running with bodyguards

Short entry, because "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" is beginning shortly:

After a long day of work - about 3.5 hours of meetings alone - I headed out for a run around 5 pm. I ran yesterday with four of the guys, and when I say "ran" I mean it in direct opposition to the word "jog," which is not what I felt like we were doing. So today it felt good to take a bit slower pace, blasting my iPod to cover up the endless cries of "mzungu!!"

About a mile into my run I picked up a trailing group of Kenyan children. This is pretty common, but I have never had two running on either side; I would imagine it was similar to having a pair of bodyguards, with the exception of the fact that they each came up to my hip. I managed to teach them one English phrase - "I am running" - which they used repeatedly with great delight. It was quite entertaining, although once again I felt a bit silly: running along in all my official-looking gear, flanked by two small barefoot boys, one of whom was chomping on a stick of sugarcane the entire way.

Tonight I was assigned to be the sous-chef for Veronica, who took courses at the French Culinary Institute of NYC. Needless to say our meal was terrific. Pork stuffed with a mix of dates, raisins, apples, and wine; homemade French bread; salad with vinaigrette; and cooked/spiced carrots. So the few skills I might pick up in Kenya, which so far had an emphasis on Swahili greetings and ultimate frisbee, have expanded a bit to include cooking. Hooray for new life skills!