Final Report

Sorry it took me so long to do this final post! The Hope Through Education Bike Tour earned about $900. Thank you for all those who contributed. The money will be used to pay teacher salaries and curriculum materials in their three schools. In 2 years I will head back to Kenya, so will probably do another fundraiser for Yasha Ministries again so that Lydia and Wilco can continue their work. Wilco is in South Africa working as an electrician at one of the mines, which is why he didn't appear in the group photo.

Lydia with all the kids that live with them. Some adopted, some street children who are growing up in the house

 

 

Day 6: Mission Accomplished

July 5

We reached Nyeri, and the end of the Hope Through Education Bike Tour. Lydia drove from Nakuru to meet us and we all slept at Susan’s house. Susan takes care of Sylvia, a 5 year old girl with cerebral palsy. She is a Samburu, a nomadic tribe in the north of Kenya. Her family wanted to kill her because Sylvia can’t do anything for herself and needs a lot of care including special chairs to help her sit up and be moved around.  Susan found out about Sylvia at a conference in Nakuru where Susan was speaking about the Christian mandate on  disabilities and the point of view that disabilities are not inabilities. It was there that Susan agreed to take Sylvia into her home. She has a mobile chair that looks like an office chair with a baby seat attached to it. It’s not very comfortable, so most of the time Sylvia sits in a seat crafted from paper mache, made by an organization that makes aids for the disabled from all recycled materials. They donate them to needy families for no cost.  There were about 10 of us staying at Susan’s. We spent the evening chatting and eating a delicious home cooked meal . Today Lydia will take Stefanus home to Nakuru. Toto and I will cycle/hitchhike there and meet them this evening. 

Boda Boda drivers sleep on their motorcycles when they are waiting for customers

Sylvia's mobile chair

Sylvia's chair made from paper mache

Sylvia: 5 years old

11 of us slept at Susan's. She is next to Toto on the right

Day 5: Torture by Music

Today wasn’t very eventful. We rode uphill most of the day again. We passed into a drier area so we didn’t see much tea growing; mostly just corn and sugarcane. We slept in Kangema, a small town about 40 km south of Nyeri. The workers there wanted to give us the royal treatment, considering that we were among the few actual travelers who actually stayed there and perhaps the first cyclists.  They claimed that they were giving us the best rooms, with new mattresses!  For $5 a night, this was quite a treat. The room had only a bed, which is all that is usually needed since they are mostly rented by the hour. After 15 minutes, just as I was about to step into the heated shower, the lights went out and the heater for the shower as well. So I took a cold shower, in the dark. We walked downstairs to the bar/disco (which should have been a red flag) to complain about the lights. They didn’t know where the fuse box was so we had to move all of our stuff to the 2^nd floor to new rooms. The place started cranking up the music about 9, just as the France vs. Germany game ended. The music was so loud that I think we all lost a portion of our hearing. It reminded me of movies I had watched about secret prisons where a form of torture was playing loud music until the prisoner confessed everything.  Seriously, it was THAT loud in the bar. Upstairs, where our rooms were, it was almost as unbearable. When we asked them to turn it down, they just turned it up. Clearly, our presence did not mean much as the hotel can make a lot more money from the men who come to the bar and then rent the rooms by the hour. The music finally stopped at 4 a.m. Toto told me he finally got to sleep around 2, but actually woke up when he sensed the silence two hours later. We all woke up exhausted when the maid banged on our doors for the sheets at 8.

Day 4: Tea Country

We spent the whole day riding uphill, or at least it seemed like that. The central highlands are beautiful. Dotted with chartreuse tea fields,  women carrying baskets full of tea leaves is a common sight. We stopped by one of the weighing stations where the pickers bring their full loads. Before the leaves are weighed, they are inspected to make sure most of them have two leaves and a bud. If they do not, the picker needs to try again before she is paid. A big truck comes to pick up the tea, stuffed into large burlap bags, to be transported to the factory. There they are graded, processed, and packaged. The hills are so steep, there is not a tractor (or any other type of machinery) in sight. All plowing, weeding, and picking is done by hand. We only made it as far as Gatura today because of the topography, but tomorrow we will get an earlier start. We hope to be in Nyeri by Saturday night. We stayed in a small hotel that cost about $5 per room. We even took hot showers and washed our clothes, which is something to be celebrated. Most hotels of this caliber tend to be a bit “rough”, mainly used by creepy men and rented by the hour.

tea fields in Central Highlands

Woman carrying a tea collection basket

a truck comes to collect the tea at the weighing center

Kim and Stefanus in front of the many tea collection centers that dot the countryside

Two leaves and a bud: if the picker doesn't have a majority of these, she/he will not get paid

close up of the tea fields

Kiwara: Coffee Country

We took our time leaving the orphanage in Juja as we didn’t have far to ride. Thika, a town famous for its pineapple plantations, was only 10 km away. We headed to Bluepost, a prestigious hotel owned by the Uhuru Kenyatta family. The cost of a glass of milk was almost the same as a bottle of beer, but it was worth the 550 shillings we spent just be there for an hour. The hotel and restaurant overlook Chania Falls, an impressive waterfall that ends in a quiet pool and then feeds into a muddy stream. After laying in the grass reading our books, the three of us took a walk around the grounds, which was full of colorful flowers and neatly trimmed bushes. The ride to Kiawara took an hour and a half. We were entering the north central highlands, which is famous for its beauty and steep, rolling hills. This is the land of coffee, which grows in the shade of bigger and broader trees. We finally arrived to my friend Mary’s house, after walking our bicycles up hills too steep to ride even in the lowest gear. Mary lives in the U.S., but most of her family is still around.  Her Mom has a small farm with 6 cows and a coffee processing operation. Starting with the red berries plucked from the coffee trees, you can’t imagine all the steps it takes to get that cup of Joe to your breakfast table. The picture below shows the machine that not only peals the red cover off the bean, but also presorts them, the heavier beans diverted one way and the lower grade beans swept to a different place. They will be dried and then sorted again before being sent to market. Kenya is known for its coffee, but most people here do not drink it. Kenyans prefer milk tea while the high grade coffee is exported to Europe and the U.S. The only coffee I ever see is freeze dried in packets. Toto, Stefanus and I spent the evening chatting, watching TV, and playing with Kimani and Bobo, Mary’s niece and nephew. 

Stafanus and I at Bluepost. Overpriced, but beautiful. In the background is Chania Falls

My friend Mary's mom and I at her house in Kiwara

Coffee berries before they are sorted the husks removed

This machines first takes the husk to expose the coffee bean. The beans are then  graded. The heavier ones sink more in the water and are gathered in one spot. The lighter ones are siphoned of into a different chute.

Day Two: Juja Farm Orphanage and Wazee Home

Day two of the Hope Through Education Bike Tour. It was almost dark and we decided to pass by the Emmanuel Orphanage run by the Dominican Sisters. I first came to this orphanage 6 years ago with a friend of mine who was a refugee from Ethiopia here in Kenya at the time. We met Sister Luisa (from Germany), who was well know among the Ethiopian, Eritrean, Oromo, and Sudanese refugee communities. Back then, 6 years ago, Aga and I were invited to spend the night and eat a delicious dinner here. I have been coming back every year just to pay a visit and see how Sister Luisa is doing. She is back in Germany now, but a younger nun, Sister Serena, is taking charge.  Today we bicycled to Juja Farm where there is another orphanage and an old people's home (Mzee Home). In the orphanage, about 15 children live in each house with a house mother. The house mother is responsible for all the needs of the children in her care. As you can see from the pictures, the cottages are sturdy and beautiful. Inside, there are about 5 bedrooms with bunk beds and a closet where the children neatly fold their clothes. The sitting room is clean and equipped with sofa and chairs. These kids are being brought up in dignity and I am impressed by the quality of the care they get. In case you were wondering  about the names on the buildings, each house is named for the person who donated the money to build it. After we toured the orphanage, Toto, Stefanus, and I took a look at the old people's home (Mzee Home). There were 7 residents. The compound has a huge garden, 2 milk cows, rabbits, chickens, and a bakery. Each resident had their own room and were well taken care of.I don't know who orchestrates the whole shebang but I am in awe.

Our bicycles in front of Juja Farm orphanage

Stefanus, Toto, Sister, and Kim in front of one of the cottages at Juja Farm Orphanage

Kim with 2 of the kids who were not in school at Juja Farm Orphanage

Toto in front of entrance to Wazee Home (home for elders)

Wazee home (home for elders)