Wednesday, October 28, 2009

August 30th - Life In The House

A week in and we've definitely settled into a good routine at the house. We really are very spoilt with our accommodation. The house is big with 4 bedrooms, 3 baths etc. The living room consists of 1 chair, 3 long foam mattresses and cushions against the wall – the hangout space of the house where everyone reads, naps, eats etc. There is also a dining area but that is taken over 24x7 by the laptops ... thankfully there is wifi and so usually there are at least 4 or 5 laptops on the go, including mine. The internet seems to be the primary form of entertainment for the GVI staff – whether it is facebook, u-tube or downloads – that is their connection to the outside world. Between the internet and the resting / reading, the house is often surprisingly quiet given there are 14 of us living there.

The volunteers all sleep in one room – there are 4 sets of bunk beds and I was lucky to get a top bunk – felt like I was 10 again climbing in and out. We all have mosquito nets so it is a bit of a surreal picture. The bathrooms were good – can't say the water pressure in the showers was the strongest – but ok given it was cold water (cost of heating hot water meant it was only on a day a week maybe – which turned out to be fine given how hot and humid the weather was - I came to prefer the cold shower, even when the hot water was turned on.)

There are a few house rules – we all need to sign out when we leave and we have a daily rota for chores – both cleaning and cooking. The cleaning is straight forward. The cooking is very entertaining! Two people are assigned to lunch and dinner each day – they figure out what to make based on what is in the storeroom and what we've had recently. All meals invariably involve some kind of what I call 'slop' – a term of great affection for the 'throw it all in a pot together with some spices and voila, you have a meal' method of cooking that my Dad has perfected. I must even have picked up a thing or two from him ... though could have learned a little more! Some of my favorite house moments have been cooking with Kieran (a history and philosophy student) – let's just call it the blind leading the blind together with some fantastic historical/political/philosophical discussions and a lot of laughs! In terms of food – again, we're well taken care of. Lots of good fruit and veg and plenty of pasta, rice and beans. Essentially, our diet is vegetarian except for two nights of the week when we get either meet or cheese. The meat night is a big night – especially for the guys – and I confess my vegetarianism fell to the wayside with the need for protein ... and let's be truthful, I just like meat! I've decided the correct term for me is 'opportunistic' vegetarian :-)

In terms of access, we are a 10 minute walk from a small market, fruit & veg stand, japati stand and takeaway food spot – so the craving for a soft drink, chocolate, fruit or beer (also from the fruit and veg woman) are all easily met. We're then a 20 minute walk in either direction to main roads that will either take us into Mombasa or two large supermarkets/malls. So really – everything is very accessible and we all feel safe and comfortable walking around.

And speaking of walking, then there are our feet ... when I first arrived, one of my initial reactions looking at the volunteers already here, was wow – everyone really seems to have dirty feet. Well, after just a few days and one congo line later all I could say was that I was definitely beginning to fit into 'established volunteer' mode ... (editors note: I don't think my feet were really clean until about a week after I got back to London ...)

So a little more than a week in and I am feeling relaxed and comfortable – my only complaint is that I'm still not sleeping well (need my ipod) and I know I'll really be relaxed when I'm sleeping soundly. Makes all the difference for me.

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