After a quick breakfast I took Nigel's rear wheel to my main man Abdullah. I have to say I found it quite hard letting go. For the last few months that rear wheel has been like a child to me and I've fed it (pumped it up) nursed it (fix its spokes) clothed it (new inner tubes) and praised it for doing well. Now I had to let it go off to school to learn how to be a better wheel. Like every parent, I was hoping it would get some improvements and not pick up any bad traits from the other problem children. I had confidence that the teacher's would do a good job but every parent worries don't they. I'll just have to wait and see in the long run if I'm proud of him or if I have to look for those adoption papers.
After an embarrassing kiss goodbye I jumped in a tuk tuk to go straight to the bus station. I was a bit nervous as to whether today would be a success or not. Cocky, my contact at MTG, may not have received my email as I only sent it last night and she may not even be in the office. The hour long minivan journey to Kilifi could prove pointless if I got there and nobody was there! I took the gamble anyway and decided I would make the most of a day trip if things didn't go to plan.
The road trip was quite standard. The coastal road was not really that picturesque as the coast was hidden by fancy resorts and honeymoon destinations. The landscape is still very beautiful if you've just arrived but Mombasa and its nicer surrounding areas don't feel like a part of Kenya for me. When you've cycled through hundreds of under privileged villages to get here, the resorts seem like a separate paradise, not associated with Kenya.
I had to stop the motatu abruptly as I caught the MTG sign out of the corner of my eye from the main road. The facility looked good on first impressions. Decent pitch, big bright and secure building and I was greeted with better hospitality than in previous restaurants in Nakuru. Thankfully Cocky was in and she had received my email. Gutted that I couldn't stay longer she was excellent in making sure that I utilised all the time that I was at the centre.
Firstly I was introduced to everyone. Moving the Goalposts is an organisation that uses football to empower and educate women. The work they do is exceptional and each year they reach around 4000 women that are spread across the east coast and inland areas of Kenya. All the workers are obviously women too and so it felt very strange for me, being the only man. I've cycled many miles now and everywhere I've been, I've rarely seen a female, let alone a female in a managerial position. I've mentioned before that females in Kenya and Ethiopia are generally found doing the back breaking work in the fields or carrying bundles of whatever along the roadside, not exactly at a desk behind a computer.
Everyone was very welcoming and Cocky made everyone aware that I was going to do a presentation about my ride at 3pm, it was great that they could fit me in around their busy day. At 1pm I attended their savings club which helps the women to understand the importance of saving wages and also gives them an opportunity to take a loan to help with education fees or AOB for example. The concept was great and I have never seen anything like it. In the end i had to switch off from the conversation though. One powerful woman is daunting enough for me, let alone 10 of them debating about who should get/pay what etc. Having two sisters who are also very powerful has enabled me to possess a dormant mode. A mode where I'm in the room physically but inside I have completely shut down. I don't know how long the debate lasted but I was getting hungry and I'm sure it was a lot brighter outside when I entered the room!
All of us had lunch together and it was great to see that a lot of the workers have been known to MTG and playing in their leagues for many years and now are full time staff members who go out and help the communities. As a longer serving member, Cocky has seen some amazing success stories and I admire her dedication to MTG and all the women of Kenya that they reach out too.
MTG provides female football leagues for communities in Kenya. They also work with community representatives to organise meetings and workshops in schools and other centres to educate women about family planning and "lady's things." They have great reward schemes that can offer money for education for those women that attend football training, football matches and other workshops. MTG is a very well organised company and really goes against the stereotypical mentalities that Kenya is infamously known for. Women are empowered and installed with the belief that they can achieve anything. MTG don't stop there either, they try to show the families the capabilities of their daughters and help with any issues that may arise there also.
The most impressive thing for me though is the distances that MTG travel and the effort they put in to get there. Instead of going for quantity and choosing to help the heavily populated communities near to Kilifi. MTG opt for quality and will travel miles and miles via buses and motorbikes to reach out to the smaller far flung communities that need the help the most. Clearly, I'm a big fan of people and organisations that could do it the easy way but choose the challenge as its more valuable and makes a bigger difference in the long run. This is not always noticeable when we look at big companies and organisations as they focus on big numbers and big profits but not necessarily the best service.
After lunch, MTG showed me a few videos of their success stories and some videos that the women have created themselves about how MTG has changed their lives. It was very inspiring and I got the same feeling inside as I did with the stories at Sport the Bridge in Ethiopia.
After that, it was my talk. This would be the first talk of just my ride that I've actually done, so I was a bit unsure of what stories to tell. I quickly put together a few photos for a slide show and begun to explain my ride. I've told hundreds of people the story about my ride and living through what I've experienced so far hasn't seemed that "crazy" or "inspiring" as it does when I tell back the stories. I get emotional sometimes when I'm speaking about things that I feel really passionate about and today was a good test of how I could hold up and whether there is scope to take my story to schools, colleges and universities. I'm still not sure what spin I will take, my ride encompasses so many different factors I feel I need to focus on one but at the moment it seems people are just interested hearing about the situations I find myself in and the people I end up meeting!
I kept it together...just, when telling the ladies my motto and I was much happier in the Q and A section of the talk than when I was explaining the things I've experienced. After the talk I coached the ladies for around 45 minutes or so. Everyday the ladies finish with half an hour of football training to take their mind off work and let out some steam. I think this is a great idea and seeing as the field is part of the campus there is no issue with plucking up motivation to go somewhere to play etc.
I opened up the equipment container and it felt so good to see decent balls, cones and bibs etc. The smell was amazing as well. I love the smell of a PE cupboard and it doesn't matter anywhere you go, the PE cupboard always smells the same and so even 10,000km away in Kenya, I was still able to sniff in a little bit of home!
The session was lively and I didn't really want to jump in a van and go back to my Hotel in Mombasa so I went for a quick drink down the road with Cocky and Laura. Cocky and the ladies had done something above and beyond what they had to and all of them donated some money towards my ride. Whatever the ladies put in, Cocky doubled it and so I can add an extra 5000 Shillings to my fund which is amazingly generous.
After the drink I still wasn't feeling going back and Laura had invited me back to her house for dinner. Her house was average...an open planned villa with a pool on huge grounds that backed directly onto the beach. It was unbelievable, my first sight and taste of the Indian Ocean and I was instantly in love with the place. The sun was setting quickly but a quick swim in the warm water and a decent curry made by her cook were two very good reasons for not going back to Mombasa straight away!
By the time we had finished dinner it was pitch black and i wasn't too keen on taking the hour long journey back in the motatu and then tuk tuk ride to my Hotel so I was kindly given a bed for the night. It was definitely a night in paradise and I don't think I've been to a nicer house and location in my life.
A really good day and the risky ride to Kilifi certainly paid off. I just have a small case of getting up early tomorrow to get back in time to pick up Nigel's wheel and check out my hotel!
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