New Roses
After three flights, a 2-hour car ride, and about 117 random cow sightings I made it to Mbita Point, Kenya, the home of the Thomas Odhiambo campus of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology. Thanks to the World Food Prize and the Borlaug-Ruan International Internship, I had the opportunity to travel halfway across the globe this summer to Kenya to conduct research on methods to improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers.
Having never travelled to Africa before, I expected the experience to be extremely foreign. All that I knew were the Americanized stereotypes that group the whole continent of Africa together as if it is one country. I honestly had no idea what to expect as I left home for this two-month adventure. At the time, I pictured Kenya as this magical Wakanda-like place and a sort of “homeland” that would give me all of the answers to my cultural identity (even though it is very unlikely my ancestors originated from Kenya).
Even though I did not find Wakanda when I stepped off of the plane, there was something magical about this place I would call home for the next few months. I don’t know whether it was the warm and dewy night air in Nairobi or the friendly faces that greeted us, but I instantly felt at home.
This week was filled with traveling, constantly meeting new people, and acquainting ourselves with the local environment. Our stay in Nairobi was 3 days, then we travelled to Kisumu by plane and drove to Mbita from the airport.
While we met some amazing people in Nairobi, my heart is in Mbita.
Kenya is vast and has so much to offer, so even after a 30 minute plane ride, I felt like I was in a completely different place. It was much warmer and sunnier than the grey and rainy Nairobi we left behind. From this point in the trip, I made sure to take time not only to stop and smell the roses but to slow down enough to discover new “roses”.
The icipe campus in Mbita is beautiful. In addition to the offices and labs there is a primary school, clinic, living space, and test fields. All of this lies next to Lake Vitoria which is dotted with small fishing boats. My favorite way to explore my new environment and meet the amazing people who live and work here is to take morning walks. I generally spend majority of my day with other people, so taking this time to myself to explore has truly allowed me to not just see what Mbita has to offer, but also to reflect my experiences.
On my first walk, I wandered around campus with no clue where I was going to see what I could discover. I left my room around 7 AM and was immediately met with joyous music that would be the backdrop for my walk. One of the major cultural differences here is that religion is the center of society. Buses have bible verses on them, church bells ring at 5 AM every morning, and church is held almost continuously from Friday night to Sunday evening. So, hearing worship take place during my early morning walk on Saturday morning was to be expected.
Mbita’s campus has just about every shade of green imaginable in its plant-life. I walked under grand, looming dark green trees and through yellow-green banana gardens, but my favorite place on campus by far to experience the diversity of the plants is in the test fields.
Kenyan farmers primarily grow corn, and as a non-Iowan, I never knew how much I would come to appreciate it. One of my favorite things to do is to just hang out in the corn fields. (I know my non-Ag northern Virginia friends are starting to think I’m crazy just about now). In fact, this morning, since I did not have anyone to take me to church, I sat out in the middle of the corn field and listened to the church service that was taking place right outside of the gates of campus.
While the sights and sounds of Mbita are amazing, the most beautiful “roses” in Kenya are the people who live and work here. They are what truly make me feel at home. While my knowledge of Swahili and Luo are extremely limited (I only know about five words…) I still feel welcomed by everyone. From full on conversations to people asking, “Habari?”, I regularly interact with the locals on an interpersonal level. They do not treat me as a foreigner, but rather as a fellow human, and I really appreciate that.
As I sat listening to church this morning, I reflected on all that happened this week. With the sun beating down on me, listening to the beautiful singing voices in the background, and felt true gratitude for this unapparelled opportunity to pursue my passion for eradicating food insecurity in a truly beautiful place with kind, hardworking, and intelligent people.
While I have yet to find Wakanda, I feel that I have experienced something just as surreal: the culture and people of Kenya.
