Garbage Slum

You can know they exist, you can look at pictures or hear stories but there are no words to describe the reality of a garbage slum. Peoples entire livelihood depending on the trash from surrounding areas. 

I had my first visit to the Gioto Garbage slum where over 6,000 people live. It sounds awful but it is worse than even imaginable. The smell that permeates the area is so vile it makes your stomach turn and your head hurt. Mounds of trash piled everywhere with people of all ages, from small children to the elderly digging through them to find anything they can live off of. Scraps of food, materials to build their homes with, anything that could be crafted and sold. 

How does anyone get to this point in life? The stories that came from just a few of the families that lived there were dreadful. A single mom with 14 kids. She became pregnant at the age of 11 after being raped. Trying to support her baby led her to prostitution, the outcome being 13 more kids and infected with AIDS. Now she is immobile and it is her kids that are digging through the trash to find food. 

Profile surveys of the kids that have been done by past volunteers show many of them go months without being bathed, weeks without clean water and actual food (such as rice, beans or porridge), and most beaten daily. The majority of children are conceived from rape and most already infected with AIDS. 

Kenya holds the top 3 garbage slums in the world. The largest is home to 171,000 people outside of Nairobi. I’m not even ready to think of a city built on trash and hate to think that many people have no other choices. We (Fadhili organization) try to do as much as possible to get the children out of this lifestyle by raising money to send them to boarding school and for those not as lucky we supply as many as possible with clean water and a meal. Its not nearly enough to make a dent but its a step in the right direction. 

First Weekend In Kenya

No matter where I am, I continue to do the same types of things that I love to do, the scenery around me just changed and it has the ability to make a world of difference (no pun intended). 

My first weekend in Kenya I spent hiking and biking through Hells Gate National park. Meeting some new faces from multiple different projects, a group of us were guided through by a couple of high spirited Kenyons. We started by biking 7 km, but not your average ride to enjoy some exercise, fresh air and landscape. This was an unexpected National Geographic bike ride. Not many details were given out when signing up for this excursion other than the opportunity to bike through the canyon and hike to a natural hot springs created by volcanic activity. The idea of a hot bath in the stream was enough for me to sigh up, the view and activity was an added bonus I knew I would really enjoy.

I started the ride at the front of our pac, as we had a few virgin bikers.  Only a few minutes into our ride I found myself shouting to the others like a child at the zoo, “zebras!!!!!” Ten feet in front of me a herd of adults and babies were grazing in the field and before I knew it they were migrating across the road just a few feet in front of me. We continued our ride into the canyon when I heard someone else had spotted a giraffe. Stopping to look around, sure enough at the top of the canyon wall above us a giraffe was grazing the trees along the edge with a friend not far behind. It was a moment of ahhh, looking around thinking that these animals were as common and at home as deer would be in the yards of Craig Colorado. Through out the rest of our tour we saw gazelles, warthogs, ostrich and furry monkeys as big as a golden retriever. We had quite the outing for just a day trip jaunt.

New Project

After my fist week on my new project I am starting to get familiar with some of the people, kids and daily life of this community. Although so many of them are able to put on a smiling warm face everyday the conditions aren’t pretty and they know it. Kids will be kids knowing no other life, they run and play, sing and dance and adore every minute you spend with them. 

It is just the beginning of the rainy season here in Kenya. The days are hot and humid and the rain starts to poor in late afternoon, sometimes not stopping until morning. The first day I really enjoyed it. Not only did it seem refreshing and cleansing but I they needed the water desperately. After a couple nights of the rain, walking through camp made it more apparent that the rain is much needed for food but also very damaging to the only home they have.

The tents are made out of a thin plastic and tarps. After 3 years they are starting to show lots of wear and tear from the weather. Talking to people they say they haven’t slept in days. They joke about needing a boat instead of a bed. Mothers spend the nights protecting their young from the cold and trying to keep them as dry as possible. Most tents have anywhere from 3 people to a family of 7 or 8 in one, which leaves little room to scramble for the dry spots. 

The house I am living in has taken a little adjustment time. No electricity makes for very dark evenings listening to the rain pound on a tin roof. Mice keep us company during the night. Roosters make for very early mornings and the chickens on the couch make for a great welcoming comity at breakfast. Our house is not closed in so they come and go as they please. Checking to see if this was a normal occurrence, I was informed that they just come in to lay their eggs and go, however that is far more timely that I would have ever guessed. The food is simple but eatable with a Kenyon kick, sugar. 

At the end of the day looking at the difference between my accommodations here making my life at home look so plush, a short distance away I am reminded that I am still living such a large life. I go to bed every night with a full stomach and wake up to bread and tea. I have no worry of water destroying everything I have or taking a toll on my health. I have an education to share with others and at any point in time the ability to change my dissatisfactions. I hate that others live with such rough conditions and suffer so much but love the ability to put things into perspective. 

IDP Camp

I arrived at my placement today. Yes, even a shocker for me. I was prepared for the slums, but did not think that I would be living so close to them. I am about 15 steps away from the Vurmilia IDP camp. 

I think the people who dropped me off at my location were waiting for a shocking expression as the said “welcome home”. Although my mind was racing I played it off as though I would have expected nothing more. I do not live like I am in an IDP camp but not too far off. My house is nothing more than a cement block house and a tin roof. There is not only no running water but only one large tank for the whole camp. If you thought that the toilets I was using in Thailand were a stretch they are still a step ahead of the hole in the ground here shared by many. We are allotted a cold bucket shower about once a week and a sparing cup of water to wash up our face and hands daily. As of now I have not showered (not by choice this time) since Saturday night in Chiang Mai. I am now writing on Wednesday and have traveled three hours on a bus, through 4 airports and 3 countries. 

IDP stands for Internally Displaced People. Which translates into people who are refugees of their own country. Where ever they were living, in the slums or in nearby towns, fled during the political clashes that led to large amounts of violence and riots. Homes and churches being burnt down with people inside, rape, and torture such as cutting off body parts are a few of the horrific stories I have heard. Many of these people have an education and businesses that were lost. People that are now living in this IDP camp next to me in very small tents that leaks in the rain, without much food or water and few opportunities for education or work were once on track to overcoming so many of the typical African obstacles. 

The government compensated each family with 10,000 shillings (80 shillings to 1USD = $125). These families put their money together to buy a piece of land that they could feel safe on. They purchased this land in 2008 and since then many families have moved to this land as non-registered  IDPs, meaning the government has no record of them and they received no compensation. Now there are 158 tents on this plot and a small school built by volunteers. Some people have a small garden although the conditions aren’t well, the women make baskets and jewelry, but being so far from a town there is not much market for them. What very little they do have is self-sustainable with very few resources.

I’m not exactly sure were to start on this project, it is more mind boggling and overwhelming than I had imagined. I hope to tell you in the future that we have changed a few lives here and give them some hope for the future. 

Nairobi

I flew into Nairobi Kenya today. Having some exposure to Africa I had a mental image of things I had seen before only multiplied knowing that it is the largest city in the country. Once again my eyes were opened even wider as nothing was as I expected. Nairobi is a city similar to ones we all know, busy streets filled with cars, large buildings and stores, apartments and housing tracks crowded with people all over, combined with the reality of a third wold country staring you in the face. 

Through town you can see business men and women walking the streets and along side of them a man pulling a massive cart filled with produce, construction materials or water jugs; looking like some sort of animal heaving as much as possible from one destination to the next. The roads seem to be without rules. When in a traffic jam,  no need to worry, you can always pass on either side of the shoulder, go off roading or use sidewalks if needed. Air quality is not something anyone has any concept of, I’ve never seen so much exhaust in the air or trash on the ground. Where ever you are there is sure to be goats, sheep, cows and chickens roaming. To be honest, its all together a bit out of control. 

Staying at a guesthouse for one night before being put in my placement a few hours away, I had some time to get to know a new group of people. Everyone starting at the same time but all placed differently so no need to get attached. Some of us getting the itch to explore the area we set out on a short walk to the market. Feeling like a celebrity, eyes gawk at the only white people for miles. The word Muzungo is shouted from all directions (swahili for white people). Collecting kids behind us as we walk. 

Our return home was just as eventful but not nearly as amusing. Just before entering the gated community to the house we were staying in a man just steps in front of us collapsed, started ciezing and foaming at the mouth. In shock, we had no idea what to do. Looking around all the locals continued to walk past, most not even giving a second thought about it. It felt like we just stared forever waiting for him to move, then decided to go consult with the women of the guesthouse. Shocking to us all, they said, “just leave him, it happens all the time... he’ll be fine”. It may be normal for Kenya, but it still didn’t settle well with me. I stepped outside again to see if he had moved multiple times in the next hour, nothing. Eventually he was gone. 

Today was just an introduction to some of the situations I will see here. Not things that I want to get used to but things that I will have to accept. 

Only a Few Days Left

My last weekend in Thailand was outstanding. Shelley and I headed up to Chiang Mai one more time, the second biggest city in Thailand to accomplish the last two activities on our list of things to do. 

We started the weekend by heading to a small town called Chiang Dow were we had heard about a must see cave that was over six miles long. Making our way through a crap-hole of a town, working our way to find a bungalow guest house we had heard of, hoping the map we were following was steering us correctly we found ourselves on a long unpromising road. After just a mile or so a local woman driving a truck asked us where we were going and told us to hop in back. We were headed in the right direction but would have been walking for hours if we had not hitched a ride. She took us deep into the Thai jungle in between the mountains, not far from the caves and dropped us off right in front of our bungalow destination. Thrilled with our location and ready to settle in and settle down we unpacked for the night, showered up and set off to see a bit of the area. It was a well kept tourist secret and a fantastic find for us. Not very far down the road from our guesthouse was the temple of serenity and determination hidden in a mountain. The name describes it perfectly. There was not a visible soul around and it was perfectly peaceful and quiet with only noises of nature around. The temple was built up high on a mountain and took over 700 stairs to get up to it and along the way had inspirational encouraging words of determination and where it will get you. In this case it  took us to an unbelievable view of the valley and beyond. It was not the mellow tour we were expecting after a long day but what a sight to see. Worth every step taken we found part of the temple built into the rock of the mountain and even higher up was a prayer room and look out ledge. Almost sundown the weather was cooling to a perfect temperature, I’m not sure if we could have planned a more perfect moment to remember the best Thailand has to offer. 

Thinking we had already had a successful evening we were making our way back to our guesthouse keeping an eye open for a restaurant when we came along another beautiful guesthouse hidden by nature. Curious of what it had to offer we stopped in to check out a menu. Once again quite as could be the path lined with small candles lead to a beautiful patio restaurant where we saw the name of the Guesthouse “The Nest”. As Shelley was faithful about reading every guide book in sight, it rang a bell for her immediately. The restaurant at The Nest was to be one of the very best in Thailand. We sat down having the place all to ourselves and had an incredible dinner. Feeling like we splurged far more than average we had to laugh that our 5 star meal was still no more than $7 a plate. How hard will it be to return to our homeland when that is sounding over the top and more than the cost of our room for the night. 

The following day we didn’t waste anytime. Starting out with a bike ride to view more of the area that we were so lucky to find and then into the cave. What a fascinating creation made by mother nature. Not only did it seem like it went on indefinitely but the rooms within it were huge and unique. 

The following day we returned to Chiang Mai, planning our last hurrah. We had both been very interested in taking a cooking class that we had seen offered so we could take our favorite Thai dishes home with us. 

Some of the adventure dishes were far over my head... along with flames, (I will not be doing those at home, or I may end up with nothing left of a home). But the rest of the class exceeded our expectations. Partnering together we were able to make eight delectable dishes. Two soups, two noodle plates, two curries, and two main courses (cashew chicken and sweet and sour chicken with vegetables), along with mango sickie rice for desert. If you were worried about my weight loss from the previous week, you needn’t worry any longer. Along with the class we also received a cookbook, hopefully my memory will serve me well over the next few months and I can replicate a few of these dishes for you when I return home.

I have tasted a bit of everything Thailand has to offer, seen enough temples to last me a lifetime, ridden a motor bike to as many national parks as possible, walked enough markets to see every brand-name remake out there and Thai handy craft invented, and best of all made another great collection of friends. I would say this sounds like success.  

Sick as a Dog

It is only to be expected that your body can only take so much while traveling. My body however, has a harder time than most what ever it is battling. Im sure that I am bound to get what ever is around me, possibly carrying bugs in my system as long as possible and win every contest of how sick can you get... but still recover proudly and positively. 

This past week was a hard one for me. I believe I had another bout of what is most likely Malaria. Creeping up on me slowly with a soar throat, congestion and chest pain. Just when I thought I was recovering from the common cold the dreadful fever took me over. Hot, cold and chills all over in the heat and humidity of the Thailand summer felt like it would never end. Sick at my stomach and quickly becoming frail, my positive attitude of thinking it would all be over before I know it was dwindling. It was on and off for just over four days, when I took the dreaded trip to the Chiang Rai hospital. Surprisingly it was a great experience compared to what it could have been. The staff spoke minimal english but were productive and thorough. It was a newer clean facility and they ran a far more efficient process than any hospital I’ve been to in the U.S. 

I also had an amazing support group all around me. Shelley is a great care taker but also knows to give a bit of space. Wendy kept the positive loving vibes alive all the time and also kept a close eye on me. Many others provided their support in every way they knew how. 

I wasn’t connected to the internet most of the time, but in hopes to not worry my family from afar I didn’t tell them how sick I was until I felt I had to. After the 4th day of not breaking the fever, I was really wondering how much more I could take before I considered more serious repercussions. Chatting with my mom briefly I knew I worried her and scared her even more that I was worried as well. Finally Skyping my parents, knowing that they just needed to see me, I couldn’t keep myself composed, all I could do is cry. No words needed to be exchanged, I was miserable and there was noting in the world anyone could do. With in the next day I started to see the upside. My fever was down and I was able to keep a cracker or two in my stomach. I took the better part of the next 3 days to finish recovering, sleeping well and eating as much as I could to regain my strength. Luckily fruit is on every corner of Thailand and I indulged in as much pineapple, watermelon, papaya, mango, tangerines and dragon fruit as possible.   

Thinking of all the different places this could have happened on my tour of the world this was a great location with great care and the best people. Hopefully that is it for me and random illnesses. 

I have two weeks of blogs saved up but no way to upload them. I hope you all enjoy reading my book one day when I find internet that allows me to upload.
Other than that, life is going well. Crazy African style... but great. I can't wait to update you all on all that I have been doing.

Seasons

The weather has changed seasons just since I have been in northern Thailand. When I arrived I was afraid that I had not properly prepared for the very cool nights and mornings. It seems as though it is a bit warmer everyday. Now I require a cold shower mid day and enjoy the beautiful summer evening we all love so much, when the heat is gone but the temperature is so perfect that you don’t require a jacket. I’m thinking I planned well, summer all over the world. 

It is really nice to be somewhere long enough to watch the scenery change around you. Its hard to believe how fast time passes no matter where you are. I have seen the rice fields bare, flooded and now a full crop. I have enjoyed the extremely popular “green mango salad” in the off season and now the mangos at their very best and ripe. It’s possible that is my new favorite fruit. And as not enjoyable as it may be I see the controlled fire burns to maintain the jungle around the villages (which many of the outdoor volunteers help out with). It is very understandable to take care of it before the wet season starts in late March to April, but leaves the air feeling dirty and a bit foggy sometimes.

The kids have all just ended their school year and now have almost two months off, similar to our summer. We will continue at the temples, hospital and community centers but will also start a summer education camp for the hill-tribe village kids from 6 to 14. 

Change is all around us. It is something that used to challenge me greatly and I would do my best to resist but I am learning to embrace it and appreciate so many things about it.