My name is Rachel. I am from all over Texas in the US. I am now living in a town on the coast in Kenya, called Kilifi.
When and how did you decide to move to Kenya? Is it complicated to settle down there?
In 2009, I married a Kenyan. We were living in the US at the time, and our kids were born there. In January 2011, we started writing a plan to start a ministry to orphans in Kenya, called Maisha Kamili (Full Life in Swahili). We moved here in March 2012 to get started. Being married to a Kenyan made most of the official paperwork very simple for me.
Have you ever lived abroad before? How many countries have you visited?
In 2006-07, I lived on board a ship called MV Doulos. While I was on board, we were in Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea. I have visited 14 countries altogether.
What do you like the most about Kilifi/Kenya?
Two things: one is that I am gradually getting to know my husband's very large family. They have never been able to travel to the US. Two is that I am getting to see first-hand how God is making the lives of orphans better through this tiny organization that started as a dream in Texas.
How is/was the cultural shock? What are the main differences with USA, your home country?
I feel that by now I am acclimated to the culture, but the poor quality of medical care was hard for me to deal with in the beginning, especially when my youngest got sick for the first time. There are a lot of differences between the US and Kenya simply because Kenya is less developed.
Do you miss anything from your homeland?
I miss the convenience. Life in the US is so convenient!
Any 'memories of an expat' you would like to share with us? Your best souvenir? Or maybe your worst experience?
One day, we were on our way to the supermarket. At one intersection there is always a traffic jam, and we have to get through however we can, paying no attention to the official lane we should be driving in. That particular day, there were police with a "police check" set up on the other side of that intersection. Traffic was completely confused because they were pulling cars over as soon as they came through the intersection. In the confusion, not realizing there was a police check, my husband drove the way we normally get through the intersection, driving in the wrong lane. Of course he was pulled over, and they wanted to take him to the police station to pay a fine. They asked where he was going. He told them, and (seeing me, his white wife, in the car) they asked if he owned the store. We got a good laugh out of that! He begged forgiveness, and they told him to just give them lunch money, and we were on our way.
What does a typical day as an expat in Kilifi look like?
We are up early. My oldest son is 3, and he goes to school all day, 5 days a week. My housekeeper arrives about the time my husband takes our son to school (between 8 am and 8:30). She washes our laundry by hand and cleans the whole house every morning. Right now, we are getting water delivery because there is a problem in our water line and no one cares to fix it. Sometime in the morning, 100 liters of water is dropped off in jugs at our gate, and we haul it in to pour into our storage containers. I spend most of my day just taking care of my 2 year old. Cooking takes longer because of our tiny stove and having to make everything from scratch. We buy groceries more often because we can't count on electricity keeping our refrigerator running. Most days, I have a list for the supermarket and/or the produce market so that we have food to cook for supper.
Kenya had to face an attack last September in Nairobi: how did it affect you?
We are very far from Nairobi, so besides seeing more armed police around town (especially when we go to Mombasa), I wasn't directly, physically affected. I try to be even more aware of our surroundings that I was before, especially when we are out at big shopping locations. I'd never been to that mall, but it's not that different a place than the mall I go to in Mombasa. It hit very close to home mentally and emotionally.
When did you start your blog? For what reasons?
I started blogging on another platform 8 years ago, just as a public journal, sharing my less-private thoughts. I blogged while I was living on the ship as a way of sharing experiences with family and friends back home, and continued blogging after I returned to TX, when my husband and I were starting to plan our wedding, to collect my ideas and share stories about our engagement. That morphed into Kenyan-Texan family after we got married and had kids.
Did you make new friends with your blog?
I have made some friends, whom I've never met in person, but we read each other's blogs.
Why did you register on
https://www.expat.com and what do you think of the website?
I was looking for other expats in Kenya, and I started reading some of the blogs I found, so I decided to share mine as well. I was very glad that the website exists as a resource for expats. It's great to find other expats' perspectives in one place.
Which advice would you give to the other Expat blog members who would like to settle in Kilifi (or Kenya)?
Considering that Kenya is still a developing country, the more self-sufficient you can be, the better. Find a house with solar power backup and its own borehole!
