One Constant: Lots of Tea
June 28, 2009
This morning we woke up and went to a church that is inside the CMF compound. The service was in Swahili, and was translated into Massai. Even though I couldn’t understand what was being said, it was still a great experience. During the worship time, there was a whole group of people up in front of the church, dancing and singing, and the rest of the congregation was really moving to the music as well. After church, all of the new people stayed behind to meet the pastor, who was very welcoming.
This afternoon we walked to the market near the compound. It was extremely crowded, with throngs of people everywhere, and of course the occasional cow as well. We walked around the market for quite a while. People were selling all types of things; everything from food to flashlights and winter coats. Since Kenya is in its cold season, walking around you see little kids with winter hats on and many people in long sleeves or coats, even though it doesn’t seem very cold to us except in the early mornings and evenings.
One thing I’ve really come to love even in the short time I’ve been here is that Kenyans drink a lot of tea. I didn’t even know that I liked tea until last week. At the offices, both in Nairobi and Narok, they have tea twice a day: once in the morning, and then again in the afternoon. Then, once we go back to the house where we are staying, we usually have tea again.