Wanere to Kenya, Akwaaba to Ghana

---

Wishing Kenya well. and welcome to Ghana!

Leaving Kenya was bittersweet. Time to go, but also wanting to stay. After three months, was attached to the Dago/Ranen community, Odoyo family, and other friends. My brief stay with the Maasai only showed me how much I missed when my two week program scheduled for February was cancelled. But, the short time there was valuable in making a connection with program hosts and community leaders, Emmanuel and wife Lilian. Also, in introduction to Maasai culture, basic history - had previously read, but got personal insight - and current lifestyle in the Transmara, which may be in the southern Rift Valley. Not sure where the boundary is. Though a short time with the people, they are lovely.

Emmanuel and Lilian are saintly people, giving all to their community. They are leaders in many programs, including widow microcredit, arts & crafts and education. Primary interests in education are excellence in school and student performance for advancing to high performance secondary schools, leading to university opportunities, and orphan education sponsorship. Emmanuel believes, as do I, that education is the key to poverty eradication. With that belief, Emmanuel is building a primary school on land that he purchased. Due to funds limitation, the school will begin as nursery - 3rd grade. As funds allow, a room will be added for another grade. Eventually, the goal is a boarding/day school serving primary and secondary grades. Emmanuel has enlisted the assistance of excellent retired teachers (govt. requires retirement at 55 in public schools) and administrators to consult and teach. Only excellence will be accepted. The school will aspire to compete with the best schools in the country, and prepare students for university educations. Although primarily a boarding school (the best schools in Kenya are boarding), the school will offer day school, but those students will miss out, as classes, programs, and study periods are conducted pre and post regular school hours, so expected that most students will eventually be boarding. High performance will bring in fees from those affording, and will help with scholarships for the poorest, including orphans, for whom Emmanuel will also be seeking sponsorships. Anyway, I gained a lot of insight and inspiration from Emmanuel, and for the most part, believe that individual orphan education sponsorship is the most effective funding method for helping to eliminate poverty in poor areas, especially those with many orphans. The Maasai, with their unique culture, was not highly affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, as other areas, such as Nyanza province, where I spent most of my time. But there are many orphans, due to parent deaths from a variety of diseases, especially of the poor, including malaria.

Leaving the village of Orongai, and the town of Kilgoris, we travelled towards Kericho, where Micky and I would take the bus to Nairobi. We stopped part way to attend an awards ceremony at a boarding school where Emmanuel and others are sponsoring 10 orphans from their community. The school started just a few years ago, and is now the top performing in it's community, and one of the top in the district. The well-planned ceremony included prestigious speakers from Moi University. Emmanuel was to speak, and ME! Another one of those very uncomfortable situations because of being a white visitor. Luckily, the other speakers took too much time, and it was raining (ceremony outside, but with some cover), so we didn't speak, but took part in a demonstration. We were told to don graduation caps and gowns, again for which I was most uncomfortable, and then led to stand in front of the audience. When I realized the purpose, I was glad to be a part. The speaker, a PhD level professor, was using us as a demonstration to inspire motivation and dreams by the young students. We wore gowns for 1 and 2 (masters), then he put one on for the 3rd degree. Then, the top boy and girl were dressed in cap and gown. I could see the pride in those students, and the dreams light up in the other children. In addition, teachers and students were awarded. Graduated students attending universities were brought to speak. I was glad I attended after all.

In Kericho, we spent the night at the New Sunshine Hotel, where I was surprised with excellent service, good food, and a nice room (not luxurious, but very clean and well-appointed. Had my first warm shower (my 2nd shower in Kenya - the first was an ice cold one when I first arrived in Dago). The shower head is right in the open bathroom between sink and toilet. Tiled floor and drain in corner. The toilet flushed well, which is a luxury in Kenya, at least for someone used to living in the rural area. The little things that can please one! It was raining and cold outside, so the warm room was welcomed, and all my clothes that had gotten wet in my bag from the leak in the car, dried overnight in the room - hung on every chair and rack available, including small things laid out on top of the mosquito net.

Goodbye to Emmanuel and Lilian (no more dear people exist) and on the bus to Nairobi. For a few hours, to beyond Nakuru, the road is miserable. Bumpy does not describe. My number one hated experience in Kenya, or anywhere now, for that matter, is being jarred, tossed, and bone crunched over miserable potholed/torn up roads in a vehicle. I would rather walk. Well, that's not a fair, since I love walking.

Note: power went out, and last half hour getting connected back to this page. Best internet place in closest town has been down for over 2 weeks. Others have closed, and this one is veeerrrrry slow. Can't connect to my gmail, and this site takes a long time to come up.

Back to my final hours in Kenya. In Nairobi, Wendy Gaya is a wonderful host and in-country coordinator for Village Volunteers. She lives in a nice 2 story home - owned by her parents Nathaniel and Hilda Gaya of my first program Barchando Poverty Eradication (or something like that - has been updated) in Majiwa Village. Cosmopolitan, lots of fun, and a great cook. We also went out for some delicious Ethiopian food, but not as good as Queen Sheba off Broadway on Cap Hill in Seattle. Micky and I went for the Safari Walk at the National Park in the city while Wendy attended church. The park is a wonderful adjunct to the city, and something to be proud of. We did the walk through safari, where a sample of several wild animals live in fairly natural settings, but are fed. Saw leopard, cheetah, crocodile, and albino zebra, which didn't see in the Maasai Mara. Park also has an area for vehicle safaris. Total area of park something over 100 sq km (km = .6 mi).

Nairobi is brew of upscale western, graduated all the way to squallid slums. Modern buildings and department stores coexist with ramshackle street traders. Matatus in the city are more regulated to comply with maximum load, etc., and hiphop in the vehicles at hearing-destruction decible levels. Wendy knows the system, so easy to get around. Except to leave. Monday morning traffic jam was even more than Wendy anticipated. She lives 1.5 km (.9 mi) from airport, so had taxi come at 6:45 for 9:30 departures. Took us 1.5 hrs. to go the 1.5 km. Then had custom check, and baggage weigh-in. Had to pay $55 for overweight before bags could be checked. Got to baggage check at 9:00! Thankfully, short line, and no one seemed concerned or rushed to get me to gate. I was going Kenya Airways, and Micky must have been having same experience at Virgin Atlantic. I knew was overweight, still hauling my health aids, mosquito repellents, sunscreens, and toiletries, plus clothes and various items I'd been collecting for 6 months. But, Wendy thought it might cost $150 to mail a box home, so decided to chance it at airport. Micky helped a huge bunch by taking 2 packages home for me as her checked luggage. I had cautioned her to pack very light. Unfortunately, a suitcase she brought full of nice barely used clothes and shoes for Dago girls was lost by either Virgin Atlantic, London Heathrow airport, or Emirates airline on her way to Kenya. Her VA flight was cancelled in London, and she was diverted on Emirates through Dubai (she was glad to experience Emirates - excellent service, food, and better seats/more room). Somewhere in the shuffle, the bag was lost - never to appear while she was in Kenya. If it every shows up, the girls can still benefit.

Kenya Airways service was excellent, some of my best in the air. Food ok, and complimentary fluids plentiful. Attendants most graceful and competent. If I had known better, could have saved almost half my fare between Kenya and Ghana if booked in Kenya instead of U.S. Next time.

After about 5 hours in the air, touchdown Accra, Ghana, the national capital, which lies on the Gulf of Guinea of the Atlantic Ocean - about central of the eastern half of the coast. After Kenya's temperate climate, at least for the past few months, Accra's hot, humid air hit like a blast at deplaning. Only in Accra for less than 24 hrs., I was soaked the entire time. Saw a small area of the city - a market, national buildings, including Parliament, arts & crafts center where I got to do some drumming with the guys in a shop, lots of pleading and dealing to try to sell me crafts and street items. Experienced some transportation. Matutus here are tro tros, but instead of Nissan vans are Mercedes minibuses - not fancy, but well-built, hardy and clean. Prices are set here, so no wondering if you are going to get your change, or price at the whim of the conductor. Also, one seat/one person, which is a nice change. Tro tros and taxi's are very cheap, 20-50 cents to go substantial distances.

At the market, some noticeable differences from Kenya were coconut and orange traders. Coconuts are a green variety (or are picked green) - no hard brown husk. Locals eat them like crazy, and the traders are constantly busy hacking open coconuts and cutting out soft meat. The juice is highly effective hydration/rehydration fluid. Some people drink the liquid first then have the trader cut out the meat. Others buy just the meat, which is usually from 1/4 or 1/3 of the coconut. It's soft and slippery, not chewy like the kind that is used for flakes. Also new to me is the way the traders sell oranges here. Though also sold unpeeled, vendors peel off the outer hard peel, leaving a firm coat of white. They cut off the top when you buy, then you suck out the juice, pressing the orange all around to release the juice while you suck it out. Reminds me of the Tropicana commercial with the straw in the orange. The market ground was littered with sucked out oranges. I bought something called blackberries, that had a dark brown fuzzy coat, with a light brown thin husk inside. The light husk desolves in your mouth, and has a slight gel texture, and a faint berryish/fruity flavor. Also has a large, rock-hard seed. So not much to eat, but saved me on the bus trip up-country to my program the next day, along with some granola bars Micky gave me.

Travel to my program, at village called Aworowa, was to have taken about 7 hours, but took 15, counting 3 hours waiting for bus in Accra - all buses were late that day. Part of problem, I believe, was inexperience of my escort, Abigail, younger sister of the in-country coordinator. So, arrived at destination 11:30 pm, disturbing several people, including my 2 roommates, college students at U of Copenhagen, Denmark.

So, I'm here. So far bored and restless. Trying to be patient about getting busy and involved. We are at a clinic. Danes, Marianne and Line (Lena) are pharmacy students. I finally got to do some nutrition counseling/ed this week - mostly pregnant, some postnatal. Don't think this is a good place for a nutritionist. Would be better if competent in local language. Otherwise, I must have a nurse for translator, which is counterproductive to the clinic. Pharmacy students are a good fit. M & F had a hard time finding their place in the system, but decided on their own projects, and will end up with some effective work. They organized the storeroom and labeled the drugs - like I did at Kunya, except this room already had shelves. They are also working on a guide with drug interactions, and recommended usage if pregnant, breast-feeding, and other contraindications. Also, compiled drug usage data for more efficient ordering. If clinic uses information, will be valuable. I see this place to need medical and healthcare workers, especially MDs, NDs, nurses, midwives. Nice to have people trained to give injections, apply dressings... The midwife and community health workers/nurses give nutrition education, so I don't know how useful I am beyond what they have already been told. Most of the pregnant women I've talked to have a balanced diet. Some I've told the importance of lacking foods, but most have encouraged and told why the nutrients are important to them, fetus, infants and children, so they continue to eat well beyond pregnancy. I'm told the very poor do not eat balanced - mostly staple starches, but so far no access to this group in particular. Would like to move on to another place with more work for me, but will be patient and see what develops. Will continue to work with clinic director, Alice, a nurse and medical assistant who acts as the clinic doctor, and Seth, the program volunteer coordinator. Things move very slowly.

The living experience here for volunteers is quite strange - will continue with this and other cultural insights next time. But, we are the first volunteers for VV - M & L came first of March and leaving in 2 weeks. Housing was quickly arranged. Plan to start sightseeing on weekends. M & L go traveling every weekend, and have seen much of the country. They have great plans for this weekend, but they are 20 something, and I am clearly not invited, which I completely understand. They have given me some great tips, though. I'll try to coordinate my tourist travel with my programs in order to minimize long bus trips.

Note: lost internet connection and lost some of my blog, so will stop now as tired of all this slow and lost business.

I still have my cell phone and got a new number for Ghana. International access code from US is 011, Ghana code is 233. Complete phone number from US is 011-233-24-700-3319. Don't expect you to call, but just in case. Calling from cell is relatively cheap from here to US - less than 20 cents/min. You might just here from me. Much time on my hands at present, but getting a little busier, and plan to sightsee this weekend, so improving.

Best to all. Peace and love - Deni

---