Maasai Experience

While living at the school for 5 days we also learned a lot about the Maasai culture. We visited 2 villages (I only 1 b/c I was sick). The huts were very dark and smoky and were full of fleas. This hut housed a man, a woman and 3 children. I learned how and participated in the traditional Maasai women’s dancing. When I arrived I was garnished in many beaded necklaces and belts and encouraged to join the circle of women who were singing (one leader would call something out and others would respond – in the language of Maa). We would make small up and down jumps and thrust our shoulders forward making the large beaded necklaces bounce around our necks. Then we watched the men dance – the warriors. These were men ages 16-35 who were out with the cattle every day. Maasai people wear red clothing (cloths) so from far away other people can know they are Maasai people. The red represents blood from the warriors who fought other tribes to gain the land for their cattle.The men came in holding their spears followed by young girls (who had not been circumcised/married off). The Maasai use only their voices to make music (no instruments) and so the men had a deep grunting noise as part of their dance. Their dance was for showing off their jumping skills and their ability to move their jewelry around their necks (the better one can do this the more appealing to a girl he is). These guys could jump quite high. Then when the dancing was over the young girls would choose the man she wanted by going up to him and putting one shoulder forward and then the man would put the other shoulder towards her (like a hug). We participated in this part too! After learning about the dances we all went with a Maasai woman and learned how to make beaded jewelry (although men don’t really make the jewelry – Ian and Keith did participate). I made a small ring. All the colors have different meanings. Before most of the beaded jewelry had a red base of color – representing the blood shed for the land by the warriors and also for the cow’s blood they drink. But now the main color is white which represents peace. The blue represents the sky; yellow=the sun; green = grass which the cattle graze; orange=someone likes you; black=the color of their skin; silver/gold beads= someone loves you. I did support the women by buying one of the large beaded neck pieces. Of course some negotiating was done! After the beading we went into the small hut to learn why women/girls are circumcised. I will not post here the details I learned. Although in the Maasai culture men have more than one wife – each wife has their own hut to live in with their children. The women’s job is to collect fire wood, cook, clean, care for the children and the elders while the men go out with the cattle every day. Maasai culture revolves around their cattle. This tribe began in Egypt and realized there was not enough grazing room for their cattle so began moving south. They went into Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya and finally settled in Tanzania. Most Maasai tribes live in Tanzania not Kenya. Since many Maasai people are leaving the village to get an education and job and living more like “westerners” there is a concern for the health of the Maasai people. AIDS is not an issue among the Maasai at this time. However the concern is there are more people marrying other ethnic people. Maasai are worried that other diseases will impact them due to this. However, they do like the fact that “white” people do a drug test before they get married so everyone knows the health of the people. I learned that most Maasai people die of old age (although some from pneumonia and tuberculosis). They use many trees and plants for their medicine. They boil different parts and drink it for medicine. We walked around with one elder who showed and explained how different trees and plants were used. From clotting a cut to healing a cough to settling a stomach to stopping bleeding for a woman who just gave birth to healing a gallbladder. I felt it similar to the Aborigines in Australia. Actually when I was not well, Naizeri (our cook) gave me water, sugar and salt to drink and also squeezed a lot of lemon into my tea – and miraculously my intestinal problems became better quicker than the Imodium-AD I was taking!