Sporting on Lake Victoria: Boat Racing, Tug-of War, Wrestling, and More

Children stand in a beached boat at Marenga Beach, watching a race boat pass by the shoreline while practicing for the upcoming race.

My area may have generally sacrificed much of their traditional culture in favor of a more western lifestyle, but at least one time each year, my community harkens back to the days of old, when their traditions were strong and distinct.

The Abanyala people have a strong heritage in both water and land sports. The main traditional sports for the Abanyala are three: boat racing, tug-of-war, and wrestling. The winners from this region would move onto national competition in Kisumu. From there, the top teams would move on to represent the nation against teams from the other East African nations bordering Lake Victoria: Uganda and Tanzania. The Abanyala people are very well represented in the lore of past champions.

These traditions continue through today, but whereas they used to be practiced throughout the year, they are now reserved only for the Christmas season. I had the pleasure of attending these events over the past few days.

Christmas Day in Budalang'i

I spent Christmas Day here in my village of Budalang'i, primarily with the Mango's, my host family. It was a fairly low-key event, but it was enjoyable as they are very good people. We basically spent the day chatting and eating at the house, before heading into town a bit later in the afternoon.

Most families slaughter a goat to mark the holiday. Brothers of John, my host father, carve up the goat as my host mother Angelina and host niece Okampo look on.

Myself, host sisters Mevans and Mercy, 'mama' Angelina, 'baba' John, and brother Peter. Mevan's young daughter Okampo is striking a pose down in front. Angelina and John have another son and daughter, but were away for the holidays.

Kenya's Complicated Political Culture

A NARC-Kenya political rally on Wednesday, December 19th, within Budalang’i market center was well attended.  

There is a reason why my entries from Kenya have largely been devoid of discussions on local culture, especially when you compare them to those from Mali. It is not that my interest in culture has waned. Rather, it is difficult for me to pick out any real noticeable differences from America. Most of Kenya, and the Abanyala people of Bunyala in particular, have adopted a largely western lifestyle, phasing out many of their traditions.

Any discussion of modern-day Kenyan culture must begin and end with politics. After having lived in Mali for nearly two years, where no one in village ever really engaged in a serious political discussion, this is in many ways refreshing.

In Mali, there is such a grave disconnect between the government and its people. Village life is by-and-large unaffected by the political powers in Bamako. Regardless of whoever won any election, rural Mali never saw any changes. No new roads, no electricity, no infrastructure, nor stable water supply.

In the days following the coup d’état, the events in the country were only topically discussed. It was a political transformation in the most extreme sense, but it was still only worth a mention. The consensus was that it was not a big deal. Things would sort itself out in Bamako, and there would be no ramifications in village no matter how things proceeded. Imagine the contrast in sentiment if the government of Kenya collapsed. Or America.

Transitions...

My major role in Budalang’i thus far into my service has been to serve in basically an advisory role in reforming my host organization to ensure that it can work into the future. It has proven to be a difficult task, and these past couple of months have seen several changes within our organization.

There were two major critical issues I raised with the Board of Directors during a meeting held on October 17th. One of these issues is an inability to continue to provide services which the community now relies upon the organization to provide, such as flood rescue and relief. This is due to the issue of lack of 'organizational knowledge' from prior projects resulting from a reluctance of prior staff to turn over project-related documents to those remaining in the organization. We have made slim, if any, progress on this matter, and I do not fully understand why it has been so difficult. But it is clear to me, this issue must fall on the board to resolve. I have been unable to get anywhere. Being an outsider likely does not help.

But really the most critical of issues was the lack of staff. At the time, our office was only staffed by a volunteer office assistant named Wilfrida, who had only started work a month before I arrived, and had no knowledge or experience in the organization's operations (She is highly motivated and I am confident that she is capable of much more, but she has yet to be given an opportunity for real work, and I hope to make sure she gets that opportunity in the future). Without staff, there can be no work, even if we address the 'organizational knowledge' problem.

Therefore, following the meeting we soon posted a job advertisement for a Programme Officer on voluntary terms. Without funding available to pay staff, applicants were tough to come by. We actually only received one applicant, a young man in his early thirties, before the two-week deadline passed.

The applicant certainly left some question marks, but he seemed reasonably qualified and worth giving a chance. But being a local, the chairman of the board new of him and had some concerns. I convinced him that we just needed staff, and unfortunately we couldn’t afford to be too picky at the time being. We don’t have to entrust him with a lot of responsibility up front. Since we aren’t paying, lets give him a chance, and if he proves himself, we keep him on. If not, we can let him go. No harm, no foul.

My Malian Education: The Lesson of 'Yala Yala'

This is one of my favorite spots to 'piga story', as they say in 'Kiswahili.' This phrase literally means 'beating the story.' I spend time most afternoons chatting with friends outside of Ben's 'duka' (retail shop), often gathered around a man known simply as 'Fundi.' 'Fundi' means an artisan/craftsman. This particular 'Fundi' is a cobbler, repairing old shoes already well past worn. Note the chalkboard leaning against the wall, which advertises the English Premier League soccer matches a television hall just behind this building will be airing for the week.

‘Yala yala’ is a 'Bamanankan' word. I may no longer be in Mali. I may now be regularly speaking another language, ‘Kiswahili’, and learning a fourth, ‘olunyala’, but I have yet to come across another word in any language which better encapsulates the practice. Which is fitting, since it is a habit I learned and adopted into my everyday life during my time in Mali. To ‘yala yala’ is to walk about for no particular reason, simply to wander and chat with people.

Pictured above are my 'Wamama wa Sokoni' (my mothers in the market). They gather here each day to sell 'omena' (small fish) and vegetables, sitting outside of the new market structure currently under construction. I like to sit with them and chat, mostly practicing my Olunyala, which has really helped me learn the language. Many of them, on account of their gender and age, have a lower level of education and feel more comfortable speaking their native language. They have taken to telling any visitors 'Mikey ni kwangu' (Mike is our kid).

Earning My Sea Legs: Bunyala District - Furthest South of the River Nzoia

Fishing boats line the shore of Osieko Beach Tuesday afternoon, most fishermen having returned to shore for the day.  

On Tuesday, Laurence and I returned to sea to make our final stop of our tour of Bunyala District, the village of Osieko. This time, mercifully, the waters of Lake Victoria were exactly what I had expected prior to our trip to Bulwani. They were absolutely calm. We apparently just had the misfortune of picking an exceptionally bad day last week for our travels.

Osieko is the farthest location in Bunyala District, and thus required the biggest time commitment of our travels. The ferryboat took about one hour to reach Osieko after travelling through the Ndekwe River, the Yala Swamp, and Lake Victoria from Mabinju Beach. The return boat, however, was much slower, taking twice as long. The main problem we faced was that boats only run during the morning hours, so this trip necessitated an overnight stay at a hotel in the village.

But we were at least able to wake up to some good news Wednesday morning. An entrepreneur in Osieko has constructed a television hall; a long structure with mud walls, a metal roof, and a projection television. People normally pack the place to watch Premier League football, but Wednesday morning our attention focused upon live coverage of the US presidential election. Needless to say, all Kenyans were very excited as the results came in.

Through Swamp, River, and Sea: Bunyala District - Even Further South of the River Nzoia

This post on performing my community needs assessment is going to take a different form from the others. In short, it necessitates it. Our journey to Bulwani in many ways overshadowed the information we gathered during our discussions with the villagers. So below is a narrative of how the trip transpired…

A view from our boat as we circumnavigated the Ndekwe River within the Yala Swamp, just outside of Mabinju Beach.

A Foiled Attempt 

On Wednesday, Lawrence and I biked from Budalang'i, crossed the River Nzoia by ferry boat, and continued onto Mabinju Beach. There, we met a man who had helped to arrange a private boat for us to take through the Yala Swamp along the Ndekwe River, across Lake Victoria, and finally through a small waterway leading to the village of Bulwani.

We had told him to be ready for us at 7AM, despite knowing that we wouldn't arrive until thirty minutes later. Naturally, when we arrived, they still weren’t ready for us. The boat which was supposed to be there for us, a boat owned by the government, never arrived. Instead, they ended up raising the price on us severely to rent a different boat and engine.

It wasn’t until 8:30AM that we finally headed out onto the River Ndekwe, but the engine had problems right from the start. Our driver would pull the crank of the engine, and it either wouldn’t catch, or would hold an idle for a few seconds before dying out. As he kept trying, we ended up further into the swamp. But eventually, he couldn’t get any power from it, and had to use a single paddle to bring us back to shore.

Life in the Swamp: Bunyala District - Further South of the River Nzoia

Due to the shortage of staff at my host organization, my plans to tour the entire district to assess the various needs of the community had been tabled for the time being. We are still in the process of seeking applicants for a new position. But in the meantime, my friend Lawrence has generously offered to accompany me until he leaves to work on the biometric voter registration process in another district ahead of the upcoming elections in March.

Our first stop together, where Austin and I had left off, was to visit the villages of Rukala, Runyu, and Nandehe Beach on Monday. Reaching the village of Rukala requires crossing the River Nzoia by ferry boat, then crossing a small bridge over the Ndekwe River and the Yala Swamp.

Up until this point, I had visited many villages who battle the forces of nature on a regular basis, whether it be the threat of annual flooding, the inability to construct necessities like 'vyoo' (latrines) due to a high water table and weak soil, or inadequate drinking water. But visiting these areas, spending time with the villagers, I could see possible rationalizations for choosing to settle here. These areas felt comfortable, accomodating. They felt like any other simple, rural community, and with an inviting coastal breeze. Land is generally more fertile than those found upland.

But Rukala and Runyu were the first places I've been to on these trips which I just could not find any redeeming qualities. These villages are basically situated on low-lying islands, just a little higher than the surrounding Yala Swamp. But the more fitting way to describe them is that these villagers live in the swamp, not near it. The narrow strips of 'higher ground' which people have settled on are directly adjacent to the swamp lands, with no real buffer zone. This results in an unimaginable convergence of all kinds of problems.

People have lived here for a long time despite the problems. It is their ancestral land. Why their ancestors chose such a difficult place to settle, God only knows. Maybe it was the fertile farmland, when flood waters from the swamp don't threaten to destroy them. But one thing is for sure, resettling these people would be a difficult task, given their lack of sustainable sources of income to purchase land elsewhere, as well as people's hesitance to leave the land of their ancestors.

During most of my community visits, the nationwide teacher’s strike had meant that schools were closed. But with their opening, I have been able to begin visiting schools to speak with their administration.

Pictured above is Budala Primary School in the village of Rukala. Their only source of water is an open shallow well, and they currently have no means of water treatment. Also, there is a major shortage of ‘vyoo’ (latrines), especially considering that most are full anyways due to the high water table. Because of its location by the swamp, mosquitos are a major problem, and the sandy soils harbor jiggers, a nasty insect which infest the children’s feet. The jigger infestation is difficult to control, even more difficult to eradicate, as it spreads rapidly. But most of the schools in the district seem to have health clubs, which provide an avenue for working with them in the future.

Ewiki Yo Emihung’ano (Week of Meetings)

This week has been awfully busy for me, particularly due to the lack of staff currently within our organization. From Monday through Thursday, I had to attend at least one meeting each day, on several different issues.

Most important was our own internal meeting on Wednesday, when we held the full Board of Directors meeting I had requested. During this meeting, I formally introduced myself to the board members and stressed my role as a Peace Corps Volunteer both within the organization and the community as a whole. I then took the opportunity to give a speech, based upon my own observations and discussions with staff, regarding the present state of the organization and how best to move forward.

I was pleased by the response I received from the board. There is an acceptance of the challenges faced at this current juncture and a willingness to make the necessary reforms to improve the daily operations and the sustainability of the organization. Although we still need to work on the specifics, I believe that the will and commitment is there to move this organization forward and continue the great service it has always provided the community.

Because of the optimism that I feel regarding the direction of the organization, I have been willing to, only for this short period of time, take on a larger role in management of daily operations than I generally feel comfortable with.

I have made it clear that any work that I do should be in an advisory role only. I can only accompany and assist staff in the work that they do, in order to teach skills and build capacity. But given the current challenges, until the organization does make additional hires, I find it necessary to represent the organization in order to maintain its good name within the community.

When possible, I have been taking Wilfrida, our office assistant, with me to meetings. And following the meeting on Wednesday, board members have also availed to accompany me at more important meetings within the community.

On Monday, while waiting at the Bunyala District Ministry of Agriculture offices for training on Maize Lethal Necrosis Disease, which was scheduled to begin at 9AM, a CHEW (Community Health Extension Worker) named Charles arrived, insisting that I join him at that moment in speaking to a couple of local primary schools as part of Global Handwashing Day.

Bunyala District - South of the River Nzoia (Interrupted)

My plan to tour the entire district of Bunyala by bicycle has hit a bit of a snag. I previously detailed our completion of the villages north of the River Nzoia. We had been making steady progress on those south of the river through the end of September.

But around that time, my counterpart Austin received a message from a local financial services business he had applied to a long time ago. A job opening had emerged. Austin spent several days preparing and interviewing for the position. Our previously steady momentum was significantly hindered. Over the first two weeks of October, we were only able to go out into the field twice. And last week, he officially left my host organization.

I am very happy for Austin, the man needed money. He has been working without pay since college, and was therefore unable to adequately support himself. He has been building his house within his family’s concession, but has been unable to complete it since he couldn’t afford supplies. He had been using a phone without a functioning screen, and just last week, this phonewas switched off on account of being counterfeit. He has no means of transportation, and has had to borrow someone else’s bike just to accompany me to the field.

But in terms of my work and the organization in general, times have gotten even more difficult. The person whom I have worked most closely with within this organization has now left. My host organization is now entirely staffed by Wandera (my original counterpart who has now been elevated to my supervisor after Tom’s departure for politics) and two office assistants. I have not seen Wandera in over a month. He spends all of his time within the Samia District office, and is unfamiliar with projects within Bunyala District. Therefore, since I am based in Bunyala District, I am now working with a staff of only one office assistant, who has been with the organization for only two months herself.

I am currently working closely with the chairman of the board and have asked him to schedule a full board meeting. This meeting will happen shortly. During this meeting, I plan on presenting to them all of the challenges which I see facing this organization. We can then discuss as an organization strategies to succeed into the future. As a result of this meeting, I hope the organization will have a clear path forward and we can begin to rebuild.

Challenges: Organizational Development and Disaster Management

Here in Kenya, I have been assigned to work with a local organization. This differs from my time in Mali, where I was simply assigned to a village. There, it was necessary to assess the needs of the village on my own, compare them to the desires and resources of the villagers, and then work together with whomever was motivated and able within the community on various small-scale projects to address those needs.

I still feel that it is important for me to travel around the district, meet with the local people, in order both to understand the issues facing the community, as well as to acquaint myself with the community, since any project we tackle must be undertaken as a team, primarily driven by community members, in order to ensure sustainability. This is what Austin and I have been undertaking over the past month.

I am working alongside an organization which has been doing great work within the community since 1999. Local community members had originally formed this organization primarily to address the flood events communities throughout the district regularly face. But the organization has also worked on a wide range of additional projects since its inception. Such projects have dealt in the areas of agriculture and food security, access to safe drinking water, advocating for the basic human rights of the marginalized in society, natural resource management, and the promotion of behavior change in order to improve the health of the community and reduce risk of exposure to illnesses ranging from water-borne diseases to HIV/Aids.

Becoming part of an active organization necessitates that I, to some degree, inherit certain ongoing projects and responsibilities. This brings me to my biggest challenges faced as a Peace Corps Volunteer here in Budalang’i.

Bunyala District - North of the River Nzoia

My counterpart Austin and I have embarked on a comprehensive tour of Bunyala District in order to familiarize ourselves with it's people, the challenges faced in their daily lives, and the resources and organizations found within the area.

This past Friday, we finished our travels within the three locations north of the River Nzoia (Bunyala West, Bunyala North, and Bunyala East) after six days of visiting villages and beaches throughout this expansive area. Even so far, we have found vast diversity in both the natural environment and the lives of the people from village to village. I expect this to continue as we proceed to the remaining three locations of the district (Bunyala Central, Khajula, and Bunyala South), all located south of the River Nzoia, beginning next week.

Below is a summary of our travels, in pictures, across the locations of Bunyala District north of the River Nzoia:

Port Victoria, within Bunyala West location, Bukani sub-location, is the largest, most metropolitan town within the district. Once the new paved road is completed, I could easily see Port, scenically situated along Lake Victoria, becoming a tourist destination. This picture was taken on a Friday, market day.

Flood Reconnaissance - The Southern Banks of the River Nzoia and Current Mitigation Efforts

On Monday, Austin and I finished up our tour of the dykes North of the River Nzoia by biking along a small, final section of the dyke north of the river. Tuesday, we crossed the river to tour the entire length of the dykes intended to protect the villagers south of the river from flooding.

These areas in southern Bunyala District had received the brunt of the battering during last December’s floods, which displaced nearly 25,000 people.

This was a picture taken on Monday from a road along a hill north of the river of the main point of crossing known as ‘Khu Ferry’. The River Nzoia is the main body of water, at the front. Behind it are temporary bodies of water present due to the rising water level.

The river crossing is made by a small canoe-type boat, filled with passengers, bicycles, and motorcycles.

Note how close some families actually reside to the river, unprotected by the dykes. The clothes you can see are hung within one such family’s household.

Flooding is quickly becoming, as it does every year, a matter of urgency. On August 30th, the early warning system was triggered; meaning that the water level had risen to such an extent that flooding along the river could be imminent. And just that same week, the Kenyan Meteorological Department forecasted above-average rainfall in much of Western Province, including the entire catchment area of the River Nzoia, through December. Even now, sustained rains have lingered upstream.

Maendeleo, tutaendelea vipi?

There has been some reshuffling within my host-organization, after Tom, my former supervisor left the organization in order to pursue politics. Wandera, my former counterpart and now supervisor, held a staff meeting last Friday in order to discuss how we proceed.

Following this meeting, Austin, now my official day-to-day counterpart, and I have received the green light to proceed with performing a Community Needs Assessment and acquainting myself with the community of Bunyala District.

This is a much more daunting task than it was in Mali. There, my community was the small village of Makili with a population of approximately 1,500. Here, my community is the entire district of Bunyala, comprised of more than 250 villages divided up into six locations, each comprised of three sub-locations. The population of the district as of the 2009 National Census was 66,723.

Bunyala District is, in comparison, a massive area. It is a diverse district in terms of geography, and is divided by a large river, the River Nzoia. Because of its diversity in geography and its water features such as swamps, rivers, and Lake Victoria, the problems that each community faces within the district vary greatly. It’s a complicated district with a plethora of problems.

I asked Austin to help me make a list of all of the villages with markets or major meeting centers where we would be likely to meet people at any given time. This came to 20 villages and 7 beaches, the latter being important in order to meet with the fishing community as well.

We have prepared a schedule to visit each of these locations, meet with the chiefs of these communities, speak with people in the community centers, visit a few families at their homes, visit health centers and schools, and speak with active youth and women’s groups. We will surely have to return to some locations later so as to meet with key community leaders and active community groups at scheduled times. But some of the locations are so remote, such as a village called Osieko, which will require an overnight stay due to the need to cross the river Nzoia and either Lake Victoria or the Yala swamp.

Kan jumɛn bɛ? Bamanankan.

Since arriving in Kenya, I have continued to keep in touch with my Malian village of Makili regularly by phone. There have been a lot of happenings in village life, and unfortunately like those on the national scene, most are not particularly good.

My friend Dramani called me August 10th to inform me that Shaka, a young man of about 35 and heavily involved in the ‘Diarrakɛla tɔn sigi’, passed away from something he described as blood not being able to flow. I’m assuming it was a heart attack. It was tragic not only because he was so young, but also because he was a great guy who was very involved in the village.

The ‘Diarrakɛla tɔn sigi’ had always impressed me in their motivation and activities, and a lot of that stemmed from its two ‘ɲɛmɔgɔw’ (presidents), Shaka and Alou. The committee operated within one of the four neighborhoods of the village, Diarrakɛla. The youth of the neighborhood would normally work twice a week during the planting and harvest seasons to work on behalf of the committee. This is not a small sacrifice, as work during these times is substantial with families having to work their own fields daily. The funds raised by this work then go towards community events, primarily their often-times weekly ‘shɛniw’ (dance parties) and other celebrations. Shaka will be greatly missed.

I later learned that a young boy of about 10 years old, whom the village endearingly called ‘Dugutigi’ (because he was the namesake of his uncle Madou Katilɛ, the ‘dugutigi’, or chief of the village), passed away on August 26th after drowning in a body of water near the rice fields which they were working. People tried to save him, but couldn’t get to him in time.

Hearing of his loss really shook me. Dugutigi was still only a child, way too young to go. But not only that, he always seemed to me to exhibit such a strong since of compassion and responsibility well beyond his years. He always helped his siblings and the younger kids around him as best he could. Just a great kid all around.

I was fortunate in that, unlike many of my colleagues in Peace Corps Mali, I never encountered the loss of people I became close with while in village. The only deaths that occurred while I was in village were either very young babies generally under a year old, the elderly, or people whom had been suffering from illness for an extended period of time. So these two losses shook me.

Flood Reconnaissance – The Northern Banks of the River Nzoia

A picture along a portion of the dyke protecting residents from flooding of the River Nzoia. The dykes are generally kept fairly barren of vegetation.

This past Monday and Tuesday, I went outside the office with my coworkers Austin and Michael to bike along the dyke beside the northern banks of the River Nzoia. The River Nzoia is the source of annual flooding which affects the Budalang’i area. I will later tour the southern banks of the river, the scene of most of the devastation from last year.

Coworkers Austin and Mike at my host organization showed me around the flood-prone areas and the dyke.  

Beginning in Budalang'i

On Thursday, August 16th, I arrived in my new community of Budalang’i after a long drive from Nairobi to the extreme western edge of the country along the Ugandan border.

Since arriving, I have been spending my time setting up my homestead and acquainting myself with the people of my host-organization and the community at-large.

The outdoor market and assorted ‘maduka’ (shops) in the center of Budalang’i town. The town has two market days: Wednesday and Saturday.

I would describe Budalang’i as a sort of middle-ground between my village of Makili in Mali and the town of Loitokitok, where I had just trained here in Kenya for the past two months.

Budalang’i is a relatively small, poor community within Busia. The village is much poorer than Loitokitok, but not nearly at the level of Mali. Most people here live in mud homes, although the construction of said homes differs greatly from that in Mali. However, within the town center are several ‘hotelis’ (restaurants), bars, small retail shops, and even a timber awning housing two coin-operated pool tables. The community is also seeing a significant amount of development from the government in terms of the construction of a new paved road and a new market shade structure.

People here are, on the whole, generally friendlier than I had found them to be in Loitokitok. They also form a much tighter community more reminiscent of Mali, where most people in village know each other and are generally more involved and attached to their community. A lot of this comes from the fact that Loitokitok was much more metropolitan, with people of all ethnic groups having migrated there. Yet people here do still have their own isolated homesteads, and more so stay indoors at night with their families in a more western set-up. But thankfully no bulky walls lined with broken glass and barbed wire to barricade them in.

I am officially (still) a Peace Corps Volunteer

Last Wednesday, August 15th, I was amongst thirty Americans sworn in as Peace Corps Volunteers at the US Ambassador's residence in Nairobi. Of course, I have been a volunteer for almost two years now, so this was a bit anticlimactic. But what it did mean is that the following day, I was able to head out to my new site of Budalang'i, just North of Lake Victoria along the Ugandan border to start getting acquainted with the community and the work that I will be doing for the next year.

Pictured above are all the members of our training class, along with the US Charge d'Affairs and the Country Director of Peace Corps Kenya. We have a great group, and I've enjoyed getting to know them all over the past two months.

The Last from Loitokitok

A view of Mount Kilimanjaro (right) and a nearer mountain as seen from downtown Loitokitok, home for the past nine weeks.

The guys of our training class during a hike to a nearby waterfall, dubbed ‘51’ by the locals. We've got a great group here, and we've really gotten tight over the two months of training.

The girls of our training class during that same hike.

Different Issues, Same Approach

Going through Pre-Service Training a second time around has not necessarily been easy. Sure, I’ve enjoyed learning a new language again, bonding with my training class, and spending time with my host-family, but there is too much repetition, and the general sense of ‘been there, done that,’ to not suffer at times from boredom.

This past week, we had some training that did not fit that mold. On Monday, my training class took a three-hour ‘matatu’ ride north of Loitokitok to the city of Machakos. There, we found ourselves in rather posh accommodations as we spent a week in training sessions dedicated to HIV/Aids and PEPFAR (The United States President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief). Because HIV/Aids is not widespread in Mali, our training there did not address the issue, nor is PEPFAR present within Mali.

On Tuesday we toured the local Level 5 District Hospital. Specifically, we interviewed workers within each department of the Comprehensive Care Clinic, a center set up in 2003 in order to provide comprehensive care for HIV/Aids-afflicted individuals under one roof. The center is efficiently run, and the men and women whom we spoke to were both intelligent and proud of their work. PEPFAR and the United States Government heavily fund most of the HIV/Aids-related services found in Kenya, including this clinic.

On Wednesday, we were treated to performances by a couple of local advocate groups. The first was a support group for HIV/Aids individuals made up of older adults, primarily women. They performed song, dance, and poetry meant to educate people on HIV/Aids prevention, the importance of getting tested, and the support available to afflicted individuals.

The second was a mixed-gender youth group started at a nearby church. They performed a skit that told of a vulture problem in a community. The vultures proved to be a nuisance to the community and brought with them only death. The community struggled to find a solution to the problem.

Facilitation, Family, and Faith

A picture with my Kenyan family. From left to right, my host brother James, myself, my sister Susan, father John, and mother Jen.

I am now going on six weeks in Kenya, my fifth week with my host family. Homestay and training here in Loitokitok has certainly been a much different experience than in Mali.

During the week, we are generally in language class, learning Kiswahili, each morning. The afternoons are reserved for technical, medical, or safety and security training.

The center of Loitokitok town on an average, non-market day morning.

Dave, my fellow Mali evacuee, and I have been able to skip out on some of the afternoon sessions, either for additional language classes or to prepare to lead water and sanitation-related training sessions with the trainees.

A Dramatic Turn...

On Wednesday, June 27th, all of the 31 members of our Peace Corps Kenya training class received our site announcements. We received a packet in a brown envelope, with the region and our name written in marker. Going into the day, Dave, my fellow Mali evacuee, and I fully expected our sites to be the most inaccessible, water deficient sites. But we soon found that this would not be the case.

My packet said ‘WESTERN.’ I opened it to find that I will be attached with an organization working in Bunyala and Samia districts in Western Kenya. A Peace Corps Kenya staff member helped me to locate my new home of Bunyala Port on the map. It is very close to the Uganda border, right on, or seemingly in, Lake Victoria. The strip of land upon which the port town is situated is apparently so thin that it entirely falls within the blue area of the map.

At the moment we all quickly glazed over our respective documents, more anxious to compare sites and see where our colleagues were placed. The organizational description was fairly vague, and the item that most caught my eye was under ‘cultural norms/practices to be noted,’ it said ‘Sports (Boat Racing, Tug of War, Wrestling, and Traditional Dances).’ That sounds kinda awesome.

As for Dave, well he was placed at a site to the East along the largest wildlife preserve in the country where he will work with ecotourism, conservation, and tree nurseries. So our expectations of placement turned out to be very wrong.

But it wasn’t until later that I read my packet in full, and found this:

Views from a Sunday Stroll with 'Baba Yangu' (My Host-Father)

A view of Mount Kilimanjaro from the town of Loitokitok as seen with clear skies early in the morning.

Acacia trees line farmland in Loitokitok.

John, my host-father, is the construction supervisor for a three-story supermarket currently being constructed within the town.

And my Kenyan adventure begins...

On Monday, June 4th I flew into Philadelphia for staging. There, I met the 30 other men and women headed down to Kenya for Peace Corps service. 29 of them are embarking on their first service, while one other volunteer, Dave, joins me in transferring from service in Mali.

After a day of orientation, we took a bus up to New York City and flew out of JFK Airport Tuesday evening. After transferring in Zurich, we arrived at the Nairobi airport the evening of Wednesday, June 6th.

Right from the start, I could tell that this would be a completely different experience. For one, Nairobi is very developed. Skyscrapers line the streets downtown, and amongst many large office and retail buildings are several full-scale malls! The roads are just as crowded and cumbersome as those in Bamako. But instead of cheap motorcycles and ragged bush-taxis, cars and newer, relatively spacious mini-buses fill the streets.

We stayed at a hostel just outside of Nairobi until Saturday morning. There, we attended several general classes and began our Kiswahili language training. The training facility was fully equipped with electricity and plumbing, and we each even had our own rooms with full bathrooms!

It didn’t take long for our first African wildlife sighting! Pictured above are a couple of giraffes seen feeding on the side of the road from our bus as we traveled from Nairobi to Loitokitok.

The Packing List (Round 2)

It's not often you have the opportunity for a redo. Well, thanks to being evacuated from Mali and accepting a transfer position to another post, I now have the opportunity to repack for a Peace Corps service. Generally, I think I did pretty well on the first go-around. But there were certainly some things that I took the first time which I had soon realized were unnecessary. And the differing environments of Mali and Kenya also merit some variation. So here is my packing list on the second go-around. Hopefully this will help those who come after me...

Clothing

• 2 - Lightweight Pants
• 6 - T-Shirts (3 - Cotton, 3 - Lightweight)
• 1 - Cotton Undershirts
• 8 - Socks (6 - Athletic, 2 - Hiking)
• 1 - Sweatshirt
• 1 - Lightweight Rain Jacket
• 3 - Syracuse Baseball Caps
• 1 - Swimsuit
• 1 - Long-Sleeve Button-Up Shirt
• 1 - Short-Sleeve Polo Shirt
• 3 - Short-Sleeve Button-Up Shirts
• 1 - Jeans
• 14 - Boxers
• 1 - Dress Pants
• 3 - Shorts (2 - Basketball Shorts, 1 - Lightweight Khaki)
• 1 - Belt
• 2 - Sunglasses (1 - Prescription, 1 - Cheap, Biking Glasses)
• 1 - Fleece Sweatshirt

My service in Mali has ended, but 'Allah sɔnna,' our work won't.

My abrupt evacuation was difficult to accept for several reasons. Makili, my village, had become home to me. Its villagers had become some of my closest friends, my family. Emotionally, it was very hard.

Evacuation tore me away not only from those people, but also from the projects that I had put all of my energy behind over the past year and a half. As I told my village, 'I had planned on being here to help with this work until at least September. But 'Allah ma son' (God didn't allow it). I have to leave, it is out of my hands.'

But I also told them, 'my work here has always been to teach you all the skills you need to work on your own to better yourselves and your community. Therefore, if we have done good work together while I was here, it shouldn't matter moving forward whether I am present or not. The projects we had planned can continue.'

During our emotional final committee meetings together, the villagers all assured me that our projects will not end. They will see them through to completion.

Since leaving Mali, I have been in regular communication with my friends and work partners back in Makili. Besides catching up on each other's personal lives, I have continued to advise them on our projects and receive updates on their work.

Makili is still in the throes of hot season, but the villagers are enjoying themselves greatly in spite of the heat. I have frequently documented my love of the culture found in Malian weddings, and the fun involved in these gatherings. And most people are currently attending one to three weddings every week.

With all of the fun, work can be difficult to accomplish. This is the building season, where men work to build/rebuild their mud houses, walls, and latrines as needed. But since people are frequently traveling for weddings, meetings and village projects prove especially difficult.

The Start of the Next Adventure: Training Logistics

I have just arrived at my sister's new house in Charlotte after taking a couple of weeks to travel along the eastern seaboard, hitting up friends and family in DC, Boston, Northern Massachusetts, New York City, and Northern Virginia. The remainder of my time in the states will be spent with friends and family in North Carolina, before heading up to Michigan for my cousin Jill's wedding on June 2nd.

On June 4th, I'll fly out of Detroit for staging in Philadelphia. The following day, June 5th, I will take a bus with my fellow Peace Corps Kenya trainees up to JFK Airport in New York for our flight to Kenya, connecting through Zurich. We will arrive in Nairobi the evening of June 6th, thus beginning the next chapter of my Peace Corps experience.

The prospect of going through the entire Peace Corps process from scratch is a little daunting. Once you arrive in-country, each trainee is required to go through a long series of basic informational sessions covering such enticing subjects ranging from administration, security, and medical. Important stuff, no doubt. But after having received this training before, I was less than enthused to learn that I would be subjected to pre-service training again.

Which is why I was thrilled to receive an email from John, the Director of Programming and Training in Kenya, which set out an alternative timeline for the training of us Mali transfers.

Instead of going through all of the basic introductory Peace Corps training sessions, we will first work with the Water and Sanitation technical trainer on tailoring the skills we had learned in Mali to Kenya, and how to best integrate these skills into pre-service training for the entire group.

We will also immediately be placed into an 'intensified' Swahili language class, with the goal of achieving an 'intermediate low' level of speaking proficiency within 5 weeks. As was the case in Mali, we will be staying with a homestay family throughout training.

Later on in training, Peace Corps Kenya Trainees will be sent out to a current volunteer's site to shadow them and get a feel for their normal routines. We, however, will instead be sent directly to our new sites, allowing us to get an early start in our new villages.

An Unexpected Vacation in Ghana

My fellow Mali Peace Corps volunteers and I arrived in Accra, Ghana on Sunday, April 8th for our four-day 'transition conference.' During that time, we were pampered at the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, a strategy which seemingly tried to use luxury to 'shock' us into accepting the circumstances. The expansive, buffet-style meals were especially incredible after eating millet and bark sauce every day.

On Friday, I took advantage of being sent to Ghana and headed out with some friends to experience the country outside of the hotel walls. It was an 'accidental' vacation under less than ideal circumstances, but we still had a great time.

This is a country which wears its religion on its sleeve. Just about every shop is named using some kind of religious/biblical saying. This shop was along the main road outside of the monkey sanctuary. Other examples throughout the country include 'God Is All Things Shop', 'Sit and Pray Spot' (a 'spot' in Ghana is a bar), and 'God's Timing is Right Auto Repair.'

In many ways, Ghana is strikingly different than Mali. For one, being an English-speaking country makes being a tourist much easier. Although the locals primarily speak their native tongue, Twi, amongst themselves, the majority of people you encounter can speak English rather well.

Additionally, while Mali is primarily a Muslim country, Ghana is primarily Christian. Billboards throughout the country speak of upcoming rallies by American evangelists, and just about every single business is named using some kind of religious/bliblical saying.

Transportation in Ghana is far and away faster, simpler, and more comfortable than in Mali. We took over ten public transportation vehicles during our excursion, and not once did we have to wait for more than five minutes to leave.

Evacuation to Ghana, then on to Kenya!

On Sunday, April 8th, all of us nearly 200 Peace Corps Mali volunteers were evacuated to nearby, English-speaking Ghana. Beginning on Monday, we participated in a four-day 'transition conference' tailored to closing out our service and determining what comes next. And I have just decided upon the latter...

Once I received word that we would be evacuated, I resolved to keep my options open. In addition to simply returning stateside to work or travel, I would consider a transfer or Peace Corps Response position, where I could work for six months to a year before potentially heading to graduate school next year (the deadlines for the upcoming school year have come and gone).

I did not expect a transfer to be a feasible option for me. There were very few posts available, and those volunteers which arrived in Mali more recently got priority. But on Wednesday morning, I had an interview with the Africa region staff, and learned that a post in Kenya was open to me.

I made a couple requests in order to make the position more compatible with my future plans of graduate school, and found out on Friday morning that these requests were accepted! To my friends and family, I would like to stress that committing to a third year in the Peace Corps was not a decision I came to lightly. I was only willing to accept a transfer position that would allow me to practice the type of work that I have enjoyed over the past almost two years in Mali, within a country that would afford me an opportunity to experience a culture and environment which greatly interests me.

Jamanan ɲagamilɛn don, ne hakili fana. (The country is mixed up, my mind also.)

Ever since I had left my village of Makili to join my fellow volunteers in Ségou region at our consolidation point on Monday, March 26th, my mind has been racing through a mix of emotions. We were mostly, as the pun goes, ‘couped’ up in an overcrowded house, only able to leave for short periods of time during daylight hours.

I was deeply moved by the numerous, regular calls I received from friends in village checking in on how I was doing, and asking about the latest news. It continued to solidify my feelings of having found something special here, but also made me that much more anxious to return.

At the house, we spent most of our time checking in on the latest news on media websites while also taking in steady updates via email from Peace Corps Mali. It seemed like every day, some new political or military action would take place which would either make evacuation or a return to site more likely.

One day, we’d receive encouraging news that ECOWAS, the Economic Community of West African States, is sending a delegation of West African heads-of-state to Bamako for mutually agreed-upon negotiations with Amadou Sanogo and the mutineers. But the next day, we’d hear that the plane carrying the delegation was turned around mid-flight due to protests on the runways of the airport.

We then heard about ECOWAS threatening sanctions against the Malian regime, such as closing down all borders to the country and freezing the supply of the common currency shared by many of the francophone West African nations. We went back and forth on whether this was a positive or negative development. These sanctions certainly would make life difficult for the ordinary people of this landlocked country, which depends on it’s neighbors for gasoline, foodstuffs, and other necessities. But it could also induce enough pressure to cause the military junta to step down within a couple of days in favor of a transitional civilian government.

This past weekend, the news was particularly mixed. Bamako seemed to be improving. The small-scale violence and unrest that had been commonplace the past week had largely subsided, and life had returned to normal. But while the Southern part of the country (where the majority of the population lives and where Peace Corps operates) was going about life as usual, conditions in Eastern/Northern Mali deteriorated into a full-blown crisis.

Arrested Development - Coup d’État in Mali

Buba (or 'Boi' for short), my friend Lamissa's son, thinks fighting is bad.

On Wednesday I received a couple of text messages from the US Embassy. They mentioned fighting in Kati, the major military base outside of Bamako, and gunshots in downtown Bamako. I talked about it with my friends in village, and they called a friend that is currently working in Bamako. From him, we learned that the national television and radio service was shut down – they assumed by the president, Amadou Toumani Touré (ATT), perhaps because they made a bad comment about him.

But I awoke Thursday morning, surprised to find the BBC World Today radio program leading with ‘Coup d’état in Mali!’ It was a shocking development for a country that has been held up as the leading, model democracy in West Africa. More surprising considering that the presidential election was to take place next month, and ATT wasn’t even running! Sure-fire regime change, no coup required!

Although the coup was not particularly violent and proved to present a very low security risk to us, I began to worry that we could be evacuated. If the civilian government of a country is overthrown and a military government takes over, a military government which America refuses to speak with, can Peace Corps really work in that country?

Ongoing House Construction and a Malian Radio Show

My friend Diallo is currently building a new house for Senata, one of my closest friends and his fiancée. Pictured above, young men from Bokomana, his ‘kin’ (neighborhood), assist him in constructing the walls using mud bricks and mud as mortar.

The men take time out to pose for a picture atop the Malian ‘scaffolding’. The man to the left, known as Jelicɛ, is the local mason. He is hired to oversee the building of the exterior walls of most new homes. Pictured above, he is setting a guide string lengthwise along the wall to guide the men in orienting the bricks properly.

Badri, a presenter from the local radio station in Dioro, stopped by one afternoon to record a show on our women’s garden. He primarily gathered women together to interview them regarding their work in the garden. As he conducted the interviews, Bokari, our resident ‘jelicɛ’ (male griot), played a gentle tune on the ‘ngɔni’ (traditional Malian guitar) for background music. Badri used a smartphone to record the event, and it aired during his 30 minute timeslot that same evening.

The Dawn of Hot Season: Masonry, Committees, and Weddings

I returned to village after the music festival about two and a half weeks ago. I had planned to stay for longer, but unfortunately had to cut this stint short due to possession by the devil, i.e. contracting a bad case of conjunctivitis (pink/demon eye) in both eyes. I just arrived in Ségou to pick up medication. The illness has apparently been making the rounds within my village, and I noticed afterwards that one of my host mothers has it.

The hot season is on the horizon. The work in the fields has generally ended, save for some scattered preparations for the next growing season, such as hauling compost. The building season has begun in earnest, with many villagers involved in making mud bricks and building houses, walls, and latrines.

This work, however, is not a major time commitment, allowing me to ramp up my efforts involving the committees we have begun.

I met with both the Water and Sanitation Committee and the Women’s Garden Committee last week. In addition to facilitating a discussion of our impending work for the upcoming season, I gave each committee a speech on responsibility and obligation. My intention was to weed out any member not willing to pull their own weight, and to encourage the rest to take ownership of their committee. There is often a struggle with attendance and on-time arrivals within both committees.

I told them that ‘it is not an obligation to be on this committee. It is not an obligation to do the work. If you do not want to be on this committee, no problem, you can leave and we will replace you. No hard feelings. But if you do decide to be on this committee, it becomes an obligation to work. It becomes an obligation to attend all meetings on time. It becomes an obligation to participate. And if, for whatever reason, it is not possible for you to attend a scheduled event, it is an obligation to inform the president of the committee ahead of time.’

I also told them that I am no longer going to remind them to hold our regularly scheduled meetings or work, such as well treatment. I now have less than six months left in village. I now want to see for myself that these committees can last without me serving as their driving force.

I am generally encouraged by what I have seen from the Water and Sanitation Committee. Generally the members are willing to work and are motivated to improve the village. But some members still have a tendency to look at our work as secondary to any other work they might have. If work can be done in the fields on a certain day, this all too often takes priority, even though it could easily be shifted. I am trying to change this perspective.

Festival sur le Niger 2012

The eight edition of the Festival sur le Niger took place this past week in Ségou, from Wednesday, February 15th through Sunday, February 19th. Just like last year's festival, it provided a great sampling of the diversity and vibrancy of the Malian people. Although the Azawad rebel movement in the north of the country has been seizing the headlines lately, this festival proves that these fighters are in the minority.

It is amazing to see such diverse cultures represented in one local festival and interacting with each other. During the 'concerts géants' along the river at night, the energy is unreal. Nearly the entire crowd dances to whatever act is onstage. One of my favorite scenes is when Tuareg men, in their traditional turbans and robes, dance with the Bambarans and Fulanis. The contrast in wardrobe and culture is self-evident, but so is the mutual sense of harmony and camaraderie.

Here are some of my favorite acts from this year's edition:

One of my new favorite Malian bands performing on Thursday at the music festival. Neba Solo is a band from the region of Sikasso. Their music is high energy and easy to dance to; traditional music with a flare.

Baba Sissoko performing Thursday night with his band. He literally brought over 30 men and women from his family onto the stage to play the 'tamani' (talking drum). His set was a blast of rhythm.

Scenes from the cold season in village...

My friend Aliwata's family 'malɔ kan' (harvesting/cutting rice). This work is made particularly difficult because it is done before the waters have receded. It is cold season, and the waters do get surprisingly frigid.

Lamuru's household works to 'malɔ kafɔ' (collect the rice together) following 'malɔ kan.' The piles of rice stalks are then left until the fields are dry. Only then can 'malɔ gɔsi' (beating the rice grains off the stalks) begin.

A band's tour bus, Mali style. Mama Diakité performed a concert at night in our village on January 16th. Rather great bands, often widely known, travel from small village to small village to perform. Generally, the concert begins with an apprentice to the main 'jelimuso' (female griot/singer) singing quality songs. But unfortunately, once the main 'jelimuso' arrives, she basically goes through the names of people in the village, asking for money. The person called then comes up and gives money. While the person is standing there awkwardly, the 'jelimuso' will sing praise and blessings for him, and sometimes even sing how much money he had given. The bands are always tight, but the emphasis on begging always spoils the event for me.

The Great Flood of the Dry Season

During the second week of January, while over at my jatigi's concession, my host father's brother, Badama, pointed out into the fields. I looked, and was shocked to find what looked like a large lake spread across the fields as far as I could see! A huge body of water, a flood... and it hasn't rained a drop since early October! How could this happen?

My friend Daouda takes his 'misiw wɔtɔrɔ', filled with 'malo kala' (rice stalks), through the flood waters. A motorcycle passes by, in waters past knee level.

Turns out, each year when the rice growing season is over, water is drained from the rice fields and spills into the surrounding fields. Most years, this water is fairly minimal and has no real impact. This year, however, the water that spilled out from fields around the village of Tiby, about 15 km away, caused some fairly substantial flooding.

The flood waters around my village.

Ongoing preperations...

In my two previous posts, I outlined a couple of the major projects I have been working on over the past couple of months. Below is a brief outline of a few other items I have been involved in, which primarily involve gearing up for future work...

Water and Sanitation Committee

Well Construction Project

On Sunday, January 8th, after I had returned from my vacation in America, we held our monthly 'ji ni saniya tɔn sigi' (water and sanitation committee) meeting. Amongst other items on the agenda, we discussed how to proceed with our planned well project. Before I had left, we had held a village-wide meeting and obtained the buy-in of the village elders to build one well during the hot season, fully funded by the village. The next step was to schedule a second village-wide meeting, during which we would select the location of the well to be built and solidify the process of fundraising.

In loose conversations with members of the village, I realized that we may have neglected a major cost item. We had consulted the right people to obtain all of the costs required, done our due diligence to obtain current cost estimates on materials, and read the list off to everyone involved to verify we hadn't missed anything. So I assumed that since we hadn't discussed the need to pay laborers for digging the well hole, this would simply be a community operation, no payment involved. But it turned out that we do indeed need to pay villagers to dig the hole - it is simply too much work.

Therefore, on Tuesday the 17th, I met with Dramani, our 'ɲɛmɔgɔ' (president), Aliwata, our 'sɛbɛnɛkɛla' (secretary), and Daouda, our 'warimarala' (treasurer), to update our budget sheet to account for paying laborers to dig the well holes. I walked Aliwata through the process, and it turned out that instead of a 7,500 CFA (approx. $15) contribution per 'du' (household), we would have to raise 8,000 CFA (approx. $16) per 'du.'

But the men did not like the idea of raising the contribution. They argued that 7,500 CFA will be fine, we cannot raise the cost after having given the estimate in December. I explained that we need to, we accounted for all of the costs. If we do not raise the required funds, we will run out of money during the project and we will not be able to complete it. They argued that this cannot happen, there is enough money to pay for everything. I asked 'how? How are we going to pay the diggers if we haven't accounted for their fee?' I told them, 'if you can show me where that money will come from, I will relent and we can maintain the 7,500 CFA contribution.'

Soap-Making Formation

Aliwata, Bamoru, Daouda, and Dramani assemble the cutting knife (a strand of brake wire stretched taut) on the table we had custom-built back in September from a shop in the nearby city of Dioro.

On January 31st, our Water and Sanitation Committee ('ji ni saniya tɔn sigi') held our long-awaited soap-making formation.

As I had mentioned previously, Daouda and Dramani had previously gone to the nearby city of Dioro to observe a current soap-making operation. They returned very fond of this specific operation.

Unfortunately, the woman who makes soap in Dioro would not divulge the recipe of the soap. We only knew that 'shi tulu' (shea butter), the oil most commonly used in locally-crafted soaps, could not be used because the resulting soap is too hard to be cut using the table.

This woman had learned to make soap through a formation. The man who ran the formation is currently out of the country, and is likely too expensive for our budget anyways. I had purchased all of the required materials out of my living allowance, and am unable to either pay out-of-pocket, or find the additional funds, to pay for such a formation. I was willing to pay for the materials because the villagers are learning a skill which can be used into the future. After the formation, it is up to the villagers to raise money for the operation on their own.

So in lieu of the actual formation, I used a simple recipe found in one of our Peace Corps manuals, tailoring it to the locally-available 'kwarikuru tulu' (cottonseed oil I believe), which was recommended by the Dioro woman.

I ran the formation rather loosely, allowing our committee members to take charge while I played an advisory role.

Umu and Aja, two women on our committee, dissolving 'sɛgɛ' (lye) in water at the start of our soap-making formation as other women look on. 'Sɛgɛ' is known to be very dangerous to handle. Contact with skin, and even smelling the odor, can be dangerous. Hence the precautions taken by the women.