Cameron Dunkin's blog

The sky is brightening.

The Baobab Branch office was painted ‘Northern Sky Blue’ and that’s the colour of the sky out the window. I no longer have a view of banana trees, gliding ibis, and stone walls stacked with broken glass. Now I have this blue Northern sky, framed by budding maple and crab apple trees. After being in a place of raw expression, emotion, events and landscape for so long, it feels quite surreal to be back in the soft quiet of Canada.

My last week in Nakuru had me learning how to install solar panels under Kai’s lead, at Morokoshi Nursery School. Camping out in Steve’s farmhouse under kerosene lamp and twinkling stars was a great way to slow down and just breathe for a moment or two before my segue home. I managed to get all of my final errands, meetings, coffee cups and chapatis, and goodbye’s accomplished in my last moments. I boarded the plane in Nairobi feeling like I’d achieved what I’d set out to do. I tied all the trip’s strings together, just as Amos and I ran through some final business details on our early 5:00 taxi route to the airport.

Can I summarize my entire trip? Draft some succinct culminating sentences to put it all together? The trip was just a lot of days, a lot of experiences, a lot of challenges, a lot of good times. In my head, it’s not working itself to those summative statements I was expecting I’d have. Maybe in years to come I’ll be able to do that. Perhaps it’s all still too current. I still hold the inkling that outiside the front door are those banana trees and bicycle taxis and noisy children and cows and charcoal venders.

I had assumed this blog would be an easy one to write. Everyone who has experienced Africa seems to always have so much to say. Dinensen, Kipling, Hemmingway, Paton, Achebe, Dahl, Conrad, Livingstone, Ng’weno, Geldof, Stanley, Equiano. And I agree a trip to Africa should dissolve writer’s block generally, but I’m left looking back, maybe without the foggiest idea of what just happened. Boom, you’re in Kenya. Boom, a million things to do and process. Boom, you’re back. Maybe it was because I could write in the moment, all those other blogs, that they came out so easily.

But where this trip maybe hasn’t yet given me life’s answers, or clarity, or a certificate; it has given me the desire for continuing - continuing a life of travel, exploration, trying new things, collaboration, learning, living. ‘Msafiri’.

A few months ago, I came across Ulysses, stored on my computer. I copied it to my journal, and ended up reading it to Amos a couple times. Even though my life is hardly Greek epic, I thought I’d end off with a few lines that say more than my own pen is producing. The thought of loving each day and continuing forward, is one thing this trip has shown me, I can’t really afford to not have in life.

Finallly, thanks to everyone - from my homes in Canada and Kenya who helped me through all and everything. Each of you has become part of my story, and I know I couldn’t have done anything without all of you. Special thanks to Amos, Ruth, Allan, and Steve who held my hand through it all and made the trip such an incredible thing. I look forward to when we can be together again.

Signing off,

Cameron

I cannot rest from travel; I will drink
Life to the lees. All times I have enjoy’d
Greatly, have suffer’d greatly, both with those
That loved me, and alone;

For always roaming with a hungry heart
Much have I seen and known,– cities of men
And manners, climates, councils, governments,
Myself not least, but honor’d of them all,–

I am a part of all that I have met;
Yet all experience is an arch wherethro’
Gleams that untravell’d world whose margin fades
For ever and for ever when I move.
How dull it is to pause, to make an end,
To rust unburnish’d, not to shine in use!
As tho’ to breathe were life!

To follow knowledge like a sinking star,
Beyond the utmost bound of human thought. To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
To those of you who have yet to experience the sub-Sahara, I suggest you purchase a ticket soon. Camesh.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015211&l=f26d0&id=180500406 (a visual summary)

Yes,

I’ve been neglectful to blogging. Je m’excuse. Life has given me no time to sleep, no time to breathe, and lastly no time to write. Life has moved at an unprecedented pace ever since Kai arrived (Coloradian guy from SPAN). We have been having a great time together, but we seemed to consumed each other’s break time.

Since Kai’s arriving, we ran through Nairobi to a number of SPAN sites including most memorable WOFAK (promoting support for women with AIDS). Topped off with a few other quick visits to placements and homestays gave quite the adventure. And Kai’s friend Rie whom he met in India, originally from Japan joined us at this point and then it was the three of us.

Back to Nakuru, with moments to spare, we were back on bus for Uhuru Falls an hour east of home. Gorgeous! It provides the pictures that insight jealousy and cause you to lose friends. But the pollution was just disguisting. Just standing in the mist, you’re choking wondering what death virus has pranced off the cliffs above and is settling into your lungs. Overall, still a great trip. It’s all about the pictures, isn’t it?

In Nakuru, Kai and I worked really steadily to develop an official SPAN package dealing with Human Rights. We have realized that we need to really ensure that none of our partners are violating human rights, and in doing so have spent a few days culminating a package and developing Kenyan contacts with organizations that deal with abuse and neglect of children. It’s been hard stuff to deal with, but we hope in the end we can use this to further support our partners in their efforts to treat all of their clients to the best of their abilities.

Amos and Ruth have now officially announced their engagement, with the traditional ceremony of introductions happening last weekend. THis was a time when Amos wasn’t allowed to say a lick, and others had to defend him as a suitable husband to Ruth’s parents. I had a great time - and as tendency holds - ended up chatting on end with everyone and anyone. Over the past 5 months I’ve gotten to know a number of their family members, so it was fun to see them all together. And the food - delish. Unfortunately I’m just missing the offering of cattle in the rural home of Nyanza at the end of the month.

An a heavier note, one of the children at Morokoshi Nursery where I’ve been teaching died during the holidays. The $10 for medication never made it to him, as Steve and I were unaware, and we received report when school opened again last week. I’ve been able to get a training session into the teachers on dealing with PTSD (a special thanks to Elva, Ashley, and Devon who were all part of getting me this info compiled!).

K ai, Rie, and I are heading back there tomorrow, where we’re going to install solar panels, and just spend a moment out of the city. THe poor apartment they’d been staying in was a boombox magnifier of the noise on the street below. You never slept in past 5. I ended up crashing on their rug a few nights when our work kept us up late - I think the stellar sleep there is a big component of my sleepiness.

This trip is coming near to finishing itself off. A few friends, and a number of kids have offered to kidnap me to resolve that issue, and I must admit my resistance to those statements holds weak. Except that Tim (bro) has his big musical debut a day or two after coming home. Beauty & Beast thumps my iPod often, and I’m pretty excited for it all. I have a strange feeling there may be plethera of smoke machines involved.

As I intravenous my last cups of Kenyan brew and race round to say my farewells and tie up all ends, I’ll end here.

Yako, (yours)

Cam

SALUT A TOUT LE MONDE!

In grade 9 French, I used to write essays in capslock so I wouldn’t need to put in the accents. The Arabic keyboards I’m using here are my excuse for not finding the appropriate accent keys

I thought I’d start off today’s blog petit, avec the culture crisis I’ve had here and my realization that Canada can’t claim any authority whatsoever on our definitive word ‘eh’.

For anyone outside of Canada, you may not know that most Canadians (self-included) like to end every sentence with the word ‘eh?’ It reflects our down to earth nature, our fear of offending anyone, and therefore removes the strength of everything we say by reformulating it into a kind question.

Canadian translation of ‘eh’ - yeah? right? (please) agree?

Having spent a lot of time over the past few months with Kikuyus, who speak the aptly titled language ‘kikuyu’, I’ve come to discover that we are in short stock of ability to use the word ‘eh’, which they will use several times in a sentence covering the most broad scope of uses.

Kikuyu translation of ‘eh’ - yeah? right? agree? yes! no! uh huh. what? ummm… uhhhh… hello. goodbye. ah! I understand. I don’t understand. Well then.

So throw it all into a sentence (i’ll kindly translate into english)

person one: Eh! hey. eh, what’s new? eh…

person two: Eh. Eh…. not much. Eh… Can I buy a mango?eh?

person one: Eh. Costs, eh… 20 bob. Eh?

person two: Eh! that’s too expensive, eh. 15, eh?

person one: Eh. alright, eh. See you, eh.

person two: Eh.

So, to my dear fellow Canadians, we are back to clinging to French folk songs, Native igloos, red leaves, and beaver tails (the animal and Wonderland snack). We can’t honestly claim ownership (or even proper usership) of our kindly word ‘eh’. Sorry, eh?

I’ve just thought I needed to write sometime about the word ‘eh’, as I think it’s fun to use as many times in sentences as they do. Just saying the word ‘eh’ could fool the average person you speak a decent amount of kikuyu, which I overuse daily.

Anyways, ma vie est bien. life’s going well. Mungiki spiced the country with disruptions to travel and business earlier this week, but they’ve decided once again to behave, and have gone back to their other day jobs.

I spent yesterday at Jamii Bora, a grassroots microfinance organization here in Kenya. For those of you who have yet to know more about me, I have a closet crush (maybe more of a tabloid covered love) on microfinance and the impact it’s having on development around the world.

Anyways, I got a very complete download - some 5 hour meeting yesterday, with different directors and head managers of the organization, running me through all strategies, details, stories, and all over their head office. It was absolutely fantastic, and is being run so successfully. (in the guest book, some Grameen Bank officials had stopped by a day or two before, and also had some very positive things to say about it). It was just good to see. For any of you other mfi geeks - they’re using finger scans, smart cards, trust groups of 5, building levels of loan qualification, microinsurance (life and health), and have a huge building complex going up in a place called Karateoi (sp?).

This building project is coming at conflict. As I matatu’d (buss’d) back to Nakuru from Nairobi with friend Ruth (I also applied for alien registration yesterday, so I’ll get major discounts in the national parks. also so i’m not staying here illegally right now). Back to Ruth - ruth works for Kenyan Conflict Resolution Org, and was talking about how the Maasai are up in arms with this new building project, which is on their land, they fear will monopolize their business, and is also interfering with herd migrations (wilder beast and the like). So Ruth was saying that the Maasai are mentioning how they may just attack the settlement (quite Maasai cultural way of handling these situations), and use the homes to keep their cows. I’ll keep my ears open (and may try and get to the site), and I can give you a further scoop on it all.

What else to report? SPAN Board Member Kai Staats is flying into the country next week, after a month (or more?) of Japan, India, Indonesia, and however many other countries there are to do business with on that side of the world). So I’ll finally get to meet him - the guy with whom I’ve sent hundreds and hundreds of emails to, and have yet to set face with.

I’ve blathered far too long, eh? Apologies and niceties all around.

Affec’ly yours,

Cam-eh

(as some dear beach bum friends aptly call me for my ironically overuse of the aforementioned word.) Maybe we Canadians will just have to share.

A Hello to you all,

Somehow last time I wrote, I was getting over an overdose of relaxation and suncream. It seems like ages ago. My week has been filled with a lot of ‘never yets’. I was writing a letter to town council for the town market, and threw in the term ‘never yet’ - and uncertain as to whether it’s actually english or not, I decided to err with Shakespeare and Seuss against Webster and Johnson, and keep it in the letter.

My past days have been filled with the crossing off of a few ‘never yets’, and i think with this blog, I’ll just list the few.

1 ) I gave my first university lecture. It was to a course on leadership/ business/ something something; and I got to speak on improving personal employability. It was a rush.

2) I spent my first afternoons in Baobab Branch (for those of you just tuning in, it’s the educational programme NGO that Amos and I have started here in Nakuru). The little bits of office administration, and the crossing off of ‘never yet had kenyans pay ME’ for something, as we had our first few sign up for our programmes. That was a rush.

3) I dipped my hand into public speaking at Morokoshi Nursery School graduation to the grandmothers of the children (AIDS and clashes wiped away most of the parents). I used my kitchen Swahili and Kikuyu, and then resorted to translator, but it was fun trying.

4) Malaria. It hit late last week, and I was out of commission for a few days. Compared to typhoid, it really was a breezy walk in the park, because I caught it early enough and got on meds super quick. But the hallucinations and dreams gave me some entertainment.

5) April’s Fool. My friend Steve, woke me up at 4:30 in the morning on April 1 with a message that Menengai Crater had errupted, IDPs were fleeing, and lava was moving quickly through the low lying region. Going outside and smelling something off-sulphurish and seeing some cloud formation over the lake, I assumed it was completely true, and went around town (and internet) telling people that it had hit. And with Steve living right in the area, and my understanding of how delayed newscasts were, it wasn’t until late that night when it never made the news that I realized I was a complete April’s Fool. I’ve never fallen like that before.

I thought I had one or two others floating in my head, but maybe I’ll resume the ‘never yets’ in some other blog. With my down time at home, I was able to finish a book I was reading, and am re-reading Paul Theroux’s Dark Star Safari - which I highly recommend to anyone with any affinity or connection to Africa.

Well, that’s it. A list of never yets, and a week of hot dry weather. The rains have ended, prematurely, and we are now facing drought. food prices are going up - some items 20%, which as you know means that the already tight pockets of those recovering from the past clashes, and general poverty of the country, and scrimping even tighter. it really is a different world over here.

SPAN has got its placements prepped and open for late spring/ summer/ and fall volunteers. Kenya thankfully is once again flowing with tourists, and life here is moving as ever, which is good to see.

With this, I bid adieu, with a smile and a sweaty brow. (and I”m all better now, so not a worry)

Cam

“Human beings are more alike than unlike, and what is true anywhere is true everywhere. Yet I still encourage travel to as many destinations as possible for the sake of education and enjoyment.” Maya Angelou

mombasa pics:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2014249&l=9195c&id=180500406

Howdy y’all,

I’m back from the beach, properly sunsoaked with the right amount of soreness on my shoulders and nose. The trip was fantastic: just so good to see more parts of Kenya (beautiful drives, even though they were long), and then getting into Mombasa to bum on the beach with good friend Aimee Komant from uni (back in the day).

But I’m back in Nakuru again, and life is bubbling up its busyness. Baobab is opened now (yay) and we’re already pushing ahead to find another room. Morokoshi is pushing ahead with registration and plans. Our crew in Japan are meeting today to discuss updates and everything, so that’s exciting. SPAN volunteer applications are beginning to flow in, and with the return of complete stability and movement forward in government, we are hoping for lots more to come.

I don’t really have much to say in this blog. Facebook photos say it all, pretty much. But as the week continues, and everything eventful here mounts, I’ll put on another blog.

Chipper cheers,

Cam

I’m off!

The time has finally come for a good break on the beach. Sand as opposed to dust, chilly ocean as opposed to chilly shower, sleep as opposed to power nap. Ahhhh… super excited.

Today I’m heading to Mombassa! I’ll spend a day in meetings in Nairobi, crash at a friend’s house, and then bright and early don my flips and Oakleys and prepare for some solid days of beach bumming.

Life has - (redundant?) - been great. The baobab branch office will open on Tuesday. So it’s been a relay week back and forth between the office and everywhere - bringing books, stocking shelves, sweeping mopping scrubbing, hanging. Amos and I are thrilled to finally be opening. We have our advertisement packages set, business cards to come, sign hung, and secretary hired. Now all we need are customers ; ). Actually, we have those lined up too. So, yes I’ll be sun basking while Amos is drilling away back here, but I put in my extra hours this week to balance out some.

What else is new. Morokoshi and the rural area of Murunyu where I’ve also been working - we’re developing a tree re-planting effort

! News - yesterday I was 8 feet away from Wangari Maathai! I got all trembly-like giddy. Anyways, I got her phone number, so we’re going to try and set her Greenbelt Movement onto funding (fingers crossed) the Murunyu replanting. Hold my breath there. But I got to see her, and after watching all those documentaries, and reading all those articles about her, it was a little dreamlike. crush.

Life at Pistis is good. I was teaching on Wednesday. I taught gr. 11 history, and grade 8 religion (varients between Jews and Christians, which led to the inevitable chat on what effect 50 cent has one people… haha, i’m a broke record). Then after school there was a big debate in the church over whether technology has done more good or harm. It was fun to be a part of.

I’ve been trying to keep note of the little stories so I can keep the blog colourful and not bland summary.

Mini story: my matatu driver on the way home from Murunyu a few days ago sat me in the front seat so he could take me around and show me the entire area. Cigarette & match slumping out the right of his mouth, he gave me play by play on every shop and farm we passed. Buffalo Soldier wailing in the background and rain pelting down relentlessly, turning the dust road to mud. I got quite the history of the area. Conversation turned to his desire for better education, and his dream of learning to swim. That was just one of those little enjoyable moments that made up a step in the day.

Well, to you all, next time I write, I’ll hopefully be caked in aloe vera, glowing rosy, and eager to get back to life here. But for now, ‘adios, voy al copa cobana!’ where music and fashion are always the passions.

Hakuna Matata always,

your barefoot boy.

So,

My peanut-gallery audience, apparently I’m not writing enough. Profound apologies to all

Life’s moved into patterns and sync, and it’s not every day I’m petting cheetahs or whatever other exciting things I’ve had to write about in past blogs. Life’s just moving amidst the pitter patter of tasks, places, times - many that I’ve already written about, and for fear of becoming redundant, I’ve slowed my writings. Apparently that’s not good enough

Actually life’s been great. The rains are slowly arriving. I was downtown Nairobi on Sunday when huge crashes of thunder brought in the first thick downpour of the season. It was so refreshing. The air just feels moist and clean. The fresh feeling you get watching Downy commercials. It was great. The days are still hot and sunsoaked, but it’s becoming more common to get some showers at night.

- see, get me writing too often, and all you get are weather reports.

SPAN is excited to have its first (hopefully of many) local volunteers. A university student, wanting to get his hands-on the hurting education here in Kenya, is now volunteering full time at Morokoshi Nursery School. He will be leading the PTSD programme for the children (a huge asset, since he speaks Kikuyu!) and assisting developmentally delayed students with private attention. We’re really thrilled to have him on board. With hopes that future international volunteers can work alongside local volunteers in our ever developing network, there will be even greater success in all set out to be done. There is still a big need for international minds and bodies here in Kenya, so if you’re toying with the idea, I’d encourage you to sign up.

What else is there to say? Not too much at all. Except, I hope everything back home is splendid; and that I’ll try desperately to have some adventure before my next blog to keep you readers happy.

Signing off,

Camao

Jambo jambo, hello hello

How are you all doing? The rainy season is beginning to role in with its cool winds and short rainfalls. Crop season will soon begin, and I’ll be able to shake some of this dust from my ears.

In the evenings I’ve been watching the BBC Series Planet Earth with a few friends here. SO great. and it gets you all thinking about how beautiful this world is - well the places humans haven’t yet had the chance to inhabit. There are two mountain ranges that surround Morokoshi Nursery school. Some corporation came in a few years back and stripped the hills of all their trees. Three cheer for erosion. Does anyone want to come plant trees?

I may be going on a Zambia roadtrip in April. Woot woot. Life never stops. I’m heading to Mombassa at the end of the month to meet with a dear friend coming from Rwanda. And I have a few reasons to be in Nairobi next week, so I’m not sure how steady my communications will be for the next bit - not that I’m not absolutely horrible at keeping in touch with everyone already… sorry

The week has been good. We officially opened the Morokoshi Community Library yesterday. I brought 2 student friends from Pistis (Ibu and Timo) to help out as we delved into accounts and book keeping record establishments for the Nursery School. They loved getting out of the town into the countryside. I think that during break I’m going to take the group of Form 4’s and we’ll climb one of the mountainsides out there.

I spent last night reading a LONG journal on children and PTSD - thanks Elva. Haha, wow it was long. Still trying to figure out how best to help these kids process the events the experienced.
It’s been a good week for just slowing down (only a bit) and getting some chance for reading and processing everything here. I’m re-reading The Giver. Such a great book - I’ll probably teach it in April. I’m also going to be doing some large group speakings - I have a nurse here who runs a youth group type project, and she wants me to speak about my thoughts on America and life - haha, my favourite topics. Can’t really say no to that.

The Baobab Branch office is coming along slowly. I’ll be in there doing the wood staining on Tuesday. Maybe we’ll be open by Friday? We’re realizing that the demand is going to be huge - and the realization we’re going to need some further class areas pretty soon. And roll out the paintbrush.

Hope you all are great!

Cam

It’s been a bit. Every blog I feel I start with “don’t know where to start”. And I don’t.

What’s new? The past week and a half I have been running back and forth between Nakuru and Nairobi like a madman. Gypsi and Jesse (good friends from uni) were in Ethiopia for six months, and dropped down to Kenya before heading off to Japan. So We had some intense hanging out. Jesse came north to Nakuru and I showed him around all the projects I’ve been working on. We climbed some ancient hill, took millions of photos, splurged on chinese food, and generally did everything but sleep.

Road - cards, dust, zebra, yogurt vendors, warthogs, epic mountain and valley scenes, baboons scavenging garbage, desperate attempts at nap. And we were in Nairobi again.

Meeting again with Gypsi and Beth (her mom) and we were off around the city. Drinks in Kibera with friends of mine, petting a cheetah, numerous schools in other urban slum areas, sneak-in half swimming at the Hilton, coffee with a Zimbabwean terrorist just before his arrest, and almost mine too (that’s a story for another time). playing with a baby elephant, night celebrations with local friends of mine at a Luhyo club after the PEACE DEAL WAS SIGNED (huge success on Annan’s part!) Hostels, nights in friends’ flats, Mexican food, meetings meetings meetings. connections connections connections. snap flash photos.

It was such a great time. But I came back to Nakuru - bump, baboon, carrot vendor, lake, farm, lake, farm, farm, forest, police attack alongside the road AK 47s blazing, farm, bump, farm.

So, I’m back to Nakuru. Tomorrow is reserved for Sleep. I also have some news - my trip has seemed too short, and I’ve extended my plane ticket until late May. I miss you all far too much for this not to be a very deliberated decision, but I’m loving things here, and just have far too much to do right now.

With that, I’ll end off. Nairobi, Nairobi: livin’ la vida loca. I’ve missed far too many stories, experiences, things i’ve learned, but that will make return stories that much more exciting.

Cam

Well,

I can’t ever believe how much has happened since I wrote last. I spent a day running around Nairobi, and even hit up Little Mogadishu (sort of like your run of the mill Chinatown, but this is mini Somaliland - minus the chaos and violence and such just filled with old Somali refugees. It’s a really poor region, but served good juice).

I spent another day or two teaching nursery school and working with Steve (founder, ED) working on some policy development plans, and began library formations there.

Then there’s been the big excitement - Amos and I, now that we have our own official office for Baobab Branch Educational Programmes (as now registered). The office needed major work! The floor was in brutal need for new tiles, and the walls were cracked and splotched with ugly paint. And there were some antiquated shelves taking up half of the room, mounted on the walls.

The countless hours I’ve spent watching Trading Spaces, Divine Design, Home Makeover, While You Were Out, Debbie Travis, Oprah’s Nate, and all of those other Women’s Television and TLC home deco specials have finally gone to use. I pulled up the hundreds of Pottery Barn room samples on my computer (that I downloaded amidst some brutal university essays), and gave Amos his Renovations101 crash course.

I was thinking about it in relation to my general views on my work here. My intentions have never been to change Africa, make it western, or throw some ‘catch up’ modernization theories at them. Ashamedly, all that went out the window with my decoration passions. My name is Cameron and I am, admittedly, a Martha Stewart Colonialist. - trying to get away from the hideous colour samples used all over town, the tacky wall coverings, and over used lace window ornaments. I have thrown out all my noble attempts to work within the African context over some neutral tiles and Northern Sky blue paint chips.

Anyways, the office has ended up beautiful (thus far - we still need to have the furniture built, and the tiles installed). But I’ve had a lot of fun over the past week painting, planning, drafting, and designing.

The country itself has gone back to peace and productivity, though tourists are still reluctant. Kibaki ( the illegitimate cronie government and his henchmen) are rejecting Kofi Annan and his work, and the international community is stepping up harsher and harsher. Condoleeza Rice was here a few days ago, with some strong (definitely needed words). We need to see what will happen here.

Other than that, life’s great - I’m healthy again, and busy, and happy. And would love for a surprise visit from any of you

Cam