Two guys, a motorbike & a cow

So the next day we all pile back into Andrew’s van for the eight hour journey across Kenya to Suna, Migori.  Now remember how I described driving in Nairobi.  Think of that and add to it a road that is roughly akin to driving on the surface of the moon and add hundreds and hundreds of motorbikes (here in Kenya they are called piki piki’s) coming at you from all sides. 

I asked Baba how many kilometers it was from Nairobi to Suna, Migori.  His answer was “In Kenya a journey is not measured in kilometers but in hours.”  After riding on the roads myself I see why.  A journey of a hundred kilometers could take many hours because of the condition of the road.  And right now because it is the rainy season, the rain has created many more ruts and mud holes to maneuver around.  The favor of God remained with us however and it did not rain the whole trip from Nairobi to Suna, Migori.  This was a blessing because we had much of our luggage tied to the roof of the van on a luggage rack.  I don’t think it would have survived one of the Kenyan downpours we have nearly every day. 

Once again Andrew proved to be a good and faithful driver.   He has the driving skills of a NASCAR driver and the parking skills of a seasoned trucker.  If ever you find yourself in need of a driver in Kenya, look him up.  I was still dealing with the lack of sleep and the altitude sickness so my thought was to sleep during the journey to Suna, Migori.  However I was entranced by the beautiful scenery out my window.

One of the first things you’ll notice as you leave the big city is how green everything is.  Baba said everything is growing now because of the rains.  Along the trip he pointed out places that would normally be dry and brown but were now lush and overflowing with vegetation.  It is really a gorgeous country marked by signs of extreme poverty.  Most of the country I saw was agrarian.  We passed hundreds of farms (called shamba’s) along the way.  Many of the houses we passed were made of mud with grass roofs.  Those who could afford it had houses made of mud that was plastered on the outside.  Occasionally we passed a brick house, a sign of true prosperity in this country.  As we drove the sunlight gleamed off of the steel roofs of some of the houses.  Corrugated steel (called mabati) is expensive for most Kenyans and therefore considered a luxury.

The towns we went through were similar.  Many consisted of a few shops (called duka’s).  These shops were small and usually only big enough to hold the merchandise and the proprietor.  There is a window with a screen.  You go to the duka, ask the owner for what you need, he hands you the item through the window and you hand him the schillings (Kenyan currency).  Nearly all the dukas are made from mud covered plaster although I saw some made completely from pieces of steel welded together.  One thing we noticed was that the majority of the dukas were painted green and some advertised the cellular company Safaricom on the outside of their walls.  Tracy asked Baba why all the duka’s were painted green and he said that Safaricom gives them free paint.  Talk about a great advertising gimmick.

One of the more interesting things to see as you drive are all the American shirts worn by the Kenyans.  We passed a piki piki where the passenger was wearing a Tony Romo Dallas Cowboys jersey.  I saw shirts that said Beats by Dre and the Ramones.  I saw Nike and Adidas.  In Migori I even saw a guy walking around selling old YMCA basketball jerseys.  Tracy said that somehow used American shirts get sent over here to be sold.  It’s rather humorous because I doubt that the Kenyans know what they are advertising on their shirts.  I was stoked to see a young child playing in a ditch wearing a KJ-52 shirt (my favorite Christian rapper) and we did spot a Rapture Ruckus shirt (another favorite Christian band) hanging on a line for sale.

By far though the funniest thing to watch are the piki piki drivers.  You very rarely see any cars except for taxis.  It seems everyone (who can afford it) drives a motorbike in Kenya and they are everywhere.  Kenyan’s will ride two or three abreast on the bikes.  I even saw 4 people on one and the one at the back was an old grandma clinging on for life.  And people here carry everything on their piki piki and I mean everything.  I saw one piki piki with a driver then a calf straddling the seat then a passenger.  But Tracy took the prize when she spotted a bike with three riders and 2 sheep riding down the highway.  Sometimes you just have to laugh. 

While the journey was great and we arrived at Suna house with no problems.  I soon learned our next big adventure was attending church in the dark…

P.S. Here are some photos of the road in Matoso