Sarakasi and More

Some days really just suck. I've had my fair share of really crappy days, but then again, I've had some pretty stellar ones too. The funny thing is, a lot of the time, the days that turn out the best don't start out that way. For example, I woke up last Wednesday pissed off. My hair wasn't doing what I wanted. My stomach was grumbling from something I ate. I had slept in. I wasn't excited about the prospect of getting out of bed and going to work. When I finally did get out of the house, I hit a wall. For some reason, the daily expedition of finding a matatu and making my way to town was more grueling than usual. The Matatu stopped what felt like every 3 meters to pick up another passenger. Walking to the dome I ran into just about every shoulder and clipped every bump in the road with my toe. To say the least, my day was not getting off on a bright start. It was just one of those days that REALLY SUCK. Or so I thought. Once I finally arrived at the Sarakasi Dome, my place of "occupation," I was faced with a big shiny smile from the security guard, the one who always remembers my name and chats me up as I sign in. Thank goodness for people like him. I don't know how my day wouldn't have turned out if it wasn't for that short, though sometimes extensive, conversation. Was I destined to have a bad day and he just flipped destiny on its head, or was it all just chance? Needless to say, after that, the matatu ride home didn't seem so awful. The afternoons countless remarks of 'Hey! Sister, come over here and look at what I'm selling," warranted by my pale skin didn't have the exhausting impact that they had that morning. What I needed was for someone to remind me that the world is actually a fairly decent place to live in. It's funny how often we forget that. I know I'm not the only one who gets upset at little things like the matatu driver ripping me off for ten bob when what I really should be focusing on is the fact that I'm the only muzungu in the entire community of Kangemi, especially riding in a matatu. The little accomplishments are sometimes forgotten. I will never complain about the Portland public transportation again with it's strict schedules and set fare after riding on a matatu. Another small accomplishment is the extent of my Swahili. I bought eggs at the duka down the road aaaaaaall in Kiswahili. I don't need any praise or recognition. I'm already am pretty pleased with myself. Just a little bit of practice every day is what I need. Ruth is a big help. I'll come home in the afternoons and ask her "what does ____ mean?" "How do you say_____ in Swahili?" And I take notes. She thinks I'm a msichana wazimu, a "crazy girl."I've learned most of the barnyard animals like cow - ng'ombe, and chicken -kuku, and goat-mbuzi, and sheep-kondoo, so basically I'm prepared for anything. You never know when you might have to use such vocabulary words. I love learning new languages, but sometimes I get a little in over my head. A problem arises when I try to practice too many new languages at once. Yesterday for instance, I was looking through my norwegian notes, which really mean I was talking to myself in patchy Norwegian, and got stuck on the word "to go." I just couldn't for the life of me remember the word. I thought of both the Spanish word and the Kiswahili word before I came up with the word in Norwegian. Not cool, brain.
After that, not-so-perfect day I mentioned before, came a few great days. I went to see Iron man Thursday night with a few Peace Corps friends. It was nice to take a break and do something familiar. As always, Iron Man was the bomb. I'm a huge super hero movie fan, like my dad, and couldn't wait until I got home to see this one. The next night I went out again with those crazy PCVs. The night was complete with food, laughter and plenty of not-so-great choices. The next morning, I managed to get up early despite my late night before and took the dogs on a hike in the nearby Karura Forest. That was a bit of a headache since those two are not used to walking on the leash, but with practice comes perfect. By the end of the walk they were a little more manageable from a combination of being used to the leash and just being dog tired.
The weekend was a nice break from the crazy hectic public transportation.
One of the really nice things about working at the Sarakasi Trust is that I hear Swahili all day everyday. I'm even getting some Luo and Kikuyu training in, go figure. I still think it's so funny that even if I don't speak more than 4 words of Swahili, most Kenyans go crazy. They're all really encouraging me to learn. Go to france I've heard, and you will not have the same experience. But I really can't say. Speaking of France. I was looking forward to squeezing in an hour or so to see Paris during my 5 hour layover on the way home, but if I'm thinking with my brain instead of my eyes, I have to be realistic; there is no way that's going to happen.
I realize I haven't explained what my Job at Sarakasi entails, nor what Sarakasi even is. So let me explain. I work for the creative department with the dancers and acrobats. There are 5 of us working in that office. Most of the staff there is or was a professional dancer once in their life, so you can imagine the intimidation factor. I've been invited to attend dance classes, and I'm warming up to the idea a bit. It couldn't hurt to get in shape. The Sarakasi trusts mission is to use culture and the fine arts to develop the culturally unstable parts of Kenya. They have projects around the community like visiting the slums, supporting hospitals, supporting local talent, etc. The dancers have a lot of local performances, but the acrobats have to look a little farther to find the experience they need and want. There isn't much desire for acrobatic acts and circus performances here in Kenya, so we have to look internationally. Aaaaaaand this is where we get to my job. The creative department is so busy that I've been taken on to exclusively, for now, look into different venues for our performers, especially the acrobats.
I am so impressed with the hard work that all these young people do. They practice monday through friday, sometimes weekends, for hours and hours. Reasonably so, they have a pretty hefty list of accomplishments. It may sound like I'm bragging, but these people are so dedicated, it would seem criminal to talk them up any less. Artists from all around Kenya come to hire the Sarakasi dancers for choreography and for music videos and such. I've met some big shots, the ironic thing is, I'm not up to date enough on Kenyan celebrities to know. Either they're impressed with my "professionalism," or insulted by my lack of awe, hopefully neither. Apparently one singer/songwriter big shot was impressed with something, because he later asked my boss for my number. Jokes on him! First of all, I ain't no arm candy, and second of all, I leave in two weeks. Oopsy. There is always something interesting going on at the Sarakasi dome. I am getting introduced to new music and a new side of Kenya that I hadn't before seen. Two weeks left isn't that long, but I can make the most of it.
As the days dwindle down, getting more and more torn. I really want some starbucks coffee (yes, I'm addicted,) but I really want to learn how to make all the Kenyan dishes before I leave. Can you see my dilemma?
That's all for now! Except for some kewl pictures.