Trip to Kajiado District and Masai Mara

Update from our November 15, 2010, trip to Kajiado District and the Masai Mara area of Kenya

Monday morning we left Ngatataik in Kajiado District for Nairobi to pick up Camille and then drive to the Masai Mara area of Kenya.

On the way to Nairobi we made brief stops in Bissel and Kajiado town. By mid-morning we were back in Nairobi and had somehow avoided the horrendous traffic jams for which Nairobi is known.  A quick stop at our compound to pick up Camille and some clean clothes for the rest of the journey and we were on our way again.  Our travels today would take us northwest of Nairobi towards Limuru town, down the escarpment into the Great Rift Valley then to Narok and the town of Talek in the Mara.

Kenya has some terrible roads by any standards, but over the past couple of years we are starting to see some improvements.  Today we traveled on a new section of road that has been very improved.  We did notice that the rains had started and the landscape was much greener than Kajiado District.  When we arrived in Narok town the first thing we noticed was that the main street is now paved.  In the past, the town had pot holes that could easily swallow a small car.  After a quick Kenyan lunch we headed to Talek on good roads that would only last for a few kilometers.  Once we turned off the main road onto dirt roads the ride became bone jarring and rough due to the poor condition of the road.  This part of the trip would take us two hours and right through the Mara area.  Even though we were not actually in any game park we could see many wildebeest, zebra, Thompson gazelle and giraffe.  Our destination where we would be staying for the next six days was a tented camp just outside the town of Talek.  We would also be joining part of the CPCC medical team and clean water team that arrived on Saturday while we were in Kajiado.

In Kenya when someone says they are going on safari it doesn’t always mean they are going to a game park to see animals.  Sometimes it means they are taking a trip up country (outside of the city) to one of Kenya’s many rural towns.

Tuesday morning after a hearty breakfast and a night of monkeys jumping on our tent we headed off to a CMF clinic in Talek, and a primary school and another CMF clinic in Endoinyo Erinka.  The CMF clinics were in the process of getting started with the Pure Water for Maasai program.  This program uses rain water that is collected or harvested during the rainy season.  Water is collected from the corrugated metal roofs so widely used here in Kenya.  Rain gutters divert the rain water into large concrete or poly tanks for storage.  This rain water is great for bathing, laundry and general washing but is often not safe for human consumption.  Using a simple device called a chlorinator to produce chlorine this rain water can be treated for drinking.  Clinics can now offer clean drinking water for patients who need to take medications with water that will not make them sicker than they already are.

The process is the same at schools where students and school staff need clean drinking water.  By providing this clean water at schools, students can stay healthy and avoid missing so many school days due to water-related illnesses.  This program also encourages students to take this education and knowledge on clean water home to share with their families.

During the rest of the week we visited several clinics, schools and communities in the Mara area that had clean water solutions in place or were in need of implementing a solution that would provide a source of clean drinking water.  Several of the locations we visited had some kind of water infrastructure in place that had become non-operational.  It was disappointing to see this and learn why things were no longer working.  We learned that sustainability at the local level is key for implementing long-term impact in the water sector.

It was a good week and by Saturday we were able to view some of the wildlife for which Kenya’s Masa Mara is so well known.

 

 

 

 

 

After a short flight back to Nairobi we returned with lots of new friendships, memories and stories to share next time we see you!  We praise God for the wonderful partnership we have with CMF and look forward to working together to bring both physical water and the Living Water to people here in Kenya.

Olesere

(Goodbye in Maasai)

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