Archive for August, 2007
3rd Annual African Microfinance Conference!
I had the opportunity to attend the 3rd Annual African Microfinance Conference last week! Over 500 top government officials, academics, policy makers, and representatives from the private and public sector congregated at the Speke Resort in Munyonyo, Kampala for the four day event. Although I learned a lot from the presentations, speeches, and panel discussions, the networking opportunities were the real strength of the conference. Amidst the numerous dining and coffee breaks I had the chance to chat with Uganda’s Minster of Microfinance and the Minister of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development (MoFPED).
The conference opened with Dr. Ezra Suruma (MoFPED), speaking on behalf of President Museveni who was delayed in Tanzania. He spoke a great deal about interest rates and preached that the media must “remove the notion that microfinance is an atom bomb against poverty.” Dr. Suruma critically reflected on the recent hype contributing to the proselytizing of microfinance, declaring that the “involvement of foreigners, if not involved carefully, will turn microfinance into the most enslaving tool in modern times.” Some of the notable presentations centered on value chain analysis, segmentation, measuring the social impact of financial services, consumer education, utilizing microfinance to help mitigate climate change, the danger of overregulation, client costs and risks, ROSCAS, SACCOS, and technical innovations for expanding outreach.
I could easily identify which presenters spend most of their time in the field, interacting with clients, and which individuals were more detached from the ground level, working on macro policy initiatives and developing theories behind closed doors. The innovation bottleneck issue became very apparent. Although great technological improvements can help microfinance institutions expand outreach to more rural clients, the development of proper infrastructure must precede implementation. For example, I was extremely impressed by a branchless banking presentation given by a software company that enables clients in the Philippines to send loan repayments via their mobile phones. Although their innovation reduces transportation costs and increases transaction efficiency, the technology is not transferable to Uganda. The company directors failed to realize that over 90% of Uganda’s population lives in rural areas lacking network connections and reliable electricity. Many of the advances presented were nice on paper, but impracticable in reality.
Some members of the Kiva staff are in East Africa visiting their partner grassroots institutions. I met up with Chelsa, Ben, and John at the conference. We spent Saturday at the Life in Africa Center where they got to the chance to meet some of the Kiva borrowers operating businesses in the IDP camp. In the afternoon they sat in on a peace tiles workshop. Children from the local community are invited to the workshop to express their thoughts and emotions through artwork. In this session, the theme was “planning for the future.” Each child decorates a wooden tile; the individual tiles are placed together to form a mural and the end product is typically given as a gift to a designated community or organization. After a long day in the sun we grabbed dinner at a delicious Korean barbeque restaurant. Most of my meals in Uganda consist of chapatti (oily bread), roasted corn, and fried bananas so I gladly welcomed the varied cuisine!
I leave in four days; I cannot believe how fast the past sixty-seven have gone. This has been the most challenging, draining, rewarding, inspiring, emotionally exhausting learning experience I have had to date. I don’t regret a second of it though. I was bit by the travel bug last year and hoped that my journey to the Pearl of Africa would satisfy my desire to travel, at least for the time being. No such luck. If anything I am even more curious to visit other lands and interact with different cultures then I was before my departure. I can’t wait to go home and plan my next adventure!
A women’s group meeting in short
Here’s a little video of a more average women’s group meeting at Friendship Bridge. The women meet, pray, have a little team-building exercise, have some “informal education”, this time about how to vote in the upcoming election, then pay their “cuota”, the monthly payment, and figure out about the next meeting. The informal education is one of the facets of Friendship Bridge that they’re most proud of. They want the credit program to be a path to educational growth.
The Friendship Bridge women attend these meetings every 28 days (4 weeks). They’re not on a monthly schedule because the 4-week schedule makes it much more practical for the loan officers to schedule the meetings.
Some of the women deposit their money directly in the bank, and others bring cash to the session, which means that there is often a need to go right to the bank after the meeting.
A Women’s Group Paperwork Meeting
Ever wonder what a real women’s group meeting looks like? Here’s a Guatemalan example, a paperwork meeting for Friendship Bridge in Tecpan. This is where they make the all-important and sometimes stressful decision about how big a loan they want to ask for. Everybody has to come and bring their “cedula” or national identification card. There were 30 women in the group last time, and this time they’re adding four new ones. All 34, with various children and other relatives (and the occasional dog) are crammed into a little unfinished room with a dirt floor and a table set up in front. In case you were wondering, these women speak the Cakchiquel language, one of the 21 or so Mayan languages spoken in Guatemala. I got to interview 7 of them for Kiva loans that will go up in the next couple of days. What an inspiration these women are.
A Sobering Week in Uganda
Amidst many adventures, this week has had its share of sobering events. Many of Life in Africa’s (LiA) Kiva borrowers live in an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp in Kampala. As a Kiva fellow, I travel to their homes to chat with them about the challenges they face operating small-scale businesses. On most days, the head of LiA’s microfinance program, Grace Ayaa, accompanies me on my interviews to serve as a translator. On Saturday Grace was late to our meeting. After some time she showed up looking dazed and disheartened. Grace informed me that she woke up in the early morning hours to go to the bathroom. When she reached the pit latrine she found the body of a dead baby. Grace remembered that her neighbor’s housekeeper was pregnant; apparently she apparently gave birth in the middle of the night and left her newborn for dead. Grace was forced to summon the police and witnessed them handcuff and arrest the 16 year old girl for murder. The police put the newborn’s corpse in a clear plastic bag and made the trembling girl hold the body while they filled out paperwork. The young mother was brought to the local police station and is expected to serve a minimum of seven years in jail.
Is this girl a monster? No. I am by no means condoning murder or the taking an innocent life, but I can’t shake the image of this teenaged girl giving birth, alone and scared, in the middle of the night. Consumed by fear, she made an error in judgment that killed one life and ruined her own. I have only lived in Uganda for seven weeks and am not claiming to be a psychologist, sociologist, detective, or anything in between. I have, however, met countless women fitting this demographic. They are young. They are poor. They are uneducated. They lack the financial means, knowledge, and requisite emotional support system to care for themselves, let alone another human life. These girls are born into poverty, and, due to its cyclical nature, stand a slim chance of every escaping its clutches despite efforts from development agencies. Did she make a mistake? Yes. Should she be punished for it? Probably. But what factors influenced her decision? Is she a coldblooded murderer, filled with malice and a true threat to society? Regardless of the answer to that question, she was still taken away in a police car, forced to publicly bear her scarlet letter by holding her infant’s lifeless body.
I came into work on Tuesday only to meet Grace’s sad gaze once again. Over the weekend, Esther Akello, an LiA member and ringleader of the Acholi women, fell seriously ill. I have spent many days in Esther’s home in the IDP camp. Most of the Kiva borrowers meet me in her house because she loves playing hostess. Esther serves us tea and traditional Ugandan food as we chat sitting on the cement floor underneath her tin roof. The conversations initially focus on microfinance but always steer off topic as Esther frequently interjects clever remarks. Her contagious laughter and witty banter leave the group in hysterics and near tears.
Esther was under the weather all of last week. I saw her everyday—LiA hosted a five day conference and she was one of the members in attendance—but she maintained her characteristically facetious demeanor despite feeling ill. Her poor condition escalated over the weekend. Esther’s husband refused to take her to Mulango Hospital, opting instead to seek physicians at a local clinic because he could not afford better treatment. Grace implored him to take her to the hospital regardless of the cost.
I went with Grace to Mulago Hospital. I found Esther lying on the dirty hallway floor–one of several patients remaining untreated. I could not believe the conditions I was seeing. This is Uganda’s premier hospital located in the capital city. A woman—my friend—is lying on the floor unconscious and barely breathing; no doctor so much as looks twice when they pass her limp body. Unbelievable. Of course, I am not blaming the doctors; they are understaffed and lack the resources to treat patients. I wanted to scream, who is responsible here??? Then it hit me. This is not America. I cannot protest that this is unfair and demand to see a supervisor to care for Esther immediately. This is not America. She is probably not the first person to lay on their hallway flours unnoticed. She will not be the last. Again, this was another sobering event that brought me face to face with the realities faced by those living in developing countries. This is not America. All I could do was rub her feet and sit with her relatives and other visitors hoping for a doctor to take pity on Esther.
With CHOGM approaching in November, the government has made an attempt to clean up the city in preparation for the arrival of hundreds of delegates and officials from around the world. Will the government actually address issues such as poverty, poor healthcare facilities, etc. or just sweep them under the carpet to hide the horrible conditions those living in the slums endure everyday? The Queen of England will enjoy the drive from Entebbe airport to Kampala because those roads are being repaved and resurfaced. What about the dangerous, potholed, dirt road leading to Esther’s home? I doubt the Queen Elizabeth will be exposed to this side of Uganda.
Kibera Continued…..
So alas, despite my proclamations last week of being the ‘Britney Spears of Africa’ or as I prefer the ‘Princess Di’, no one has asked me for my autograph. But fret not, I still have about a month to go and many more adventures to have! I am really enjoying this blogging malarkey, I will admit that up until a few months ago, I was ignorant about what a blog was, but now I am getting into it, and it’s a really interesting way of communicating with people. So anyway, last week I remarked on how the buses were quickly becoming my arch nemesis, well this week it’s the internet, or as the French say, l’internet, it has barely been working, and don’t get me started on my yahoo account which has basically ceased to function. However, luckily, or unluckily, I have had a cold this week so been a bit out of action. I know who gets a cold in August? So ridiculous, but it is winter here and this week has been particularly damp and dismal, I have even been seen sporting my rather unattractive raincoat.
Ok, so last week I had a lot of days in the field, and last Thursday I think, I remarked about how Kibera ‘wasn’t that bad’. I take that all back. Last Friday was my second day in Kibera, and I guess you could say I saw the ‘real’ Kibera, slightly more off the beaten track. My first visit was largely spent trudging around the ‘high street’ I suppose is the only way to describe it; where its partly paved and seems like a normal Kenyan town. But Friday I went deep into the heart of the slums, stumbling around like the truly clumsy mzungu I am, along the winding, claustrophobic, sewage-ridden paths. Sometimes the ‘houses’ are so close together you have to squeeze through walking sideways, whilst you simultaneously make a pointless attempt at keeping your shoes from getting covered in whatever muddy substances lurk beneath. I met a few more clients, and made some more friends with all the totos who are now being so bold as to walk with me, holding my hand, which is quite a tricky skill when you have to hike up path that is barely wide enough for one, let along plus two little ones who insist on keeping hold of your hand!
In Kenya they have recently banned plastic bags, quite suddenly, without providing much in the way of alternatives, however, this is a really positive step, since when you go to the slums there are literally mountains of plastic bags and rubbish. The plastic bags are actually part of the landscape- I have seen houses built on top of a foundation of plastic bags and dirt; they stick out of the road, they are literally everywhere. When I was walking around Kibera recently work was being done to improve the sewage/water run off trenches, and people were digging away through mounds of dirt ingrained with plastic bags and rubbish. I cannot describe the smell; it was just too much.
I don’t know if I can ever really put into words what Kibera is like, it’s almost too much to process that I don’t know if my brain has actually dealt with it. It’s so utterly opposite to the world I inhabit that it’s almost like you are watching a movie; since you cannot really fathom how people live like this, I just can’t really explain it. I hope I will be able to add some photos with this blog, unless my nemesis l’internet is still insisting on not working. (Can anyone explain to me what a ‘gateway timeout’ is???)
So anyway, time to talk about the more pleasant aspects of life in Nairobi, for example, last week I was able to have a chicken burrito! So exciting I know! And surprisingly, it was actually pretty good, even had salsa and sour cream! Please don’t think I go around eating non-African food all the time, since I really do enjoy the cuisine! Usually at lunch we go to the café in our building and have a big plate of beans, vegetables and of course some of the wonderful fresh hot chapatti! Everything is made fresh, using organic ingredients, which is amazing, and since our office is right next to a large food market, the food around here is really good. I particularly enjoyed some fried chicken the other week, and the chicken had been killed that morning, fried, and then onto my plate. Delicious. (Apologies to any vegetarians out there, at least it was free range!)
Apart from that not much else to report on here, luckily my bus rides have been pretty tame recently, although have had a few near death experiences on the dreaded matatus, but since I have moved out of town into the suburbs, life is less hectic and I am finally able to enjoy some fresh air. I moved in with some mzungu friends into Karen, which is a one of the posh suburbs where a lot of the wzangu community lives. It was nice to get out of the hostel though, and into a real house where I can cook for myself (have been on a rather long pasta marathon recently) and relax with friends.
Well, I think that is about it from me for now, this week I have lots of days out in the field so I am sure I will have lots more stories to tell of life in ‘Nairobbery’!
A Not-So-Good Interview in San Francisco Javier
This morning we woke up at 4am to catch a microbus from Nebaj, Quiche, Guatemala to interview a group of women in San Francisco Javier. The reason for the interview is to write the story of their business and lives in order to help obtain microloans on Kiva.org for Friendship Bridge in Guatemala. The rain was pouring as we made our way through the deep puddles of the dark streets. Only a few people were out at this time of the morning, walking in the rain underneath thin plastic sheets and clogging along in the total rubber boots so many of the campesinos wear in the fields. A few men hid in the shadows trying to stay dry or sobering up from the night’s celebration. This week is the town’s annual festival for its patron saint.
We got on the bus a little after 5am. It plowed out of town and followed a rough dirt road for about an hour. The darkness was made more intense by the low clouds that surround this incredible volcanic landscape. The morning light seeped though the misty morning. Clouds obscured most of the surrounding mountains but we got an occasional glimpse of the top of a-not-so distant volcano. They sure reach up into the sky.
The bus arrived at the end of its route after the hour ride and we walked the rest of the way, about an hour up to the village. We saw only a handful of people in the early dawn: a few children running along the road heading to school or running away from these strange gringos, several men walking to work with various field tools and even a mule strolled down the muddy road fully loaded without an owner in sight. We enjoyed the trek up through the hills, way above the village of Salquil. I especially enjoyed the quiet stillness of the wet, lush green terrain.
We only had a name for the group leader and weren’t sure if she’d been contacted by phone. We finally found Juana´s house in San Francisco Javier. Her new concrete block house stood out amongst the neighboring tile- roofed adobe homes. Chickens wandered everywhere, the pig was tied out front and the multiple dogs checked us out to see if we had any food. Though we where unannounced, due to cell coverage being out, they got two chairs for us, and served us coffee and rolls out on the front porch. Juana scrambled to get the women together so we could interview them and take their photos. 
The women were quiet and reserved – normal for the first few minutes, but this was different. After 15 minutes we could not get them to open up, so we started the interviews. They grew potatoes, raised animals for sale such as cows and goats. When we asked them about the upcoming loan, they told us they were discontinuing the program. When we asked why, they said they had raised enough money and grew their businesses to a point they no longer need the micro-loans. At this point Randy and I looked at each other and realized that there was no reason to continue the interviews. The purpose for our visit was to help raise the funding for their next loan. There was not going to be a next loan, at least not for now. Of course we were glad they’d had such success, but it wasn’t turning out the way we expected!
At this point we decided to take a group photo and head back to Nebaj, another two hour voyage down the rutted roads in the northern part of Guatemala.
The walk through the hills was as beautiful as the hike up. Just about every man stopped to shake our hands and say have a nice travel. The young children either yelled “gringo” from the safety of their mothers’ skirts or ran to find those skirts. And the women smiled at us as they continued their walk with a basket of corn or bread or tamales balanced on their heads and a baby slung on their backs. We caught a microbus at the crossing of two dirt roads and piled in with the 20 other passengers. We arrived back to the hotel at about 1:00 and had a nice afternoon map.
We had learned an important thing. Next time we will try to ascertain in advance whether the group plans to continue. If the answer is no, then we will find another group of women to interview. Of course, in this case we never could have known. And what a delightful morning it was!
Coming to America
There are two themes to this: First, I´m coming home. And second, there are a lot of people who want to come with me!
I travel quite a lot, but it’s been a while since I’ve stayed in a foreign country for an extended period of time. All of a sudden, I’ve come to feel intensely proud and lucky to be an American. I was born into a country that gave me an opportunity to become anything that I’ve ever dreamed of. Sure, there are barriers, and it’s harder for some than for others, but I live in a country where most people have clean drinking in their home, where you don’t see children begging on the streets, and where if you try hard enough, you can find some sort of job that will allow you to put a decent roof over your head and feed you. I’m even lucky that I’m allowed to visit almost any country I please.
I’m amazed at the number of people who have jokingly asked me if I could take them home with me when I return. I have had more than a few offers to find me a good Honduran man to “import” back home. I’ve also met many people who have tried to cross the border by foot (often more than once), only to be caught and deported. I think the statistic here is that 1 in 4 families have a family member in the US. Many of the borrowers I interviewed have husbands, sons, and daughters who have immigrated, illegally or legally, to the US. One of the big education campaigns in Honduras is to encourage people to stay in their country, and help make it a better place. The belief here is that if one could only make it to the US, they would find this utopian society where all their problems would disappear and they would have a better life. For many people, their life does improve, but for others who are working illegally, it’s still a hard life in the US. I even know people here who don’t want to move, they just want to travel to the US on vacation, and they can’t get the visa.
Immigration is a controversial subject in the US, and I don’t know what the answer is. I only wish everyone else could have the economic opportunities that I have been given. There are a lot of countries that offer natural resources, rich cultures, and scenic beauty that just need a chance. Despite the downsides to Honduras, there’s another side to it that is equally impressive as the United States. So you can get a feel for just how beautiful and varied this country is, I’ve attached a few photos. It is abundant in natural resources – coffee, tropical fruits, shrimp, cocoa; tourism opportunities abound – the Bay Islands with its coral reefs, numerous national parks abundant with wildlife, the Mayan ruins of Copan; and most importantly – incredibly friendly and hospitable people who have welcomed me with open arms. I can’t say enough how much I am going to miss all the people I have met along the way that have been open and honest and willing to tell me their stories. Hopefully the next time I come to Honduras (and I will someday!) I will hear stories of change and progress.
Life in Kisumu
Prior to departure from the states, I was given the option of staying in either a hotel or a home stay for the duration of the trip—I chose the latter for the cultural experience. I stayed with staff members Patrick Oketch and Rogers Otieno, both aged 23 and great hosts despite the constant attention drawn by a mzungu in the rural parts of the country. The home stay was a small two bedroom house, shared between the three of us and a handful of local insects. The conditions were actually better than I had prepared for, but mosquito nets and bug repellent were necessary.
Most of my social experiences parallel Tanuj and Kerry’s recent posts; it has been surreal for strangers to constantly make an effort to shake my hand or engage in a short hybrid conversation of English and Kiswahili. The children are very social, and unquestionably the most engaging participants during my client visits to the rural areas. On a typical visit—within minutes of entering a village—most of the children will have poured from their homes and tightly crowded shoulder-to-shoulder behind me.
Located on the shores of Lake Victoria, Kisumu is highly influenced by the local fishing economy. There are commonly fishermen carrying a fresh catch directly to the markets for sale, and others cooking along the shores over a small charcoal grill. There are also just a handful of fish that actually inhabit the lake; the most popular being 
Tilapia, a sizable whitefish. My first experience trying the locally prepared food was a bit unsettling, as the cooked fish was delivered with the head, skin, and tail intact—all of which are intended to be consumed, excluding the bones. I’ve since become accustomed to this style of preparation, but I’ll admit that I long for a simple boneless filet.
A few weekends ago, after a similar meal, a few of the SEED staff took me hippo hunting on the lake. There are a few hippo hideouts that we searched along the shores, and to my surprise we found a small family of four bathing in the sun! I took as many pictures as possible, which can be found here. The lake itself is beautiful, and despite its vast size the maximum depth is a relatively shallow 84m (276 ft) which aids in more frequent spotting of wildlife. I’m also told that Lake Victoria has a large crocodile population, although I’m happy to say that we didn’t see any near our small boat.
Kiva Training in Baku!
On Friday, with the help of the NorMicro staff, I held a “Kiva Training Session” for the employees of the Azerbaijani Kiva Field Partners. There were seventeen of us total, representing NorMicro, Komak, and AqroInvest. Bahman (NorMicro’s Director) suggested that I hold the training, while Tasaduf (NorMicro’s Human Resources Manager) worked really hard to get us a very nice briefing room in Baku’s fancy Caspian Business Plaza. For over three hours we discussed (in English and Azerbaijani, with translation by Tasaduf!) pertinent Field Partner topics, such as writing Kiva business descriptions, taking good client photos, how to post business profiles, and writing journal entries. The attendees had lots and lots of good questions and are obviously committed to further enhancing their Kiva efforts!
I made sure we had an internet connection and a projector so everyone could experience Kiva.org — some of the attendees have not yet worked with Kiva, while others do not have consistent internet access in their offices. During the presentation I surfed through the website, highlighting important points and answering questions about lenders and clients. (I even impressed them with the fact that almost 12% of all Kiva funds, thus far, have gone to Azerbaijani clients!) One thing I really focused in on was that Kiva lenders are individuals – I think it’s easy for the uninitiated loan officer to assume that Kiva is just some faceless American corporation throwing big money at international projects. I pulled up Hajibaba’s business profile and used Mrs. Diba’s Class as an example of Kiva’s lenders. The mental image of six-year-olds collecting pennies for Hajibaba really helps illustrate the Kiva spirit!!
To train the newbies and reinforce Kiva’s processes to the experienced loan officers, we used a “real” client as an example. We tested out the new Kiva Form created by Adam (Peace Corps Volunteer assigned to NorMicro) as a means of systematically improving information flow between loan officers and the individuals who post the Kiva listings. Next, we all worked together to develop a concise, but detailed business description. Finally, Behbud (NorMicro’s Beylagan Branch Kiva Coordinator) walked us through posting a profile – keep an eye out for Rafig’s profile!
The Kiva Training attendees:
The response to the training was very encouraging and I expect that the Azerbaijani Kiva listings will soon be even better! The training was a little bittersweet for me – I leave in just one week! Time has flown! I am sad to go, but I guess I do need to get back home and finish up my degree at some point 
I hope to post some links to pictures before I leave!
The wonderful señoras of Friendship Bridge
Magdalena Santos
We put the best pictures of the wonderful señoras we’re meeting up on our Flickr account and wanted to invite you to see them. These women are some of the most amazing and admirable women. And oh, so photogenic. We grow in respect for them daily.
The entire set is here – we invite you to browse it.
Quick thoughts from Nairobi
I’ve been in Nairobi since last Wednesday evening. Eb-F opened a new Unit here about three months ago. On Thursday we moved to a more permanent and bigger office and have just been getting settled. Friday I was able to go to the field – Kibera Slums. A lot of what I could write about Nairobi has already been covered really well by Kerry in other entries but I just wanted to share a quick few thoughts:
- Nairobi traffic is absolutely horrendous. It’s worse than any city I’ve ever seen in the US, except maybe Los Angeles.
- Al-Jazeera news gets a terribly unfair rap in the Western media. It’s one of the five channels I get on my tv in my hotel room and I have found it incredibly well-done. It’s informative, unbiased and just plain good objective journalism. This morning I watched a really good half-hour interview with the UN’s Shashi Tharoor. I’ve seen really solid coverage on US illegal immigration stories, Latin American development, floods in India and Bangladesh, Middle East coverage, etc. I’d say that it’s better than just about every tv news media in the US. A friend of mine spending the summer in Cairo doing his thesis research agreed with me.
- This follows up on what Kerry noted about the Kibera slums – that despite being a sprawling complex of slums of mud houses and horrendous roads, many people living there are relatively well off. They have TVs and electricity and are doing pretty well. Jaji Barlet, the Eb-F Business Development Officer for Nairobi raised some interesting points to me. First, he said there are over 220,000 NGOs and community development organizations working in the Kibera slums. If that’s true, then what has gone wrong, or rather what is going wrong? Why are they still slums? Another really interesting thing was his harangue against Playstation 2. As we walked through the slum streets, we saw a few places where kids could go and pay to play Playstation and other video game consoles. He said that a lot of kids now spend more time playing games than working on their studies, and that they invariably do much worse in school since the introduction of such Western technology and recreation.
The Strength Found in a Global Community
I start every meeting with clients by first offering my thanks for their time and a small recordação; a photo of my hometown, San Francisco, which I explain is also where Kiva is located. Before sitting down with clients, sensitive to Hluvuku-Adsema’s image within the community, I got the blessing from Hluvuku’s Executive Director to outline the Kiva-Hluvuku relationship and how we share responsibilities within the loan process.
To elucidate this further, I show each client a color printout of their respective business profile page from the Kiva website, explaining that they have their own dedicated page which showcases their photo and a description of both their personal and business experience. ‘Voce e medio famoso no mundo do Internet!’ I proclaim, to which they reply ‘Epa!’ Without question, the clients are first most excited to see their likeness in print since it’s not often, if ever for some, that they have seen their photo. They call over friends and family, everyone gathers ’round, laughter ensues and they say ‘Saio bem!’ (‘It came out good!’)
Here’s where it gets really exciting…
I then direct the clients to the bottom of their profile page to show them the photos that represent each lender. I explain that these people have read their business profile and were so impressed with their business, their efforts, and their future direction that they decided to contribute specifically to this borrowers loan. And then I show them where all their lenders are from; individuals and groups of people from the United States, Australia, Belgium, Norway, Germany, Denmark, United Kingdom, Portugal, Switzerland, Canada, Italy, Spain, France, Austria, New Zealand, Brazil… just to name a few.
Watching their faces light up when first hearing this information is extraordinary. While it’s true that some people have little reaction to this news by their nature, the vast majority of borrowers are clearly touched to learn that people outside of their immediate community care enough about them as individuals to support them in their endeavors. Fulfilling obligations and attaining some measure of growth in the eyes of their local community has and always will be important. But my sense is that this new awareness of a global citizenry that is emotionally invested and supportive of them is not only uplifting personally, but a huge motivating factor for continued success of the business!
Mombasa
So I’m in the home stretch of my time as a Kiva Fellow. I’ll be returning to New York next week. I have mixed emotions about this – it will be wonderful to see my family and friends again, to enjoy American efficiency and hot water and not eat barbecued red meat with every meal, but the past several weeks have been an undeniably instructive, formative and remarkable experience for me.
Last Thursday night was my last in Nakuru, the town where Ebony’s head office is. I went to dinner that night with the whole staff. We spent several hours at the restaurant, dancing to the spirited Kenyan music played by the live band. At one point everyone went around saying goodbye to me – it was truly touching. I did my best to express my thanks and gratitude, for how hospitable and welcoming they have all been, but also for the work that they are doing. I find it humbling to have worked with so many talented people dedicated to helping their fellow man, a sentiment that I often find lacking in my life back home. I assured them that I would be back, and I meant it – I have every intention of returning to Kenya within the next few years.
On Friday James (Eb-F’s director) and I went to Nairobi where we briefly met up with the Nairobi Unit. They were attending the graduation of their latest batch of clients. As part of the loan process, Ebony provides its clients with a three-week business skills crash course. Clients learn everything from accounting to marketing, skills that will help them better utilize their loan and improve their enterprises. Ebony has partnered with the University of British Columbia’s Sauder School of Business to help teach these courses. A professor and her MBA students come to Kenya to teach side-by-side with Ebony’s staff.
In the evening we boarded a short flight to Mombasa, one of Kenya’s biggest cities. It’s on the coast, overlooking the Indian Ocean. It’s a major shipping port for not only Kenya, but East Africa in general. Upon landing I immediately noted that the stereotypical African weather I had been expecting was here – it was hot, humid and sticky. The other day, it was easily 75 or 80 degrees by only 10 am! What’s remarkable is that right now it’s winter in Kenya, meaning that come December, the weather here is much much hotter.
Ebony just recently opened a new Unit here. It’s been in operation for a little over three weeks now and is staffed by just two people, Jane and Mike. They have begun extending credit in what Eb-F terms is Benki Yetu program. This loan scheme is centered around small amounts and is given to groups of five only. Repayment is daily, usually about 100 shillings, and lasts for a maximum 45 days. Groups that successfully repay their first loan graduate to two higher levels within Benki Yetu. If they continue repaying on time, they can then access the higher credit schemes that Ebony offers.
Mombasa is a beautiful city, right on the ocean. At most times during the day and especially at night there’s a refreshing sea breeze floating through the city. The city proper is actually an island, directly off the mainland, connected by a bridge and a ferry system. Right away I got the sense that it was much more of a city than Nakuru. It’s not as big as Nairobi, but sufficiently large and with bigger avenues, more traffic, more high-rises, etc. There’s a strong Muslim and Arab influence in the city, something that is noticeable not only by the Muslim-inspired architecture of many buildings but also simply by the sheer number of women in traditional burqa coverings. The city is also very old and was one of Kenya’s first contact points with Europeans. The Portuguese established a port here as early as 1593 when they built Fort Jesus, a structure that is still standing today. It’s now a historical site and museum, and I was lucky enough to visit. Over the next several centuries Mombasa was held by Arabs from Oman, British, etc.
The city is also naturally a huge tourist attraction, owing to its beautiful beaches. I’ve seen a lot more foreigners on the streets than I ever would in Nakuru. An interesting (yet sad and disturbing) phenomenon is the prevalence of prostitution in Mombasa. Nearly every club/restaurant/bar (they are all the same) I have been to is filled with women of various ages who are hookers. Their industry is fueled by the wealthy white men (mainly Europeans) who come here on vacation looking for a good time. In talking with Jane and Mike I learned that a lot of the women working as prostitutes stay in school only long enough to learn conversational English, Italian and German, then drop out and become prostitutes. It’s an unbelievably sad state of affairs.
A corollary to this is the pretty large number of Europeans (men AND women) who come here “looking for love.” These are people who are clearly of means and who are all a minimum of 40 years old, some much older. I see them all over town and on the beach, strolling hand in hand with young Kenyan men and women, locals who look barely out of their teens.
I leave this afternoon for Nairobi, where I’ll be working with that Unit. I’ll be visiting Kiva clients who are mainly based in the Kibera slums. I’m there until I head home next week.
Greetings from Uganda!
Greetings from Uganda! My name is Maura and I have been working with Life in Africa (LiA) for the past four weeks. LiA is a community based organization servicing families affected by Northern Uganda’s civil war. Approximately 80% of members belonging to the Kampala LiA Center are mothers living in the Acholi Quarters–an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp. Political instability and violent rebel attacks over the past two decades have caused people to flee from the northern districts to escape persecution. Many LiA members hope to return home in the near future.
As a student studying international development, I came to Uganda to learn how microfinance programs can benefit those trying to rebuild their lives in post-conflict areas. Many people I have talked with in the IDP camps live in mud structures with tin or grass-thatched roofs. Forced from their villages into the camps, these people had to restart their lives with no means of financial support. Members of LiA access credit to purchase the fixed capital necessary to operate small-scale, income-generating businesses. Sustainable cash flows enable members to buy basic necessities. Often allocating profits involves sacrifices; food expenses, rent, and school fees tend to take priority over proper health care and medical treatment.
From my exchanges with LiA’s Kiva loan recipients, school fees are primarily cited as the average household’s greatest expenditure. And it is no surprise why. The mothers I’ve met usually care for their 4 to 8 children, in addition to supporting deceased relatives’ dependents. Some mothers lack formal schooling because their parents could not afford the fees; others were prevented from continuing classes because rebel attacks interrupted the operations of educational institutions. These mothers work unceasingly to provide their children with opportunities they were denied.
I was expecting to witness poverty in the IDP camps. I was not, however, expecting to hear so much laughter. These women are constantly singing, chatting, dancing, and poking fun at one another. Visiting a camp for the first time, I was nervous about how the local community would receive me. I do not exactly blend in as a freakishly tall, white, young western woman. Within five minutes of my arrival I was promptly christened with my Acholi name–Lakeza (meaning “grace” in Lwo)–and adorned with handmade necklaces. Although I am occasionally harassed by men on the street, generally all of the women and children I interact with have been more then friendly (especially the LiA members!).
As a Kiva Fellow, I meet with loan recipients and journal on the social impact of microfinance. Introductions alone are the most time-consuming portion of my interviews; greeting dozens of family members and even neighbors who sneak over to catch a glimpse of the mzungu (white foreigner) can take hours. After casual chatting has died down, I am typically overwhelmed with heaping plates of rice, posho (bread made from maize flour), and matokye (fried plantain). We then travel to the loan recipient’s business and I am filled in on the daily challenges entrepreneurs face.
Conversations normally start with a focus on microfinance but tend to steer towards more personal subjects. It is not my intention to pry, but the Ugandans I have met are fairly open to sharing their backgrounds and experiences–even if it means bringing up painful memories. For instance, I am shocked by how many people were abducted by or lost family members to the Lords Resistance Army (LRA). Some of the stories are quite disturbing; I find myself getting angry that so many of the horrific human rights violations in Northern Uganda never surfaced in the international media. I came to Uganda to learn how microfinance programs can be utilized in conjunction with poverty-alleviation schemes; the effects of war have added a whole new dimension to my initial curiosities about development initiatives. Although some of my initial inquiries have been satisfied, these answers have spawned an entirely new set of questions.
Last week I traveled to Gulu along with 35 LiA members from Kampala for a week long conference. I brought a few novels to occupy myself on the six hour bus ride. I did not get past page one of my book. The women were intent on transforming me into a true Acholi woman and the entire trip was dedicated to Lwo lessons (most of LiA’s members speak Lwo or Luganda) intermingled with instruction on how to create paper beads from recyclable materials. Quite the eventful bus ride, I also experienced by first Ugandan “drive-thru.” I explained that in the US, we have McDonalds; you drive up to a black box, place your order, pull forward to a window, pay, pull forward to a third stop, and receive your food. In Uganda, you pull off to the side of the road at a trading center, flocks of children run up the the bus thrusting sticks of meat, roasted cassava, fried bananas, and live chickens (yes, live!) into the bus windows. You grab whatever meets your fancy, slip a few shillings to the eagery waiting hands outside, and then the bus departs trying not to run anyone over in the process. Chaos!
After arriving in Gulu I was sent to the volunteer house to sleep. We had ten people to fit on four mattresses–a cozy living situation. Nights were spent teaching the LiA members the electric slide and other equally terrible American line dances. There is nothing like a cold bucket shower in the morning to erase feelings of drowsiness from a lack of sleep! For five days, every waking moment was spent talking with LiA members, facilitating discussions at the conference, or fielding questions by children seeking help using the internet. Writing a short email in the community center took nearly an hour to compose because I was drawn into the surrounding conversations; Ugandans love to talk! It does not take an anthropologist to notice that privacy is valued more in the US then in East Africa. During each of my two minute trips to the bathrooms I was assured to hear voices from outside the door asking “Where is Maura? Lets go find her!” In the end I have no complaints, the bonding was worth the lack of personal space.
During the evenings in Gulu I visited a night commuters center. Fearing abduction in their villages by the LRA, children walk miles by themselves to sleep in the centers each night. Hordes of thousands of children used to spend their nights at these centers, but within the last year the number has dropped significantly. Even though peace is on the horizon, because children have spent years sleeping at the centers there are often no available beds or floor space at home to stay. I also frequented the headquarters of a few other NGOs during my week in Gulu. The influx of foriegn aid in this district is incredible, but much more help is still needed.
My flight back home is scheduled for the end August. I have been consumed with my work at LiA and can’t believe that I only have about three weeks left! I hope to do a little sightseeing before heading back to the States and will make sure to post another message to the blog detailing my future adventures in Uganda!
Podcast: What we’re doing in Guatemala
Hi all – Thought you might want to listen to our podcast explaining what we’re up to here in Guatemala with Friendship Bridge. You can listen to it here or go to our podcast page for other podcasts; you can subscribe if you’d like to.
-Randy and Nancy
Lost in Azerbaijan
OK, I’m not really lost, but I have been traveling like crazy the past two or so weeks and have not been able to keep up with journals or blogs! I apologize for the length of this, but I’ll try to recap:
14 – 16 July: I jumped on a mashrutka (a fancy name for a really old, unsafe, run-down mini-bus) and headed two hours north of Baku to NorMicro’s branch office in Khachmaz. I spent Saturday hanging out with Azerbaijani friends I have made on previous visits to Khachmaz this summer. On Sunday I went to the modest seaside resort town of Nabran, but unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate much and the water was really cold. On Monday I visited eight Kiva clients in Khachmaz with translation help from Adam, the U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer assigned to NorMicro in Khachmaz. We walked all over Khachmaz locating clients – at least I’m getting exercise to offset the amount of food I’ve been eating! I’ve been to Khachmaz often enough now that I know a lot of people there – it’s fun to spot clients I’ve visited on previous trips and see that things are still going well for them. While I was in Khachmaz, I spent my nights with two different host families. Azerbaijanis rank near the top of the list of the most hospitable people of the planet…but I do have to admit, all the attention and food and cousins and tea and wedding videos and more tea and photo albums does get a bit exhausting! I definitely did not have a chance to write-up any of my Kiva journals while I was the guest of those families!! (Photo: People and cows enjoying the beach at Nabran.)
17 July: I caught an early mashrutka to the small town of Devechi and met up with Adam and Nafira, a loan officer at NorMicro’s Khachmaz branch. We visited fourteen clients in the Devechi bazaar – nearly every vendor in the bazaar is a NorMicro client! Nafira is very efficient and is well-liked by her clients, so our visits went smoothly and quickly. After a late lunch of mutton kebabs, I returned to Baku.
19 – 20 July: The next morning I took yet another early mashrutka to the central Azerbaijani town of Agsu. In the two days I spent there, I visited twenty Kiva clients with the help of the branch manager, Namik, and his friendly staff. The talk of the town in Agsu that week was the municipality’s new mandate that all street-front shops conform to a specific architectural design. The idea is that Agsu will look much more appealing once all the ramshackle shops are torn down. The downside for shop owners is that the municipality is not helping out at all with the costs of remodeling. They are, however, providing the demolition free of charge. Khilgat’s rented shop had been torn down 2 days before my visit, and Terlan’s shop was scheduled for demolition later in the week. Despite the bad news, the clients were in relatively good humor and showed me the color blueprints for the approved Agsu storefronts, so kindly provided by the municipality. Following these two days of visits I experienced my most exciting taxi ride in Azerbaijan thus far (and that’s saying something…!) – me, two other women, and three children in the backseat of a Lada, with me holding onto a stranger’s baby. Many high-speed hairpin turns and two hours later, we arrived – safely – in Baku. (Photo: Me with NorMicro’s Agsu Branch staff)
21-21 July: Saturday was devoted to spending quality time with my host family – we visited three different aunts in Baku, and, of course, ate and drank tea with all of them. I finally got time Sunday to head to a coffee shop I had found recently that has free wi-fi – it’s geared towards upper crust Bakuvians and expats, so the food and drink prices keep me from hanging out too long! I did manage to get some work done, though!
23 July: I have had so much success in visiting clients with Nafira that I returned to her region to visit six more Kiva clients that live in a small village outside Devechi. Adam and Vagif, another loan officer, helped us out. I was eager to visit agricultural businesses after so much time visiting retail and trading businesses. It was a very, very, very warm afternoon, but the clients were friendly and the visits were rewarding.
24 July: ACDI|VOCA and AMFA class on success stories and business descriptions.
25 July: After reviewing the materials from the business descriptions class, Bahman, the director of NorMicro suggested that I prepare formal Kiva training for his staff. I spent most of the day developing a training plan and trying to locate a venue to hold the training in. My plan is get a projector and an internet connection and walk the staff through everything – understanding how Kiva works, posting business descriptions, journals, etc. I think that seeing the website and understanding who the lenders are will be highly beneficial, especially for those loan officers and branch managers who rarely use the internet and may not yet fully understand the person-to-person connection that Kiva fosters. I expect that this training will enhance the Kiva listings coming from Azerbaijan! Hopefully, we will conduct the training next week…I’ll post an update!
26 – 27 July: I spent two days visiting Kiva clients in the industrial town of Sumgayit. As we pulled into Sumgayit, thick black smoke was billowing out of some sort of plant and was hovering over the town. This town was once the center of the Soviet chemical industry and held the dubious distinction of being one of the world’s most polluted cities. The demise of the Soviet Union resulted in bankrupt factories (but cleaner air), unemployment, plus an influx of internally displaced persons (IDPs) from the Azerbaijani-Armenian conflict. I visited eighteen clients here with help from NorMicro staff members Tasaduf, Ahmed, Bahram, and Board Member, Adalat. (Photo: Sumgayit’s Martyr’s Monument on the Caspian Sea.)
29 July – 1 August (already!?): I spent several days in the southern Azerbaijani town of Beylagan. With the help of NorMicro branch staff members Behbud, Eldaniz, and Arif, and U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer, Carlo, I visited sixteen Kiva clients. I also managed to get some kind of food poisoning that made me fully appreciate the plumbing and toilet situation I have in my place back in Houston! Nonetheless, the client visits went well and I have fully recovered.
2 August: The staff of AqroInvest, another Kiva Field Partner in Azerbaijan, invited me to spend the day traveling to their branch offices in the towns of Imishli, Saatli, Sabirabad, and Bilasuvar. We visited three different IDP villages – I’ll try to post a separate blog about these villages…
3 August: Finally back in the NorMicro head office in Baku – internet access!!
Thanks for reading this far!! I leave Azerbaijan in two weeks, after having spent three months here. I’m starting to get sad. 
But now I gotta get busy finishing up journals!
Kayole, Kibera and lots of Totos
Jambo Jambo everyone from Nairobi! Once again it has been a rather overcast week here in the highlands, but I have faith since we have had two sunny days this week! For all the Kenyans this weather is freezing, but as a Brit, its a normal English summer spent without sun and some rain, pretty standard. So this week has been quite exciting, lots of adventures to report, starting with another trip to Kayole slums outside of Nairobi on Tuesday. Most of the staff went, so it was rather a big day out for us all together, and we were interviewing some people for a project. I was surprisingly asked to be on the panel, and we spent about 5 hours interviewing, with a lunch break and then meetings afterwards. I have been able to visit Kayole a few times now, and have gotten to know some of the Kiva clients there, who are so welcoming and fast becoming friends. I also love all the kids who follow me around with their whispers of ‘mzungu‘ and ‘hello how are you’, one little brave toto (Swahili word for ‘kid’) even came up to me and wrapped his arms around my legs with a big smile and runny nose saying ‘Jambo mzungu’. With all the attention and waving I had to do, I told the ANK staff I felt like the ‘Britney Spears of Africa’ which gave them all a giggle.
The staff also thought it was hilaroius that I should want beans and vegetables for lunch; now, I am not a vegetarian per se but I don’t eat a lot of red meat, however the Kenyans LOVE meat here and eat it practically everyday. So for them it was very strange that I should pass on their nyoma choma (barbecued red meat). So for all of you vegetarians out there, be warned before coming to Kenya! There are butcher shops everywhere, all with huge carcasses of animals dangling rather disturbingly in the front windows!
That then brings me to Wednesday, which was a pretty nondescript day except for my bus journey home. Now the buses here are quickly becoming my nemesis. There is just no physical way, in this known universe, to be on time for work. Regardless of how early I might get to the bus stop, I could be waiting for 45 minutes (as is usually the case) or five minutes like I was lucky enough to this morning. So on Wednesday I plop into my seat on the bus and begin the supposedly 10 minute journey back into town. About 20 minutes later the jam is crazy (they call traffic jams, just ‘jam’ here, so imagine my confusion in my first few days here, when everyone kept talking about how bad the ‘jam’ was! I kept thinking they were talking about the raspberry variety!) Anyway, so I am sitting on the bus when the lady behind me starts making some rather unnerving noises. Then the plastic bag comes out. I don’t think I really need to go into any more detail there. Lets just say after 40 minutes of that, I hopped off the bus asap and walked into town. Another typical day!
That night I was also lucky enough to go to an awesome Italian restaurant. Now I know that is lame, considering I am in Kenya and should be partaking in all the great food here, but the only part of me that ever gets homesick is my stomach and I really have to have some home comfort foods now and again. So I indulged in some of the best spinach and ricotta ravioli ever and went to bed with a full happy belly!
That brings me up to August 2nd, Thursday, which was to be my first visit to the infamous Kibera slums finally. I was a bit nervous about going, but also excited to meet all the Kiva clients there. Myself and another ANK staff member took a matatu (party on a bus) and then another bus to get to Kibera which is about 20 minutes from Nairobi. As the bus pulled up, I could see what looked like another town; paved roads lined with shops and vegetable kioks, cars, bikes, houses, pretty standard stuff really. We disembarked and walked into the city; down some roads and met a Kiva client, then continued along the road deeper into Kibera. This was where the paved roads ended and the dirt track began. Kibera is hilly, set amongst some rolling hills that are actually quite pretty, and it allows you to see the rooftops of the slums and get some notion of how vast this area is. I stumbled down some muddy ‘stairs’ and we continued to visit clients. How anyone can know where they are going is beyond me, I would have been lost in 5 seconds had I been on my own, since obviously there are no signposts and new shacks and buildings are going up all the time as the population grows.
As we walked deeper into Kibera, this was where is became more ‘slummy’ (if that is a word!) there was literally mountains of garbage, with goats and dogs picking at the leftovers, most of the ‘houses’ are tin roofed shacks that don’t look like they could survive the slightest tremour or storm, and the smell is funky to say the least. However, Kibera definitely has a different ‘flavor’ than the other slum areas I have visited, its almost like its own micro country, its really hard to describe, but to be honest it was not quite as bad as I was dreading, I think Kiambiu is a bit worse. People are able to have televisions and refrigerators,(although the electricity is illegally tapped off of the main grid by middlemen, who charge the people living in the slums money for an inconsistent supply of power) however sometimes the power company gets fed up every few months and just cuts them off.
The people are so friendly, and the little totos were running around chanting ‘hello how are you’ in chorus. It makes for a very interesting day out of the office. Although don’t get me wrong it is extremely depressing at the same time since you have to wonder how can all these people ( no one really knows how many people there are in Kibera, some might estimate one million) ever be pulled out of poverty to lead a healthy life that they deserve. Its quite disheartening, but at the same time I am in my idealistic phase of life, and I really believe that micro finance is our best weapon in the fight against poverty, helping people to help themselves; rather than just throwing money at governments then to have it disappear.
Oddly enough, Judy, the ANK Project Officer who took me to Kibera, told me that most of the people living there are not really that poor. Why would they choose to live that way then? And the answer is largely that its sooo much cheaper to live in the slums than in a formal estate- trust me when I say Kenya is not as cheap as I was expecting, I am struggling to pay my rent! So people just decide to stay. I have been in homes where they have full on entertainment systems, despite the fact they live in what I guess could be called a mud house!
So thats about enough of my ramblings, today I have another visit to Kibera planned to meet some more of the clients then hopefuly tonight attending a barbecue where I will partake in some nyoma choma! So, until next week, baadaye!
(Will try and upload some photos later, the internet is being so slow at the moment!)
A few days in Tanzania
Last week I had the pleasure of taking a few days off from my duties as a Kiva Fellow to go on safaris in Tanzania. I joined my uncle and cousin who were on vacation from the US; they travelled with a group of about 15 other people.
I left Nakuru early Friday morning for Nairobi. I had beat my uncle and his group there, so I checked into a room and explored a bit – the hotel, the shopping mall across the street, etc. I also checked to see if the bookstore would have Harry Potter 7 – to my delight, they did and I ordered a copy for myself and for my cousin. (We were a bit disappointed the next morning when we picked up the books though – we expected crazy lines and tons of kids dressed as wizards, but no dice. I guess that mania is only in the US and UK.)
The group arrived – we all had lunch at Sarit Center, the shopping mall. We ate in the food court. It was unlike any food court in the US – the food was actually really good in terms of quality. Also, after you order your food at the counter, you sit down and have your food brought to you – waiter service at a food court! We had a mixture of Indian food and pizza – after weeks of having the same combination of beef stew, rice and other Kenyan dishes, it was a welcome change.
Friday night all the kids (I use that word just to distinguish from adults; I was the youngest of the kids) went to this club Gipsy’s a block or two away from our hotel. Apparently it’s really popular in Nairobi, but mostly with the local Indian crowd. There were some foreigners/tourists and local Africans, but it was a lot of Indians. Indians in Kenya have always been part of the upper class and it was no more obvious than it was here. All of the Indian 20-something-year-olds at Gipsy’s were driven there in chauffeured cars, studied abroad in England or the US and only came home in the summer where all they did was party and spend their parent’s money. Most of them lived in huge houses with servants, servants who were invariably Kenyan Africans. After spending the past month meeting and interacting with people at the bottom of Kenyan socioeconomic ladder, being in the lap of luxury made me a bit uncomfortable.
On Saturday afternoon, those of us who were interested went to Carnivore. Carnivore has been named one of the world’s 50 best restaurants and is a huge tourist attraction. The restaurant is really more of an all-encompassing experience. It is one of the few places that has a license to sell game meat. Years ago, before so many animals were endangered, you could go there and eat lion, zebra, buffalo, giraffe, etc. Unfortunately, poaching and hunting have threatened so many species. The only exotic thing we got to eat was ostrich meatballs. Still, it was a great experience and the rest of the meat – chicken, pork, beef, and lamb – was extremely succulent and tasty.
We left Nairobi early Sunday morning, around 8 am. Our week’s travels had been booked through Sunny Safaris. All 18 of us got into this big green bus and started our drive South. We drove until we hit the Kenya-Tanzania border, where we had to stop to fill out paperwork and get our Tanzania visas. There were a bunch of safari groups there trying to get in the country and the office was obviously understaffed and overwhelmed.
It was here that I realized fully one of the biggest things that I’ve learned in Africa. It’s kind of similar to the acceptance and understanding that Leonardo DiCaprio’s character has when he sighs “TIA mate, this is Africa” in Blood Diamond. We ended up waiting at the border for over an hour. About 15 minutes in to that wait, most of the people in our group (and the other groups) were complaining. They were used to American/Western standards of efficiency, but also the fast pace of American life. I just sat quietly on the steps outside the office and people-watched and relaxed. Talking to a good friend of mine who is spending the summer in Cairo, we have both realized that while the slow pace of life here in Africa can sometimes be infuriating and inefficient, it is also a welcome change from the breakneck speed of life in America. It’s a good thing to not always be on the run, to not always be trying to meet the next deadline or living life as a slave to your watch. I’ve learned that if I can’t check my email 5 times a day, I’ll survive. And the time that I waste on Gmail and Facebook, I can use instead to read a book or just enjoy a lazy and relaxed Sunday afternoon.
Something that I also realized as the week went on was how how culturally insensitive and spoiled those of us in the developed world can be. I was already uncomfortable riding through towns very similar to those I visited Kiva clients in (mud “roads”, tin-roof shacks, children dressed in rags running barefoot through the street) in our luxurious Land Rover jeeps with plenty of food and water at our fingertips. It just didn’t feel right on some level. At every slight bump in the road – both the literal and figurative road – along our journey, I could hear people in our group complaining. Heaven forbid that one night you didn’t get perfectly warm water. And how can you possibly complain at the quality of food you are having in luxury lodges every night – buffets complete with salad bars, desserts, a variety of entrees, breads, soups, etc – when the towns you drove past earlier in the day were filled with people who are struggling to make ends meet and get enough food to make it through each day? How can you be rude to and annoyed by the Maasai women who try to sell you their painstakingly hand-crafted curios and goods? Don’t you realize that selling those necklaces is their sole source of livelihood? It’s fine if you don’t want to buy one, but you don’t have to be rude and talk down about the women when you are back in the comfort and luxury of your Land Rover
Okay, I’m done ranting.
Once we passed the border, we drover further south to the town of Arusha. (This is where we transferred from the big bus to three Land Rovers.) Along the way we drove through the foothills of Mt. Kilimanjaro. From Arusha, we set out after lunch for Ngorongoro Crater – a huge crater created 1.2 million years ago when a volcano exploded. The crater is about 19 kilometers in diameter and from the floor to the rim rises the same height as a 70-story building. On our drive up to the lodge (several lodges are built around the crater’s rim) we stopped at an observation point. The view was breathtaking. No matter how many pictures I took, they were severely inadequate. My words cannot describe how gorgeous it was and when I look at the pictures, they really don’t capture the whole scene.
All I can do is urge you to find time in your life to visit this place and see for yourself. A bit farther along the drive up, there was a full-grown male lion just chilling on the side of the road. We drove up like 10 feet away from it and took a bunch of pictures.
He was so majestic and regal – when you’re that close, you understand why lions are the kings of the jungle. It’s also then that you realize just how sad and pathetic lions and other animals that are held in captivity (in zoos for instance) are compared to an animal in the wild.
The next morning we woke before the sun so that we could watch the sunrise over the crater.
Watching that sunrise, I realized a few things. First, I think this was the first time in my life I had ever watched the sunrise. Second, and much more profound, I felt completely at peace. No thoughts stirred in my head and no emotions beat in my heart. I just stood. I was. That’s it. And it was unbelievably and indescribably serene and soothing. Looking back on that moment later in the day, and even now, I realize how special it was. It’s very rare to find a moment in time where you can just be. At every such similar moment in the nineteen years of my life, and I’m talking about moments where you can feel right there in the moment that it is special and should be cherished and appreciated – well, at every one of those moments up until that sunrise, I had always tried to match the profound nature of the moment with some kind of profound thought or decision or emotion. I thought it necessary to try and come to some life-changing decision or realization about my life – about what I was doing, where I was going, etc. Of course, whatever I would think or resolve in the moment was hollow and contrived and frankly, unnecessary. It was only watching this sunrise at Ngorongoro that I understood that you don’t need to match the beauty of the moment with a beautiful thought. You can just sit and enjoy it and be better for it. Don’t get me wrong – I did try to come up with something as I stood on that lodge balcony. And I’ll admit that I was spurred on by thoughts of grandeur inspired by reading Harry 7, in which Harry makes so many big decisions and realizations and what not. But after a few fruitless minutes, I quieted my head and just basked in the growing warmth of the sunlight on my face.
As I stood, I was joined by Paavan, one of the guys on the trip. We struck up a conversation about how beautiful the landscape around us was. I admitted that I have never really been religious in my life and have never really bought the idea of a supreme being creating earth, but rather subscribe to the scientific theories of the Big Bang and planet creation that I learned in my Science-B core last semester. Still, in that moment, I came the closest I ever have to believing in the power of a divine hand shaping the world around me.
The rest of the day was spent on a game drive through the crater floor and then a several hour drive to the Serengeti. We saw another lion, a herd of zebras, wildebeests, a lioness and two of her cubs, hyenas battling vultures for a carcass, elephants, tons of different birds, and hippos.
To see a sampling of all the pictures of the landscape and animals, go to http://picasaweb.google.com/tanuj.parikh/Tanzania
As we drove to through the Serengeti to that night’s lodge (we stayed in a different one every night), the landscape kept changing. Sometimes there were a lot of trees and a river or two, or rolling hills, and other times it was just flat and completely empty plains. When we hit a stretch of vast nothingness for as far as the eye could see, I opened my laptop and tried to connect to the internet via the GPRS network I could access on my cell phone. Lo and behold – it worked. I was able to send a quick few emails to family and close friends. I couldn’t help but smile at how modern technology has shrunk the world – riding in a jeep surrounded by absolutely nothing except open land I could still connect to people half a world away.
Along the drive, we stopped at a Maasai village. We were all taken to see the inside of the huts they live in and were treated to some traditional dances. I even joined in on the dancing a bit, which is more of a jumping to a beat created by the humming and cat-calling of the rest of the group which is assembled in a semi-circle around you. Apparently, that village was also located near the spot where the oldest human skeletal remains were found. At least I think that’s what one of our driver-guides was trying to tell us.
The next two days were relatively uneventful. We went on a bunch of game drives, but didn’t get to see too many exciting things. One of the other jeeps saw a lion kill a zebra. We all got to see a cheetah. We also saw the last bits of the annual wildebeest migration. It’s one of the last great animal migrations on earth. Every year, hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of wildebeests migrate from the Serengeti across the Tanzania-Kenya border to Maasai Mara, and then come back a few months later.
Thursday morning we returned to Arusha and after lunch headed back to the Kilimanjaro foothils for the Capricorn Hotel, supposedly the oldest hotel still in operation in East Africa or something. Unfortunately because it was so cloudy we couldn’t see the actual peak of Kilimanjaro. After stopping at the hotel to drop off our bags, we took a short drive to a nearby waterfall. After climbing down (steps had been carved in to the rocks) to the base, we took pictures and stuff. Then a few of the guys and I got the brilliant idea to go for a swim. I don’t know why, but I’m glad we did. The few of us who swam definitely enjoyed that waterfall infinitely more than the people in our group who just took pictures.
This week I’ve been back at Eb-F’s head office in Nakuru, meeting clients. I depart for Mombasa, a city on the Kenyan coast this weekend. Then in the middle of next week I’m off to Nairobi again. Eb-F has branch offices in both of those locations.
