One week left

It was our last daily lunch date at Sharriff’s Center today. Spencer is heading back to the United States in a week from Sunday, so he’s saying his last goodbyes here in Bungoma. That and tasting his last beef stew and rice dish for a while. which makes me jealous.

We’ve been bouncing about the city for the last few days working on different projects (mine is peer education while Spencer’s is management training) at the Red Cross and Bungoma District Hospital. And though both been enjoying our time here, I think we are ready for a holiday for the next week in Mombasa and on a safari.

An apparent "creature baby". 

I had my second peer education training this morning, covering contraceptives, HIV/AIDS and pregnancy. Though Monday’s training brought in around 30 students from across Bungoma, today's only had around 15 attendees, which was a bit disappointing.  But we did cover a lot of good information and dispelled many myths about sex. I’ve never really taught a class like this before, and I was surprised by the amount of questions students had about sex and sexuality. The most common questions fell into three categories: LGBT groups, contraceptives and their possible effects on the body and how someone becomes pregnant. Though those may some like straightforward questions, there were many inquires that were a bit difficult to field. Primarily the questions of how can a man can become pregnant (referring to the man on Oprah who was born a female but lived as a male and thereby became pregnant) and the rumor that a Kenyan man produced a “creature baby with hair and scales.” Yes, I did my best to answer those questions, but I’m not sure that the Red Cross group trusted my answers. Therefore, any and all additional suggestions on how to answer those questions would be greatly appreciated.

Also, my host family’s son has taken to calling me “Mzungu (white person) Mama”, which makes Spencer and I laugh uncontrollably.  I may generally detest being called a mzungu, I’ve come to love the “mzungu mama” reference from Caleb.

Caleb and Papas, who coined the name "mzungu mama".

OK, so with those two stories, I think Spencer and I are going to head out for a game of pool at Sharriff’s Center. Hope all is well in Minneapolis. Much love.

- K