From Karunugu to Nakuru

Angela and I got a ride to Kissi (two hours of terrible roads) and then we took a matatu to Nakuru. Matatus are one form of Kenyan’s public transportation. They are 14 passenger vans that travel all over the place. Longer trips will only have 14 passengers but anything under an hour is an opportunity to play “see how many people you can fit in the matatu.” It was a good experience to share with someone else for the first time. As soon as the ticket sellers spotted us walking toward them they rushed to ask where we are headed. There are various matatu companies so it is a race to get our attention. Like everything else you buy or spend money on, it is important to find out the cost from a local to avoid being overcharged. Angela and I did just this but managed to be charged double what our fellow passengers paid. Although it is frustrating we had to remind ourselves that we are two mzungu girls and it was probably more important to not make anyone mad by asking a fair price.

Nakuru is the fourth largest city in Kenya. We spent some time in the bigger and cleaner market there before heading to our ultimate destination. Angela and I both laughed thinking about telling our mothers that this place was “clean.” Nakuru has a completely different climate than Karungu. It is hot during they day but chilly at night, reaching 50* F! It was nice to bundle up at night and sleep under some blankets.

We stayed at a boys and girls home right outside of the city, known as the Nakuru Boys and Girls Home… it is associated with a local congregation run by two Italian priests. The girls come from abusive situations and stay from two months to one year. The abuser is more likely than not an immediate family member, who will get a slap on the wrist for beating/raping their sister/daughter. The boys come from living on the streets and usually stay for one year before finding a more permanent situation with a relative or foster family. The youngest boys are brothers and arrived after two months on the streets when they were seven and nine years old. They have been there for a little over one year now. The organization was able to find their mother but she said that she was starting a new life that didn’t include her boys. So she just left them. ???

Another day Angela and I hopped on a matatu and made the “two-hour” trip to Nairobi. If you actually have to be somewhere at a specific time then matatus are not the way to travel, unless you give yourself a day leeway. Anyhow, we went to a shopping center and the Massai Market. Both were a little overwhelming at first for very different reasons. The shopping center had stores, cafes, and Christmas decorations and the market had eager locals fighting for your attention in anticipation of an overpriced sale.

It was a fun little trip and I was able to experience another area of Kenya’s traditional culture. After being gone I have realized Karungu is starting to feel a little bit more like home.

Many forms of greetings.

The neighborhood kids keep the area busy. They are always out playing with tires, sticks, or the garbage in the garbage pit- anything can become a toy. I am greeted with a handshake, hug, or scream across the field every time I pass, even if it was just minutes before. “Mzungu! "Ciao! Amanda! Kayla!” These are the most common greetings I receive from the kids as they run toward me. “Mzungu” meaning white person, “ciao” coming from the Italian influences over many years, and the names of previous American volunteers. “No, my name is Emeelee.” Emily is a difficult to say so I hear many variations but I am starting to hear less “Amanda’s” and “Kayla’s” belted in my direction. I have no doubt that the next volunteer will be called Emily for quite some time. After we go over my name I usually add, “not chow, I say hello and goodbye.” A few of the kids are consistently saying “bye-bye” when I see them, but it’s an improvement.

             Outside of the compound I hear a lot of “chow and mzungu!” I am usually just passing so I respond with “ciao” or “habari” and a friendly wave. Watching me run is very entertaining and it never fails that at some point I have a group of kids running with me. I find it very awkward to be followed so I have started to let the kids go first and I follow them. They think it’s hilarious and it allows me to avoid the uncomfortable feeling. Often they last longer than I would expect but eventually drop off one bye one and I am left to run by myself or until the next group comes along. 

            Not everyone enjoys seeing me though. Some of the younger kids are scared and run the opposite direction. I don’t blame them, I would probably be scared of me too if I rarely saw a white person. Most of these kids still don’t come near me but they have stopped crying at the sight of me. So, everyone in and out of the hospital is getting used to having me around, learning my name, “hello” and “goodbye” and even my weird habit of running! 

A bit of information on Kenya!

Kenya, named after Mount Kenya means “Mountain of Whiteness.” It is known as the “Cradle of Mankind” as it is the ethnic homeland of us all. Later Kenya became the home to more than seventy different groups of African migrants, each having its own identity. Today more than eighty “tribal” or “mother” languages are spoken with English the “official” language and Kiswahili the “national” language. Depending on where you are, one two or three of these languages may be spoken.

Of the many tribes in Kenya, the major tribes you would likely encounter include the Maasai, Kikuyu, and Luo.

 Kenya shares boarders with Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda, & Tanzania with the Indian Ocean bounding part of the eastern side. It has great contrast in topography ranging from snowcapped peaks to hills & plateaus and from deserts to beaches. These diverse landscapes separate Kenya into eight different areas. Although the weather may differ from area to area, the climate remains relatively stable all year since Kenya is on the Equator.

Kenya’s population is estimated around 30 million. Twenty-five percent of people live in urban areas concentrated in a few large cities including Nairobi, Mombasa, Eldoret, Kisumu, and Nakuru. Sixty-seven percent of people live in rural areas concentrated in high lands and Western Kenya due to agricultural use of the land leaving the north and east of the country, which is nearly eighty percent of the land containing a small portion (10%) of the population.

Karungu is a village in Migori District, one of twelve districts in Nyanza Province, where the majority of the people are Lou. Nyanza is considered to be the poorest province in Kenya with the second highest HIV prevalence after Nairobi. Today more than 1.5 million Kenyans are infected with HIV.

 Although in Western Kenya, Karungu’s climate is modified due to the altitude (1.145 km or 3,000+ ft about sea level) and the effects of Lake Victoria. Lake Victoria, source of the Nile and 68,870 square kms in size, is the largest lake in Africa and the second largest freshwater lake in the world. The western shores of Lake Victoria, near the boarder of Tanzania houses St. Camillus Mission Hospital, Dala Kiye Center for Orphans, and B.L. Tezza School. … I’ll go into more detail about these later!

Polygamy

“How are you?” “What are you called?” “Are you married?” “How many kids do you have?” “How many wives do you have?” “Does your husband have another wife?” … All of these questions are typical upon meeting someone and getting to know them. It took me a little while not to feel like I was offending someone when asking them about their marital status as if it was similar to an affair but really it’s a part of life here. The only person not used to it in Karungu is myself. 

Currently we have a man in the "last ward" who was married to nearly 100 women! His nickname was "Danger" and I can understand why. Having this many wives is uncommon, most men have one or two and maybe three if they can afford it. Danger's family was able to open two schools and a church just for themselves- he kind of had a mini village. He divorced 30 of his wives at one point, which makes me wonder how he chose which women to divorce? 

Questions that I am asked include where I am from, what I am doing here, if I have kids, and if I am married. “What!  No kids? You’re not married?” Most people can’t believe I’m 22 years old with no kids, let alone not married. Father Julius often points this out and adds that I have a college education, am volunteering my time, and staying in Kenya for one full year. The first time I was wondering where he was going with this but then it made sense. Use me as an example. Fine by me: maybe I will start to see fewer girls under the age (way under the age) of 20 in the maternity ward.

There have been plenty of times that my answer to whether I am married has been “Yup, I’m happily married.” It’s easier than refusing a marriage proposal, explaining that where I come from everyone is married to just one person, and that my dad doesn’t need the cows, donkeys, and chickens that would be offered to him as a dowry. I’m not even quite sure how many cows, donkeys, and chickens I am worth. 

Emily 

Communication... what?

I just concluded my week of orientation on children’s health ward (CHW). Last week I was on medical 2, the adult ward and next week I am off to the surgical ward. After orientation I’ll decide where to work based on my preference and where I am most needed, a decision that I know will be difficult!

Each ward has its own personality and of course each has its unique challenges. However, one common challenge faced on a daily basis is communication, in and out of the hospital.

In Karungu people speak Luo, which is the tribe in this area. Then most people speak one of the two national languages, Kiswahili or English. Most of the staff speaks English but they think I have an accent and to me they have an accent. No worries, I am not naïve to the fact that I AM the one with the accent! We also have a lot of Italians here… they think Americans speak like we have potatoes in our cheeks.

One day I was doing rounds with the Dr. P who spoke Kiswahili to a patient, who then translated it to Luo for the patient we were actually assessing and it bounced back ending with Dr. P talking to me in English. It takes some getting used to but it works! Another challenge in the hospital is what things are called. Cannulas are known as brannulas, charts as case-notes, tape as strapping and many drugs are in European names. I am getting used to the names and will no doubt be using the new names back home. 

During meals we represent all languages including Italian, Luo, Kiswahili and English. Everyone tries to stick to English and although there are a lot of blank stares, and “what’s” or “hmmm?” we get everything across eventually!

I am working on my Luo and Kiswahili and although I think I mix them a lot everyone is supportive and are great teachers.

I apologize for the time lapse of my blogs but websites work best in this order: Facebook, Google and then my blog! Of course Facebook would work best! Take care,

Emily

My arrival to Karungu.

I made it to Kenya! Traveling here, all 25 hours of it went fairly well. The whole process could have started off on the wrong foot when I was supposed to fly from Duluth to Minneapolis but found myself in a car rushing 160 miles south. I spent 2 ½ hours driving with Diane, who was in the same situation. We had a great ride and I made it to my gate just as people were boarding.

Father Julius picked me up in Nairobi and we spent the night at the St Camillus Seminary. The next morning we headed to Karungu, my house for the next year. I used the word “home” at first but was quickly corrected by locals that “home” means where I am from. Father Julius said we should get on the road by 8:30am but true Kenyan style we didn’t leave Nairobi until 11am. We really did have some errands to run before leaving though. So off we went on our 8ish hour journey.  I say 8ish because it is 8 hours if all goes well…

The drive started through the beautiful rift valley and a stop for my first Kenyan meal. We finally made it to the last lag of our trip- the dirt road. Father Julius warned me that it was bumpy but I wasn’t prepared. Not only was it REALLY BUMPY you were dodging motorcycles, vans, people, cows, donkeys and other various animals. Have the image in your mind? K, now think even BUMPIER. The thought went through my head that it was amazing that we didn’t have a flat tire up to this point. Well, wrong thought because shortly after the left front tire was out of commission. Father Julius and I were working on getting it changed but the jack would not go high enough to lift the car. Problem. Eventually we found some help… and some more help…and some more help. Finally we had the jack on a rock that was on a piece of wood that then lifted the car. An hour later off we went. So 9ish hours later we arrived in Karungu.  

So I made it to Karungu and my last thought until next time… It will take some getting used to driving on the left side of the road! 

I'm going to Kenya!

I can't believe how fast this summer has gone! I head to New Jersey for orientation in a few days and then to Kenya on September 23rd. After graduating from St. Ben's in the spring of 2010, and passing the nursing exam I was accepted into the Catholic Medical Mission Board's (CMMB) medical volunteer program. CMMB began in 1912 and has since been working to help save lives throughout the world through the distribution of medicine and medical supplies, and the placement of volunteer medical professionals.

CMMB has assigned me to Saint Camillus Mission Hospital in Karungu, Kenya. Karungu is located on the shores of Lake Victoria, the second largest freshwater lake in the world. During my year's stay in Kenya I will have the once in a lifetime opportunity to serve people in the greatest need of healthcare.

With my departure date quickly approaching I am excited and nervous for my journey ahead. Thank you to everyone for your generous donations and all of the support. I will post has often as I can to keep you updated on my experience.

The following are CMMB and St Camillus Mission Hospital's websites:
http://cmmb.org/
http://www.karungu.net/

Thanks again and I'll keep you posted!