Back to the Watoto: Making My Hair Hurt

I've had a bug in my craw since November 29th, when Tony sent me a receipt for the wired funds which landed in Kenya. Because of the currency exchange at the date of the wire, the amount received in Kenya should have been greater than the amount I sent. Should being the operative word. To make a very long story short, it was much less than it should have been, due to the bank on the Kenyan side taking egregious fees. Tony wasn't able to get anywhere with our bank in Kiserian...naturally, they said the banks on the US side took the fees. Tony isn't a bulldog, though. At home, I met with my bank on more than three occasions, who worked to find the discrepancies through their own system, the intermediary bank and the Kenyan bank. They came back to me a few days before my departure, to inform me that KCB (Kenya Central Bank) had refused to comply with two separate requests for reporting and accounting on this transaction; there was nothing more they could do.

Today, armed with documentation and a calmer temperament, I got to the bottom of this mess. Tony spoke first, in his usual pleasant manner, knowing I would end the pleasantries in a snap if I didn't get what I wanted. We got shoved off on 4 different people, finally landing at the desk of a sour looking woman, bored and indifferent by my complaint. The customary rudeness is something I'm not unfamiliar with. After much flowery language, insisting the bank only took 600ksh (about $6.20USD) in fees, I pulled out my documentation to counter her assessment and diversions. Slowly pulling out her phone calculator, she did a double take, looked down at my documents, then at her computer screen, and mouthed "Oh", her eyes wide like saucers. I kicked Tony under the table. What came next is too infuriating to write, as it makes my hair hurt, but it ended with "I want my money back. The money your bank stole." She couldn't refute it, and calculated the same amount I had on MY calculator. 2 hours later, she heard back from the "Treasury Department" acknowledging that there was a problem we could 'negotiate'. Negotiate? You want me to negotiate the amount of my money that the bank stole? Is this correct? She looked blankly at me. "I don't have anymore time for this, I'm sorry. There will be no negotiations. Stealing is stealing, period. Please begin the process of shutting this account down." "Now?" "No. After your lunch break. Next week, next year or after I've left the country." I didn't actually say this, but it was on the edge of my tongue. "Right now, yes." You may be asking yourself why I didn't just save myself the pain of 2 hours of irritation and agony in a hot and crowded bank with people hacking all over each other, and mentioned this at the start...I didn't because I have learned the system. One must allow a Kenyan to go through the ropes and all their nonsense and diversions. Saving face is crucial. Suddenly, I found myself back in the same chair, until she motioned me over, waving the person off who was sitting where she wanted me to be. In these situations, there is no privacy. 5 people were standing to the side, staring at me, listening to everything we were talking about. "SAMAHANI" I barked. (Excuse me). My patience was thin. Then...I got an apology and the promise of a phone call before the end of the day. At 4:15 today, the bank called me to inform me that "the majority" of the money would be returned to our account. "90%? 95% 99%? How do you define 'majority' "? "Yes" she said. If you are frustrated reading this? Just imagine..... I'll cut our 5% losses...its a victory, here in Kenya.

After the bank debacle, Tony and I went shopping together for the children, something we haven't done in a long time. I really love watching him badger vendors. It's comedy gold, where he hands over the amount HE wants to pay, and then tells the vendor to give him back his change of 150ksh. It creates such confusion, I just love it. Every child got a new uniform, socks, sweater and school bag. Tony headed to the car and I went to get all the necessary school books and supplies, along with every other last minute shopper in Kenya. School starts tomorrow.

When we got back to WWC, Tony met with the staff and I took the children for a walk around the shamba and to Nyumba Yangu for tea and snacks. Nothing makes them all happier than to come with me to my house..

Our new shamba

The children love writing and coloring 'thank you's to all of our donors. These are just a few of the many they colored yesterday:

I think Jemima felt badly for me, that all the children had congregated at Nyumba Yangu, and it was tea time. Kenyan chai is the best - I get a thermos each afternoon and savor every sip.

I told them all to 'toka hapa' so I could drink in peace...Eric refused, and told me he would just take a nap until I was done.

This isn't our mbuzi...but it's one of the things I don't like about goats...besides the fact that they are entirely destructive...guess who will be barbecued this weekend? You guessed right. I flatly told Tony ours needs to go. Chickens will be the extent of our livestock for the time being. Eric asked me to buy rabbits as we walked the compound. I told him to go away :-) He is such a good sport about everything...no one loves a good joke more than him.