Hey all, Kianna speaking!
After the many hours of travelling in both planes and cars, we have made it to camp! Upon arrival, we were greeted by two incredibly friendly men, Benedict and Francis, who will be staying with us for the duration of our trip and have so far been incredibly helpful in showing us the way around camp and cooking us the most delicious food. This morning, we woke up bright and early to the sound of nearby monkeys screeching, a better alarm clock that any in the states. We took a beautiful (and very warm) walk down the Ewaso nyiro river and Benedict and Francis pointed out various animal tracks in the sand, the nearby Acacia and flattop Acacia trees, signs of a baby crocodile by the bank of the river, and a very bright lizard which was clearly a crowd favorite as everyone flocked for a picture.
After returning from our walk and filling our bellies with sweet crepes and fresh fruit, we piled into the safari car to head to the women’s village called Unity. This has personally been a massive reason for wanting to go on this trip so as we headed out of camp and through Archer’s Post towards the Unity, I grew more and more excited but what came next was more than I ever could have expected. As we drove towards Unity there were more friendly waves, smiles, and many “Jambos” shouted out. As we pulled up to the entrance to Unity, we were greeted by a crowd of 21 beautiful, brightly dressed women who were dancing, clapping, and singing. The moment was surreal and was incredibly welcoming, warm, and emotional because here we were as these complete American strangers and yet there they were, welcoming us in with melodious song and many smiles. When we got out, we clapped along as they concluded their welcome song followed by a song representing the fight between individuals where the women would dance towards each other, back away, and come together again. One of the women named Patricia translated the meaning behind the songs and then invited us to dance with the women. We joined hands and, in that moment, we momentarily joined into their community which was and still is an incredible honor and just goes to show how incredibly warm everyone in Unity is. Half of us followed Patricia into her home which consisted of a considerably small hand-built hut by her which we learned took her a couple months to build. We took a few steps to reach the back of the hut where we gathered around and sat down on her mattress that was a single piece of cow hide on the ground. Her kitchen was in the front and she had woven the infrastructure of the home with sticks. It was incredible to believe that she had built her home and especially kind of her so invite us all in where we were given the chance to talk to her and ask her questions about the village, herself, and the history of women here in Samburu. We talked about why Unity was created which was essentially to provide a space and community for women to go to when they were facing domestic violence which she specified as instances where the man would sell their possessions including cows, chickens, and goats to buy alcohol instead of food for their family which would leave their children very hungry. Other instances for women leaving would because men would say their children couldn’t go to school, the women were being physically harmed, and/ or that the women would not have any possessions in the marriage so if the man left, they would be left with nothing, not even their children. So, for all of the above reasons and more, the founding 11 members of Unity established this community that was safe for women and children. We also talked about the value of their decorated and hallowed gourds which held the milk that was collected from cows and goats and how they cultured the milk to create cheese that would be given to the children and the excess product would be applied to wounds, used as oil for the skin, or used to heal boys following their circumcision due to the belief that the excess milk product held antibacterial properties. It worked!
After talking with Patricia in her hut, we spent some time beading with the women which is a large part of their livelihood. It was amazing to see how fast they beaded and how intricate their patterns were while I was over here struggling to pick up a single bead and stick it on the wire.
It’s been a long and beautiful day in Samburu and there is so much more to come! Tonight, we will be decorating for the SYEF graduation ceremony tomorrow. That’s all for now!
CSU Kenya Alternative Break 2018-2019 