Kistrech International Poetry Festival, Kisii, Kenya 30 July-4 August: Installment 1

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Installment 1: Getting to the Kistrech International Poetry Festival, July 29-30, 2014, Kenya

(Photo of Kistrech (1592)

Introduction

I received an invitation from Christopher Okemwa, a Kenyan poet, to attend the 2^nd Kristrech International Poetry Festival, Kenya in March 2013. I had met Christopher at the XX International Poetry of Medellin, in Colombia, four years early and was happy to participate. As time went along, I learned that a few poets I had met in Medellin will also be attending and I was eager to see them again. They include Michael Obediah Smith (Bahamas), Patricia Jabbeh Wesley (Liberia), Jenny Maria Tunedal (Sweden),Erling Kittelsen (Norway),and Udo Kawasser (Austria).I was also excited about interacting with new poets from Africa and around the world. However, illness and travel restrictions imposed on Kenya by individual countries made it impossible for all the invitees to take part. Those of us able to participate were in for a special treat.

*This blog reflects my personal experience and is not an official report.

Getting to Kisii Town, Kenya

My journey from Switzerland to Nairobi, Kenya does not begin well on Tuesday, July 29th. My flight from Basel at 6:50 a.m. leaves and arrives in Amsterdam on time, but my planned 11:00 a.m. flight to Nairobi International Airport is delayed by four and a half hours due to technical difficulties. I am annoyed that I have to sit around the airport for seven hours but I think, on the other hand, that if they are repairing a part of the plane, then patience is a necessary virtue. The delay however, complicates arrangements I had made with my hotel (Nairobi Airport Hotel) near the Kenyan airport. I had arranged to be picked up around 9:00 p.m. after I had been through Immigration and claimed my suitcase. But I arrive after midnight (12:30 p.m.).

The size of the plane, (photo) a packed double decker jumbo (Boeing 747), means that I will wait longer to collect my bag. It takes one hour for me to retrieve it. At 13:30 a.m. I look around for the driver who should be holding up a sign with my name on it, but he is nowhere in sight.

 Desperate to reach the hotel and get some sleep, I go to Customer Service to make inquiries. I had printed out the hotel booking information and assumed everything would be OK, but when I check, crucial information, like the phone number, is missing. So I ask if they have the hotel number but they don’t appear to have a telephone book.  They offer to arrange one of their taxis or cars to take me to the hotel at the cost of $20.00 (one thousand, seven hundred plus Kenyan schillings).

 Suspicious of being cheated, I ask why it should cost so much when the website said Nairobi Airport Hotel is five minutes away. The man in charge says all the adverts say that, and often heavy traffic interferes with the speed with which one is transported. I pay the $20.00 and I am given a receipt. A young woman gives the driver directions and I can see uncertainty on his face. The direction she is giving is taking much too long.  My fate in the driver’s hand, I follow him and the woman to the parking lot where they search for the car. They can’t remember exactly where it is parked, but eventually find it. So off we go.  

The fifteen minute ride takes one and a half hours as the chauffeur drives around in circles and parks occasionally to get new directions from the office.  We go down a few dirt roads. I think I could be a kidnap victim, but the driver is soft spoken and polite and is sincerely lost. After much back and forth, he finally finds the correct dirt road which leads to a huge gated complex of apartments.

 The security guard, who looks cold, let us in and gives us directions to the hotel. It is located in one of the apartments in the complex.  The poor chauffeur has a terrible time locating it so he drives back to the gate and ask the guard to accompany us.  At last it is found—The sign Nairobi Airport Hotel is written in small letters and can easily be missed. A young woman comes out to greet us. I tell her how long we had been driving around and that they hadn’t come to pick me up and that I am paying $70 for three hours of sleep. I had to be back at the airport at 7:00 a.m. to be collected by Kistrech Poetry Festival officials. The gentle woman explains that the driver had gone to pick me up and had paged me but left after a while and returned with another guest who had made the same arrangement.  By that time I am too tired and sleep deprived to be very angry. I am shown to my room. She asks me if I want breakfast. I am too tired to think about food. I tell her I am not sure, maybe just coffee, and I throw myself onto the bed.

Wednesday, July 30th

I rise at 6:00 a.m. and go to brush my teeth but there is no water I go to the desk to complain. I can smell bread being toasted in the kitchen. After brushing my teeth I inquire about internet access and I am given the password. 

I contact my family and learn that my second granddaughter had been born during the night. This is a happy surprise. My daughter, Maliaka was not due until August 8th. Then up pops a picture of Zoë Eloïse in her first clothing-a hospital issued outfit. As I interacted with my family, I gobble down a slice of toast and a cup of coffee. Other guests are leaving for the airport.  At 7:00 a.m I am taken to the airport parking lot where I meet the Kisii University representative. The Kisii University bus is parked and waiting for guest poets to arrive from their various destinations.

By 10:00 a.m, the van is filled with guest poets. Jenny Maria Tunedal and her poet-husband, Nicolas (Sweden) are seated in front with the driver. Erling Kittelsen (Norway),Michael Obediah Smith (Bahamas), and Professor Animasaun Kayode Adebanji (Nigeria) are seated in the middle row. Another middle row is reserved for two poets to be collected at another destination. 

I sit in the last row between Ugandan poet, Marian Mpaata Melloney and poet, Laus Strandby (Denmark).

Beautiful Kenyan birds greet us in the parking lot as we prepare to leave. I try to capture them with my camera but the bus is moving.  Mariam, much quicker, snaps a photo of them.

We finally drive off and stop for a half an hour at a college where London-based Nigerian poet, Godpower Oboido and performance poet, Tundai Maduwa (Zimbabwe) are to be met. We take the opportunity to use the toilet. A great surprise awaits some of us.

The toilet is a hole in a tiled ground and one has to squat and pee. I had heard of these types of toilets in China, but did not expect to see them in Kenya. Laus Strandby (Denmark) explains that twenty years ago such toilets were not uncommon in France, Spain and Italy. It will be the best of the lot we will encounter.

 In the meantime, the additional passengers have arrived.

On the right Nicolas and Jenny Tunedal (Sweden),  Erling Kittelsen (Norway), Laus Strandby (Denmark), Amos Tabilia (Kenya) On the left Mariam Mpaata Melloney (Uganda), Althea Mark-Romeo (Antigua and Barbuda/Switzerland), Christopher Okemwa (Kenya), Tendai Maduwa (Zimbabwe), Michael Obediah Smith (Bahamas) and Prof. Animasuan Kayode Adebanji (Nigeria). Missing from this photo is Godpower Obodio (Nigeria.) 

Godpower Obodio (front, Nigeria ) and Tendai Maduwa (back, Zimbabwe). Photo taken on our way to Kisii Town from Nairobi Aiport

Finally leaving Nairobi, we are on our way to Kisii Town. A nine hour drive lay ahead of us.  We pass many, dusty shanty shopping areas and different landscapes.  The first landscape looks very dry and cactus trees cover the flat brown terrain and mountains.

Obediah Michael Smith, Miriam Mpaata Mellony, Erling Kittelsen and Laus Strandby

We pause to buy drinks at one location, then at another to buy carrots from women who line the road with their vegetables (carrots, cabbage and potatoes.

Half way to Kisii Town, we stop at a shopping district to change money at a local bank. Everyone changes some currency. I changed $100.00 and get 8,447 Kenyan shillings.

Lunch begins with a hand-washing ritual. Everyone lines up in front of a huge washing basin to soap and wash their hands. It is an important custom since everyone eats with fingers and share meals. Forks, knives and spoons are assigned to Westerners.  

After that we have lunch which consists of meat, rice, kale and collard greens, and drink water bought for fifty Kenyan shillings. The meals cost the equivalent of $3.00 (550.00 shillings).

This is our first introduction to traditional Kenyan food. According to http://www.foodbycountry.com, although there is not a specific national cuisine, there are two nationaldishes: ugali and nyama choma. Maize (corn) is a Kenyan staple and the main ingredient of ugali , which is thick and similar to porridge. 

Many Kenyans eat this on a daily basis. It takes a lot of practice to boil the porridge without burning it. Ugali is usually eaten with meat, stews, or sukuma wiki, which literally translates to "stretch the week." This means that the food is used to stretch meals to last for the week, and any leftover meat, if available. It is seasoned with salt and some pepper. The traditional way of eating ugali is to pinch off a piece of the dough with the right hand, and shape it into a scoop by pressing and indentation into the dough with the thumb. The ugali is used to scoop sauces or stew.

Grilling meat in Kenya is different from the process of barbequing meat typically used in the United States. Basting (moistening the meat) and the use of herbs and seasonings (except salt and pepper) are not used in most Kenyan dishes. When eating nyama choma at a restaurant, the diner chooses from a selection of meat that is bought by the kilogram (1 kilogram equals about 2 pounds). It is grilled plain and brought to the table sliced into bite-sized pieces. It is often served with mashed vegetables.

The varied climate and geographical areas in Kenya are home to many different types of fruits. Some examples are mangoes, papaya, pineapple, watermelon, oranges, guavas, bananas (many varieties), coconuts, and passion fruit. Passion fruit juice is sold everywhere and is the most popular, known locally in English simply as "passion."

A typical Kenyan chakula (meal) is usually a heavy staple food, such as ugali or potatoes, with a side of vegetables. Ugali is typically served on a large dish where everyone can reach (using the right hand). Fruit is usually eaten for dessert in place of sweets.

Mandazi , a semisweet, flat doughnut, is usually eaten at chakula cha asubuhi (breakfast) with kahawa or chai (coffee and tea in Swahili). Chai is served very milky and sweet.

 The tea, milk, and sugar are put into cold water and brought to a boil. Kenyans also eat chapattis at breakfast and usually dunk it into their coffee.

Lunch is the main chakula of the day. Meat such as beef, goat, or mutton (sheep) is most commonly eaten. Other dishes can include githeri , a mix of beans (usually red kidney beans) and corn, and matoke , or mashed plantains (similar to a banana). Foods served at dinner are much like what is served at lunch.

After lunch I head to the wash room to face another squatting ordeal. The floor is wet. A native woman rushes against me to get to the toilet. I figure she is in dire need of it.

Outside the building we are surrounded by vendors selling souvenirs. I buy three bracelets from a young woman with a beautiful smile. One can see they are struggling to eke out a living. I chuckle at the sight of some interesting name combinations—Hotel and Butchery. I had seen a few of them.

Continuing our journey, we pass numerous herdsmen driving cattle in the dry terrain, but that soon changes as we get closer to Kisii. The landscape is greener and more mountainous, the air cooler. The types of food people sell along the road changes too. People are selling fruit and sugarcane. Houses are made with bricks. One can see the soil is red like clay.

Arrival at Kisii--the town trying to be a city.

Drawing closer to our destination, we notice herds of motorcycle men lining the streets in search of passengers.  We learn that this taxi service is the cheapest mode of transport and a very popular.

Kisii Town

Kisii is a city located in southwestern Kenya. It is the main urban and commercial center in the Gusii Highlands & the South Nyanza region. A vibrant town, the Kisii municipality has a population of about 103,000, according to 2012 estimates. Today, it is a bustling town and a home to several businesses, organizations, educational institutions and government agencies. Kisii municipality sits right at the centre of the Western Kenya tourist circuit that includes the Tabaka Soapstone Carvings, Maasai Mara Game Reserve, Lambwe Valley Game Reserve and the entire Lake Victoria basin. The town continues to serve these former districts, the larger South Nyanza County and the Trans Mara area of western Narok County in terms of commerce.( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kisii,_Kenya)

Arriving at the Dados hotel at around 7:00 p.m., we are greeted by Christopher Okemwa, the organizer of the Kristrech Poetry Festival and students from Kissi University who are assisting in the various events. Heading to the reception room, we are given our room keys. Students toting our luggage accompany us to our rooms. We are eager for hot showers and a light dinner. After supper, our agendas handed to us. We are ready for bed and we must rise early as registration starts at 8:00 a.m. and the first presentation starts at 8:30 a.m.

Program

8:00-8:30	Arrival & Registration
8:30-9:00	Session A- Keynote Address: Professor Animasaun  K Adebanji (Adeleke University,Nigeria, Communicating Change: Maximizing Poetic Potentials like songs for global effect.
9:00-9:30	Poetry Reading-The Stories of Immigrants Althea Romeo-Mark-Switzerland & Antigua-Barbuda
9:30-10:00	Keynote 2: Poetry as a way of singing without voice Jenny Maria Tunedal, (Sweden)
10:00-10:30	The planned  Tea Break was already used up as questions and answer sessions after each presentation had gone over time.
10:30-11:00	Session B- Keynote 1 Out of What is painful, What is beautiful Michael Obediah Smith (Bahamas)
11:00-11:30	Poetry reading by students of Kissi University
	Travel to Kissi University where we read before a very large audience which consistent of students and a visiting delegations attendance an international conference on educations.
	The was followed by lunch and a visit to the Daraja Mbili Open Market, the largest market in Kissi.
5:00-6:00	Poetry readings by Laus Strandby Nielsen (Denmark) and Erling Kittelsen (Norway) followed in question and answer session with student poets and visiting poets.
6:00-7:00	Supper