Long walk around Kakamega

It's Cody's last day in Kakamega today. Terry and I did a quick market and chai trip into town this morning while Cody was sleeping and then came back home to do a little laundry and get ready for the day.

Worth noting before I forget... on the drive last night to Vahiga for the Rotary meeting we passed the usual shops along the road. This time it was the coffin storefronts that stood out most for me. We passed many of them; some with elaborate, red velvet covered coffins, others plain wood. There are new sights and sounds everyday, some more welcome than others.

Given that it is Cody's last day, we wanted to give him the full tour of the neighbourhood -- so far he has only taken the direct route into town on the main drag. Terry has done lots of exploring on his runs, so we let him lead. We took the quiet road around our compound and were invited by some workmen to have a look at the well they were building. Today is an exceptionally hot day (and we left for our walk around 1pm, not our smartest move) and I wished I had some maji baridi (cold water) to give the men. The well was 30' deep and I do believe it was dug by hand (don't quote me on that though). The bricks, cement and gravel were made by hand. Terry may have mentioned in one of his posts that we have seen dozens of men digging a trench in the hills behind our place. The workmen today told us they were digging for building materials. Looking that way we could see kids with hammers sitting in the shade breaking down the rocks.

And yes, with all I've seen, I still managed to complain that I was hot and thirsty. I've never heard anyone complain here.

The walk was fantastic, even in the heat. We walked down little paths around houses and housing blocks. Saw lots of little kids... even a couple of bare bottoms as they were being given a bath by their moms in the front yard standing in a bucket. It felt a little invasive, almost as if we were walking right through someone's yard, but we were always met with a smile. The women doing laundry in the creek thought we were terribly funny and were shouting after us in Swahili, laughing.

Tomorrow morning we leave early to begin our safari with Jeremiah, who is also the owner of our favourite restaurant, The Tour Africa Cafe. We will stop in Kisumu to see Lake Victoria and hopefully the hippos, then make several stops on the way to the Masai Mara (about an 8 hour drive). We'll have two nights in the Mara and then drive about 6 hours to Lake Nakuru where the flamingos live.

We will leave our computer at home, but will check in in a few days.