Settling into Kisumu

We arrived in Kisumu on Sunday afternoon, following a 5 1/2 hour bus trip from Nairobi via the Rift Valley. The road wasn't all that smooth but that's part of the adventure. We also saw zebras and baboons which is also part of the adventure.

TICH's leadership strategy session started on Monday morning. I was going to make a good first impression by wearing a tie, but it was so hot I went slightly more casual which proved to be appropriate. I was quite impressed with the calibre of individuals I was dealing with as most are academics and/or medical doctors. They were certainly a friendly bunch and they enjoyed my attempt at speaking k-swihili during the morning introductions. Fortunately, the meeting was held entirely in English so I got a surprisingly lot out of it.

Cindi (my house-mate from Atlanta who will be providing
marketing/communications expertise to TICH) and I were then given 1 and 1/2 days to get settled in. This included buying a gas burner to cook on, plates, pots, linen, etc. As much as I don't enjoy shopping it was somewhat entertaining doing this in such an unusual environment. It is a bit strange having just met someday and then trying to agree on what colour scheme our kitchen will be (fortunately, neither of us really give a hoot). The place is pretty barren, but its secure and has electricity, running water (but not heated) and a western toilet. We were provided with beds, misquito nets and a kitchen table and 4 chairs. We're currently using an old mattress as our living room couch. Our only outstanding big investments are expected to be a mini-fridge and a one-speed bicycle.

Today was our first day at the institute. It is a small campus with about 40 full-time staff. Chaple session started at 10:00 am and its pretty hard to skip when its the lead-in to the coffee break. I've had more church time this past week since my pre-teen years. I'm even starting to sing along with the hymns. As I learned at the strategy session, one of the major variables for the school to become a university is whether God is willing (or if they are prepared to brib the Ministry).

Finally, I should mention that its really hot. Even the locals are complaining and somebody today said that they thought it was 36 degrees. I am sweating myself to sleep and quite enjoying the cool showers. We broke into groups to discuss strategic items and my colleagues were so fatigued from the heat that Cindi and I carried the discussion and I made the presentation to the group. Kind of funny to think I was discussing issues facing an Institution that I hadn't yet visited. Although what I'm is that there are more similarities in the work environment here than differences.