Trip to Kitale

Although there is now a 3x-weekly flight from Nairobi to Kitale, I opted for the smaller carbon footprint, and immensely more interesting version of taking the bus. Picked from my host’s house in Karen at 6:30am, I got a ride to the bus station downtown… smooth sailing for 20 minutes, and traffic jams for the last 30.

BUT, I would like to argue that traffic jams are in fact good for the local economy and small scale enterprises. Between the rows of standstill traffic, evenly spaced every 2-3 cars, young men were slowly walking carrying what looked like the contents of a variety store. Belts, purses, air fresheners, driving license holders, pyramids of tupperware tied up with string, Japanese fans, newspapers… you name it, you can get it on your morning commute. How convenient. Now, if they were only selling cups of chai or coffee, that would be something!

The bus company I used, ‘Easy Coach’, is an upper-end one, meaning presumably they service their vehicles more often than other companies, resulting in fewer breakdowns at the side of the road. The more money you pay, the greater the chance you will arrive on time and in one piece. So, for just under $20 I got a 6-hour bus ride from Nairobi through Nakuru and Eldoret, to Kitale. The first third, to Nakuru, was smooth… the roads were good enough I could spend the whole time legibly writing in my journal. After that, it was nothing but dust and bone jarring bumps, as drivers navigated the roads and overtook slower vehicles, often while going up hills (yikes…).

I saw several IDP camps, still filled with people several months after the disturbances, by Naivasha and between Nakuru and Eldoret. They are waiting for the government to free up some land so they can resettle somewhere else. Just like that. I'll write more later as I piece together the root causes for the disturbances in this area.

For me, by far the most disturbing thing was the first and worst town that I realised had obviously had people chased out of. Molo must have had at one time a population at least half Kikuyu, or at least a business population at least half Kikuyu (the tribe of the President). Their houses were not only burned, but totally destroyed.. it looke like a bomb had blown up or a crane's wrecking ball employed because whole walls were missing, and only foundations left in some places. Imagine living in a town with such ugly scars, reminding you of long-time neighbours that were killed simply because of their ethnicity. I later learned that the reason the cement-block walls were gone was because people likely have subsequently carried the blocks elsewhere to build their own new house.

I just can't imagine it. Charred shops and houses were a mainstay in nearly every town I passed from there until Kitale, though, miraculously, Kitale was spared completely of ethnic violence.

Upon arrival in Kitale I was met by Chege Bernard, a VP at the school whose family I had gotten to know well from last visit. I was so happy to see him just because he was a familar, friendly face, and a Kikuyu one at that- I had been quite concerned for the safety of his family during the disturbances- but also happy because it meant I did not need to choose between the swarm of taxi drivers who surrounded me the moment I stepped off the bus!

At ICM I have a suite of rooms, including two bedrooms (5 bds in all plus a desk), a small kitchen with a gas cooker, electric kettle and fridge, and a small washroom with a flush toilet and a shower who's highest force is 'drip', which it did whether it was on or off... I think it was fixed today. It is great to be back on familiar ground, and see so many familiar faces, who remember me fondly :)