From Kisumu

07-24-2010 – This blog brought to you by Dr Saba Saba Aziz, for all that troubles you – From bad luck to court cases to vomiting.

Sitting in Morgan’s dining room at here dining room table getting my breakfast ready.  I’m having nescafe instant coffee and toast with grape jam – that has whole grapes in it. 

It’s cooler here in Kisumu, which is nice.  Kisumu seems like such a big city after time in Mbita.  Of course for Kenya Kisumu is a large city – number 3 or 4.  Malls, movie theaters, high rises (5 or 6 stories), real mechanics, etc.  But I’m liking it more in Mbita, the more rural setting, the slower life, the lack of constant noise.

Abbey is here with us this morning.  She is one of the strays that Morgan has picked up.  I not talking cats, or a goat, or a chicken, but a real person.  Abbey’s plans on Rusinga didn’t pan out fully so she came back to Kisumu and needed a place to stay and Morgan was more than accommodating.  Morgan has picked up more than one stray person (besides a couple of cats) along the way.  They come and stay for various lengths of time for various reasons. 

I’ve had some really good ice cream 3 times while I’ve been here.  There is a little ice cream shop in the Mega City Nakumat mall.  They make their own ice cream and yogurts on-site.  It’s 100 to 150 bob per scoop – quite an indulgence.  Especially when think that that amount can feed a family for a day or more in Mbita.

I’ve also had pizza, a double decker cheese burger (that actually wasn’t too bad meat consistency wise), Chinese food and partook in an Indian buffet.  The things you can get in Kisumu.

I spent most of yesterday at the high school soccer tournament.  This is the provincial level, one step from the nationals.  Some decent play, some not.  Joe does a lot with soccer at CGA / Mbita and came to watch the matches.  So Joyce and I hopped a ride with him to get into town.  He has a nice vehicle.  I one point when we passed a matatu crammed with bodies I thought how blessed and fortunate I was to be sitting in the passenger seat all by myself – with air conditioning blowing!  I didn’t think I’d ever experience air conditioning in a vehicle in Kenya.

One match was stopped when the fans stormed the field.  We think it was because a team had a goal negated because of some foul.  The fans didn’t like the call, doesn’t matter if it was correct or not, and charged the refs.  Over the next few minutes groups of fans would suddenly take off running in various directions for reasons unknown.  Kelsey says this is not uncommon.

Saw one match at Moi Stadium, the big municipal stadium in town.  Not a bad stadium.  The match was so popular (the home team was playing) that we had to sit on random concrete blocks on the edge outside the seating area which is packed.  I little warm and I was told the smoke was not bad that day.  You see, the stadium sits right next to the town dump and they are constantly burning the garbage.  I felt like a hot dog being roasted over a campfire, but told I was lucking because there were not black billowing smoke flowing through the stadium.

Signing out from Kisumu,

Paul

Remember Dr Saba Saba Aziz is from Uganda, so you know he has to be good!