I have written about our trip to Kenya a little bit before. I think I need to get some of these stories written down before they disappear from my head altogether.
Baby Elephant
The Day I met Angelina Jolie
After the Safari we went to a fabulous five star resort in the small coastal town of Malindi. Our resort was an Italian resort as we were living in Italy and were on an Italian Safari through Kenya. Our room was the most amazing room I have ever stayed in, every room we had on Safari was amazing but this one was bigger than the apartment we were living in back in Italy. The bed was raised up off the ground about five feet. It was an enormous bed covered in a canopy of mosquito netting. There was a beautiful picture on the quilt made out of fresh flower petals. Each petal artfully placed to design a welcome message including a picture. There was a walk in closet that was larger than my current bed room. The bathroom had an enormous shower. The floors were beautiful tile, there was even an air conditioner. Something I rarely see since leaving America. We had a front porch with a porch swing, potted plants and flowers which separated us from other bungalows. From our front porch we could see the pool which was about 6 feet from our porch and we could see the Indian Ocean in the background.
The first thing we, Mandy and I, did when we arrived was grab an empty coke bottle and go to the beach. I was so excited to put my foot in the Indian Ocean. I love that I have put my foot in so many bodies of water all around the world, I hope to get my foot on all the continents and in all the oceans by the time I expire. We also like to take a bit of dirt and put it into a locally bought coke bottle. You know Coke bottles are printed in the local language in many countries, so I have coke bottles in French, Arabic, etc. We like to put a bit of earth in our coke bottles. How boring is that? We get the traditional souvenirs too, but Mandy and I like to collect dirt, shells, rocks and coke bottles. Off we went to dip our toes and fill our bottle.
On the way to the Ocean from our room which was a very short walk we encountered dozens of local people. While on the property of the hotel the local vendors were not allowed to speak to us or bother us. The staff of the hotel however rushes to serve you the minute you leave your room. Here there were far more employees working at the resort than there were guests. They are all very educated men, they speak perfect English and Italian. They can converse in any manner of topics concerning Kenya and the world. They can tell you all about all the different religions the politics and culture of their home. They present this information with enthusiasm and with the grace to be respectful of you and your culture. An ambassador if you will. There job is to make sure that you the guest are happy. They will sit and visit with you. They will fetch you a towel, a drink, something to eat. They will join in a game of volleyball in the pool assembling as many employees as you need to facilitate a game. They will find you your favorite song to listen to while you sunbath. They will find you just the right souvenir to take home with you while you sun bath. They are fabulous. After about five minutes you feel like you are the most important person in the world. You feel like everything you say and do is profound and wonderful. It was lovely. I have no idea how a rich person could be unhappy. Just move to Kenya.
As Mandy and I left the resort property on our way to the beach we then encountered the peddlers. We were surrounded by men and women who wanted to sell us something, anything. They were willing to trade us our shoes, our glasses, our clothes, anything we wanted they would trade us. In return they would find us any treasure our heart desired. It was fun. They would braid our hair or give us henna tattoos, wood carved items, etc. It was a bit overwhelming for me, the walk to the Ocean. Being surrounded by so many people wanting something from me. I don't really like to say no. I don't really feel empowered a lot in my daily life to tell people no and feel ok about it. It was surreal to be such a disappointment to so many people all at once. We did make it to the water stuck our toe in and were on our way back up to the room. I had such a hard time walking away from these people asking me to do this and that, I got caught up on the beach. I had such a hard time saying no that I was pretty much frozen. Mandy left me there listening to all their pitches somehow unable to say NO. She went and got Jeff, he came and told everyone NO and we went back to the room. I never went back out to the beach. I never put more than a toe in the Indian Ocean. Life on the resort is different than life off the resort that is for sure.
Later we took a tour bus and saw the local market. Here they were selling all the things that had been traded with the tourists. This market consisted of an area of about a couple of blocks full of tables, each table was covered with a shade made out of branches and leaves, like the roofs on the huts on Survivor. Each table at the market had different things. There was a table of sunglasses, a tables of hats, a table of tennis shoes. I saw a table of the fabric the Kenyan women use to make their skirts. Every woman had a colorful wrap around skirt, they used this same material to make baby carriers as well. They are the most vivid colors and patterns of flowers I have ever seen. I couldn't leave Kenya without one of these skirts. I tried to talk Jeff into buying it for me but he handed me the money and said good luck.
I ventured away from the tour group and approached the woman who was manning the table selling the beautiful fabric. I asked her how much. They speak English and Swahili in Kenya. She answered. I bought two. A man from another table came over, it seemed like he was making sure I wasn't bothering the woman. He seemed very protective. She gave me my change and I moved along. It was fun. It still have the beautiful skirts, a bright purple one and a bright red one.
Next we went to the wood carving factory. This is were most of the wooden souvenirs made in Kenya come from. People come and make the carving and then they get a portion of the profits from the sale. There is a store where you buy the carvings. Most of the street vendors who hang out in front of the resorts, come here and get the souvenirs. Then they sell the souvenirs to the tourists. If the tourist pays with clothing or shoes, a camera or whatever western item they have the vendor takes that item to the appropriate table at the market place and barters with the owner of that table. A combination of money and items for sale. It seems that this market is a great way for the locals to get a bit of western stuff infused into their lives. Most of the ladies I saw in Kenya wore western t-shirts with their Kenyan skirts. Everyone seemed to have western shoes, sandals or tennis shoes. Perhaps there is a department store somewhere and Nike is sold in a mall in Kenya as well. But some of these items come to the people via the tourists.
My little story, no moral no point just a little bit about our adventure to Kenya.
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