New House and New Adventures

A decade ago my family packed our bags and moved from Sweden to go to Mozambique, to work as missionaries. Swapping snow for sand, we left our little house on the country side and moved to the capital of Mozambique. Since then, we have moved to the less developed part of the country, to the northernmost provincial capital: Pemba. When we first came we lived in an old Portuguese house in town, which at that time was vital if one wanted to have somewhat regular water and electricity. Four years on, we moved from that house to a little bamboo house on the outskirts of town; a place which when we first came had been nothing but bush. Times change, and with increased inhabitants in Pemba, the cost to rent increases steadily. Therefore, almost exactly 10 years after we left our house in Sweden, we laid the first stone of our very own house in Pemba.

Friends and family gathered for the ceremony, to lay the building of the new house in the hands of the Lord. Land ownership and building in Mozambique is very much a hurdle race, with lots of obstacles that need to be overcome, so the fact that we could start building was a big reason for praise.

The corner stone ceremony for the new house quite fittingly took place on the 17th birthday of my little sister.  To further celebrate this occasion, at the end of the week we indulged in one of Pemba's many treats: snorkeling. To make it a bit more special, we got together with some other snorkel enthusiasts, hired a boat and a captain, and set sail for the far side of the bay. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the geography of Pemba, it is located on a peninsula that juts out to create a massive inland bay. In other words, make a G-shape with your left hand, Pemba is the thumb, where we snorkeled is inside your index finger. We saw quite a bit of fish and corral, and it was overall a very enjoyable experience.

Lots to do then, all with the house building and summer clerkship and a bit of this and that going on. Looks like my summer, quite unlike Arsenal's, will be quite busy. Looking forward to seeing how they both will develop.

Location: Pemba

I have now been in Mozambique for about a week and I am enjoying the cool winter we are having currently; A casual 25-26 degrees instead of the usual 34-35, so it’s quite pleasant. I have obviously been down to the beach a number of times, both to snorkel and also just to laze in the sun. The Mozambican sun has treated me well, and I am now several shades darker than I was when I first arrived. Speaking of change, the little town of Pemba that I grew up in has since changed quite a bit, while at the same time stayed exactly the same. I am feeling this has tended to be a reoccurring theme during my return to Africa, perhaps there is something in that.

Having been away for 2 years and 3 months, when that sorry excuse for a commercial airplane landed in Pemba I was both relieved and excited. Pemba had started to change right before I left, with big oil and gas findings bringing in established companies from all over the world. Hotels were being bought up on long year leases to house workers, massive ships started coming to the humble harbor, in short little Pemba was getting noticed by the world. A result of this change was the lack of an airport as I landed; instead a temporary party tent had been raised to accommodate travellers.  The old airport was in the process of being torn down to be replaced by a bigger and better one, all due to the increase in visitors.

The population change in Pemba that these new faces brought was quite evident on the drive home.

 So. Many.White.People.

Just a couple of years back, my family knew all the foreigners in Pemba. It was quite easy seeing that they were all either missionaries like us, entrepreneurial South Africans who frequented the same restaurants as us, or Indians and Chinese that owned the shops we bought from. All very simple. Not now though, they were so many on that single drive I think I lost count, and yes, I was actually trying to count. Many new people and cultures all attracted by the prospect of gas and oil wealth. I was always one for the international scene though, so I am definitively not complaining. I just hope most of the potential riches eventually trickle down to the locals, nobody wants to become like Nigeria when it comes to oil wealth and corruption.

It is fair to say that Pemba is on the brink of something big, and one can just hope that the poison that is corruption and greed is kept at a minimum. However, much is still the same. Internet as fast as a crippled tortoise, no water supply from the city (we have to hoist it from our 18m deep well) and still no raspberry jam in the shops. It is tough, but one takes the good with the bad.

In the coming weeks I’ll be starting my medical clerkship, so that ought to be fun and interesting. I’ll try to get something compiled on that when I get started. Now to hoist that water…

Coming to Africa

Many of you might have noticed that I am indeed in Africa at the moment and that I am most pleased to be back here. It is even more beautiful than I dared to remember, they do say longing makes the heart grow fonder. I have been up to quite a bit, about time I’d share some of my adventures with the world.

On my way down from Warsaw to Nairobi, I made a little 12hr stop in the UAE. Since I was spending half a day at the airport, I thought it a shame if I didn't have a quick look around to see what this Dubai fuss was all about. I saw the Burj al Arab and the Burj Khalifa, both very cool structures, and did a bit of general sightseeing from the window of the cab on the way. The thing that struck me about Dubai is how much it resembled a lunar space station, with everything located indoors and air-conditioned to escape the horrifying heat (I mean, they even do their skiing indoors). Even the train stations looked like something positively out of Star Trek.

With that experience at my back it was time to head to more familiar venues. Just as midnight Dubai had been surprisingly hot, so midday Nairobi was peculiarly cold, and it only got worse as I headed up to good old Kijabe. Although the weather was cool and the oxygen very scarce (the school is located 2200m above sea level), it was good to be back to Rift Valley Academy. My first couple of days back I thought the place had changed so much, everything seemed different than it had been when I had left, all but the caf food of course. Although there had been a bit of change, as the days went on, I realized RVA was pretty much still the same, the change was rather with me. The musical talent on show at concert still held high class, the awkward clapping between every silent moment still there, the science pond’s ecosystem continuously ravaged by intruders, the scarfing just as uncomfortably brutal as ever etc. RVA the place hadn't changed, but RVA the people had. No wonder then, as the days went by and the alumni poured in, that RVA started to feel more and more familiar. My RVA was back, having flown in from all corners of the world.

The following couple of days were filled with catching up with old friends and seeing how each person had adapted to becoming a college person. Plenty of stories and laughter were shared, with a couple new great memories being made in the process. The greatest new memory that all of us who had made it back got to share was undoubtedly witnessing the marriage of two of our classmates. The two high school sweethearts had chosen a lovely location for their special day, and it couldn't have suited their personalities better. Under a grand African tree, with the wildebeest, zebras and giraffes grazing in the distance, and the birds hunting for fish in the lake behind us, the beautiful barefoot couple took their vows.  The after party was held at a charming bungalow by the lake, where we were treated to entertainment as varied as Masai wedding blessings and German folk music. In honour of RVA and its rules, after the feast we all paired up and danced around the newlyweds, as un-choreographed and freely as we possibly might, there was even room for some Azonto! As the sun began to set over the lake, it was time to send our newly married classmates of to their honeymoon. With rice still in their hair and a smile from ear to ear, they drove off into their future atop a white Land Rover, proper MK style.

I've had a wonderful time coming back to Kenya and getting to see so many of my old friends and getting witness a wedding as charming as any I've seen. My time in Kenya draws to a close, but my stay in Africa continues, as I board the plane to Mozambique on Wednesday, having not been back there for more than two years. Looking forward to seeing my parents, snorkeling in the ocean, and realizing how much Portuguese I have forgotten!