The Clashes

One of the issues that has come up in discussion with people I’ve met from all walks in life here in Kenya is “the clashes”---the political unrest that erupted into violence back in January of this year. It genuinely seems to have upset everyone, and everyone seems eager to reassure us that things are settled now, and that the violence was a brief aberration in Kenya’s history. I can tell that people were scared, that the spectre of lawlessness and protracted political violence seems all too possible in Africa, and that no one wants to see that happen here in Kenya. That said, there is still a lot of frustration with the situation. Most people are at pains to avow that all is peaceful now, that Kikiyu and Luo have forgiven and forgotten….but the supporters of Odinga will justifiably point out that he WAS cheated out of the election, and supporters of Kibaki will justifiably point out that Odinga incited the violence… One conversation in particular remains in my mind---Phyllis and I were touring the Gede ruins in Watamu—we were accompanied by a guide and by our taxi driver, Johnson, a well-spoken and engaging young man. Our guide had been a particularly humorless companion—impossible to distract from his rehearsed lines---until Phyllis asked them both how things were recovering from the troubles. Like nearly everyone else we talked to, Johnson was quick to reassure us that everything was fine now, but the guide finally went off-script to make the point that everyone knows the Kikiyu had it coming, and that everyone knows that all the Kikiyu want to cheat everyone else, etc. etc.---it was the first, and only time that I heard anyone verbalizing some of the race issues that led to all of this---When Phyllis made the point to him that peace is the important thing now, and that she has workers from all different tribes, and that no one tribe can be called good or bad, etc.,,,, the guide backed down a bit, but not too quickly---later on, as we all paused at the gift shop, he turned to some of his friends, and laughingly introduced Phyllis as “a Kikiyu”----she called him on it, and insisted on an apology, which he finally offered---not that Phyllis saw the term Kikiyu as an insult, but it was obvious that this man did, and Phyllis said that during the clashes, this was the way participants labeled anyone who was seen as supporting the ‘other side’---it was a sobering moment, and I suspect a great deal of this kind of thinking is going on just under the surface….

Here is a shot of our guide looking deceptively light-hearted and cheery!---he wasn't!!--but he kindof insisted on getting into our photos and striking these funloving poses......hmmmm.....

On a more optimistic note, my two safari guides felt sure that the peace would hold---they pointed out that they were friends, and had no problem working together, even tho’ Evans is a Kikiyu and Bonifice is a Kamba (the Kamba supported the opposition party)----let’s hope that’s the template for the future….

Three Kenyan Families (well, two, actually!)

While visiting here in Kenya, I've had the opportunity to visit and talk with people who span a wide range of social and cultural positions. I thought I'd talk a little bit about three of the families I've met---it's been a pretty amazing experience---I thought I'd start with our trip to attend church, and have lunch with, a Masai family:

Last Sunday, Rick, Phyllis and I drove down into the valley (the Rift Valley, that is!) to visit with the family of one of the Kenyan employees of RVA (the school where Rick and Phyllis work). Gibbon is one of the security guards at the school, and, as is common of security guards in this area, he is a member of the Masai tribe. We picked up a friend of Gibbon's--Fred--and drove nearly an hour and a half to get to the area where Gibbon and his extended family have their holdings. Here are some giraffes he spotted in the distance as we neared their compound---so he instructed Rick to just drive off into the bush to get up close and see them!---then we drove back to the road and continued on to his house...Because it is so far away from Kijabe, Gibbon only comes home on the weekends. We arrived in time for the church service at the Assembly of God church.

After parking the truck under the shade of a tree with a small herd of cows, we went on inside to join the congregation of brightly dressed Masai worshippers. Actually, now that I look back on it, it really was the women who came to church in traditional Masai dress (complete with beautiful beaded necklaces and earrings)---the men wore suits. I'm not sure if the preachers were speaking Kiswahili or Masai, but I didn't understand a word---which was fine--it gave me an opportunity to just sort of meditate on how exotic, and yet how universal, my surroundings were. The women were dressed in their Sunday best, the children were cute as could be, and restive during the long service, peeking shyly at the strangers in their midst, and occasionally misbehaving---we were all spending some time thinking about God in our own ways---then the singing started---four different choirs got up and did their thing---singing songs that the congregation knew, and sang along with---I joined in, too---it was easy enough to pick up the tunes!--and then dancing--back and forth, around and around---once the choirs were done, everyone went on up front, and we all danced together!---at our clumsy efforts, the children finally warmed up, and began laughing and holding our hands---we gave them great entertainment in return for their beautiful singing and dancing!!----when we went back to our seats, we were surrounded by children who competed to see who could sit the closest to the strangers, trying their best to squirm into our laps, stroking my long, fine hair, and doing lots of giggling---after 2 hours of church, we finally climbed back into the truck to go to Gibbons house for lunch---recently married, Gibbon has had a tin house built for himself and his wife---(here they are in this photo in front of it--)this is a source of pride for him, made possible by the regular employment he has at the school--however, the kitchen is located in an adjacent building, constucted in the traditional method with sticks and mud (and cow manure, too, I've heard!) We admire the wedding photos of Gibbon and his wife, Jackie---they were all in traditional dress for that--a lovely couple--and then we are served dinner. Jackie brings in the food, and helps to serve us, but then she leaves, and it's just the men and Phyllis and me---we eat, compliment the food, and talk a bit ---then Gibbon takes me out to meet his sister-in-law, who is in the traditional round, mud and stick house nearby---the door is tiny--even I have to lean down to get through--inside, it is cooler, but so dark that I can barely make my way to the seat that Gibbon points to---there is a fire going in the center of the room, and a small hole in the wall allows some of the smoke to escape, but it's pretty suffocating to me---as my eyes slowly become accustomed to the dark, I can make out a woman across the fire from me, and I realize I'm sitting on a low platform that is also serving as a bed for someone behind me---Gibbon tells me that in the Masai tradition, a couple must prepare their home compound--it is up to the man to build the acacia-tree fence around the compound, but up to the woman to build the house--it usually takes up to 2 months---she often gets help from her friends to put the roof on, but other than that, she's on her own!--I compliment her on the amazing job she's done---way better than I could!---and we return to the sunny, hot, but refreshingly airy outdoors---while out there, we take some pictures, meet Gibbon's dad, who has four wives, and wants to show us his compound, and his herd of cattle. His dad is dressed as a traditional Masai, with his red blanket, his staff, and his short stick w/ a metal top (used for whacking things---like heads, I think!)---he speaks no English, but it's pretty clear that he admires Rick's hat---he tries the direct approach, just transferring it from Rick's head to his, but Rick reclaims it---and we climb back into the truck to go home----it's been a wonderful day, listening to singing, watching the dancing, and exploring a traditional culture that is, surprisingly, managing to survive in this day and age---the Masai seem determined to hold on tightly to their traditions--maybe in part because they represent an ideal that continues to resonate with Kenyans across the board---other tribes may not agree with, or particularly like the Masai, but they do respect and admire their sheer presence--aside from their physical stature (think tall!), these are warriors, who have killed a lion in order to achieve that status----(altho' I have to admit, I've thought---how many lions are out there??? aren't they going to run out of lions one of these days???? hmmmm....I never did ask.....)---they do hold themselves with a certain assuredness---they've got---charisma!---so there is a strong incentive to continue those traditions that imbue them with this mystique, I would think---still, it's not an easy life, and not a particularly lucrative one, either, unless you're counting cows......

thanks to Phyllis for almost ALL of the photos of our trip to Gibbon's church and home!--I did lots of watching, and listening, singing, and dancing---she did most of the snapping!!!

A few days later, we drove another of Rick's workers home to his property in the hilly country up behind the school--only about a 20 minute drive. Mwenga, a plumber at RVA, lives with his wife and four children on a farm on which he raises vegetables, chickens, and a few cows. His farm is bordered on all sides by the farms of his extended family---brothers, sisters, nephews, etc.... His shamba, or garden, reminds me of my mother's garden back home--it seems to be looking very healthy and productive compared to most of the gardens I've seen on my visit (everyone keeps commenting on what a dry season they're having)--and it turns out that, due to his plumbing expertise, he has managed to set up a system of pipes to bring water up to all of his family's farms--one of the brothers works in refrigeration, and has been able to help with the solar energy system they use for their electricity, and another brother is a carpenter, who has helped to build many of the family outbuildings---this is an extended Kikiyu family, and one can see how this industriousness, and determination to improve their holdings, has resulted, over the years, in the Kikiyu being the well-to-do class in Kenya, and in their being the focus of some anger and jealousy on the part of other tribes...This is a well-educated family by Kenyan standards---we meet Samuel, the 18-yr.old son, who is home on term break from the secondary school he attends--as we sit around the living room after supper, he asks many astute questions about the US--"What do you think about the electoral college being able to decide who wins your elections?"---"How do you manage to have peace in your country, without the kind of fighting we have in Africa?"--"What do you think about Obama?" "Will he win?"---"How is school in the US different from school here in Kenya--what subjects do students take?"---etc.etc.---Unlike other homes we've visited, here in Mwenga's home the women come and join the conversation after dinner has been eaten---his wife wants to know who I voted for in the primary--(MANY people ask me this--I'm really glad that I can, in all honesty, answer--"I voted for Obama!")--however, Mwenga's wife wants to know---"Why didn't you vote for Hilary Clinton---don't you think a woman should be president?"---I answer---"I absolutely think a woman could be president, and I would really LIKE a woman president--just not THIS woman---" at that, they all laugh---I wish I'd had a tape recorder, so I could have a record of all the conversation we had in that little living room, with its tin walls and dirt floor, illuminated by a single solar-powered light bulb---another one of those unexpected, unlooked-for, amazing experiences----unfortunately--as you may have noticed, we don't have ANY PICTURES---both Phyllis and I were just exhausted that night--we REALLY didn't want to go off and visit this family for supper--it was only Rick's insisting that we'd accepted the invitation that got us both into the car--we weren't expecting anything more than a boring evening trying to be polite, and neither one of us thought to bring a camera.....just goes to show you never know what's coming.....

And, finally---just days before I returned home, Phyllis took me to visit a tea farm, run by a white Kenyan family who have lived here for three--going on four--generations---I feel like I really need to put the rest of this on a separate post--I'm getting tired of writing, and you must be getting tired of reading!---here's what's coming up!!

tea country!!!

Just back from the Masai Mara

I thought I would just put up an email I wrote to Pedro last night---I really have been very busy going here and there, and experiencing very cool things, but just never seem to find the time to sit down and blog about it!----so here are a few reflections on my safari--

the overriding feeling I had was that it was REALLY AMAZING to see all of these beautiful animals that I've only seen in zoos, without that sad, guilty feeling that they really should all be out in the wild, because they ARE really out in the wild----anyway, here's the email----

Hi there, babe!--I'm back from my trip to the Masai Mara----LOTS of riding around in cars!!!! the roads in Kenya are terrible--and when they decide to fix a stretch of road, it gets even worse---that's when they just direct the traffic off of the road into the bush where you drive alongside until they direct you back up---and in true Kenyan fashion, they don't slow down for all of this---just slam on the brakes every now and then when the ruts and ditches become too deep to navigate at full speed----I think every bone in my body is rattled!!---the Mara was amazing, tho'--and I have lots and lots of pics---of lots and lots of animals---

elephants are very big, and lions are big, too--and hippos are big and very fat------

I like all the little antelopes, myself---and no matter how many zebra i see, they still look amazing to me--I slept in a tent in a campground guarded by Masai guys wrapped up in their red blankets--they really do walk around like that, it's not a tourist thing---it makes for some really striking images---the immense gold and blue of the savannah and sky, with a herd of cows in all shades of brown and the herdsman striding along in his red blanket-----too bad I never did get any shots of it!!!--you'll just have to imagine

here's some added narrative:---this was a little bit of animal adventure---we were about 10 feet or so from this lioness, who was relaxing while one of the males in the pride took a turn at the buffalo buffet---

soon, a hyena appeared, slowly making his way to the kill, obviously hoping to score some breakfast--

the lioness jumped right up, fixed that poor hyena with a stare that clearly said, "dream on, buddy, ---and while you're at it, do your dreaming somewhere else!"--the hyena made an attempt at circling around, to approach the kill from the other direction, but at that the lioness began to move in his direction--not willing to risk a confrontation, he disappeared....