After writing on here last week, the plans went almost according to plan. We left at 6AM instead of 3AM, and as a result of this and other delays missed the main part of the traditional wedding in the town of Murafa. But we still danced the night away with a crowd of what seemed like everyone in the village.
Thee following day was the church wedding, which was beautiful, and really interesting to me in comparison with American weddings. For example, first the couple cuts the cake and feeds it to one another, then they actually walk around and feed a piece of cake to all of their parents and siblings - a little different.
The ceremony was in the town of Malindi, which is the Little Italy of Africa. The tourism in Malindi is dominated by Italians to the extent that signs at attractions are posted in Italian, and when the Kenyan kids there see a white person they yell, "Ciao!" This is very odd on many levels, but I kind of enjoyed it.
Before we left Murafa, we visited Hell's Kitchen, a collection of really cool rock formations that made me wish I had paid more attention in Geology 108.
Upon stopping in Mombasa, it became very clear we couldn't just go back without staying for a couple of days. Mombasa has the beaches and nightlife that make it awesome to visit, but I think my favorite thing was getting lost on the windy narrow streets, snacking my way through the day on cassava and fruits bought from vendors for a couple of cents each. And the day we spent on the beach was pretty magical too.
Now I'm back in Nairobi, on a day that has been declared the "party of a century" for Kenya - the new constitution was signed and officially put into action today. And yes, I was there watching in Uhuru Park, because I couldn't resist the excitement. Check for me on the news footage! Current and former leaders from Kenya and other African countries graced the stage, and thousands of people gathered on a huge muddy hill decked out in these funny paper hats with the colors of the Kenyan flag and the words "Second Republic" - the First Republic being the one that just ended. There was so much joy in the air, and everyone kept reminding us how this was the kind of historical event that happens once in a lifetime. I feel really blessed to be here right now to witness this.
I'm off to hit the town tonight for the continuation of the Party of a Century - more soon :)
Friday, August 27, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
APT and Life in the Big City
Since I got back from Uganda and wrote about my trip, I've actually gotten to focus in on the reason I came here: interning with Amani People's Theatre.
First, a little background on APT. It was founded as a department of another NGO, People for Peace in Africa, in 1994, at a time when many surrounding countries had serious issues maintaining peace (civil war in the Sudan, genocide in Rwanda, etc.) A group consisting primarily of university students decided to try to use theatre as a peace-building tool, not just in Nairobi but throughout rural areas in Kenya and even in refugee camps. Hence the name Amani, which means peace in Swahili. APT has since become independent and now runs several long-term programs as well as many short-term consultancies and collaborations with other groups.
There are three ongoing programs in Nairobi I am working with. One is in the Remand Home, where kids who have committed crimes or been lost and found by police live. Some are there for years, and some just for a few days, so sometimes we have 100 kids, sometimes 30. We meet there twice a week and mostly play games to build the kids' capacity for change and creating theatre about significant issues for them.
The next is at a school in Kibera, which I haven't actually visited yet because they have been on break, but it will start again next week.
The newest project is with a youth group in a church in a neighborhood called Kariobangi South. We just started visiting them this week, and will continue to go three times a week. The group is enthusiastic about Forum Theatre, and hope to put together a performance for their community through this workshop.
This neighborhood sits next to a slum built next to the biggest garbage dump in Kenya. Walking through this slum is an otherworldly experience - there is literally trash everywhere you look, the metal rooftops have turned reddish brown because of acid rain, and kids play in piles of filth. People kept telling me that Kibera attracts so much media attention for being the biggest slum in Africa that sometimes other slums in Nairobi are somewhat forgotten.
So I have been spending all of my afternoons co-facilitating theatre workshops, which has been perfect for me, getting a lot of practice being the 'joker', or the leader of the activities in Theatre of the Oppressed. In the mornings we often have work to do, planning or writing reports about our sessions. But we have also had some time to explore the city.
This weekend I am traveling to Malindi, sort of near Mombasa on the coast, for the wedding of Masha's sister (Masha is APT's director of finances and internship programs). There is a traditional wedding tomorrow evening and a church wedding on Saturday. We are leaving at 3AM, so I am planning on forcing myself to stay awake so I can sleep on the way.
Thanks to everyone who keeps updating me from home - even if it takes me awhile to respond I really appreciate hearing from you!
First, a little background on APT. It was founded as a department of another NGO, People for Peace in Africa, in 1994, at a time when many surrounding countries had serious issues maintaining peace (civil war in the Sudan, genocide in Rwanda, etc.) A group consisting primarily of university students decided to try to use theatre as a peace-building tool, not just in Nairobi but throughout rural areas in Kenya and even in refugee camps. Hence the name Amani, which means peace in Swahili. APT has since become independent and now runs several long-term programs as well as many short-term consultancies and collaborations with other groups.
There are three ongoing programs in Nairobi I am working with. One is in the Remand Home, where kids who have committed crimes or been lost and found by police live. Some are there for years, and some just for a few days, so sometimes we have 100 kids, sometimes 30. We meet there twice a week and mostly play games to build the kids' capacity for change and creating theatre about significant issues for them.
The next is at a school in Kibera, which I haven't actually visited yet because they have been on break, but it will start again next week.
The newest project is with a youth group in a church in a neighborhood called Kariobangi South. We just started visiting them this week, and will continue to go three times a week. The group is enthusiastic about Forum Theatre, and hope to put together a performance for their community through this workshop.
This neighborhood sits next to a slum built next to the biggest garbage dump in Kenya. Walking through this slum is an otherworldly experience - there is literally trash everywhere you look, the metal rooftops have turned reddish brown because of acid rain, and kids play in piles of filth. People kept telling me that Kibera attracts so much media attention for being the biggest slum in Africa that sometimes other slums in Nairobi are somewhat forgotten.
So I have been spending all of my afternoons co-facilitating theatre workshops, which has been perfect for me, getting a lot of practice being the 'joker', or the leader of the activities in Theatre of the Oppressed. In the mornings we often have work to do, planning or writing reports about our sessions. But we have also had some time to explore the city.
This weekend I am traveling to Malindi, sort of near Mombasa on the coast, for the wedding of Masha's sister (Masha is APT's director of finances and internship programs). There is a traditional wedding tomorrow evening and a church wedding on Saturday. We are leaving at 3AM, so I am planning on forcing myself to stay awake so I can sleep on the way.
Thanks to everyone who keeps updating me from home - even if it takes me awhile to respond I really appreciate hearing from you!
Monday, August 9, 2010
Beautiful Budondo, Bulunji! ("I am fine" in Luganda)
Hello once again from Nairobi! This week was pretty incredible.
Pia and I, along with Bernard Mukisa and his children Denis and Dia, left for Uganda on an overnight bus last Sunday night, and arrived in Budondo in the early morning. It took me about ten seconds to fall in love with Budondo. Everything is green and lush, and everyone is as friendly and welcoming as you could possibly imagine. I stayed with Mukisa's family at their house, where they have a large field with papaya trees, mango trees, jackfruit trees, coffee plants, a LOT of sugar cane (they sell this), and much more, and chickens and pigs wandering around it all. I was overwhelmed with the family's hospitality at every turn. Joining us was Liesl, a Stanford student who came to Budondo on a school trip last year and says it changed her life, so she felt she had to come back.
By day we played theatre games, reviewing some of what we learned last week but also learning how the Atuwa Troupe has used theatre since 2000. Occasionally they would let us help cut up fruit or wash dishes, but mostly they prepared all the food - matooke (boiled green bananas), roasted groundnuts, beans, potatoes - I was very well fed. By night we sat with lanterns under a sky covered with stars, sipping tea made from lemongrass and discussing Mukisa's dreams for Budondo's future.
Mukisa is among the most inspiring people I've ever met. After having studied drama in the then-Soviet Union, he felt responsible for using his education for the betterment of his home village, Budondo. Along with his wife Topista, their seven children, and many other community members he considers family, they started the Atuwa Troupe to educate and raise awareness about social issues through theatre. They always incorporate local folk songs and traditional dance to keep audiences engaged (expect videos!).
But the Atuwa Troupe is just the beginning of what will become known as the Budondo Intercultural Center. Mukisa is planning on building his property into an "alternative village" accessible to the community, running entirely on alternative energy, and including a Women's Reproductive Health Center, a library, an amphitheatre, a theatre training center, room for workshops on everything from entrepreneurship to organic farming, and much more. He wants to host international volunteers to contribute knowledge and ideas for all of these projects, and he hopes it can all be in place in the next five years. Who wants to go back with me? :)
Friday morning we left Budondo to spend the weekend in Kampala. We stayed with Mukisa's brother Sam, a doctor who lives in the Northern outskirts of town. We got to see a play at a theatre called Theatre La Bonita, which was actually more of a multimedia performance, and nothing like what I expected. We also got to explore town a little, visit Dia's university, and tour a Baha'i temple (there is only one on each continent). I also ran into my friend Stella, who was a teaching partner in Tanzania with me last year, and recognized from a distance on a crowded street the skirt I was wearing that she had helped me design last year - how small is this world?! I hadn't even known she was in Uganda, and it was so good to catch up with her.
We left last night and arrived in Nairobi this morning, refreshed and ready to get back to work here. Kenya's election was by nearly all accounts a success, fair and peaceful. I will probably have more stories after reconnecting with more people here.
Much love!
Pia and I, along with Bernard Mukisa and his children Denis and Dia, left for Uganda on an overnight bus last Sunday night, and arrived in Budondo in the early morning. It took me about ten seconds to fall in love with Budondo. Everything is green and lush, and everyone is as friendly and welcoming as you could possibly imagine. I stayed with Mukisa's family at their house, where they have a large field with papaya trees, mango trees, jackfruit trees, coffee plants, a LOT of sugar cane (they sell this), and much more, and chickens and pigs wandering around it all. I was overwhelmed with the family's hospitality at every turn. Joining us was Liesl, a Stanford student who came to Budondo on a school trip last year and says it changed her life, so she felt she had to come back.
By day we played theatre games, reviewing some of what we learned last week but also learning how the Atuwa Troupe has used theatre since 2000. Occasionally they would let us help cut up fruit or wash dishes, but mostly they prepared all the food - matooke (boiled green bananas), roasted groundnuts, beans, potatoes - I was very well fed. By night we sat with lanterns under a sky covered with stars, sipping tea made from lemongrass and discussing Mukisa's dreams for Budondo's future.
Mukisa is among the most inspiring people I've ever met. After having studied drama in the then-Soviet Union, he felt responsible for using his education for the betterment of his home village, Budondo. Along with his wife Topista, their seven children, and many other community members he considers family, they started the Atuwa Troupe to educate and raise awareness about social issues through theatre. They always incorporate local folk songs and traditional dance to keep audiences engaged (expect videos!).
But the Atuwa Troupe is just the beginning of what will become known as the Budondo Intercultural Center. Mukisa is planning on building his property into an "alternative village" accessible to the community, running entirely on alternative energy, and including a Women's Reproductive Health Center, a library, an amphitheatre, a theatre training center, room for workshops on everything from entrepreneurship to organic farming, and much more. He wants to host international volunteers to contribute knowledge and ideas for all of these projects, and he hopes it can all be in place in the next five years. Who wants to go back with me? :)
Friday morning we left Budondo to spend the weekend in Kampala. We stayed with Mukisa's brother Sam, a doctor who lives in the Northern outskirts of town. We got to see a play at a theatre called Theatre La Bonita, which was actually more of a multimedia performance, and nothing like what I expected. We also got to explore town a little, visit Dia's university, and tour a Baha'i temple (there is only one on each continent). I also ran into my friend Stella, who was a teaching partner in Tanzania with me last year, and recognized from a distance on a crowded street the skirt I was wearing that she had helped me design last year - how small is this world?! I hadn't even known she was in Uganda, and it was so good to catch up with her.
We left last night and arrived in Nairobi this morning, refreshed and ready to get back to work here. Kenya's election was by nearly all accounts a success, fair and peaceful. I will probably have more stories after reconnecting with more people here.
Much love!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)