Pictures

 I realized I haven't posted many pictures lately so let me catch you up to speed without a bunch of text.

 Nafula and I

 Alyssa and I leaving the children's home

 Talking to a young girl on my way to lunch. Photo cred: Alyssa Sajady

Rita, Joseph, the head of the Kenya Red Cross club at Kibabi Diploma, me, Alyssa, Mark, Ali and Edwin after the Chanuka Challenge last Saturday. We got certificates for helping organize the event and Alyssa and I served as judges for the public speaking competition. Chanuka Challenge is a chance for high school's and universities to come together and challenge each other in public speaking and trivia. The Red Cross has a wheel that participants spun (kind of like The Price is Right) and the arrow would land on a topic such as HIV/AIDS prevention, blood safety, dissemination, reproductive health, and general health knowledge. Participants were asked questions pertaining to the topic and if they answered correctly their team received a point. We awarded trophies to the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners.

Entertaining Nafula with one of the Branch's baby bunnies while she soaks her feet in iodine. I realized she had jiggers and brought her to the Red Cross to remove them. Although she didn't enjoy the treatment, the bunny and the lollipop I gave her after helped. 

This is what her feet looked like before/during treatment. 

3 days later, I went to check on her and she was wearing her TOMS! We gave her two pairs and told her to wear them everyday. I am going to check on her again tomorrow! (Friday)

Single, Taken or Engaged?

This post is a lighthearted one about a common theme I have noticed among Kenyan men and women. It first happened last week at a tea party, hosted by Dr. Amin and Dr. Mohamud, the founders of the Kenya Red Cross Bungoma Branch. The party was a chance for the international interns (us) to meet with Peace Corps volunteers and other "international" people who were living in Kenya. International=USA citizens. I have yet to meet anyone else from a different country. At the beginning of the party we all stood up, introduced ourseves and said what we liked and what we hated. Mark, the youth coordinator, stood up and said, "I'm single and ready to mingle!" Everyone chuckled and then began saying their relationship status. Now in the US this might come off as revealing too much information or calling attention to oneself. Not in Kenya.

Today, we went to Kibabi (Kee-bab-eee) University to give a dissemination presentation about the Kenya Red Cross and encourage the school's Red Cross club to get more involved and host their own events and activities. When we arrived, we were greeted by a large room of over 50 students eager to learn what the Red Cross does and how they can be apart of it. We started with introductions of everyone and sure enough, Mark asked everyone to say their relationship status. While most students stated the generic, "single, taken, or engaged" a few threw out that they "weren't married, but weren't single" and others said, "They were looking" and then scanned the room. I felt like it was a dating forum rather an a Red Cross information session! When the a few of my fellow Kenyan interns introduced themselves, two of them said they were engaged. I was shocked! I had been around these women for the past 2 weeks and heard NOTHING about them getting married! I leaned over to Ali and gave her a confused look. She responded, "It's not like America, they aren't REALLY engaged to be married." Confused as heck I approached Cynthia one of the interns after the forum.

"Cynthia? You're engaged?!" I inquired.
She laughed and said, "No of course not! But it's better to say that."

I asked why and she explained that guys leave you alone if you tell them you are engaged. I said but what if you tell them you have a boyfriend? The 3 interns shook their heads and me and said it didn't matter because a "boyfriend" was merely seen as a temporary thing and the guy would still try to date you. So they said that so no one approached them after the forum! Then they were curious about me. I told them I had a boyfriend and he was Kenyan. They about fell over and I knew what they were thinking: Dang she moved fast. I had to explain that I met him in the United States and that he lives there and has lived there for about 20 years. They all laughed and gave me a hard time because they thought I was dating someone from Bungoma in just a week and a half! A lot of the guys here tell me that they want a "mzungu girlfriend" and then today one of the interns, Shelia, told me she wanted a "mzungu boyfriend." We told her to come to the states and she could have her pick.

It is really funny to hear how people discuss relationships and dating here. For example, last week Alyssa was able to go to her assigned school to do peer education with the other interns. At the end of the session, they asked if there were any questions. One girl raised her hand and asked, "Is it bad to have a boyfriend?" Of course the room erupted with laughter and Alyssa explained that they would discuss it next week with the theme "Romantic Relationships and Dating." When she told me about it, I of course laughed too and thought, "Well, that is a good question. It depends on a lot of factors."

It reminded me of elementary school when boys had "cooties" and you had "cooties" too if you touched them. Now, unfortunately, these "cooties" can be viewed as the HIV virus or other sexually transmitted diseases that are common in Bungoma. Except women have them too. Speaking to youth about empowerment and governence over themselves and their body will hopefully prevent them from getting into a relationship too soon and encourage them to speak up if they feel pressured to do certain things in a relationship. I'm also thinking Cynthia's idea is a valid one. If "being engaged" has authority over "being in a relationship" there are going to be a lot of "engaged" Bungomans.

Change of Plans

If you have been keeping up with my blog, you read my first post before I even left the USA during which I described that I would be coordinating the peer education program on HIV/AIDS....

Well...plans changed. Mostly because the Red Cross wanted me to have experience in many different fields and I appreciate that. Also because the structure of the peer education program is almost non-existent and the interns were given a "training" the week before I arrived. I put training in quotes because I'm not sure how effective a 1 week seminar is for the type of material that needed to be covered. Furthermore, there are three groups of 5 interns that are assigned to a school for the 8 weeks. I am in a group with 4 other Kenyan interns and we are to travel to Bungoma High School (an all boys school every Friday) to present a different topic. Last week, we all congregated at the office around 4 PM to head over to the school. I ended up getting into a meeting with Wekola, the branch coordinator and kept looking at my watch, which read 4:15 PM. He asked me if I had somewhere to be and I replied, "Well we were supposed to leave for peer ed around 4." Then Mark, the youth coordinator, chimed in,"Oh they are testing right now so we will not go." I was confused, shouldn't we have known this well before Friday? Or was this a pop-test? No body knew, all we knew was they were "testing" and we could not give our speech on life skills and relationships. We start off with basic topics and work our way up to HIV/AIDS discussions.

Today, after our weekly intern meeting, I asked about peer education for this week and if the interns needed to prepare anything to travel to the school. Mark replied with, "The teachers are on strike so we will not be going to the schools." So far we've missed two weeks, and we, the interns, have not prepared anything for these sessions. Many people seem uninterested and I don't blame them. 2 weeks of inactivity is discouraging and they don't want to put effort into something if it's not going to work out. So instead of getting frustrated, I've found different outlets to help out with. For example, my peers Alyssa and Ali and I began fundraising to purchase soccer balls and equipment for the KRCS youth branch. Currently, there are no soccer balls on the compound and many youth gather here on Sundays to hang out. However, they are lacking many sports equipment, including soccer balls (or footballs as they are called here). The Red Cross compound sits on about 2 acres of land and includes a large field for recreational activities. We hope that by purchasing this equipment we can encourage youth to not only come to the compound to use these new balls but also teach them about personal hygeine and health. This will hopefully translate to leadership in their school and community and encourage them to play sports or be involved with other extracurriculars. I am really excited about this project and even though it is different from my original plan, I feel that I, as well as Alyssa and Ali, am making a lasting impact. Check out the page below. Our goal is currently $1,000 and the site talks more about what we plan to do with the funds we raise.

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/krcs-youth-sports-campaign/x/3732592?c=home

Furthermore I have made some goals that I would like see happen during my time here. As I mentioned before, it can be very challenging at times working with an international organization because your schedule and time does not always match theirs. However, I am hoping I can implement 3 of these 6 goals I have made out for myself. I feel that they are attainable in the short (yes, short) time-span I have left here. I am still trying to help out with the HIV/AIDS peer education program as much as I can and hopefully by the time I leave, I have a better outlook on how the Red Cross can improve the program, without my attendance.

Goals in Bungoma:

1) Purchase soccer equipment and hold a tournament

2) Make "public health message" cards for jigger campaign

3) Make flip chart for jigger campaign

4) Create a timeline and calendar for KRCS Bungoma

5) Re-do the international interns brief

6) Needs assessment with KRCS

Names and Water

In Kenya, people usually have 3-4 names. One of these is their "tribal" name. There are 40 different tribes in Kenya and the Bukusu are the ones that live in Bungoma (among other areas). Bukusu tribe is one of the 16 Kenyan tribes of the Luhya Bantu people of East Africa. Besides Swahili, they also speak the Bukusu dialect. We were told on our first day (after introducing ourselves by our "English" names a million times) that we would be baptized with a Bukusu name. Sure enough, within 5 minutes of the jigger clinic, the Kenyan interns were asking us when we were born. They decided on "Nikesa" for me, which means born during the harvesting season. December is technically Kenya's fall season so this makes sense. I loved my new name but was not used to people calling me it. For instance, during the jigger clinic, Morina -one of the interns- needed more shoes and kept yelling my name. When I finally turned around, she said, "Nikesa, you have forgotten your name! I have called it 10 times!" My ears are now fully tuned to this new label and I turn and look whenever I hear it. In fact, I've been introducing myself to others around town or at the Red Cross with this name. Some laugh, others stare blankly, and a few tell me I am now a Bukusu. When I introduced myself to highschool students last Wednesday, I told them my "English" name first and then said, "But while I am in Kenya, you may call me Nikesa." They loved it.

Although this has nothing to do with names, I felt I needed to write about my new found appreciation for H2O. On Thursday, we were moved out of our hotel we had been staying at in the city center and into the compound where we will be remaining for the rest of our time here. The compound is brand new, closer to the Red Cross and was supposed to have running water and a Western style toliet. And was also supposed to be completed June 1st. As with time, dates don't really carry as much significance here as they do in the States. The reason we had to stay at the hotel for our first week was because our huts were not even finished. We moved to them because they believed we would have running water by the end of the week. Javen, the landlord, told us that we would have it by Sunday....and then the plumber got malaria.

Moral of the story: we still don't have running water. But I'm not complaining. I'm appreciating. The cook and housekeeper of the huts provided us with two HUGE barrels in our bathrooms last night. One was for flushing the toliet and the other was to bathe. I was so estatic I basically flooded my bathroom last night because of all the water I was splashing on my face. I washed my hands for the first time in 24 hours and could actually splash some on my arms. Tonight, I took my first bucket shower which felt so refreshing! I loved it and the water pressure was better than any shower here! While I was getting impatient and frustrated the three days we were without any sort of water, I realized people here go much longer. And when they do get water, it is often not clean, even to bathe with (this is of course my/US standards for water). Because I am a public health student, I can't stand not washing my hands. But I realized I had to get creative. During the day, I would wash my hands at the Red Cross, a restaurant, wherever I was with running water. I would also try to make sure I washed them before I headed home and then put hand sanitizer on before and after dinner. I hope I will never take water for granted again. I will probably keep turning my faucet on and off when I return home just to make sure it is still functioning. 

There is so much I complain about when I am in the US and even take the little things for granted. Little things, like water, that are a big things Kenya. And yes, I am sitting in my hut, in rural Kenya, with internet....but no running water. Totally ironic. Everyone...and I mean EVERYONE has a cellphone here, but water is scarce. And hot water is non existent. Unless you want to boil it and let it cool down before bathing. Which means you have to buy a burner and a pan. I'm very thankful to live in a country where I can drink out of the tap if I want to let alone come home to a steaming hot shower. These are things that I have expected to be in my life but living in Kenya has taught me how to appreciate these things I have taken for granted for so many years. And opened my eyes to how other people are living. And surviving. 

(Coming soon!) Here is a video of my hut. It's still messy as I am trying to get set up and organized. The black barrel in my bathroom is for the toliet and the yellow one is for bathing. 

Roosters

This post is going to be short and sweet as someone recommended I write about my latest annoyance. It's really the only thing that I can't stand here and am going to be very happy when I return home and do not have to listen to its annoying screech at 3 AM. This would be my next door neighbor, the rooster. The most annoying bird/animal ever. I was first awaken by its high pitched "Cock-a-doodle-doo" at 3 AM my first morning here. It continued yelling until 7 AM when I finally had enough and got out of bed and turned on music. I used earplugs the second night but they fell out so once again I was woken up around 4 AM. THE SUN ISN'T EVEN UP WHY ARE YOU CROWING. So if anyone needs an alarm clock with a permanent snooze button, I suggest a rooster. If you are like me and want your sleep, do not get near the thing. Furthermore, buy some earplugs and hope you do not end up living next to one. I'm not a violent person, but I've had many day dreams about strangling that bird. Hopefully it will be something I can get used to but until then, I shove my earplugs in tight and pray that I can sleep until 7 AM. Not to mention, the thing crows during the day too! It's a permanent annoyance. So buy TOMS, not a rooster.

TOMS Shoes

Heads up, when I get back to the US I will ask you if you have purchased a pair of TOMS shoes and your answer had better be yes or I am taking you to the nearest shoe store. I bought my first pair 2 days before I left for Kenya. I had heard rave reviews about them and the whole "one-to-one" shpeal but never really jumped on the bandwagon. I figured I would give them a try and they would serve as my close-toed shoes for the trip. I am already planning on buying about 3 more pairs when I get home. I will also be giving them for Christmas gifts. You've been prepared and have 7 weeks left to purchase some. Here's why:

TOMS is legit. They recently collaborated with the Kenya Red Cross and sent 140,000 pairs of shoes to the BUNGOMA Red Cross. There are boxes upon boxes of shoes at the compound and they go directly to those who need them the most. For example, on Monday we did a jiggers campaign in Ndengelwa, a village about 15 minutes outside of town, where we treated 201 people for jiggers. As I mentioned in an earlier post, it is a parasite that lives in soil and sand and feeds on warm-blooded hosts. It works its way into the feet and hands of those who are exposed to these conditions. Many of the villagers live in houses with dirt floors and a majority do not wear shoes and unsanitary conditions can increase the liklihood of other medical complications. If not treated, it can cause major discomfort and pain and even loss of nails and foot deformation. There is no reason jiggers cannot be elimated from Bungoma County with a little public health action. 

Therefore, 5 Red Cross volunteers, Alyssa and I went to treat the outbreak. This included scrubbing the feet with antiseptic wash, soaking them in water mixed with chemicals to kill the jiggers, clipping fingernails and toenails and putting "Jiggerex" on their feet and/or hands to completely remove them. It's like a medical pedicure. Finally, the patients were given 2 pairs of TOMS shoes to help prevent them from getting jiggers again. Unfortunately, the volunteers had not prepared to give a public health message about waiting to wear the shoes until the jiggers had been completely removed from the patient (~2-3 days after treatment). I asked if they could tell them this while they were waiting in line for shoes and one volunteer said,"No we don't have time and neither do they. They need to go home and sweep the floors or get back to school." I understood this but we were spending an average of 3-5 minutes with each patient so why hadn't we told them about basic hygiene and how to prevent them from recurring infection? I became irritated with myself for not knowing much Swahili (otherwise I would have given the speech) and also with the volunteers because no one seemed to be educating the patients on jiggers and prevention. 

However, I was elated to see all the boxes of TOMS shoes handed out and knew that they were helping the people that needed it the most. We saw patients from 2-72 years old and they each got two pairs of shoes. Some of them, mostly children, cradled the newly minted gifts in their arms as if it were a newborn baby and kept smiling as they ran off to show their friends. Mothers rejoiced as they received 2 new pairs for their young child and older villagers were stunned at their new accessories. We were also able to give out about 50 pairs to children who did not have jiggers. It was a great site to see and made me that much more thankful for buying TOMS before I left. I knew I had bought a pair of shoes for someone in need, someone who can't afford even 1 pair, someone who did not realize shoes can save their life. 

Check out the TOMS website for yourself. And if you've never heard of them, read about their mission. They have every design you could possibly want and you've heard it first hand, they are given to a dedicated, compassionate and selfless organization who distributes them to those in the most need. 

http://www.toms.com/our-movement/l#giving-shoes

Here are some pictures from the jigger removal. 

Morina, Laureen and Mark setting up the scrub buckets

Elizabeth applying Jiggerex

Donated TOMS Shoes

Nafula

 I feel like I have been here a week. Maybe longer. When I meet new people and they ask how many days I've been in Bungoma, 2 seems crazy- to them and to me. I have already learned so much about Kenyan people, culture, beliefs, and customs and look forward experiencing more in Bungoma. As I mentioned in my last post, today started at 8 AM for the Mzungus and 10:30 AM for the Kenyans. Alyssa and I were scheduled to visit the children's home during the morning hours, which is right next door to the Branch. Finally, around 10:30 we were told we could go. Besides Kenyan time, another reason it took awhile is because there had been some miscommunication between the headmaster at the orphanage and the Red Cross volunteers last week and apparently, she scolded them for not helping enough. Apparently, there is not a list of things to do there so people just go and do what they can such as play with kids, help cook, clean, ect. Wekola had to go over this morning and explain that if they want certain tasks done that they need to tell us and that we would be more than happy to accomodate them. This seemed to satisfy the lady in charge and thus we went, eager to help in every way.

Most of the older kids were in school so we encountered a few babies (1 month-2 years old) and 3-7 year olds. There was a mentally handicapped boy, Issac, who loved to dance and wanted to hold hands with all the girls. Although he could not speak, he smiled and danced to let us know he was happy we were there. I took on the job of cutting up the vegetables that the cooks would prepare for lunch. I definitely got a work out on my right arm and I'm thankful I didn't slice my hand off. After cutting, I took a break to play with a few girls that had congregated in the area outside the kitchen. All of a sudden a small girl in a satin, white, dress walked up to me and immediately grabbed my hand. She didn't say anything but just kept holding my hand. I knelt down to greet her in Swahili and asked her what her name was and hold old she was. She did not speak but held up 3 fingers. The other kids told me her name was Nafula and she was 3 years old. I then sat down on the ground and just started rubbing the top of her hand with my thumb. She seemed so content with me doing this that I sat there and did it for the next 1/2 hour, while talking to the volunteers and other children. She soon sat down beside me and just stared at me with big brown eyes. I looked down at her hand and noticed that her thumbnail was partially torn off. It looked painful and I wanted to clip it. I asked one of the cooks if they had finger nail clippers or scissors. He said he would check, which meant he would go inside and come back out without speaking to anyone. I asked another intern there and she responded with "No, we don't have those." After a few more tries/begs I finally got someone to bring me a sterile small blade. As soon as I took it out of the package, Nafula pulled her hand out of mine. I told her in Swahili that it was okay, I just wanted to make it better and help her. I went to cut it off and she started screaming and crying and saying it hurt. I felt terrible and didn't want to accidently stab her so I put the blade back in its case, reached into my bag and pulled out a tissue to wipe away her tears. I told her I was sorry and hugged her for the longest time. Then we had to go. I assured her I would return.

Later today, Alyssa and I went back to the hotel and she grabbed her fingernail clippers. Our plan was to return to the children's home and clip Nafula's nail before the tea party at 7 PM. It just so happended that Moryne, the nurse, and Wycliff, the paramedic, needed to go too to talk to the owner, Violet about coming to the tea party. So as us 4 walked up the dirt path to the compound, 10 children came barreling towards us. I literally thought I was going to be knocked over as they jumped, hugged, climbed, and ran into me. These were the kids that were in school earlier in the day. They were so happy to see us and kept playing with me hair and touching my skin. I spotted Nafula standing patiently at the end of the road with a burgandy dress on. I showed Moryne her nail and she agreed we needed to cut it. As much as it pained me to hold her and listen to her cries, Moryne was able to snip it off quickly as I held her and dried her tears. We also realized she has jiggers, a parasite infection that works its way into feet and hands. It is easily prevented by wearing shoes and washing hands; however, these are rarities in Kenya especially in a children's home. The good news is that the treatment is simple and involves mixing water with an anesthetic chemical and soaking feet for about 15 minutes. Then they are scrubbed with a brush and topped off with some disinfectant that helps them heal. The toenails and fingernails are also trimmed and the jiggers removed with a small blade. The Red Cross also gives out shoes to those who receive jigger treatment so to prevent future infections. Moryne said we can come back tomorrow and treat her and also give her oral medicine for ringworm (which she has as well).

Moryne, Me and Wycliff heading to the Children's Home

Nafula is the living proof of resilience. She was picked up off the streets just two days ago and brought to the childrens home. Although she cried when we clipped her nail, she immediately returned to her solemn facial expression and accepted my hug with open arms. I can't imagine what she has been through or any of those kids who have been abandoned. I know my love and caring can only be professed for 7 more weeks but I am determined to make it over there at least 3 times a week to see her and offer her a hand hold or many hugs. She needs to know and feel that she is loved.

Kenyan Time, Currency and Transportation

We arrived in Bungoma around 5:30 PM on Sunday. This was an hour and a half past the time we were scheduled to arrive (4 PM). It was a long 9 and 1/2 hours on the bus, however, I managed to sleep most of the time and we even spotted a few zebras, wildibeast and antelope on the side of the road. When we were almost there, I called Even, the intern coordinator, to let him know we would be arriving. All of a sudden, Wekola, the program coordinator, came on the phone and asked to talk to the bus driver to tell him where to drop us off. For reference, this was a coach bus that only stopped at one bus stop, a central location, in town. So we arrive in Bungoma and the bus driver tells us it's our stop. We were literally on the side of the road, almost in the ditch. We have no idea what to think and figure we're going to have to walk to find the Red Cross or figure something out on our own. We turn the corner to find waving hands and a big group walking towards us. It was Mark, Even, Dr. Amin (our preceptor), his beautiful wife, Moryne (the nurse) and Wekola. They all hug us and take our bags and then we went to the Red Cross Branch for a few minutes, out to dinner and then out to "take a Tusker" which in Kenyan terms mean "Drink a beer." While we were out, they told us they were thinking about parking on the other side of the road from the bus and watching us freak out for a few minutes that no one was there to pick us up. It's like they knew me or something. They informed us that we needed to be at the Red Cross by 8 AM the next morning. And this is where the chunk of this post begins...

Kenyan Time: Even told us that when you tell a Kenyan "Let's meet at 2:00" it does not mean they will show up on time. I thought "Great!" they run on "Hilary time." But no, this is like Hilary times Hilary time. So I don't want to hear anything about me taking to too long or being late when I return to the states. I'm adopting Kenyan time! Monday morning came and we were at the Red Cross at about 8:05 AM. We were greated by the paramedic crew, Wycliff and Dansen, signed our names in the registry (as we have to do everymorning) and headed on in to meet the Kenyan volunteers and Red Cross staff for our weekly debriefing meeting. Alyssa and I were told to wait in Dr. Amin's office for "15 minutes" as they were setting up for the meeting and then they would introduce us. An hour and a half later, we waked in and the meeting began. This also happened this morning when we rolled in around 8:15 AM and we did not leave for the orphanage until 10 AM. This is great and frustrating. The great part is, I can talk to almost all the Red Cross volunteers, paramedic crew, anyone who is on the grounds in the morning because no one is in a hurry and everyone wants to talk and see how you are. In the US, I get to work, clock in, maybe throw a "Hey" out to whoever is around me and then begin working. I've been here two days and have made about 30 friends (who also want to add me on Facebook) and can remember all their names and something about them because of all the time we spend chatting and hanging out. On the other hand, today was very frustrating as I felt we were waiting most the day. In the morning we waited at least 2 and 1/2 hours to leave for the orphanage, and then in the afternoon we waited for our meeting to start and waited after our meeting to meet with Rose, a Red Cross Staff member. We waited for at least 5 hours today and because I am a "do-er" I kept thinking of everything we could be doing with that time. It is something I will have to get used to and be patient with. Hopefully after a week at the Branch, I will find ways to maximize time while not missing out on the social and personal interactions with my peers. 

Kenyan Currency: Kenyans pay in Shillings (Ksh), which I honestly thought stood for "Keesh" at first. The conversion is about 85 Ksh to 1 US dollar. Since we spent a day in Nairobi, we learned the hard way about converting Ksh to dollars and spent more money that we would have liked to. For example, we realized our taxi driver was charging us $30-40 for a 15 minute ride. We also over-payed with our "personal shoppers" at the Massai Market. Upon arriving to Bungoma we learned that a piki-piki ride was 50 Ksh (~60 cents) for about 3 miles. Piki piki's are the motor bikes in town that have a padded seat on the back for passengers. They are literally everywhere and so fun to ride on! I take one twice a day, to and from the Branch. I was also surprised, and happy, to see that meals in Bungoma were much less than Nairobi. I bought Alyssa dinner yesterday for her birthday and paid a total of 600 Ksh (~$7.50). This included juice and a full meal of rice, meat and vegetables for both of us. We also paid 80 cents for an omelete at a restaurant close to our hotel. Although everything is much cheaper in Bungoma, there are still people who will try to rip off the two White girls in town and charge them 200 Ksh for a piki piki ride. As we are learning the currency, we are conscious of how much stuff costs and try to pay the appropriate amount. It is also difficult because things are set in stone. For example, a taxi driver in Nairobi doesn't have a meter so unless you agree on a price prior to riding, you run the risk of paying a much higher one at the end. 

Kenyan Transportation: Kenya has very diverse modes of transportation. There is everything from your city bus to walking. And everyone walks here. On the highway. Next to traffic. It was scary the first time I saw a young woman walking in the street, about to get hit by a semi-truck. The truck honked and she jumped out of the way. I've even found myself walking in the middle of the street on occasion and have to remind myself that Kenyans DO NOT yield for pedestrians. Since we are staying at a hotel this first week, we are about 3 miles away from the Branch so we have to take a piki piki each morning. These are probably the greatest invention ever and I want them to be implemented in the states. As I mentioned above they are passenger friendly motor bikes. And the only person who wears a helmet is the driver. It's thrilling riding on the back of a motorcycle everyday with a cool breeze on your face and being outside as opposed to in a car. All of our drivers have been very safe and don't go over about 40 mph (Just for you mom, nan, papa and others concerned for my safety). This is Alyssa and I's favorite mode of transportation. Next up is the less-fast version of piki pikis, they are the boda bodas. These are your standard bicycles with a padded seat over the rear wheel. Today I saw a woman with a small baby in her arms riding on the back of a boda boda. Probably less risky than the piki piki. 

My favorite mode of transportation has to be the Red Cross ambulance. Now you're probably thinking, that's crazy and you're right because I'm pretty sure this won't be happening every day. But the Red Cross is good about taking care of their Mzungus (white people). Alyssa and I left the Branch around 6 PM yesterday and caught a piki piki to our hotel. About halfway through our route it began POURING down rain. So the protocol is to pull over under an awning (like a gas station) until the rain stops. Well here's the thing: the rain could last 30 minutes or 2 hours and going back to Kenyan time, they will wait it out. So we're standing underneath this gas station awning and the Red Cross ambulance drives by. They honk and we wave. Alyssa goes, "How did they recognize us?" I literally looked at her like, "Are you serious?" We both started laughing because we were the only white people there. Obviously they noticed us. Sure enough, they pull into the station and ask us if we want a ride. We're like "Yea!" So they took us into town to the internet cafe and made sure we could get home from there. 

And this is where I'll end this post, Kenyans are the nicest people ever!!!!! They always say "Karibu" which means "Welcome!" Everyone says this to us every day, everywhere. From the store owner to the piki piki driver to the mother selling pineapple. They are so happy we are here and happy to see us. It makes my heart smile :) 

Hakuna Matata

Apologies for the upcoming saga but I hope it's entertaining.

Well, our first day in Nairobi was AMAZING! We arrived at our hotel around 8:30 PM last night (Kenyan time- they are 8 hours ahead of the US) which is smack dab in the middle of the city. We were so exhausted from our 27+ hour travel day that we could barely move to change into our pajamas. We are staying at Hotel 680 and it is very secure and charming. We have a fridge, air cooler (portable air conditioner) and shower! Quite the amenities that I was not expecting. I honestly just wanted a bed!

This morning we woke up around 7:30 AM, showered, got ready, put money in our bras and headed downstairs for breakfast. I always put money in my socks and/or bra when I travel JUST in case something happens or I get my purse stolen. We were welcomed by an amazing breakfast spread including omelets, fresh fruit and Alyssa's very own vegetarian corner! One of the wait staff insisted on carrying her plate because it was "very hot." She tried numerous times to tell him she could do it herself but he would not let her touch it and followed her around from station to station until she had all the food she wanted. After breakfast, we headed out for the day. Our first stop was the City Market which was only a few blocks from our hotel. I envisioned unique Kenyan crafts and a bustling atmosphere. Much to our surprise, we were first haggled for about 2 blocks from the guy who wanted us to go on a safari and when we both told him "sipendelei" which means we were not interested, he goes, "You don't even know what that means!" We arrive at the market and take about two steps inside. It it nothing like we imagined. It reaked of raw meat and there were full, dead animals hanging from the ceiling, flys swarming around them. And people smiling at us, asking if we wanted fish. I looked at Alyssa and was like, "Yeaaaah we should leave."

Thankfully, I had heard about the Massai Market which featured Kenyan's handiwork with arts, crafts and clothing. After asking about 3 security guards where the market was, we found it and stepped inside. We were immediately bombarded by 4 men handing us bags and escorting us from tent to tent. We were compliately caught off guard and figured if we ignored them/didn't act interested they would leave. Oh no. They became our personal shoppers for the next 2 hours. Peter and Bill were mine and Alyssa had Alex and Tim. They showed us around the market and told us even if we said "maybe" to something we should put it in our bag and then we would "negotiate" later. At one point, Peter and I were moving ahead of Alyssa when he goes "We have to wait for your sister, SISTER!" And then he told me to call her that. So Alyssa and I are now "sisters" here in Kenya. We also heard people say "Hakuna Matata" numerous times throughout the day. Kenyans are very layed back! After showing us artwork, jewlery, jerseys, bags and tons of other items, they told us we needed to negotiate prices and to come in their "offices," which were bags filled with who knows what in between the vendors. Alyssa and I's "office" was right next to each other. I sat on a stool and we began negotiating. I ended up getting bracelet and t-shirt for myself and some other gifts for people which I can't say on here :) The whole experience was fun, yet, exhausting! The guys were hilarious and told us we needed to take a Tusker with them. Tusker is a Kenyan beer and that is what the guys drink after a long days work. We politely declined and they walked us towards the exit. It was a great experience but next time, no personal shoppers!

 Peter, me, Bill and Alex in the orange hat. 

After that experience we headed to the Easy Coach office to purchase our bus tickets for Bungoma. We decided to walk and once out of the city center it was....interesting. People sitting on the ground selling fruit, lots of yelling, cars almost running into each other (but seriously, that happens everywhere) and lots of stares. I really hadn't noticed people staring at us until we approached the office and this guy yelled out, "Mzungu, take a picture of us!" Mzungu means "White person" in Swahili. So Alyssa snaps a few pics of the men and then they wanted a picture with me. After we bought our tickets, we asked the employees outside if they could call us a cab. All of a sudden this man appears beside me and says he can take us to the Giraffe center...and he has a cab. He then became our personal driver for the rest of the day taking to the Giraffe center, Carnivore restaurant and then back to our hotel. Below are some pictures from those places as I'm sure you're getting bored with all the text. Oh, and his name is Chegge, but we call him "The Cheg-ster."

Alyssa and I feeding Ed, the giraffe! They are so soft and beautiful!

This is me with Stacy. Mom, there is a giraffe in Kenya named after you!

Our waiter carving off a piece of meat at the famous restaurant, Carnivore. The wait staff brings all sorts of meet around to your table on a huge sword and cuts it off for you! I tried lamb, beef, pork, ostrich, crocodile and turkey. This restaurant used to serve wild game meets as well but in 2004 the Kenyan Government outlawed it. There is lobbying taking place to restore in on the menu. We had soup, salad, baked potato, all different kinds of meet and ice cream! We also drank their famous drink called "Dawa," which means "medicine." It was vodka, sugar, honey and fresh lime. Delicious! Shout out to Danish Opere and Katie Nelson for the recommendation! We LOVED it!

Finishing off our incredibly wonderful day with a Tusker beer at the Simba Lounge (right next door to Carnivore). About 5 minutes later we called The Cheg-ster to come pick us up and had a nice chat on the way back to our hotel about mzungus, his girlfriend, birthdays, and how to speak Swahili. Alyssa and I plan to meet up with him and his girlfriend when we return to Nairobi in August! 

We're off to Bungoma tomorrow! Wish us well on the 8 hour bus ride. Kwa heri :)

Jambo! Habari gani?

Hello my dear friends, family and loved ones! The above title means "Hello, how are you?" in Swahili, the national language of Kenya. I am eager to get back into blogging for my upcoming trip to Bungoma, Kenya to complete my Public Health Field Experience and would love if you all join me in my adventure. The field experience is the chance for Masters students to take the knowledge and skills they have acquired over the past year in the classroom and apply them to a real public health situation. The goal is to bring public health to life and help students strengthen their philosophy and understanding of public health and begin to identify as public health professionals. 

For my field experience, I will be working with the Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS)- Bungoma Branch to coordinate a 6 week sexual health and HIV/AIDS peer education group. I will be educating Kenyan volunteers (around the ages of 15-21) on sexual health and HIV transmission and then they will, ideally, deliver these messages to high school aged students at the local schools. The goal of the group is to change local behavior and improve communication between students and parents and healthcare providers in order to reduce HIV/AIDS infection rates for adolescents in the area. Bungoma, a city in Western Kenya, has seen the highest prevalence of HIV infections recently. I fully believe in this program because it has a high potential to be sustainable. As much as I would love to travel to these schools and speak with youth about sexual health and prevention strategies, it is not a feasible option. Sexual health is still viewed as taboo in Kenya and therefore, needs consistent, and patient, integration within the communities and schools. Therefore, by training Kenyan volunteers on sexual health issues and prevention measures, they can present it to others who live there and hopefully they will talk about it among their friends; thus creating a trickle down effect. I will also be coordinating logistics between the schools and KRCS Bungoma Branch such as consent forms for the students to participate in sexual health education programs and consent for the KRCS to deliver messages at the schools. Because many schools in Bungoma do not have known addresses, it will be difficult, yet important, to identify them for the KRCS.

A little about the KRCS: The Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS) is a humanitarian relief organization created in 1965 through an Act of Parliament, Cap 256 of the Laws of Kenya. As a voluntary organization, the Society operates through a network of eight Regions and 64 Branches spread throughout the country. The Society is a member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, the largest humanitarian relief Movement represented in 189 countries world- wide.

Its mission is to be the leading humanitarian organization in Kenya that is self-sustaining, delivering excellent quality service of preventing and alleviating human suffering to the most vulnerable in the community.

Kenya Red Cross Society - Bungoma Branch

Located in Bungoma City in the Western District of Kenya, the KRCS - Bungoma Branch serves vulnerable and marginalized populations in the area through both acute and long- term assistance.

The KRCS - Bungoma Branch participates in the same programmatic initiatives (excluding the Dadaab Refugee Camp) as the other KRCS branches across the country. Those include:

·      Disaster management

·      Health and social services

·      Water and sanitation

·      Organizational development

·      Other support services

In addition to the work of the paid-staff at the KRCS, there is a volunteer component to the organization. Primarily, the KRCS - Bungoma Branch organizes a robust youth volunteer program that empowers local adolescents to participate in service activities around Bungoma City. The KRCS also hosts various educational courses to their youth group about various topics including public health.

I have so much more I want to write about, including Kenya's history and why I am interested in this country and its people. That is coming up during my 8 hour layover at the Toronto, Canada airport. For now, I should go pack!