We’re off to Burma (Myanmar)! Pete has got a great job with an NGO out there and I’m already mentioning no names so that this blog doesn’t become contentious before we’ve even begun…
Life is in limbo at the moment. We are camping out at mum’s in Bristol, having packed, shipped and rented the house in London. Pete’s start date (and visa) is suitably vague, hampered only slightly by the recent elections on 7th November and the rumoured freeing of Ang San Sui Kei any day now. We were on standby to fly out on the 18th November as late as yesterday but have now heard it’s likely to be the 25th at the earliest. It’s a bit stressful. Although we have the house to ourselves at the moment as mum and Tony are away so we should be relaxing and enjoying ourselves without any responsibilities, temporarily!
I am VERY excited about Burma. Not a part of the world I know much about, the nearest I’ve been is 4 days in Kuala Lumpur on the way to New Zealand in 1993. But as soon as Pete said it was a possibility I got a good feeling. I mean, Rudyard Kipling and the Road to Mandalay, it sounds soooooooo romantic! We hear it is very safe out there and expats and foreigners are barely affected by the military regime. That said I am doing some research which is harrowing to say the least. And I don’t want to say too much because I have no idea how contentious that may be, or dangerous. More for any Burmese that may work for us that us I suspect. In the meanwhile I will be as circumspect as I can.
We will be living in Yangon, probably in a 3 bed house with garden and a pool in a complex with another 3 houses all with families. I can’t wait to see the famous Schwedagon Paya which is a temple in the centre of Yangon, covered in over 60 tonnes of gold leaf. It takes weeks to get around apparently! And I am fascinated by Buddhism so looking forward to learning more about that and hopefully taking some meditation classes. We will have a maid, as we did in Nairobi, and hopefully someone to take care of Alfie part time. I hope to be able to work to contribute to our coffers; ideally we’ll be debt free by the time we leave in two year’s time. Admin work and English tutoring is widely available so I’m told.
The culture is so alien to me but also fascinating, particularly the mix of religions (incl Catholicism and animism) and the exotic tribes such as the Padaung or ‘giraffe-necked’ women, the ones with all the rings around their neck, remember them? I’m also dying to see the huge varieties of flowers and foliage and try the food; curries here we come. The climate concerns me slightly, only because 40 degrees and high humidity sounds a bit exhausting and I’ve no idea how I’ll cope with 5 months of Monsoon weather…
I’m super excited about being able to get back on my bike, however. Before we left London I bought a bike seat and helmet for Alfie and I envisage both swimming and cycling becoming part of our daily life.
It looks like we’ll be arriving before Christmas though no doubt our Christmas decorations won’t turn up until January, but hopefully it means there will be plenty of social activities among the expats and of course we’ll be able to throw a party or two of our own.
You are all invited!!
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Friday, October 8, 2010
There's a Hole in my Baby!
A couple of weeks ago Daddy was out on the town with Alfie when he decided (Daddy that is, not Alfie) to come off the tube at Kings X forwards, which we all know is breaking the cardinal rule of Tube Travel With Buggy. So the wheels got trapped in the gap which must be minded, and baby, buggy, Daddy and all somersaulted inelegantly on to the concrete platform. Much blood ensued and they were whisked to First Aid by helpful staff. I was informed of this by phone (He's alright, we've had an accident, he's alright etc) which was fine until I heard the dreaded words "we're just waiting for the ambulance" at which I promptly burst into tears. So I hotfooted it over to A&E at UCH (very nice children's A&E there should you ever need it, the toys even have batteries in!) and that's how we spent Thursday evening. Alfie was by then in fine fettle, charming all and sundry and desperate to get behind the curtains where all the exciting stuff was happening. He has a wound above his eye, right in his eyebrow, which will no doubt leave a scar and become family legend in time. However, as they took the plaster off to glue it together I fell apart because there is a BIG HOLE IN MY BEAUTIFUL BABY!!
What with that and falling down the stairs and generally being magnetically attracted to sharp corners and hard surfaces, his face is now like a colour swatch for paint samples of mostly purple, black and yellow. He's been wearing his Irish rugby top pretty much since, as it has the most open neckline least likely to catch the steristrips, so he does in fact look like a mini Rugby player too. And to add insult to injury, he has a cold, is teething and we are embarking on a comprehensive course of vaccinations. He is mummy's brave little soldier, that's what he is.
I have to say it’s healing magnificently, even though I wasn’t that impressed with the glueing at the time. Amazing aren’t they? Although I looked at him over dinner the other day and realised that my perfect boy has a scar for life, which made me unbelievably sad. The first of many no doubt, God Bless him.
What with that and falling down the stairs and generally being magnetically attracted to sharp corners and hard surfaces, his face is now like a colour swatch for paint samples of mostly purple, black and yellow. He's been wearing his Irish rugby top pretty much since, as it has the most open neckline least likely to catch the steristrips, so he does in fact look like a mini Rugby player too. And to add insult to injury, he has a cold, is teething and we are embarking on a comprehensive course of vaccinations. He is mummy's brave little soldier, that's what he is.
I have to say it’s healing magnificently, even though I wasn’t that impressed with the glueing at the time. Amazing aren’t they? Although I looked at him over dinner the other day and realised that my perfect boy has a scar for life, which made me unbelievably sad. The first of many no doubt, God Bless him.
Nairobi Railway Museum
I felt I didn’t do this place justice last time I mentioned it, in passing so to speak. So a quick entry all about the wonderful Nairobi Railway Museum. It’s tucked away behind the station proper and a university, down a dusty road so long you think you’ve gone wrong. But finally you get there, after an askari has taken your car reg down, and find it is housed in the old railway station house which is just a perfect size to wheel a baby around. There are two fantastically enthusiastic young men on the door who took our 200Ksh (about £1.30) and immediately proffered a box of what I thought was some old teeth at first. Yuck! But it turns out they were lion’s claws, and not just any old lions, oh no! But the Man Eating Lions of Tsavo! Oh Yes!
More of them later. The museum celebrates and tells the tale of the history of railways in Kenya, most specifically the Kerala – Mombasa line which was built by them mad Victorians. And it really was an awesome undertaking, stretching from Uganda through Kenya all the way to the coast. It has all sorts of artefacts, including the chairs the Queen and King sat on in the 1950’s and presumably preserved ever since. Plus lots of mechanical toys like ticket machines and lamps and signal boxes which were super ace for Alfie to play with. And some amazing photos of course, my favourite being of the special attachment they built to go on the front of an engine, a sort of bench affair thing, with 3 white hunters in full safari attire sitting on it, commissioned I think for some Prince of Wales to sit on and admire the scenery as they sped (slowly) through the Masai Mara and other game hunting hot spots. What a way to travel!
But by far the most fabulous thing is the goods yard outside, where they have a dozen or so engines plus assorted carriages and Pullmans all in varying states of restoration. And you have free rein to climb in and out and all around these wonderful beasts. Did I mention they are all STEAM engines? A true train spotters paradise. And of course Alfie and I did our best though carrying a baby up and down those steep, narrow ladders wasn’t ideal. (We did stop under a shady tree for a snack though which to him was just as much fun).
And of course there is the carriage from which an English captain was dragged by those Man Eating Lions of Tsavo. During the building of the tracks (in Tsavo, now a national park) lots of the poor Indian workers kept disappearing and rumours of lions were dismissed by the English managers. Until the English managers started to become Simba’s favourite snack too, of course. Much was made of it and rewards promised so this daring Captain set himself up to shoot the lioness(ess) with his rifle. Only he fell asleep and promptly karked it. Anyhow, very unusual for lions to attack men so they must have been hungry. I can’t help thinking of it like tinned food for them; lots of meat inside some metal tins and of course once they got a taste, who can blame them for continuing? I think the whole thing was made into a film or two, starring Clint Eastwood or someone. So quite a story and we saw the claws and the carriage and everything!
And the last thing to mention was the phenomenal singing coming from an evangelical church next door. Really quite haunting and fantastic voices, so much so I was convinced it was a recording at first. It went on all afternoon and was lovely. Much to recommend this place for a visit!
More of them later. The museum celebrates and tells the tale of the history of railways in Kenya, most specifically the Kerala – Mombasa line which was built by them mad Victorians. And it really was an awesome undertaking, stretching from Uganda through Kenya all the way to the coast. It has all sorts of artefacts, including the chairs the Queen and King sat on in the 1950’s and presumably preserved ever since. Plus lots of mechanical toys like ticket machines and lamps and signal boxes which were super ace for Alfie to play with. And some amazing photos of course, my favourite being of the special attachment they built to go on the front of an engine, a sort of bench affair thing, with 3 white hunters in full safari attire sitting on it, commissioned I think for some Prince of Wales to sit on and admire the scenery as they sped (slowly) through the Masai Mara and other game hunting hot spots. What a way to travel!
But by far the most fabulous thing is the goods yard outside, where they have a dozen or so engines plus assorted carriages and Pullmans all in varying states of restoration. And you have free rein to climb in and out and all around these wonderful beasts. Did I mention they are all STEAM engines? A true train spotters paradise. And of course Alfie and I did our best though carrying a baby up and down those steep, narrow ladders wasn’t ideal. (We did stop under a shady tree for a snack though which to him was just as much fun).
And of course there is the carriage from which an English captain was dragged by those Man Eating Lions of Tsavo. During the building of the tracks (in Tsavo, now a national park) lots of the poor Indian workers kept disappearing and rumours of lions were dismissed by the English managers. Until the English managers started to become Simba’s favourite snack too, of course. Much was made of it and rewards promised so this daring Captain set himself up to shoot the lioness(ess) with his rifle. Only he fell asleep and promptly karked it. Anyhow, very unusual for lions to attack men so they must have been hungry. I can’t help thinking of it like tinned food for them; lots of meat inside some metal tins and of course once they got a taste, who can blame them for continuing? I think the whole thing was made into a film or two, starring Clint Eastwood or someone. So quite a story and we saw the claws and the carriage and everything!
And the last thing to mention was the phenomenal singing coming from an evangelical church next door. Really quite haunting and fantastic voices, so much so I was convinced it was a recording at first. It went on all afternoon and was lovely. Much to recommend this place for a visit!
Friday, August 27, 2010
Alfie Update II
I marvel at our boy every day. It seems he has a spurt of development now and again and in the last 4 days he has come along leaps and bounds. He now walks with confidence. He just decided one day last week that he was confident enough to take off without a ‘parachute’ (mummy or daddy’s arms) and spent an entire afternoon walking on his own between Pamela and the askari. It involved lots of encouragement of course and he even joined in the clapping! First time he has clapped himself!
So now he just gets up and walks at every opportunity, except when he’s tired of course, when only carrying him will do. He also copies everything. He picked up a water bottle the other day and swigged it determinedly (with the top on) and now will bring it to me to take the top off so he can have a drink, though he mostly spills it down himself as he clamps the top to his mouth and puffs his cheeks out. He also picks up the phone (or the mouse) and holds it to his ear, kind of backwards, and ‘talks’ into it. Hilarious! The other day I poked at his toy caterpillar with my foot and he spent 10 minutes trying to push it around with his foot.
He LOVES singing and dancing, joining in both with gusto, particularly if it is on TV. He ‘sings’ back to you when you sing him a song and jiggles when he perceives you are dancing (Pamela does a lot of both with him). He is very vocal, saying ‘da’ to mummy’s ‘ta’ and learning to take things in turn when I say ‘mummy do it’ or ‘Alfie do it’. He also gets very cross when things are taken off him or hidden; he KNOWS they should be there. He plays endless games which he invents himself, particularly liking emptying things (mummy’s basket) and putting things back – he took all the nappy bags out and carefully placed them back in, for example. He also loves cars; real as well as toys. He took a toy car from one of the neighbouring boys the other day and pushed it along the ground. I asked Simon if he had showed him to do that but he said no, he had done it all himself as soon as he gave him the car.
He is also very cuddly, clinging tight to mummy when strangers approach or when he is tired. He will also, at a push, give mummy a kiss when asked (opened mouthed of course).
He adores the sling and the car seat, playing for a long time with both, and will ‘read’ his books on his own when he feels like it. He still loves his baths but will stand up to be picked out when he is ready. He also adores toothbrushes though is not so keen on his upper teeth being brushed as the gums are still sore from his 5th and 6th teeth coming through.
Tonight he got terribly upset when Daddy shaved his beard off, he was inconsolable. Otherwise Daddy is a huge source of amusement, they spend hours making faces at each other and he beams whenever Daddy is in the room. They look more and more alike every day. ‘A duplicate’ as someone said.
All in all he is hours of entertainment every day and willing to try most things if mummy and daddy are doing it; in fact he can get quite cross if not allowed to drink out of every bottle and glass that they have. He is fantastically interested in anything mechanical; taps, locks, handles, keys, padlocks, windows, doors, belts, buckles, shoes etc. And still loves watching animals of all kinds.
Apart from a few wakeful nights (teeth, diahorrea) and early mornings he sleeps like a log and is equally happy at home as he is having days out. In fact he is such a delight to take out we have no qualms about taking him anywhere, knowing he enjoys people as well as places so much. He loves rough and tumble of any sort and when we put him on a trampoline recently he screamed with delight. In short, we spend all day marvelling at our boy and laughing along with him. Alfie is Ace!!!
So now he just gets up and walks at every opportunity, except when he’s tired of course, when only carrying him will do. He also copies everything. He picked up a water bottle the other day and swigged it determinedly (with the top on) and now will bring it to me to take the top off so he can have a drink, though he mostly spills it down himself as he clamps the top to his mouth and puffs his cheeks out. He also picks up the phone (or the mouse) and holds it to his ear, kind of backwards, and ‘talks’ into it. Hilarious! The other day I poked at his toy caterpillar with my foot and he spent 10 minutes trying to push it around with his foot.
He LOVES singing and dancing, joining in both with gusto, particularly if it is on TV. He ‘sings’ back to you when you sing him a song and jiggles when he perceives you are dancing (Pamela does a lot of both with him). He is very vocal, saying ‘da’ to mummy’s ‘ta’ and learning to take things in turn when I say ‘mummy do it’ or ‘Alfie do it’. He also gets very cross when things are taken off him or hidden; he KNOWS they should be there. He plays endless games which he invents himself, particularly liking emptying things (mummy’s basket) and putting things back – he took all the nappy bags out and carefully placed them back in, for example. He also loves cars; real as well as toys. He took a toy car from one of the neighbouring boys the other day and pushed it along the ground. I asked Simon if he had showed him to do that but he said no, he had done it all himself as soon as he gave him the car.
He is also very cuddly, clinging tight to mummy when strangers approach or when he is tired. He will also, at a push, give mummy a kiss when asked (opened mouthed of course).
He adores the sling and the car seat, playing for a long time with both, and will ‘read’ his books on his own when he feels like it. He still loves his baths but will stand up to be picked out when he is ready. He also adores toothbrushes though is not so keen on his upper teeth being brushed as the gums are still sore from his 5th and 6th teeth coming through.
Tonight he got terribly upset when Daddy shaved his beard off, he was inconsolable. Otherwise Daddy is a huge source of amusement, they spend hours making faces at each other and he beams whenever Daddy is in the room. They look more and more alike every day. ‘A duplicate’ as someone said.
All in all he is hours of entertainment every day and willing to try most things if mummy and daddy are doing it; in fact he can get quite cross if not allowed to drink out of every bottle and glass that they have. He is fantastically interested in anything mechanical; taps, locks, handles, keys, padlocks, windows, doors, belts, buckles, shoes etc. And still loves watching animals of all kinds.
Apart from a few wakeful nights (teeth, diahorrea) and early mornings he sleeps like a log and is equally happy at home as he is having days out. In fact he is such a delight to take out we have no qualms about taking him anywhere, knowing he enjoys people as well as places so much. He loves rough and tumble of any sort and when we put him on a trampoline recently he screamed with delight. In short, we spend all day marvelling at our boy and laughing along with him. Alfie is Ace!!!
Coming Home
So our flight is booked for Sunday 12th September. It’s a night flight with BA so we’ll be arriving home early Monday, the day before Alfie’s birthday.
I’m looking forward to it but I also have mixed feelings. Now it’s imminent, I’m actually sad our adventure here is coming to a close. I find it hard to imagine being back at no 19 where I can simply walk out the door and stroll around safely. Not have to make sure all the windows and doors are closed so that the monkeys can’t get in (to be fair, we don’t worry about monkeys in Nairobi, only when we are elsewhere but it quickly becomes a habit). Of course making sure everything is triple locked is a way of life here. I do wonder what would happen if there was a fire when there are grilles on all the windows and doors, the main ones of which are latched with a padlock for extra protection. Doesn’t bear thinking about. I shan’t miss the traffic. Or the random public holidays; on Friday they “promulgated the constitution” here and invited all of Africa’s great and good to come and take part. So of course they closed all the main roads in the city from Wednesday onwards for rehearsals. Eh? I mean can you imagine closing Trafalgar Square for 3 days with only a few hours notice? Random, as is so much else here in Kenya.
I will definitely miss Pamela as will Alfie, heaps and heaps. How to explain to a one year old when people simply appear and disappear out of his life? And the fact that we can eat out and eat well as often as we like. (Not sure I mentioned this but fillet steak is the cheapest cut here and even the most unassuming cafes make delicious bread and fantastic salads.)
I’m slightly dreading being back and having to keep house and look after Alfie without help. It does make such a difference being able to sit down and write this at leisure, for example. Though I feel I would have achieved a lot more if the bloody internet connection wasn’t so appalling. That drives me mad, as does the traffic. But the people are lovely, friendly, helpful and interested. And so fabulous with Alfie; he beams with delight when he sees the askari for example, who spends patient hours helping him to walk around the car park and even, oh treats of treats, lets him play with the padlocks and bolts on the gate now and again. (Another obsession of Alfie’s at the moment).
I think what I love about Kenya is the obvious mix of ‘primitive’ and ‘civilisation’. It’s everywhere you look and most poignantly displayed on the roads. Miles of pockmarked tarmac with gleaming 4x4’s and heaps of people patiently walking to work alongside it. Black tarmac, red, red soil and silver bright Pajero’s. Speeding muzungu (white person) or mehindi (Indians) and poor, disabled, blind, begging blacks. Or the stereotypical Kenyan out for a quick buck, selling anything from the paper to their grandmother. All available and visible on the streets every day, every hour.
And there is such an air of possibility here. I guess a little like a newly minted nation, which in some ways Kenya is. That indefinable something that gives you confidence that you can achieve what you want, because anything is possible. And they do say; if you can’t buy it you can have it made. Which is also true.
And I do feel that 2 months is a funny time to be away. Too long for an extended holiday yet not long enough to invest in people, places and things. Kind of in limbo. But it’s given me a good insight into what life could be like living abroad and I must say I like it. I don’t think it would suit everyone but I’m a ‘joiner’; happy to join groups doing anything from childcare to adult learning, dancing to gossip and determined to make myself useful. My voluntary work has opened my eyes to all sorts of insights for example, more of which in another blog entry.
So every day I find something to miss, and something to be glad to be rid of! I can’t wait to come home and tell you all about it in person and only hope I can remember it all. Best of all, Alfie seems to have had a ball and has met such a variety of people and had such adventures; we’ve really come together as a family and he is developing at a rapid pace. Of course this would have happened at home as well, but it does feel special being able to introduce him to animals that, for example, we sing about and play with and watch on TV every day. (Has anyone else noticed how many elephants and giraffe and lions are part of children’s rhymes and stories?)
So our adventure is coming to an end for now. But at least we know we can do it and despite an initial settling in period (inevitably) the opportunity to live in another country is fantastically exciting and full of excitement and fun. What’s not to like?
I’m looking forward to it but I also have mixed feelings. Now it’s imminent, I’m actually sad our adventure here is coming to a close. I find it hard to imagine being back at no 19 where I can simply walk out the door and stroll around safely. Not have to make sure all the windows and doors are closed so that the monkeys can’t get in (to be fair, we don’t worry about monkeys in Nairobi, only when we are elsewhere but it quickly becomes a habit). Of course making sure everything is triple locked is a way of life here. I do wonder what would happen if there was a fire when there are grilles on all the windows and doors, the main ones of which are latched with a padlock for extra protection. Doesn’t bear thinking about. I shan’t miss the traffic. Or the random public holidays; on Friday they “promulgated the constitution” here and invited all of Africa’s great and good to come and take part. So of course they closed all the main roads in the city from Wednesday onwards for rehearsals. Eh? I mean can you imagine closing Trafalgar Square for 3 days with only a few hours notice? Random, as is so much else here in Kenya.
I will definitely miss Pamela as will Alfie, heaps and heaps. How to explain to a one year old when people simply appear and disappear out of his life? And the fact that we can eat out and eat well as often as we like. (Not sure I mentioned this but fillet steak is the cheapest cut here and even the most unassuming cafes make delicious bread and fantastic salads.)
I’m slightly dreading being back and having to keep house and look after Alfie without help. It does make such a difference being able to sit down and write this at leisure, for example. Though I feel I would have achieved a lot more if the bloody internet connection wasn’t so appalling. That drives me mad, as does the traffic. But the people are lovely, friendly, helpful and interested. And so fabulous with Alfie; he beams with delight when he sees the askari for example, who spends patient hours helping him to walk around the car park and even, oh treats of treats, lets him play with the padlocks and bolts on the gate now and again. (Another obsession of Alfie’s at the moment).
I think what I love about Kenya is the obvious mix of ‘primitive’ and ‘civilisation’. It’s everywhere you look and most poignantly displayed on the roads. Miles of pockmarked tarmac with gleaming 4x4’s and heaps of people patiently walking to work alongside it. Black tarmac, red, red soil and silver bright Pajero’s. Speeding muzungu (white person) or mehindi (Indians) and poor, disabled, blind, begging blacks. Or the stereotypical Kenyan out for a quick buck, selling anything from the paper to their grandmother. All available and visible on the streets every day, every hour.
And there is such an air of possibility here. I guess a little like a newly minted nation, which in some ways Kenya is. That indefinable something that gives you confidence that you can achieve what you want, because anything is possible. And they do say; if you can’t buy it you can have it made. Which is also true.
And I do feel that 2 months is a funny time to be away. Too long for an extended holiday yet not long enough to invest in people, places and things. Kind of in limbo. But it’s given me a good insight into what life could be like living abroad and I must say I like it. I don’t think it would suit everyone but I’m a ‘joiner’; happy to join groups doing anything from childcare to adult learning, dancing to gossip and determined to make myself useful. My voluntary work has opened my eyes to all sorts of insights for example, more of which in another blog entry.
So every day I find something to miss, and something to be glad to be rid of! I can’t wait to come home and tell you all about it in person and only hope I can remember it all. Best of all, Alfie seems to have had a ball and has met such a variety of people and had such adventures; we’ve really come together as a family and he is developing at a rapid pace. Of course this would have happened at home as well, but it does feel special being able to introduce him to animals that, for example, we sing about and play with and watch on TV every day. (Has anyone else noticed how many elephants and giraffe and lions are part of children’s rhymes and stories?)
So our adventure is coming to an end for now. But at least we know we can do it and despite an initial settling in period (inevitably) the opportunity to live in another country is fantastically exciting and full of excitement and fun. What’s not to like?
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
A couple of weekends ago we spent the night at Kitingela Glass and what a place! Back in the 60’s, Nani and her husband Eric came from Germany to start an artists commune about an hour outside Nairobi and wonderful and mad it is too. It has grown organically over the years so that the accommodation blends with the countryside – it sits on the edge of a beautiful gorge on the edge of Nairobi National Park – and workshops, hobbit-like dwellings, stables, shops and even a hot furnace have sprung up as if from the ground itself. And everywhere, but everywhere is inlaid with the most beautiful broken tiles and mosaics, including the dragon that sails majestically across the infinity pool. Being glass people, they are not restricted like us mortals to square windows oh no. The guesthouse, much like anywhere else, is a mushroom of concrete very reminiscent of the Barbapappa house, if you recall that children’s programme? With stained glass windows and inlaid floors, lovely glass shades and glass bead curtains; they make everything from vases, mobiles, lamps and sculptures to mosaics, mirrors, furniture and beads. The khazi sits in a bubble looking out over the gorge with a lovely round window so you could sit there and look out all day if you wanted. In fact we took our G&T’s on the (inlaid) terrace, marvelling at the tree hyraxes which surrounded us. They’re like massive guinea pig/rats that live in trees and are normally hard to see as they are very shy. They also make most incredible, horrible noise at night, even worse than our urban foxes. We also saw some giraffe across the way and a family of baboons crossing the gorge. Plus a majestic male ostrich which turned out to be part of the menagerie.
And what a menagerie! Nani has geese, duck, rabbit and many, many dogs wandering around freely. Then there’s a donkey, the aforementioned ostrich and a few black pigs. Plus the most amazing aviary. I mean, it really was astonishing, hundreds upon hundreds of birds living in these carved iron cages/sculptures above the main living quarters. We had a fantastic lunch with the family and all those birds, including parrots, lovebirds, bee-eaters, starlings and a very rare and very sharp Egyptian Vulture. I kept well away from his beak I can tell you. But most animals that wandered, fluttered or flew up got something from the table. Lovely and mad.
Naturally we spent the morning wending our way through the workshops and ‘factory’, watching artisans at work making and mending and creating. Nani’s son Anselm built a furnace and is the author of the ‘hot glass’ range which includes most domestic items such as glassware, jugs and bowls, which you may have seen a very small sample of at our house and which can be seen in every single restaurant in Kenya I think. It’s all 100% recycled, including the engine oil which fires the furnace (which never goes out). And all, as I say, growing out of the side of this gorge, filled with hibiscus and bougainvillea, huddling under trees and joined up with a snaking path of inlaid bits of broken glass. Very romantic and arty and surreal. Alfie loved it!
http://www.kitengela-glass.com/
Eventually we had to say our goodbyes and made our way on to the road marked ‘very bad’ on the map, thinking that without rain it couldn’t be that bad. And it wasn’t (sorry to spoil the story) but it did take us a pretty while to reach the Acacia Lodge on the Athi River where we were spending Saturday night. It’s set in a small private game reserve with no natural predators (no lions and such) so plenty of herd beasts of all varieties and especially birds. Alfie and I took our sundowners in the garden and were keenly followed by a flock of splendid starlings (which are sooooo splendid, especially their bright blue backs) who seemed rather partial to bits of mini Baby Bel cheese.
We had an awesome dinner there, which frankly didn’t augur well at first as I thought it was a bit of a boring Sunday dinner coming up (the manager is an English lady). But the roast pork and crackling was the best I have ever tasted and the roast beef so sublime I am still thinking about it. We found out later that the butcher marinates it in pawpaw to get it so tender. Yum! And the evening ended sitting around a camp fire discussing what we might see the next day. Which were the usual suspects; gazelles, lots of giraffe, some zebra and wildebeest. With the lack of predators we were able to get out of the car and wander around, though the place is infested with a particular type of tick which looked like a spider and was a bit unpleasant; miraculously Alfie managed to get away without a single bite. And he LOVES going in the sling, even though he’s just about grown out of it, because being up as high as Daddy and going on adventures such as rope bridges, is clearly oodles of fun.
So that was our lovely weekend away. Our next adventure is the Mara for four days in our last week, at the Kechwa Tembo lodge. If we’re really lucky we may see the stragglers from the great migration though July and August are optimal for this in the Mara. It doesn’t look like we’ll make Mombasa this time which is such a shame as I’m told it’s an absolute must. Ah well, we’ll just have to come back!
And what a menagerie! Nani has geese, duck, rabbit and many, many dogs wandering around freely. Then there’s a donkey, the aforementioned ostrich and a few black pigs. Plus the most amazing aviary. I mean, it really was astonishing, hundreds upon hundreds of birds living in these carved iron cages/sculptures above the main living quarters. We had a fantastic lunch with the family and all those birds, including parrots, lovebirds, bee-eaters, starlings and a very rare and very sharp Egyptian Vulture. I kept well away from his beak I can tell you. But most animals that wandered, fluttered or flew up got something from the table. Lovely and mad.
Naturally we spent the morning wending our way through the workshops and ‘factory’, watching artisans at work making and mending and creating. Nani’s son Anselm built a furnace and is the author of the ‘hot glass’ range which includes most domestic items such as glassware, jugs and bowls, which you may have seen a very small sample of at our house and which can be seen in every single restaurant in Kenya I think. It’s all 100% recycled, including the engine oil which fires the furnace (which never goes out). And all, as I say, growing out of the side of this gorge, filled with hibiscus and bougainvillea, huddling under trees and joined up with a snaking path of inlaid bits of broken glass. Very romantic and arty and surreal. Alfie loved it!
http://www.kitengela-glass.com/
Eventually we had to say our goodbyes and made our way on to the road marked ‘very bad’ on the map, thinking that without rain it couldn’t be that bad. And it wasn’t (sorry to spoil the story) but it did take us a pretty while to reach the Acacia Lodge on the Athi River where we were spending Saturday night. It’s set in a small private game reserve with no natural predators (no lions and such) so plenty of herd beasts of all varieties and especially birds. Alfie and I took our sundowners in the garden and were keenly followed by a flock of splendid starlings (which are sooooo splendid, especially their bright blue backs) who seemed rather partial to bits of mini Baby Bel cheese.
We had an awesome dinner there, which frankly didn’t augur well at first as I thought it was a bit of a boring Sunday dinner coming up (the manager is an English lady). But the roast pork and crackling was the best I have ever tasted and the roast beef so sublime I am still thinking about it. We found out later that the butcher marinates it in pawpaw to get it so tender. Yum! And the evening ended sitting around a camp fire discussing what we might see the next day. Which were the usual suspects; gazelles, lots of giraffe, some zebra and wildebeest. With the lack of predators we were able to get out of the car and wander around, though the place is infested with a particular type of tick which looked like a spider and was a bit unpleasant; miraculously Alfie managed to get away without a single bite. And he LOVES going in the sling, even though he’s just about grown out of it, because being up as high as Daddy and going on adventures such as rope bridges, is clearly oodles of fun.
So that was our lovely weekend away. Our next adventure is the Mara for four days in our last week, at the Kechwa Tembo lodge. If we’re really lucky we may see the stragglers from the great migration though July and August are optimal for this in the Mara. It doesn’t look like we’ll make Mombasa this time which is such a shame as I’m told it’s an absolute must. Ah well, we’ll just have to come back!
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Me and the Catholics
So yesterday I found myself doing something I have only done a very few times in my life, and not just once either but twice in one day! What was it? Saying grace before a meal, in this case both lunch and dinner.
Religion is very important in Kenya and there are many faiths and denominations vying for business, so to speak. On the plus side it’s a great way to organise people and gives them a sense of belonging and community. It also provides some fantastic music and some of the singing I have heard on my travels is beautiful. On the downside there is all the usual stuff; abuse of power, children, vulnerable people and corruption. Bit like a government, eh?
Anyway anyway, the voluntary work I am doing is supported by the Catholic Church and even if it wasn’t I dare say the children would be taken to church on a Sunday anyway. So housemother asked one of them to say grace before lunch yesterday and I duly mumbled an ‘Amen’ along with the kids. I mean, I’m not religious per se, but I AM grateful for the food provided so at least that bit is true. Then in the evening we had invited our friend Jo to see the elephants being put to bed and as she was staying with her friend Doug, he invited us to dinner afterwards, at his guesthouse. At his Catholic Guesthouse. Where priests passing through Nairobi can come and get a bed and a meal. Not fancy but not shabby neither, it’s on the same road as the Vatican Embassy so fairly private. And they also have some sort of educational institution and not one but two chapels (greedy!). Anyway anyway, there were 5 or 6 old men (Catholic priests) who were in for dinner, all American and all delighted to meet Alfie of course. The meal was great and very tasty despite its boarding school appearance, and alcohol was served, though sparingly. The boarding school appearance was helped by the meal whizzing along, to such an extent I was still helping myself to salad while the old gent next to me was tucking into his chocolate cake. Ah well, they have a lot of reading and praying to do before bed, don’t they?
So that was lovely and my second grace of the day; in fact they did one after the meal too but I was busy with Alfie on the other side of the room by that time (and I’m fairly sure everyone had finished by then…) so I didn’t hear what they said that time either.
And I got to thinking. It strikes me that there is something slightly out of kilter with all these religious organisations out here, ‘doing good’ for the people. Many and varied as they are (lots of Americans) and not forgetting the great missionary traditions of the African continent, of course they do do a lot of good and help a lot of very needy people. But isn’t the Catholic Church, for example, one of the richest organisations in the world? I mean, couldn’t they just sell even a quarter of the Vatican treasures and REALLY make a difference, once and for all? Isn’t it a bit odd that these rich and prosperous organisations are happy to pepper the land with their do-gooding flock but are not so quick to put their hands in their pockets? Their considerably well-lined and, in many cases, well-pilfered-in-the-first-place pockets.
I don’t know. Just a thought.
Religion is very important in Kenya and there are many faiths and denominations vying for business, so to speak. On the plus side it’s a great way to organise people and gives them a sense of belonging and community. It also provides some fantastic music and some of the singing I have heard on my travels is beautiful. On the downside there is all the usual stuff; abuse of power, children, vulnerable people and corruption. Bit like a government, eh?
Anyway anyway, the voluntary work I am doing is supported by the Catholic Church and even if it wasn’t I dare say the children would be taken to church on a Sunday anyway. So housemother asked one of them to say grace before lunch yesterday and I duly mumbled an ‘Amen’ along with the kids. I mean, I’m not religious per se, but I AM grateful for the food provided so at least that bit is true. Then in the evening we had invited our friend Jo to see the elephants being put to bed and as she was staying with her friend Doug, he invited us to dinner afterwards, at his guesthouse. At his Catholic Guesthouse. Where priests passing through Nairobi can come and get a bed and a meal. Not fancy but not shabby neither, it’s on the same road as the Vatican Embassy so fairly private. And they also have some sort of educational institution and not one but two chapels (greedy!). Anyway anyway, there were 5 or 6 old men (Catholic priests) who were in for dinner, all American and all delighted to meet Alfie of course. The meal was great and very tasty despite its boarding school appearance, and alcohol was served, though sparingly. The boarding school appearance was helped by the meal whizzing along, to such an extent I was still helping myself to salad while the old gent next to me was tucking into his chocolate cake. Ah well, they have a lot of reading and praying to do before bed, don’t they?
So that was lovely and my second grace of the day; in fact they did one after the meal too but I was busy with Alfie on the other side of the room by that time (and I’m fairly sure everyone had finished by then…) so I didn’t hear what they said that time either.
And I got to thinking. It strikes me that there is something slightly out of kilter with all these religious organisations out here, ‘doing good’ for the people. Many and varied as they are (lots of Americans) and not forgetting the great missionary traditions of the African continent, of course they do do a lot of good and help a lot of very needy people. But isn’t the Catholic Church, for example, one of the richest organisations in the world? I mean, couldn’t they just sell even a quarter of the Vatican treasures and REALLY make a difference, once and for all? Isn’t it a bit odd that these rich and prosperous organisations are happy to pepper the land with their do-gooding flock but are not so quick to put their hands in their pockets? Their considerably well-lined and, in many cases, well-pilfered-in-the-first-place pockets.
I don’t know. Just a thought.
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