings me onto the food. Its not the best. Lots of beans and maize. The best day is Friday because we have this bread, called chapatti, which is flat and tastes good. There’s also this stuff called ugali which we have some days, it’s just white stodgy empty carbs, I think its made of flour.

The nearest village is called Pundamillia, which has a few little huts, sells a few fruits and vegetables and doesn’t have any fridges, which seems to be how the volunteers rank villages. Next closest, about 30 mins walk away, is Makuyu, has 3 fridges, sells a few more fruit and veg, has a market on Sundays. Then there is Thika, 3rd largest town in Kenya after Nairobi and Mombasa. That’s where the internet café is. To get there you have to get a Matatu, which is like a little bus. I think they have 14 seats, but that doesn’t matter, my first trip to Thika had 21 people in the Matatu.

I’ve also discovered that I’m apparently quite good at volleyball, I guess I had to be good at some sport.

At the moment there aren’t too many volunteers, which is good as it means there is more to do. There are 2 Germans called Hannes and Maria. Americans called Amanda, Ashley, Angie, Doug, Alena. A Canadian called Sabrina. And the two Boss volunteers Devon and Anne, who are here for a year with their two kids Naya and Kai, and only recently took over from Aaron and Kaitlin who were here for nearly 2 years. We’ve been told we get 4 more volunteers on Friday, 2 boys and 2 girls, one of which will be you Jarka, unless you meant next Friday as in next week.

I think that’s all for now, I’m trying to avoid doing day by day as it’d take me ages to catch up.

On the day Aaron and Kaitlin left, James, one of the orphans, managed to hit a bird with a rock, stunning it and then picked it up and carried it around for a while. That was weird.

Ok, byeee