Journey to Kimilili

Dear friends,

We made it! We arrived in Kimilili! And it is much better than expected! We even have a house with running water, electricity and two beds! Unfortunately, the toilet is a latrine in the backyard and the toilet scarf is needed more than ever (the smell is even worse than in Nairobi). But Alex still has cigarettes left and the bottle of perfume is still full, so we are confidently). But let us start at the beginning:

The journey to Kimilili has been postponed by a day as we decided to pick the private car and we therefore had to wait for the driver to come back from Kimilili to Nairobi. We used the additional day to build two wardrobes for the family as well as an extensive shopping tour for the school in Kimilili (bought school books, paper, learning material and a lot of other stuff that we thought might be useful for a school that has nothing).

The next day we got up at 4 o’clock in the morning. We agreed to leave at 4.30 and nearly made it on time (we left at 6). We started a bet: if we arrive before 6pm, Agnes wins, after 6pm Alex wins. Prize is a mango (worth 20 Eurocent). 

We started the journey. The car makes funny noises every time the driver breaks. “Probably normal here” is what we think… About two hours into the journey we have a quick breakfast break and when we went back to the car, one of the tires has no air left. “This is quick”, the driver tells us. Four hours of waiting later we restart the journey. The waiting time was mainly spent with dreaming of a shower as we haven’t had one for a few days now. Meanwhile, not only the tire has been refilled with air, but the break blocks have been changed. “The status they were in, driving wasn’t safe anymore” is the information we get from the mechanist.

We continue our journey and the next 5 hours pass with uneventful driving. For a few minutes some small raindrops fall. The driver is completely overstrained. He slows down and turns on the windscreen wiper to the highest level. Lucky enough the rain stops after a few minutes. At 6.10pm we arrive at Kimilili. A few huts / buildings along a “major” raod of dust. It looks inviting. Children approach us curiously, wave at us and shout: “Jambo, jambo! Hi, how are you?” White people are hardly seen in this area and much more interesting for the population than the latest science fiction movie.

We get off the car and are immediately surrounded by board members of CBSM shaking our hands. We are very warmly welcomed and we feel we have been awaited for a long time. For the rest of the evening we unpack our luggage and try to make the house as comfortable as possible. One of the local school teachers will stay with us in the room to help us whenever we need support. AND WE FINALLY HAVE A SHOWER!!! (The first one ever since Alex arrived in Kenya. The water was freezing cold but it was the best shower ever!)

During dinner Rev. Wasike tells us about the local Kimilili costumes. What provokes an impetuous discussion is the fact of “wife inheritance”. Not only can a man have several wifes (sometimes even sharing a bed!) but once the man dies the wifes get inherited by the man’s brothers (and are supposed to have sex with them within three days after the funeral).

Today we will visit the school. We are much looking forward to seeing how the school is set up and run.

All the best from Kimilili!
Alex and Alex
PS: Alex: I owe you a Mango…