The Highs and Lows of My First Week!

Wow, I can't believe that tomorrow will be the one-week anniversary of me arriving in Kenya. Frankly, it has moved quite fast. I know from experience that time spent living abroad moves differently than time in your home country, oscillating between crawling unbearably slowly and streaking by. So much has happened this week, so many new experiences, and I am definitely still trying to find my footing.

Wednesday and Thursday were basically spent getting myself familiarized with the work I'll be doing for Term 2, especially with the plans for Baby and Nursery classes. I was given an external hard drive with just a ton of documents on it, so I was able to look through it all and figure out what they have done in the past and what the plan might be for the future. I am excited about all the freedom I have, and the fact that I get to do some really fantastically awesome things, like write children's books (a bucket list item of mine!) that will be illustrated by professional Kenyan illustrators (some of which are absolutely phenomenal) and sent out to all our schools. How freaking cool is that? I'm so ready to get working and already have some great ideas. I have also met a ton of people this week (I remain, sadly, terrible with names) but some are starting to stick. It is a little tricky for me to come in new because they don't have any sort of roster listing people's names and jobs, so I am just going to have to take a bunch of notes...or drive Jared crazy asking over and over again, haha. So far, everyone has been lovely, and I seem to get along really well with everyone I've met so far. Virginia, one of the girls on my team, is quite quiet, but I am working on making friends and bringing her out of my shell. My commute still sucks.

On Friday, a few of us left the office around 11:30am and headed out to Karen, a suburb of Nairobi. Karen is very different from where I live (Lavington) in many ways. It is definitely more suburban, with lots of green space and more single family/smaller homes than we have here. We left the office and took a road that skirts along Nairobi National Park, which is quite close to city center. Many who go back and forth between the city and Karen get a yearly pass to the Kenyan National Parks (~$300 for the year) which allows unlimited access to all parks. This allows them to 1. enjoy the park on weekends without worrying about the cost, and 2. use the park to avoid traffic every once in a while. The only problem is that sometimes you might come across something like...oh, you know...a rhino that won't move off the road so you have to wait. TIA. This is Africa. The road we took is in the process of getting majorly updated and expanded. Many of the new larger roads and highways being built in Kenya are being completed by Chinese contractors. Apparently, they used to bring in whole teams of Chinese labourers (see what I did there? trying to acclimate to British English), but the Kenyan government wasn't real pleased by that, so now there is usually one Chinese foreman (who bizarrely wears a rice farmer hat at all times) and all Kenyan labourers working under him. The roads are apparently going up much faster now, which is good, and will hopefully be more reliable and stronger than the current roads that absolutely disintegrate under any kind of weather or traffic.

When we got to Karen we stopped a few places to pick up a few things, and then headed over to Erin's house. Erin is the girl I am taking over for, who had a baby about two and a half weeks ago. She, her partner, and her little girl live in an even more secluded area of Karen. Their compound is quite pretty, and is basically a series of small, one-story, single family homes all connected like a snake. They have a pretty extensive property, which includes a lovely wooded area, stream, volleyball courts, etc. There are also lots of dogs on the compound, owned by various families, so I got to talk to them as well (I miss Rusty and Belle!). We talked work for a while (including me finding out that the documents I was looking at for long-term planning were not the correct ones, oops) and then chatted over some KFC. It was really nice. After our meeting, I got dropped off at the Junction Mall, where I bought a few quick things at Nakumatt and headed home via taxi. Overall it was a good first week of work. I know, however, that things are going to pick up soon, as we really get more into crunch time for planning and producing documents. My team is responsible for producing scripts for 595.33 hours of instruction for three grades. And that's just Term 2. And it has to be done by the third week in March. NO PRESSURE!

Outside of work there have been some ups and downs as well. Kenya Water and Kenya Power have been driving us CRAZY this week! We have lost power four times (with hours ranging from a few minutes to hours in length) and we are currently in kind of a fight with Kenya Water. Last Tuesday, they came by when we were both at work, and shut off our water, saying we hadn't paid. Now, first, a little background. Water here is not like water at home. You have to get it delivered, either from the city or from a private provider. Behind our apartment building, there is a series of water tanks, one for each apartment. These tanks should be automatically filled by the city once a week. Then, we have a mechanism that pumps that water from the tanks downstairs up to the roof, and it is from there that the water in our showers/sinks/etc is produced. Water usually comes at the end of the week, but if you run out before then, you have to call and have someone deliver some (at a cost, of course). As I said, last Tuesday, Kenya Water came and "shut off" our water, which basically means they disconnected the pipes that allow us to get new water when it is delivered by the city. The problems with this are mutli-fold, but the main point is that we HAD paid, early in fact, and they never should have disconnected us. D called multiple times, and we thought things were worked out.  We got water delivered so that Lorna, our housekeeper, could do our cleaning/wash/etc on Wednesady, and thought we would be fine as we just needed to wait until new water was delivered at the end of the week.

Friday rolls around, and as I finish my shower water starts to wain. By the time we're finished getting ready, it is clear...no more water. None of the spigots produce anything. Ugh. I go down to check the water to see if it is just that the tank on the roof has run out (easy fix, just pump more up from the bottom tank) or if we are out completely. Here is a photo story of what that entails....

Step 1: Go down four flights of stairs to the ground floor.

Step 2: Walk down the slightly sketchy walkway between the shop and building.

Step 3: Go around to the back of the building.

Step 4: Find your water tank. Each apartment has their own locked tank.

Step 5: Open the cover, and see the actual tank.

Step 6: Open the tank. See that you have only about an inch of water left in the bottom.

Step 7: Dejectedly climb up 4 flight of stairs. Try not to get sweaty, because you know there is no refreshing shower waiting for you. Fail.

Step 8: Back into the apartment.

Step 9: Prepare to take a bucket shower using reserve water.

Step 10: Be less than thrilled about it.

Saturday morning we checked again, and STILL didn't have water, so we were back on the phone with Kenya power and our groundskeeper, Godfried. Turns out that they never reconnected us, so even though the city delivered water, we didn't get any in our tank. RAWR. And since it was now the weekend, there was nothing they could do until Monday. Gross. I don't know if most of you have any concept of how freaking annoying it is to not have water. To have to go into the reserve buckets for showers and handwashing (saving the water from each in a separate bucket to use to flush the toilet). To not be able to wash dishes or prepare food. It is obnoxious as hell. Trust me.  Finally today we had water delivered and I cannot cannot cannot wait to take a real shower! I am so excited.  I had to laugh when I was telling my mom about the various struggles with utilities, and she said (aghast) "Where are you LIVING?!" Surprise...a developing country. TIA.

When we woke up this morning the power was out (again) so I spent some time reading and preparing for an endless stream of people who were coming through the house today to get stuff done. First up: Henry, the contractor, coming to fix a leak in the roof on our back porch. Then Kuria, our carpenter, coming to drop off some frames he made for D and discuss plans to make my bed (modeled after the Malm... "But don't let me lay eyes on the Malm collection. I can't afford it, an I'm a sucker for it every time!" -Nick, New Girl), the guestroom bed, and my night table (all handmade to my exact specifications, for $415 total). Then Kilimani with a water delivery. Then Sam to discuss art and framing with D. It has been packed! And D has done even more stuff, outside of the house. Now I am just waiting for the electrician to come and fix a couple of things (like that light socket we messed up in the last entry), and that should be it for a little while. Whew. There are so many little things that come with moving into a new place and getting acclimated, I just look forward to more relaxing weekends with more exploring in the future.

BUT, this weekend (obviously) was not without a totally awesome, heartwarming, uplifting experience! On Saturday, D and I got to go with some of her Embassy colleagues to the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, who work in Nairobi National Park. Began in the 1970s, this organization fosters orphaned baby elephants and rhinos, with the ultimate goal of reintroducing them into the wild where they can live the lives that they were supposed to. Babies are picked up all over Kenya, and come from not just a variety of environments, but also a variety of situations. Many have mothers who were victims to poachers. Poaching for ivory and rhino horn is pretty dire in Kenya right now. It was a huge problem in the 80s, but then was pretty much brought under control. However, recently the desire for ivory and horns in Asia has exploded (which is probably not helped by the influx of Chinese contractors mentioned earlier) and they have been using pretty technologically advanced weapons and resources to carry out really brutal murders. Just last week, a family of 11 elephants were gunned down in Tsavo West National Park, their tusks brutally hacked off, in one of Kenya's worst poaching incidents in recent memory. It is heart breaking. It is estimated that the trade in wild animals and products is the fourth largest illegal global trade after drugs, counterfeit goods, and humans. An estimated 38,000 elephants are killed each year for their ivory. Please consider this when thinking about buying ivory products! And then don't do it. Other babies lost their mothers to farmers who are angry that the elephants are encroaching on their crops and territory, and still others fall victim to natural circumstances such as drought. The remaining babies are often rescued from wells or pit latrines that have been dug by local communities. When their family members are unable to get them out, they must leave them for the good of the herd.

Elephants are pretty incredible. They experience and express a wide range of emotions, their memory rivals that of humans, and they seem to have a fairly deep understanding of what is going on around them. Above all, they are family oriented, and it is extremely psychologically damaging for these orphans to be left behind, regardless of the reason. The keepers said that the elephants older than six months old who lost family members to poaching are often extremely afraid of their human keepers because they remember that it was humans who inflicted such pain. However, the good news is that they also learn quickly. The elephants become quite attached to their human handlers, often looking up to them as a kind of foster parent. Baby elephants are totally milk dependent for the first three years of their lives, so the handlers must feed them every three hours, 24/7. Handlers sleep in little bunk beds in each elephant stall, and become quite close with the babies. It was so great to watch the babies interact with their handlers as well as each other. They're a lot like human children, being silly and pushing each other around, etc until their handlers scold them and then they look contrite.

It was extra special that we go to go to a private viewing, as well. Usually there are 100+ people, all crowded around, trying to catch a glimpse of the babies. We had 30. And about that many elephants. It was AWESOME.  We got to get very close and interact with them, watch them play, get all muddy thanks to their spraying, etc. It is an absolutely incredible experience! I'm so thankful D was able to get me on the list.

And now, for some photos! Our group, who all had connections to the US Embassy here, met at a Java House over near the embassy.

Jackson whisking us off. Notice the almost non-existent weekend traffic!

 After we hooked up with the rest of the group and boarded the bus, we battled construction traffic to get over the Karen Galleria Mall. We had about two hours to kill, so we had a great leisurely lunch with D's boss, Michael, and his two kids. They are a senior in high school and a sophomore in college, so we talked a lot about future plans, etc. It was great to relax and have a good conversation as the excitement of baby elephants built! After lunch we got back in the bus (and took like 20 minutes to get out of a spot...life lesson: don't park a bus in a car spot at a busy mall) and completed our short journey over to Nairobi National Park.

After lunch at the Karen Galleria, we headed out to DSWT.

One of the rangers gave us an overview of the project, and what they do at the Orphan's Center.

This is one of the stalls that the babies sleep in. Their keepers sleep in the bunk bed so they can be easily accessible for night feedings.

Heading back, through the beautiful compound, to see the babies.

The bottles are all lined up and labeled for each baby.

Here they come!

Seriously, could this get any cuter? She's trying to hold her keeper's hand!

Gaaah, so adorable. And messy!

One of the slightly older babies.

This animal is one big ball of crazy adaptations.

Some were just soooooo twee and cute. Look at him snarfing the mud.

Originally they told us the babies would come out in batches. We figured one group would leave and another would arrive, but they just kept coming!

Teehee, look at that little trunk!

After they ate, they all crammed into these small mud holes to play and cool off. This one liked stomping around and splashing.

D and one of the keepers. And a baby elephant face planting in the background. 

Having a snack and playing can be exhausting work!

There were so many!

The little ones often emulate the bigger orphans. It is precious.

Some delicious leaves?

Don't mind if I do.

AAAAAAHHHH so freaking cute.

Look at me, I can streeeeeeetch out my trunk.

BFFs?

Look at that crazy skin!

The little ones were just so ridiculously cute.

They ranged from about shoulder high....

To about waist high.

They loved D's boss, Michael, because he had a water bottle in his fanny pack and they were SURE it hid more milk.

So sleeeeeepyyyyyyy.

The elephants love to play and get mud splashed on them. It helps them cool off on warm days (it was about 80F yesterday). This handler was only too happy to oblige.

Someone got a little dirty! They use their trunks to wipe their eyes (which are already protected by ridiculously long eyelashes) and look like little kids. Totes adorbs.

This rather unladylike elephant decided to poop in the middle of my photo. Fun fact: Baby elephant poop looks a lot like guacamole.

And then, it was time for them to go of and play somewhere else!

I did really well staying clean until a six-month-old sprayed me during the last five minutes. Pesky kids! 

Don't get me wrong, I like elephants. But rhinos...man they are something else. They're so cool. And this might be my FAVOURITE rhino.

This is Maxwell. I challenge you to find a better name for a big, doofy black rhino. 

Maxwell is blind. He was discovered when he was less than a year old, frantically running around Nairobi National Park, unable to find his mother. It is likely that his mother left him because he was unable to follow her.

Unlike the other rhinos and baby elephants, Maxwell will never be able to be reintegrated into the wild. Black rhinos are solitary, and males must be able to define and protect their territory. Since Maxwell cannot see, he would not be able to defend himself or his land, and would be killed by wild rhinos.

So, instead, Max will spent the rest of his life at the trust. He's safe, and has lots of friends. He's turning seven next month, and since rhinos often live between 35-50 years, he has a lot of good life ahead of him. Elephants will come visit him, rattle his gate until he comes over, and then tap him on the head with their trunks to say hi. Tell me that is not among the cutest things you can possibly imagine.

Basically I love him and want to be his friend.

I love that rhinos are just made up of myriad ridiculous features. Look at that horn and nose! Those toes and jelly rolls! Those absurd Shrek ears! I LOVE THEM.

These are the stockades (or, as I like to think of them, dorm rooms) for the baby elephants.

When it gets cold, the baby elephants are kept warm by tying these blankets around their shoulders. Like a cape. I'll give you a second to imagine that.

All of this is thanks to Kenya Wildlife Services, and the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.

Love their logo.

If you ever get a chance to visit DSWT, especially on a private tour, you should absolutely jump at the opportunity. It is not to be missed.

Not to be outdone, we ran into this industrious little dung beetle in the parking lot on the way back to the bus, as well.

As I said, the babies are totally milk dependent for about the first three years. When they are about 2.5 years old, they are relocated to a second site, down at Tsavo National Park. There, they spent the next few years being weaned off milk, learning to interact with other elephants, and eventually, hopefully, integrating back into a wild herd. There are herds of elephants in Tsavo right now that are made up, in part or in whole, of former orphans that would have surely died without DSWT. And that is awesome. Sometimes, when an elephant has moved on, been accepted by a wild herd, and had a baby of their own, they will return with it to show the handlers. As if to say, "See mom? I did good."