Nairobi Marathon 2006

In my last post I said I was quite possibly on my last ride in the colonial era train, since Kenya Railways is being purchased by South African Railways and the antique trains are being replaced. Yet, here it is one week later and I’m taking the same night train back to Kisumu again. I brought my laptop with me to work on my poultry project grant, so I’m using the ten minutes or so of battery life this thing has to type a bit and kill time on the trip.

I normally wouldn’t show off the laptop in the train, since it’s four people to a room and I want my computer with me when I wake up the next morning. However, this time around the room is empty except for me, so I’m living the high life. Since I was sitting in a large second class compartment by myself the conductor wanted to move me to a first class room, which is smaller and much nicer. I was enthusiastic about the idea since it’s always been a dream of mine to get a free upgrade, if not in a plane than at least on a train ride. However, when I went to the first class cabin they sent me to and opened the door a plume of cigarette smoke came pouring out, and a mercenary looking guy with beady little eyes and a Steven Segal style mullet emerged from the smoke. I decided that wasn’t my idea of first class, so second class it is with four beds to myself.

So I was back in Nairobi this weekend to run the half marathon. I’ve been training for awhile but I knew no amount of training would prepare me for a race against Kenyans. These guys are insane. Yet another record was broken as a forest guard named Kiprop, from the Kalenjin tribe just like every other non-Ethiopian world record setter, finished a full marathon….that’s over 26 miles….in two hours and ten minutes. No, I’m not making that up. It was the fastest time ever recorded for a marathon in Kenya, and I was able to watch him run by in a road-runner like blur and take first place. The top ten runners all finished the race in under 2:15, and it was amazing to see. After the race the top finishers were so exhausted they couldn’t even stand, and had to be carried by the medical staff to a place where they could pass out on the ground.

The most incredible part was that the guy in first place had never run a marathon before. He lives in Kapsabet, which is less than an hour ride from my site. About six months ago a friend lent him running shoes and he decided to enter a 10k race, where he placed 10th. Now, after only a half year’s worth of training, he won the Nairobi marathon in a record-breaking time against some of the fastest runners in the world. He has become an instant celebrity and I wish I had been there for the party waiting for him when he returned home.

As for my race, 597 people finished ahead of me, but I was in the top five wazungu and I beat the goal I had set for myself and trained for. I wanted to run a half marathon (that’s 13.1 miles) in under one and a half hours. That’s probably important if I’m ever going to break my long-term goal of a three-hour marathon. I wasn’t very optimistic about it since there were thousands of runners and I had to spend my first mile working around the slower ones that had wedged there way to the front of the starting line. Then, once I was passed them and worked up to my normal clip, I found it hard to breathe and was getting chest pains. Nairobi is around 6000 feet above sea level and more than 1000 feet higher than Kakamega, so the altitude was definitely a factor. I kept running and the chest pains faded a bit, so it just became a matter of tuning out the pain for as long as I could and trying to keep up my pace until the race was finished. The problem with that was that I had no idea how long I had run, and there were no mile markers on the track or people to tell me how much further to go. I was dying and it felt like the race would never end, when finally I made it to the finish line and cursed under my breath about how something could be so satisfying and yet so painful at the same time. Completely exhausted and barely able to walk, but at least better off than the half-dead top finishers (1:01:21 for the half!), I finished the run in 1 hour, 29 minutes, and 47 seconds. Next time it’s a full marathon and I hope to break three hours.

I was proud of myself. The only other Peace Corps volunteer to run finished the race in two hours and forty minutes. Of course, she had just been diagnosed with stomach worms just a few days before and had to stop along the way for a toilet break. All in all I think that she and her worms were the real champions of the day and I told her that. I also suggested that if she had really been serious about the run she should have just crapped her pants and kept on going, but given her condition she didn’t find that as funny as I did.

So not much else to say. Still waiting to find out if Peace Corps will fund my poultry project, still waiting for the last of my paperwork to get the wheelchair fundraiser started, and still hoping to find markets for my farmers network where they will not be taken advantage of by middlemen. Some progress is being made with that at least. I finally found a market for the dried sweet potato chips the farmers have been trying to sell, at 10 shilling a kilo. That is an eighth what they were expecting but at least they have a way to sell of what they have instead of letting them all go to waste. Next week should be busy trying to get my proposals submitted, and I’m looking forward to being done with the writing and the research and actually starting the projects themselves.

Foreign Service Life, Kitui Again and a Train Ride Home

I just returned from training the new volunteers in Kitui followed by several meetings in Nairobi. I had a great time. It felt good to get away, gather my thoughts, and come up with a plan of action to work out some of the issues I’ve been having lately; now I’m in a much better mood. Today is a Muslim religious day and also a national holiday. It shows how much I know about it that I can’t even say which one it is. Regardless, I’m enjoying the time off by catching up on emails and updating this blog before I’m two weeks behind again.

So I forgot to mention in my last post that I stayed at the house of an American embassy employee named Craig. He is married to Zelda, the sister of one of the Peace Corps medical officers. I met Zelda in Mombasa (see photograph with seven-foot Sudanese refugee) and she wanted me to visit her place in Nairobi. Peace Corps volunteers often stay at embassy houses, but this was a first for me. Craig and Zelda live in a huge, beautiful Spanish-style home in an upscale, gated community. They also have a private guard for their home and a personal housekeeper. The contrast between Peace Corps and Foreign Service is remarkable. The children of Foreign Service families go to an elite private international school in Nairobi and are taught to be fearful of the non-wealthy parts of Kenya. For instance, an embassy family went to visit a volunteer friend of mine in a village with their fourteen-year-old son, and boy was absolutely terrified when he accompanied the Peace Corps volunteer to the market. He had been taught it is extremely dangerous in the rural areas, which I think is a real pity for his sake.

Many Peace Corps volunteers end up in the Foreign Service. Craig was in the Peace Corps in Oman in the 1970’s, and most of the other embassy employees I’ve met have had similar Peace Corps experiences. I’ve thought a lot about it, and for now it is not something I want to do. It seems to me that in third-world countries most Foreign Service workers are detached from the reality of life for the average citizen. I’ve spoken to many Foreign Service employees, and I’ve been told that they spend a lot of their time on the “cocktail circuit”, wining and dining with the upper-upper class and key policy makers. I can see the importance of working with the most influential people, but I would feel guilty driving in my shiny new Land Cruiser from a ritzy party to my mansion house in a place where the majority of people have so little. I’ll try not to get too much into politics, but I would also not like having to represent the interests of American foreign policy at this point in time. Maybe in a few years my opinion on this will change, but historically it seems that the U.S. acts in their own self-interests with little regard to the well-being of affected countries. Then again, if it wasn’t for my country I wouldn’t be in the Peace Corps, so I can’t complain too much. Regardless, I do think I prefer working at a grass roots level with the people who need it most.

Anyway, I had a fantastic time with Craig and Zelda. The food was great, and I even had real bacon for breakfast, the first pork product I’ve even eaten in Kenya. Craig is a Chess Wizard and he gave me some pointers while beating me twice without even using his queen, and there was plenty of beer and wine in the fridge, which in retrospect didn’t help my chess game. I’m welcome back anytime, and I really appreciated their hospitality. I look forward to seeing them again and staying at what is basically a five star resort home. Quite a change from Shimanyiro village!

So on to Kitui. Part of my change in mood is because Kitui was such a different experience for me than it was a year ago. I came into the country confused on what to expect, a little overwhelmed, and knowing nothing about Kenyan culture. Looking back I’m surprised by how much I have changed, and being where I was as a trainee really drove that point home. I loved having a chance to share my experiences with the new group, and I walked through some of the most rural areas in Kitui with little trouble communicating in Swahili. I spent Sunday night with my host family and had a lengthy conversation with my host mama that I was never able to do as a trainee. However, training itself hasn’t seemed to change. The trainees, as always, are ready to be done with it (I can relate. I thought my two and a half month stint in Kitui would never end!). The small business development volunteers don’t understand why they have to learn so much about agriculture, and I pointed out that in the rural areas, small businesses almost always involve some type of farming. They seemed disappointed by that, but I guess it wasn’t really what I was expecting as a SED trainee either. The trainees also feel that the technical training is about useless. I had felt the same way, but looking back there was a lot I learned about Kenya just by how inefficient the training was. Plus, the language and cultural training gained in Kitui were extremely valuable, so I suggested they do their best to tough it out for the remaining month, as from there on things should improve. I got to be friends with several volunteers and am looking forward to seeing where they end up.

While I was in Kitui the town was celebrating it’s 50th anniversary of the Catholic church. Many of the missionaries and priests who had been in Kitui during the past fifty years were there, and they ended up staying at the same place (the Kitui Pastoral Center) that Peace Corps placed me while I was talking with the new volunteers. I thought it was pretty funny, as the majority of those staying with me were Irish Catholic Priests. Half of them were named Patrick and they drank heavily. Some stereotypes definitely hold true.

I left early Monday morning from my host family’s house to Nairobi, and had several meetings there. I picked up my registration packet for my marathon next Sunday, learned about another cash crop, an oil-producing plant called jatropa, and met with APDK for a final time to gather the last of the paperwork needed for pricing. I only need a consent form from one more group and I will have everything needed to being the project. Meanwhile, I’m finalizing the proposal should have everything completed soon.

Last night I took the night train from Nairobi to Kisumu. Kenya Railways has recently been bought out by a company in South Africa, so this could be the last time I’m able to take the colonial-era train, as I hear it will be replaced soon. It feels like going back in time riding on it, and I’ll miss the experience. Of course, things are not like they used to be. At one time the train had electricity, what appears to be an intercom system or music, and even air-conditioning. However, blown out bulbs, the rusted fans, and the rotted speaker indicated that they have not been used for quite some time. As of now the only means of lighting is a flashlight given to each room and air conditioning consists of an open window. The meals are served on antique dishes with a worn Kenya Railways logo, the faded remains of colonial elegance. The train is a historical relic from another era and it’s a shame to see it go.

Now it’s time for lunch then I hope to write some emails. I’m looking forward to being back in the states in just two months time!

Long overdue

I’m overdue for an update but it’s been crazy busy lately. Also, I’ve been a bit frustrated and discouraged, which has drained my motivation to write since I don’t want to sound overly cynical. I’ve lost a lot of idealism since I’ve arrived and my opinion of human nature is probably at an all time low right now, but I’m learning to roll with the punches and keep an optimistic attitude. I’m still confident that over time, in their own special Kenyan way, things will work out for the best, and despite everything I don’t regret for a minute my decision to be here. Anyway, I won’t dwell on frustrations right now. Development work is truly an up and down roller coaster ride, but on a positive note it’s rarely boring.

Instead of going through the last few weeks chronologically I’ll start by discussing where things stand on some of my projects. First, there’s the Wake Up Women’s group. I’ve written about them before but to summarize they are a group of 12 African Mamas, plus Habakkuk (who I like to tease by introducing as a Wake up Woman). The group sponsors 15 orphan children living with relatives, and they try to get what little money together they can by contributing their savings towards school fees, medicine, etc. They are currently unable to take care of these kids beyond occasionally providing a bag or dried maize or a bar of soap, and with the children growing to the age where pricey secondary school fees are required, they need income in a big way. The group has really wanted me to help them fund an orphanage, but the last thing I’m going to do is tie myself economically to a project in Kenya with no way out.

So with that in mind, we’ve had several meetings over the last month where I’ve encouraged the women to discuss various ways they can earn money to assist the orphans. I feel that if a project is in the hands of the women it at least has a chance of being able to continue after I’m gone. Over the last year I’ve determined this is really the only effective means of carrying out development work. To put it bluntly, I feel forty years of handouts has done little to help Kenya economically (except line the pockets of the corrupt and cripple work ethic), and people need to be able to help themselves. I emphasized this importance of a self-sustainable project to ensure long-term success, and after several weeks of discussion among the mamas they decided on a poultry project. I e-mailed this suggestion to the Peace Corps director in charge of handling grants and he felt this was a good idea. I then conducted a two day feasibility study detailing the potential profits that can be made, and determined that one chicken house with 100 chickens sold for meat and eggs can earn around $2,000 profit per year. Beyond the chickens the women are also growing chili peppers as a cash crop, and I am hopeful that between these two projects they will be able to earn enough money to both assist the orphans and improve the financial situation of their own families.

The feasibility study was conducted with assistance from Lori, a Crisis Corps volunteer living in the nearby town of Bungoma. Crisis Corps is a six-month program available to returned Peace Corps volunteers. Lori’s job is to provide training on income generation to communities seriously affected by HIV/AIDS (e.g. all of sub-Saharan Africa). Prior to coming to Kenya she was a volunteer in the Kalahari Desert of Namibia, and needless to say her experiences (no volunteer within a day’s travel, the only means of transport hitchhiking, cell phones and internet nonexistent) were completely different than mine. Her training was excellent and the women really enjoyed it. The way it was presented really allowed the women to take control of the project and come up with some good ideas.

After working with Lori, conducting a dozen meetings with Wake Up Women, and receiving collaboration and assistance from Ministry of Agriculture livestock extension officers, the women were very excited and the proposal was ready to be written. The total cost of the project is around $1600, with the women providing a 25% community contribution, leaving the amount of funding requested at $1200. With this information on hand, I went to the Peace Corps office in Nairobi to confirm everything.

Please keep in mind, as I continue this story, that Peace Corps admin has been kept in the loop every step of the way.

Anyway, I talk to my supervisor, and he informs me that he recently discovered that grants through the Peace Corps cannot involve poultry because of the threat of bird flu! Now, first off, there has never been a reported case of bird flu in Kenya. Secondly, poultry is a means of existence for the people living in Western Kenya. Also, the worry of bird flu actually coming to Kenya occurred during the last bird migration, but it has been six months since then and there has been no news that a threat is still imminent. The problem is that back during the bird flu scare there was a directive from Peace Corps headquarters stating that no poultry projects are to be funded, and it has yet to be lifted. Now I have to try to find funding through other means, because I’ve gone too far with these women not to assist, and if bird flu actually does become a serious threat Western Kenya there will be a lot more problems than the failure of this poultry project, trust me. As it is, nearly every Luyha (the tribe I live with) family has at least a few chickens on their land and more than likely walking around in their house as well.

Now onto the wheelchair project. As I wrote earlier, one of the groups was rescheduled because nobody was there when I brought APDK out for the last visit. The social development officer claimed that she was not aware that she was supposed to organize the group, even though I felt it had been made very clear to her through previous discussions. Luckily, I was able to convince the mobile clinic team from APDK to come out again, and the meeting was rescheduled for Oct. 11th. When the time came out a second time and went with me to the field, once again there was nobody there. Every other time APDK has gone out to a site in this area there has been around 70 people, so you may be wondering, as I was, why it is that when I am with them to truly provide assistance there is nobody.

As it turns out, (and this is just the theory from APDK, but certain people have confirmed it) the Social Development officer is upset because she isn't being involved in the exchange of funds, hence she is unable to get her cut of the money. It also seems that the last time we went into the field, she drove us into the bush where there was nobody and the entire group was waiting somewhere else. This time she simply didn't inform anyone to come, although she swears she did. I find it strange, because who wouldn’t attend a meeting for a chance of free mobility? I confronted her about this and of course she got very offended and defensive and denied everything. I get so tired of people here working against each other because of their own greed and self-interest.

The good news: I called the District Officer, who as far as I can tell actually is an honest person, and he was extremely upset. He made some phone calls and directed people to go through the villages and bring the disabled to the mobile clinic. After some time people came and around 25 were diagnosed, many of them children with correctable problems and people crawling in the dust in desperate need of mobility. As I said, things work out in their own special Kenyan way and the rest of this project will be done directly with the District Officer and without the Social Development women. Just imagine where things would be right now if I wasn’t on the ground and the money was thrown blindly into Kenya with the expectation it would be used as intended. It becomes very difficult to trust anybody, although thankfully for my sanity there are a few exceptions.

I’m in Central Province right now, and I visited the last disabled group yesterday. Jean, a Peace Corps volunteer in this area, is wanting to help in the fundraising effort with her friends from the states. She was in the U.S. on vacation at the one time APDK was available to visit her group so I volunteered to make an appearance. Jean’s group had been informed for a month about my visit, but when I came with the mobile clinic to her location, once again, out of 80-100 people needing assistance, only six were there. You are starting to see why I am frustrated? John, the network chairman, was apparently confused about the intentions of APDK and thought that the mobile clinic would drive to each and every individuals home, which not only would take a week but is also simply impossible. We did manage to evaluate the six people and I went with APDK to a nearby disabled group that was much better organized. This group has around 15 people on a waiting list for rehabilitative equipment, and with the consent of Jean we concluded that for now we would assist the six people that came for the fitment in her original group plus the 15 or so people waiting in the other group. Now it’s a matter of gathering the required paper work (official, itemized prices from APDK, signed letters of consent from the local government, copies of group registration certificates) and the fundraiser will finally be able to start. The good news about this effort is that 100% of the funding will be used as intended, which is rare here. Once these disabled have mobility we are going to move to phase two, where with assistance from APDK and Peace Corps volunteers they will receive training on a skill that can empower them economically.

Now onto the network. There is still no market for sweet potatoes even though they are being heavily promoted. A group in Bungoma recently received a grant from the Kenya Agriculture Research Institute to plant 50 acres of the crop, which will further saturate a market where brokers are currently buying the commodity for less than the cost it takes to grow it. At least it is useful as a food crop, but farmers really feel the sweet potato will pull them out of poverty. As such, I am still looking into other cash crops for farmers. Recently the Kenyan papers have been raving about an Aloe Vera processing plant in the remote area of Lake Begoria. The articles have been discussing how farmers are making so much money growing aloe and selling it to the factory, which was build with 13 million dollars assistance from the European Union. I discussed this with my friend Paul, a retired engineer working with the Pokot tribe in Northern Kenya, and he decided to drive out there with me and see if it could also assist the people he is working with.

The drive to lake Begoria was beautiful. We drove along the rim of the Rift Valley past Eton, where Paul Tergat, the fastest runner in the world is living. From the high vantage point was a spectacular panoramic view of the Rift Valley below. After driving into the valley and up and over the other side we arrived in the remote and sparsely populated area where the Aloe Vera plant was located. When we finally arrived at the plant we were surprised by how small is was. Also, there was nobody there. After walking to the building and looking through the windows, the factory was completely empty. What was going on? Where did the 13 million dollars go, and how were farmers making money selling aloe to an empty warehouse with no employees?

After some time of shaking our heads in amazement, a man came to the gate. He claimed to be the manager, and he said that while the plant was being built, the Kenyan Wildlife Service declared Aloe Vera, a plant that can be easily produced commercially and was seen everywhere on our drive through the semi-arid region, as an endangered species. As for the farmers making so much money with the crop and the article in the paper, I assume that the journalists never actually visited the plant and simply relied on somebody’s inaccurate story of where things stand. The manager seemed confident that over time things would work out for the best. Anyway, there was nothing there that would be beneficial to my farmers now.

I went with Paul to Lake Begoria and the trip was great regardless. While there Paul offered me an invitation for four days to Lake Turkana with his son, who is coming to visit at the end of October. Lake Turkana is something I've wanted to do since I came to Kenya, and here, falling into my lap, was an all-expenses paid trip with a great guy over a short enough amount of time that I know I would get away with it....unless something happened to us. However, if I got caught up there I'm out of the Peace Corps, no doubt. I had mentioned perhaps making a trip up there someday to my Peace Corps supervisor and he told me anywhere north of Kitale is off limits due to security issues, as stated in directives from the US Embassy. Paul has worked there for years and has never had a problem, and I know it would be a fantastic experience, but with as much as I have at risk on the off chance something happens I had to decline. I guess it will have to wait until my service is over.

To make up for it I’ll be running the half marathon in Nairobi on October 29th. I've been training quite a bit and setting my goals high. I want to complete the run (13.1 miles) in
under an hour and a half. It's hopelessly ambitious but we’ll see what happens. I worry the altitude of Nairobi (5700 feet) will kill my chances.

So just a few more things to catch up on and then I’m done. Last week I was running past a school yard and as usual kids shouted "mzungu!". One of them in particular said it in a way that really annoyed me. You know, not friendly or cute but rude, mean, and insulting. I've really been trying to watch myself but notice that about once every two weeks I react in a way I shouldn't, as if it builds up and then I need to let it all out. I chased the kid and he fell over trying to run from me and finally jumped through some bushes, and I thought it was pretty funny. I yelled at the kid "sema mzungu tena!' (say mzungu again!) which he didn't, but about a thousand of his friends were nearby and they all thought it was hilarious to get such a reaction and I swear about a hundred people started yelling "mzungu" at me. I hate this place sometimes, but I guess I got what I deserved. Now I can't run by the school without being harassed even more. Part of me wants to make a career out of this and the other part is sick of being treated like an outsider because of the pigment of my skin.

Last weekend I had some monkey watchers from the forest over for dinner. They sit in the woods all day log with binoculars and a log book recording monkey behavior, and they will continue doing this for a year. They were very appreciative to have a chance to escape from the forest for awhile and we had a lot of fun. The weekend before I was in the rainforest with several friends, including my Dutch friends Gergo and Mirjam, Paul, Cheri (my Artemisia contact from Kitale), and various other people they know and work with. We had a great time and once again I saw a spectacular sunrise view and watched people get completed freaked out by the bat cave.

That’s all for now, I need to try to write more often! I’m in the Eastern town of Thika now and waiting to be picked up by Peace Corps. They are driving me to Kitui to meet the new volunteers and I get to talk to them about my experiences. I’m excited and will do my best to remain optimistic yet realistic about what to expect here.

Latest Pics

It's been awhile since I posted an update, but as I was getting started I saw a few raindrops. That inevitably means the power will go soon so I'll start with some pics from the last few weeks. Maybe I'll luck out and post an update after this:

This is a giant termite mound in front of Lake Baringo, a beautiful lake in the desert that I stopped to visit on my way to an aloe vera processing plant.

This was taken in Migori during the assessment of a disabled group.

A school yard outside Kisumu. I passed this on the way to the medicinal garden with the Kakamega FFS Network officials.

A view out my back door after the rains

My dutch friends Mirjam and Gerco enjoying breakfast with the puppies.

Yet another group picture from the forest. My dutch friends and a group from Kitale

A great blue toracco lands on a tree branch in the rainforest.