Arrived in Nyeri! – Day 1

As our plane flew over the Kenyan countryside, the view of the amazing topography quickly distracted us from the weariness of what was then 36 hours since we woke up and started our journey from
San Jose. Whatever my mental picture was of “Africa” before, it was quickly replaced with views of vast green stretches, drastic elevation changes, sparse evidence of population (except in the large city of Nariobi), simply a sheer, natural beauty I had not seen contained in one single location ever before. I think that was the first time it really hit me that we were in “
Africa”. 

Getting through customs was painless. The queue for the VISA was quite long, and Tim and I  envisioned a wait of at least 30 minutes, maybe 45. We were at the very back of an apparent non-moving line when a very “helpful local” struck up a conversation with us and ultimately took us to another part of the airport where we were immediately #2 in a VISA line. Only cost us 500 shillings (about USD $7) for his help and well worth it to avoid the line. After spending the next 30 minutes looking for our luggage, one of a traveler’s most dreaded fears, “lost luggage”, became real as we discovered Tim’s bag never made it. We think it must have been held up in Heathrow customs as it contained a couple of firewall devices his company “SonicWall” generously donated for this trip. Unfortunately it also contained all the soccer balls, Frisbees, chocolate (Thank you Dr. Ho) and various other “gifts” we were bringing to the children. Oh, and of course, all of Tim’s clothes. The search is on, and maybe we will still see it before too many days have passed. Tim needs clean underwear….. 

Father JB was there to greet us, having arrived on time, and thankfully had sufficient patience to still be warm and welcoming as we walked through the arrival gate “only” an hour and 15 minutes late. The weather was rainy but fairly warm, and we set out on our 90 mile journey through
Nairobi and on to Nyeri, our final destination. Monday morning traffic through Nairobi was not unlike any other overcrowded city having wet streets, and lanes being shared by autos, buses, bicycles loaded down with goods, people drawn wagons and many, many pedestrians. I found myself thinking that although from the sky this area seemed very enticing, once on the ground, this would not be a tourist destination I would ever likely choose. 

Once out of
Nairobi, the travel proceeded at a very fast pace. I have not seen so many animals along the roadside. Cattle, donkeys, lambs, and all with many seemingly newborn additions, and all quite domesticated. And oblivious to our car passing by. Or trying to pass by. Beautiful country though. This area is world famous for their coffee (one of their biggest customers is Starbucks) and their tea. What was surprising was also how prevalent was also pineapple, mango, grapes (yes, they make wine here too), corn……virtually anything they wanted to grow. The climate and fertile soil is very conducive to growing almost anything. Dotted often along the way were small fruit stands, all selling the local produce.  We stopped at a few of the roadside stands, the people were very friendly and the prices were quite reasonable. The taste was excellent. 

One thing that struck me was how many of the pedestrians all along the drive, wore no shoes. Apparently, although often a necessity due to lack of money, much of the time this is a preference. Seemed odd considering the weather was rainy and the roadside was rocky. And so many pedestrians, even far out in the country. 

We finally arrived at Father JB’s “residence”. This is where we were informed we would be staying as well. Although very humble, and scarce of luxury, it is a very warm and loving environment. We are very happy to have an opportunity to make this our home for the next couple of weeks. 

After a luke-warm shower and a nap for about an hour, it was off for a quick tour of some of the Parish coffee fields and then “dinner” prepared and served by the children living in the compound run by Father JB. 

The children are wonderful. They were so excited to receive us. The food was very tasty, and the serving size was far more than we could finish. The meal was made up of a little mutton, and lots of vegetables. Desert was fresh pineapple and watermelon and limes. The children then sang several songs to us, some in English, some in Swahili, and all with a very heartfelt expression of welcome. Two very young children, maybe 4 or 5 years old, then recited two poems to us that they had written. They were in Swahili, but we were told they were about AIDS and having hope and how thankful they were to go to school everyday. Perspective to be cherished and coveted to be sure. Tim and I both are excited about the opportunity to spend time with these “role models” starting tomorrow. 

OK, sorry for rambling on. I want to write much more about the children, but something tells me there will be opportunity often over the course of the enxt several days. I am ready for a much needed night’s sleep. I think Tim is already counting sheep, and I will be out as soon as my head hits the pillow. Good first day. Exciting to think about what tomorrow will bring.  

Good night.