The first day of work was Monday, and I must say that it started off auspiciously. After a hearty breakfast of eggs, white bread and Wheatabix, we headed down the road to KEFRI and rounding the first bend, startled a pair of vervet monkeys! Leah (the other IU intern) dove for her camera. I countered brilliantly with, “Hey! Look at the monkeys!” The driver laughed. We aren’t tourists at all.
The KEFRI compound is really nice, and has a bit of a university feel to it. You enter through a big green metal gate, opened for you by uniformed guards and make your way up a long driveway to a roundabout between two large, white buildings connected by a sky-walk. The campus is covered in trees, all with handy identification signs - I was immediately enamored with ‘tree aloe vera’, literally an aloe plant that is 20 feet tall. Flowers are everywhere – I am currently looking at a giant purple bougainvillea and a cactus??
What followed was a typical ‘first day at the office.’ I met the other interns, mostly from universities here in Nairobi and got a quick introduction to the facilities – we are all eight of us (with the addition of Pat, the third IU intern) jam-packed into one office, but it is fun to kid with each other. After lunch, we finally met our boss, with whom I have been corresponding since November. He is extremely laid back, and extremely intelligent. As with all the Kenyans that I have met, he is exceptionally hospitable and truly wants to make sure that we were having a pleasant stay in his country.
Of course the first questions we started asking were about projects. Unfortunately, there was a bit of an ‘information overload’ and Leah and I both walked out of the meeting knowing we would be doing something really cool, but not exactly sure what it was going to entail. We are both interested in climate change and all the projects this summer seem to be tailored accordingly. The project I will be working on is in western Kenya, and will involve taking a look at the profitability of reforestation efforts. Leah will be working on a project on the coast, where KEFRI is studying the effects of climate change on certain tribes who are reliant on the environment for their livelihoods (the Mijikenda??)
After taking a more extended tour of the compound – it essentially is a self sufficient entity, with cafeteria, dormitories, a printing press, library, data room, labs, offices and meeting rooms – our boss offered to drop Leah and I off at a mall across town to do some shopping while he went to take care of some business, and then pick us up on the way back. Of course, we agreed, but were a bit nervous about it – I think we were both envisioning one of the bazaar-like markets we had been seeing on the roadsides that neither one of us would have felt comfortable in exploring. We couldn’t have been more wrong. The road, terrible and packed as ever, wound back away from the city, but lining the sidewalks were prep-schools with ivy covered walls, gas stations, stores, and mansions surrounded by high fences and barbed wire. The posh side of Nairobi, though that still didn’t stop people from herding cattle and sheep on the narrow road-sides.
We were dropped off at a mall you might find in California, complete with food-court and Apple Store. We were able to buy modems for wireless internet (which don’t work), groceries (including Tusker beer and cookies) and I finally picked up a bird book in the bookstore, as well as a couple of novels. Having just a little bit of civilization was totally rejuvenating. The driver had not arrived yet so we even had time to hang out in the food court and nosh on chicken tikka at an Indian restaurant. This was key because the place where we are staying does not provide supper, we don’t have a fridge, and its too far to walk anyplace for food. This was the first dinner we had eaten in a 4 days!
Returning home was an adventure in and of itself. As I mentioned in an earlier post, there are lots of people walking around Nairobi. However once it gets dark, everyone and their brother decides to take a stroll. It’s chaos. Two lane roads become six lanes, cars pass one another in the ditches, horns blare, lights are everywhere, trash is burning in piles, music is blaring from bars, vegetables are being sold by candlelight, people are running across traffic, and packs of matatus are stopping wherever they please . . . but everyone seems to be having a good ol’ time! The traffic also makes Nairobi seem much bigger than it is – I would guess that its around the same size as New Orleans, though there are far more people.
Except for internet, I’m now feeling prepared for the week! The next goal is to get some more specific information on this summer’s project.
Best!
Oh yeah, now that I have some new reading material, I won’t have to keep reading Gorillas in the Mist. Thanks Matt. I now know more about mountain gorillas and their dung than I ever thought possible.
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