Dear Friends;

A lot has happened since I last recorded an entry. First of all, my leg injury healed just fine. My time spent in Mombasa went be quickly as several other PCV's visited me and one day I even journeyed down to what is referred to as south beach. I decided I am way too old to return to the scene there!

I received the shipment of books from Leeann Wood without any trouble! Perhaps some of you reading this donated books that are now sitting on the shelves of the Kadzinuni Community Library. Please except my heartfelt thanks as the library is being used regularly and the project is a big success. My other news, as shown above, is that Carrie & Dan Meyers visited me in early June. It was so great that they could see how great the library looks and how the donated books really filled the shelves. I just can't thank everyone enough for the book donations. And the quality and condition of the books was amazing; many were brand new.

While the Meyers were here, we visited Lamu Island, a small island slightly north of Kadzinuni. It is a very old Muslim town; there are no cars, only donkeys. The "streets" are very narrow which gives the place a bit of old world charm. But all in all, Lamu was not our favorite place; we all agreed we should leave a day earlier than planned and went to an official Kenyan "Important Bird Area" where we stayed in an eco-tourist camp. Carrie was very excited to see her first wild flamingos!! I think Carrie & Dan felt it was worth the effort to come to the coast of Kenya to visit me. Maybe, just maybe, they will convince some more Mammoth friends to come over??? Oh, I just decided to include the photo of Carrie trying on a dress in a shop on Lamu ---shows off the colors that Kenyans dress in!!

Currently, Kenya is experiencing World Cup madness. Last night America lost and so are out of the competition but really they did make a good showing. I have become very fond of football/soccer. You can really see the plays being set up while our football, just men in huge uniforms jumping all over each other!

That is it for now. The rainy season is still here and with it cool temps which suits me just fine!

Come Visit Me!!

Mary

Dear Friends;

My situation has changed considerably for the time being. I had a slight injury (a metal door banged into my lower leg and left a deep laceration) and am now residing in the Lotus Hotel in Mombasa while I try to stay off my feet and let my leg heal. I had stitches two weeks ago but after having them taken out, I guess I went on a bike ride a little too soon! Only myself to blame - well,enough on that subject.

Since my last entry, I visited another PCV's site that is up in the mountains and we got in a nice hike. The air was cool and refreshing after the continuing heat on the coast. But by the way, the rainy season has come and the temps are somewhat lower, but the humidity can really sap your energy!! I have also spent a week in Nairobi. I escorted a group of girls from the coast to a leadership camp that PC sponsored in Nairobi. I stuck around for the week and got some medical testing completed (all routine, nothing related to my leg injury). I actually enjoyed most of my time in Nairobi - I now know my way around somewhat and feel more comfortable. The highlight of the trip was spending an evening with a couple who work for the UN. The woman is a relative by marriage to Leslie Whitmore. It was SO delightful to spend an evening in a Western style home, with a small baby and dogs.

As you can see, I am no better at positioning pictures! The above shot is of wonderful clouds approaching Kadzinuni. The photo on the right is an example of how young boys spend some of their free time. They build these stick "cars" and walk all around the villages sort of showing them off. Some are double deckers and quite elaborate. This kid was so eager to have his picture taken!

The top shot is of a mosquito net being hung ---I have a program where nets are given free to residents of Kadzinuni and then I go to their house to make sure they have hung the net and that they are using it properly. The catch is finding the right house ---no street names, no phones, hum - makes for some interesting afternoons.

Why didn't that photo appear here, where I wanted it to??? Well, yes,that is me with my young friend Locie who is in the first grade and read an entire book to me. She is learning English, French, and kiswahili and speaks her mother tongue, chonyi. Her mother, Furaha, is to the right.

Lastly there are my friends Augustus and Jay constructing the new shelves in the library ---and just in time. All the books that were donated and collected by Leeann Wood have arrived in the Mombasa harbour! My next blog entry will highlight my encounter with the harbour master and crew! So far, it is smooth sailing, so to speak. But - we shall see. Haven't picked up the books yet.

I will close for now. I must report that some progress has been made toward bringing electricity to my house so perhaps, in the not too distant future, I will be making more regular entries.

I am well and happy here in Kenya and proud to be serving with the Peace Corps! Since mostly women are reading this blog, I will add that the leadership camp that was held for young girls was a huge success ---oh wait, the last picture I will include is Grace Mwangata & I heading off to Nairobi. Grace attended the camp and she loved it - she even got to go to the Embassy! She had never been to Nairobi; in fact, she had hardly left her village until this trip. She finishes high school this year and I am sure this camp experience has helped to prepare her for her next big step in life-----leaving the home she has been secure in for 18 years. She hopes to go to Mombasa and become a hair dresser. OK - one more picture ----her own hair "do" is in the foreground on the left. The photo is of the family having breakfast.

Bye for now -

Mary

And the HEAT goes on and on and on -----

Dear friends;

As I sit here sweating profusely, I fully realize that many of you are shivering. Well, that is life, right? I did want to come to a place where I would no longer be cold and believe me, I have not been cold since last winter in Mammoth. But , I must report that it does feel ever so slightly cooler these past few days. The Kenyans say that very soon the rainy season will begin and it will be cooler but then I will have tons of mud to complain about!!

As for my work here, I continue to feel wonderful about the progress with the community library. I located a teacher who had previous library experience and she has helped totally organize the books. Last Friday, I had my first "student day" and over 100 students from a neighboring village came all at once. The library room is so tiny; we had to limit their entry to 10 students at one time. It was so fun to watch them pour over the shelves and make their selection. Luckily two teachers accompanied them and helped to insure that they picked books on their own reading level. Bye the way, all the books are in English. I was able to purchase some books by African authors but they , too, are in English. While the Kenyan government maintains that all students be taught all subjects in English, I know that is not the case, at least not at Kadzinuni Primary. But I am surprised to realize just how well some of the students can read English. I wish my kiswahili was moving along as well!

The running club I started is also going well and the boys are improving. The girls dropped out but I am hopeful they will return soon. In May, there are school competitions for track and field and that should raise every one's interest and willingness to run with the club.

Here are more photos: some Kenyans primary school students in "Sunday attire", a group of Kadzinuni students in their uniforms on the school grounds; myself and three other PCV's at a bird sanctuary outside of Kilifi, and lastly a shot of where I am sitting now while composing this blog entry.

Hope this finds everyone doing well in the States. The Atlantic Monthly assures me that I will return to a much different America than what I left. Do you agree????

kwaheri,

Mary (in Kenya)

Dear Friends;

I haven't made a blog entry for some time as I am having trouble keeping my laptop battery charged. I still do not have electricity and the solar charger at the health clinic no longer is able to recharge my laptop (phone it will do, laptops, no). But right now I am at a hotel in Mombasa where I have electricity, running hot and cold water, and AIR CONDITIONING!! It has been so hot and it really saps my energy. I am able to stay perky in this air conditioned room and will get caught up on a lot of computer work.

As far as my projects go, the library continues to have many children visit and check out books. I received one box of books that were donated by people in Mammoth and they are a welcome addition to the library. I have also started a running club. Now, understand, I have never been a runner - I mean NEVER! But hey, I figured, yes I can run and I can pretend that I am a coach! It has gone well and it is such a joy to run thorough the sisal plantation - so incredibly beautiful.

I am going to include a bunch of photos here for you to view. The two above photos were taken Christmas Day. It is a tradition for children to get new clothes on Xmas Day and then get dressed up and go to the beach! OK - hope you can pick out which pictures go with the above narrative! I just can't figure out how to re-arrange the photos!! Now, above is also a photo of my Kenyan library committe, and two shots of the Kadzinuni running club. Lastly, there is a shot of what I call a "Kenyan Cuisinart" - woman manually pounding corn which is then used to be mechanically ground into flour. The flour is used to make the national dish of Kenya ---ugali.

That is all there is fit to report on for now. I hope I am able to add an entry within the next month. Stay tuned!!

Mary

Kadzinuni Library Opens

My goal was to open the library, with a marginal amount of books, by the first of December. The Kenyan school are closed for the entire month and I decided it was appropriate to open by the first no matter what. I am including photos here - as you can see, we have plenty of shelves to fill. I am still working on finding a reasonable way to have books sent here. The children helped me clean the room and I have been pleased with the number who have returned to read anc check out a book.

It has been impossibly hot here and I really don't get much done during the day. I am glad to just hang out in the library!

More Peace Corps Training

Dear Friends;

This blog entry finds me in Nairobi for more Peace Corps training. So for the past week I have been living with running water, sometimes hot water, electricity and free wireless internet. I also have a TV and feel a bit more current on what is going on outside my world. Some of the news I would rather not be aware of! PLEASE, no one send a copy of Sarah Palin's book for the Kadzinuni library!

Before my arrival here in Nairobi, it was extremely hot on the coast. I don't think I have ever lived in heat and humidity like we were having. Nairobi is much cooler and it is nice to have a break from that heat. I will be returning to Kadzinuni this coming Sunday (Nov. 22nd) and sure hope that the heat wave has passed.

Our training here has focused on how to effectively convey public health messages in our sites. There are numerous obstacles: traditions and religious beliefs, witch healers, poverty and lack of education, suspicion of outsiders----the list goes on. We are constantly encouraged to interact with community members. I think I get a star in that area; I think most people in Kadzinuni know who I am and most greet me by my name. They have quit just calling me "mzungu" (white person). Before I left for Nairobi, I was pleased by the number of adults coming up to me and expressing excitement over the library opening. I have no idea of what the average reading level among adults is but I will probably soon find out.

I am including a random selection of photos of some of my Kenyan friends. I am so proud of many of the young people I meet. Despite grim family and financial situations, they seem so focused on getting an education. Also, it is common to have a wide age range in any given class. Children are often held back from going to school; they are needed to work in family farms or care for younger children. At the primary school by my home, I see teens that appear to easily be 16 -18 and they are in the 7th grade. Here is a slice of Kenyan life for elementary aged children: they are required to help gather fire wood that is used to cook a very simple lunch for them each school day. One morning I looked out and there were several children, high up in a tree, wildly swinging their pangas (very long, thick knives that are used in farming, etc.) to chop off large branches of the tree. My mind went back to all the safety regulations for American schools; I wish I had a picture to show you.

This entry looks weird I know; just haven't mastered blogging yet. But I wanted to add a lot of pictures since I have free wireless internet. So the following is a list of picture titles, starting at the top and going left to right:

1. view from my front door
2. my good friend Victor who is hoping to get into a good high school next year. he is an orphan who lives in his own house but within a very loving village
3. part of the path I walk down to get to the paved highway
4. the primary school RIGHT behind my house
5. the dispensary RIGHT next to my house (I live in a fish bowl)
6. a view of a nearby resort where I can go to relax
7. my friend Nimrod who is about to finish high school (he attends a private boarding school, common for those who can afford it) he hopes to go onto college to study agriculture
8. baobob trees
9. my home!
10. a family of friends
11. my best friend Ibrahim with his two nephews - their mother died last year so they are cared for by Ibrahim's mother and whoever else is available
    

That is it for now. I hope I am able to artistically place photos and wrap the text around them all fancy like for my next entry!!

Settling in to Kadzinuni

I have been here over 2 months and feel like I have settled in. I have my house completely furnished now and feel quite comfortable. I finally decided I just had to purchase a comfortable chair as I have so much time in the evening to read. Now getting furniture up to my home is no small endeavor. I bought the chair along side the road near Mombasa. I got the seller to carry the chair across a very busy and dangerous highway where I stood in the dirt for sometime before finding a matatu that would transport myself and the chair. Ofcourse the tout tried to over charge me but they get all flustered when you can argue with them in kiswahili. OK, the chair is tied onto the back of the matatu and off we go. When I arrive at my stop, the chair is untied and loaded onto a motorcycle and driven up a steep and bumpy dirt road. It did arrive in good shape and I am very pleased. Am currently reading The Bone Setters Daughter and Abraham Lincoln (by Carl Sandburg). Also have numerous New Yorkers by my bed.

I am slowly developing a social life! I have several Kenyan friends; tonight I went to a soccer game in a nearby village. Very competitive these Kenyans! I also joined a bunch of other Peace Corps volunteers for a weekend party. Despite the fact that I was the only person over the age of 30, I had lots of fun.

I am learning to dispense medications at the health center. I am discovering that although I do not find the mosquites a problem, many people are coming down with malaria. The incidence of HIV is low but there is no way of knowing for sure since most people haven't been tested. The stigma attached to being HIV positive is huge and many ignorant people choose not to be tested.

We had some incredible rains this past week but now the weather has turned back to dryness. Most people at Kadzinuni have their own shamba (small farm) and totally depend on it to provide their own family with food. If the rains don't come, this area will be in a dire situation.
The public water faucets I have mentioned before are managed by the government and they often choose to turn the water off!! Also, have a habit of turning it on only during the very early morning hours. So, I often wake up to the sound of women carrying 20 liter water cans on their heads at 1am and this done without any light!

The pictures I am including here have titles (sorry, I haven't figured out how to put the title right with the photo): children with their babies: man fetching palm juice for this disgusting palm wine they make and drink constantly: book club time at Kadzinuni.

I have had numerous responses to the article in the Mammoth Times about my need for book donations for the Kadzinuni library. I have even received a very generous donation from a Mammoth resident to help cover shipping costs of the books. Besides all the local donations, I currently have a box being sent from a non-profit group in Darien, Co. Am hoping the Kenyan customs fees aren't too outrageous.

More to follow - and in less than a full month this time!