Friday, August 13, 2010
Finally home
After a long trip, I'm finally home. I had to fly through my least favorite airport, Atlanta, but in the end I made it to New Orleans safe and sound. Dad took me to get some seafood, which I've been missing terribly. I intend to post some more pictures of Kenya today so that everyone can see. It is really an amazing country. Now that I'm home I probably won't keep up with the blog too much. It is very much my preference to talk over the phone or in person! However, I will announce, that it has been placed on my heart to continue working in Uganda, and perhaps spread my work into Kenya. I have appreciated everyone's support so much, and I hope that you'll continue to stick with me and help me influence people's lives for the better.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
On my way
So today is my last day. We will be leaving shortly from Nakuru to go back to Nairobi, and I'll catch my plane from there. Hopefully there won't be any delays and they'll let me out of the country without any hassle. Soon I'll be talking with you over the phone! I'll let you know when I'm in Amsterdam. Shitufu! That's It!
Monday, August 9, 2010
Safari
Today was an awesome day. I saw giraffes and lions today. We saw all kinds of things. I hoped that I would be able to post the pictures, but I'm really tired and struggling to get things done. I will try to get it together in the morning. Much love.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
I'm in Kenya!
I thought that I wouldn't be able to post on the blog, but it turns out that I can. The house where I'm staying has WiFi. I was telling Bill that I pretty much forgot what that even was... Anyway, already some exciting things: We drove to Nakuru this morning which is east and slightly north of Nairobi. The car ride was actually great and our driver was safe. The city of Nairobi is quite nice, but I think that I didn't get to see the really rough parts. Nairobi is home to the largest slum in the world.
The trip itself was nice. We went through a landscape that was similar to a high altitude landscape in the US. Evergreen trees in particular. There are a couple of things that are different. Here they have carts drawn by donkeys. I've haven't been able to get a picture of one yet, but I'm hopeful.
Nakuru is located in the floor of the Rift Valley, and for a while we were driving along the escarpment and could look down into the valley and see volcanoes, craters, geysers, lakes, and the valley floor itself. I've already seen baboons, zebras, and gazelles. I've got some really good shots of the zebras and baboons. I could see flamingos from a distance in the lakes, so hopefully that is another thing that I will get to see up close. I've already bought some earrings made of flamingo feathers.
I've enjoyed talking to Bill a great deal and seeing him again. It's been about three years, and so much has happened in that time. As always, he is continuously encouraging of what I'm doing and has good insight into the difficulties I face and the challenge of the decisions that I'm trying to make.
All in all I'm so excited to be here. People are excited that the recent vote on the constitution has gone well and maybe that is why people seem so cheerful. I think it will benefit the average people a great deal. There has been a dispute over land that was acquired unfairly in the past, and I think it will resolve some of those issues. Along the way, we stopped at a mission clinic to drop off some medications, everything seemed fairly clean and well managed. There are so many similarities between Kenya and Uganda, but in a lot of ways Kenya seems to be a bit better off. It may be that I just haven't spent enough time here.
The landscape looks just like it does in the documentaries. I think tomorrow we will go to church and then go on a safari. I'm crossing my fingers for a giraffe and a lion. I keep hearing the Lion King theme song playing in my head while I pray. I think it adds flair.
P.S. I just heard someone say "hakuna matata".
The trip itself was nice. We went through a landscape that was similar to a high altitude landscape in the US. Evergreen trees in particular. There are a couple of things that are different. Here they have carts drawn by donkeys. I've haven't been able to get a picture of one yet, but I'm hopeful.
Nakuru is located in the floor of the Rift Valley, and for a while we were driving along the escarpment and could look down into the valley and see volcanoes, craters, geysers, lakes, and the valley floor itself. I've already seen baboons, zebras, and gazelles. I've got some really good shots of the zebras and baboons. I could see flamingos from a distance in the lakes, so hopefully that is another thing that I will get to see up close. I've already bought some earrings made of flamingo feathers.
I've enjoyed talking to Bill a great deal and seeing him again. It's been about three years, and so much has happened in that time. As always, he is continuously encouraging of what I'm doing and has good insight into the difficulties I face and the challenge of the decisions that I'm trying to make.
All in all I'm so excited to be here. People are excited that the recent vote on the constitution has gone well and maybe that is why people seem so cheerful. I think it will benefit the average people a great deal. There has been a dispute over land that was acquired unfairly in the past, and I think it will resolve some of those issues. Along the way, we stopped at a mission clinic to drop off some medications, everything seemed fairly clean and well managed. There are so many similarities between Kenya and Uganda, but in a lot of ways Kenya seems to be a bit better off. It may be that I just haven't spent enough time here.
The landscape looks just like it does in the documentaries. I think tomorrow we will go to church and then go on a safari. I'm crossing my fingers for a giraffe and a lion. I keep hearing the Lion King theme song playing in my head while I pray. I think it adds flair.
P.S. I just heard someone say "hakuna matata".
Thursday, August 5, 2010
On the way to Kenya
Will be leaving soon and the last post for a while. Wish me luck. I'm supposed to be meeting bill at the airport. I'll be leaving on the 11th and back at the New Orleans airport on the 12th. Cheers!
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Be on the look out
We'll be making one last post of pictures from last week and this week. We have actually done some pretty cool things in the past couple days. The weekend we have spent trying to catch up on writing, and making last minute visits with our friends. Yesterday we went to Owino market. We tried to take a video of the chaos. Pretty much everything that you could think to buy is in that place. Maybe like Walmart, but cramped and outside. Our friends Moses and Sonja took us there to meet Moses' mother who sells fruits and veggies. I bought some delicious spices to make tea with. As many of you know I'm a bit of a tea fanatic, and I'm continuously on the look out for different types of tea or something to add to it. Our friends also bought some fresh cinammon. I had never seen it before just plain. It looks like mulch. Something that I didn't expect here the first time that I came was the significant Indian minority in the country and the influence it has on the different things that are available. In this case quality spices. We often saw things that we did not recognize, but the people had difficulty telling us what it actually was. Look for a pictures with something hot pink, orange, and then yellow. We have no idea what kind of spices those are. It was funny that as we walked from place to place, sometimes we would get a whiff of something delicious like Mangos and then a whiff of something rank like warm and raw fish. We also bought some black currants to try. Not a big fan. It was good a first, but at the end was bitter in such a way that it felt like something had sucked dry all of the saliva in my mouth. Win some loose some I guess.
From there they took us to where Moses grew up and Sonja spent an internship. The area is called Mengo pronounced like Mango. It is one of the biggest and worst slums in Kampala. Going there was pretty rough, but it was different from my experience in other slums. I think maybe because it was in an industrial area. I cringed to see the kids walking around without shoes on, not knowing what sort of chemicals are on the ground. We visited the homes of a couple of students who are being supported through their organization. They also showed us where they practice. The kids themselves were very sweet. One was funny because he heard a man calling out to me, and he said “Ah, your too young for him.” I said, “I know, and he’s very old, yuck.” I think he’s in one of the videos from earlier in the summer.
Today I woke up with a rash on my stomach and in a couple of places on my limbs. I feel bad that we have spent a portion of Meagan’s last day at the doctor’s office. I think it might be the detergent that is irritating my skin. They gave me a shot that was the most painful thing that I’ve had in a while. Luckily Meagan was there with me. Afterwards we also went to the craft market. The Foundation is having a fundraiser on October 29th in Baton Rouge. Let me know if you’re interested in going. We have bought a few items from the craft market. I got a cool wooden bowl with wire handles, some baskets, greeting cards, some salad spoons, and earrings. one pair gold, one pair purple. I’m looking for a necklace, but I can’t find one that suits me. The proceeds from these items will go to our project so that we can continue our research next summer!
From there they took us to where Moses grew up and Sonja spent an internship. The area is called Mengo pronounced like Mango. It is one of the biggest and worst slums in Kampala. Going there was pretty rough, but it was different from my experience in other slums. I think maybe because it was in an industrial area. I cringed to see the kids walking around without shoes on, not knowing what sort of chemicals are on the ground. We visited the homes of a couple of students who are being supported through their organization. They also showed us where they practice. The kids themselves were very sweet. One was funny because he heard a man calling out to me, and he said “Ah, your too young for him.” I said, “I know, and he’s very old, yuck.” I think he’s in one of the videos from earlier in the summer.
Today I woke up with a rash on my stomach and in a couple of places on my limbs. I feel bad that we have spent a portion of Meagan’s last day at the doctor’s office. I think it might be the detergent that is irritating my skin. They gave me a shot that was the most painful thing that I’ve had in a while. Luckily Meagan was there with me. Afterwards we also went to the craft market. The Foundation is having a fundraiser on October 29th in Baton Rouge. Let me know if you’re interested in going. We have bought a few items from the craft market. I got a cool wooden bowl with wire handles, some baskets, greeting cards, some salad spoons, and earrings. one pair gold, one pair purple. I’m looking for a necklace, but I can’t find one that suits me. The proceeds from these items will go to our project so that we can continue our research next summer!
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