Nairobi, finally in Kenya!

Date: Wednesday June 3

After very long and tiring days of travelling, and another 8 hour flight, Jen and I finally landed in the capital of Kenya at 6:30 am. Our friend and peer Soraiya kindly hosted us for the day and we couldn't have asked for a better host! We were greeted by a smiling Kenyan named Sammy who would be our tour guide and driver for the day. As we drove from the airport into the center of Nairobi down "The Great North Road" (aka Mombasa road) my eyes were constantly moving and looking at everything...as I expected, it is truly a different world.


 

 As the capital of Kenya, Nairobi is a crowded busy city with people always on the move. Many people walk miles along a muddy dirt path at the side of the road every day to get to work. The streets are packed with people and cars with no street signs, lines, or speed limits. I really enjoyed just looking out the window from the car observing absolutely everything as we drove all over the city. It is difficult to describe everything that I saw on this day but it was incredible.

 

Our day consisted of all the touristy things in Nairobi...the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (elephant and rhino orphanage), the Giraffe Center, and eating lunch at Carnivore Restaurant. Unfortunately we did not have time to visit any of the famous museums but hopefully we can at the end of our trip! :)

Kenya is a BEAUTIFUL place with gorgeous scenery and we were lucky enough to have gorgeous hot sunny weather for the second day in a row...YAY!

 

Quote of the day: You can never really understand what it is really like until you live it

Most memorable moments:

1. Kissing Laura the Giraffe
2. Touching a very rare Black Rhino
3. Watching baby elephants play in the muddy water
4. Eating crocodile and ostrich at Carnivore Restaurant...SO YUMMY!

Highlights from the car drive with Sammy from the airport:

5. EVERYTHING is in English...Why? English is used as the official language in Kenya after different tribes with different languages merged and English helped them "come together"
6. Public transportation, mainly  Matatus (large taxi-like vans), is used very commonly by Kenyans going to and from work
7. About 3/4 of Africa is Christian
8. They are very HUGE fans of Obama
9. Pretty much EVERY car is made by Toyota since they are easier and cheaper to maintain
10. Traffic congestion is EXACTLY the same as in Toronto...rush hour sucks!
11. They have frequent power outages since the power supplier has a monopoly

Fun Facts:

12. Giraffe's are SOOOOOOOOOOO strong→ they use their legs to defend themselves from Lions by kicking
13. How has the recession affected Kenya? The same as the rest of the world...I heard on the radio that this is their worst recession in 17 years
14. This is the 47th year since Kenya's independence

Tomorrow morning we fly (again!) to Kisumu, the 3rd largest city in Kenya, where we will meet the project leader Roy Omulo and drive to our place called home for the next 3 months...Oyugis! :) I CAN'T WAIT!

 

 

 

 

 

The adventure begins...

After 2 weeks of orientation and training at Western, more shots than I can count, and tearful goodbyes I have finally left Toronto to embark on my 3 month journey with Western Heads East to Kenya. I will be documenting my personal experiences as well as my progress with the internship project including: initial goals, accomplishments, and greatest learning experiences. 

I have never been more excited about anything else in my life. I hope that I can make a difference this summer and help move the project forward to contribute to creating a sustainable business for the benefit of the people living in Oyugis.

The Project: Probiotic Yogurt for Health and Nutrition in East Africa: Women Helping Women

This project is supported by The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Western Heads East is a program at The University of Western Ontario, their mission is: To engage staff, students, faculty and the broader community in teaching, research and service targeting the African HIV/AIDS crisis. This will raise awareness and funds to support the exchange of learning experiences, while making a sustainable difference to communities in Africa.

The Team: My friend and peer, Jen Eldridge (jenheadseast.blogspot.com), will be joining me for the 3 months and I can't wait to become even closer friends with her!... after all we will be spending every second together for 86 days.

Why is the project necessary?

• Oyugis-Rachuonyo district has a 72% poverty level which contributes to the spread of HIV
• estimated that over 50% of People living with AIDS (PLWAs) and more than 45% of infected children suffer from diarrhoeal disease
• 30% of the women suffer from bacterial vaginosis

My Internship Objectives:

• Assist in the process to begin production of the probiotic yogurt for consumption and sale of surplus in their district in Kenya
• assess cultural and intercultural communication issues around business decisions among the program stakeholders, especially the women
• explore potential sources of grants to subsidize probiotic yogurt for PLWAs 
• identify most appropriate yogurt packaging and distribution mechanism to ensure efficiency and effectiveness
• develop and implement a poster information campaign to raise the understanding of the general health benefits pertaining to the program and to eliminate any misconceptions that may be associated with the yogurt

Problem Definition: The project will address the following problems...

• Malnutrition
• Diarrhoeal diseases: over 50% of PLWAs and more than 45% of infected children suffer from this disease
• Baterial Vaginosis: this condition doubles the risk of women acquiring HIV
• Low income of rural women: empowering the rural women!

Potential challenges:

• Many challenges faced by female interns and female Yogurt Mamas (volunteers who produce, distribute, and sell the yogurt)
• Process is very important, things are VERY SLOW in Kenya
• Communication 
• People have resistance to change
• Sustainability is key
• Jen and I are the very first interns in the Oyugis area, which is the poorest region in Kenya
• Cultural safety

The above is the initial information that I have received from Western Heads East. I am certain that things will change and I will update information this information as often as I can.

After a long 8 hour flight Jen and I arrived in London, England and toured the city by foot for a couple hours before our next flight to Nairobi. It was gorgeous weather in an amazing city and it was the absolute perfect way to start our journey! :)

I miss friends and family already but I am so excited to start the project and live for 3 months in a completely different world!