Kicking back and relaxing

Dear Kenya, 

Sunday night and still exhausted from the week. With two midterms, and a final exam, I am pooped out! The week was not all too exciting. AU staff members came to visit us this week to see how the program was going and to show members of the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill how this program formulates. We had a lovely meal with the AU Abroad director, Director of AU Career Center, our Public Health advisor, and some members of UNC. I got the chance to sit down with my advisor and get to know her. She is new to AU and her position. She was delightful and especially fun and interesting to talk to. She was very mother-like in her way of speaking, her responses and in her mannerism. I enjoyed talking to her and the other students around me. Once the week was over we were trying to decide what to do on this three-day weekend. Monday is a public holiday so school and classes are cancelled. 

So on Saturday, a small group of students went to Paradise Lost in Kiambu. We paid 750 shillings for transportation round trip. As we started our trip it began to drizzle. The night before it had down poured. I went out with two friends of mine to a bar for a beer or two and on our way back home the roads were flooded. I fell asleep in the cab ride home, but from what my two friends told me, there were moments that we were floating on the road. The water so deep we had to take different routes and drive extra slowly. We got home safely, no worries! Since this rain continued for the rest of the night, the roads to Paradise Lost were extremely muddy. We got to the park and paid our entrance fee and the drizzling continued. The view of the lake and what we think was a suburban community was peaceful. We then paid 100 shillings to see an "Old Stone Age" Cave. The small hike to get there was fun. The ground was very slippery and muddy but with patience and all of us helping each other, we got to the waterfall and the cave. The waterfall was beautiful! The vegetation, the rocks and strong water all tied in beautifully. After taking several pictures we entered the cave. It was dark and small. We had to bend over and balance ourselves. We got to the end and realized there were bats in the cave...sooo we quickly got out of there. No bites, no interaction with the bats no nothing so I do not want any Ebola comments, please and thank you! We finished our hike and had some snacks. After snacks, three of us went horseback riding while the other three went for a boat ride. We heard that there were camel rides and ostriches and of course the day we go, both camels and ostriches are at another national park. Typical! So we settled for horseback riding. It was fun! We didn't ride for too long but we all enjoyed ourselves. We then sat by the lake and watched some birds and our other three friends who were boat riding struggle to get back to shore. Once we decided to start heading back we all attempted to get the mud off of our shoes (which was nearly impossible) and head to grocery shop. We decided to have a communal dinner together with an ice cream sundae for dessert! The night was wonderful. We made sandwiches, had ice cream, laughed, talked, and hung out. 

Today, sunday, a couple of us went to an Indian Festival. There was music, food, dancing, rides, games, and shopping. With my limited experience with Indian food it was difficult to pick a plate to eat. So we all purchased different foods and shared off of each other’s plates. With full stomachs we continued to walk around and eat more food. We watched a performance of traditional Indian dancing, singing, and a group of children’s mine performance. It was a nice adventurous afternoon. It was nice to walk around a bit and get out of the apartment. Plus, with decently priced Indian food, who could refuse! Overall this was a relaxing weekend!

Being in the right place, at the right time - Mt. Longonot

Dear Kenya,

After a long week of tests and assignments we finally reached the weekend again! Saturday we climbed Mt. Longonot. Mt. Longonot is an inactive volcano. On this volcano there are wildlife, vegetation and an incredible view. On our way, we had the chance to stop at the Great Rift Valley to take some pictures and enjoy the view. The view was gorgeous and peaceful. We then hopped back on the bus and headed for Longonot. When we arrived we all mentally and physically prepared ourselves. We paired up with hiking buddies and we were off. The hike to the top took us 2 hours. All up hill, I realized I have never REALLY hiked. Breathing was extremely difficult with the dust in my lungs, the altitude, and the inexperience of how to properly breathe when hiking. On our way up we got to see some gazelles, and a carcass of some animal. We were warned about the buffalos that live on the Mt. Apparently they are very aggressive and they have injured people. So we were on the look out. We eventually got to the top and celebrated. The view. Unexplainable. No words could explain nor describe the view inside the volcano and the view outside of the crater. Inside of the volcano all you can see is greenery and the beautiful vegetation. Outside, we can see all of Lake Navashia, and miles of land. There were no clouds in the sky, therefore, we could see extremely far and clearly. After a lunch break and some picture taking we started to walk around the rim. It was said that the hiking along the rim would take 2 hours. So off we were. At first it was very simply. Then that all changed. Rocks and pebbles made it difficult to walk, the sand would make us fall to the ground or grab onto tree branches, or the ground. We finally got to the highest point of the volcano. We took pictures and with the knowledge we still had a long way to go we prepared to leave.

As we were leaving something happened. A girl who had just arrived to the top fainted. People rushed to her and tried to wake her up. People were shaking her and calling her name. Because I have a lot of experience with people fainting, (more like me fainting) I knew what needed to be done. I realized that the people who rushed to her aid had no idea what they were doing. So I immediately looked into my bag to find my hand wipes. Because the smell of alcohol helps regain consciousness, I knew my hand wipes had a bit of alcohol, I ran to her and made her smell it.. Other people were crowding and trying to give her water. I pushed it away telling them she would choke but they did it anyway. So I turned to my friends and asked them to find hand sanitizer that has no fruity smell. I felt like my hand wipes were not strong enough to make her conscious. I talked to her trying to see if she could hear me. People were talking and getting closer so I loudly said could everyone take a step back please. Unfortunately the people I want to step back wouldn’t. One of the girls I was with gave me her shirt poured water and we used it to cool her down. Again people were asking me to give her things like bananas. This time I told them stricter no. When she is conscious she can have a little but right now we need to regain her consciousness. Fortunately enough there was a nurse at the top. So she ran to us and asked us to make shade for her. Then I realized that the nurse went away and it was just me, the annoying European man trying to help and her friend. People were still talking and I was getting annoyed. I shushed everyone and whispered in this girl’s ear and said “can you here me?” She moved her head yes. People screamed, “She can hear us!” “She can hear us!”. I got closer to her and asked her if she could smell the alcohol. She said yes. Again people repeated what she said. So I shushed them and told her to try hard to come back. “You are going to be ok, but I need you to open your eyes. You cannot fall asleep.” She moved her head and she opened her eyes. The annoying man who kept repeating what I was saying and screaming the obvious screamed “SHE OPENED HER EYES!” I looked at him and as he tried to take the hand sanitizer from me I shrugged him off and started to dab her with the cool shirt. The nurse came back and said she had glucose she could put in water. So she mixed it and gave it to the man….Big mistake. He tried to give it to her as she was lying down. This time I didn’t say anything and pushed him away from her. The nurse and I said the same thing at the same time. She needed to sit up to drink it; she will choke if she drinks it in this position. The movement will help her fully regain consciousness. Once she was up and looking around the man gave her the water. At this point the nurse got more water and talked to the girl. I asked her if she still felt weak. She didn’t answer me but answered her friend in Swahili. So I asked her friend to ask the girl if she felt completely conscious or still a little faint and weak. The friend told me that the girl felt better and no longer weak. Feeling better to leave her now I talked to the nurse and told her that if the girl felt faint again, make her smell this and she will regain conscious. I told her that it may take a while since its not straight up alcohol but it will work. She said “ok I didn’t know that, and said thank you”. Knowing that we were on a time limit I turned around and apologized for delaying the hike and we were off.

This incident made me realize that not everyone can be calm in a serious situation like that one. Although at the time I thought to myself, this was nothing and no big deal. But after thinking about it on the drive home, before I went to sleep, and writing this blog, I realize that if the girl could not regain her consciousness she could have died from dehydration. Having the experience and knowledge on what to do when fainting is something I never really though would be helpful. I have seen many incidents similar to that, and always there is someone that is there that knows what they were doing. Today, I was that person. I was surprised that no one knew what to do and could not be calm enough to truly help her. Even the nurse did not contribute that much. She left to get glucose water and came back when the girl regained consciousness. It even surprised me more when the nurse didn’t know that the smell of alcohol would help her stay conscious. Before starting the hike from the rim, I was contemplating going. I was tired. But I went anyway. We got to the top at the right time. It’s all about being in the right place at the right time I guess. I am grateful that the girl is ok and that it was nothing more serious than that.

The rest of the hike was tiring. The hike down from the top was the worst part. It was scary and dangerous. My ankles were killing me, my thighs burning and I was covered in dust and dirt. There was one moment that I knew that I was going to fall head first and really hurt myself. On a steep side I slipped down some rocks and tried to grab something to hold to. There was nothing. But I soon realized I had stopped sliding because something saved me. There were big bags of dirt scattered on this trip. Their purpose was to be like steps. A place we can use to balance ourselves. This bag was ripped but on both sides of the bag they were still connected to the whole bag. My foot slipped and fell into this ‘harness’ and held me back from falling further. I looked down at my foot and saw how this harness saved me. I looked up and thought could this be karma? Could this be someone looking out for me. Did this have to with the girl I helped literally 2 mins before? I stopped and thought to myself. Could this be something more than a coincidence? I looked at the sky, thanked whatever it was and continued down the mountain.

After we got past the hard part the rest of the hike was easier. We were kind of on leveled ground and hurried as much as possible. At this point the sun was beating on us, we were running out of water and our bodies were just about to give up. We kept pushing and finally got back to where we started. But then we had to go back down. So after a little water break and ate a snack to keep some sugar in us we headed down. We managed to get to the bottom in 30 mins. We ran most of it because we knew we were the last ones to complete the hike. We arrived to the bottom and mounted the bus and we were off to drop of the group who was camping around Lake Navaisha. Tired and hungry the rest of the group not camping returned to Nairobi.

The hike was incredible. The view on the highest point was something I have never seen before. Complete beauty. Complete peace. Greenery everywhere. I felt so small on the top. The world is a beautiful place. Today we got to experience something many people do not get to see. I am grateful for the trip we took this day. It was the right day at the right time.

 Love, 

Angie

Nyumbani Village

Dear Kenya,

You are incredibly adventurous and exciting. You allow me to explore you but give me no time to write it all down to tell my friends and family at home how much of a wonderful time I am having. So I will begin with last weekend.

Last weekend our program took us for our first overnight excursion at a rural village called Nyumbani Village. We were told that this community was self-sustaining. When we arrived, two volunteers and the volunteer coordinator greeted us. After introductions and lunch, they took us on a tour explaining how the community worked. We saw the barn where they sell chickens for their own profit, give eggs and chickens to the people who live in the community and they get to decide what to do with them. We then saw the greenhouse where they grow their fruits and crops, but also develop their own fertilizers by the herbs around them. We were shown how the community uses solar energy. Because this community is keen on sustainability they use the sun to power their electricity. We got the chance to see their clinic, schools, and little shops. Throughout this tour we some of the children followed us and joined out tour. While walking we talked to them, and played with them. When our tour concluded, we all took a little break and headed to the field where the children played. Children were so excited to play with you. Many played Frisbee, Soccer, others wanted to play with my camera. So I let them take pictures of themselves and of me (some of the pictures posted on Facebook were taken by several children). The children there were so happy and playful. Towards the end one little girl befriended me. She ended up getting us back to where we needed to be for dinner. We danced the makarena, sang Waka waka (her favorite song), had a tickle war.

At dinner we all sat down exhausted from our day and talked about what we experienced. We all had the most fun we have had in a long time. Personally, staring out into the darkness and up at the sky full of stars, I felt a peace I have not experienced before. Something about playing with these children, with the knowledge that they were orphans and that 70% of them are fighting AIDS/HIV made me feel something I could not explain. I realized that I knew before entering the community the story behind these children. But when we all played together, it didn’t matter, I didn’t think about it. I saw not orphaned children struggling with a terrible disease. I saw children being children, playing, getting dirty, making friends, smiling and laughing. After the day I thought about how these children are not suffering. They are not in pain or sad. They are extremely happy. They are full of life. Yes they struggle through a disease that may shorten their life. But maybe, subconsciously or consciously, they don’t let that hold them back from living life. These children inspired me to change my perspective yet again. They taught me to be more than appreciative of my life, but to understand that life is a gift that should NEVER be wasted. I know that these children, who I do not personally know, touched and will always be in my heart.

Love, 

Angie

First Day Teaching at BROSIS and Upcoming Weekend Adventure

Dear Kenya,

Today was my first day teaching at BROSIS. We started our day going over our plan and soon enough we were on our way to the school. Today we took a different route we took last time. Because there were traffic because there was a fair going on, we took the "back roads". Allie and I had no idea where we were until we say a church sign that said "Kibera's Church". That's when we realised, we are drive on the outskirts of the largest slums in East Africa. We saw an enormous amount of shops selling either fruits, cooked food, shoes, movies, clothing, etc. The roads were extremely narrow and many people were walking in the street because there was limited room with the shops there. The traffic was not terrible but one needed to be patient to get through. Left and right I was looking and observing what was around me. There were a significant amount of children to make me question, "Why aren't you in school?" "What are you doing?" Roosters, dogs, cats, everywhere. We finally got out of the crowded area and headed towards a road that seemed to be entering a forest. Before we left the area I saw what was behind the shops. A mountain of trash covering a hill. Then I saw movement in three different areas. That's when I realised the movement was children playing on the hill of garbage. I looked behind me and saw the distance view of Kibera. A collection of tin informal settlements and garbage surrounding it. I looked forward absorbing what I had just observed and thought to myself how much I want to return and see the residential portion of Kibera and meet some of the people who live there.

Soon enough we arrive at BROSIS. We entered the lot and the children saw us and cheered. There were screaming, laughing, and excitement! I heard the children greeting us, and chanting "Life Skills!" "Life Skills!". I got even more excited to be there. We sat with the director and the teachers as they finished their lunch. We discussed with them a project we would begin, if they were interested. HESED is looking to write a proposal to the French Embassy to assist with clean water for the children and for the community. After that matter was discussed we were given sodas as we waited to finish their lunch. Once we were told that the children were ready we got up with excitement to start walking to them but was stopped by the director and was told not to rush and finish our sodas. He kept insisting we finish out sodas. So Allie and I chugged it and went on out way (Boy, chugging soda...not an easy task). So we walked through the school past other rooms which were used as classrooms and finally got to our class. There, 21 eager students waited for us. We entered the room and many of them gasped. Allie and I said hello and introduced ourselves. They responded with a hello. We then put name tags on them and asked each of them their favourite subject in school and what they would like to learn from this class. Many of them said Sports games and health. One student said he was interested in sanitation and hygiene which I found was very interesting. We will definitely cover that topic. After introductions were over we took them outside to play two games. We first played rock, paper, and scissors. Only one student knew how to play this game. Everyone else had never heard of it. So Allie and I explained and I demonstrated with this one student. Soon enough they got the hang of it. So after two people played the game the loser would cheer the winner on and find a new person to play with. Soon we had two separate groups. This showed how we should cheer on our peers and friends for success and accomplishments. The second game is a game that I mentioned before in this blog, its called "pepeta". Its the game that one of our orientation leaders showed us. This one was very fun and enjoyable. Most of the kids really enjoyed it. After that we distributed the notebooks and quizzed them on our names and we left! It was an overall successful day!

Now this weekend, I will not have any wifi and probably no cell service. Why? Well, the program is taking us to a rural village which is 4 hours away from Nairobi. This is a self sustaining community. With the information we have so far, this is a community that has a different way of life than we live. One thing that makes this community unique is the elders and the cildrem Because HIV/AIDS is an issue, there are a numerous amount of children who are now orphaned due to the fact their parents have passed away due to that disease. So, this community matched these orphaned children with elderly as their guardians. They take care of each other. We are going to volunteer for the weekend. I am excited to see how this trip goes and help in any way possible. I will take lots of pictures and will 100 percent have something to say when I return.

That is it for now. I apologise for the long post. Once again, thank you Kenya for providing me with an experience of a lifetime.

Love,

Angie

Internship, Clubs, and Malls!

Dear Kenya, 

It has been a while since I have blogged. Due to the inconsistent wifi the apartment provides, and the limited wifi we find outside the apartment has not allowed me to write and update everyone on what is going on! So I will do my best to write what I remember. 

So nothing too exciting happens during the week other than classes which are still going well. The weekend was a bit eventful. Friday Allie and I visited the Brosis School, where we will be teaching 50 children from ages 7-14 about “life skills” and health. We have the flexibility to create our own lesson plans and teach about our own topics. So, Friday we visited arrived at this fork on a dirt road, behind several shops that face the main road. We then walked into a lot where I saw someone doing laundry, children chasing each other. We then walked into this tin shack where we met with two teachers. One of the teachers talked to us about our teaching schedule and asked us what we were going to teach. The experience at Brosis was very interesting. We did not get to meet the children but got to say hello from afar. They seemed to be very young, I want to assume they were 5 or 6 years old. When we began to leave we heard them say “How are you” “How are you”. This made me excited to return to get to know them individually.

We then visited the room where the Young Mothers tailor, bead, and make soap. It was the room behind another room on a block with stores that are connected to each other. We then walked through the community to go to the main road. We got to see what the residential living spaces looked like in this community. We then returned back to the office and began developing our lesson plan. Seeing the community, the school, and the people living in the community allowed me to reflect on my life and what I have. I am aware as I spend more time in this environment I will understand more about their life and how different yet similar they are to mine. I am looking forward to see more and learn more about the children and this school and about myself.

Friday night, the majority of the program went out to a pub called Molly’s. We took arrived and realized that the majority of the people were locals. Something we had not yet experienced since we had gone to Gypsies before. After a beer and realizing that the music had changed from Swahili music to Call me Maybe once the rest of us arrived at the pub, we began to leave. Some of us went home and the others went to Gypsies. I joined the group going to Gypsies. This club/bar experience was a lot more positive than the last experience. Last time there were a lot of older, creepy men watching us as we had a good time. This time around, the crowd that surrounded us were very close to our age. I managed to make a couple acquaintances throughout the night. I first met these two girls, one from Virginia who studied at Columbia, and the other from the UK. Both recently arrived in Nairobi and were beginning to work. The woman from the US was leaving to go to Somalia to begin her two year contract with a company that works with refugees (I cannot remember the name). The other one was stationed here in Nairobi. The one from the US gave me her card and told me to email her if I was interested in working or interning with a company that deals with sexual violence at an international scale. The second group that I met were white Kenyans. Born and raised in Nairobi. They were very friendly and funny.

Saturday, most of us went to Village Market. This was approximately 20-30 mins away from our apartment. It was very big and very fancy-like. After walking around and having lunch we walked to the US Embassy which was only two blocks away. We could not take any pictures. We were told by the guards that if we did we would be arrested. So we called the taxis and waited by the Embassy. Some of us sat down on the grass and just relaxed. One of the guards came up to us and asked us if we were US citizens. We replied yes. He asked us what we were doing here. We told him we were studying. He said he was told that on the security camera they saw people in distress. He asked us if we were in an distress and if we were ok. Surprised by how polite he was, we said no we were fine, we were just waiting for our taxi. He said “oh, ok, Welcome to Kenya”. We were all shocked about how polite they were. If we were in the US we would have been treated completely different that that. Interesting huh?

The rest of the weekend there is nothing to report other than the struggles of finding wifi. This coming weekend we will be going on our overnight excursion. We will receive more information later in the week. Hoping I can squeeze one more post before I go away this weekend.

That’s all for now folks!

Love,

Angie