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Helen in Africa
For the last six weeks it has seemed as if things have been falling easily into place for me, almost as if they were willed to go well. Everything we planned worked out as we intended or even surpassed what we had imagined. The last few day, however, have not been like that.
When we arrived at the bus station at 6.30pm with our huge package of mosquito nets, we were told that the bus had been delayed for one hour. Two hours later and we were finally on the road heading west. Around 2am I was awoken by a loud banging sound as the bus shuddered to a halt. Arguments followed in Swahili between irate passengers and the driver, who was apparently being very uninformative. The lady behind us said they were sending another bus from Nairobi. I drifted back to sleep and awoke at 5am when the second bus finally arrived. We started off again and made seven more hours travel before the second bus broke down. By this point it was 12pm and we were six hours past our original arrival time so most people were laughing in disbelief. We finally reached Siaya at 2pm.
We had missed the time when people were gathering to receive donations so instead we headed straight to the Church. It is a spectacular, circular building covered entirely on the inside with murals and stained glass windows, a stark contrast with the tin shacks and dirt roads that lead up to it. This is where the group from Nairobi who had fundraised to deliver blankets and food to the poor, were staying. What is amazing is that they have been doing this every August for 18 years and have made it into kind of a ritual where they spend each night praying and singing for the people they are helping. They don't sleep for 3 days! They were all just lying down on either side of the church meditating and praying. I was sure I heard the distinct sound of snoring though.
We managed to give out some of the nets and the rest were to be distributed that evening at the service. So within three hours of arriving we were headed straight back to the bus stop for Nairobi. The journey from the church to Siaya town took 45 minutes and Shiama and I weregiven a lift from the Pastor in the back of his pick up truck. Siaya is a very poor place but it is in the heat of the countryside and as it is close to Uganda, it is green and beautiful just as it had been at the Nile. The sun was setting as we drove along the dirt roads and there are very few cars in Siaya, only bicycles so it was a peaceful, scenic drive through the farmlands that made it worth the hellish journey and being there for only a few hours.
Luckily the journey back was straight forward and after a quick stop for some food, we were back at Casa Jayne by lunchtime. I spent last night catching up on my washing (it's the first time I've had to do it myself as we used to pay the house help to do it) and it has really built up. Life at the compound is significantly more challenging. The food is reheated for up to four days and is of varying warmth and quality. The shower floods half the house whenever someone uses it (there are six of us in the flat), not to mention the fact that you get an electric shock whenever you touch the tap. Also, Jayne's mother is nuts. I asked her if I could take the kids inside because it was raining and she told me it wasn't raining. It was bucketing. 'No, it's not raining', she said. I wasn't quite sure what to say to that.
This morning I went to the Presbyterian church next to the compound. When I told my dad this he said, 'It takes you to go to Africa before you go to church.'I told him it's more fun there because they dance. It was their tenth anniversary so they had gospel choirs from all over Maasailand. They gave us a very warm welcome. I found out that Jayne has been asked to represent Gong in the next election in 16 months. She is very nervous to say yes as she would become a target and worries about her VCT clinic that she has worked so hard to build. She says she is not a politician but a humanitarian and that politics is a dirty world. I think that they need her though, for that reason. She will make the right choices and will not be easily influenced by anyone. She is the only person in Kenya I would trust 100%.
So tomorrow morning, I am going with Jayne to bring the equipment to the place in Masailand where someone has commissioned the building of a well. It is much needed there as water is so scarce. Then we are doing a food run to some families near Gong. I will spend the rest of the week visiting colleges and schools to work on my project and in the VCT helping Dan and Nina. They have asked if they can adopt my questionnaire to use in the VCT and to include the results in their leaflets, which is quite flattering. I'm intrigued to see what the overall results will be. Some of the ones I have looked at so far are really quite shocking.
On Friday I am going to Mombasa and Diani beach for some much needed relaxation and some surfing. I'll write again before then.
Lots of love,
Helen x
Ps. Dad there is a dog here who is the absolute double of Otis, but a little skinnier. He has the beige eyebrows and the dumb look in his eyes. It could be him. I'll bring back a picture.
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