Habari yako? Nzuri sana! As of this afternoon, I am now a member of the Aluko family—a very large and extended family. I finally moved in with my host family this afternoon after a final morning breakfast at the hotel. When I arrived at the Aluko residence, which was not very far from our hotel, my friends from the program and I couldn’t help but notice how large and out of place this home is. We drove through large gates opened by a “herdboy” and pulled up to a house much larger than I was expected. When inside, I was greeted by Irene, the 26 year old daughter. She led me to my room, a smaller room, but one with two beds and a closet for my things. She brought me some juice and left me to myself. I was a bit out of my element, as I was not sure what was proper for me to do at that time. I had just been briefly welcomed into their home, and then Irene led me to my room and shut the door. After thinking for a while about the best choice of action, I decided to venture out into the house. No one was around. I saw a small boy sitting on the couch in the living room watching TV..yes, they have television, and a huge sound system to go with it. I said hi and tried to strike up conversation, but he was very shy. Then Ainee, the 21 year old daughter, came and watched TV with us. I tried talking to her as well, but I noticed a pattern when she seemed disinterested in talking with me. She said I could look around the house so I walked outside the front yard to find a litter of seven adorable puppies (which the entire family call “ugly”). In the backyard I saw cows, sheep, chicken, and many other unidentifiable farm animals. I definitely thought to myself, this is not a normal household. When I ran into Irene, she asked if I had milked a cow before. Perhaps it is uncommon for someone to not have milked a cow before in Kenya? She explained that we were going to watch the farmhelp milk a cow and then we were going to make chai tea..with the milk. Once we got the milk, we boiled it, added a bit of water, then some tea leaves and spices, and drank it. Straight from the cow. The milk was from the cow and to my mouth without even passing go. I was a bit apprehensive about the tea, however, I really want to immerse myself and try all of the culture here, so I drank it. It tasted relatively normal, but there was a twinge of nausea after every sip. Perhaps the nausea came though because she demonstrating how to properly cut up (read-massacre) a chicken as I sipped my tea. She was making dinner, and wanted to show me how it was done, which I really did appreciate. I helped her with the sukuma wiki—basically a huge leafy plant and tried to help a little with the ugali—which was obviously served, per usual. We had ugali, cooked sukuma wiki with other vegetables, chicken (kuku) and rice. At dinner, only the children ate at the table (the children being the 24 year old son, the 26 and 21 year old daughters, and the farmboy). Dinner was very strange to me and the culture difference was apparent. The dinner table was essentially mute. After a prayer, everyone began to eat in silence. They eat with their hands, so I felt a bit uncomfortable eating with a fork and knife. I tried the hand approach, but it just wasn't really my style. Maybe eventually I'll be better at it. It was strange that no one talked, and I wasn't sure if that is how meals usually are of if it was just because I was there. I talked a bit with the boys once the sisters left to clean dishes. They asked a few questions, like if we have ugali back home, and what I think of their country. It was nice to have some sort of talking after a totally silent dinner. Irene served dinner to her grandparents (98 and 84) in their room and to her parents in the family room. I got a huge welcome from both of her parents when they arrived, and they were impressed by my really little knowledge of Kiswahili.
After dinner, the family was very interested in watching wrestling. I literally could not keep my eyes open (and my aversion to WW wrestling didn’t help) and I fell asleep in the chair. When I returned from my nice and hot shower, the family was watching the world cup. We chatted a bit and then I headed to my room. All in all, I have learned a lot already about Kenyan culture. For one, they are not warm at first. I had trouble feeling welcome from the children when I first arrived, but now that Irene and I are closer, she is really taking care of me. Once Kenyans develop a relationship with you, it seems they are very warm and even touchy. Tomorrow we leave for church at 8am, as it is a 30 minute walk to town. I’m sure I’ll be awoken by roosters and cows tomorrow morning, but I am so looking forward to a nice sleep, be it in my mosquito netted bed. Although this house is nowhere near what would be considered a nice house in the states, it really feels like the lap of luxury to me. I was totally prepared for pit latrines and bucket showers, but I will not complain about this hand of cards that was dealt to me. I hope to get to know the family a bit better over the coming weeks, but I think it takes time for Kenyans to really open up and develop relationships with people. What a day it has been of learning about the Kenyan way. It seems like it has been a dose of culture, coming straight from the cow.
