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By Harmony | January 10, 2009 | 8:08 pm
Traveling to Site
Getting from Nairobi to my new home in Coast Province was quite an adventure. I had five large bags plus two buckets to tow, all of which needed to follow me on public transportation. Luckily, Peace Corps offered to bring my bags to MASH, the depot that runs buses between Nairobi and Mombasa. Once my bags were loaded and on their way, I hopped in a matatu to meet my bags at MASH in downtown Nairobi. My new supervisor also made the trip with me.
From there, We had an 9-hour bus ride to Mombasa. Once we arrived at the bus stop, we took a tuk-tuk (3-wheeled taxi) to a hotel. Peace Corps had arranged for us to stay overnight, since we still had a way to go and it’s not safe to travel the roads after dark. Unfortunately, the hotel never reveived the reservation fax, and there were not enough rooms available to accommodate us both. Reception insisted that my supervisor and I would need to share a room. I don’t think either of us was comfortable with that idea; she opted to stay with her parents that night in Mombasa. It all ended up working out in the end.
While I think Nairobi is cool in its own right, Mombasa is so much cooler! There is a certain ancient vibe to the city, and it has tons of character. I was awestruck, and I look forward to spending time there over the course of my service.
In the morning, we took breakfast at the hotel and then arranged for another tuk-tuk to bring us to the ferry. Mombasa is the largest port city in East Africa, and the ports are located on the inside of the peninsula. in order to get out of the city, one must take a ferry across the water. They can’t build a bridge there, since the waterway is narrow and large cargo ships must pass through. And that’s just the way it is.
My supervisor and I were traveling with another PCV and his supervisor to the same area. We were trying to decide how to get all those bags from the tuk-tuks across the boarding area and onto the ferry, then off the ferry and to the matatu staging area on the other side. The tuk-tuk drivers wanted 100 Ksh to the ferry landing, or 600 KSh per tuk-tuk to board the ferry and travel to the other side. While the latter plan sounded much easier, the cost was prohibitively high. It costs nothing to travel the ferry on foot, however, so I suggested that we load all our luggages in one tuk-tuk to make the trip across, then walk over on foot. The plan worked; our bags made the trip without incident, and we split the cost of luggage transportation.
Once on the other side of the ferry, we all found a matatu and made the hour-long trip down the coast. I am mesmerized by the beauty of this place. It’s hotter than hades and the humidity is very high. But on the other hand, it reminds me a little of Hawaii. My village is surrounded by groves of coconut palms, augmenting the feeling that I’m in a tropical paradise. Just put me on a beach with a piña colada.
Speaking of the beach, I know it’s just on the other side of town, though I haven’t seen it yet. I’m sure I’ll have a chance to check it out in the next day or two, as I’m introduced to the mangroves.
Travel Costs
I thought it would be fun to list the cost of my travel so you can see what expenses I have here. You can use the currency converter on the left to see what this converts to in U.S. dollars. 79 Kenyan shillings equals about 1 U.S. dollar:
Matatu from Peace Corps hostel to MASH bus: 40 Ksh
MASH bus from Nairobi to Mombasa: 1300 Ksh
Tuk-Tuk from MASH station to hotel: 100 Ksh
Tuk-Tuk from hotel to matatu station across waterway via ferry: 600Ksh
Matatu from ferry to site: 300 Ksh (I had to pay for 3 seats due to massive amounts of luggage)
Peace Corps’ cost of hotel room in Mombasa: 1000 Ksh per night
Dinner at hotel in Mombasa: 460Ksh
Lunch at hoteli in village close to site: 190 Ksh
To put things into perspective, food was much cheaper in Loitokitok. I could buy a hearty meal at a hoteli for just 75 Ksh, including a cold soda! I need to be careful not to spend too much here. The surrounding area is a tourist destination, so the prices are a bit higher.
The Village
My village is even smaller than I thought it could possibly be. In fact, it’s really just a tight cluster of homes. There are a couple of kiosks around, but no services. The open-air market, supermarket (more like a convenience store) and hotelis (restaurants) are 30 km away (a 50 Ksh matatu ride). I think the post office is 10 km in the other direction. We have electricity here and a huge cell phone tower to ruin the landscape. And although there is tap water that runs to my compound, it does not seem to be working today.
My living arrangements are about what I expected them to be. I live on a compound with a shared living area. For those who aren’t familiar with the concept of a Kenyan compound: Imagine a gated, narrow courtyard. You walk into the gate and there are rooms to your left and your right. At the far end, there is a room which serves as the community kitchen. To the right of it is a shared toilet room and another for bathing. The rooms themselves are relatively private. I have a single room that is 8 feet by 12 feet in size. It has two windows; one facing into the compound and one facing out. The windows have no window panes, only bars and screening to keep the bugs out. I don’t think window panes are useful here; I can’t imagine that it would ever get cold enough here to want to close them, anyway. I have electricity, tiled floors, and even a ceiling fan. The toilet is in a tiled room and consists of a porcelain hole in the ground (just a fancy choo, really). The bath is also tiled, and has a shower head above (I don’t yet know if the shower works. I’m sure it’s probably just cold water, if it does).
I’m happy to have my own room, but a little nervous to be living in such proximity to other people. I see one pair of little shoes in the courtyard, so I imagine there is a child or children living here. Those who are close to me know how difficult I find children. But overall, this place is nice. I am sure there a number of volunteers who have it much rougher than I have it here.
I’m told that our project team will have an office at KMFRI (Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute). As it turns out, the building is three doors down from my compound, so I won’t have a far walk to work.
Right now, I have an empty room and lots of luggage. The head researcher has provided me with a bed to sleep on. Originally, it was to be a short-term loan until I can have a fundi build some furniture for me. But now he has offered to let me use the bed frame for the duration of my stay in Kenya (valued at about 3000 Ksh), and he tells me I can have the matress for 1000 Ksh (a new one would cost 2000-3000). I might just take him up on his offer, as I’ve spent a huge amount of money in the last day on transportation, and my Peace Corps settling-in allowance doesn’t appear to be enough to get me all my basics. I can use every penny of savings I can find!
The Next Step
On Monday, I have arrangements to go back to Mombasa to get the big things (stove, water purification system, wash basins, kitchen items) and a few small things (broom, hangers, insect killer, stain remover). The head researcher has a private car and has offered to take me and my supervisor there (she’s also moving into the compound this week). Meanwhile, I have no means to cook or bathe. I traveled to the supermarket today to pick up some wheat bread, crackers, and peanut butter and jelly. That will have to be my main source of sustenance for now. The bathing will just have to wait until the water runs again. I bought another bottle of water today, but I’m afraid it won’t last long. If there is no running water soon, I may have to head back to the main village to buy more.
So many new discoveries right now…I’m so happy you all can enjoy the adventure with me!
Topics: Settling In |