the end

Last weekend- January 18 and 19

On Saturday, lots of volunteers and I met at the Junction at 10:30 for a fun filled day in Massai land. We would be playing soccer against the night school students and a few other Massai people in their village.

This time we took a car rather than a mutatu and piki-piki, but the ride was quiet, not as fun and adventurous as the motorcycle ride.

It took some time but we finally got the game started. I was a bit intimidated to play soccer with a bunch of Kenyans so I signed up as a defense sub. I played for about 15 minutes and I kicked the ball three times...I actually helped keep the ball away!! I was very proud of myself. The first game we tied, but that's because they were being nice to us - haha. The Kenyans were laughing at us as we played because we were terrified of them. Haha. It was lots of fun.

I could only eat the chopati for lunch, everything else has meat in it. I figured I wouldn't be able to eat much so I brought some snacks. There were a lot of volunteers I hadn't met before and when we were figuring out that almost all the food was meat, I was telling people I was a vegetarian and one woman turns to me with a plate of all the food served (including meat) says, "I'm vegetarian, too, but like..." She got me so mad! I responded by saying that I'm vegetarian for a reason and I'm not going to eat the food. I brought food for myself. It's not a big deal if I can't eat their food. She ended up apologizing, but I found it so rude that she was judging me for keeping to my vegetarianism. There was another woman that was rude to us and yelling at us to turn music off instead of asking nicely. Her tone of voice was so unnecessary. Their rudeness definitely had an effect on the day.

After lunch was a welcoming ceremony and a time for the two night school graduates to have a few words. They are the first graduates of night school finishing primary school in their late 20s.

We played another game and obviously the Massai won (I didn't play this time). The rain was coming so we headed back to Nairobi.

We ate pasta AND SALAD for dinner. Haven't had salad in so long, it was wonderful. I did inventory of all the products I'm taking home to sell and right in the middle of it all, the power went out. Flashlights came out, I started to pack a little then the power came back on! It probably went out because of the thunderstorm. Finally the lights came back on. We said goodbye to a fellow volunteer going home to the states and watched some movies. A relaxing last night.


Sunday Jan 19- the last day

Woke up, showered, relaxing and packed for the rest of the day. Heading to junction to do some final work for PWG while I'm still in Kenya.

My flight is at 12:40 am. Nairobi, Brussels, DC and spending time with Bev, then dad is picking me up at the Binghamton airport at 11:30 pm.

What a ride and an amazing and enlightening 3 weeks. 

last day volunteering

The last volunteering day - Friday January 17

Walked to volunteering and got some mangos for our goodbye party. Kelse, my fellow volunteer from Spain brought chocolate cake. We would celebrate at lunchtime.

When we got to the store only two women were there and right away we started making chopati, as we had asked.

Finally, Everlyne arrived with Helen, a hilarious power woman, and they gave me a huge bear hug. It was very nice and I know ill be missed.

I then discussed some business with Everlyne that needed to be taken care of. We got a box ready that I would be taking home full of products for me to sell and to given to a past volunteer from Boston to sell. I opened the laptop she received 4 days ago, along with a camera a past volunteer left for the group. I deleted unnecessary photos then uploaded the ones of the PWG women to send to the past volunteer to upload on the Facebook page.

For lunch we ate the chopati and had a cho-party! We brought out the cake and mangos, the ladies sang and we all danced. The two fellow volunteers stopped by again for a little but as they do every day now. The women have come to love these two guys and they are practically part of the family. While we sang and danced, they brought out their guitar and violin.

In the afternoon, I went to an internet cafe with Everlyne to look at the PayPal account. I thought one must have an ATM card to have PayPal account, but turns out you don't need to have one! The power women group has their own bank account but they are not allowed to have an ATM card because of their group business status. Everlyne was going to have to open a personal account and only use it for the PWG. I'm very glad she doesn't have to do that anymore.

While helping Kelse, my fellow PWG volunteer, the ladies began to sing again and presented us with our very own power women group t-shirts! I already bought one for about $8, but I'm glad I have two in case something happens to one of the shirts.

Outside for some group photos then I said my goodbyes and left. It didn't really feel like a goodbye, hopefully one day Everlyne will be so technically advanced that we can Skype!

We took a cab home because I had the big box and the laptop with me. Ill be working on the laptop over the weekend and will give it to a friend to take back to the PWG shop on Monday.

We ate dinner at home and decided to of out on the town because it was one of the customer's last night in Kenya. We went to a bar/club called Simmers. It was a little creepy, but we had fun on the dance floor and getting some food. 

last thursday

Thursday, January 16th

In the morning I quickly dropped my things off at PWG and headed to the Weep women's empowerment organization to help out my friend, Kate. The Weep group trains a few women a few skills so they can find a job or start a business. The women have to be widows and must have been once bed ridden from HIV. Kate had a meeting with a tour company to create a partnership for tourists come visit the center, buy the women's products, and gain publicity. The tour company was supposed to come at 10am to take some photos for the website (and next week they are coming to film). They wanted Kate to bring a few friends to come and show that the center is active, but the tour company came at 11 am so I had to get back to my ladies.

I spoke with Everlyne about my conversation Heather and I got a few things cleared up. Everlyne told me she had a laptop with a modem! Sometimes there isn't any communication and it makes my time here a bit difficult. She will bring the laptop and camera she has tomorrow, my last day, and hopefully we'll get some good work done while I'm still here.

After that conversation, Teresa did my hair! I got a few braids on the sides of my head and the back of the head. I love it! I went back in the store, ate lunch, and hung out with volunteers that joined us for the day.

After volunteering, I was supposed to meet a friend and other volunteers at junction but no one ended up coming. I walked through Kibera all the way to junction alone in just 30 minutes. I used the internet and got one more souvenir that I wanted from the Massai market.

When I got home, NVS staff members were at our house to be mediators of the conflicts between the host "mothers" and the volunteers. Long story short, we put the past behind us and we are all trying to be more respectful to one another. I think it will work even if people have to be fake after how rude some people have been.

We went to bed with a clarification of the house rules and a new atmosphere in the house. 

first and last wednesday working

Wednesday Jan 15

I walked with Everlyne to the store and were greeted by an American and Australian woman with a Christian volunteer group coming to learn and help out a little with the group. We soon left for a tour of a residential part of Kibera. We walked to one of the women's home to see how she lives and learn a little bit about her life. Her daughter, age 13, was laying in bed, she has cerebral palsy, and HIV. No special school will take her because no one wants a special needs girl that can't talk to say when she wet herself, or feed herself. There is one school that would take her but it's too expensive for the mother, Teresa. In the small room that she owns, about 3/4 of the size of my bedroom at home, lives her and 5 children, 2 not her own. When it's time to sleep, three people sleep on the bed and three on a mattress on the floor that gets put away during the day. The room also holds a kitchen and living room with couches. Everlyne ways jokes that you can always tell when you're neighbor is listening to you when she has stopped cooking so you can no longer hear the splashing of water.

Teresa was telling us how grateful she is to have Everlyne because, out of her own pocket, Everlyne buys Teresa pampers for Teresa's daughter.

1 million people live in the Kibera slum.

We slowly headed back to the power women group store and made a bracelet or two. After lunch, the women made a circle with the chairs and said it was time for prayer. Standing, the women began singing and clapping, it was beautiful. They sang a few songs and danced a bit. I loved it!! When the singing was done, Everlyne gave a long prayer and it was time for the bible study.

We read a section from the book of Ruth (very glad it wasn't something about Jesus). We talked about women having strength and power. It then got on the subject of how Ruth married Boaz and how customs are different now. The Kenyans shared how they get married and we discussed how we get married. It was a shock for us to hear their stories. Here are some:
- none of them married for love
- a man can just take a woman if she is not married and marry her, she cannot say no
- it's easier to say no if the man cannot financially support them
- There is no contract or ceremony so if one of them decides to leave then they just leave
- they say times are changing, which is very good
- they want all their daughters to marry for love and no amount of money will change that

We all stood again for the final prayer and that was that. We got back to work. I finished collecting extra items to bring home to sell. It was certainly a day of learning.

I went to junction again in the afternoon to talk with Heather, a Bostonian volunteer that worked at the power women group before I got here to Kenya. She gave me good information about the group and Everlyne. I wish I had gotten in contact with her earlier so we could get more work done with someone in America and someone on the ground here in Kibera, especially because there are no new volunteers coming (there was an orientation on the 15th so we know what new people we have here). It's also hard because I only have two more days of work here and can't get much done in that period of time.

I got back from the junction to eat dinner and there was serious tension in the house. The house "mothers" and some volunteers are having serious issues and it's created a very uncomfortable setting. We drank that night because one volunteer is leaving but more drama came when people had some alcohol in them. Unnecessary drama in my opinion.

the beginning of the end...already:(

My last week...eek
Monday January 13

A slow and kinda boring day. I made a bracelet, I added up prices for all the products ill be bringing home to sell. I went over to the day care for 5 minutes to see what it was like with the kiddies - cute stuff.

I gave Everlyne the pay pal information, hopefully it will work.

Not an exciting day.

I got locked out of the house when I came home so I went to junction to use the internet and get tree a decaf coffee.

Relaxed the rest of the day. Tuesday is a new day.


Tuesday January 14:
Got to placement and finished collecting all I was planning on buying the to sell in America. I am also collecting products to bring home to a past volunteer of the power women group that left just before I did and she is also from Boston! Too funny.

Two volunteers teach music at a school very close to us and when they have nothing to do, they come hang out with us and bead a little. That was fun to hang out with them because it's one American, one Australian, one Mexican, and one Spaniard.

We finally ate ugali, the same food the women eat everyday. It's made of special flour and water that make it big and quite tasteless so you're supposed to eat it with other food. For example, the ladies eat it with a green veggie, a leafy thing, something that I didn't quite recognize. It was good, nice change of pace from the bananas and potatoes I've been eating.

I've had two debates going through my head.
1. The table
I asked Everlyne substitute needed most and she told me a table for the day care so I thought, great,  table is probably easy to make. I could get a few volunteers and we could all pitch in a few bucks and make it! Then I realized that would be more difficult than I thought. So I asked Everlyne how much the table would cost and she said 6000 shillings, about $60+. I have one person that would split the money with me to buy it or have it made, but I don't want to just give them more things. I want them to earn it, but I also want to give them a thank you gift. What to do? What to do?

2. Goodbye party
My last volunteering day is friday and we were thinking of having little party for the women. I'm debating whether I should bring yummy mango and pineapple, as a healthy snack, or bring cake. People are telling me cake, or something different that they don't normally have, but they might not have mango and pineapple normally. What to do? What to do?

weekend 2

Weekend two: January 11 and 12

Due to the fact that I missed 2 days at volunteering because of the outreach program, I decided to attend volunteering on the weekend to make up for lost days. Saturday is a normal day for the power women group store and today was especially busy.

In the morning, the women were gossiping a lot, but obviously couldn't understand why. Everlyne told me that while kids are going back to school, everyone applies for scholarships, and despite these women's children's good grades, none of them received scholarships. They spoke about this issue for a while. Everlyne kept saying, "unfair, just unfair, so unfair." She slightly alluded to the stigma of HIS/AIDS still affecting these women.

The next dramatic part of the day dealt with the sewing machines in the store. Two had broken and were sent with power group women downtown in a cab. The driver parked illegally and was arrested. That was problem one. They eventually got him out by paying bail - money wasted. They finally got back and they were still a little broken, or kept breaking. The women spent the afternoon trying to fix it, each woman having her turn. Finally, they got them to work. With the money I raised in America we bought fabric last week and they were starting to make the bags out of that fabric! It was very cool to see my help working, and of course, the help of those that donated money.

A big swiss family walked into the store. Everlyne sat them all down and told them of the power women's group history and I finally got that on film for the video. They asked a few questions then shopped around and they bought a lot - probably about $100s worth!

The busy day continued, with extra money left over after buying the fabric Everlyne and I decided to buy paint for the wall that separated the day care and hair salon. The kids were coming on Monday! We also bought baby toilets for the kids. When we got back, I started painting the wall. The paint was bad quality and the brush didn't fit in the paint container. Everlyne has more faith it will look good after the second coat. I don't have enough faith. I guess we will see.

After a long day, I walked home with Everlyne, other volunteer friends and I watched movies and I headed to bed.

Sunday was a relaxing day. Did laundry, wrote in the blog, went to junction for internet and hung out with other volunteers. More movies then bed.

outreach day 2

Outreach program
DAY TWO

Got up at 7 am and ate at the same restaurant we ate at for yesterday's lunch and dinner. We then drove off to Naivasha for a stunning bike ride. It was practically a bike safari at Hell's Gate. We were biking on a dirt road in between open fields and hills with all African wildlife, except we didn't see elephants or lions, but we were feet away from zebras and giraffes! In the middle of the ride we stopped at a protruding rock known as pride rock from the one and only Lion King! We got off our bikes, took our cameras, and the stuffed Simba a few volunteers bought and climbed up pride rock! We accidentally went off the path which made us hike on the edge of the rock and hold onto the tall grass, but we finally made it to the top! We took a few photos of each person pretended we were in the scene in lion king when Mufasa holds us his baby cub, Simba. It was a great moment. Really making my childhood even better.

We continued on the ride and ended up at Hell's Gate for a gorgeous hike. Beautiful day, great exercise, all wonderful. We then headed back the way we came, but instead of going slightly downhill most of the time, we had to go slightly uphill. It was challenging, but it was fine, after all, I am a spin instructor!

My little lunch consisted of 2 nature valley bars and an apple. Yum. The next part of the day was held for the safari boat ride but i had already done that and the rest of my van didn't want to go so our van headed back to Nairobi.

I spent a few minutes at junction for internet then headed back to the volunteer house at 5:30. When I got there, all the girls were looking all clean and pretty ready to go out to a restaurant called Carnivore. Everyone was going and the cab was going in 30 minutes. I showered quickly and got my dress on and off we went. I didn't particularly want to go because it's an all you can eat meat restaurant and it's super expensive, but everyone was going so I didn't want to exclude myself. I got the vegetarian pizza option while massive pieces of different kinds of meat were in my face. Yum. I had this delicious drink called dawa, medicine, made of sugar, honey, lime, vodka, and ice. We headed home, tired and ready for bed.

i get to leave

Outreach program: January 9 and 10
DAY ONE

We met at junction at 7 am but of course didn't leave until 8:30 thanks to African time. It's fine, had time to use the internet. The outreach program is two days. The first we see projects by other volunteers then the second day is all fun. I wanted to go on the program to see other projects, how they started and learn about their situations.

Our first stop was a school for kids 2-6 years old that live in the nearby slum called the KCC slum. They have a few basic building/rooms. We learnt about the work the Australian man does for these kids then he took us on a tour of the slum. People started the slum to live next to a factory. They don't like to call it a slum, they use the term "temporary living", but it definitely is a slum. We went to a women's store where they make jewelry out of recycled newspaper. It was a much smaller version of my volunteer placement. We headed back to the school and served the kids lunch. I didn't feel as though I learned a lot, seemed to me as another school for another group of kids that live in slums - nothing different than what I've seen in Kibera, either. The kids were cute but they only wanted me to take photos of them and give them my camera so they could take photos. Last time that happened was in Rwanda and the kids accidentally deleted half my photos so I wasn't about to let these kids take my camera.

One interesting thing I noticed were the shoes of some of the kids. Two kids had Tom's shoes, the shoes that when you buy a pair another pair is donated to kids in the third world. The only problem was that the shoes were torn up and had a few big holes.

We went out to lunch then headed to our next stop.

We went to a Kenyan refugee camp. Six years ago, during a Kenyan election, parties started to fight and it got violent. People were killed, homes were burnt, and people were displaced. The government put up tents that were meant to be for two weeks for those displaced, and were supposed to give them money to find new homes. The government completely ignored these people. They have been living in the temporary tents for 6 years now. They are all moldy and tiny. In tents the size of a normal bathroom in America there would be 6 people living there, mom, dad, and four kids. The mom was suffering from malaria and whenever it rained, the kids slept on the bed and mom and dad slept on the floor.

Another tent housed a grandmother and two grandchildren. The father was never in the picture and the mother couldn't handle the situation so she ran away leaving her kids with her mother.

The women make handbags out of plastic bags and sell them for 500 shillings, about 6 or 7 dollars. Oh, and these people have to pay to live their. Rent is 200 shillings a month and when they got to sell their bags, they got enough money for two and a half months rent. When the grandmother shot that I mentioned before sold a bag, she literally started dancing and clapping she was so happy.

They lived on two anchors of land and to buy that it would cost $10,000. Then they could build on the land and have real homes. My mind started racing about how to raise the money and how to get these people publicity so they can get what they deserve. They try to find work, but their "casual work" is never enough.

The kids were incredibly dirty, their clothing was torn, and they jumped all over us. We hung out with them for a little bit then all together played some games in a big circle - that was fun. We played classic Kenyan childhood games and their version of duck, duck, goose. We also showed the kids hockie-pockie!

Just before we left we gave them two crackers and a lollipop. I'm all for giving the kids things that will make them happy, especially in their horrific situation, but I didn't like that we gave them a lollipop. I know it's sweet and delicious and they deserve that, but they need nutrients more. Giving them sugar will just rot their teeth more and they definitely don't brush their teeth. When we were done giving out the box of crackers, the principal threw the box up for the kids to have like the bouquet of flowers at a wedding. One kid fought for it and ran. Even a box to play with is incredibly valuable.

The worst part of the day was getting back in the van, not because I was sad to leave, but because I could leave. I had somewhere else to go, I was about to go to dinner where I could eat as much as I wanted, even though I ate nothing according to my American standards because everything was either meat or I didn't love the taste of the food. Then I was driven to a hotel (that used to be a jail) where I had my own room bigger than their tent. And that's amazing for them. In a little over a week, ill be able to fly back to America where I live like a queen compared to these kids, and my living situation in Binghamton just okay compared to life in America.

While we were sitting in the van to go back to the hotel with hot showers, I got a little hungry and remembered I had chips, so naturally started eating them, but the kids were still watching us. Two kids even tried to get into the van. They seemed like they were scavenging. Children were scavenging. No child should ever have to do that.

And we left leaving the kids behind. What can I do? What can't I do? A group of muzungus come here every 2 weeks, why has no one ever done anything? Will I do something? Only $10,000 to start their lives and give them a somewhat proper home. If we fundraised from every resource we have, all 15 of us from the US, Canada, and Australia, why couldn't we raise $10,000. But I have other passions and I don't think that just giving them money will help because it will just create dependency and that may only hurt them. What am I supposed to do with this information that I've learned today? Am I supposed to only just appreciate my life more? What's the purpose of going to visit? Will there be a tangible and positive outcome of my visit other than them thinking white people are money trees? I hate that they think that about me. I rather them use my skills and resources that I naturally have from living in the first world than just a piggy bank.

I debriefed with a new friend about what we saw, how we feel about it, and how other people digest the information. It's sometimes hard because everyone us here volunteering for a different reason and I've only met two other people that are here because they are genuinely interested in development work. These things we are doing here are really interesting and very hard and people are barley talking about it. They say it's horrible that the women are beating the kids at the orphanages or that they are just thrown into a classroom and expected to teach on the spot. We aren't talking about solution. Maybe it's because the solution is too hard and being here for a few weeks won't do anything, but does that mean we should stop trying?

The interest in children's education doesn't tickle my development fancy because they are young, they can be molded easily. I'm more interested in fundamental issues in poverty in the third world and how to address the problem from the roots rather than the leaves.

I am very glad I went on this program. It's made me soul search and attempt to wrestle with tough questions questions that I'm sure I will be tackling my whole life.

Small points about the rest of that day:
- I taught Zumba to some girls back at the ex jail hotel
- after dinner we went to a bar and hung out a little bit

Day one was hard. Luckily for me, day two would be all fun.

Massai Land

Wednesday, January 8

About 15 of us volunteers met at the Junction at 7 am to get on a Mutatu (public bus) to Ngong to then, paired up, hopped on a piki-piki (motorcycle taxis) out to the Bush where the Massai people live. The Massai people are a unique tribe found mainly in Kenya but also in Tanzania. They are barely modernized and mostly keep to old traditions. They are known for their red dress and high jumping as a form of showing off.

The mutatu blasted reggae music. I can't even imagine blasting reggae on a public bus in the states, Israel, or any other place in the world. The music was so loud I felt like I was in a club. We then got to a town called Ngong, pronounced gong. We met up with a few motorcycle taxis, called piki-piki, that would take us into the bush, into Massai land! Now, these piki-pikis are terrifying. We sat two people plus a driver to a bike so we were all got very close by the end of the ride. Most of the drivers use a helmet, sometimes not. Us two passengers did not have a helmet (the program collected our insurance information before the trip). When the piki-pikis are only driving one person around town, the passenger is usually given a helmet if the driver has. Seems kind of unsafe, right? Well, it is. When I was in Rwanda, a sister of student living in the village died on one of these things. But, people die  all the time in car crashes and I still get in a car, so off I went.

The ride was stunning. The view was beautiful! AND the biking was fun, a little scary at times, but fun - my friend and I couldn't stop laughing. After about a 45 minute ride we finally got to our destination.

Everyone was introduced, including the cow and her 4-hour old calf, and the 1000s of flies that were EVERYWHERE. They showed us their traditional home, a manyatta, that is about the size of my living room at home (probably a little smaller) that has the fire going, a kitchen, and 3 bedrooms, one for mom and two for the kids. The men often marry more than one wife and they all have their separate homes. The manyatta was dark and smokey, not sure how they live in there. We were then brought into a more modern building/room as we sat, drank tea, and enjoyed delicious chobati, a traditional Kenyan food. Chobati is like a mixture of a pancake and pita bread (without the pocket), similar to a scallion pancake without the scallions and just the bread part.

Back outside we got face painted with face paint made out of a special red dirt and water. They told us that when they really use the paint for ceremonies, they make the paint with cow fat that lasts much longer. Glad they didn't do that for us. The women got a much more intricate design than the boys did. None of us were thinking all that much about sun screen because the morning was cold and partly cloudy so most of us had not applied sun screen to our faces before the paint. That was a huge mistake because i got a bad burn outlining the paint. Who knows how long ill look like this.

Off for a 30 minute walk into the bush, we got to the top off a cliff with a beautiful overlook of Massai land, a bit swamp, a large Massai village, and lots of farm animals. We took a few photos then the worst part of my day began.

As we walked, a few Massai men brought up cooking supplies and a coat up to the top. For lunch, we were slaughtering the goat and eating this. Obviously, I would not take part. Although I was the only vegetarian, a few other girls and I sat overlooking the view, put our headphones in to listen to music so we could not hear the screams of the goat. They killed the goat then drank the blood, a tradition a few people took part in. Again, I did not participate (despite my Facebook status...that was a joke). Some of the ladies and I cut up veggies for the salad.

We relaxed in the shade and got to know each other. When the food was ready, I pulled out my apple and power bar that I brought with me, knowing we would be eating goat for lunch. They also had ugali, a corn startchy-food.

After lunch we got a question and answer period with one of the Massai men. They told us of their culture and traditions. The boys grow up shepherds the girls grow up at home with their mothers. For the boys, in their late teen years, go off into the wild for about 6-7 years to become men. To become a warrior, you must hunt and kill a lion during those years and when you return, you are a man and ready for marriage. For girls, at a young age of 9ish, they are picked by an older man to become his wife. She continues to live at home until 13 or 14 when she marries him. Despite these customs, the man only had one wife, although he did have that childhood. I asked him if he planned on having more than one wife and why his response was, "no," I asked why. He said he only wanted one wife because he is educated and although there are Massai people that still follow those traditions, including female genital mutilation, the number of people following these bad customs are declining because more and more people are being educated.

Now if was time for the burning. It's traditional for Massai men to get three burns on their arm or leg when they become men, and as tourists, they offered a little sneak peak for ourselves. They burn you by quickly rubbing together a stick against a flat piece of wood to create sparks and heat up the stick. Most people got three burns on their arm. I was very on the fence about getting a burn but last minute I decided to get only one just above my knee.

They showed us traditional dance in which they jump as high as they can. I was the only girl to get called on to jump. Then we got in a big circle and two people got in the middle. Whoever jumped higher gets first pick of one of the women standing in the circle.

Around 4:30 we started walking back to buy some jewellery the women make. For our final destination of the day, we headed to a school that was built by NVS volunteers so the Massai people can go to night school. These men just finished primary school and were about to start high school learning at the age of 28.

I used baby wipes to take the paint off my face and then everyone looked at my face and started laughing. I had a huge burn outlining the paint. Bad bad. Who knows how long ill have those lines on my face.

We got back on our piki-pikis, headed back to Gnong and eventually back to Nairobi.

let the work begin

Monday January 6

We met Evalyne at 8:45 and walked to Kibera slum to be with the Power Women Group. A Spanish woman who is married to a Mexican and together they live in New York joined at PWG. She joined us because PWG is her volunteer placement. She has big plans to have the women work for her business plan and took much of the women's attentions.

I spent most of the day making bracelets with beads while also watching an African soap opera...hilarious stuff. Two guys (one is married to the spanish woman) are teaching music at at school about a 1 minute walk from the Power Women Group store. Together, we all walked back to the volunteer house.
 But, some of us went to the Junction to use some internet. I tried to make a PayPal account for the group but failed because I didn't have enough infornation. I will try again when I have more time. Kate tried to find new designs for the women. The internet was incredibly slow so we quickly gave up. Kate printed the new ideas but we were really hoping to get information about how to for a lot of these new ideas because temhe women are only trained in certain skillsm. With more time I will do a more extensive search.

For dinner, the volunteers and I staying in the volunteer house made dinner for everyone. It was really nice! We made stir fry with lots of veggies and rice. Good stuff.

Tuesday Jan 7

Kelse (the spanish woman) and I went with Evelyne to downtown Nairobi to go shopping for Kelse's materials that she needs for her project. We got a cab driver to take us around. Back in America, I had raised money for these women, not knowing what it would go to, but today we used the money! I already bought pencil erasers and pencil sharpeners, along with pencils donated by my lovely mother, but I bad about $100 left. Today we used a bit over half of it! I bought Evelyne and the Power Women Group lots of fabric to make bags, clasps for necklaces, and string. The left over money will go towards things they need for the day care center that will start up once they have everything they need! Making progress- great!

We took a short pit stop at a mall to go to the bathroom and found WiFi. I found the Power Women Group on Facebook and showed Evelyne Facebook! We also found the video the Japanese man made! I'm still going to make my own video...definitely good to have an English video, too.

We then tried to find a leather tannery. I sat in the car and chatted with Evelyne. Mid day sitting in a car...it got very hot and it was time for lunch. Finally, we headed back to Kibera, ate lunch and relaxed. I made a necklace, then walked home with Kate. Then to junction for internet.

 I'm going to relax tonight because the next three days will be long. The first Wednesday of every month, the women all go to church together and close the shop. Instead, I'm going to Massai land to learn about their culture. Can't wait. Thursday and Friday I will be doing the outreach program provided by NVS that will take me around to other projects, do a bike ride in the Great Rift valley and pride rock (home of the lion king!!) Because ill be missing 2 volunteer days, ill be heading into "work" on Saturday. 

the weekend

Saturday, January 4

After going to bed early and sleeping a lot Friday night, I woke up feeling very well rested of my Saturday adventures. At 8:45 am, I headed over to the Junction, the local mall with free WiFi in the restaurants, with a friend Manny to meet Kayla for breakfast. They ate and we all used the internet. At 11, Mark came by so all 4 of us could get picked up for our water safari tour about an hour drive away. But our driver was late, of course...thank you, African time. We called and he had to pick other people up who were lost but he was coming - it was complicated. After waiting  while, we finally started our drive to the boat ride at 12:30, an hour and a half late. Now, this water safari was on a lake in Navash. We arrived and head out onto the water with no time to spare because I had plans at 5 pm on the other side of Nairobi and had it be home by 4 to get there on time, muzungu time, not African time, and we were already an hour and a half late.

On our way, we were driving on the hills overlooking the Great Rift Valley. We pulled over to take some photos. Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous. But that was not the last beautiful thing we saw that day.

The boat ride was also beautiful. The sun came in and out of hiding from behind the clouds, the birds were chirping and the wind was perfect. We mainly saw a few different kinds of birds, and hippos. Hippos hang out in groups and they keep half their face out of the water to breath but when they swim they are completely under water. Our first gang of hippos we saw bobbed their head in and out it of the water. They all went under and disappeared and the next thing we knew, one hippo was behind us! He had swam under our little boat and came up for air near the rear of the boat! Talk about scary!

We continued on the ride seeing a few more groups of hippos, many birds, and some zebras. The weather was absolutely beautiful as we rode on open water. We took a few more stops near a peninsula with more zebras, antelope, and more birds- very cool. I was very late for my next activity and my fellow boaters were a bit bored watching animals eat so we headed back to the dock and headed back to Nairobi.

The drive was a big long and at points scary yet entertaining. Many trucks and some cars were struggling to get up hills. Some trucks were pulled over next to road because they had broken down, others just incredibly slow. In Kenya, they also really enjoy passing each other on a 2 lane road. Any chance they get they will pass a truck or another car and squeeze in right in front of the vehicle they just passed. They will also take the risk to pass even if another car in the other lane is quickly approaching. It's not so fun to see a car speed towards you. But I lived through it, at least enough to write this on Sunday morning.

The driver was able to drop me off at the home of an American/Israeli couples home next to the US embassy and U.N.. Gila, a friend of my mother's friend, invited me over for dinner with her wife and another Jewish woman involved in development work who was just passing through. We all sat, had a glass of wine and told our stories of our passion for development work. We drove to a local mall with a food court and I got some Indian food. It was very nice to talk to these women, hear these stories, and make connections. The other woman, Karena, went back to the airport and I got in a taxi back home. Tired, I went to bed an hour later.

Sunday is a relaxing day. Spend time in the sun, go to the Junction for internet and watch a movie at night. Monday starts volunteering again. 

January 3- Power Women Group

Kate, an Australian woman doing the women's empowerment program and I got picked up at around 9:30 by Evalyne president for of the group. We walked about 25 minutes deep into the slums for the group's temporary building/room. When we got there, a handful of women were sitting around in a one store/crafts room. With big smiles, they all introduced themselves. Evalyne begin to tell us about the business they run when 4 other muzungus (white people) walked in. The mother of the muzungus knew PWG since 2005, a year after they were created. Elizabeth, another PWG member told all us muzungus the 10 year story about the HIV positive women that started this business in 2004.

The group started because all these women needed a support system from the intense stigma attached to being infected with HIV/AIDS. Their husbands left them, they could not find a job, and the ignorance of how HIV is spread prevented any help from family and friends. So they learnt how to make crafts, bought a "building" and the rest is history. Today, they have 15 women making classic Kenyan and African souvenirs such as jewelry, jewelry made out of recycled products beaded products (made popular by the Massai people), bags, scarves, and other kinds of souvenirs.

The room they have had 3 small closet-like rooms, one a kitchen, one a storage room, and one a bathroom with a toilet. This is all taking place in a slum and they have a toilet. Not just a whole in the ground, an actual western toilet for the women, volunteers, and customers. Crazy.

Other volunteers have already done a lot to help. PWG has a Facebook page, a website, brochures, and business cards. Other volunteers have helped teach the women how to be healthy, what the food groups are, and they also started a water challenge that teaches the women to drink two bottles of water a day.

After 10 years of hard work, the women purchased the room next door to cut it in half to make a day care and a salon. The day care is for the mothers so they can have a place to send their children so they can have a job. The hair salon is to train women and give them a skill to get a job.
Their big dream is to start smaller groups in the women's rural villages throughout the country and have the big power women's group in the kamai slum as a "mother" business. Most of the women moved to the Nairobi area to find a job, but Evalyne believes their job can be done anywhere. By having a this job in rural Kenya, it allows women to stay in their village and become independent by having their own business.

As for health, the women get their medication for free in the slum donated by the US CDC.

Now, for my day-to-day plans. My first idea was to make some sort of inspirational video informing the viewer of what the Power women's Group is. However, one volunteer that just left, a guy from Japan, also made a video. Evalyne still suggested I make the video because his video might not get to America and who knows if he will actually make the video or not.

I am also going to try and connect the HIV/AIDS awareness club at Binghamton to sell some of PWG's products. Maybe also find a jewelry store in Boston to sell their products.

This program is so incredible and I am so blown away by the drive and business skills these women have. It seems they've got everything figured out, they just need more volunteer so help publicise them to grow bigger to help more people.

Here is the website of power women group: http://www.powerwomen-kibera.or.ke/

Orientation day + free day

January 1- orientation day


Orientation started at 9:30. The NVS, network volunteer services (the local organization that IVHQ works with), staff talked to us about Kenya's history, what not do here and other opportunities that NVS provides. I will be staying at the volunteer housing in Nairobi with two young women as the mothers. My placement is in kibera, the second largest slum in Africa working at an organization for women called Power Women Group. Still not quite sure what ill be doing.

After orientation i got dropped off at my new home and hung out for the rest of the evening. Thursday I would start volunteering!

Thursday - Jan 2- free day

I was told I would be picked up from volunteering at 8ish. Around 9:15 an NVS staff member called one of my house mothers and told us we would not be volunteering because many of the woman are still on holiday and did not show up. Volunteering will start Friday.

A few other volunteers staying in the same place don't start until Monday because they are working at an orphanage so we all relaxed together, went to the mall for the Massai market and relaxed some more. James, an NVS staff member, was over at the house and I asked him some questions about my placement. He told me of the projects other volunteers started and hopefully ill add to their work and help these women more. Nerves have fled being replaced with excitement!

a tour of nairobi

The driver picked us up at 9:30 am and our first stop was the giraffe minor. We got to feed them and even kiss them! We would put a piece of their food in between our lips and the giraffe would come up to our face and lick the food out of our mouths!

The second stop was a elephant orphanage. They had about 20 elephants total. Ten of them are up to 2 years old. We watched them play in the mud and drink water while the employees explained the orphanage to them. The next 10 were up to 5 years old and had more fun splashing us with the mud!

Next was a crocodile farm. We got to hold baby crocs and turtles! There we ate a delicious buffet meal.

After lunch, we went to a zoo with lots of lions. There were also monkeys just hanging around. We took photos will the monkeys grooming themselves.

After the Nairobi city overlook, we went to city park and fed monkeys peanuts. They climbed on our laps and shoulders! Got some great photos.

We were done for the day after a quick stop to the mall to get  SIM cards and some food.

We stayed at a hostel called the shalom house for new years eve. Many volunteers were staying there and we had a great time getting to know them on this festive holiday.

Happy 2014!!

Arrival- Dec 30

I left Newton Sunday morning the 29th for my first flight- Montreal. After a long 5 hour layover I took an overnight flight to zurich, met up with Kayla at the airport and had another 8 our flight into Nairobi.

Right as  stepped off the plane I immediately smelt the fresh sent of Africa and it brought me back to my Rwandan experience. We made it out of the airport with no trouble and quickly found our driver to take us to our place for the night.

On our way, we got randomly stopped by the police. Kayla was in the back seat without her seat belt on. The cop noticed and asked her to step out of the car threatening to arrest her. She didn't know what to do. Our driver didn't do anything except tell me that the cop isn't going to do anything ad that he is just scaring her. The cop tried to convince the driver to make Kayla pay but, luckily for Kayla, the driver told the cop she had no cash on her because she is a volunteer. Eventually, the cop let Kayla get back in the car and off we went.

At the host's house we befriended some other volunteers staying there. One of the girls noticed my ring from Israel and that was fun. The new volunteers staying there and I didn't have anything to do Monday so we decided on taking the tour if Nairobi.

Went to bed at 11 excited for the next day.