Our first night in Merrueshi, Mama Kakuta invited us to her home for tea. In the last afternoon light, we walked down the path to her compound where she greeted us with her beautiful smile.
Like most traditional Maasai families, Mama Kakuta and her clan live inside an enkang, a 'corral' made from piled thorn bushes, which protects the family and livestock from predators at night.
Benches were brought out of the huts and we sat in the sun while Mama Kakuta and Meoshi made the tea.
Tea preparation was very similar to what we saw in India. A large pot of water and milk is set to boiling. Tea leaves are added and the mixture boiled for about 4 minutes. Sugar is added to taste and then the tea is strained into cups or a teapot.
While we waited for the tea, we were given the chance to see a very traditional Maasai home - a hut made of wattle and dung. Entering the home through a small, narrow curving hallway, it took time for our eyes to adjust to the dark.
The inside of the hut is lit only by two very small ventilation windows near the largest bed and a small smoke hole in the ceiling.
The inside of the hut is cool, and Letitik (Tom), Kakuta's brother, told us that milk put in a calabash in the storage holes will stay good for a few days. There were three sleeping places inside the huts as well; one large bed, where a warrior and his age mates might sleep. A smaller sleeping area for women and children, and one small sleeping area for those who are sick or recovering from circumcision. The beds are cow hide stretched over interlaced branches and are quite comfortable. A firepit sits between the bed alcoves and the ceiling and beams above it are black with soot.
As the Maasai have traditionally been a nomadic people, these homes were meant to be temporary dwellings and are easily erected and degrade naturally back into the landscape after they're abandoned. Modern life has rooted the Maasai in certain locales, as the newer homes and buildings in Merrueshi indicate. The two new schools and the health clinic built by the Maasai Association and some of the new homes we saw are all modern structures, and even the newer huts were likely to have corrugated metal roofs rather than the traditional grass or dung. The use of the traditional hut building techniques may become a curiosity for tourists rather than a living daily routine.
When we first arrived, the children in the compound were curious (or even frightened), gathering around to look at us and our cameras. Once the tea was served, however, they all lined up against Mama Kakuta's house to watch. Samuel said this was a sign of respect for the elders - a very important part of the Maasai culture. When elders are talking, the children know to stay out of the way. Another sign of respect from children to elders is the 'presentation of the head' upon greeting. An uncircumcised child is not supposed to shake the hand of an elder; instead they approach and incline their heads for a touch on the crown.
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