Now that I’ve been here for a couple of months, I’m starting to become accustomed to the Kenyan culture. The population of Kenya is made up of over 40 different tribes...and, as you might expect, the culture is very different from that of Britain. 

Language

Thankfully, the vast majority of Kenyans speak English. The local language for the area is Kikuyu; in addition to this, Swahili is sometimes spoken (although the Swahili changes depending on where you are in the country.) Although English is widely spoken, often conversations which start in English gradually have the odd Kikuyu or Swahili word of phrase dropped in and after a few minutes moves into full blown Kikuyu. There are certain Swahili greetings which always follow the same pattern - these are always accompanied by a handshake, or at least they were pre-Covid. The handshake has now been replaced by a fist pump. This is actually quite funny, especially at church when you see elders dressed in formal three-piece suits giving fist pumps to one another. 

Food

Chapati, beans stew and vegetables (one of my favourite meals!)

From my experience of the Kenyan diet so far, I would say it’s pretty unhealthy. Almost everything is fried - meat, rice, vegetables. My favourite Kenyan dish so far has been chapatti - a dough made in a similar way to a naan bread but fried rather than baked. Kenyans tend to eat three large, hot meals a day. Breakfast is the weirdest ... samosas, spring rolls, fried bread, I was once even served chips. At 7am! Very strange.   Usually I just ask for fruit and eggs instead!


Had some barbecued goat for lunch - it was actually really nice!

Lunch and dinner are generally the same kind of meals - typically rice, beef or chicken or beans, and vegetables (all fried). One thing I do love about the diet is the fruit! Watermelon, pineapple, banana and mango all day everyday! 

Travel

Inside of a Matatu

Kenyan driving is quite terrifying. The general attitude tends to be one of destruction. Rather than waiting until a space appears to change lanes or merge onto a main road, the preferred method is to accelerate, beep your horn ferociously and stubbornly look the other way. Most of the vehicles are 4x4 cars, lorries, motorbikes and Matatus which are similar to minibuses but with far more people in a slightly smaller space. Everything seems to be communicated by smashing a fist against the side of the matatu - if you want the bus to wait you, if you want the bus to stop ... sometimes I can’t even work out why someone is smashing their fist against the vehicle but there you go. Matatus are the cheapest way of getting around local areas. It took me a couple of weeks to muster up the courage to board a matatu but now I’m quite comfortable using them for short journeys. 

Church
 

Church culture is again very different compared to home. One of the things I find funny is that the congregation applaud after every part of the service. And then, of course, there’s the African ‘praise and worship’ ... Many of the praise numbers have actions - it’s really funny seeing adults of all ages, dressed in their Sunday best, really going for kid-like actions! The sermons are variable - often the bible passage is not referred to much (if at all) and the sermon can easily become a ‘good moral’ or ‘things will get better’ type message. 

Africa Time

Within the first few days of arriving in Kenya, I realised I would have to let go of my punctual tendencies and allow myself to slip into the world of Africa Time. Generally, time is flexible here. If someone says they’ll meet you at 1pm it’s definitely safe to assume they won’t be there till about 2 at the earliest. This goes for everything - even the start time of a hospital shift is ‘variable’ to say the least!

Hospital

One of the things I find most frustrating about the hospital culture is the absolute lack of urgency. I once shouted for help in the Emergency Department and everyone just turned and stared at me, before continuing with their conversations. It can be really difficult sometimes! There is also a very different patient-doctor relationship. The doctor can almost be idolised and patients assume that, as a doctor, you must know everything. It is very unusual for a doctor to explain to a patient what their thoughts are - from diagnosis to tests to treatment. The patient just accepts whatever is prescribed to them and doesn’t questions how to take it or what it’s for.
A couple of weeks ago I did my first week of nights shifts. Nights are definitely busier than days in terms of the number of patients who attend Casualty. I learnt on my first night that there is no surgeon on-call overnight, unless for absolute specific surgical emergencies. The other doctor I was on with explained that if a patient has to go for an operation overnight, it is the responsibility of the Casualty junior doctors to operate. He went on to tell me his first night shift in Kikuyu hospital, he removed an appendix from a young man using a step-by-step picture guide in a textbook he found. He had never had any surgical experience prior to this. There is definitely an attitude of ‘well if I don’t at least try, this patient may die so I’ll have to give it a go’. Thankfully nobody had to go to theatre overnight during my set of nights. 

Nairobi

A typical Nairobi shopping mall.

Sometimes it can be nice to get away from the Kikuyu and head to Nairobi for the day. Although only an hour’s drive away, Nairobi is like a different planet. Much of the city is very well developed and modern. There are enormous shopping malls with all sorts of international stores and food courts (I was reminded of America the first time I went to one of these shopping centres). And there are people of all nationalities there. It really doesn’t feel like Africa at all. 


Me and a new orphan friend at the sanctuary.

In addition to the crazy shopping centres (of which there are several), there are also really cool touristy activities. I’ve visited Nairobi national park ‘animal orphanage’ and fed lions, leopards, cheetahs, buffalo etc. And I’ve also visited the giraffe centre which was probably my favourite experience in Kenya so far. Nairobi is definitely a really cool place to visit and I’m looking forward to seeing more of the city over the coming weeks and months. 



Birthday Party

Earlier this month it was my birthday! I decided to host a ‘birthday party’...a risky move but thankfully people seemed to enjoy it! (getting back to my comment on African time earlier on - the party invite was for 3pm...you can imagine my relief when people started turning up - at 4.30pm!) I invited a couple of friends from the hospital, and several people from the CoTT and Thirime youth groups. Of course, there was ceilidh dancing involved! 

Thank you for your continuing interest and support.

Asante Sana!

Rebecca