Tuesday 19th October.
For the Want of a Tin Opener
We were up late today at 20 to 8, the boys are already here and Chrissie has gone down to see the mechanic who started to work on the Toyota at first light (6.30). Whilst she is away Sandy catches up with some washing, she has seen how nice my hands are and wants to try the OMO. Christine is back sooner than we thought, the cylinder head gasket has been changed she thinks but the translation of technical matters is sometimes difficult. Anyway the truck seems to be running OK, but still not as well as it was before the big job in Nairobi. We decide that whilst it is still functioning we should visit some more schools to hand out stationery, so Cyrus, Brenda, Sandy, Chrissie and I set out.
First stop is Muganjuki Primary where the children are all out in the yard, between lessons. They are so excited to see us and they crowd round Sandy when she gets out of the Toyota. Eventually a stern looking lady teacher restores some sort of order and we walk to the Headmaster’s office. He is very happy with the pens and pencils and wants us to sign the visitor’s book. The next school is Kathunjuri Primary where we see Lucy who is one of the Peacemakers Trustees. She wasn’t able to get to the meeting the other day but is so glad to see us and introduces us to some of the other staff and the Deputy Head Teacher. The Head is away and so we give the pens to her after a photograph. Finally we travel to Kyeni Primary where one of Graces’ relatives works, Chrissie also knows the Head Teacher here, they have met at one of the many weddings that Grace seems to attend.
Over this side of the valley there are lots of tea plantations and it’s very lush, you can see the mountain range in the distance and the region is very hilly. We round off our visit with a trip to the Blue Cross Rehabilitation Centre which is very remote and at the top of an extremely steep hill.
This is run by Tanya, a German girl, and Ken, her husband who is Kenyan and is in Nairobi trying to buy a truck. The setting is very beautiful and the views are stunning. The only downside is that the Toyota is overheating again so we leave it to cool down whilst we have a guided tour of the place. Tanya has 2 girlfriends visiting from Germany; they are all tall, blond and good looking. There are 20 recovering addicts living at the Centre and we meet them all. There are also 4 orphans that Ken and Tanya have taken in. Tanya’s house is lovely and the whole place is an amazing haven.
We have to pour cold water over the radiator to cool it down before we can add more water. The truck hasn’t got enough power to get back up the slope so we all get out and everyone lends a hand to push. Christine has instructions to keep going until she reaches the top where she stops; we say our goodbyes and walk up to the Toyota and climb aboard. The roads are pretty bad all the way back to the site, but we make it in one piece apart from loose tooth fillings. There is some good news when we return, Isaac has found somewhere where we can buy bricks at 4 shillings each, the last lot cost 12 shillings and the cheaper ones are bigger and have a better shape.
It’s spinach and sukuma and chai for lunch which is very welcome. I am filthy from the dust and we are all tired from the heat, the travelling and the altitude. Later in the afternoon I wash my hair and get a shave which makes me feel much better. Christine takes the vehicle back to the mechanic while we prepare the evening meal. It was to have been tuna and pasta but because we have lots of spuds Brenda thinks we should make tuna fishcakes. We get everything ready but then realise that we don’t have a tin opener! Christine returns to tell us the mechanic will work on the Toyota first thing in the morning (again). We decide to have fried eggs instead of the tuna and Virginia joins us for the meal. She is living with Esther, one of the ladies who cooks for us. Thankfully she only lives next door so Virginia hasn’t far to walk in the dark. At last I get Christine to sit down at the computer with me. We download all the photographs from her camera onto the computer, there are 800 which take some time to transfer. In the meanwhile I get her to look at the Peacemaker UK minutes to update them and then the Peacemaker Kenya minutes that Sandy and I had finished, by which time the photographs are done. I copy them and some other information onto a memory stick to take back home with us. Suddenly, it’s bed time, it is quite cold in the night, which will keep the mosquitos at bay, but it hasn’t rained again for the last two days.
Wednesday 20th October
Sad Goodbyes.
It should be a reasonably relaxing day today. Christine went off early to see her mechanic in Runyenjes (again). The first part of the morning is spent catching up with things and we need to start packing because we are leaving for Nairobi tomorrow to stay with John and Susan Edwards who we have known for some time. Isaac and the boys work for John who has his own building business. Just before lunch Sandy, Brenda and I walk across to the disabled school where the boys have started work again on the toilet foundations. After looking at the work and taking some photographs we go to see some of the handicapped children who are sitting under a tree. One of them, John had been left tied to a tree by his family as they could not cope with his handicap. He is 21 years old and is just beginning to talk. We meet Faith, one of the lady helpers who shows us around. The boys and girls have accommodation at the school and a group of youngsters from the UK had painted some of the rooms together with the walls of the compound whilst they were here during their gap year.
Jane, the youngsters’ teacher joins us and we go outside to see the children again. They sing us several songs led by a girl who is singing lead and beating the time out on a plastic container. She is very good but I wonder what life has in store for her.
After we say our goodbyes Jane shows us a fish pond that is being dug out by both handicapped and able bodied people in the school grounds. We go back to site for lunch which is rice and beans. There are two meetings this afternoon, the potential new Trustees meeting and another one so we tidy up and change the seating around. Sandy had already swept and mopped the hall out in the morning but it very soon got dusty and muddy again. It is a national holiday today (Kenyatta day) so everyone finishes work after lunch including our cook which means that there is no Chi for the meetings and lots of washing up to do. The fire had gone out so I have to get it going again, Chrissie comes back for a late lunch and helps Sandy and I prepare the evening meal which we are sharing with Patrick and Harriet. Grace and Catherine visit with some chapattis for the meal. They say goodbye to us and we are sad because we have hardly had chance to see Grace on this visit. They are going off to a wedding reception, which seems to be a regular occurrence for Grace. A Land Rover from the 1950’s turns up, it has a convertible top and would be quite a rare find in England, it’s owned by the husband of one of the new Trustees. Christine departs again as the mechanic has told her that the truck will be ready at 4pm. We also say our goodbyes to Sammy and he is a bit disappointed that we have not been able to visit him and Apinja, his wife. I tell him I will write to them. It is nearly 6.30pm and Harriet arrives, but Patrick is still at another meeting.
We realise we don’t know how to make Chi for the Askaris so we have to ask Michael how to make it. There are no complaints that night so it must have been alright. Patrick arrives and we get a message from Christine to start without her. It is beef stew, chapattis, rice and beans. Christine finally arrives; she has left the vehicle at the top of the drive with the engine running. These are instructions from the mechanic. We sing a few songs and Patrick reads to us from 2 Corinthians 4 v 7-12. "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death works in us, but life in you."
Patrick is very good as always and prays for us all and then he and Harriet leave by 8.30pm as they know we have an early start in the morning. We pack and are able to fit our small case into the big one which is a big help, because we brought so much extra with us, then it’s bed by 9.30pm, which must be a record.
Thursday 21st October
Bivouac in Nairobi
We are awake at 5.45 before dawn, a quick wash at the tap and a cuppa, and then we wheel the bags up to the top of the site to the Toyota. Christine has already started the beast just in case. We don’t trust it to get us back to Nairobi so go to pick up Isaac at Runyenjes for the drive to Embu where he will negotiate a good price on the Mutatu that we will be travelling in, then he will drive the truck back to the site. The vehicle seems to be behaving itself on the journey but Chrissie has been told take it easy and not race the engine. At the bus station Isaac goes inside and gets us a vehicle all to ourselves which costs 3000 Ksh including a tip. After goodbyes to Isaac, we are off. The journey back to Nairobi isn’t as bad as our trip up country but it is still hot, dusty and uncomfortable. The A2 road is being redeveloped in conjunction with the Chinese Government and it is chaotic with lots of diversions and traffic jams, however we finally arrive in Nairobi bus terminal which is right in the centre of town.
Our Mutatu driver was quite safe and only got animated a couple of times in discussing the sacking of a Government Minister who was actually doing some good and that the bus terminal is to be sited out of town when the new highway is built. It is hectic and crowded at the terminal so we all go upstairs to the Classic Restaurant for breakfast which is very nice. There is a cool breeze on the upper floor and we can see everything going on in the street below. We have a message on the mobile from George that he is on his way to pick us up. George is John’s driver who I have known since he drove us about in 1998 when I first came to Kenya. He is the most careful and thoughtful man and also the older brother to Isaac, Abs, and Patrick. As we have left our bags at the left luggage we collect them and stand outside looking conspicuously at every likely vehicle that passes. At last George arrives in Susan’s car and we cram into the back. John’s house is across town which is another hot, busy journey. We finally arrive, it is a privately guarded compound but John’s home has an extra gate leading to it. We unload and Joseph greets us, he is John’s cook who is another old friend. The house is small but beautifully finished with an outside kitchen and an add-on tent which is where Sandy and I are sleeping tonight.
John arrives for lunch and shows us round the Shamba (garden) which has a stream meandering through it. We walk slowly up the plot with John explaining his plans for developing the site further, amongst other things he wants to build another house on the land. John has a quick lunch and leaves to finish off some work elsewhere. We are treated to spaghetti bolognaise and salad outside, it is very hot but we are able to sit in the shade. The girls are going to do some shopping in the afternoon so they have a shower and then George will drop them off in town. Just before they leave Susan’s sister, Jane arrives; she has been staying for a few weeks. When they have all gone I have a leisurely shower which is wonderful, my first for 9 days! Then I sit outside the tent and read until John returns. He has to do some shopping locally for wine so I go with him in his old truck which is falling apart. It has no seatbelts and the generator warning light is on continually. We buy wine, nibbles and tangerines and just as we get back so do the girls. They have bought lots of jewellery and ornaments for Brenda’s stall back home which will make money for Peacemakers. Sandy and I have to repack our bags to carry some of the goodies with us. John’s wife, Susan is still at work, she has to help prepare a speech for the President which I suppose is a good enough reason to be late home.
We all sit down for a drink and some nibbles; the plan is to go to an Asian Restaurant tonight so John warns us not to eat too much. Susan finally arrives and after another drink we all squeeze into her truck with John driving. The Restaurant is quite new and very swish and the decision is to sit outside to eat. We all choose something different and all share the dishes. The food is very nice and is very cheap too. It is a lovely, relaxing evening with lots of chat. At last we have to go back and prepare for our trip home. The taxi is booked for 6.30 so we ask for an early call from the Askari at 5.45, it is very nice sleeping in the open with the tent flap up but the wildlife is quite noisy. We both sleep fitfully.
Friday 22nd October
Latte for Late Comers.
Tom, who is John’s Askari, calls us at 5.45, it’s still dark but by 6.00am it is fully light – that’s how near it is to the equator! Chrissie and Brenda get up too to see us off. We do a final bit of packing and the taxi comes at 6.30, Tom takes our bags up the long winding path to the driver. We say our goodbyes and speed off. Already there are lots of adults and school children walking about and even at this early hour Nairobi is snarled up with traffic, there is a huge queue of vehicles on the other dual carriageway as we head out of town towards the Airport. Our driver tells us that it sometimes takes 2 hours to get into Nairobi, because people insist on using their cars, so what’s new?
The Airport is really badly laid out, at our terminal we are dropped off right by a large raised pavement which we have to lift our bags over, then as passengers reach the entrance there is a security scanning machine, so if it happens to be raining a queue forms outside and everyone gets wet. At the Virgin check-in we are asked if we are flying today and where is Marshall Brenda? We explain that she is travelling home later in the month so we are sent to the ticket office to repeat our message and then back to the check-in for our boarding passes. Next we go through security and passport control then up the short elevator to the duty-free area. I take a look at the departures monitor and our flight number doesn’t appear yet.
So we take Susan’s advice and turn left and keep going until we get to the coffee shop at the end, which is the best in the airport. I’m really looking forward to this and we order chocolate croissants and latte. I decide to check our boarding passes which to my horror state that boarding is at 7.30 and it’s at gate 10. It is already 7.45 so I race off to the gate to ask if there is a mistake. No, there are special security checks on the flight today, so I dodge back to the coffee shop, gulp down my coffee and offer the pastry to a nearby customer. We make our way to gate 10 where we go through yet more security checks, body checks and yet again our hand luggage is searched. We then have to wait for nearly 2 hours before boarding. If we want the toilet or a drink we have to go back through security and start again! I notice that our aircraft is surrounded by armed soldiers, which is a bit odd; perhaps there is a celebrity rapper on our flight! Eventually we are allowed to board and find our seats, it’s not too crowded thankfully. I read for most of the flight and Sandy watched a film.
It is sunny and 14 degrees in the UK when we land.
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