Liv in Kenya

 While on the coast in Mombasa we had the chance to meet with many locals and learn about the history and culture in the area. The Mombasa community is primarily Muslim, and religion is at the center of the town. We met with three Swahili mothers, a primary school teacher, a healthcare worker, and a Swahili professor. We discussed issues relating to the intersection of race, gender, and religion and the potential for discrimination and violence. The police force in Mombasa (and the rest of Kenya too) is mostly Christian, and the Muslim community routinely faces religion-based police violence.  Speaking of police, we also visited with HAKI Africa (acronym for humanity, activism, knowledge, and integrity), a human rights organization combating extra-judicial killings carried out by the police. Since Kenya initiated a military presence in Somalia to combat the extremist youth group Al-Shabaab, there has been an uptake in Al-Shabaab recruiting within Kenya. This has led to a war o...

Just returned from a week in Amboseli followed by a week in Mombasa (next post). We stayed at a lodge on the outskirts of the park and did day trips from there. The local population is primarily Maasai, and we had the opportunity to visit multiple Maasai homes to learn about issues regarding human-wildlife conflict, land availability, the ongoing drought, and more. The Maasai we spoke with explained how their community is shifting away from the pastoralist lifestyle towards a hybrid of agro-pastoralism. This is due to the numerous environmental and societal pressures they face. Currently, Maasai group ranches are undergoing subdivision. Having ownership over land, while not present in the traditional Maasai society, is becoming necessary in order to secure land rights.  Aside from visiting with the Maasai we of course went on game drives in the national park! Buckle up for some safari pics.  First look at Kilimanjaro right from our lodge! Elephants! Seeing these creatures was ...

 So sad to leave our home stays this week, and hard to imagine we're already half way through the semester. The Kimani family was incredibly kind and welcoming and gave me so many awesome Nairobi experiences. Cannot thank them enough, and I feel sure we'll meet again! Ciku biked with me a few times while I ran. So much fun to have some 11-year-old energy around! Elle and I made chicken pot pie for dinner one night. Had to get creative with a few ingredient substitutions but turned out pretty ok!  Last night with our family we went out to dinner and celebrated Ciku's early birthday.  Visited the Giraffe Center, and got to see them right up close! The giraffes have a large open space to roam, but come up to the fence to be fed. I enjoyed learning about various wildlife conservation efforts in the museum portion of the center. We also watched oxpeckers eating ticks off the giraffes backs, so cool.  Look at that face! Out to dinner as a group at a rooftop restaurant. Del...

 More classes this week, and another field trip on Friday. We visited SHOFCO, a nonprofit with the goal of empowering women living in informal settlements, or slums, across the country. We toured the Mathare branch of SHOFCO, and learned about the services offered at the health clinic, the girls primary school, and adult vocational skills classes. Seeing the contrast of wealth and resources in places like Mathare and Kibera (the largest slum in Africa) compared to other parts of Nairobi is staggering. Getting to talk with people who live and work in these informal settlements has been really powerful in shaping our perspective on topics such as wealth and development. The dominant narrative surrounding slums is so flawed, and I think it's incredibly important to evaluate our attitudes toward these topics. In addition to our field trip to SHOFCO, I had multiple excursions with my host family this week, and feel like we've really gotten to know each other. My sister Ciku and I di...