Hair Braiding in Bombolulu

This past month I went to Mombasa with my cousin Lori where we taught at the schools, Olives Rehabilitation Centre in Bombolulu and Precious Vision in Shauri Yako, for three weeks. My time was one that I will never forget and I feel that it wouldn't have been half as amazing if I hadn't had the opportunity to spend time amongst the locals in the Bombolulu village.

We had the unique opportunity to get our hair braided by some of the local women in Bombolulu. It was Lori's idea actually and she's the one who went searching for a hair salon where she could get it done. Along the way she saw some local women doing hair on the grass outside their home worked out out a deal with them to do our hair. It took three and a half hours to braid one of us. It was very time consuming but there were many hands to help!

GVI volunteer, Erika, getting her hair braided by local women in Bombolulu village

Lori, also a GVI volunteer, getting her hair done

While Lori had her hair done, I played with the local children. The adults were very amused by the horseplay as I chased the children while they screamed their heads off. They were laughing at me the entire time. None of the women spoke English but a boy came by and explained it was his sister, mother and grandmother and great-grandmother who lived there and the ones who were braiding the hair were his sister and his mother. I was even invited to stay for dinner, which I regretfully had to decline.

Lori entertaining one of the children in the village

As amazing as this experience was, the most remarkable part was the two weeks that followed. As a volunteer teacher there is a tendency for the locals to recognize us, nonetheless, we are outsiders. The men are very friendly but the women tend to keep to themselves. After our time in the village, the women began to say hello, and those who could speak English openly chatted with us about where we were from. Walking through the village to and from school was a warm and welcoming experience as we were recognised and greeted by all. Even the 106 year old great grandmother remembered us. When we would say hello she would answer back "jambo!" with a great big smile.

Madam Lori with children from Standard 2 at Olives

Our students gave us the same treatment, they laughed at the fact that some of the braids were bigger than others and loved putting flowers and leaves in our hair when we were outside, which they lovingly picked out later on during class.

Erika, aka Madam Erika, with Standard 2 at Olives, the class that she taught

Getting our hair done gave us the opportunity to be accepted by these women by embracing the culture and breaking the boundry between local and muzungu, which is a Swahili word that they refer to us by. I'm not sure if it was because we were willing to spend hours amongst them or if it was because we were embracing their culture by getting our hair done but I feel like we gained a special sort of respect from them. It made us feel truly appreciated and respected for the work we had come to do. I will never forget this experience as long as I live.

Erika

Hair Braiding in Bombolulu