We've been in Kisumu now for a couple of days, and again, the word of the day is still 'confronting'. Yesterday we had a guide take us for a walk around the city, right through the bus mall (which is nothing like a bus mall) and through some of the markets - I saw a boy, only about 8 years old, sniffing a bottle of glue. World Youth told us many times to expect to see this, but reading about it and seeing it is completely different. I saw a man push him over and take his glue, then the boy ran after him and the man threw the bottle at him...the boy caught it and the look on his face, it was like the glue was his lifeline. Johnson, a man we met today, does so much great work with the street boys, he has taken in a few of them and is trying to make a difference. He said they sniff the glue for a number of reasons - it actually shrinks their intestines, so they can eat a very small amount of food and feel full, and it also numbs both their mind and body, they can't feel the cold at night or when they are hit or abused. And it's cheap. It's so sad to see. Another boy followed us about 500 metres down the street asking us for money. And we discussed it in our group today, what to do in the situation, and you can't give them money because it tends to perpetuate the whole cycle, the only thing that is suitable to do, if you choose to, is if you have food on you to give them a little of it. It is just such a different world.
Last night we went out for dinner, and that was the first time we had walked in the city at nighttime - that was only because the place was only two blocks down from the hotel. It's far too dangerous to walk much farther than that, even in a group. It was incredible, it was almost completely pitch black because there are no streetlights and no shopfronts lit up, and the people here just blend into the night. They lie in the gutters, in doorways, all over the place and you can only really tell they are there when you see their clothes or their eyes.
But I'm doing ok with it all so far, I find much of it hard to write about because I think I'm still trying to process it. I think I will struggle when I get home, or at least be very frustrated, that I can't describe life here accurately to people. It's just impossible, you have to see it. And hear some of the stories that people have to tell. I'm looking forward to going to Mutumbu on Friday and settling in, getting to work, and meeting the locals - we had a Swahilli lesson today which was great, except the locals in the village speak Luo I think, but most understand Swahilli, the basic greetings at least. Not sure when we'll be back in Kisumu after that, maybe 2 weeks or so. I know we're coming here on Christmas Eve and then going back to Mutumbu on Christmas day. I'll miss giving you all updates through my journal!
Our hotel probably isn't actually quite as nice as I originally thought...on closer inspection there are bugs in the bathroom, not sure what they are, little cockroaches or what, and the water from the shower runs toward the door instead of the drain (the floor slopes slightly in the wrong direction)! But compared to what most people have here in Kenya, it is still absolute luxury! And we're all making the most of having a relatively comfy bed and a shower before we go for god knows how long without them!!
Thinking of you all and miss you lots xoxo
