Blog Posts

The Internet Ate This Week's Blog

5/6/2012

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The internet ate this week's blog. I'll be posting it again later this week.

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Dancing Down the Aisle

5/1/2012

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Serena and Tim's Grandma's

Kiswahili word of the week: kuku choma. Kuku choma: roasted chicken. One of Kisumu's specialties is their BBQ chicken- it is delicious! Every Tuesday night, I meet with friends from the CDC at a BBQ place in Kisumu. For $4 each, we eat as much salsa, ugali and roasted chicken we can handle. It is delicious!

This was a strange week, filled with a lot of random events. I am finishing up a proposal for Orphans and Vulnerable Children, visited OGRA's Ring Road Nyalenda Slum Clinic, had a beautiful African dress finished, attended another wedding, watched the rain take over life in Kisumu, and have been steadily working away on my school deliverables to complete my master's degree.

Please click "read more" to see the rest of this week's blog.

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Internet Outage

4/29/2012

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I will be posting this week's blog in the next few days. The internet was out most of the weekend again.

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A Tour of Kisumu's Provincial General Hospital

4/21/2012

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Children's Oncology Ward

Kiswahili word of the week: Asante sana. Asante sana means "thank you".

As someone who is known as the slowest language learner in every language class she has ever taken, I am still embarrassed to say that I did not learn to say "thank you" in Kiswahili until this week. I am very lucky, everyone in Kisumu understands the English "thank you".

That said, I believe it is very important to be able to communicate, even just a few phrases, in the language of the country you visit. Knowing even a few words shows respect, that you are interested in learning their culture, that you see the person you are interacting with as an individual, and it also helps you get better deals in the marketplace!

This week I had the opportunity to visit the Provincial General Hospital in Kisumu. I made sure to thank the Dental Department and the Children's Oncology Department for giving me some of their time, and for sharing with me the accomplishments and challenges they face in serving Kisumu Province.

Please click "read more" on to the right of this paragraph.

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It's Raining It's Pouring

4/18/2012

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A monsoon in my backyard

Luo word of the week: fundi. A fundi is the Luo word for tailor. This week, my coworker Fredah introduced me to her fundi. Her fundi has a reputation of making beautiful African dresses, with great details and finish work.

Click "read more" to hear about Kenya monsoons and mosquitoes.

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This is Africa

4/16/2012

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Internet was out all weekend, and so my blog will be a few days late this week. This is Africa. (Which sometimes makes mzungu life frustrating.)

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Cultural Engagement or Retail Therapy, Kenya Style

4/9/2012

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A boat in Lake Victoria

Kiswahili word of the week: baridi. Baridi means cold, and comes from the Arabic word barid, or براد. - Arabic for cold. Kiswahili is an adaption of African coastal tribal languages mixed with Arabic, learned from Arabic sea-merchants who would come to the coast to trade with Africans. In the Kisumu, it is always a good idea to ask for a baridi Fanta, Coke or water. If not, your drink will arrive warm from the heat.

This short week was filled with cultural experiences, celebrations, and a lot of bargaining.

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Safari to the Masai Mara

4/4/2012

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Serena, on safari

Kiswahili word of the week: hakuna matata. Hakuna matata means no worries. As a birthday gift to myself, I spent the weekend on a safari in Masai Mara. Masai Mara is the land where the nomadic Masai live. Their land is an open savanna, filled with wildlife. Masai tribesmen hosted our camp, and it was common to hear them say, “hakuna matata” when we thanked them or asked for help.

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This Week's Blog Will Be Late

3/30/2012

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This week's blog will be posted a few days late. I am going on an adventure this weekend, and will share it with you when I return!

In the meantime, enjoy this.

(Thanks for the link Jared Castillo!)

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Into the Heart of Africa

3/25/2012

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Boda-boda's, taking people into town.

Swahili word of the week: boda-boda. A boda-boda is a bicycle or motorcycle taxi. A ride to anywhere in town is 30ksh on the bike and 50ksh on the motorcycle (for mzungu's). This is $.35-$.55. The name boda-boda originates from the Kenya-Uganda border, where Kenyans and Ugandans catch rides, border to border, to and from work. Bicycle and motorcycle taxis became popular throughout the region, and the name stuck.

This week I had the opportunity to travel with Peter, Jacob and Collin to the Heart of Africa. Our goal was to meet with Level 2 Clinics, see how they are doing with their HIV/AIDS programs, and see if we could be of any assistance in helping them access the resources they need to help people vulnerable to HIV.

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