Married in Kenya (Oct 8/03)
Jambo everyone!!
After getting
Mike’s and Tara’s exciting travel updates (I’m so happy for them
both!) I realized I’d better update my crowd :) (for those of you new to
this list, be warned – I’m always verbose – i.e. I WRITE VERY LONG
EMAILS!)
First of all, for
those of you that haven’t heard (as if!), I’m now a happily married
woman…! The wedding was a perfect beach day, and Anthony & I had the
time of our lives! THANKS SO MUCH to everyone who came out to the cottage in
Nova Scotia, and for those of you that couldn’t make it, you were
definitely missed! I just attached a couple of photos (thanks to all of the
photographers – Unca Den, Gene & Dayna, Tracey, and Pat!). Anthony
loved Nova Scotia so much – he calls it a small heaven – and really
enjoyed meeting and getting to know so many of you.
My latest project
was putting the guest book together – it looks so cool, but you’ll have
to come to Kenya to see it! I sorted about 3 million photos - from the
disposable cameras at the reception, plus Tracey’s camera, and a bunch
that some of you sent to Mum’s house (thanks!!), and also the digital ones
I’ve acquired - and stuck everyone in next to where they signed. Plus a
whole bunch of cards, and well wishes… thanks so much to everyone for the
wonderful thoughts and gifts and mainly for being there with us! It was such
an amazingly fun day I can’t imagine anything better (good job Mum &
Dad!!). And I certainly hope everyone had as great a time as we did!! Pretty
sure Uncle Earl and Aunt Dolly did anyways! As an aside, I’m slowly
working on my African thank you notes, so you can expect those sometime in
the near future. Also coming is a website with my previous and future
stories from Africa, an Epson account for people to upload their digital
wedding photos, and digital video… stay tuned!
Wow, I heard
about the hurricane – I knew it must have been big when the international
version of CNN kept talking about Nova Scotia all over the place! Managed to
see some of the photos – for those of you that haven’t heard, take a
look at Shannon’s photos…
Looks worse than the post-apocalyptic Montreal of Ice Storm 98!! I’m glad
to hear everyone’s ok, and that V’s baking cinnamon cake to comfort our
relatives :)
Other great big
news - I have a new baby cousin (well, 1st-cousin-once-removed!)
living in Australia – Susan & Craig’s!! I managed to get some of the
photos of baby Jacob Lute – good name, that’s my brother (who’s named
after our uncle) & our Opa!! What a sweetie. Congratulations to them
both & to my Aunt Gerri (Susan’s mum) who went to Australia to assist!
And I bet the proud grandpa Floyd is just thrilled :)
Unfortunately
I’m without my husband already… He’s in southern Sudan, just left a
week ago though it feels like a year… He’s in the field with a
veterinarian managing the logistical operations of the mission, and won’t
be back until November I think. He went to Lokichoggio (the UN base camp
just this side of the Sudan border) on Sept 22, so it’s been a couple of
weeks already, but at least we can talk & text message while he’s in
Loki… he’s totally incommunicado in Sudan! (unless I relay a message via
radio!) But I sent the video camera with him, so he’ll get us some good
footage of Sudan. Have you heard that they’re about to sign a peace
treaty? Fingers crossed!
Oh, the weekend
in Toronto was fabulous – Bruce’s home for wayward east-coasters was
full of me & Mike Tremblay on our way off the continent, plus Sonja (of
course)… and I think I passed Tara and Jeff in the air on their way back
to NS! Went to Lee’s Palace on Friday for a good old-fashioned rock show,
and we girls stayed out late (no, really!). The next day we farted around
Mississaugua looking for digital cameras and souvlaki, headed to Young
Thailand for my last taste of Thai before Kenya, and got invited to 2
parties! Mike MacLeod took us to his rowing team’s BBQ, then we drove
Sebastian’s Queensville manor for his end-of-summer bash. I was sooo glad
I got to see my boys again! The BBQ’ed scrambled eggs the next day were an
adventure, and then we were off to see Aliya (and Heidi!)… and has she
ever grown! Even talking now! What a cutie.
Managed to get
myself to Pearson Airport on Monday and only forgot the video camera
charger! Mike threw it in a cab for me and all was well… off to Berlin!
Stayed at the “art’otel” – which is an ultra-modern funky place
dedicated to the art of Andy Warhol… what a place! I wandered around
Berlin for a day and a half. Very nice city, safe and trendy and
oh-so-European… but Amsterdam is better for obvious reasons! Hehe
When I got to
Nairobi (this was Thursday Sept 18), I was picked out of the crowd by an
eager taxi agent (the best customers are always mzungus!!). But I was
wondering if Anthony might be around – I had gotten a few emails from him
in Halifax and Berlin, and though he was already supposed to be at work in
Loki, he missed that plane and so they gave him another 5 days off! (yes,
after the 2 months he just had!!). He had gone home, and was due back to
work the same day I arrived, but I was still hoping he’d be there
waiting… no such luck. I tried to acclimatize to Kenya on the way back
home… the plumes of evil exhaust, the sparse landscape, the cloudy sky and
the dusty streets… yep, I’m home! However, I also had a very kind
driver, who told me all about the goings on in the past couple of months...
including that the Vice President, Michael Wamalwa, had died after a long
illness in London (some say of AIDS… but not officially).
I arrived at
Ratna, the place where I used to live, to get my keys from Bwana Mike (the
old grumpy British guy who’s wife’s place I’m subletting). Lo and
behold, he told me that Anthony had arrived early that very morning from
Kitale to pick up the keys! And he was on his way to the airport! I swear he
was NOT at the airport (I stick out like a sore thumb so surely he would
have seen me!), so I took off to my place. He had just left (African time
– leave for the airport after the person arrives!) so I called him back…
yay! He got to stay the whole weekend (thanks VSF!). We visited his
relatives in one of the slums, applied for my dependent’s visa, contended
with getting cooking gas for my stove, and while I went to work on Saturday
morning he cleaned my entire apartment! Imagine – not only a man, but an
African man! Unheard of… but very welcome!
He then left for
good on Monday morning, and I proceeded my apparent job at Express
Automation. My very wonderful CEO asked me to come in on Tuesday morning for
a meeting – during which he told me that they’re losing more money than
they’re making, so couldn’t afford to keep me. Shit. Damned Kenyan
economy! Anthony was very good in the face of my shock, thank heavens. I
immediately got my new, dragged-all-the-way-from-Canada computer going
(thanks Shan!), bought a printer, printed some business cards, and started
my own consulting business! Actually I’m partnering with Howard (my
Norwegian buddy who happens to have an MBA) and a few of his go-getter
Kenyan friends in a venture called Global Entrepreneurs.
In fact, that very day, VSF-Belgium called me to work on a virus outbreak,
so I didn’t even have a day off! So far it’s going well – we have a
second meeting with a big mutual funds company tomorrow! I’m still
applying for jobs but for those of you that know my attention span,
consulting is definitely what I prefer. And we’re all determined to get
this economy going. Sonja says I have a golden horseshoe up my ass so I
damned well better succeed!!
Other than that,
I’m also working on my final half-credit (thank god for internet courses
– especially those in African History!). With any luck I will FINALLY
graduate next May…. I’m nothing if not determined eh! I’m also
practicing being a good wifey and haven’t gotten my houselady back again
– handwashing everything myself nowadays! Also decorated my place in all
its Nova Scotian glory. I haven’t started my Kiswahili classes again yet
but will likely do that next Monday. I really want to be able to speak to my
kids!!
Jeniffer (my
newly-trained techie & closest friend here) and I, along with her
daughter Terry, went to the Nairobi Show last Saturday – it’s the
Atlantic Winter Fair on steroids! It took us about 6 hours to walk through
half of it, not to mention the half-a-million people there! It’s a
permanent fair ground at Jamhuri Park with all kinds of displays from the
major Kenyan businesses, ministries, and parastatals. The Ministry of
Prisons was the best – I got a really nice basket for 80 cents! (now I
know where to get cheap handicrafts!). Surprisingly, I didn’t get mugged
inside the show, but not so surprisingly, I did right after. Well, they got
nothing AGAIN! I ran out into traffic, pulling Terry and Jeniffer along with
me, and escaped. Don’t be scared, you just gotta recognize the buggers
before they get your stuff! (and remember they never have weapons and
they’re usually on glue, so it’s pretty easy to get away!)
The next two
Fridays are public holidays so I will likely head to my village –
Jeniffer’s planning on meeting her new beau in Kitale so we can travel
together, and the word is that my new family will be surprised and honoured
if I show up alone! I’ve got a bunch of gifties for the kids but I think
I’ll wait until Daddy arrives home! (hehee, funny to say that :) Howard et
al are also talking about heading to the beach – Mombasa – so if that
transpires, I’ll be sure to tag along. Btw, the weather is simply divine
– hot sunny skies – just wish I still had my Expressmobile to travel in!
But all is well regardless.
So welcome to
Kenya… I know it sounds sometimes harsh, but it’s really relaxing to be
here. The people are kind, the sun is hot, and one never knows what the next
day will bring. Yah!
Love,
Johanna
Copyright Johanna Voerman Khisa, 2002-03. Reprinting or reposting without
permission is prohibited.
