Solar hot water and gray water.

     Okay so you could never depend on there being hot water IAA. They use "instant hot water heads" in the showers which consist of a 240 volt heater element in a head filled with water directly above you. Yep it works pretty well and we haven't had anyone killed yet! One huge problem is that they draw 25 amps on the electrical system and low and behold if two folks take showers (not together) it simply blows out the circuit which is a fuse that has blown once before but now has wires wrapped around it to "make it work".
     If you lived on the equator would you have free hot water most of the time? Saving those bucks for a great safari or cruise, even a trip to Ireland! Well the original building plans called for two flat plate solar hot water systems, one on each side of the building. All said and done they had one 300 liter (80gal. for you US folks) installed in the attic with one 3Kw heating element.
     First problem was the tank was located  below the solar panels but a small pump was added to force the flow when the sun shone. The tank had only two pipes on one end. One out and one in. All good solar tanks have two on each end and are located above the solar panels so natural convection can flow hot water thru the tank when the sun shines, remember we are still on the equator. The sun will bake a bald head quickly even at 8,300 ft. on an overcast day.
     Last year the best we could do is make the water flow thru the two pipes and worked with much less efficiency. We even added a timer to turn off the element when the demand dropped to save electricity. The contactor failed about two months ago and the element went bad. An electrican replaced the element but the staff here could not get the timer connected correctly.
     Last year we begged some friends we knew for cash to help IAA with their hot water problems and had much left over since we only repiped a two pipe system.
     I contacted the local tank maker to build us a 300 liter, four pipe tank. You can't just go to Lowes and pick one up. Enter the other problem. Roof solar panels have NEVER been cleaned because there is no ladder that will reach 24ft. Next call was to "Ladder David" a guy who makes aluminum ladders of all sorts. Believe me ladders are expensive here and so are hot water tanks. We did get a tour of the plants when we picked them up, very interesting. Too much to include in this blog and you ladies are bored to death anyway but Keith loves this stuff.
     Last Sat. the new tank was installed, so hard to get into the attic but with much Kenyan muscle power was done. Guy removed the solar powered pump and cleaned panels. Welder made a great rack to hold it above the panels in the attic. This tank has two heating elements instead on one. On a sunny day the water coming off the panels is 120 deg. F. and cold outlet is 86 deg. F. WOW, a cruise is coming soon!!

     The gray water system is simply waste water that contains no sewage that is piped to a tank. This tank allows any solids from kitchen sink drain to fall to the bottom to decay. The outlet is piped to the garden to water it. From the picture we learned not to work on a Sat. because all the children are glad to pitch in. We love em but they were too much help.

A Short Break Away

     We realized that all work and no play isn't good for anyone.......so here is how to take a break in Kenya.
If you travel this far and live in the land of the original safari like in the movie "Out of Africa" this is what everyone does here. Last year we ventured into the Masi Mara game reserve where they show the wildebeast migration on National Geographic shows. This year we chose a different route. There is a lake nearby we had not visited and another park.
     On our first day we traveled to "Hells Gate" to see many animals plus a huge gorge that has been washed out by rain each rainy season. We hiked down the canyon (literally similar to our Grand Canyon) for about an hour with some very steep climbs down into the canyon. We came across some very hot streams coming out of the canyon walls. At one such spot you could even boil an egg and there was evidence that someone had done just that. At the end of out walk we climed out a different way which was very steep and hot (it was much cooler in the canyon).
     Next we drove thru a section near the "Hells Gate" park where the Japanese have developed geothermal energy from many boreholes in the earth. The high pressure steam derived from the wells is used to generate electricity for the nearby cities. Some were venting into the air with much pressure and noise. Then off to our hotel on Lake Naivasha where we ate lunch and secured our room.
     After lunch we went for a boat ride on the lake to view many hippos, ducks, birds and fish eagles. While out we also took a walking safari and was very close to many native animals. Hippos are very dangerous and will attack you while in the boat. They can swim underwater for five minutes without surfacing for air. Our guide suffered such an attach while fishing and almost lost his life. He was with five other fishermen in the boat when a hippo came out of the water and grabbed him by the arm. It pulled him from the boat and flung him back and forth underwater. He survived and had many scars on his arm to prove it.
     The next morning we were off to Mount Kenya (highest mountain in Kenya) for a visit to "Sweetwater Game Reserve" where we take a safari (only shoot with a camera) to view the many native animals of Africa. The safari vans are very comfortable with a roof that raises so you may stand to view animals or picture taking. On the way (about a five hour drive) we stopped off to view Thompson Falls, a beautiful waterfall but very touristy.
     The Sweetwater resort has tents you sleep in that are very comfortable and acommodating complete with hot water provided by tanks that are heated with wood. Beside the tent compound is a large watering hole for the animals. About dark many come in for a drink. Note the tent, giraffe drinking at water hole and even a beautiful sunset on Mt. Kenya.
     A part of this reserve has a chimpanze refuge for chimps that have been taken from illegal owners and placed back in the wild. It is a part of Jane Goodall's efforts to free chimps.

     Also the rhino population is extremely low because of poachers who kill them just for their horn. The park has gunbearing guards who watch at night for paoachers. One such rhino we got to pet was called Barraca, a very gentle creature who had lost his sight from an eye disease. He is huge but very tame and not harmful in the least.
     On the return trip back to IAA we stopped on the equator to view a demonstration how water flows down a drain. When 20 m north of the equator it flows in a clockwise direction and 20 m south of the equator it flows counterclockwise. Wow it really does, just look the next time you drain your sink which way it flows. To all who read this blog we expect you to come with us next year and take a safari with us, you would love it!!!!!

the good ole days

When I want to get more eggs, I go out to a shed where the animals are kept with my basket.  I fill it up and then take them back to the kitchen and wash them (a step omitted when we buy commercially produced eggs - when you crack your eggs you don't want some of the hen house falling in your bowl) and then put them in another basket and set them on the shelf until I need them.  They are never refrigerated.  The cow is milked twice a day.  When they bring in the milk, they strain it (eliminating some stray hairs) and then boil it.  Most of it is made into chai - they add sugar (lots) and loose tea and boil it again and then strain it and it is ready to drink, toddlers and up.  It is never refrigerated because it is consumed within a couple of hours of being boiled.  At night they boil the milk and then leave it on the stove or the countertop (sometimes it is used at night, sometimes not until the morning.)  This milk is given to the babies (those under 2)  The milk is never refrigerated and most Kenyans will tell you that the thought of drinking cold milk is definitely unappealing.  The Mzungus use powdered milk in their coffee and buy a little commercially processed at the grocery store if they want to have cold cereal in the morning.

When I went to get eggs a couple of days ago, they had not been gathered yet.  So I helped gather the eggs, never admitting to her that I was a bit nervous around all those chickens.  Lydiah and I discussed the fact that when women gather the eggs, none are broken, but when men gather the eggs, many are broken.

The next day, Daniel was gone to buy parts for the van when it was time to milk.  Kennedy who is 13 or 14 wanted Steve to milk the cow, assuming that Steve did not know how to milk the cow.  But, of course, he did.  Steve has developed a reputation for being able to do anything, and this was just one more thing on the list.  Kennedy has been at home waiting to go to high school (boarding school) for his first year.  He has been Steve's shadow for much of the time.  Steve has been very patient with him, and I think Kennedy has learned a few things in the process.  Steve has also had some "man to man" talks with Kennedy (including when to take a bath).  Kenyan boys are circumcized right before they go to high school.  After that they are considered men.  Kennedy has some, well, different ideas of what it means to be a man, and how men are supposed to treat women.  (He only respects his grandmother and his wife to be)  He is not highly motivated and doesn't see the need to help a house mom carry heavy propane bottles or a case of pop bottles.  He reminds Steve that he is now a "man" and gets mad if he is called a "boy".  Steve explained to Kennedy that if circumcision is what makes you a man, then he became a man when he was less than a week old.  He jumped out of his crib and was chasing the nurses.  His first wife left him because she was tired of changing his diaper.  So here is a picture of Steve, Kennedy and the cow.  (Note the smile on the cow; she has just been milked.)

cleaning out the Chipsey bucket

Chipsey is the brand name for a vegetable grease.  It is not oil, and much harder than Crisco.  At room temperature it is hard like lard, only it is vegetable based.  It comes in 10 kg buckets, as they use a lot of it when coooking.  The food does not taste greasy, but when it is cold and you seee the hard grease on the top, you ask yourself, "Did I eat THAT?"  Anyway, there were two empty, but still very greasy, Chipsey buckets in the kitchen.  I asked Lydiah what was the best way to clean them.  (The buckets, of course, are very useful for many, many things.)  All the things I knew to use - paper towels, degreaser products, etc. are not available.  So she said she would teach me how to clean them.  We used VERY hot water, heated almost to boiling, and laundry powder, and took them outside to clean them.  What I thought was so smart was she goes over to a cedar tree (bush) and breaks off pieces to scrub with.  Not only are they disposable (few things are thrown away here) but they leave "the fresh scent of pine".  I told her that there were cedar trees at my house and the next time I needed to scrub a greasy container I knew what to use.  I wanted to include the picture of Lydiah only, but it didn't show the bucket, so you have a picture of me as well. 

Cooking and eating

My day usually begins at 7 AM.  I cook for the seven US volunteers that are at the orphanage.  Breakfast is usually eggs or french toast, because there are over 100 chickens on the site and we get a lot of eggs.  Sometimes we have sausage, cereal, or potato cakes made from the leftover mashed potatoes of the previous night.  I also fix lunch for the volunteers.  It is often leftovers from the night before, but also I make egg salad (remember the chickens) or fried egg sandwiches.  Sometimes we have lunch meat for sandwiches - polony (not bologna).  I also make potato salad out of leftover mashed potatoes (with eggs, of course). The mashed potatoes here are very stiff, and they make pretty good potato salad.
The reason that I cook is that we do not want to cause any extra work for the staff here.  There are two kitchens.  In the morning one cooks for the school age children and the other cooks for the babies and preschoolers.  (That is the kitchen that I use.)  You never know what people are doing at lunchtime, so I cook then as well.  There is a cook who for the evening meal because all the children are at home and so we eat out of the main kitchen as well.  However, there is one staff member that spoils us, and when the kitchen is cooking something that she knows we don't like, she will cook something else for us. In addition to what they cook, I might also slice tomatoes or make guacamole, or slice fresh pineapples or magoes.  We also usually have bananas on hand.  We eat chicken and mincement (ground beef).  Occasionally they get meat from the butchery, but it is so tough and grisley, that I usually pass.  In general, I have not found much that I do not want to eat.  With the exception of ugali.  Ugali is like a cornmeal mush that is cooked dry so that it is stiff (looks like a cake).  There is no salt, seasoning, oil or anything with it, and I find it tasteless. For Kenyans, it is a favorite comfort food.  We eat a lot of rice and potatoes.  They grow their own potatoes, but they grow three crops of potatoes a year.  Bottom line, the potatoes don't get very big.  The real bottom line is that it takes a long time to peel small potatoes.  Even if I do not fix the evening meal, sometimes I help them peel potatoes.
It is interesting that there are a lot of similarities between Kenyan and Mexican food.  For example, here they make chipatis, which is like a thick flour tortilla, maybe a little sweeter.  Also there is cilantro in the garden.  Eat your heart out, Steff.  A rare treat is simosas, a deep fried tortilla like dough stuffed with ground beef.  They are very labor intensive, but oh, so good.  Also they raise a lot of cabbages, and kale.  The corn they raise is maize, tough, not like sweet corn.  It is cooked a long time. Many of their dishes are like stews - different vegetables, with rice or potatoes, maybe chicken, maybe not.  One dish meals.  Kenyans don't eat sweets very much.  But Jane does make us banana bread sometimes, and once I made a banana pudding (and yes, I did make the bread pudding.)    
Since I use the toddler kitchen, we wash the toddlers' dishes, as well as our own.  Of course, I try to wash as I am preparing the food too.  The volunteers take turns doing the dishes, but some do a lot more than others.  Steve helps out a lot.  All this is to say, I spend a lot of my time in the kitchen. One Sunday I announced that I was not cooking supper, everybody was on their own, and they readily agreed.  I don't know what the toddlers ate that evening but there was a TON of dishes.  So much for my night off.
In a couple of week there will be a team of six coming, and shortly thereafter, a team of four.  I will probably  cook breakfast for everybody.  When extra people come, it really puts a load on the staff, and believe me, they already have their hands full.   

It's shearing time at the orphanage

All school age children in Kenya have their heads shaved, boys and girls.  This helps to prevent lice and also with dandruff (the air is very dry here).  Especially with preschool children, sometimes it is hard to tell if a child is a boy or a girl.  For girls, it sure makes it easy getting ready for school in the morning.  Also it is like the uniform, it puts everyone on an equal playing field.  The adult men in Kenya also keep their hair trimmed very close to their head.  I was told by a sixteen year old boy that men who have dreadlocks (true Rastifarians - sp???) have to have a permit to wear their hair long.  I have only seen one man with long hair.

The man who came to shear the sheep at the orphanage had spring loaded hand shears.  He learned the trade from his grandfather.  He knew how to hold the sheep, he worked fast, and I never saw a knick on the sheep.  The wool is taken to a factory where it is processed for blankets, etc. 

Very low overhead garage

     Okay, so when your auto breaks down and you need a mechanic you just call a tow truck and have it towed to your favorite garage, right! The garage has a nice heated or cooled stall to put it into to do the work and the mechanic has a whole box of shiny Craftsman tools and lots of  technical references at his fingertips.
    Well the eleven passenger Toyota van (I love em) used not only to carry the children to school but many other hauling chores broke down in the yard. Our local maintenance team quickly tore the engine down far enough to see it had a broken cam shaft. At this point it was decided to call in an expert. Enter Alex a traveling Kenyan auto mechanic who uses the ground for a workshop. Check out ALL the tools he has to do the job in the picture.

     Wednesday morning Alex and his son pulled everything but the block and crankshaft out of the engine to assess the damage.  Then Saturday morning Daniel, a maintenence person at the orphanage, went  to Nairobi with Alex to purchase the needed parts which included of course a new camshaft, some valves, head gasket, new connecting rod bearings and silicone gasket making materials. The parts cost $26,000 Ksh (Kenyan shillings) approximately $338 USD. They came back at about 3:00PM at the scene of the broken down van. Alex with three auto mechanic students had the van running by 7:00PM with only minor valve adjustments to be made the next morning. The low overhead mechanic Alex only charged $6000 Ksh or $78.00 USD. Wow, I wanted to take him home with me but is too complicated getting him into the suitcase.