view from the pick of Mfangano Island on the mainland of Kenya
There is many stories and facts from the teaching experiences and island adventures that I will be telling you in next days, so thay tuned!
For now, as I am still adapting to the feeling of being at home, I can easily bring back the memories of omnipresent nature on the Mfangano Island where I spend the last three weeks. Let me describe you the uniqueness of this quite isolated place in the western part of the Lake Victoria.
Mfangano Island seen from the waterbus
The main thing you notice from the first step made on its ground is the peace among people, so common for the island life. From the first step you feel the difference in the air which is much cleaner and lighter than on the mainland, because due to the fact there is no hard roads - there is almost no cars. Only some oldschool motorbikes decorated colorfully in african style by their owners are driving on bumpu and rocky roads. From the first step you can not ignore the coexistance of humans and animals which is stronger than on the mainland. Mfangano is inhabited by mixture of Luo and Suba tribes. In their culture having cattle is a tradition and still it's quantity says about your wealth. Therefore, families keep many cows, donkeys and goats on their properties, but as most of the poeple can not afford fences around their land, the animals are just walking freely around the island. Another reason is - a free cow is a happy cow that gives happy milk. You can meet groups of them lying along the roads, on the roads also, passing in front of your door, gathering in your yard. And what was beautiful for me - everyone is fine with that, no one is getting nervous at them (but if they start to eat your crops... Oh, they better run away before farmers catch them!).
The part of the island life that made me fall in love in it with all my heart and will never let me forget it were THE SOUNDS. The lack of cars, factories, commercials and TVs created perfect space for all the cute bird and bug trills to be heard in their full power. There is 350 spieces of birds on the island and I assure you that during the day you could hear at least half of it if you listen carefuly. Some of the sounds were similar to the bird's songs that I know, but some where like from a fairytale. The multitude of sounds makes you shiver. Every now and then you can hear a new, delightful singing. After few days, you can easily recognize individual birds and choose your favourite one, whose melody will cause a smile and a feeling that this paradise is more and more your home. There is no silence on Mfangano. The nature orchestra is playing its sypmhony all day with specific parts at specific times of the day. Around 5 a.m. you can hear first rooster crowing, which begins the morning concert of joy welcoming the rising sun. The dawn hours are the loudest and most lively during the day. The twittering of birds combines with cows mooing and goats bleating. What was extremely funny to hear - some of the goats' sounds seemed like children crying for help, or old men screaming or drunk guy trying to pronounce incomprehensible words. Until the dusk you could enjoy those soothing notes, letting them pet your ears and heart. With the sunset there was a change of the band. Some birds were falling asleep being replaced by the night singers. Frogs would croak loudly trying to drown out the cricketing of crickets. The lake surrounding the island was gently and rhythmically sending it's waves to cool our minds before floating into the land of dreams. And again, the next day you would be awakened by a rooster getting up early from the bed. The daily concert would begin and all the people on the island would slowly start their everyday routines with theirs souls getting pleasure from this wonderful soundrack of life.
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| fichermans waiting to start their work |
The bush and forest on Mfangano seems like there was a bomb with lush greenery that blew up and covered each part of the land with fastly growing palm trees and grass, aloes, cactus, custard apple trees, banana trees, huge fern and many other types of trees that I couldn't even recognize. They all tangle with each other creating a perfect place for some humans to build their clay houses in a secure, covered from the sun and strangers areas. There a family can have their peaceful life, vegetable-rich garden, space for keeping the cattle that from time to time comes back home, just to visit, because there is plenty of food wherever they go.
Mfangano stole my heart with it's simplicity of the way of living, joy and kindness of people and the nature that gives a strong friendly hug which reminds that this environment if where we came from and this is where our souls and minds feel safe and at home. Even thought my conditions at home are so different from the ones on the island, on Mfangano is where I found inner peace and felt connected again, brought back a primal understanding of living with the nature, taking care of it, fighting with it, accepting it's force and managing to survive.
Living on the island made me understand how much we need beauty in our lives. That by surrounding ourselves with natural beauty we make it easier to awaken the beauty we have within. Everyone has it. Everyone has their own. Some of us already found its source and a way to refill it. Some are still searching.
Wherever you are, try to find a way of bringing the beauty around, May it help you smile to yourself because of simply enjoying the moment :) For me, as I am now closed in the apartment, it would be playing some nature sounds that will fill the silence of the four walls and a city where the spring is just slowly starting.
Here you have a link to a short and old movie about some birds of Mfangano and you can hear the traditional Abusuba language: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93Mmz0a55yI
And here is a website where you can create your own life soundtrack: https://mynoise.net/
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