Simplicity

After moving in with my host family - a traditional Muslim family that lives on the third floor of an apartment complex off a main road in Mombasa - I am beginning to feel at home, to feel a part of the culture. They have 2 boys and 2 girls, all younger than 7, which is a bit of a change that I'll adjust to quickly, I hope :) The language barrier is crumbling quickly though - something I've been waiting for.

I took a nap today after lunch and woke up to go write on the small balcolny outside my room. It wasn't hard to notice how simple things are around here. Below, the balcolny used a brilliant security system to keep folks from breaking in through their window: sharp shards of glass sticking up from the cement wall. Across, on the rooftops of other apartments, lines of clothese hung to dry and womyn washed more with buckets, a brush, soap, and their bare hands. On the street, men sat on old buckets and curbsides, just talking.

When I 'hang out' with friends at home, we must find a good movie to watch, or GO somewhere entertaining. If we want to keep others away from our belongings, we install a state-of-the-line security system, spending way too much money just driving around to compare prices. Interesting how we still use words like 'tribal' or 'native' to describe those who live in places like Africa, also describing the whole continent as 'third world.'

WHAT IS THAT?!

Are we insinuating that we Americans are of the 'first world,' as if the 'developed' nature of our country was not built on the backs of these same life-techniques of simplicity? I'm saying: folks seem a lot happier doing 'third world' pastimes and using 'tribal' building techniques. Food for thought.

I start work on Tuesday (Monday is a national holiday that is unexplainable to me, I guess) and really feel that doing so will make me feel more complete here. Working for Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI) is going to be a great opportunity to break the idealistic nature of what we assume 'nonprofit, grassroots' work is. I'll let you know the real deal :)

P.S: we've really got to drink more chai and pineapple juice. I'll write the government about that and save you all some time.

Whoa, There's that Life Change...

My life is changing here. For the first time in a long time, I am noticing it as it happens. What an incredible feeling.

Being immersed in this people-oriented culture is extremely challenging for this natural, self-proclaimed introvert, but I'm enjoying it more than words are capable of expressing. I have noticed the flow of my life before Kenya was almost completely in line with typical American standards of success (ones I generally wish to denounce). Understand that this is self-criticism too, but we are a fast-paced, goal-oriented, consumer-driven, text-messaging culture that thrives on shallow, empty interactions with one another. So rarely are we aware of how precious that thing called life is.

Yesterday I was driving to the airport to pick up my found luggage with Danny, one of the 3 stie team members who is originally from Ireland. He came here 4 years ago, expecting to stay for 6 months :) After meeting a great guy here doing development, he jumped on board a project and has since created a great school charity. When it started to take off, he commissioned a photojournalist and reporter from Ireland to come cover the success stories. That was 2 months ago, and after the report was finished, the photojournalist stayed around to do freelance stuff.

Last night, he was found dead in a ditch in Nairobi. Danny found out while I was in the car with him on the way to the airport. I've never seen an Irish man so quiet.

There are tons of implications - lessons to learn - from his story. The guy was very well known in Ireland, commissioned by the government to cover international stories all over the world. Young. Talented. But killed in his prime.

I don't know how well I"ll be able to stick to my pledge when I get back to the States, but we have seriously got to reevaluate our priorities. I know folks always say to 'live every moment to the fullest' and, for crying out loud, 'carpe diem' is written on the cash in your pocket, but we are a culture that ignores all of that. I really need to change a few things.

Would love to hear your thoughts. Thanks for the emails. I love you all dearly.
I mean that.

The Beginning

I have arrived! I never thought I would be SO happy to be in a place that I've never been before. Without luggage, sleep, a shower, or a change of clothes, I am still one of the happiest beings on the planet. Africa loves me, Delta doesn't.

Realized earlier today that I just visted...
...3 continents,
...6 states,
...and 8 cities
...flying on 9 planes
in the last week and a half. I sound very cosmopolitain right now. Don't let that decieve you - it's a lie.

I wish I could upload some pictures. The Cairo airport was the first thavt I've been to where I noticed an actual change in atmosphere and setting. It was also the first time I remember really realizing that I'm going to a country that is foreign to me. Not expecting to be immersed so quickly in Arabic culture, the large amounts of people talking in a language I did not understand became a big challenge that I now hate. I tried to use a phone to let the folks in Kenya that I would again be delayed but couldnt figure out the payphones and card system - asking was equally difficult.

Had an entire row to myself during the Cairo-Nairobi flight and slept like a sick child (probably because I resembled one). Flew past Mount Kilamanjaro on the Nairobi-Mombasa flight and have some sweet air-pictures. I'm on an internet cafe computer now that is charging me, but before I leave, guess what my first meal in Kenya was?

Pancakes.
And coffee.
I'm in my element, folks.

The Saga Continues...

I am in the London airport right now paying 1 pound for 10 minutes of internet access - a cheap price to kill the 3 hours that I now have for my new flight to CARIO!! I got off the flight from New York with 30ish minutes to get to a gate across the entire terminal and made it through security and got there in time, just to find out that Delta did not reserve a seat for me. I am not country-hopping, having a jolly time striking up conversations with folks from Finland, South America, India, Japan, and a slew of European countries as I wait to now fly through Cario to reach Nairobi at 4:30 AM. The joys of travelling...

If I had more time, I would expound upon the differences and similarities I've began to notice in peoples from all over the world. This truly is an inter-cultural experience, so while I wish my travels went as planned, flying all over the world certainly has its perks. Hopefully more when I actually land in Kenya...

An Anti-climatic Beginning

Well, I'm not exactly paroozing Amsterdam right now, as previously planned :( My flight coming out of Pittsburgh - yes, the very first plane of the entire trip - was stopped due to air traffic. We had to sit in the plane for an hour after it was delayed from the terminal for half an hour. Leaving at 7:56 for an hour plane ride to JFK to catch a connecting at 9 became a bit stressful but we (two 25ish business-type guys sitting in front of me were from Amsterdam) thought that flight would be delayed as well. It wasn't. We missed it. By 5 minutes.


I waited for Delta to rebook my flight for 2 hours and then another hour while it was actually being rebooked. The guy that helped me was extremely nice - we both had the disease of 'sarcastic tounge' and since I was the only passenger waiting, we had a great time teasing one another. He's from Italy and is planning a month long trip through Europe in a few weeks with his girlfriend who is a flight attendant (how cute, yeah?) and was very excited for my summer in Kenya. It's amazing how much you get to know people while you're waiting on the higher-ups to do their job. He checked me into my flight early, helped me navigate the insanity of JFK, and took care of all my luggage - something that would have required me to go all the way to customer service in another terminal.


I checked into a hotel last night and had a really great time resting. Although this is extremely disappointing and a bit difficult because I can't get ahold of the airline who is taking me from Nairobi to Mombasa, I met some really interesting folks last night in the nearly-vacant terminal and on the shuttle to the airport. *Travel tip #1: kindness will get you a lot further in your travels than blunt annoyance - fake AAA membership to save you money at a hotel or priority seating on a rebooked flight, for instance :)


This is a very factual and bland post, I appologize, but I'm paying for the internet right now from my hotel's business center. They will get a lot more entertaining and full of pictures, I promise. I fly to London tonight at 8:30 PM so have a lot of time to kill but am unsure how to spend it. I then rush to Nairobi and hopefully catch a connecting that will put my into Mombasa at 11:30 tomorrow night. Kind of a 'blah' start to a great trip. I hope you all are doing well and keep me up-to-date on your lives. I will rarely check Facebook but will check my Gmail account if you can't respond to this blog: jhollern@gmail.com.


Peace and Love.