This and That

So the past week or so has been filled with a bunch of random events/activities. I’ll give a "quick" overview.

Last Friday, Salina and I traveled to Mfangano Island, which is a small island in Lake Victoria. Getting there required a 2-hour matatu/bus ride to Luanda Kotieno, then a 1-hour ferry ride to Mbita, where we stayed the night. The next morning we caught a 2-hour boat ride (small, uncomfortable fishing boat) from Mbita to Mfangano. Mfangano's terrain reminded me a lot of the Mediterranean coast, but in the middle of Africa. There is no electricity, and only a few motorbikes, which took us around. By no means is this mode of transportation safe, but it has to be one of the most exhilarating. You just sit on the back of a motorbike and hold on. We walked around the island, hoping to reach some rock paintings that Bantu pygmies made a long time ago. Unfortunately, we were informed that the rock paintings were just too far from where we were to see them and have enough time to catch the boat back. Fortunately, the person who told us this invited us back to stay with him and his family on the other side of the island, which is much closer to the rock paintings. We exchanged numbers, and we hope to be able to get back. Another stroke of bad luck left me with a dead camera battery, so the pictures are limited. Let’s all cross our fingers that we make it back to the island, so I can rectify the mistake.

The trip back to Kisumu later that day was the same as the way there, except in reverse order and about twice as long. Traveling into Kisumu on a Saturday night is not something I want to repeat. This is due to the splendid Kibuye Market, which is in full swing every Sunday in Kisumu. People from all over the area flood into Kisumu; most of them decide to come Saturday night. So our bus/matatu ride back into the city involved many prolonged stops, during which endless amounts of market bound goods were slung atop the vehicle. Chickens, mangoes, baskets, fish, clothes, corn, fish, fish, fish, and other sacks full of indiscernible goods (I suspect fish). It was a crowded ride, and long, but memorable. Every time we passed a police checkpoint, those standing in the isle had to squat so as to not be seen by the policemen.

Photos of my trip to Mfangano Island

This all leads us to our Sunday, which was spent at the Kibuye Market. We got the cook at the guesthouse we are staying at to show us around. His name is Immanuel, and he is very nice.

After the market, we went into Manyatta to walk around. Our friend Calvin showed us around his neighborhood, Kondele Unit. This was the first of our six tours through the six units of the Manyatta A slum. Hopefully the other five will happen as planned, and pictures will go up. (Although all the units tends to look very similar as they are within a 2 sq km area).

This past Tuesday, we attended a meeting of the Manyatta A Neighborhood Association (NA). All of the 42 NGOs were invited. It was a chance to get some dialogue going between the community members and those in the slum attempting to help them. Of the 43 NGOs, only 3 showed up. Very frustrating. But, we got over it. Dust yourself off and such. After the meeting, they had me plant a tree outside the community center in memory of our time here. I had to name it. Naturally, I named it Obama. (I think I will devote a post in the near future to Obama and his influence here. Trust me, it goes beyond the tree). After the tree planting, we had a feast.

Photos of Kibuye and Manyatta