Uh-Oh . . .

Okay. Well. I may never live this one down.

I mean, I was expecting the Dispensary (clinic) at Siyapei to be pretty rough and austere--like all the other bush clinics I've been in. And, indeed, my expectations were right on. What I didn't expect was our living accommodations to be as filthy and primitive as they have turned out to be.

Ah, yes. Eau de mildew, water-stained ceiling, bare concrete floor, filthy kitchen cupboards, filthy kitchen counters, trails of marauding ants, no furniture besides a kitchen table and 5 straight back chairs, no hot water, non-working shower head, a toilet with a 'removable' seat, a ladder to the second floor bedrooms, 2 filthy beds for 5 people, and a partridge in a pear tree . . . Thank God for the bleach we brought with us.

Like I said.

Luckily, we're a pretty good-humored group. My mom and dad had the chance to jump back in the vehicle this afternoon and return to the relative opulence of Kijabe, but they chose to stick it out. Kristin and Brenna are remarkably upbeat and into problem solving and are convinced we're going to have a grand time (having never done it, they have challenged each other to see who can go a whole 7 days without taking a shower--not that they really have a choice.) As for me, I am always up for an adventure and don't mind the harsh living conditions--although I have to admit that the third 'bedroom,' stuffed with three rotting mattresses and a foam pillow reduced to a mouse nest is a little much even for me. I'm glad I brought my sleeping bag and the girls have given me a prime spot on their floor.

We were driven into Narok to buy groceries for our seven days of meals--which was made unexpectedly complicated by the fact that we have neither a refrigerator nor a cooler with ice. We'll see how long we hold out on box milk, rice, veggies, pasta, tomato paste, canned corn beef, tuna, bread, peanut butter and fruit. We bought one frozen chicken and hope it isn't thawed until tomorrow afternoon.

We've met the Dispensary staff--RN's Shadrack and Vivian, lab tech Benjamin, maintenance guy Stephen, another guy I now can't remember, and Pastor Jackson. Pastor Jackson is an ancient Maasai man who must weigh about 75 pounds and can recite the years that all the buildings on this old mission compound were built (the place was founded in the 1880's by the African Inland Mission.) We've also done a preliminary delegation of duties--I'll be seeing the kids in clinic, mom and dad are going to organize the 'pharmacy' and the newly shipped and as yet unpacked drugs then move on to the 'file room.' Kristin and Brenna are going to work at the orphanage across the highway from the compound.

More tomorrow. And more to come on the hour and a half ride over here from Kijabe. A truly beautiful ride that ended in . . . well. Enough said.

Photos: bathroom door, Siyapei house; Siyapei compound; bathroom; pest-control (especially for Katherine E.!); 'stairway;' girls' room, Siyapei house; Narok street; first supper in Siyapei house.