Another Kenya

Looking back over previous posts, I am seeing overly-long and overly-medical writings. So, a non-medical subject.

After five unbroken weeks in Lugulu / Webuye, it was time to get away. So after Saturday morning rounds, Liz and I hitched a ride with Roger Sturge (from England, a colleague of Liz's on the FWCC Central Executive Committee, whose connection to Kenya goes back all the way to the immediate post-independence era, when he was a teacher in one of the Friends Schools here), here to Kisumu, about three hours distance (over truly terrible roads). We are staying overnight with Jim and Eden Grace; Eden has been the FUM representative in Kenya for the last 5 years, and always an important source for news of Friends in Kenya.

Kisumu is the third largest city in Kenya, with a large ex-patriate community. On Saturday night, we went to a party at the home of the head of the CDC here, with real food and live jazz. Tonight we will take them to dinner at The Laughing Buddha restaurant (for Mexican food). If this side of Kenya existed fifteen years ago, we were unaware of it.

The Grace's have a real Internet connection (as opposed to the pretend one I have in Lugulu), and it seems much of the weekend the four of them (Jim, Eden, and their sons Isaiah and Jessie) are on four different computers. I am the odd person out; my LGH computer is worthless when it comes to the Internet, so I am writing this on Liz's. I was hopeful of uploading some pictures, but it appears only one actually made it. However, on a brighter note, I had an interesting exercise in cell phone use this morning. I received a text message from Jane, a retired oncologist from England who is volunteering with a small clinic further north (I had met her in conjunction with the palliative care initiative). Her colleague and pastor had been admitted to Webuye District Hospital with advanced cancer; she was asking if the family medicine team there could provide the palliative care which he needs. I forwarded her message to Jan Armstrong and Dr. Laktabai in Webuye. Laktabai texted back that he would see that it happened, and I forwarded his reply to Jane. All this from someone (me) who never has sent a text message before last month!

Back to Lugulu early tomorrow morning, for my final two weeks; Liz will travel to Nairobi to begin her FWCC work.