Hamjambo? (How are you all?)
Today has been a little bit hard on me. The bottom of my
legs and my feet are literally covered in bug bites, but I’m still confused
why. I’ve been tucking in my mosquito net very tight (and there really aren’t
many mosquitos around) and using roll-on bug dope, but I’m still covered in
itchy bumps. I’m also not feeling very well physically (my stomach has been
bothering me), and every time I eat I feel even worse. It doesn’t help that
they make an amazing amount of food, oftentimes for me specifically. My
breakfast was a huge platter of scrambled eggs, a pot full of potatoes in a
tomato sauce, and a sliced orange. I couldn’t eat it all, so I apologized and
my host mamma ate the rest of my eggs for me. I was served breakfast (chai)
alone. Then I was given more special food when we ate chai as a Peace Corps
group at 10:30. They were serving donuts and hard-boiled eggs, but I opted to
just drink water since I was still pretty full. Then I found out they had
lightly fried up some potatoes with onions and peppers in them as a special treat
for me. I shared them with some other PCVs and got a lot of inquisitive looks
from people. I don’t mean to get special treatment, but people here are very
generous and it seems very rude to refuse. Actually, it is very rude, but I did
refuse juice at dinner. It’s very yummy but two glasses makes me liable to
throw up, and I wanted to keep down my dinner.
I helped prepare dinner tonight. I peeled and sliced
tomatoes, onions, some kind of squash, and peppers. I also helped stir a
vegetable side dish for a while. It was
really cute because one of the kittens they have sat by the cooking fire and
warmed his skinny little body, meowing very cutely. Pets aren’t really
appreciated here, so I haven’t tried engaging with the cats. So far I’ve only
seen one dog in passing, but they are also considered very dirty animals and
are used to guard homes, not lick faces.
I met my host kaka (brother) tonight. I believe they said
his name is MacDonald, but I wasn’t positive. Apparently he is the oldest, and
Jacqueline and Priska are the two younger daughters. My host father also ate
dinner with us this evening, which was nice, and my host cousin came over to
watch soccer with the family. It’s now 11:00 and the game is still on. They
stay up surprisingly late for getting up bright and early to do chores. I’ve
also deduced they are a Catholic family given the picture of Mary & Baby
Jesus hanging up on the wall. Well, that and the poster of the Pope hanging in
our living/dining room. Call me Sherlock
Holmes.
I have noticed some strange bugs in my room, but I’m trying
to ignore them. One bug by my door lock looks like a miniature brown lobster. I
also saw my first big fat ol’ cockroach when I went to the pit latrine earlier.
The light stopped working out there, but the electricity is still on inside, so
I’m assuming a bulb went out. I’m just amazingly thankful that I have
electricity for the next 9 weeks. I am
irritated I still don’t have the Internet. I’m determined to fix that soon….Well,
by the time you read this, I suppose that will be the case!
Usiku mwema! (Good night!)
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