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Wednesday, 06 August 2008 00:18 |
We have arrived in Kenya and are enjoying our morning conversing with Mrs. Barbie Allen, a close old friend of Lew's who has graciously housed and fed us for the first evening. Her lovely house above the terrace and greenery is picturesque and simply breathtaking. We arrived at Nairobi airport around 9:30pm local time and after about an hour or so getting visas and our luggage, we were picked up by a friend of hers and we traveled out the airport, through parts of the city and finally made it to a gated community (every housing area in Nairobi is gated) called Spring Valley, where Mrs. Allen lives.
Alex and Josh slept in a small circular cottage, just below the terrace, while Dave and Lew slept in the house. The students woke up at 8am to have a simply magnificent breakfast courtesy Kenyan house staff, including mango, eggs, bacon, toast, amazing coffee, all fresh and locally grown. After which we took pictures and video of the whole property. Lew was up soon after and we all sat and conversed at the table.
In general, the people here seem very welcoming and kind, to each other, and to us. Swahili is a beautiful language to listen to, and we're hoping to speak a bit soon. At this altitude of about 6000 ft it's cool during the day and quite chilly at night (low of 48F to high of 70F). It'll get warmer as we go to Tanzania, farther from the equator, but at a lower elevation.
We've already had some great conversations with Barbie about technology needs and transfer, and some people to meet here, and talk to later. Networking is essential for this kind of work, and Lew and Barbie have opened the doors wide for that. We look forward to getting dirty and making some machines soon!
We are now getting ready to head out now, and will update when we have internet next. Pictures to come soon! |
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Thursday, 07 August 2008 00:38 |
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We are glad to have internet once again at one of the offices just up the road in Dorobo Safari. Our trip from Nairobi to Arusha was long and bumpy with mostly flat scenery through Kenya, and hillier areas once we made it to Tanzania. Our travels out of Nairobi were slow due to ecsessive traffic, extremely narrow roads, and potholes left and right (kinda like Philly roads).
Lew's friend Barbie Allen drove us to the Silver Springs hotel where we had lunch and were ready to leave on the 2pm bus. Once at the hotel, Alex saw information about a conference for Practical Action, an NGO that he had heard about, so he met with some helpful people who told him to take a ride just down the road to their main office. This was at 1:20pm, and the bus left promptly at 2pm. So Dave and Alex rushed out to take a taxi to Practical Action's office, and of course they didn't get back in time, so the bus left with Lew and Josh. It's first stop was just near the hotel at a petrol station, and just after the bus departed there, Dave and Alex came running down the street at the side of the bus, having seen it on the road and jumped out of their taxi to make it. A close call, but everything worked out swimingly. They made in time and had a wonderful meeting with Practical Action who is very interested in our project and its progression once we return to Kenya at the end of the trip.
The bus ride was very long and scenic and we met two african students and a hair dresser who were on their way to Arusha as well and we conversed nearly the whole 6 hour trip. At one point, construction was being done on the main road, so the bus had to move to dirt roads that were extremely extremely bumpy, but it added to the excitement of the ride. Throughout the travels, we passed by Masai herders and little groups of people along the main road, many selling charcoal and other assorted goods. Just a little over half the trip was in Kenya, and we arrived at Namanga, the border crossing. This took a little time to get our Kenya transit visas checked, after which we walked accross the border to get our Tanzania travel visas. Once this was completed, we hopped on the bus and continued on our journey. The only casualty was a GPS unit that Alex had borrowed, and was picked from his cargo pocket. Lesson learned!
Once in Tanzania, the sunlight stayed with us for about another hour, in which we were able to take pictures of mountain ranges, sunsetting, and a family of girraffes hangin out by the side of the road. It began to get dark by 6:30pm, and soon as we got to the outskurts of Arusha it was completely dark. We arrived in Arusha, a small city with only a few main roads, lots of cars, commmotion, and activity all evening. We have not been back to the center of the city yet, so it is hard to tell how it looks during the day. The bus finally arrived and dropped us off at the Impala hotel, where Zenan, a driver from Dorobo, picked us up and drove us to the Dorobo/Olasiti camp about a half hour outside Arusha. Zenan will be our guide throughout our time Arusha and with Dorobo.
It was extremely dark when we made it to the camp, very far off the beaten track, and we arrived at a beautiful camping area with dinner all set and ready for us. James and Candita are Dorobo staff who are taking care of our site, making us dinner, and making us feel at home. That evening we sat by the fire, conversed and had a lovely relaxing end to a load and bumpy day. Our accomodations are large and sturdy tents with a cot and sleeping bag for each person.
Overnight was interesting; lota of dogs barking, roosters and other birds making noise...no noisier than a big city, but the sounds are all quite different. We have a night guard watching the campsite, so we're definitely safe.
This update is turning into a book, but here's a brief update on today so far: Zenan (ZAY-nahn) is our local driver, guide, and translator. He took us on a tour of the village of Olasiti, named after a tree where warring tribes made peace. In the past 10 years, population there has grown from 2,000 to 10,000. Their lives are very simple, and they seem satisfied in general, but of course are living in a very poor economy. We talked with some local carpenters, someone who sells wood, an orphanage/school that Zenan runs, and a local builder. Alex was especially happy that the builder was keenly interested in the slag-based cement that he is working on. Zenan has some scrap car parts available, and they should be quite sufficient for the first lathe. We expect several to join us to help build it. Today we'll go into the main town of Arusha to connect with some NGOs that we prepared to meet, get some supplies, and maybe meet with a shop that turns parts on lathes.
So things are going really well! That's all for now. We'll be in touch again soon. |
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 03 September 2008 08:38 |
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Sunday, 10 August 2008 05:14 |
Sorry we didn't send an update sooner; we're very busy doing things to write in it! We have a fully functioning lathe now, and it took a lot of innovations to get there. We have tested it, and will start realy using it tomorrow. The locals really took initiative to find creative solutions to problems, and we helped as teammates along the way. That's exacftly what we had hoped for! We are already working on the second lathe, which will be simpler in some ways, yet more versatile in others. Some of us got a tour of the local village last night; ate some local food, played some pool; it was awesome. The whole experience, both working and playing, is fantastic. Tomorrow we'll keep working on the lathes here. Monday we leave for another two towns, then back to Arusha for a day or two, then into real "bush land" with the Maasai.
Here are some photos!
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 03 September 2008 08:47 |
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Friday, 29 August 2008 22:07 |
Since our last update, we have done much and arrived home safely! Here are some highlights:
We got the first lathe in good working order after making a design change that the locals helped a lot with. We gave the idea and they ran with it; it was very gratifying, and a good learning experience all around. Lew even began turning a bowl on it. Unfortunately as of last week it remained 95% complete, but locals plan to finish it soon. We also started a second lathe, with a bit more refined design.
We then spent several days in Karatu, a town about 3 hours away from our base town of Arusha. There, we trained about 10 local craftsmen in making lathes by using the manual, and one expertly made an important component out of scrap wood. The resources in Karatu are much different than in Arusha. Karatu has abundant wood, but few car parts, while the opposite is true in Arusha. Some of Karatu is on the electric grid, but it would cost about 5 days wages per month for a typical household. It was a great opportunity to learn and gather information as well. The Karatu Development Association will be continuing our project to some degree. We also got to teach 60 students at a vocational training center (VTC), and met a successful NGO in the area, and were very well received at both. On the last day there, Alex, Josh, and David were treated to a safari in the NgoroNgoro Crater. Wildlife congregates there especially in the dry season, so we saw wildebeest, zebras, warthogs, elephants, hippos, baboons, lions, and more!
On the way to Babati, another 2 hours from Karatu, the fan and radiator broke in our Land Rover. Dorobo sent replacement parts right away and Zenan (our fantastic guide), Lew, and Josh did the repair and returned to Arusha to continue building the lathes. Alex and David continued on to Babati for what quickly became a diplomatic visit. The Manyara Holistic Center (MHC) received them, and Alex and David got to learn about their program, meet some of the students they support, and teach a class at another VTC. They also met with the District Commissioner who is the acting Regional Commissioner, the equivalent of a State Governor! Both the MHC and the Commissioner were very interested in the Lathes project, and look forward to future partnership.
After reuniting in Arusha, we traveled to Loborsoit, the Maasai village where Lew lived for two years doing research. We taught at a VTC there; these were some of the brightest students and teachers we met the entire trip. Lew even showed them how to use their large metal-turning lathe circa 1917, which hadn't been used for over 15 years. The focus there was not so much on lathes, but on building machines out of scrap. At each VTC, the answer to "Could you build a machine out of scrap parts?" changed from 'No' to an enthusiastic 'Yes.' We were then treated to an evening at a Maasai Boma (home complex) including a fresh goat! We felt so welcomed, due no doubt to the legendary status of Lew and his wife there, and David's willingness to try anything and everything. Walking at night there was surreal; the full moon was so bright that we didn't need flashlights, and the landscape was beautiful. We did see lion tracks...but everyone still has all their fingers. On the way back to Arusha, we visited other bomas, and the site of a new rural school.
Back in Arusha, we completed the second lathe, and at one point had no less than 15 local men helping and watching the process. Lew turned a beautiful platter, and the local carpenter who led the building process, named 'God Listens', will use the lathe as part of his business.
We returned to Nairobi and spent a day touring there, treated yet again to fantastic "Colonial" meals. We met some amazing people, including a professor from UC Davis who oversees many programs in Africa, and the head of a successful holistic orphanage in Kitale, kenya.
The long trip home was mostly smooth and uneventful. Now back in the states, we are starting to brainstorm the next phase of Lathes For Africa, with great excitement. One clear message from the trip is that the people of Tanzania are ready and asking for appropriate and sustainable technology to hep themselves and their families rise above their circumstances. We look forward to serving them, and those in similar situations, in even bigger ways!
And here are some photos!
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