Sorry. I know it has been forever since I have written. The internet is a mess here, so it is hard keep up. I am heading to the coast tomorrow! I will have so much to post by then. I have entries on my laptop, but can not post them yet!
I have been to a beautiful waterfall and a rainforest just in the past week. I have great pictures.
It is sad leaving the farm and all of the people I have spent the last six weeks with. I think it will seem strange to be home. Don't get me wrong, I am so ready.
Check for new posts in the next week. I promise I'll give you the update. There may be a few new photos on my link. Take care...
Friday, November 30, 2007
Monday, November 12, 2007
On top of a mountain...
So we went camping on Mount Sangalo last night. It was an adventure. I am so glad we did it. We had to take boda bodas to the mountain. It took close to an hour. There were huge hills that we had to get off the bikes and walk up. These men that drive the bikes have some crazy indurance. We both had on huge hiking backpacks so we were at least 20 to 40 pounds heavier.
Once we got to the mountain we had to climb a really steep incline. It was a mixture of trails and rocks. We had to do some climbing. A couple times there wasn’t a trail so we were literally creating our own by pushing through trees and bushes. One of our backpacks was huge so we took turns carrying it. I felt like He-Man, or She-Ra, going up there. You could really feel the burn in the thighs. If you did that regularly, you would be in the best shape. We were sweating through our clothes.
There was one little girl that followed us up the whole way. She laughed at us a couple of times when we were clearly taking the dumbest route possible. After a while we would ask her which way, and she would point. She ended up hanging out with us fo r about six hours. We were warned that the locals would follow us. Belafy, the little girl, was the only one until we got to the top. Once we were up there we did some exploring. We stumbled across people praying and chanting at the top. Crazy. Of course we had to get closer to spy a little. I guess people go up there to fast and pray for days at a time. It is normal, so they just ignore you and you go on your way. We heard drums all night. Kinda creepy.
So! Once we found our place to camp we had Belafy and two little boys hanging out with us. More like staring. Then as we started setting up our tent we had a family with a camera- staring. Then we had about four adult males- staring. I have noticed that our idea of privacy and personal space is much, much different than the Kenyans’. We were nice for a few minutes. We said ‘Hi’ snapped some pictures with the little ones, and then we wanted them to leave. It started to rain so we decided this would be a good time to hide out and wait for them to leave. We got in our tent and waited. And waited. We stayed in there for over an hour, and the crowd was still outside watching our tent for any movement. If we peered out we would see the the kids looking in. So crazy. Finally, Candice got fed up and told the man with the kids that we needed privacy to pray. He claimed he was just resting. She asked him how he would like it if we came to his house and stared at him for hours. Then he left. He was kind of mad, but he got the hint. The kids followed except for Belafy.
We kept seeing a little head peeking up here and there. After a while she came over with a squash and asked if we had a knife. We did our best cutting the squash with our little pocket knife just to realize that it was not ripe. It actually tasted like poison. Belafy did not speak a lick of English, by the way. We were trying to ask if she had a family because it was getting late. Her clothes were in tatters, so it made us wonder. After we found that the squash was not ripe enough to eat we decided to offer her our last little bit of prize Ramen Noodles (We cooked them on the fire, mind you. Pretty cool.). She took one bite and said she didn’t want it. Alright, so the little girl was not starving. It was getting really dark and late and the fire was burning out. After about a half an hour of going back and forth about feeling guilty for leaving her out in the cold, we gave her a blanket and went into the tent. We said our good nights. About 10 minutes later we realized that she was gone. The only thing out there was the burned out fire and the blanket. The little rascal just wanted to hang out with the Mzungus.
There were monkeys on top of the highest rocks. You could barely see them, but you could really hear them. They may have been mad that we were there, because it sounded like they were cussing us out. The sleep was nonexistent. The wind was blowing the tent causing a constant commotion, and we were sleeping on a rocky incline. We were alert all night just trying to be cautious. We woke up early and decided to go eat some good food in town. It looked like it would rain anyway, and we were sick of being in the tent. We did it. We were troopers. I would go again for sure. With an air mattress.
Once we got to the mountain we had to climb a really steep incline. It was a mixture of trails and rocks. We had to do some climbing. A couple times there wasn’t a trail so we were literally creating our own by pushing through trees and bushes. One of our backpacks was huge so we took turns carrying it. I felt like He-Man, or She-Ra, going up there. You could really feel the burn in the thighs. If you did that regularly, you would be in the best shape. We were sweating through our clothes.
There was one little girl that followed us up the whole way. She laughed at us a couple of times when we were clearly taking the dumbest route possible. After a while we would ask her which way, and she would point. She ended up hanging out with us fo r about six hours. We were warned that the locals would follow us. Belafy, the little girl, was the only one until we got to the top. Once we were up there we did some exploring. We stumbled across people praying and chanting at the top. Crazy. Of course we had to get closer to spy a little. I guess people go up there to fast and pray for days at a time. It is normal, so they just ignore you and you go on your way. We heard drums all night. Kinda creepy.
So! Once we found our place to camp we had Belafy and two little boys hanging out with us. More like staring. Then as we started setting up our tent we had a family with a camera- staring. Then we had about four adult males- staring. I have noticed that our idea of privacy and personal space is much, much different than the Kenyans’. We were nice for a few minutes. We said ‘Hi’ snapped some pictures with the little ones, and then we wanted them to leave. It started to rain so we decided this would be a good time to hide out and wait for them to leave. We got in our tent and waited. And waited. We stayed in there for over an hour, and the crowd was still outside watching our tent for any movement. If we peered out we would see the the kids looking in. So crazy. Finally, Candice got fed up and told the man with the kids that we needed privacy to pray. He claimed he was just resting. She asked him how he would like it if we came to his house and stared at him for hours. Then he left. He was kind of mad, but he got the hint. The kids followed except for Belafy.
We kept seeing a little head peeking up here and there. After a while she came over with a squash and asked if we had a knife. We did our best cutting the squash with our little pocket knife just to realize that it was not ripe. It actually tasted like poison. Belafy did not speak a lick of English, by the way. We were trying to ask if she had a family because it was getting late. Her clothes were in tatters, so it made us wonder. After we found that the squash was not ripe enough to eat we decided to offer her our last little bit of prize Ramen Noodles (We cooked them on the fire, mind you. Pretty cool.). She took one bite and said she didn’t want it. Alright, so the little girl was not starving. It was getting really dark and late and the fire was burning out. After about a half an hour of going back and forth about feeling guilty for leaving her out in the cold, we gave her a blanket and went into the tent. We said our good nights. About 10 minutes later we realized that she was gone. The only thing out there was the burned out fire and the blanket. The little rascal just wanted to hang out with the Mzungus.
There were monkeys on top of the highest rocks. You could barely see them, but you could really hear them. They may have been mad that we were there, because it sounded like they were cussing us out. The sleep was nonexistent. The wind was blowing the tent causing a constant commotion, and we were sleeping on a rocky incline. We were alert all night just trying to be cautious. We woke up early and decided to go eat some good food in town. It looked like it would rain anyway, and we were sick of being in the tent. We did it. We were troopers. I would go again for sure. With an air mattress.
Friday, November 9, 2007
Brief update...
Hi. I'm in town and thought I would blog a brief blog. I am going to hang out with my Kenyan friend, Gladys right now. I'm not sure what we will do.
Tomorrow Candice and I are going camping on Mount Sangalo. It should be fun. I can't wait to take pictures. I saw some from another volunteer on the farm and they were amazing. We have to buy some kind of food for the trip. Probably peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. A staple for Americans in Kenya.
I teach one more day on Monday, and then there are exams the following week. I may have to monitor the exams. We'll see. I don't exactly talk to my supervising teacher. I think I get on his nerves because he can't understand me. I wish I had more time with the boys. They are getting used to me. One of my classes is hilarious and can't ask enough questions about the U.S. The other is still shy, so they haven't mastered the skill of understanding my accent. I am going to show them pictures of home when I see them again. They'll love it.
I miss everyone and everything. I'm looking forward to coming home. I'm almost at the half-way mark! Remember- hot baths for me! and watch some good movies on a really soft surface!
Tomorrow Candice and I are going camping on Mount Sangalo. It should be fun. I can't wait to take pictures. I saw some from another volunteer on the farm and they were amazing. We have to buy some kind of food for the trip. Probably peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. A staple for Americans in Kenya.
I teach one more day on Monday, and then there are exams the following week. I may have to monitor the exams. We'll see. I don't exactly talk to my supervising teacher. I think I get on his nerves because he can't understand me. I wish I had more time with the boys. They are getting used to me. One of my classes is hilarious and can't ask enough questions about the U.S. The other is still shy, so they haven't mastered the skill of understanding my accent. I am going to show them pictures of home when I see them again. They'll love it.
I miss everyone and everything. I'm looking forward to coming home. I'm almost at the half-way mark! Remember- hot baths for me! and watch some good movies on a really soft surface!
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Boda Boda!
Today started out with an adventure. I rode in to school alone on the Matatu because I had to be there earlier than everyone else and earlier than the van takes us. I ended up sitting next to one of the teachers from the school. When we reached town she was like "We are going to be late! Get on the bicycle." There are these bikes everywhere that have seats on the back and they drive people around for a very small price. I told the teacher that I didn't have any money. She said she would pay for it, so I had no choice. It was not bad. I can't believe they can carry that much weight. There is a way about the traffic here that the Kenyans understand, but I don't. I got to school so quickly. I'll be riding the Boda Boda from now on.
Monday, November 5, 2007
http://s173.photobucket.com/albums/w60/kcorts/
Here is a link to look at pics since I can not seem to upload them straight to blogger. It takes around an hour to upload 5 photos, so they are slowly coming.
Here is a link to look at pics since I can not seem to upload them straight to blogger. It takes around an hour to upload 5 photos, so they are slowly coming.
Two weeks and counting...
I have been here for almost two weeks now and it seems like an eternity. Seriously, it feels like I have been gone for a month. I think because I have just seen so much in such a short amount of time. Everything you do here is a project. Showering- project. Eating- project. Bank- project. Drinking water- project. Going to town is a major deal. You have to catch a Matatu on the side of the road and then ride about 10 to 15 minutes into town. Matatues are supposed to carry about 12 people, but I’ve been in one with 23 people inside and four hanging off the back. Crazy. So when you are heading anywhere in a Matatu, you end up stopping a million times and letting people off and squeezing people in. I have to go to town every day to teach.
I have been teaching Ceramic s at an all boys boarding school. It is totally different than any classroom I have ever been in. The boys are SO good. Too good. They don’t talk. Ever. I have to tell them that they can talk to eachother while they are working. The other day I asked them to please talk. When I speak to them they act like they are terrified. They are Freshman, or Form 1 here, so they could just be shy anyway. However, I know that it is just the way they are taught to behave. They show the teachers so much respect. They also are not allowed to talk to each other without permission from the teacher. I know this because I asked them during a really quiet work day when they refused to talk. It is hard to understand eachother’s accents. The project is going well. The kids dug up their own clay from anthills, and it is the most amazing terra cotta clay. Pretty cool. So the resources here are pretty much nonexistent. I tried to find some visual aids at book stores and had no luck. All they sold were textbooks. So I had to print some images from the web. It worked. They have no tools for ceramics in the classroom, so I went to the supermarket and got a bunch of random things they could use. They were so excited. I could see it on their faces, because they sure didn’t say it. They classroom itself is interesting, too. The school is set up so that all of the classrooms are in separate buildings around the campus. It’s neat. My classroom has a tin roof that radiates heat, concrete floors, and windows that swing open and shut. The other day a bird landed on the tin roof and started making crazy noises. I was startled and asked the boys what it was. Of course they said little, but they acted totally unphased. It is definitely a learning experience as far as being a teacher goes. You definitely have to be creative when it comes to gathering resources for your lessons. It is amazing, too how kids can be so appreciative of such small things. Education is everything here, and it shows in the behavior of the students.
There are farm animals everywhere. You never know when you might see a cow. In town or in the country- you never know. Chickens and goats also hang out in random places. The Lubangas have dogs and a cat. They ar all very sweet. It is nice to have some pets around because I miss mine so much.
We went to Kisumu on Thursday and went to the market. I got some cool crafts and gifts for people. I also got some cool jewelry and handbags for myself. Fun. There were some nice paintings that I will have to go back for because I ran out of money. Candice got a couple and they are really cool. We ate at a Chinese/Thai restaurant. Um, Thai food in Africa- not a good idea. But the restaurant was nice, so it was good. Kisumu borders Lake Victoria. You can go out on a boat and see hippos. I’ll have to go back for that too. It took like three hours on a crowded Matatu, so I’ll have to be good and ready to return.
Last night we all went out to a bar and danced. It was really fun. They played a mix of Kenyan music and American hip-hop. The Kenyans got an eye full watching the crazy Mzungues dance. I don’t know if I mentioned the Mzungu thing. That supposedly means ‘white person’, but I think the real interpretation is ‘European’. So when we walk down the street people point and shout ‘Mzungu!’ We are a total spectacle everywhere we go. It is like you are a celebrity. It gets annoying. I just want to walk down the street without being gaulked at. Some people stare like they have never seen anything like it, and some people look at you like they hate you. Everyone is so accomodating though. I think the Kenyans are proud to have us around so they treat us well.
I miss home, but I am liking it here. I feel more comfortable with the living situation and being in town (town is intense). It’s insane how an experience like this makes you appreciate the things you have at home. Not big things or material things, but basic things. Like plumbing, trash cans, landfills, clean water, ice…
I have been teaching Ceramic s at an all boys boarding school. It is totally different than any classroom I have ever been in. The boys are SO good. Too good. They don’t talk. Ever. I have to tell them that they can talk to eachother while they are working. The other day I asked them to please talk. When I speak to them they act like they are terrified. They are Freshman, or Form 1 here, so they could just be shy anyway. However, I know that it is just the way they are taught to behave. They show the teachers so much respect. They also are not allowed to talk to each other without permission from the teacher. I know this because I asked them during a really quiet work day when they refused to talk. It is hard to understand eachother’s accents. The project is going well. The kids dug up their own clay from anthills, and it is the most amazing terra cotta clay. Pretty cool. So the resources here are pretty much nonexistent. I tried to find some visual aids at book stores and had no luck. All they sold were textbooks. So I had to print some images from the web. It worked. They have no tools for ceramics in the classroom, so I went to the supermarket and got a bunch of random things they could use. They were so excited. I could see it on their faces, because they sure didn’t say it. They classroom itself is interesting, too. The school is set up so that all of the classrooms are in separate buildings around the campus. It’s neat. My classroom has a tin roof that radiates heat, concrete floors, and windows that swing open and shut. The other day a bird landed on the tin roof and started making crazy noises. I was startled and asked the boys what it was. Of course they said little, but they acted totally unphased. It is definitely a learning experience as far as being a teacher goes. You definitely have to be creative when it comes to gathering resources for your lessons. It is amazing, too how kids can be so appreciative of such small things. Education is everything here, and it shows in the behavior of the students.
There are farm animals everywhere. You never know when you might see a cow. In town or in the country- you never know. Chickens and goats also hang out in random places. The Lubangas have dogs and a cat. They ar all very sweet. It is nice to have some pets around because I miss mine so much.
We went to Kisumu on Thursday and went to the market. I got some cool crafts and gifts for people. I also got some cool jewelry and handbags for myself. Fun. There were some nice paintings that I will have to go back for because I ran out of money. Candice got a couple and they are really cool. We ate at a Chinese/Thai restaurant. Um, Thai food in Africa- not a good idea. But the restaurant was nice, so it was good. Kisumu borders Lake Victoria. You can go out on a boat and see hippos. I’ll have to go back for that too. It took like three hours on a crowded Matatu, so I’ll have to be good and ready to return.
Last night we all went out to a bar and danced. It was really fun. They played a mix of Kenyan music and American hip-hop. The Kenyans got an eye full watching the crazy Mzungues dance. I don’t know if I mentioned the Mzungu thing. That supposedly means ‘white person’, but I think the real interpretation is ‘European’. So when we walk down the street people point and shout ‘Mzungu!’ We are a total spectacle everywhere we go. It is like you are a celebrity. It gets annoying. I just want to walk down the street without being gaulked at. Some people stare like they have never seen anything like it, and some people look at you like they hate you. Everyone is so accomodating though. I think the Kenyans are proud to have us around so they treat us well.
I miss home, but I am liking it here. I feel more comfortable with the living situation and being in town (town is intense). It’s insane how an experience like this makes you appreciate the things you have at home. Not big things or material things, but basic things. Like plumbing, trash cans, landfills, clean water, ice…
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