The Hills of Taita Taveta
It is a windy Saturday afternoon. Nekesa and her mother are outside picking the now dry clothes from the clothesline.
Nekesa breaks into her mother’s thoughts and says, “Mum, tell me three things that our county is known for.”
“Hmmmmm…” her mum thinks.
“Ok here we go, the elephants, the sisal fields, and our crystal-clear lakes Chala and Jipe,” she finally answers.
“Oh, and don’t forget my favourite activity is rock climbing in Ngangao, the indigenous forest,” Nekesa adds.
The Ngangao Forest is indigenous meaning it occurred naturally. It is the second largest forest in the Taita Hills.
“I have no idea how you can rock climb, whose child are you again?” mum jokingly asks.
Her mother pulls down the last pieces of clothing from the clothesline, placing them in her basin she picks it up and balances it on her hip like the pro she is and walks into the house.
She follows up on their story line by asking, “Do you know about the maneaters of Tsavo?”
Nekesa shakes her head no.
“Well, when Kenya’s first railway line was constructed 100 years ago, lions would drag away unsuspecting construction workers from their camps. Recently when the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) was being built the same thing happened! But this time it was leopards and not lions!” Nekesa’s mother says.
“Yikes many times yikes!” says a visibly shaken Nekesa.
“Lions and leopards, I guess aren’t the cuddly cute big cats as seen on TV,” Nekesa adds.
Nekesa shuts the door behind her and carries the clothes to the laundry room as they wind down their day.
