http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JD2n4afo7Ps
View my 4th video diary HERE!!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Kenya Days 8 - 10
Day 8
I arrived in the office by 9 and was thankful that Peter had a number of things for me to get on with that would last for a couple of weeks. I was just desperate to get stuck into something which would benefit the office. I was preparing the end of 4th quarter report which would be sent through to Nairobi and then to London. This was an opportunity to learn about every aspect of the office so I kept my head down. In the evening I accompanied Peter to a local radio station were he discussed the law surrounding civil marriage and also how it clashed with customary language. It was presented in the local language ‘Luo’ so I was unsure what exactly was being said. Before bed I got skype up and running and spoke to Mum, Joy, Dave Thompson and the HSBC help line as they had blocked my card… typical.
Day 9
Today I arrived at the office as usual and continued to work on the end of quarter report. I am starting to get into routine and am familiar with my surroundings. Today the office went for lunch together which was unusual yet a good bonding time. It was also nice to get outside the office for a while. We took an extended lunch break. After work I filmed a few things on my camera and spent much of the evening working on my first video diary which I plan to post online within the next week. I am quite isolated in the evenings but don’t mind because I have the internet. I called both Granda Nevin and Workman over Skype to check up on how they were. The connection was poor but all seems well.
Day 10
I woke up knowing tonight I would probably be moved to a smaller room in the apartment for the return of the Australian group. I spent a majority of the day analysing the Matrimonial Causes Act which we are using to present a radio programme in a couple of weeks time. It makes up 61 pages in ‘Word’ and 19000 words. Needless to say I was still reading through the early sections by the end of the day. It’s good to get stuck into some legislation as it feels like I’m getting involved in real legal work. By the end of the week I should be an expert in matrimonial law. There is very little food in my cupboard so a trip to the supermarket was needed – I’m unsure what to buy. Also I’m sure by June I will be sick of rice.
Kenya Day 7
After a good nights sleep I got out of bed around 8 and prepared to go to church for the first time. I met Peter and attended his place of worship, which is called ‘Chris Co’. I think there are a number of these churches throughout Kenya. First impressions were generally quite good although it’s difficult to judge initially.
The service lasted three and a half hours, which was long enough when battling the midday heat. The first hour was praise led by the full band and sound system supported by the 8 on-stage singers who had a mic each. Ballywatt would have been embarrassed to see the equipment. Most of the songs were in Swahili so I was unable to sing along, although the odd UK contemporary made it onto the play list.
The praise was somewhat dragged out but in many ways this seemed to be justified by the energy created from the congregation. At a point everyone was performing air guitar and giving high fives. Generally most started to dance and clapping was a prerequisite. It made me laugh but strangely I quite enjoyed it for someone who was never big into praise at the best of times. The church is of course embedded in the charismatic bracket and that sits fine with me as I don’t seek some backward, dead, establishment.
Apart from the praise, everything was spoken in English then translated (this explains to a certain extent the length of the service). During the sermon the constant translation is difficult to get used to and the talk wasn’t in my opinion overly brilliant. Then again I didn’t experience much prosperity gospel, which I had been so keenly warned about and to be honest had anticipated.
After the service I went back to Peter’s for lunch and watched a film. I bought the meat for the meal and it was filling. I returned home and worked on my computer a little, then hit the sack.
The service lasted three and a half hours, which was long enough when battling the midday heat. The first hour was praise led by the full band and sound system supported by the 8 on-stage singers who had a mic each. Ballywatt would have been embarrassed to see the equipment. Most of the songs were in Swahili so I was unable to sing along, although the odd UK contemporary made it onto the play list.
The praise was somewhat dragged out but in many ways this seemed to be justified by the energy created from the congregation. At a point everyone was performing air guitar and giving high fives. Generally most started to dance and clapping was a prerequisite. It made me laugh but strangely I quite enjoyed it for someone who was never big into praise at the best of times. The church is of course embedded in the charismatic bracket and that sits fine with me as I don’t seek some backward, dead, establishment.
Apart from the praise, everything was spoken in English then translated (this explains to a certain extent the length of the service). During the sermon the constant translation is difficult to get used to and the talk wasn’t in my opinion overly brilliant. Then again I didn’t experience much prosperity gospel, which I had been so keenly warned about and to be honest had anticipated.
After the service I went back to Peter’s for lunch and watched a film. I bought the meat for the meal and it was filling. I returned home and worked on my computer a little, then hit the sack.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Kenya Day 6
I was told to be ready for 6:30 and therefore made it out of bed just after 5:30 to shower, get breakfast and read. It turned out that we left after 7:30, which meant I could have delayed my breakfast as I knew later in the day I would be hungry. I was travelling to a small village 44km outside Kisumu to provide medical aid to hundreds of people who couldn’t afford to get treatment in a hospital.
We would be working with an Australian charity called Hands of Hope who had provided the drugs etc. A number of doctors, dentists and nurses had been organised to give the villagers a proper assessment. I started the day in the Pharmacy dealing out scripts although most of the people could only speak the local language ‘Luo’ and I was forced to rely on the nationals to translate. We stayed in the village for around nine hours and saw to over 1500 people – a successful day!
The charity consisted of eleven Australians who were all around my age so it was nice to have a different source of conversation and I thoroughly enjoyed the day. Having contact with other internationals makes the culture shock a little easier as I was able to share my experiences and difficulties. The Australians would be moving into my apartment the following week for ten days and I am excited about this due to the fact it will act as another source of company.
I was happy to take this opportunity on my day off and be of some use because I have come here to serve people and that is in no way confined to legal practise. Today I feel happy and very much appreciate this experience – one never really grasps the difference between the UK and Africa until they see it with their own eyes. Most people here earn enough to cover the basics and anything else is unknown. And when I say basic, I mean mostly substandard of how we see life.
I arrived back at the apartment around 9pm and made a banana sandwich which was a taste of home, before climbing under the net.
We would be working with an Australian charity called Hands of Hope who had provided the drugs etc. A number of doctors, dentists and nurses had been organised to give the villagers a proper assessment. I started the day in the Pharmacy dealing out scripts although most of the people could only speak the local language ‘Luo’ and I was forced to rely on the nationals to translate. We stayed in the village for around nine hours and saw to over 1500 people – a successful day!
The charity consisted of eleven Australians who were all around my age so it was nice to have a different source of conversation and I thoroughly enjoyed the day. Having contact with other internationals makes the culture shock a little easier as I was able to share my experiences and difficulties. The Australians would be moving into my apartment the following week for ten days and I am excited about this due to the fact it will act as another source of company.
I was happy to take this opportunity on my day off and be of some use because I have come here to serve people and that is in no way confined to legal practise. Today I feel happy and very much appreciate this experience – one never really grasps the difference between the UK and Africa until they see it with their own eyes. Most people here earn enough to cover the basics and anything else is unknown. And when I say basic, I mean mostly substandard of how we see life.
I arrived back at the apartment around 9pm and made a banana sandwich which was a taste of home, before climbing under the net.
Kenya Day 5
Court at 9am for a criminal case about a guy who was charged with stealing two batteries from a car. The batteries where worth around £100 and if found guilty he could face a maximum 14 years in prison which doesn’t seem reasonable. Peter was defending the man and gave a good account for his defence. It appears the police had inconsistent evidence to convict – only time will tell.
CLEAR are in place to represent people who can’t afford professional legal fees. This case may save a man from many years in prison and bring justice (that is of course if he is telling the truth and didn’t commit the crime).
We went immediately to the Kisumu High court for a hearing regarding a couple fighting custody rights of their children. I was unable to ‘sit in’ on this occasion. Following this and a scary ride on the back of a motorbike we returned to the office. Peter left for court with nothing for me to do so I went to the internet café to send some emails.
That evening on the way home I prayed that God would put people around me as I wouldn’t feel lonely. I returned home to meet a Kenyan couple (Dentist and Nurse) who invited me to have Kenyan tea and asked if I would join them the next day to help with medical care in a remote village 50Km outside Kisumu. I agreed as I had no other plans and prepared for a 5am rise and a trip close to the homeland of one Barrack Obama!
The internet was working so I sent emails to various people and read before bed. I felt God had organised my weekend to keep me busy and I praised his name.
CLEAR are in place to represent people who can’t afford professional legal fees. This case may save a man from many years in prison and bring justice (that is of course if he is telling the truth and didn’t commit the crime).
We went immediately to the Kisumu High court for a hearing regarding a couple fighting custody rights of their children. I was unable to ‘sit in’ on this occasion. Following this and a scary ride on the back of a motorbike we returned to the office. Peter left for court with nothing for me to do so I went to the internet café to send some emails.
That evening on the way home I prayed that God would put people around me as I wouldn’t feel lonely. I returned home to meet a Kenyan couple (Dentist and Nurse) who invited me to have Kenyan tea and asked if I would join them the next day to help with medical care in a remote village 50Km outside Kisumu. I agreed as I had no other plans and prepared for a 5am rise and a trip close to the homeland of one Barrack Obama!
The internet was working so I sent emails to various people and read before bed. I felt God had organised my weekend to keep me busy and I praised his name.
Kenya Day 4
I slept in until 8am, had a shower and breakfast and put on a shirt and tie (no jacket). I made it to the office in under 15 minutes, which was very convenient. The office was warm and Peter the advocate gave me a breakdown of what work the CLEAR Kisumu office carries out. Due to the time of the year and lack of funding, most of the prison visits and legal education have finished; hence I am bound to the office much more.
I was given a recent criminal case to read to in order to get a feel of what goes on. Nothing is typed and instead hand written so I was unable to understand what was happening until Peter explained. This caused a mini crisis in my head and sent me into a period of worry – would I struggle to understand everything here just because the writing is illegible? In addition, the office did not have wireless and so I am unable to use my mac for anything but word processing during the day. Also, there doesn’t seem to be any work for me to do and I’ve been left (for the time being) to wait. This has been a steep learning curve moving into an African office despite being warned! I continue to remind myself of why I am here and ask God for patience and contentment until things pick up.
The afternoon was much better as I bought something to eat and worked through some documents, which outlined more of the work carried out in the office. I decided to just go with the pace of the office and maybe devote more time to learning the local languages.
On the way home I stopped at the supermarket to get various items. Tonight I knew I was coming home to an empty flat for the first time so was prepared. I read a little and attempted to get connected to the internet but to no avail. Lillian was still there when I got back so we chatted for a while. I cooked pasta, sausages and mixed vegetables which made me feel ill. Bed early as I have a criminal case to attend in court at 9am.
I was given a recent criminal case to read to in order to get a feel of what goes on. Nothing is typed and instead hand written so I was unable to understand what was happening until Peter explained. This caused a mini crisis in my head and sent me into a period of worry – would I struggle to understand everything here just because the writing is illegible? In addition, the office did not have wireless and so I am unable to use my mac for anything but word processing during the day. Also, there doesn’t seem to be any work for me to do and I’ve been left (for the time being) to wait. This has been a steep learning curve moving into an African office despite being warned! I continue to remind myself of why I am here and ask God for patience and contentment until things pick up.
The afternoon was much better as I bought something to eat and worked through some documents, which outlined more of the work carried out in the office. I decided to just go with the pace of the office and maybe devote more time to learning the local languages.
On the way home I stopped at the supermarket to get various items. Tonight I knew I was coming home to an empty flat for the first time so was prepared. I read a little and attempted to get connected to the internet but to no avail. Lillian was still there when I got back so we chatted for a while. I cooked pasta, sausages and mixed vegetables which made me feel ill. Bed early as I have a criminal case to attend in court at 9am.
Chroncile Article - 4
A heat wave? Surely not in January! Granted I am sitting directly on the equator during the summer season yet my subconscious still half expects the first month of the year to yield sub zero temperatures and be exposed to road gritters (which will ironically damage the car more than the snow and ice). Yesterday, the temperature clocked 36 degrees and I’ve still managed to contract a mild cold. Your guess is as good as mine…
With these sunnier climes comes the inevitable pastime of sunbathing. Personally I was never a big fan of lying prostrate on the ground until my back sizzled, leading to days to applying the latest sun care moisturiser (then again I went to see High School Musical on Ice at aged 20 so who am I to talk)! Nevertheless, since I had a couple of days off work, I felt the time was right to give lying in the sun the respect it deserved, especially as I had come all this way. My main goal was to shake off the well-formed ‘farmer tan’, which had developed during the months of November and December. (The ‘farmer tan’ being the general tanning of the arms and face only – I would know as I grew up on a farm!)
My shirt came off, much to the disgust of the locals around me who were forced to wear sunglasses in order to deflect any unwanted rays from my white chest. I should note at this point (and not to name names) but my mother suggested I buy sun cream when I arrived in Kenya, not considering there isn’t much of a market for the product out here. Hence I eventually applied copious amounts of extortionately priced Factor 40, which in reality allows one to return to their native country a shade lighter than they arrived. After one day I felt it was for the best that I retire from sunbathing and return to promoting legal aid and good governance in Africa. That is, with the farmer tan still intact!
With these sunnier climes comes the inevitable pastime of sunbathing. Personally I was never a big fan of lying prostrate on the ground until my back sizzled, leading to days to applying the latest sun care moisturiser (then again I went to see High School Musical on Ice at aged 20 so who am I to talk)! Nevertheless, since I had a couple of days off work, I felt the time was right to give lying in the sun the respect it deserved, especially as I had come all this way. My main goal was to shake off the well-formed ‘farmer tan’, which had developed during the months of November and December. (The ‘farmer tan’ being the general tanning of the arms and face only – I would know as I grew up on a farm!)
My shirt came off, much to the disgust of the locals around me who were forced to wear sunglasses in order to deflect any unwanted rays from my white chest. I should note at this point (and not to name names) but my mother suggested I buy sun cream when I arrived in Kenya, not considering there isn’t much of a market for the product out here. Hence I eventually applied copious amounts of extortionately priced Factor 40, which in reality allows one to return to their native country a shade lighter than they arrived. After one day I felt it was for the best that I retire from sunbathing and return to promoting legal aid and good governance in Africa. That is, with the farmer tan still intact!
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