5 July (Thursday) Travel to different missions

Today was a day for back roads.  We thought we were going to one school, the Tamalaje Tailoring and Dressmaking School, at the Relief Foundation, where we were going to interact with the students and Lisa was going to interact with her contemporary.  We were also going to drop off a suitcase full of material and spools of thread for the school.  The road there began with a turn to the left at Kungu Karumba Road, rather than the usual turn to the right which is what we do to get to Anajali.  From that point on, I would hesitate to give any indication of where we went.  In any event, we fairly quickly left the city and got into suburbs.  We drove through several long stretches of what could be called roadside shops.  These shops were apparently distributed in districts each of which included a specialized "guild."  There would be furniture for a mile, then, pottery for a mile, basketware for a mile, then nursery after nursery.  These stretches would be interrupted with stretches of mixed roadside shops.  The furniture, especially, appeared to be well-made and many pieces were quite attractive.  Wood and wrought iron appeared to be the major material.

These shop "malls" were punctuated by every now and then by residential areas.  At one point we passed in front of a very large and well-kept estate.  Anne told us that was the Vice-President of Kenya's residence.  After quite a while of this mix of economic residential zones we entered the more open country.  At this point the paving gave way.  At this point as well, any semblance of road maintenance gave way and in one place, so did the road!  We will have a picture of that here soon.  Wellingtone told us all to sit tight and pray and he maneuvered the van over the washed out section.  When you see the picture, you will know that Wellingtone and God performed a miracle!  But what scared us most was the thought that we had to come back that way on our return.  The school was not far on the other side of that washout.  It consisted of three buildings all within a locked compound (all areas are like this, apparently) Wellingtone said that one reason for this is that it is considered acceptable to borrow/use whatever you find that is not walled in.  The major building had been damaged by a recent downpour and was condemned by the government.  Wellingtone was in the process of having it repaired so it could be used again.  The other two buildings were essentially one-room each.  One room was the sewing school and the other the school office.

We entered the school room, introduced ourselves in Kenyan fashion and then learned a little about the school.  A little while ago, it almost closed for lack of funds, but Wellingtone convinced the board that it must remain open.  It was Wellingtone's fear that students from Anajali who could not afford high school or who were not sponsored for high school, would be left to return to the Kibera slum where who knows what they will end up doing and becoming. It was Wellingtone's vision that these same students could be given a viable trade which would enable them to contribute to Kenyan society and even perhaps, train others to do likewise, thus multiplying his "investment" many times.  We saw that all machines were peddle operated and some were even modified from their electric only version so they could be operated with a peddle.  The seven or so students were diligently working at their lessons.  One mother even had her infant with her (which must have been difficult since she was a lapful).  Lisa showed them her prosthesis and then drew on the board what they would have to do to make a dress like hers.  A pattern on tracing paper is unheard of in Kenya.  Tailors work by making an outline drawing of the finished project and writing down the vital measurements for it.  This is part of the training they receive at this school.  Then we gave them the bolts of cloth.  They have to buy their material and thus they normally work with drab whites and tans, which are less expensive.  Since what we gave them was brightly colored like Kenyan bright colors and patterns, several of them shrieked with joy and then started crying.  It was quite moving.  We said our goodbyes and then got into the van to return to Anajali. 

Shortly after we once again made it over the road washout, we made a turn onto a road that did not appear to be what I remembered on the way in.  It turns out Wellingtone was taking us to Universal Teacher Training Center, which he serves as a board member.  His long term friend, the Director, Mr. Bronson Mbatchi, had heard that he was in the "neighborhood" and invited us to visit his school, a two-year, post-high school teacher training program.  There, after the usual introductions with the staff and roughly 30 students, the Director showed us the Kenyan teaching certificate that all Kenyan teachers must present when seeking a job.  Unlike our diplomas, it includes the specialty areas in which the teacher has passed the Kenyan exam and the grade for that exam.  We also learned that teachers' salaries in all but private schools in Kenya are funded by the government.  Since the government is short on funds, they are not willing to pay for all the teachers needed.  Teachers in public high schools often end up teaching over 100 students in their classes!  After taking group pictures and a few special pictures in which the male students all wanted to pose with Emily and Malaina, we left and went by even more rough and unfamiliar back "roads."  After having traveled over these roads, I will never complain about Vermont back roads again!  We have no idea what washboard really means.

At this point we were all guessing where we were going and we all (except for Christopher and Hailey) missed the obvious.  We had been told the night before that after we would go to the sewing school, we would return to Anajali from which Christopher and Hailey would be going to an orphanage, the Tunza Children's Center, that Wellingtone also oversees.  Is there anything he doesn't do?  In typical Kenyan fashion, the plans had been changed on the run.  Since the detour to the teaching school had put us behind schedule, we all were blessed with the ride to the orphanage.  It was simultaneously both a beautiful and sad place.  It was well out in the country and, unlike Anajali, there was plenty of open space for the orphans to run and play.  When we got there, it was lunch and everyone was eating.  There is one young man from Belgium who is volunteering to serve in the orphanage.  All other staff is African.  The orphans came from the Kibera slum.  We were given a tour of the buildings and grounds and visited the nursery and the girl's and boys' dormitories.  Each dormitory consisted of two, long rows of double bunk beds with a single foam mattress on each bed.  Each bunk bed was covered with a mosquito net that was tied together above the bed.  When untied, it surrounded the two beds and extended to the floor.  The girls' dorm was neat and orderly and the boys' dorm was less so.  The boys' dorm also smelled of urine, which was because some of the boys wet their beds.  It is no wonder, considering the awful conditions they came from.

After the tour, we went in to the Office of the Deputy Director, Diminah Khasiala, who had us sign the guest book (which we also did at the schools) and as we were waiting in line to sign, we noticed wall of of bead necklaces, bracelets, etc., that the children had made to help pay for the orphanage.  The price for each was very reasonable so several of us bought about eight items for about $15, which was a considered a wonderful blessing by the orphanage.

After the orphanage, we made our way back to the main highway after much rough travel.  Shortly after reaching the main highway, Wellingtone pulled into a gas-station/shopping mall complex where we all had Kenyan pizza and Fanta pineapple soda (which is delicious, by the way) for a late lunch. The crust was more like fried flan and some toppings were like ours and some weren't.  The one I liked the best had chicken in a "hot-wings" sauce.  A very interesting flavor sensation.

After that, we returned to Wellintone's since it was nearly 4 PM.  The day did not afford much opportunistic birding since I was in the middle of the van and I was too tall to see out the windows.  I may have gotten a few, but that determination will be made later.

	Road washout (picture to come)
	Teacher (on left) and students at the Tamalaje Tailoring Training Center.  Note that the sewing machines are treddle operated.
	How the students made their clothes.  They made their cuts and did the sewing by just reading this pattern and following it carefully.
	The outside of the main classroom building at the UTTC.  Biblical verses are often openly posted for inspiration at these centers of learning.
	The members of the Universal Teacher Training Center.  Wellingtone is on the left and Mr Bronson Batchi is on the right.
	An open air pottery guild.   This was just one of a dozen or so arranged along this section of road.  Where one ended, the next one began.
	The Tunza Children's Centre Orphanage.  The young man on the left is from xxxx.
	playground equipment at the orphanage.
	Girls dorm at the orphanage.  Note the mosquito nets tied neatly above each bed.  At night they will be untied so they can hang all the way to the floor around each bunk bed.  This part of Kenya can have malaria, Dengue fever, and Yellow fever, all mosquito borne diseases.
	laundering at the orphanage.  This seems to be a constant chore everywhere in Kenya.
	Our pizza treat.  Note the yellow bottles of pineapple soda.  Lisa, Leonita, Anne, Wellingtone, Haily, Christopher, Elizabeth, and Malaina.  Not visible are Emily and Carl although Emily's hand is in the far right.

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