30/11
Last day of November!
Yesterday Laetitia, the french volunteer I was talking about when I first got here, and her best friend Alexa from Paris joined us in Diani. They are great company as I get along with both very well. Laetitia came from Naivasha where she was invited to attend a traditional wedding of a sister of a friend from Nairobi. Today the three of them went on a one day trip to the marine park close to the border to snorkel, swim wit dolphins, eat sea food, look at the caves where the slaves were kept before being shipped to Zanzibar and one of the villages on the island before heading back on an arabic sailing boat. I stayed behind because I am responsible and want to finish my personal statement! Or simply because I still have 9 months of Kenya and the trip costs 35 Euros.
Last night we went to the beach after eating crab curry with spiced rice and vegetables the cook had prepared all for 5 Euros per person and enjoyed in amazement temperatures of under 30 degrees and a moon that illuminated the white beach so much that you could see everything well.
Monday, November 30, 2009
28/11
If m\Malindi beach (north of Mombasa) is little Italy because of all the Italians then Diani beach is little Germany. The charming mix of grumpy retirees and quarelling tourists makes me proud! This is topped though by the beach boys. As soon as you step on the nearly deserted white sand one of them pops up from somewhere tells you that he is a specialist in making key chains or some other things you really really need. I still remember the beach boys being very persistant 10 years ago but today they do it in nearly perfect German. "Wir sind alle die selben! Nur Hautfarbe anders. Brauchst keine Angst haben wir fressen keine Menschen."
On Friday night we took a bus at 9:30 to spend 4 nights in Diani beach before Anne leaves on the 5th of December. We found a bus company that treated us to a snack, drinks, a movie, pillows and mos surprising of all it was actually an intact bus. Once again however, what I once waved off as a stereotype came true again as the inside of the bus was at least 40 degrees. Africans need a sweater and a winter jacket when the temperature drops below 30. "Can you even leave the house when it is 0 degrees or do you freeze?" Is a common question I have heard 5 times already. This made it practically impossible to get a good rest. We arrived at 5 in the morning and somehow managed to get to the ferry that brings you back to the main land. It was still dark and we just wanted to get to Diani so we will have to get a good look at the city one of these days.
The beach is beautiful. Although a little rocky the sand is white, the palm trees give you the little shade you need, there is a cave like place on the beach where you could even have dinner if you carried a table down and the cottage is 30 seconds away from all that. Another unique thing about Diani and especially our cottage (www.vindigocottages.com) is the amount of monkeys. To observe them when they are far away is interesting as the similarity in human/monkey gestures is extremely funny but their eagerness to steal all sorts of things is less funny. So far we have lost 5 bananas, a bread and pieces of mango. If the beach boys were to disappear miraculously (by the government creating some jobs for example...) it would be more than idylic. The only thing missing is Caroline.
Lets rewind time. On Friday last week Musyoki, Peter and I drove to Nairobi. I had invited the two latter to experience "my" food, which however was doomed due to complications in actually getting there so we ate at Java House instead. Great food but established as the first coffee house by Americans it had things from Mexico and the US on the menu. This did not really matter however as both ordered in Swahili and the only thin I understood was "kuku" and "chips": friend chicken and fries. The experience of eating different food was apparently not tempting enough and so it all turned into eating the known things just better quality. At least something! They were greatful and happy though. Anne and I stayed with other volunteers we met there when Musyoki and Peter had to leave.
After that Anne, Laetitia and I went back to the KVDA house to see KK and Moses again who greated us warmly. I heard from Syvia that they were planning to have a BBQ that evening and Laetitia joined Anne and I, the weekend could not have started better.
The remaining days with the Moellers remained that good with a cinema visit and me being invited to Muthaiga Country Club for a buffet, pool and the Kibaki family (the president for those of you that do not read the news) family celebrating the baptism of their daughter, accompanied by 5 black Mercedes and 2 military jeeps. Ironic that the president chooses to celebrate in one of the last symbols of colonialism.
On Thursday the seminar started at the KVDA house and we spent two days exchanging our good but mostly bad experiences. It was nice to meet the other volunteers but the stories were less delightful. One girl nearly got raped by her host father, another heard from the orphans she was sent to help about the daily abuse they had to live with, a third was kicked out of his host family because the money did not arrive and he nearly had to sleep on the street and Konstantin is still in jail in Mombasa.
If m\Malindi beach (north of Mombasa) is little Italy because of all the Italians then Diani beach is little Germany. The charming mix of grumpy retirees and quarelling tourists makes me proud! This is topped though by the beach boys. As soon as you step on the nearly deserted white sand one of them pops up from somewhere tells you that he is a specialist in making key chains or some other things you really really need. I still remember the beach boys being very persistant 10 years ago but today they do it in nearly perfect German. "Wir sind alle die selben! Nur Hautfarbe anders. Brauchst keine Angst haben wir fressen keine Menschen."
On Friday night we took a bus at 9:30 to spend 4 nights in Diani beach before Anne leaves on the 5th of December. We found a bus company that treated us to a snack, drinks, a movie, pillows and mos surprising of all it was actually an intact bus. Once again however, what I once waved off as a stereotype came true again as the inside of the bus was at least 40 degrees. Africans need a sweater and a winter jacket when the temperature drops below 30. "Can you even leave the house when it is 0 degrees or do you freeze?" Is a common question I have heard 5 times already. This made it practically impossible to get a good rest. We arrived at 5 in the morning and somehow managed to get to the ferry that brings you back to the main land. It was still dark and we just wanted to get to Diani so we will have to get a good look at the city one of these days.
The beach is beautiful. Although a little rocky the sand is white, the palm trees give you the little shade you need, there is a cave like place on the beach where you could even have dinner if you carried a table down and the cottage is 30 seconds away from all that. Another unique thing about Diani and especially our cottage (www.vindigocottages.com) is the amount of monkeys. To observe them when they are far away is interesting as the similarity in human/monkey gestures is extremely funny but their eagerness to steal all sorts of things is less funny. So far we have lost 5 bananas, a bread and pieces of mango. If the beach boys were to disappear miraculously (by the government creating some jobs for example...) it would be more than idylic. The only thing missing is Caroline.
Lets rewind time. On Friday last week Musyoki, Peter and I drove to Nairobi. I had invited the two latter to experience "my" food, which however was doomed due to complications in actually getting there so we ate at Java House instead. Great food but established as the first coffee house by Americans it had things from Mexico and the US on the menu. This did not really matter however as both ordered in Swahili and the only thin I understood was "kuku" and "chips": friend chicken and fries. The experience of eating different food was apparently not tempting enough and so it all turned into eating the known things just better quality. At least something! They were greatful and happy though. Anne and I stayed with other volunteers we met there when Musyoki and Peter had to leave.
After that Anne, Laetitia and I went back to the KVDA house to see KK and Moses again who greated us warmly. I heard from Syvia that they were planning to have a BBQ that evening and Laetitia joined Anne and I, the weekend could not have started better.
The remaining days with the Moellers remained that good with a cinema visit and me being invited to Muthaiga Country Club for a buffet, pool and the Kibaki family (the president for those of you that do not read the news) family celebrating the baptism of their daughter, accompanied by 5 black Mercedes and 2 military jeeps. Ironic that the president chooses to celebrate in one of the last symbols of colonialism.
On Thursday the seminar started at the KVDA house and we spent two days exchanging our good but mostly bad experiences. It was nice to meet the other volunteers but the stories were less delightful. One girl nearly got raped by her host father, another heard from the orphans she was sent to help about the daily abuse they had to live with, a third was kicked out of his host family because the money did not arrive and he nearly had to sleep on the street and Konstantin is still in jail in Mombasa.
Monday, November 16, 2009
16/11
I found out that Peter actually has a bow and arrow in his house, which he has used before to hunt when he was younger or kill animals that enter the house. Luckily that has not been the case so far yet we did have to kill our second snake yesterday. This time it was considerably larger.
On Thursday we finally went on our safari. The morning before I was told that we would be 24 instead of the planned 11 and I was delighted that so many could come from the village. When we were seated in the bus, rented for the day, I did not recognize more than half. I found out that Peter had asked others such as some from the polytechnic who had nothing to do with the Kathuni Youth Development Club for which we are the volunteers. They definitely looked like they could have contributed more than the 100KSH, which the boys from the village were capable of paying and is the equivalent of driving from Kaani (the village closest to the main road) to Machakos. The two other volunteers from the area joined us on that day after we met them last Sunday. For the first time in my case, Anne knew them from Nairobi. As so many others they are having big difficulties in their project in which they have to take care of orphans and with their organization (IJGD. They lack acceptance and interest from their village. In the end the four of us had to pay 1300KSH each for a crowded bus with people I did not know. It seemed like we were subsidizing non members to see the wild life for the price of a mars bar in Germany. I felt cheated and I told Peter so especially as if he had told me we could have done some sort of exchange: you can come to the safari but have to spend a day at the demonstration garden.
The trip started African time so 2 hours late.
Once we arrived at Kapiti ranch and saw the first warthog we just forgot about all that and enjoyed the trip. The experience got much better when Patrick, another boy from the village, had the great idea to sit on the roof normally reserved for an average of 50 matrices, 2000 bananas, 100 sacks of cement and maybe 200kg of charcoal. Separated from the ones seated inside we enjoyed the trip from the roof while Mike, the one who is teaching me Spanish, used his knowledge learnt in Nairobi to explain the wild life. For everybody else it was the first time to see zebras, giraffes, gnus and antelopes and when they appeared the excitement was obvious. We were treated to a deserted ranch having all the animals to ourselves. I got the best pictures from the number one poser animal: the giraffe.
After that we continued to the next ranch called Cheru. I was told that this colossal ranch was private property of the justice minister with villa and pool included. On the property he had opened an orphanage for injured wild animals which we are about to see. The staff was amazing and we walked around to see young buffalo that we could stroke although being one of the big 5 (the 5 you should not mess with) and to lions which seemed less willing to be stroked. They have three 2 year old lions one of which repeatedly tried to snatch the little boy who came along.
Oh what I had forgotten to mention, the boys from the village had all dressed in their best clothes for the occasion. And I always say boys because no girls came on the trip or show up around me with one exception. There were girls from the polytechnic on the bus but they rather stuck to themselves and listened to their mini radio and mobiles much like the western species of the "Blackberry girl".
Next we saw the around 1000 tortoises small and big. All this time we were accompanied by the three care takers who were extremely motivated and informative. One even told me that there is a possibility to stay for a few days and I will try and do that next year experiencing what it is like to feed wild animals etc. We also saw cows that actually had meat on their ribs also property of the minister and used to feed the animals. Finally we walked to the cheetahs. This was the highlight for me as I had seen all the other animals before and a cheetah sprint once too but never this close! The tail is surprisingly bushy, the body made for accelerating from 0 to 100 in 3 seconds and the face rather squared. They were also very young and so used to humans as they lived in captivity that I could also stroke one through the wire.
I should probably mention that I spent last Tuesday night throwing up continuously after thinking on Monday that I was doing pretty well health wise after a month. That day I had spent repairing the water pipe on the hill with Peter and two others, which is a truly challenging job. However I think the reason was the dinner on Monday which included eggs. I continued feeling terrible on the Wednesday but luckily felt well enough for the safari on Thursday.
The conversations have now made a complete circle and although Peter and Anne are interested in the news all we really talk about is Afghanistan. Last night it came up again as I heard Gordon Brown's interview with the BBC but I had to repeat the same old lines how I do not think the west is imposing anything because let's face it Al Qaeda did have a safe haven in Afghanistan and nearly 3000 innocent people died on 9/11.
Over the weekend I spent more time learning Spanish from a surprisingly good language book Mike gave me. It is really becoming my free time activity of choice and as I have more than enough free time I will hopefully say sentences on new years!
Over the weekend we will be in Nairobi then I will upload pictures of the safari as well as of the people with a brief description.
Till then byebye
I found out that Peter actually has a bow and arrow in his house, which he has used before to hunt when he was younger or kill animals that enter the house. Luckily that has not been the case so far yet we did have to kill our second snake yesterday. This time it was considerably larger.
On Thursday we finally went on our safari. The morning before I was told that we would be 24 instead of the planned 11 and I was delighted that so many could come from the village. When we were seated in the bus, rented for the day, I did not recognize more than half. I found out that Peter had asked others such as some from the polytechnic who had nothing to do with the Kathuni Youth Development Club for which we are the volunteers. They definitely looked like they could have contributed more than the 100KSH, which the boys from the village were capable of paying and is the equivalent of driving from Kaani (the village closest to the main road) to Machakos. The two other volunteers from the area joined us on that day after we met them last Sunday. For the first time in my case, Anne knew them from Nairobi. As so many others they are having big difficulties in their project in which they have to take care of orphans and with their organization (IJGD. They lack acceptance and interest from their village. In the end the four of us had to pay 1300KSH each for a crowded bus with people I did not know. It seemed like we were subsidizing non members to see the wild life for the price of a mars bar in Germany. I felt cheated and I told Peter so especially as if he had told me we could have done some sort of exchange: you can come to the safari but have to spend a day at the demonstration garden.
The trip started African time so 2 hours late.
Once we arrived at Kapiti ranch and saw the first warthog we just forgot about all that and enjoyed the trip. The experience got much better when Patrick, another boy from the village, had the great idea to sit on the roof normally reserved for an average of 50 matrices, 2000 bananas, 100 sacks of cement and maybe 200kg of charcoal. Separated from the ones seated inside we enjoyed the trip from the roof while Mike, the one who is teaching me Spanish, used his knowledge learnt in Nairobi to explain the wild life. For everybody else it was the first time to see zebras, giraffes, gnus and antelopes and when they appeared the excitement was obvious. We were treated to a deserted ranch having all the animals to ourselves. I got the best pictures from the number one poser animal: the giraffe.
After that we continued to the next ranch called Cheru. I was told that this colossal ranch was private property of the justice minister with villa and pool included. On the property he had opened an orphanage for injured wild animals which we are about to see. The staff was amazing and we walked around to see young buffalo that we could stroke although being one of the big 5 (the 5 you should not mess with) and to lions which seemed less willing to be stroked. They have three 2 year old lions one of which repeatedly tried to snatch the little boy who came along.
Oh what I had forgotten to mention, the boys from the village had all dressed in their best clothes for the occasion. And I always say boys because no girls came on the trip or show up around me with one exception. There were girls from the polytechnic on the bus but they rather stuck to themselves and listened to their mini radio and mobiles much like the western species of the "Blackberry girl".
Next we saw the around 1000 tortoises small and big. All this time we were accompanied by the three care takers who were extremely motivated and informative. One even told me that there is a possibility to stay for a few days and I will try and do that next year experiencing what it is like to feed wild animals etc. We also saw cows that actually had meat on their ribs also property of the minister and used to feed the animals. Finally we walked to the cheetahs. This was the highlight for me as I had seen all the other animals before and a cheetah sprint once too but never this close! The tail is surprisingly bushy, the body made for accelerating from 0 to 100 in 3 seconds and the face rather squared. They were also very young and so used to humans as they lived in captivity that I could also stroke one through the wire.
I should probably mention that I spent last Tuesday night throwing up continuously after thinking on Monday that I was doing pretty well health wise after a month. That day I had spent repairing the water pipe on the hill with Peter and two others, which is a truly challenging job. However I think the reason was the dinner on Monday which included eggs. I continued feeling terrible on the Wednesday but luckily felt well enough for the safari on Thursday.
The conversations have now made a complete circle and although Peter and Anne are interested in the news all we really talk about is Afghanistan. Last night it came up again as I heard Gordon Brown's interview with the BBC but I had to repeat the same old lines how I do not think the west is imposing anything because let's face it Al Qaeda did have a safe haven in Afghanistan and nearly 3000 innocent people died on 9/11.
Over the weekend I spent more time learning Spanish from a surprisingly good language book Mike gave me. It is really becoming my free time activity of choice and as I have more than enough free time I will hopefully say sentences on new years!
Over the weekend we will be in Nairobi then I will upload pictures of the safari as well as of the people with a brief description.
Till then byebye
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Introduction
I am about to finish typing the project plan and I wanted to post the introduction (which will hopefully sum everything up so really it is all you will have to read) :)
I am still trying to figure out how we can apply for financing from the BMZ without which we can not build the tanks so without that there is no point in asking you to donate yet. In my next post I will give you a brief description of the people around here hopefully with pictures as I thought that will give you a better idea of who "my host father" and "his nephew" is.
Kathuni Youth Development Club (KYDC) is a youth organization formed in 1994 with the goal of improving the quality of life of the youth and families. The club is located in Eastern Province of Kenya, Machakos district Kathiani Division Iveti location, Kaani sub-location and consists of more than 100 members.
Geographically the club is located in a hilly and semi-arid region with two rain seasons. The first season begins in March and lasts until July while the second period begins in October and ends in December resulting in an average rain fall of 790mm per year. Rain is not reliable throughout the year and the region has not been spared by the recent droughts Kenya is suffering under. Much of the water flows past the villages into the Indian Ocean or is lost due to evaporation. When the rivers dry up, the water which is left stagnant in the puddles is used domestically leading to water borne-diseases and a breading area for mosquitoes.
That is why KYDC took the initiative to harvest the roof water and store it in tanks so that it can be used during the dry season. Water gathered from roof tops pours down with great force, causing soil erosion down hill. The lack of such water harvesting methods has led to the death of live stock and even loss of human life. In the years 2007-08 the KYDC organized the erection of 40 tanks and wants to expand the coverage with 40 additional tanks. Construction will accomplish two things: Clean drinking water will be stored and used during dry season and soil erosion will be reduced. The tanks will be made out of concrete because they are durable and cheaper due to presence of building materials such as sand and ballast.
The main goal of the club is to improve the living standards of the community. Clean drinking water is essential for human health, and is therefore the most important place to start when helping a community.
I am still trying to figure out how we can apply for financing from the BMZ without which we can not build the tanks so without that there is no point in asking you to donate yet. In my next post I will give you a brief description of the people around here hopefully with pictures as I thought that will give you a better idea of who "my host father" and "his nephew" is.
Kathuni Youth Development Club (KYDC) is a youth organization formed in 1994 with the goal of improving the quality of life of the youth and families. The club is located in Eastern Province of Kenya, Machakos district Kathiani Division Iveti location, Kaani sub-location and consists of more than 100 members.
Geographically the club is located in a hilly and semi-arid region with two rain seasons. The first season begins in March and lasts until July while the second period begins in October and ends in December resulting in an average rain fall of 790mm per year. Rain is not reliable throughout the year and the region has not been spared by the recent droughts Kenya is suffering under. Much of the water flows past the villages into the Indian Ocean or is lost due to evaporation. When the rivers dry up, the water which is left stagnant in the puddles is used domestically leading to water borne-diseases and a breading area for mosquitoes.
That is why KYDC took the initiative to harvest the roof water and store it in tanks so that it can be used during the dry season. Water gathered from roof tops pours down with great force, causing soil erosion down hill. The lack of such water harvesting methods has led to the death of live stock and even loss of human life. In the years 2007-08 the KYDC organized the erection of 40 tanks and wants to expand the coverage with 40 additional tanks. Construction will accomplish two things: Clean drinking water will be stored and used during dry season and soil erosion will be reduced. The tanks will be made out of concrete because they are durable and cheaper due to presence of building materials such as sand and ballast.
The main goal of the club is to improve the living standards of the community. Clean drinking water is essential for human health, and is therefore the most important place to start when helping a community.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
03/10
The smell of the land soaking up the rain after long durations of drought has disappeared as the rains come more sporadic. Anne and I are getting along very well. The project has become much better with her around as she pushes for more interaction with the community while leaving me with the space I sometimes need to read or write.
To jump back in time: on Thursday Patricia departed to Nairobi and the weekend was filled with planting tea and sun flowers on an experimental basis and football practice as well as a match on Sunday on the actual pitch. To this match only 7 appeared, which meant that 4 of the younger ones had to jump in. In the first half the Kaani team scored after being rewarded with a penalty that should have been off-side before. During half time it started to rain turning the pitch into mud and making it impossible to play. Another penalty and goal later the match was over and one could clearly see the disadvantages playing on a small and crooked pitch comes with.
On certain days Anne longs to be back in Germany with her friends and family then I have to comfort her and remind her of the good things while on other days I am the one that needs comforting. On those days Kenya reminds me of Europe during the Middle Ages. The majority of the people are so back ward in their mind set that it will need a Renaissance and an industrialization to develop this country. I sometimes have the feeling just because there are the material things such as cars or televisions available that can be found in Europe the people do not need to change or learn anymore just acquire these and the rest will come by itself.
Even the education system is backward. Just because Kenyan primary education is basically free it does not mean that the country is bound to progress. Most of Europe had free primary education 100 years ago so to expect Kenya will progress equally fast after 4 years is just ludicrous.
The students get tought religion from Standard 1 but not in an open, state and church separated way but rather quizzed on what Psalm x says or what wonders Moses did. Leading to most kids being able to tell you what the bible says but without relflection of any sort. Althogh illegal, beating children for mistakes is still common practice and police brutality only nurtures this. Leading to the end of school exams being overshadowed with huge scandals of cheating as the only way to escape the beating for doing mistakes is to learn how to cheat your way out of it. The most shocking story however was that of a robber in the area around two years ago told us by Peter the host father. The robber and sometimes others would enter the houses and steal whatever he found valuable. One night he got cought by the owner of the house who cut both his heels so he could not run away then called the village together. After a beating the thief told the village the names of his friends and yet they still burnt him alive afterwards.
Of course on the days Anne longs to be back in Germany I tell her that the food has greatly improved since Musyoki cooks for us. The weather has remainded pleasant with regular rain fall and on some nights the sky is so clear the stars are as visible as they can possibly be with a spectacular moon. Peter remains friendly but most importantly as open as can possibly be and seems to have no problem with us spending an upcoming weekend in Nairobi, where I will stay with Sylvia and a few days in Mombasa with other volunteers.
There is a hold on the water tank project as I now do not know whether the BMZ requirements are applicable to the specific conditions.
The smell of the land soaking up the rain after long durations of drought has disappeared as the rains come more sporadic. Anne and I are getting along very well. The project has become much better with her around as she pushes for more interaction with the community while leaving me with the space I sometimes need to read or write.
To jump back in time: on Thursday Patricia departed to Nairobi and the weekend was filled with planting tea and sun flowers on an experimental basis and football practice as well as a match on Sunday on the actual pitch. To this match only 7 appeared, which meant that 4 of the younger ones had to jump in. In the first half the Kaani team scored after being rewarded with a penalty that should have been off-side before. During half time it started to rain turning the pitch into mud and making it impossible to play. Another penalty and goal later the match was over and one could clearly see the disadvantages playing on a small and crooked pitch comes with.
On certain days Anne longs to be back in Germany with her friends and family then I have to comfort her and remind her of the good things while on other days I am the one that needs comforting. On those days Kenya reminds me of Europe during the Middle Ages. The majority of the people are so back ward in their mind set that it will need a Renaissance and an industrialization to develop this country. I sometimes have the feeling just because there are the material things such as cars or televisions available that can be found in Europe the people do not need to change or learn anymore just acquire these and the rest will come by itself.
Even the education system is backward. Just because Kenyan primary education is basically free it does not mean that the country is bound to progress. Most of Europe had free primary education 100 years ago so to expect Kenya will progress equally fast after 4 years is just ludicrous.
The students get tought religion from Standard 1 but not in an open, state and church separated way but rather quizzed on what Psalm x says or what wonders Moses did. Leading to most kids being able to tell you what the bible says but without relflection of any sort. Althogh illegal, beating children for mistakes is still common practice and police brutality only nurtures this. Leading to the end of school exams being overshadowed with huge scandals of cheating as the only way to escape the beating for doing mistakes is to learn how to cheat your way out of it. The most shocking story however was that of a robber in the area around two years ago told us by Peter the host father. The robber and sometimes others would enter the houses and steal whatever he found valuable. One night he got cought by the owner of the house who cut both his heels so he could not run away then called the village together. After a beating the thief told the village the names of his friends and yet they still burnt him alive afterwards.
Of course on the days Anne longs to be back in Germany I tell her that the food has greatly improved since Musyoki cooks for us. The weather has remainded pleasant with regular rain fall and on some nights the sky is so clear the stars are as visible as they can possibly be with a spectacular moon. Peter remains friendly but most importantly as open as can possibly be and seems to have no problem with us spending an upcoming weekend in Nairobi, where I will stay with Sylvia and a few days in Mombasa with other volunteers.
There is a hold on the water tank project as I now do not know whether the BMZ requirements are applicable to the specific conditions.
Monday, November 2, 2009
02/11
After a long break from blogging I now find time to update you on what has been happening over the last couple of days. The last time I wrote I already warned you that we were thinking about a water tank construction project and 10 days later we have made huge advances. We are writing a project plan that I will send to all of you as an email attachment in the next two days. This will state the projects goal how we want to achieve it etc. Additionally we have a rough estimate as to what the construction costs and running costs will be: 2200000KSH. We have contacted the BMZ and were told that a 75% financing was possible, which leaves us with 550000KSH or 5500 Euros. Those that receive a tank will have to contribute so that Anne and I are left with 3100 Euros that we have to raise somehow. I am currently in contact with the embassy in Nairobi for funds and trying to contact the German school in Nairobi for additional money but it would be great if you could also contribute. If you are interested respond to the email that I will hopefully send in the next two days if you did not receive anything by Friday please tell me as it is very hard to organize addresses from an internet cafe and I might have missed somebody.
Last week Sunday Musioki (the nephew of my host father) and I went to Machakos to watch Manchester United be beaten by Liverpool, which was very exciting not only because it was a good match but also because by the time it ended it was dark outside and the city transforms itself when the lights suddenly go out. It was quite an experience taking one of the last buses that left Machakos and seeing the city so empty although it was only about 19:00 especially as the only light source were the head lights of the bus on the winding road down to Kathuni. I arrived safely and we spent the rest of the foot walk to the house talking about football. During the match on several occasions Musioki (I do not really know the spelling...) asked me about the teams, rules and players showing me how little knowledge they really had about a sport so many love. For example he did now know which team was Manchester and which Liverpool and called "penalty!" every time the people in the pub got excited over a foul.
The next day Anne and Patricia arrived and we went to pick them up with a bit of rain fall for the first time in many days. We finally bought mattresses and I was extremely happy to have company. We managed to fit everybody into the small house which meant it was a very good atmosphere. On Tuesday, instead of the planned one day safari and after a morning of planting, we only went to the anti-gravitational field expecting something spectacular but instead finding ourselves watching young men pour water from a puddle on the road for 50KSH. Then however the water did in fact run up the road instead of flow down which was impressive. I still cannot explain how it worked.
On Wednesday we went to Wamunyu the place where wood carving was supposedly first practiced in Kenya. There were beautiful things but Peter had trouble admiring the work because he always mentioned how many trees had to be cut down in the process. A day later Patricia left us and returned to Nairobi but was happy to have come. Since then Anne and I are getting along very well and we have finished all the planting, which leaves us with football practice for me and playing with the children much better than me for Anne. I have begun reading The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown and am enjoying it just as much as his other works.
I have to leave the internet cafe now but as I will be coming back in the next couple of days I will update you with part 2 then.
Hope you are all well!
After a long break from blogging I now find time to update you on what has been happening over the last couple of days. The last time I wrote I already warned you that we were thinking about a water tank construction project and 10 days later we have made huge advances. We are writing a project plan that I will send to all of you as an email attachment in the next two days. This will state the projects goal how we want to achieve it etc. Additionally we have a rough estimate as to what the construction costs and running costs will be: 2200000KSH. We have contacted the BMZ and were told that a 75% financing was possible, which leaves us with 550000KSH or 5500 Euros. Those that receive a tank will have to contribute so that Anne and I are left with 3100 Euros that we have to raise somehow. I am currently in contact with the embassy in Nairobi for funds and trying to contact the German school in Nairobi for additional money but it would be great if you could also contribute. If you are interested respond to the email that I will hopefully send in the next two days if you did not receive anything by Friday please tell me as it is very hard to organize addresses from an internet cafe and I might have missed somebody.
Last week Sunday Musioki (the nephew of my host father) and I went to Machakos to watch Manchester United be beaten by Liverpool, which was very exciting not only because it was a good match but also because by the time it ended it was dark outside and the city transforms itself when the lights suddenly go out. It was quite an experience taking one of the last buses that left Machakos and seeing the city so empty although it was only about 19:00 especially as the only light source were the head lights of the bus on the winding road down to Kathuni. I arrived safely and we spent the rest of the foot walk to the house talking about football. During the match on several occasions Musioki (I do not really know the spelling...) asked me about the teams, rules and players showing me how little knowledge they really had about a sport so many love. For example he did now know which team was Manchester and which Liverpool and called "penalty!" every time the people in the pub got excited over a foul.
The next day Anne and Patricia arrived and we went to pick them up with a bit of rain fall for the first time in many days. We finally bought mattresses and I was extremely happy to have company. We managed to fit everybody into the small house which meant it was a very good atmosphere. On Tuesday, instead of the planned one day safari and after a morning of planting, we only went to the anti-gravitational field expecting something spectacular but instead finding ourselves watching young men pour water from a puddle on the road for 50KSH. Then however the water did in fact run up the road instead of flow down which was impressive. I still cannot explain how it worked.
On Wednesday we went to Wamunyu the place where wood carving was supposedly first practiced in Kenya. There were beautiful things but Peter had trouble admiring the work because he always mentioned how many trees had to be cut down in the process. A day later Patricia left us and returned to Nairobi but was happy to have come. Since then Anne and I are getting along very well and we have finished all the planting, which leaves us with football practice for me and playing with the children much better than me for Anne. I have begun reading The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown and am enjoying it just as much as his other works.
I have to leave the internet cafe now but as I will be coming back in the next couple of days I will update you with part 2 then.
Hope you are all well!
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