Here in Kenya, and I get the impression that it extends to most of eastern Africa, ugali is king. Ugali is a cornmeal side dish with the consistency of very, very, very thick mashed potatoes. It's cut it with a knife thick, and it soaks up just about anything. Here it's served at every meal, and people absolutely love it.
I'm straying from what was going to be my point though, which is the food here. So far it's been really enjoyable, especially considering that I thought I would have lots of trouble as a vegitarian. Lots of lentals, cabbage, and kale. Afterwards we usually get some fresh avacados, which are longer and softer then what we get in the states, or local mangos. Pretty amazing, though don't get me wrong, I'll be happy to leave the many-times daily ugali behind.
Of course I've failed to mention one other favorite around here...Tea. The daily schedule is usually wake up at 6:30-7, tea at 8, work until tea at 10, tea with lunch around 1:30, and break for the day with tea at 5. Sometimes tea after dinner. The tea is steeped in boiled milk, and you're expected to put at least 2 teaspoons of sugar in, most locals do 3. In every cup. I never thought I'd say it in my life, but I might actually get tea-ed out here (As a side note, although they grow both tea and coffee here, they really don't drink much coffee).
On a less food oriented note, this last Saturday we got to travel to Kisumu, the second largest city in Kenya, and Kenya's main port on Lake Victoria. It's an hour and a half drive from Kakamenga, and it was also the focus of a lot of the violence during the election. The challengers tribe, the Lao's, are based there, and they felt cheated in the process (rightfully so it sounds like). The town is still scarred by burned out buildings, but the work at the peace center is trying to bring some reconciliation to the different groups. On this Saturday though we were there for a more touristy experience, and took a boat out onto the lake to watch hippos and crocodiles. The lake is amazingly beautiful, and although the hippos are really shy, we got to see a couple of herds in the water. The photo above is Patrick, Angela, Sammy, and me right before we got into the dugout canoes for the tour. On Sunday we attended the local Quaker meeting (2+ hours, and it was supposedly a short one) and got to spend some time with the children at the attached orphanage, playing games and singing. Their situations are usually so overwealming and sad to hear from the caretakers, but they seem so unphased and are the most amazing kids. It's been a great time so far, and the weekends are just as packed as the week. Until next time!
4 comments:
Thanks for the update! Sounds like things are going well. Let's get together for tea when you get back.
It's wonderful hearing your "voice" as you share stories of Ugali and your life in Kenya. Sending you lots of hugs on your important journey!
Lookin good Mac, keep the stories commin, love to hear about the trip. I would imagine it is an emotional roller coaster between the children's stories, the work progress, and the fun times. Looking forward to debriefing when you get back.
Yeah man we ate "mealie pap" in South Africa and it sounds identical to ugali. Basically their staple food; it is completely tasteless but full of calories, and you dip it in other stuff to give it some flavor. That's sick you saw hippos on Lake Victoria, I only saw one on my safari and it was a long ways off. You really need to be in a boat to get close, so that's sick you got to do it!
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