And occasionally I go to class...

          Almost six weeks into the program I felt that it is time to reassure everybody that I do indeed take classes and all of the money that I spent upon coming here is not going to safaris and hikes (unfortunately).

            I take two courses at USIU, one of East Africa’s most well known universities, on Mondays and Wednesdays for 1 hour and 40 minutes each.  The classes that I take are Negotiation and Mediation and Simulation Excersise- courses that will hopefully help me to learn more about diplomacy and cultural nuances.  I say hopefully because it has only been within the past week that my professor has shown up earlier than twenty to thirty minutes late and turned on a powerpoint presentation let alone effectively convey the information.  It was only today that I actually received a course outline (and because I have the same professor for both classes the course outline is pretty much the exact same).  My professor is a former ambassador who loves regaling us with stories of the work that he did, regretting that he never went to UC Berkeley for his Masters, and insisiting that we bow when we leave the room so as not to create an international incident.  His two most memorable quotes thus far have been “diplomacy is all about image’ and “war is an extension of diplomacy”- two sentiments that I disagree with very strongly.  In my first class, out of sixty students about eight of them are wazungu which at times can be reassuring but in my second class I am the only mzungu and he delights in telling me to “Tell those natives!” whenever the subject of California or English proverbs arises.  I must admit that the majority of his classes are using the time to finish my Swahili homework and getting to know my classmates, most of whom are friendly and interesting to talk to.  There have been some anti- American sentiments which can be difficult to handle when it is you versus 59 East Africans but at the very least I will come back an ardent Patriot and eloquent debator.

            My other two classes are of a completely different caliber and I leave each class feeling like I have compensated for my lack of learning from my USIU classes.  I take Swahili and Politics in Culture through a program overseen by American University and it is much more efficient, organized, and well, American.  I take Intermediate Swahili with my three other apartmentmates and every day we somehow manage to give our professor a saying in Swahili, discuss our week and our future plans in Swahili as well as cram an incredible amount of grammar into our head all while trying to deal with the very depressing Swahili examples.  Whereas in America we might have “the happy boy ate cake” as an example, my book says “the refugees died of hunger” or “the boy was beaten with sticks.”  They are very different from American fairytales and childhood stories and a constant source of shock to us.  My other class is one that I take with the other nine students in my program and we spend six hours a week discussing urban planning, development, informal settlements, and politics.  The centerpiece of this class is a final research paper (due in two weeks!!) that we compile using secondary sources as well as local newspapers and interviews.  Topics range from prostitution to sanitation to perceptions on health.  I am doing my paper on the lack of a common ethos from the Kenyan government that necessitates the dependency that many Kenyans have to their tribal affiliations.  Between these two classes, I am already starting to mix my English with Swahili and I spend way too much time looking at identity and its implications on ethno political conflicts. 

            Between kissing giraffes, getting hugged by elephants, and watching cheetahs hunt, I do indeed go to class.  At times I learn more from the people around me than from the actual lecturer but every day is a learning experience and I am looking forward to seeing what else I have learned in the next ten weeks.

Safari Time!

      I have always been more of a nature-y girl rather than a city girl preferring the beach or climbing a tree to the hustle and bustle of the city so living in Naoribi has been a bit daunting.  Every weekend we have managed thus far to get out of Nairobi if for just a day to experience a different side of Africa- the sweeping planes, blazing sun, and exotic animals.  I know that this is not necessarily “the real Africa” but it is definitely the Africa that novels and movies attempt to portray more often than not.  The first weekend we arrived we were in Naivasha, a horiticulture community with zebras and monkeys, the second weekend we went to the Giraffe Center in Karen with lush trees, a nature walk, and kissing giraffes, and the third weekend we went on a Safari Walk in Nairobi National Park and spent an hour with baby, orphaned elephants.  This past weekend, however, we had the most stereotypyical African adventures- we went on a three day safari in Masa Mara.  For someone getting frustrated with the traffic and craziness of the matatus, the dirt and grime of a busy city, and the crowds of people constantly moving through Nairobi, it was a breath of fresh air.

            Going on a safari, I really did not know what to expect- the only thing that I could think of was whether or not it would be similar to the Lion King and crazily enough-it kind of was.  As soon as we entered the park we saw gazelles and zebras grazing next to each other with birds flying overhead- all it needed was a monkey holding up a baby lion on a giant rock and it would have been perfect.  On our first trip out we saw giraffes, a lone elephant, meerkats, the famous dik-diks, and warthogs.  After a few hours in the Mara we finally went back to our camp, and became acquainted to our hybrid tent/cabin (which had amazing hot water).  After a satisfying meal we met the other wazungu at the camp- two ardorable, elderly Dutch men who funnily enough recongnized me from Rhapta Road and a guy from Chicago.  It was peaceful chilling there- me with my coke and everyone else with their Tuskers listening to the monkeys, talking, and watching the glow of the fire of the Maasai whose job it was to guard us from the lions.

            After getting up insanely early we went back into the park to see the sunrise over the reserve.  One of our first major finds was three male lions- two of whom eventually picked a fight with the littler one.  Driving farther and farther into the Mara we passed by a tree that held the remains of a leopard’s kill and stumbled upon a rhino entering into the brush (there are only five in the entire reserve).  On top of these discoveries, we saw more antelope, gazelle, warthogs, birds, and monkeys.  After a very late breakfast and a much needed bathroom break we showered,  napped, and then spent the early afternoon laying in the sun reading our respective books about development and peace and conflict.  Early that evening we went back to Masa Mara and came upon a female lioness basking in the sun and a family of elephants who did their best to hide behind a clump of trees.

            The mot striking memory of that day was when we found ourselves in the presence of a cheetah teaching her two cubs how to hunt.  The drivers have a radio that they use to signal to other vans when they saw something of significance and there were dozens of vans of wazungu circled around this poor cheetah waiting for it to make the big kill.  There was something about watching and eventually disturbing the cheetah’s hunt that made me reflect on the role of a tourist in such a country.  Heretofore I had done my best to remain as inconspicuous as my blond hair and pale skin makes possible but in this instance, vans were inching upon the mother trying to hunt and coming between her and her prey.  I felt incredibly superfluous and very much like an intrusive outsider.  In the end, the cheetah did not make her kill that night but when we returned the next morning we did see her bring down a gazelle and feed it to her cubs.  In the end it was  an experience that was humbling and awe inspiring but I am still not sure if it was worth the cost.

            All in all, the safari was an amazing way to celebrate my first month in Kenya.  I became incredibly tan, saw animals that I have only seen in zoos or on television, and was lucky enough to spend time getting to know the amazing people in my program.  As stereotypically toursity as it was- it will be an experience that I remember for the rest of my life.