Susi and Manuela go to Africa

On July 7th, 2017 Manuela and myself started our trip to Africa. After having taken 5 Immodium already very early in the morning, I was prepared to export my abdominal flu virus and went to the airport feeling a little queasy. At the airport we realized that Manuela wanted to travel on a different name as written on her ticket as she had brought her Italian passport with her maiden name on it. Thanks to Swiss efficiency a Swiss emergency passport was issued within a few minutes at a counter at the airport. The counter apparently is there for a very good reason : At 08 :00 am she was already the 15th Swiss citizen in need of an emergency passport. After that we were ready to check in my four suitcases and Manuela’s small backbag.

Moni Hess and Peter Brock had provided us with a lot of dressing material…THANK YOU!

After a flight time of seven hours we arrived at Nairobi where we spent the first night. Early on the next morning we met Giorgio and Eleonora. Eleonora studies anthropology and writes a thesis on FGM (female genital mutilation). After a short visit to the local Masai market and a dentist wholesale operation (Angela the then doctor of Olpirikata has asked us to buy a couple of things) we went to an enormous supermarket where we bought mosquito nets, footballs and candies. Our trip to Kajiado went smoothly and we arrived there in the afternoon where we visited four hotels which might be potential locations and or employers for our next project « Nasaru : Masai Girls’ Learning Center ».

After an almost abstinent evening (quote Manuela: «If there is no white wine, we will drink water.») – with gin tonic (and «just a little bit of gin») we slept more or less well in the best hotel of downtown Kajiado.

Early next day we left for Olpirikate where we received a warm welcome by the women of the cooperative. We had a long and intense motivational talk with doctor Angela before joining the other women who were preparing lunch under a tree. We did a briefing on the Bazaar products we wanted to order showing them the sample products we had bought at the Nairobi Masai market.

We had lunch together with the men in the refectory and then the usual «meeting» of the community took place outside. The community expressed their sincere gratitude for our help and we emphasized the need for their support of the upcoming farm project. At the end of the meeting we received gifts in a very touching ceremonial way. Here you find the video of the gift giving ceremony.

Children in Olpirikata are very happily playing with their new football. 

The day ended with another dinner in downtown Kajiado and just a little bit of gin. Early next day we left for Iloshion which is another 30 km away from Olpirikata in the middle o the savannah. The dust road to Iloshion allows 30 km per hour – with the car! There was a lot of dust and the road was extremely bumpy.

Our visit to Iloshion was very emotional and touching. Since the opening of the school in 2011 not a single girl has finished school. They have to walk up to 10 km to school and are facing «challenges» on their way to school, meaning that they have a high risk of getting pregnant.

Principal Paul and the teachers gave us a warm welcome and they underlined the need for a solution to the «challenges» for the girls. Therefore, we decided to dedicate the proceeds of this year’s Bazaar to the construction of a learning center with dormitory for the Masai girls of Iloshion.

Girls from the Iloshion primary school

We were given Masai names: Manuela is called Nashipae and myself got the Masai name Nasaru. Then we left for our way back to Nairobi where we arrived after four hours of dust road and two hours on the tarmac. At the airport we said goodbye to Giorgio and Eleonora.

A short flight of an hour brought us to Kilimanjaro airport in Tanzanie where a driver of the «More-Than-A-Drop» Bed & Breakfast waited for us. We were very happy to re-unite with our friend Nicola who is the principal of the attached hospitality school. This interesting and sustainable project is financed by the Swiss MoreThanADrop-Foundation and has been set up almost two years ago.

Re-union with our friend and principal of the Hospitality school in Moshi – Nicola

During our stay there we also had a chance to visit Sam’s project Born To Learn which again was very inspirational. It is impressive how much good one can do with a lot of goodwill and of course donations.

A safari in the Arusha National Parc concluded our short trip to Africa. We met Mokili, a young and very ambitious Masai man who works there as a guide. His enormous knowledge about local flora and fauna impressed us. He told us that he was the youngest of 13 ( !) children and was offered the financing of his education by an American couple. Whilst his friends advised him to take the money and to buy a house or cows he decided to go to school arguing that a house can burn down and the cow can die but the acquired know-how will always stick with him. Now he is able to support his family and also help his community. Nashipae and Nasaru were so impressed that we decided spontanously to place an order for the development of a product which we will introduce and present at the Bazaar 2017.

Full of new impressions and very motivated we then returned to Zurich and we know for sure «We will be back!