Running with the Kenyans

After a long journey yesterday, we made it to Kisumu. The journey through the Rift Valley is absolutely stunning but we’ll write more about that later since we’re planning to visit several places over the next few days.

The night bus was significantly more comfortable than the day bus since it was much cooler out and we arrived in Nairobi unscathed at 6 AM. We then waited a little more than 3 hours for our rental while being assured that it was “five minutes away” the entire time. Luckily the drive only took 6 hours from Nairobi so we made it before dark.

The half-marathon was in support of World AIDS Day and the race included free screening as well as a prize of $1000 for the Kenyan winner. HIV/AIDS is a huge problem in Kisumu; almost 15% of adults in Kisumu are HIV positive. This is somewhat cultural as the local people still practice polygamy or serial monogamy much more frequently than in other parts of the country.


This morning we had an early wake-up since the race “started” at 6 AM. We showed up at 6 and we were 90 minutes early. We just can’t bring ourselves to be late, no matter how hard we try. Here is a picture of us pre-run:




The race started on some main roads which included running with matatus, motorbikes, and lots of people yelling “mzungu” at us. There were a few other wazungu doing the race (there’s a CDC outpost in Kisumu) but people seemed very, very amused especially by M. They yelled “long man” at him which is a direct translation of mwanamume mrefu (long/tall man).



Water was provided by a local NGO focusing on clean water. It was dispensed in plastic bags which created a fun challenge to try and get a drink while running.



The race wound through the dirt roads and several rural areas where kids lined the streets and giggled when we answered them in Swahili.



At this point it was really starting to get hot and we eventually wound up running along Lake Victoria before coming in for a very sweaty finish:



We took it easy and turned in our slowest half marathon time by quite a lot. We had decided in advance that it was more about the experience and it certainly delivered. Most Kenyan runners were wearing ancient shoes, sandals, and many just ran barefoot. M also took the opportunity for a little hair adventure. He hasn’t shaved his face since we climbed Kili so he insisted I shave his hair really, really short for the race so he had more hair on his face than on his head. Luckily, now that the race is over, he’s agreed to shave again.



We’re off to Nakuru now to see the flamingos! Or not. In the time it has taken me to write this, M has found a forest he wants to see instead so we may be detouring up to Eldoret. Oh well, the half-marathon was my idea so it's his turn to pick!