Before the trip I decided to read a little bit about Kenya's history. Coming from Honduras, I was intrigued by the fact that we share a similar past: an arduous process of formation that starts with a clash of cultures or worlds, transitions to a "colonization" period, and ends with a declaration of independence. On one hand, there is the indigenous people, usually organized in tribes, many with their own language and culture, and on the other hand, the foreigners, that come in search of resources and end up exploiting the natives and imposing their own ways and culture. In these cases, it's the "superior" culture that has the upper hand. Although, as a topic that deserves discussion on it's own, who's to say which culture is superior... The colonizing party usually does not dedicate enough effort to really understand the indigenous people and culture to truly value them.
So at the end of all this process, an interesting question to ask is: how much of the local culture survived this clash? How did the two cultures blend to yield what is there today? Naturally, I was very curious about these questions, and also about similarities and differences between our countries' history and culture. Prior to the trip I learned that Kenya is a younger country than Honduras, as they gained their independence in 1963, while Honduras in 1821. So for a moment I thought I could travel back in time, in some sense, to an earlier stage of my country's development. How was Honduras like, less than a generation from its independence?
However, after talking to a few locals, I quickly learned two very important differences. For one thing, Kenya was able to transition from the colonization period to their independence relatively quickly, while in Honduras the colonization period lasted roughly three centuries. But more importantly, the process of independence came from within when the tribes united and fought for their freedom, while in Honduras it was started by the Creoles (a very different class than the indigenous people) and mostly for their own interests. This key difference has helped instill a sense of identity in the case of Kenya, while Honduras has had to struggle over the years to define its own. So perhaps I wasn't going to be able to gather much about my country's past from observing Kenya.
But going back to the original question... I had the opportunity to learn about the Maasai tribe directly from a Maasai warrior, who even taught us how to hold and throw a spear. It was fascinating to learn about how they live in harmony with nature, their knowledge of plants and how they use them for medicine and other remedies (e.g. they rub olive tree leaves on their body to use as mosquito repellent), how they can use elephant droppings to create a nutritious and fortifying soup, and their various tests of bravery (which included killing a lion and withstanding burns from a red hot poker to prove their worthiness to their tribe and mate). Of course, I couldn't quite see how this culture of warriors transformed into the more modern culture found in Nairobi. This would require a formal study, but I was looking for traits or behaviors that could be easily identified by simply talking to the people and observing the culture. Among the easy ones to identify: the language (Kiswahili) and their connection to the land and nature, as farming is still considered a very important activity (from the tribes, to the rural towns, to the more developed cities). From there on, it's hard to tell, but whether it came from the tribes or the colonization period, I managed to pick up on a few minor details that gave me some clues.
I could tell they're a conservative culture, as was evident in the humble demeanor of most people I talked with. While listening carefully to what someone is saying during a conversation, they have this cute habit of replying "yes" in a cautious tone with their Kenyan accent to indicate that they're following.
I could also tell people were very happy and proud to be Kenyan, particularly from their town of origin. Many people I spoke with wanted to know what I thought of Kenya. I still remember a conversation I had with the chef at one of the hotels where I stayed. He was happy to share he was from Kakamega, proud of their food, and he would say how he wanted to go back someday as: "it is the place to be".
Finally, I was pleasantly impressed by their hospitality. Everywhere we went they would always make sure we had good food to eat and that we were treated well. Overall, I got the sense that people think more in terms of the community rather than individual needs, where personal sacrifice for the greater good is more common.
As for travelling back in time, perhaps I wasn't able to travel as far back as I had hoped, but being there in Kenya reminded me of my early childhood in the mid eighties. It took me back to when we lived in this small residential area in Tegucigalpa, with dirt roads and eucalyptus trees along the main road. I remembered how I liked the smell of the eucalyptus leaves, the lighter and more relaxed color of the day thanks to the dirt roads, how cars would kick up dust when they passed by, walking along the streets with no sidewalk, houses with bindweed on their walls, lawns or green areas left to grow naturally without much care or maintenance, the sight of buildings designed more for function rather than aesthetics...
The slower pace of life, the humility of the people and the community-based mentality also took me back. It was certainly refreshing and it reminded me of important values in life that we easily forget in a faster-paced society. At the end of the trip, I was left reflecting on a phrase I heard a couple of times: "it takes a village to raise a child".
I could tell they're a conservative culture, as was evident in the humble demeanor of most people I talked with. While listening carefully to what someone is saying during a conversation, they have this cute habit of replying "yes" in a cautious tone with their Kenyan accent to indicate that they're following.
I could also tell people were very happy and proud to be Kenyan, particularly from their town of origin. Many people I spoke with wanted to know what I thought of Kenya. I still remember a conversation I had with the chef at one of the hotels where I stayed. He was happy to share he was from Kakamega, proud of their food, and he would say how he wanted to go back someday as: "it is the place to be".
Finally, I was pleasantly impressed by their hospitality. Everywhere we went they would always make sure we had good food to eat and that we were treated well. Overall, I got the sense that people think more in terms of the community rather than individual needs, where personal sacrifice for the greater good is more common.
As for travelling back in time, perhaps I wasn't able to travel as far back as I had hoped, but being there in Kenya reminded me of my early childhood in the mid eighties. It took me back to when we lived in this small residential area in Tegucigalpa, with dirt roads and eucalyptus trees along the main road. I remembered how I liked the smell of the eucalyptus leaves, the lighter and more relaxed color of the day thanks to the dirt roads, how cars would kick up dust when they passed by, walking along the streets with no sidewalk, houses with bindweed on their walls, lawns or green areas left to grow naturally without much care or maintenance, the sight of buildings designed more for function rather than aesthetics...
The slower pace of life, the humility of the people and the community-based mentality also took me back. It was certainly refreshing and it reminded me of important values in life that we easily forget in a faster-paced society. At the end of the trip, I was left reflecting on a phrase I heard a couple of times: "it takes a village to raise a child".
