Weeks in Review

Since our weekend at Rendille, I have been really bad about updating my blog. There aren't enough hours in the day...or enough hours with internet access. So, I am going to buzz through some highlights of the past few weeks and things that have been on my mind. Forgive me for my negligence.

Riding in style on the Daystar bus! 

Going to Town. On our first free weekend as a group, we were challenged by Jeff to hang out with Kenyans (or other African students that we have met) and to do something fun! Sounded like a good plan to me. A small group of us decided to go to Nairobi with our good friends Noni and Ruth. Noni is Kenyan but lives in Tanzania because her parents are missionaries there. Ruth is Malawian. For our trek to town, we all boarded the campus bus and that took us to Nairobi. While there, we shopped at a store called Zanzibar which was good because their gifts were well priced and it gave us a reference point for when we headed over to the Masai Market (where you have to barter). Then we got pizza at the Pizza Inn. It was the first 'American' meal we had all eaten since being here and we definitely splurged. I ate a pizza that was half BBQ sauce, bacon, and pineapple, and the other half was Tikka chicken, green pepper, and onion with some Indian spiced sauce. It was out of this world! Then we walked around and visited a salon where Noni and Ruth got their ears pierced, and we also made a pit stop to Java House (an American coffee shop that is the Kenyan equivalent to Starbucks). Our final stop before heading back home was the Masai Market. The market is very crowded, and it was very hot out but it was so much fun! People are constantly calling you "Sista, sista, I have a deal for you!" and grabbing at your hands trying to show you their crafts, gifts, and handiwork. It is quite the overwhelming and beautiful experience. I got 3 soapstone figures for free because men would ask me where I was from, I would answer Chicago, and then they would give me a free gift because I am from Obama's home. A few of us girls also received a few marriage proposals as well. They would say, "Marry me, I am looking for an American wife" or something of the sorts...Overall, it was a successful day and I am really grateful for our friendships with Noni and Ruth. They are truly gems.

Kenyan time. I believe I have mentioned Kenyan time in a previous post, but if not, here are a few of my thoughts on it. In Kenya, a majority of people are not very punctual or efficient with their time management skills. I can show up for class 10 minutes late and the lecturer and most of the class will not arrive for another 20 minutes give or take (usually give haha). If you are walking around campus and run into a friend, they will stop and hold a lengthy conversation with you whether or not either of you have plans you need to attend to. If we need to be on the road for something by 5:00, that usually means anywhere from 5:30-6:00...if you plan on getting back to campus by 7:00, try 9:00. Time is never a given factor and that is OK. I have come to appreciate not feeling rushed and also the feeling of worth when people stop you to talk and really value relationships over schedules. Of course as an American who loves efficiency and predictability I get frustrated at times, but I can truly say that it is going to be really hard to adjust back to the American way of time keeping.

Java House. This coffee shop has been quite the haven for most of the people in our group. Whenever we go to Nairobi, one underlying  reason is because we know that we will be able to stop at Java House. It is an American coffee shop in Kenya and could be compared to Starbucks except Java has a grill. Their food is AMAZING! It is so nice to be able to go their and get a good meal to sustain our taste buds for awhile and of course you cannot forget the delicious coffee. I have never loved coffee so much as I have here in Kenya. It is such a treat and I can even drink it black now if I have to.

New Life Children's Home. This orphanage is for babies and very young children. I think that the oldest is a little over 2 or 3 years old and I am not even sure of that. The children are precious. We are able to visit this home whenever we can. I have only been their once so far but I am planning on going to it most Tuesdays with Jake since we don't have classes on that day. It was such a cool experience. The facility is quite beautiful and the children are very well taken care of. It seems like they are constantly being held by staff and volunteers. They are not shy children and have an over abundance of love. Many of them have nasty coughs but they are all taken to doctors regularly. It was such a strange experience to be holding children and being so happy and just enjoying loving them and then having an overwhelming feeling of sadness because you know they do not have parents and many of them could be HIV positive. While I was there one child was being adopted. That was cool to see. I overheard someone saying that the adoption process takes 3 hours. I was shocked and am going to find out more information about that on Tuesday. If it literally takes about 3 hours for one of these children to be adopted by a Kenyan resident then could that mean that people could just move to Kenya, establish residence, and take home one of these precious children? It seems unreal to me. Anyways, I was able to hold 2 babies on the day I visited  Anneke (pronounced Anaka) and Joseph. They were so cute! Anneke was quite the sassy little baby and had quite the attitude. Joseph was very chill and loved playing with my glasses and being held above my head. "Super Baby!!" I cannot wait to go back and learn more and love on more children.

Joseph & I :) 

He is the cutest! 

Toy Market. The toy market is the largest thrift shop I have ever been to. You barter for the price you want and it is outside. I got 2 shirts for about 1 USD and RayBan sunglasses for about 2 USD. A new bathing suit for maybe 4 USD and had a blast! All my second hand lovin friends would have been in their element here. I cannot wait to go back to here either. There is also a food market in the same area and one interesting thing that happened was that as we walked by, a little girl (whose father owned one of the booths) ran up and hugged all of our legs. Now originally we would have just though "awe, how cute is this little girl?" but after being in Kenya for sometime now, we could all easily see through her big eyes and smile. Her father had trained her to hug foreigners in order to guilt trip them into buying his food. We have also seen many young boys and girls bartering and begging for food. It breaks my heart that many in that generation are being raised to beg, lie, and con.

Things I miss. On random days, at random times, I miss random things. Here are a few: My family, my friends, Chipotle, worship rehearsal, Outcry, church, my car, Trin-air (yes, Trinity's internet even beats this), washing machines, a hot bath, being able to sit on the toilet and not squat haha, clean sheets, clean feet, babysitting, Spotify, straightening my hair. Most of these things are vain and when I really think about them, I could live without them forever, but like I said, at random times these things just flood my mind.

Lukenya. About a 15 minute walk off campus is a resort/pool/motocross/paintball place called Lukenya. Tyler and Max did a promotional video for them in exchange for our group being able to use their pool all weekend, get one free meal, paintball, and ATV. It was such a fun weekend! A few of us were also able to go to Ruth's birthday party at one of the houses right between Lukenya and Daystar. It was also a blast. We played mafia, ate cake, sang, and shared the things we love about Ruth. I loved being able to share that special time with her and our other new friends from Africa. ATV-ing in the African wilderness was an out of this world experience. Jake drove the ATV and I was the passenger. We drove right past many zebra, giraffes and some cool birds and other wildlife. I could have ridden on that four-wheeler all day.

repping TCC

Lukenya pool 

Peace Dinner. At the same place that we attended Ruth's party, a peace dinner was held. Our whole group attended. Sing Africa, Afrizo (Daystar's singing group that tours the US every year), a speaker, Drama club, and a great meal were all a part of the night. A few of my favorite parts of this night were getting to meet more people from Daystar, seeing the moon rise over the rocks surrounding Athi River, and hearing everyone sing the Kenyan National Anthem. It was very cool to hear about peace especially with the upcoming elections. Praise God the elections were mostly peaceful.

Rock climbing. Campus is surrounded with amazing rocks for climbing and exploring. One Sunday a small group of us walked off campus and found a cool place to climb that wasn't too difficult and has an awesome view of Athi River. The rock looked like it was made of granite. It was very neat and I will never get used to the views I have seen since being here. The Saturday before we left for Zanzibar, we went on a rock climbing trip off campus. We were told it could be a hike anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours. It took us a little over 3 hours. We were not prepared to say the least. Once we hiked to our destination on the rocks, the group went rock climbing. I thought about giving it a go but hiking up the rocks was about enough of a rock climbing experience that I needed for that day. I have noticed while I am here that I do not get nervous until I am in the process of doing something and then my body freaks out and I have a panic attack. No matter what I tell my brain, my body does not cooperate. This has happened twice since being here on planes and I did not want anyone to have to deal with that happening to me while I was dangling off a rock so I watched and took pictures. It was awesome! The view was incredible and the hike was definitely worth it.

we made it! finally! 

On the path to the rocks...it gets a bit steeper and filled with wildlife the farther you go...trust me! 

Showering with a monkey. One morning I woke up and went to take my daily cold shower and as I was bent over rinsing my hair in the faucet, a monkey decided to climb halfway through the slotted window. When I stood up, I made quite the gasping noise when I realized I had a visitor. After the initial shock, it really wasn't that big of a deal to me. It is a funny feeling when seeing a monkey in your shower seems somewhat normal to you. I quickly yelled "get out of here you creep!" and it went away. That was that.

no picture for this...sorry! haha :)

Doctor's Plaza. Food poisoning stinks. Food poisoning when you are in a foreign place really stinks. All you want is your own bed, a clean toilet, and your mom. After our night class one week, we went off campus for a chicken and chip dinner. It was delicious. A very tasty...but sick chicken. What we speculate happened was that the restaurant bought a very cheap chicken and it was sick. Then they cut it into four pieces, cooked it up, and served it to us. Four of us got seriously ill. I was the only one who made the trek to Doctor's Plaza, but the other three ended up at the school clinic with some antibiotics as well. Paige took very great care of me and Jeff and his wife Asaaska met us at the hospital, took care of me and let me crash at their place for the night. They were awesome surrogate parents and I am so grateful for their help and making me feel so much better. The drugs helped a lot too haha. :) After it was all said and done, it wasn't fun at all, but a good experience and I am thankful for the good care I was provided with and that we are all healthy again.

Oscar and her baby. Oscar is a cat that lives in one of the Patience Hostels. We thought she was a boy until we discovered her pregnancy one day. She is the cat that I also saw catch and devour an entire parrot one day. This explained her hunger. We think that about two days before we left for Zanzibar, Oscar gave birth because the night before we left she came walking up to us with her little fluff ball in her mouth and she introduced us to the newest Patience resident. Her kitten is the cutest thing ever! I can't wait until it is old enough for us to hold without Oscar flipping out and meowing like a crazy cat lady!