::COLORS OF KENYA:: BARA + CHINITAS

LAST HOURS TO DEPARTURE :: GOOD BYE KENYA::

2011-06-27T02:04:00.000-06:00

This might be the end of Kenya but the beginning of a new adventure! Kenya definitely opened new doors for us and gave us a new perspective on life. We see things in a different way now, we now know that giving is not always good, not all aid is appreciated and sometimes it doesn't even go to who needs it the most, we had to learn it the hard way but there are some things you just have to experience to fully understand. Besides Guatemala, this is the first time we've lived in another third world country, in some ways Kenya is facing the same issues we face in Guatemala, poverty is seen more here but only because it's really in your face, streets are dirtier, the trash is disposed in the middle of the city for everybody to see and smell and slums are really visible but in the end it's the same, the only difference is that our slums are in different areas, we have cleaner streets and the trash is disposed in places away from the city so it doesn't struck you as hard as here... anyway, Kenya was another door in our story, another path we had to take, another dream accomplished and scratched off our list, it was a very interesting experience, with ups and downs, laughs and tears and lots of hard work.

One of the things we loved the most about this country is it's scenery, Kenya is a big country and everywhere you go it's a different experience all over again. This year our budget shrank a lot and with just a few hundred dollars to live each month we were able to travel to all corners in Kenya... from Lamu almost in Somalia, to Turkana just steps away from Ethiopia and from Kakamega so close to Uganda to Wasini Island facing Tanzania. We travelled by bus more than we've ever done before, our longest trip was to Turkana, travelling for three days, changing from bus to bus from city to city until finally we got there, eight buses in total and lots of lost patience but know that's in the past it's just a funny memory in our book.

Besides the great trips we made, most of all we'll always remember all the good friendships we made... our Kenyan family was made up us tons of other volunteers from all over the world... we'll always remember the adventures we had while travelling together and all those dinners with the coast girls which brough us a bit closer every time... Good times and now it's time to leave but for all the friends we made we know it's not really a good bye because for sure we'll meet in some other corner of the world...

So now Asia, stay tuned and see what's coming....

::WHAT THE HELL DID I DO IN KENYA:: RECAP!

2011-06-17T01:04:00.001-06:00

A few more days and we will be off to some long vacations cruising around Asia… every journey we make leads us to another door, every city we pass by leaves it's mark and changes our perspective of the world bit by bit. Sometimes we find ourselves all over again and sometimes we loose a bit of what we thought made us who we were. This time it was Kenya's time to host us for one year, in paper it was two years and that was the plan but plans always change once you start executing them… It was definitely an experience we'll never forget, ups and downs, lefts and rights… we came with the ideology to help a bit, share our little knowledge and experience so that people at the organizations we were placed at could continue afterward… but things are never easy, you always encounter people with hunger to succeed and sometimes you just meet people who just don't want to be bothered and in both cases you just have to try to make the best out of it and that's what we did… We helped the ones who wanted to be helped and even though we wished we could have done more, we'll just leave this country glad of at least have helped one or two….

Anyways, so I was in charge of the design department of Likoni Quality furniture…. Design department meaning me, and by design meaning having to deal with marketing, advertisements, website, product design and even dealing with clients… it was a mouthful of things and nobody to help me… pissed as hell I started my placement last July, feeling like I was taken advantage of, things were not clear for my partner organization, for them a volunteer felt like a good deal, so they got rid of their designer and brought me in, which shouldn't be the case because this thing is supposed to be sustainable, you come, you train, you implement and then someone else continues doing the job but if there's nobody else then there's no point, as soon as you leave things go back to how they were before and you loose a year of your life….

It took me a couple of months to have management approve high speed internet installation which was going to help me with e-marketing and the build up of the website… Four months for the approval of a digital
camera so we could document installations, production and new pieces…Six months for the approval of a computer purchase for the department (Doing furniture plans by hand is still very much alive) equipped with some adobe programs… eight months to finally bring in an intern I could train and ten months to find a grant to build up a resource library equipped with more than 30 books about design, econometrics, standard furniture measurements, interiors, etc…

One year it took me to put everything together and leave a well equipped design department…. it was not easy but I can say I'm leaving something behind and that my job was done… One year with a lot of work and for everyone who still wonders what the hell I was doing in Kenya, here it goes: Besides equipping the design department, training someone a bit on every aspect of design and leaving a resource library, I also did their website, catalog, brochures and other stationary… did all their graphics for advertisements in magazines and newspapers, laid out their newsletters and e-blast once a week for a year… did furniture proposals for around 20 clients, helped them with the decoration of their booth in the 4th Mombasa Homes Expo which won the first price for best "Interior decoration" in the show… did some manuals for one of their kids' wheelchairs and advised them on how to make them a bit more friendly for children and finished 3 full new lines of furniture, one for children, one for outdoors and one a bit more modern for younger people…. Uffff…

this definitely kept me busy, did what I came here to do and now I'm ecstatic to leave…. volunteering… I can scratch that off my list now, will I do it again? probably but next time I will think twice before just embarking myself into a new place. Kenya helped me find myself all over again, I am know pretty sure I don't want to live in a third world country except if it's my own… Anyways, that's what I did for one year in case you all were thinking I was only here on vacations!

CAMPING IN ABERDARE :: KENYA::

2011-05-26T04:02:00.004-06:00

Just a quick update from past trips in Kenya. Aberdare national park is part of the Aberdare Mountain Range and for Easter holiday we decided to join a group of VSO volunteers in a camping trip at this park. We would recommend it to anyone, despite having useless tour guides, one latrine for 16 people and leaking tents there were tons of other good things like an amazing view, no annoying noises or people around, bush bucks everywhere, plenty of nice food and good company, overall I give it a 7.5 and would probably go back if I lived here. Anyway, the photos and video above says it all, Enjoy!

Camping in Aberdare::Kenaya:: from Bara + Chinitas on Vimeo.

Check out the video of a few days camping in Aberdare National Park with some other nice people we've met during our journey in Kenya. It's a bit funny, Enjoy!

GREEN KENYA :: KAKAMEGA FOREST ::

2011-03-21T02:25:00.001-06:00

We were in serious need of some green and Kakamega Forest being the only tropical rain forest in Kenya was the best choice so once again we crossed the whole country to find ourselves in the middle of nowhere… only this time it was worth it…good 13 hours by train to Nairobi, then 9 hours by bus to Khayega (matatus are way faster but can't stand them anymore so took Easy Coach, more expensive and longer time but definitely the best choice), finally 30 minutes motorcycle ride, passed Isecheno and we were in the forest, very close to the Ugandan border. We booked four nights at KEEP Bandas, a community project that helps the forest through education within the community, tree planting and other things towards the protection of the forest.

We were the only visitors for the whole week so the people at KEEP took very good care of us,
specially Solomon, an intern doing his residency on turism. He cooked for us, stayed with us the whole week, taught us about snakes and butterflies found in the forest, took us to the market, showed us the closest town, introduced us to the locals and even found a chameleon for us to see. On our way to the market we passed several tea plantations, Kenya is the world's third largest producer of tea after India and Sri Lanka, and the biggest exporter to Britain. A great part of what a century ago was Kakamega Forest is know covered in vast regimented swathes of tea bushes.

So what to do in Kakamega forest? The forest is big, lots of walking trails and you can easily get lost so the smart thing to do is find a guide. Our guide was Abraham (recommended by Ricky), a very friendly guy who on our first day took us for a long walk all the way to the river and back. By long we really mean long, 7 hours walking through the forest learning about plants and spotting butterflies, Blue Monkeys, Red Tail Monkeys, White and black Colobus Monkeys, Hornbills and tons of other birds. On our way we also encountered a group of women coming from a long morning of searching for wood in the forest. Kakamega women are so far the strongest women we've ever met, they were carrying thin logs of about 5mt long and probably really heavy, just amazing!

Next day we went to town with Marcini and Solomon. Marcini was so excited she took us to her parents house and introduced us to her mother and all her siblings, then we went to her house to meet his son and stopped at the market to meet her sister.

Third day we decided to do a sunrise walk, also with Abraham who took us to the top of a mountain where he said was the best view point in that part of the forest. We started walking at 5am, it was still really dark and hoped to see a few nocturnal animals but we only saw a wild fox. When we finally go to the top of the mountain the sun was coming out but rainy season just started so it was really cloudy and foggy and we couldn't see anything but the fog over the forest gave a dramatic effect to our view so it was worthwhile anyway.

Being in Kakamega was like being in Peten in Guatemala, vegetation everywhere, lively green and great smell of plants wherever you go. Animals are different though making Kakamega a different experience all together. We definitely recommend Kakamega forest if you are tired of savannas and beaches in Kenya and if you just want peace and quiet for a few days.

Check out the video for some action shots with a bit more close-ups and because we spent my sister's birthday in the forest we dedicate this video to her…just 'cause we know you love nature so much… love you lots little sis!

Kakamega Forest Kenya - Bara+Chinitas from Bara + Chinitas on Vimeo.

By the way, I've finished another zine "Kenyan Style" go to my illustration blog to browse through it and let me know what you think! Enjoy!

MATATU STYLE :: KENYA::

2011-02-25T05:20:00.002-06:00

So life as a volunteer has it's ups and downs, matatus for us are the down parts of it...For the ones who don't know what a matatu is here is our explanation: 9 passenger minivans customized to fit one more row, standard for 14 passengers in East Africa, usually found carrying 20 or 22. Interior decor? fully carpeted with cushioned ceiling. Why? well if you have ever been inside one you'd probably figured it out by know.

Matatus are in our daily schedules and we absolutely hate them so we had to draw about it. We summarized our experience in "10 things you should know about matatus" a zine (short, hand made comic book) describing our daily journeys. Enjoy!

Open publication - Free publishing - More transport

Now, who wants to join us for a matatu ride?

We're currently working on our next zine "Kenyan Style" so if you have things to share about habits, culture or any other interesting or peculiar stuff then please, be our guest and write us about it, your suggestion could appear in our next comic book!

CHRISTMAS FROM NEW YORK!

2011-01-18T03:17:00.000-06:00

So Christmas in any other country without family is not the same... There's always some family Christmas traditions that you always miss, for us is eating tamale for midnight, opening presents, all the family together, firecrackers, Christmas parties all December...it's just so fun to be home for Christmas but once in a while you just can't make it and you end up in a remote place like Turkana right? so no presents this year, no family, old friends or tamales but we still had good company and a sky full of stars. so what happened to the Christmas decorations this year? we had none at home until we received a package from New York! what did we find inside? a Christmas tree and some firecrackers sent to us by our friends Matt and Moo... This made our Christmas really, now we'll keep this all year round on our living room table.

Thanks Matt and Moo, you made our Christmas!

36 hr JOURNEY TO THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE ::TURKANA::

2011-01-14T02:36:00.004-06:00

We really had no idea into what we were getting into when Lenard invited us to join him in his Turkana expedition "if you want to experience feeling in the middle of nowhere then we should go to Turkana" he said with excitement and naive and adventurous that we are we of course came along. We started the journey on Dec 19th from Mombasa, took the train which from the budget options is the longest (16 hrs if you are lucky) but the most comfortable. We've taken the train once before and it's ok, really old, perfect for a scary movie, we paid second class which is a cabin with four beds, comfy enough…We decided to space the traveling so stayed two days in Nairobi just chilling and getting ready for the next ride, matatu ride from Nairobi to Kitale, stopping along the way in Nakuru and Eldoret, traveling with Lenart, Albertine and Joanna… Everything is so impredictable in Kenya so bus schedules don't necessarily mean the bus will leave at that time and matatus are worse, you just hop in and wait for the whole mini-van to get full which sometimes can take a couple of hours… that meant waiting at each place for hour and a half approx letting people out and waiting again for it to get full..

9 more hours of traveling to add to those 16 and we found ourselves in Kitale, really late on Dec 22… Long day traveling so we stayed overnight in that charming little town with a few good restaurants and shops around… Next day we woke up early hoping to get an early bus to Lodwar (closest town from our final destination), 7am it was, ate breakfast quite fast, grabbed our stuff and head out to the bus terminal looking for any bus heading that way, after some time asking around and trying to get vendors out of our way a guy sold us 5 tickets for a 9am bus, not as early as we expected but it was the earliest we could find so what the heck, "let's wait"… by 9:30 we were wondering what was going on, nobody on the bus and 30 minutes late already… 10:30, nothing… by 11:30 more passengers started to board… by 12:00 the bus was almost full… by 12:45 the engine started! and we were finally on our way after waiting for 4 hours!!! … now add 9 more hours and think of Lodwar after a flat tyre and a dead guy lying on the road… Lodwar wasn't as charming as Kitale, a weird little town with weird people, certainly not a place you want to spend your holidays in but thankfully or ride was waiting for us to take us to the middle of nowhere… have you been keeping track of the travelled hours?
Well, add 2 more hours = 36 hours in total and find yourself in Eliye Springs Resort….yes, Resort! which by the name you would imagine spa, massages, pool, tan by the lake, room service, AC and good food right?, wrong again! guess you can put whatever name you want to your hotel and this was certainly not the kind of Resort we were all expecting…

This place was truly in the middle of nowhere, no electricity, no good food, no massages, no spa and no pool, just some tiny huts and by huts we mean the tribal huts the Turkana tribes live in… tiny, tiny, so tiny that the bed barely fitted, and to top to that, these type of huts are so tight and compressed that it feels like a sauna when you're inside…but, now we can say we have truly experienced how Turkana people live and besides, the lake was awesome, at certain time of the day you can't see where the lake ends and sky begins, just in the edge of the world… this is definitely the kind of place that bring out mixed feelings, and as Jo said, can't really tell if you love it or hate it, but as we say, never regret anything you do, it all becomes part of your life and what doesn't kill you makes you stronger right?

As with everything in life, this wasn't all bad, and adventure we'll never forget and we were all glad to be part of… So Lake Turkana touches the Ethiopian border at its northern end, once upon a time it was connected with the Nile but not anymore, the lake scene changes constantly, our huts were in Eliye Springs, very close to the Central Island National park which is a UNESCO heritage site. To get there was another 2 hour boat ride but worth every penny and minute. Central Island has three craters, two filled with water now and the other one dry, we could only hike to see two of them though, first we got to the Flamingo Crater, we could smell the sulfur in the atmosphere and as soon as you start hiking down you can see the deep emerald green in the water, by the looks of it I would think that water was radioactive and very toxic but that doesn't stop the hundreds of flamingos from living there. Amazing sight, deserted as you can't even imagine, it was just us and the flamingos. Then we headed to the next crater, Chorro crater as the sign said, with clear water and full of crocodiles, so interesting, it's like this two different species found their homes next to each other and the great thing is that they don't even have to cross paths.

So Besides Central Island, Turkana is known by it's people, the Turkana, a tribe that wears less clothing than any other tribe in Kenya. Women wear several necklaces made out of beads and men will always be seen with a wooden stool called Akichalong, very handy, you can also see them with a wide bracelet which is used as a weapon and is called aberait, the cool thing about it is that it looks like a simple bracelet covered in leather but hidden you'll find a sharp blade used as a weapon. Eliye Springs is a public place, close to where we stayed you could see the spring and lots of local Turkana people gathering to collect water. The last day we were taken to a community on our way back to Lodwar, one of the women dressed up in her special attire and let us take photos and look inside her hut. You can't leave Kenya without seeing old fashioned tribes and although we could see a lot of western influence, like the Turkana men wearing caps and safari hats, it was very interesting to see their little communities in the middle of nowhere, where water is a 3 hour walk or more, with no much agriculture 'cause Turkana is a very arid place and tons of goats and camels all over. At the end the trip had it's perks, we definitely wouldn't do it again but it was an adventure worth experiencing.

Video editing almost done so stay tuned for more of the Turkana people and the flamingos!

SHARIANE BEACH ::GLOBAL ED + CLEAN UP::

2010-12-06T02:51:00.001-06:00

Yesterday, December 5th was the international volunteer day and to celebrate it we stayed home resting, hahaha... but in commemoration of that day we will tell you about our beach clean up at Shariane beach last Saturday, Nov 27. We are both part of the VSO's Global Education committee helping with some graphic design and stuff related to design... to begin we had to re-design the logo of Global Education and the result was of course a very cartoonish logo sketched by me and edited/finalized by Chinitas, it's always great to work together and combine ideas, the results are just better when two heads come together right?

That was only the beginning, then we did the posters for the beach clean-up which you all saw in an earlier post and then designed the art for some t-shirts that were handed out after the clean-up.

The day started really early, we had to be in Shariane beach at 8:30am, that meant waking up early and leaving Bombolulu Workshops at 7:30am. The heat was hard on us, after meeting all the teams we all spread along the beach and started picking everything we could... two hours under the sun made us really thirsty and tired and at 12:00pm we head back with bags full of trash. At the end we filled up around 50 bags of trash, mostly with plastic bottles and sandals which were taken to recycling companies afterward by the people from Vipingo Ridge.

So, after all the efforts we were happy to see all the locals working together for this activity, and even though some people living around the area just came for the food and to complain we didn't have enough t-shirts for them, everything went as planned, maybe even better than we thought... so now we have to start planning for the next event, stay tuned and find out what we have under our sleeve to keep Kenya beautiful, today, tomorrow and forever! If you couldn't make it for this event then check out the video and see what you missed, hope to see you next time!

GLOBAL ED + BEACH CLEAN UP from Bara + Chinitas on Vimeo.

GLOBAL ED + BEACH CLEAN UP

2010-11-11T01:42:00.000-06:00

When it comes to the environment we jump in without even thinking about it so we both joined VSO Global Education group which is all about fighting the root causes of poverty by:

increasing understanding of global issues and the consequences of our daily actions
challenging attitudes and behaviors that perpetuate global poverty
inspiring others to take positive action against poverty.

VSO Jitolee recognises that serving volunteers, returned volunteers and partner organizations can all play a key role in Global Education by sharing their first-hand experiences. Global Education can take many forms; from writing a blog to share experiences with friends and family back home to implementing large-scale advocacy and public awareness campaigns so following all this, the Coast volunteers decided to host their first activity which will be beach clean-up at Kuruwitu Marine Conservation beaches. If you happen to be in the coast of Kenya for Nov 27 then join us in this great cause and let's work together in keeping Kenya beautiful.

Poster by Bara + Chinitas!

CHINITAS PUMPLE PRESENT

2010-10-15T07:44:00.001-06:00

:: THANKS for being part of one of the best presents in my life... Thanks tili, momia, nicolas, kibira, maria, victor, cindy, bodoquit@, donia ia, donia dinorah, betio, raiza, arely, vanny, tito, mando, lenny, rene, abby, may, estefano, roberto, edwin, moo, matt, duster, mario, patty, daniel, nadia, mark, julie, tini, lynn, henry, heather, bim, sebastian, andres y mis cohetes sonriseros, kenia, adriana, emilio, wayaba, jesperin, carol, anah, grems, regis, chochi, paola, lourdes, ana jose, katherine, mona, chila, gabyta, karlita, chanthely and all the people involved in the present project.
gracias, gracias gracias! thanks for making it special!!! love you all...\)

Especialmente gracias para la mente creativa y productora de mi regalo, la persona mas linda y especial que comparte su vida a mi lado. Tomati Tiliti!

Chinix 31 from Bara + Chinitas on Vimeo.

A WEEKEND OF CORRUPTION, GHOSTS AND SAND :: WATAMU ::

2010-10-12T01:03:00.000-06:00

So corruption is one of the biggest problems in developing countries, we have experienced it in Guatemala and now we are really experiencing it like never before here in Kenya. We as musungu (white people) experience it triple, just because we are white everybody assumes we have money so they charge us more for everything... bus rides, food, clothing, housing... absolutely everything you can think of they will increase the price just because you are white and we are a bit tired of that, can't they put signs to let you know what the real bus fare is? well no, because if there's a traffic jam then they will charge everybody more, not just musungus right? that is definitely not fair but it's for sure the way they do it in Kenya. Wait, wait, this post is not only to complain, or is it, maybe it is but we decided to write about it after our trip to Watamu...

It all started with a matatu ride from Bombolulu, the area where we live, the ride to Watamu which is like 2 and a half hours from our place would cost us 200ksh, that's actually fair for a trip that long so we paid in full... for our surprise we had to change buses in the way and I heard our conductor say to the new driver that we had already paid the whole fare (that was in Kiswahili) so we left it like that and didn't say a thing... 15 minutes before arriving to our final stop the driver tried to charge us again.. in between arguing, yelling, angry faces and signals we told him we heard when the other driver told him we had paid already... surprised that we had understood Kiswahili he backed out of his scam and dropped us off in Gede...

We love ruins so we headed to Gede Ruins close to Watamu, according to our guide book this site is spooky and some archeologists have heard voices and seen weird shadows here but we didn't hear or see anything out of the ordinary. Not so many tourists or locals find an interest in Swahili ruins so we were almost the only visitors here. What we love about these type of ruins is that they are built entirely out of coral, it seems like concrete blocks but if you come closer you can see the texture of the coral, pretty interesting material for construction.

After the ruins we headed to where we were planning to stay, "Mida EcoLodge" which supposedly is a very nice place with hanging bridges, a view of the creek and some eco-fun... after a 15 min bus ride and a 30 min walk we arrived to the hidden Eco Lodge just to find out that it was closed because someone had been killed there!!! as quickly as we could we headed out of there, it was almost 6pm and it was getting dark... less than 30 min walk this time through a quiet road so you can imagine how spooked we were this time...

By the time we got to Watamu again it was pretty dark, no street lights, just a few lights coming from restaurants and bars so we had no idea where to go or where to stay... A woman approached us offering to take us to a guest house...after hearing about the killing in the other Lodge we were hesitant of accepting but had no choice really, so we said yes and off we went with pepper spray in one hand and Swiss army knife in the other... We walked a bit and kept looking at each other not knowing what would happen until we finally got to a guest house "Tiki House", which looked ok from the outside but not so nice from the inside but there was no other choice at that time so we stayed...The woman probably got a commission out of that, one thing we've learned in this country is that almost no one will help you out for free... sad given that everyone wants to help this country but anyways...

Next morning we headed to the Watamu Marine park which sounded pretty cool but once again felt disappointed when we understood that Marine Parks in Kenya are just beaches with coral reefs close by which you have to pay a boat to take you so we passed heading to the closest hotel to spend the day... Like most hotels they let us use the pool in exchange of buying something to eat and drink so we had breakfast and then lunch spending a relaxing day.

So after starting the weekend with a glimpse of Kenyan culture we ended it with a glimpse of Kenyan nature and after being ripped off day after day we are starting to wonder if it's really worth it to be here. Aid is good if both sides of the coin are willing, if only one is committed to make a change then no change will be made, so far we haven't seen interest on improving from most people we work with, they just want someone to make the changes for them and when it's their turn then the wheel stops. Our view of Africa now has changed, of course most countries in this continent need help but it has to start with the root of the problem and if people living here are not willing to change why should we try to help right? had to try though and we'll keep trying a bit more so stay close if you want to know more about these two volunteers in Kenya...

WORKING IN KENYA :: THE CHALLENGE ::

2010-09-23T01:18:00.003-06:00

Things don't go slow in our offices… Likoni changed its management in January and Bombolulu is doing the same as we speak… that means lots of new faces, young faces with new ideas, they all want to make more money and if that means working overtime then they're up for it… Not really what we expected a Kenyan work environment would be but hey, we're not complaining, the busiest the better but first impressions are not always right and what we have experience this last months changes every day... people start showing their true colors and day by day we experience how a real Kenyan work environment is really like.

So far we've done a lot of things we weren't hired for but that's part of the job right? lot's of graphic adds for newspapers, magazines and newsletter... a lot to be done here and there's a lot we could do in a year or two… Another thing we also like is the location, yeah, yeah, the commute is long to Likoni but worth it a couple of days… crossing the ocean every morning busts my day and everything is full of trees in the compound, outside is a different story but while I'm at work nothing gets boring… if I get tired of computer work then I just walk to the wood workshop, say hi to all the carpenters and take a look at what they are doing and if I don't want to do that then I just take a walk through the gardens until I get a view of the sea… I stay there a bit, just watching the water, relax and then head back to the office for some more computer stuff…

Bombolulu is quite the same, the head office of APDK is in Bombolulu compound, as well as a rehabilitation clinic, the wheelchair factory and the cultural center. There's even a tour that shows you around, in the tour you can see a few Kenyan traditional housings, an organic farm, a walk around the workshops where you'll see disabled people doing handcrafts and at the end of the tour you'll experience some traditional dancing... this happens most days, it's tourist season so it's really never boring, people coming and going and lots of fun places to clear the mind...

Work also comes by the loads in both places and the same problems arrive... for starters everything is urgent, I bet it wasn't urgent when they found out they had to do that but they always forget until the last day and of course we are the ones who have to hurry... we both have refused to do some stuff at the last minute, I know we are in Kenya but our design process is still the same and we will not lower our design level just to have things done. We really appreciate good design and at the end we came here to improve the way they think about it and if we lower our level just to make something faster then we're really not accomplishing our goal.

We both think design can change lives but that's not the case here, we have had to explain to them that design is not grabbing stuff from magazines, or producing everything that comes to mind...brainstorming is something unusual, they tend to produce everything they come up with, Likoni for example has more that 20 product lines and Bombolulu, oh my God, they have more that 10000 products just in the jewelry workshop and they are 4 workshops in total... it's hard to make people understand but if we keep insisting we believe someone will understand soon... Marketing strategies are also a different story, there are none! so that's another challenge.

Besides the urgent stuff we both will start working together on a wheelchair for children with paralysis which is a very cool project to work on and has lots of potential. So far they have finished a prototype for one which was taken from a German design, lots of controversy so we decided to give them a hand and make something new, not copied, a big challenge though so we'll see how that goes. That's all for today so remember to write once in a while!

SMELLS ::MOMBASA::

2010-08-17T02:29:00.004-06:00

So my commute is not so different from the one in New York, except here is like i'm taking a roller coaster day and day again... The Matatu drivers are suicidal, yes, worst than in Guatemala. Every day it's like the race of death and then the Ferry to Likoni which is worst than a NYC subway station at peak time. Everybody hurries in and out and if you are not quick enough the crowd will literally step all over you so running is the next best thing. Ok, crowds and the heat! you can imagine how that smells like right?

Smells have this amazing thing of transporting you to the past. Memories are linked in a way to smells and tastes and so far every smell and every taste has been different so it's like having your memory wiped out and having all these series of new things come in… although I must say I wish my memory don't remember the smells of Kenya when I leave… uffff, smells, what can I say, I once worked with someone who in my opinion stank but the smells around here are a thousand more times stronger than what I've experienced before… It's the coast right, so sun = sweat + no deodorant = ikkkk (can you just smell that???) + days and days without showering = OMG, can't even describe it but sometimes it reminds me to the first time I had wasabi, that spicy thing goes into your mouth, going up into your nasal ducts and into your brain, well, it's something similar, although China always tells me she rather have wasabi every day, the smells just go up into your nose and it's like a brain killer… it's hard to avoid it sometimes so I try to sit close to windows, put some liquid sanitizer in my hands and just inhale all the alcohol in it until my nose can't feel a thing anymore… this only last a couple of minutes but while I'm doing that I pray for the stop of this guy or woman giving us a brain freeze… nice right?

There are things we can change and things we can't so we have to adjust, smell the smells, taste the tastes and experience as much as we can… two years may be nothing or it could be a lifetime so the least we can do is just enjoy it while it lasts and laugh about it….meanwhile take a look at out first weekends in Mombasa...

WEEKEND AND BIG 30'S :: KILIFI ::

2010-08-04T10:09:00.000-06:00

Big 30's... although it is supposed to be celebrated big I really don't see the difference between any other birthdays so I just went to the beach with my favorite person and some other volunteers and relaxed a bit... but wait, it wasn't just any other beach, we went to Kilifi, a small town along the North coast of Kenya, about an hour from Mombasa and it really made my birthday... I'm 30 now and I'm in Kenya, what else could I wish for right... by the way, thanks to everybody who wrote and wished me a happy birthday, I really couldn't be who I am without all the amazing people that has crossed my path one time or another... Thanks a bunch!!!

So Kilifi was great, it's winter here though so a lot of sea weed all around but that doesn't bother us at all, we still could enjoy the beach for a bit before it started raining again... Don't think this is all we do, this are only weekends and one day we'll write about how work is but in the meantime we need a break from work so the beach is the closest thing to fun around here so the beach it is for now... work talk will come later so stay close 'cause we're not going anywhere...

Funny story though... we haven't had water for more than a week now so showers are out of the question, more like bucket baths but hey at least we have water somewhere right?... so we were looking forward to showering in the hotel and guess what!!! no water either...jajaja... we just had to laugh and had another bucket bath...

ok...that's it for today so don't forget to say hi once in a while... we've told you our story and we'd love to hear yours! Stay in touch... Tutaonana baadaye!!!

TWO WEEKS ALREADY!

2010-07-30T05:45:00.003-06:00

Melancholy invades our bodies more and more each time… nobody said it was going to be easy, in fact, if it was that easy probably more people would do it right? commuting gives us a different perspective of our surroundings and how most of the people in Mombasa live, although we will never be able to pass unseen through the crowds we are still trying to be part of the community, people become more apprehensive when we say a few words in kiswahili, they always laugh because we probably sound funny but then they realize we are trying, they smile and help us out.

Nice touristic side of Mombasa!!!

The real Mombasa, how most of the population lives!

We are almost settled in completely, or at least that's what we like to think… our place is small, I don't really know how to describe the area though, what we know is that we are the only msungu (white people) around and you can always distinguish that word from a conversation of people walking around so everybody knows we are there, which at times makes us a bit paranoid because in a way we also become easy targets but hopefully everything will be fine.

China has been cleaning the house for days, applying clorox to everything she can which reminds me of the movie "My big fat Greek weeding" with the dad applying windex to everything. We have been placed in a 6 house complex, which is like a big house with small houses inside the entrance is a little blue door unlocked where everybody can go in and out, when you enter you see a small hall full of rope for hanging cloth and of course hanged clothing all the way. Our place is one of the last ones so you have to walk all the way to the end, then our door… another blue metal door, opened on the top so everybody can see the inside of our place but that's what curtains are for so we have one for privacy. The front door is only secured by a big lock so no much security there.

Inside we have a decent size living room, 4 low chairs and a coffee table, a dresser that we'll use as a desk and two other chairs. We already put a couple of posters up and some postcards we brought to have something that remind us of ourselves so we don't loose our minds here. Then a small room with two beds with mosquito nets and a small cabinet for hanging cloth…. our kitchen is small and our bathroom smaller… there is no division between the shower and the toilet so you could basically take a shower sitting in the toilet (no that we would but it's possible), water is a problem though, it comes when we are working and goes away when we are home so we've been filling some tanks out and showering with a bucket…

It's been hard to adjust really, we knew what we were getting ourselves into but to know and to be there are totally different things but then we start thinking how while we'll only be here for two years, most of our neighbors have been living like this all of their lives and they'll probably continue doing so. The funny thing is that we have everything, roof, food, water, electricity and we still complain in our heads, confort is not a necessity and we are used to contort so it's hard not to have it for a while but I'm pretty sure this will change our way of thinking from now on.

Ok, lot's of info for one day so we'll leave the rest for another day and remember, hearing from you guys keeps us sane so keep in touch, write us a line once in a while!!!

NAIROBI IN A GLIMPSE

2010-07-18T12:16:00.005-06:00

Our first week in Kenya was a bit overwhelming. The Guest House (Hotel) where we stayed was quite good, great gardens, great food, very clean and the staff very polite, so our first impression was great...

Very different when we went to the city center... as you read on our last post we rode the matatus (small mini vans used as public transportation) to the city. Nairobi is big, like any other capital city, a bit cold to what we expected, a bit dusty and a lot dirty... apparently there is no proper garbage system in Kenya so everybody throws their trash in the street or they burn it so at times you can feel the pollution in the air... Our throats felt it bad, China's cold became a bronchitis and for me just swollen tonsils which was kind of annoying for a while.

Besides a couple of trips to the city we stayed in the hotel for the whole workshop mingling with all the volunteers who will be working also somewhere in Kenya, a few classes on Kiswahili, some money exchange (1$ = 81 Kenyan Shillings) and some laundry washing as you can see in the last 2 pics, that was and will be our new laundry room for the next 2 years (that's the hotel bathroom though, wait for pics or our apartment's laundry room)... pretty fun right!!! to see more of what Nairobi looks like and a bit of our journey see the video below...

OK...first of many more to come, we are now settled in at our apartment in Mombasa, so stay tuned for more photos, videos and stories of us and the organizations we'll be working for and remember, keep in touch, send us a note, an e-mail, some pics or donate to VSO.

FIRST DAYS IN KENYA :: NAIROBI::

2010-07-11T08:31:00.000-06:00

We haven't taken so many photos the last few days but here is a bit of what we've been up to so far...

Starting with a really long and tiring trip from New York City to Nairobi stopping for a couple of hours in London... Adjusting to the time has been a bit hard given that we've had to wake up early every day for our workshop...

Got off at Nairobi airport at around 10pm and like any good tourist we had to take a photo in front of the plane... minutes later someone told us not to do that but we had taken a photo anyway!

The next morning we were still waiting for some volunteers to arrive so they gave us a free day. We went to the city and experienced the public transportation, some minibuses called matatus with loud music and low ceilings even for us. The matatu took us to the Business center in Nairobi where we walked around for a bit and then head back to the Guest house where we are staying.

We are like 20 volunteers in total, all volunteering somewhere in Kenya, not so many in Mombasa where we are going though, maybe three more around where we'll be posted. So far it's been nice, two full days of Kiswahili crash course and one more week or preparation before heading to where we'll be living.

Stay tuned for more later!

PRESS:: CENTRAL ATOMICA :: GUATEMALA

2010-06-27T22:06:00.001-06:00

A little interview from the guys of Central Atomica, a local talk show from channel 1850. It's in Spanish though.

First aired on June 17, 2010. Take a look!

Days to Journey: 9

PRESS:: MAGACIN 21:: GUATEMALA

2010-06-22T17:31:00.002-06:00

"Con las Maletas listas" is the name of the article that Magacin 21 came up for our article which means: With the Luggage ready. It talks a bit about what we do and what we are going to do in Kenya.

Look it up inside Siglo XXI, June 20th 2010.

Thanks!

Read full article here.

Days to Journey: 15

FIRST STEP: VISA

2010-06-04T21:33:00.003-06:00

We finally got our visas today after several tries from the FEDEX guys to find our address we decided to go pick it up ourselves and voilà! one step closer from beginning our journey... stay tuned.

Days to Journey: 33

GOOD BYE PARTIES NEW YORK CITY STYLE

2010-06-04T16:21:00.003-06:00

Cheers to all the good peeps we met in NY... remember this is not a good bye, we're sure we'll see you all again somewhere around the world. Thanks for making time to see us one more time!

Diane, Carl & Kathie

Emily, Diane & Josene

Ellen & Debbie

Wayaba & Jesperin

Lisa, Ryan & Baby LoganDaveAlternatives Family - Mark, Lynn, Heather, Nadia, Henry, Matt, Moo, Ellen Bean, Julie, Tini, Daniel & Olga.

Johan & Lynn

Virgilio, Roberto, Michael & May

Love you all!!! See you in Kenya!

THE INNKEEPER'S TAIL

2010-06-04T16:18:00.003-06:00

We are really excited about volunteering and part of our goal is to tell our story and encourage more professionals to volunteer their expertise and experience in communities where they are needed. Some weeks ago we went to visit my old friend Miss Trudy, whom I met when I was 15, she know has a blog "The Innkeeper's Tail" where she writes about her life in Guatemala and for our surprise she mentioned us in her blog. Check it out!!

Thanks Miss Trudy!

A BIT ABOUT OUR PLACEMENTS

2010-05-20T12:47:00.004-06:00

We both will be working for different companies under one main organization called APDK.

APDK Mombasa
The Mombasa APDK office is part of the national Association for the Physically Disabled of Kenya, founded in 1958. The organisation has 6 up-country branches, in Nairobi, Machakos, Embu, Nakuru, Kisii, Busia and Kisumu, as well as the Mombasa.
Mission Statement:
“To enable persons with disabilities to overcome their physical limitations and empower them physically, economically, and socially to become self-reliant and fully integrated members of their communities”.
Core institutional objectives of APDK are;

To provide medical health care, rehabilitation and integration services to persons with disability in Kenya.
To encourage the government and other authorities to conduct systematic research into the prevalence and needs of persons with disability.
To encourage the cooperation of national and international organisations of, and for persons with disability.
To aim at making the association into an organisation of persons with disability, through a determined policy of recruiting people who have disabilities to all bodies of the association.
To disseminate information about persons with disabilities, their potential, available treatment, preventive measures, home based care a to increase public knowledge and awareness, to educate parents and community leaders.
To collaborate with other stakeholders to maximise resources

Photo from Mombasa Info.
The branches provide a number of services aimed to empower persons with physical disabilities. These include;

Provision of therapy services.
Networking of mobile clinics
Community-based rehabilitation (CBR), in slum and rural areas.
Production and distribution of orthopaedic mobility aids.
Orthopaedic surgery.
Counselling.
Vocational training.
Education for children with disabilities, and school integration.
Sheltered employment.
Micro-financing for persons with disabilities.

Not every branch provides every service, but according to local identified need and local availability of resources. APDK supports micro-enterprise activities, through a loan scheme, that is aimed at supporting the economic empowerment of persons with disability, or parents of children with disability. Once assessed, the person is encouraged to identify an area of economic activity that reflects their skills and interests, and presents this to APDK. The idea is assessed for viability, and loans provided, along with basic business skills training. The initiative is self-regulated in that each recipient acts as a guarantor for the loans of the other members of the group. APDK thus act as providers of limited capital, but enable persons with disability to start up small businesses such as a food kiosk, tailoring, carpentry.

The Coast Branch provides vocational training, production and distribution of orthopaedic mobility aids at Likoni Quality Furniture as well as in Bombolulu Workshops. The branch has a FAIDA Micro Financing Scheme catering for the physically handicapped, as well as a rehabilitation clinic.

WHAT MAKES CUSO-VSO UNIQUE?

2010-05-04T21:48:00.005-06:00

CUSO-VSO sends people not aid

CUSO-VSO sends people rather than aid money – we are not an emergency relief agency. Our volunteers work on long-term, sustainable solutions, and live at the heart of the community they serve, on a similar salary and in comparable accommodation to their local co-workers. Our volunteers come from many professional and personal backgrounds, from many ages, and from across Canada and the United States as well as from a number of developing countries in which we work.

CUSO-VSO harnesses the power of volunteering

Lasting change requires not just a financial investment, but also a human investment. That’s why CUSO-VSO shares skills, and changes lives. In spite of the obstacles facing them, people in every corner of the developing world are building better futures for their communities. Our volunteers work side-by-side with these committed citizens to make this positive change happen. They are matched to placements that meet the direct requests of our overseas partners. Our volunteers generally strengthen individual capabilities and build the capacity of organizations.

CUSO-VSO works collaboratively

We work collaboratively with developing world partner groups and governments on locally and nationally managed projects. We bring together people from different cultures and backgrounds, enabling them to share skills and perspectives. Local program staff work with development partners to create a country or regional strategic plan that guides our work. Our partnership approach is key to all that we do, and our volunteer recruitment is driven by the requests for volunteers that we receive from overseas partners.
In addition to our programs in developing countries, we also work to build global understanding of the issues around poverty and disadvantage. Advocacy and development awareness activities by staff, returned volunteers and supporters are part of our ongoing efforts.

CUSO-VSO is part of a global volunteering movement

While there are many volunteer-sending agencies, one of CUSO-VSO’s unique attributes is its role as the North American member of VSO International, a worldwide partnership of Voluntary Service Organizations. This international federation is the world's largest non-governmental development organization that works through volunteers. It allows us to recruit from all over the world so we can find volunteers with targeted, hands-on experience. We can also transfer the expertise, experience and ‘best practices’ of one country to another.
Through membership in an international federation, CUSO-VSO can contribute to a world of solutions through interconnected development programs that extend beyond national borders. And we can also influence policy debate on a global scale, as a member of the world’s largest volunteer-sending international development organization.