A Safari and An Outreach

Greetings all,

Our first full day in Nakuru was largely occupied by a big trip to Lake Nakuru National Park just outside of town. We awoke early to be ready when our hired van/driver arrived, and by 8 am the whole group of us (the host family - George, Jane, Charles, Sylvia, and Caro - plus me and dad and Blair) had climbed aboard and we were off to the park. We ran into trouble 5 miles from the house when the van ran out of gas (I'm not certain why the driver didn't fill up prior to coming out to get us), but after half an hour of waiting by the roadside for him to hitch into town and back, we were once again on our way. Although the park was fairly expensive ($40 US for foreigners, $3 for residents), we soon realized that it was going to be worth every cent.

The park is a large parcel of land starting just 3 miles from downtown Nakuru. It contains a large and shallow lake, some dense forest, and a stretch of semi-arid savanna, and the whole thing is ringed by low hills, many of which have sharp cliffs facing inward towards the lake. It is a fantastically beautiful place. The lake itself is home to an enormous flock of flamingos, who stand (monopodically) in large clumps near the shore, where they feed on a very specific species of algae (which in turn feeds only on flamingo waste.) From a distance they give the lake the appearance of having being ringed entirely in pink. It is also home too several huge flocks of storks and pelicans, all of whom are alarmingly loud and large (many stand 2-3 feet tall). The water also draws large numbers of mammals, and near its edges we saw giraffe, gazelles, rhino, zebra, water buffalo (which are enormous), and several other large animals whose names I do not know. We also saw a hyena eating a flamingo, an angry troupe of baboons (as well as plenty of smaller monkeys), a tiny hoofed animal called a dik-dik, very large and bizarre rodents called hyraxes who were neither curious nor afraid of our presence, and more colorful lizards, birds, and insects than I could possibly describe. There were no Lions, Elephants, Warthogs, or Leopards, but every other species we had hoped to see were present in large numbers. It was an animal-watching dream.

We also came across a gorgeous waterfall cascading down from beautiful (and tremendously climbable - I'll be back one day) sandstone cliffs. There was a forest of cacti towering 40-60 feet over our heads, a low marsh that is home to several hippopotamuses (whom we did not see), and some very arid near-deserts. The diversity in such a relatively small space was astounding. George and Jane had been in the park many years before, and Sylvia vaguely recalled visiting with a class when she was very small, but otherwise none of us had been before, and we were all fantastically impressed.

We returned home that night just before dark, my dad was invited to a village elders meeting with George, and Blair and I helped Jane and Sylvia prepare dinner. It was a relaxing way to end an enjoyable day, and I think everyone felt quite satisfied. We stayed up very late drinking Chai and talking, and I think we all learned a lot. I'm hopeful that my dad (who arrived home safely this morning) will have time to write a little more about it in the days to come.

The next morning Blair, dad, and I went back into the city to accompany REPACTED on a theatrical outreach in a nearby slum. They had arranged this particular one to coincide with our visit so that Blair and my dad could see the work they do. We arrived at the site around 10 am, and more or less immediately set to work with mobilizing an audience. We sang our usual songs, danced and made noise, and generally called attention to ourselves. Blair and dad were both quite amused at our antics, especially when they were each in turn pulled into the circle by members of the group, becoming Incorporated into the commotion. After a time a skit was initiated, and we fell to the side to watch. At this point the multitude of tiny children descended upon the three wazungu, overwhelming my dad's ability to take a picture of each, and shouting out "mzungu!" and "howareyou!" with glee. We were also amused to find them shouting "Kibaki Tena" (Kibaki again), a campaign slogan currently employed by the incumbent president in his bid for reelection. His campaign manager surely deserves a bonus for thoroughly saturating the nation with his message, if even three year old slum dwellers are shouting his praise.

Anyway, the skit ended well, with large amounts of audience participation (thanks to the great work of a fill-in facilitator as our usual one was out of town) and after a few small group discussions took place, we departed again. Both of my guests were thoroughly impressed, and made their thoughts known at the post-performance discussion back at the theater. The group appreciated their attendance and kind words, and after lunch we once again went our own way, this time to buy tourist goodies at the local curio market, get dinner, and return home.

The next morning we visited the orphanage where Carrington and Bev both work (although Bev had just returned to the states the night before), and got a great tour from Carrington himself. I was thrilled to see how much progress had been made on a few construction projects in the weeks since I had visited. The place is really coming together beautifully - no doubt a testament to the work my friends and theirs had done. Shortly thereafter we returned to Nairobi via matatu, and in the evening I saw dad off at the airport. I've been in Nairobi (thanks to the hospitality of Micah and Hodari) taking care of a little business with the Red Ribbon pins, and tomorrow I'm heading back to Nakuru for World AIDS Day on the 1st. Then I'm off to Eldoret to visit Professor Miriam Semanda and the University of Eastern Africa - Baraton campus there. I'll keep you posted on how that goes.

I hope you all find a way to acknowledge World AIDS Day wherever you may be, and I wish you all the best, always.

Yours,
Chris