Mombasa

I arrived in Mombasa, a smaller airport than Nairobi and all outdoors. There I was met by two elective africa representatives (thank goodness) and taken to the Mombasa base house where I was going to spend the night. As we exited the airport, poverty immediately struck. Slum after slum lined the streets; there was an uncountable number of people, children included, in dirty, ripped clothing sitting along side of the road, digging through the trash heaps and lying in dirt. Goats and chickens were among them, also looking for scraps of food. I saw women in traditional dress, walking with baskets and water jugs on their heads and children treking across bridges alone. It surprised me how real the poverty was. I was informed by the driver that these metal, mud, and straw huts we passed were in fact those of lower middle class citizens which definitely took me by surprise. It baffled me how unfair and unequal the wealth distribution is in our world. The house in Mombasa was a beautiful, in a wealthy suburb, pretty much a two minute walk from devastating poverty. There, a guard, a cook, and a maintenance man welcomed me, all of whom I was extremely thankful for and appreciative of but just seemed soooo excessive and made me feel  absolutely terrible. I wish i was more immersed in the culture and got to experience the poverty first hand while i was here but obviously, safety is always an issue. I am hoping that I will develop relationships with the doctors and patients in the hospital and people in the surrounding villages in Malindi. The afternoon I spent in Mombasa I was able to explore with the director of the program and one other girl. He showed us the main town center where there was a movie theater, bowling alley, and a casino (not all African's are underprivileged ) and then we walked about an hour north to a local beach where we were immediately harassed by children for food and money. On the way home, we stopped at a bar where we met two Muslim men who upon finding out that I was an American began to recite a monologue about how much they hated the American government. What a welcome to Kenya.