Reflections from Kenya

November 1, 2002

Jambo! (that’s Swahili for hello)

It’s wonderful to be back in Africa! Thirty years ago, as my first port in my first “semester at sea” type teaching experience, I visited Dakar, Senegal, in West Africa. What struck me, even then, were the dramatic contrasts; brand new high-rise buildings loomed over old, run-down shacks. Even more, as a young teacher, I was caught off guard by the warm, welcoming attitude and beautiful smiles of the people. Today, I am struck much more by the same things, while getting to know Mombasa and more of Kenya, in East Africa.

Kenya is world-renowned for its wildlife safaris, so I couldn’t pass that opportunity up. It also has one of the most diverse groups of tribal peoples on the continent, and a long history of Arab traders who came to these shores bringing Islam with them, which blended with the indigenous culture to give rise to Swahili culture and language. Walking through the streets of the old town area of Mombasa, I was again struck by the openness, friendliness, and engaging manner of the people, as well as the narrow alleys with wonderful craft shops (where bargaining is expected), ancient mosques, temples, and old houses with massive carved doors and overhanging, intricately carved balconies. And since Kenya is having its national elections in December, we also heard an occasional car go by with a loudspeaker giving its political message to the few in earshot.

On safari (still a little hard to believe!), we drove in our pop-top van through some of the most beautiful, vast, open spaces I have ever seen, the terra firma equivalent of the vast open seas we have become so familiar with. Here, arid plains, deserts, bush, hills, and distant mountains form a rich panorama unique to Africa. Driving for hours through this splendid, yet calming landscape was indeed a pleasure. Seeing literally hundreds of wild animals – lions, giraffes, elephants, water buffalo, wildebeest, rhinos, hippos, zebra, too many to list - was a great bonus for me.

Driving between Tsavo National Park and Amboseli National Park, we passed by many small, traditional Maasai villages, or manyattas, consisting of mud huts with straw roofs formed into a circle with broken thorn trees made into fences for keeping the wildlife out and their prized cattle in. They live today much the same as they have for centuries. Some Maasai were herding their cattle or goats along the side of the road, while many children waved to us as we passed by. We also noticed abandoned villages, as the Maasai are a nomadic, pastoral people.

Amboseli is a favorite destination for safaris not only because of its abundant, diverse wildlife, but because it lies in the shadows of imposing, snow-capped Mt. Kilimanjaro, a wonderful, inviting backdrop to the entire scene.

A real highlight for me was visiting the traditional Maasai village not too far from the lodge where we stayed in Amboseli. As we arrived at the village, each safari van was greeted by a young Maasai warrior, who spoke surprisingly good English. Then, all of the adults of the community offered an elaborate, very expressive welcome dance with a procession up and back and around us, and then lead us into their circular shaped village. At the center of their circle of huts, they continued their dance, which featured a very lively and unusually high jumping up off the ground, their way of conveying their happiness. When they had done that a few times, they invited the students to join in with them in their jumping up, and they all had a great time. After their welcome ceremony, they guided us further around the village, and then let us wander some through it on our own to see their huts or interact with the children. Some went to the area back of the village where they had all their handicrafts laid out to sell us.

As I was wandering around, a young Maasai warrior came up to me. He was dressed in their colorful, red-plaid cloth outfit, three separate pieces wrapped around him. He wanted to sell me a brass bracelet he had made. I told him I wasn’t interested in that. When he persisted in wanting to sell me something, I half-kiddingly asked if he would be interested in selling a part of his outfit. He quickly threw out a figure, and we proceeded to engage in a thoroughly interesting and enjoyable negotiation. After we had mutually agreed on a price, he called me “brother,” as he took off one-third of his outfit, a beautiful red-plaid cloth wrap about 4’x 5’, and readjusted the other two pieces. He said, “Now we are brothers. You will remember always.” I was truly very moved by his sentiment.

A little later, I learned more about the economic aspect of our exchange that created our bond. It seems that the Maasai people today gain a relatively significant income being part of the tourism industry of Kenya. Recently, the villages have begun pooling their tourism income to put toward building schools and improving their education system. This made sense to me, as I recalled how surprised I was in the beginning of our visit when our first guide introduced himself as Joseph (they take Christian names that are added to their tribal names), and told me that he was a teacher in the new local school. He teaches English, Swahili, Math, and a couple of other subjects. He seemed barely twenty. So I was very pleased that this exchange that brought us together as “brothers” might be contributing to the village’s education. The interesting thing about that, though, is that traditionally, for centuries, the Maasai have been nomadic peoples. They (the women, actually) would build their hut villages and stay there for a season or a few months, and then move on to another area where their cows could have a fresh grazing area and build another village. Now, with the building of permanent structures for schools, their nomadic days may be numbered. Tourism has contributed much to improving their educational opportunities, but has also contributed to the loss of a traditional way of life. Such is the trade-off of entering the modern world. But the Maasai are a proud and ancient people who also have a great deal to contribute now and in the future to the culture of Kenya. My guess is that they and their country will find a way to help them maintain their traditions and move into the twenty-first century, as well. My time on the plains of Kilimanjaro was again much more enriching than I could have ever imagined.