It’s been a long few weeks, but there have been many adventures along the way. Hopefully you saw the pictures I posted of my parents’ visit to
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Saturday, April 05, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Those of you who are avid readers of my blog (all 3 of you) may remember me writing about my hiking adventure at Mt. Suswa back in November. A large group of us came to this mountain to hike and explore, and things turned out a little differently than we had expected. Going into the park, some of us riding on top of the Land Cruisers, we were chased by a group of Masai men who wanted money from us. We had a Masai women with us, and she said we didn't need to pay them, so we continued to drive. After bush wacking and hiking in the heat, we came back to our vehicles and drove back toward the road. We were greeted by a road block created by the men who had been chasing our vehicles. They made a barricade with rocks and wouldn't let us through until we paid them a ridiculous amount of money. Somewhere in the midst of this adventure, my camera was stolen or lost, which is why you have never seen pictures of this trip. My good friend and hiking partner, Astrid, recently gave me a CD of her pictures from this trip. So now, 5 months later, you can look and enjoy.
These are the some of the Masai Plains we drove through to get to the mountain.
Some Masai people with their cows. Normally they get very upset if you take their pictures, so this shot was a rare treat.
Some children we saw along the way.
Some of us rode on top of our friend's Land Cruiser to get to the mountain. It was a bumpy and dusty ride!
We went to Suswa with several other families, but when it came time for hiking, we split up.
I still have scars on my legs from the bush wacking. But it was beautiful!
Speaking of beautiful, this is my friend Astrid.
Scott led the way down into the valley. It was a challenge to say the least.
Descending down the Cliffs of Insanity. Anyone know what movie that's from?
Ah nature.
I had a bag of cookies. Soon it was empty. How could you say no to these faces?
Here's the rock barricade that the men blocked our cars with. Sometimes you just have to laugh at things like that. Most people wait until afterwards, but I decided to do it in the midst of the scary mishap. TIA.
We did eventually get out. Here are some stressed out moms and restless kids.
These are the some of the Masai Plains we drove through to get to the mountain. 
Some Masai people with their cows. Normally they get very upset if you take their pictures, so this shot was a rare treat.
Some children we saw along the way.
Some of us rode on top of our friend's Land Cruiser to get to the mountain. It was a bumpy and dusty ride!
We went to Suswa with several other families, but when it came time for hiking, we split up. 
I still have scars on my legs from the bush wacking. But it was beautiful!
Speaking of beautiful, this is my friend Astrid.
Scott led the way down into the valley. It was a challenge to say the least.
Descending down the Cliffs of Insanity. Anyone know what movie that's from?
Ah nature.
I had a bag of cookies. Soon it was empty. How could you say no to these faces?
Here's the rock barricade that the men blocked our cars with. Sometimes you just have to laugh at things like that. Most people wait until afterwards, but I decided to do it in the midst of the scary mishap. TIA.
We did eventually get out. Here are some stressed out moms and restless kids.Monday, March 24, 2008
On Saturday, March 22nd, one of the teachers from my school got married. The wedding was in a town called Thika, about an hour away from where I live in Nairobi. Here are some pictures.
We were thankful to be hreaded in the opposite direction of this traffic.
Beth, the one on the left =), married Kefa. Beth teaches special ed. at our school.
This is Nancy and me. Nancy is the secretary in the office at school, and without her, West Nairobi School would fall apart. The buildings would literally crumble to the ground. She also makes me laugh really hard, so it's good to keep her around.
Joan (on the right) works hard on our school's accreditation process. Her friend, whose name escapes me, is visiting from Ghana. For those of you who are wondering, yes, Joan's hat is from J.Crew. She's the best dresser at our school.
This is one of the boys who lives in my apartment complex. He came over for a visit and sat down to read this book my sister sent me for my birthday. Thanks Denee!
These are my friends Kinyash (sorry if I butchered the spelling), Ian, Anne, Steve, and Momo. Steve and Ian are here doing soccer ministry with Ambassadors in Sport. Ian left to go back to the states on Monday - the first in a long series of good byes. Sniff...
We were thankful to be hreaded in the opposite direction of this traffic. 
Beth, the one on the left =), married Kefa. Beth teaches special ed. at our school.
This is Nancy and me. Nancy is the secretary in the office at school, and without her, West Nairobi School would fall apart. The buildings would literally crumble to the ground. She also makes me laugh really hard, so it's good to keep her around.
Joan (on the right) works hard on our school's accreditation process. Her friend, whose name escapes me, is visiting from Ghana. For those of you who are wondering, yes, Joan's hat is from J.Crew. She's the best dresser at our school.
This is one of the boys who lives in my apartment complex. He came over for a visit and sat down to read this book my sister sent me for my birthday. Thanks Denee!
These are my friends Kinyash (sorry if I butchered the spelling), Ian, Anne, Steve, and Momo. Steve and Ian are here doing soccer ministry with Ambassadors in Sport. Ian left to go back to the states on Monday - the first in a long series of good byes. Sniff...Saturday, March 15, 2008
Some friends and I hiked Mt. Longonot a few weeks ago.
Here is Kate (one of my students), me, Anna (Kate's sister), Amanda, and Becca (both teachers). (I'm done with the parentheses). (For now).
Kayla, me, and the girls soccer team. We got first place in the league!
In order to better study the concepts of momentum and acceleration, I took my 8th grade science class on a field trip to go bowling. Here are some of us on the bus ride to the bowling alley.
Here are some of the boys in between turns. Chang Hwan, Joe, Hanbeen, Max, Mr. T, and Clay
From left to right we have Heidi, Kate, me, Amanda, and Rachel. We bowled with bumpers, ha!
Luis and Chang Hwan are in front, and from left to right in the back are Austin, Sam, and Hanbeen
JiYeon has amazing form.
Saturday, February 09, 2008
For the second year, I am helping my friend Kayla coach the girls’ soccer team. She does most of the work, and I just stand around and cheer the team on. Last season we didn’t win a single game, and we didn’t even score until the very end of the season. We had our first game of the season on Thursday, and though we tied 1-1, I was thrilled that they had scored a goal in their first game!
This Saturday we played in our first tournament at a school called Brookhouse. If any of you have read the Harry Potter series or seen the movies, this school was designed after Hogwarts. Their main building is like a castle, drawbridge and all, and I felt like I should be walking around with a cape and a wand. I didn’t need any sort of magic, though, because the girls played so well. Out of 8 teams, they ended up getting second place. In the final game, the score was tied at 0 with 2 minutes left. The ref made a bad call, giving the other team a penalty kick. Our goalie blocked it, but then the ref let her shoot again since he hadn’t blown the whistle before she kicked it. The other team had kicked it too early, so for some reason, our team was penalized for it. So really, the other team won because of some crappy reffing. But the exciting thing is that our girls still got second place, worlds better than they would have done last season. Way to go
Awards ceremony - 2nd place!
See what I mean about Hogwarts?
Resting between matches
The girls resting before the semi-finals
Some of the boys came to cheer on the team.
My two favorite Australians - Anna and Kate Radkovic
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Hello readers of my blog.
I understand if you have given up on me and lost all faith in this blog. I have callously neglected if as of late, and I apologize. The situation in the nation is not one where I should be staying out of touch, so let me fill you in on all the happenings in
Since the elections on December 27th, the nation of
School was delayed opening for about a week because of alleged rallies which didn’t really end up happening. We ended up opening school on January 21st. The first week went pretty well, though it was tiring knowing that at any moment, things might become unstable, and we might all be sent home. Things felt normal at school, but that didn’t reflect the situation in the rest of the nation.
Last week (January 28 – February 1) felt like an eternity. One of the MPs was assassinated, and we had to leave school early in order to get everyone home safely in case rallies started. Two days later another MP was shot, and I had to send my chemistry class home 5 minutes into the lab that I had spent 2 hours preparing. I think I cried. None of the students or teachers have been harmed, but the whole situation is harrowing. You never know when something will break out, and we will all be sent home. Some students have had to leave town for a while because of threats to their family or tribe. Please keep them in your prayers.
The situation in
I am still keeping busy at school with teaching science, math, and Bible. Just like last year, I am the assistant coach of the girls’ soccer team, and we have our first game on Thursday. I have also begun helping the 8th grade class put on fund raisers for their end-of-the year rafting trip. Please pray for me as I have plenty of things on my plate and live in a country with much bigger burdens than these.
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
Pictures will be coming soon!! For now, if you have the stamina, you can read about the trip.
Zanzibar
Day 1 – December 26
We woke up at about 5:30 in order to get to the bus station by 6:30. I was pleased to see that the ride from Nairobi to Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) was going to be a comfortable one. The bus was similar to the motor coaches I used to ride when I gave tours in Alaska. 16 hours later I was no longer marveling at the comfort of the bus, but it was a good start to the journey. Those aboard the bus with me are as follows: Kayla (roommate and close friend), Criag (Kayla’s fiancé), Becca (art and French teacher), and Steven (math, computer, Bible teacher). It was a great group to travel with.
As we drove through southern Kenya, the terrain gradually changed into rolling, green hills. Women wrapped in scarves and blankets carried their babies on their backs, and soon our bus came to a stop. The driver didn’t say anything, but someone in the back of the bus, sensing our confusion said, “Border.” So we went on our wild goose chase to enter the country of Tanzania. After shoving our way through the chaotic lines, we finally got our visas to enter the country. Then we hopped back on the bus for the rest of our really long bus ride.
The rest of the ride was beautiful. We even saw the base of Kilimanjaro when we were in the town of Moshi. One day I hope to see the top of that mountain! We arrived in Dar es Salaam at about 10:00 that night. One of the families who went to our school last year now lives in Dar, so we waited for Mr. Kim to come pick us up from the bus station. Because of English-Korean language barriers, it was quite an ordeal to communicate to Mr. Kim exactly where we were. Eventually we made it to their house, slept a few hours, and then…
Day 2 – December 27
Went to the ferry terminal to get our tickets to Zanzibar. The ferry ride was about 2 hours, and then we were in Stonetown, on the island of Zanzibar. Our next task was to find a ride to Nungwi, a beach on the northern part of the island where some other friends were staying. Through a series of complicated transactions, we finally made it to the Nungwi Guest House, where we would be staying for the next 2 nights. The five of us weary travelers met our friends Brad and Grant there. And finally we were at the beach and could rest. Ah…
The beach was amazing. Bright turquoise blue as far as the eye could see with old, rugged fishing boats scattered throughout the expanse of water. There were plenty of people lying out and swimming, and this being my second trip to the Indian Ocean (I went to Mombasa in Kenya last Christmas), I knew that the water would be warm and pleasant to swim in. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, I have vivid memories of dedicating my first 10 minutes of swimming to getting numb. Once that point was reached I had a great time in the water! Needless to say, the Indian Ocean is nice.
Days 3-7 (December 28 – January 1)
We spent these days in Nungwi hanging out on the beach. Here are some highlights.
*the beach (obviously)
*breakfast with mango, pineapple, banana, chapati, tea
*going for walks in the morning, discovering hermit crabs
*watching the beautiful people of Zanzibar fishing, swimming
*shade
*swimming
*dinners that lasted for hours
*moving to a new, cleaner hotel
*feeding sea turtles
*homemade mango ice cream
*walking back to our hotel along the beach by the light of the moon
*getting stung by a jelly fish
*riding on the back of my friend’s motorcycle at sunset
*practicing my Kiswahili and failing miserably
*talking to interesting people from around the world
*sunscreen applied at least thrice a day
*the slow pace of things
*sunsets
*the Tanzanian shilling to U.S. dollar exchange rate: 1,150 to 1
*Kayla, Craig, Becca, Steven, Brad, Grant
*huddling with above company inside the little, air-conditioned liquor store drinking cold Coke in a glass bottle
*ushering in the New Year on the beach
Day 7 – January 1
Things grew a little tricky once we heard about the election results in Kenya. Since Kibaki was elected, those opposing Kibaki got upset and started rioting around the country. This made it unsafe to travel to Kenya, making us refugees in Tanzania. Now, life on the beach certainly isn’t rough, but we were getting worried about when we should head back to our home in Nairobi. Today we packed up our stuff and headed to Stonetown, the place we would ride the ferry from. We took a daladala, which is like a big truck with a roof and benches in the back for people to ride on. It was a beautiful, fun ride, but my back end was definitely ready to stand up once we arrived.
By this time, Grant had already left to go back to Sudan, where he works for Samaritan’s Purse, and Brad showed us to the hostel where we would be staying. The hostel was an old Anglican church, and it was an interesting place to stay. It had a lot of character and also a lot of mosquitoes. We walked around town for a bit, looking at the shops and all the little souvenirs that strongly resembled the ones we can buy in Kenya. Stonetown has narrow roads and high buildings rising up along the sides. Walking along the roads is like walking through a maze, and it definitely has a really neat, historical feeling to it, almost like I would imagine small towns in Italy. On these narrow roads, vehicles don’t exactly watch out for you, and I had a couple close encounters.
Day 8 – January 2
Awoken at about 4:45 A.M. by the call to prayer right outside my window, I managed to fall back asleep for a couple more hours. This was our day to hang out in Stonetown. Becca and I spent the day walking around and exploring. We found an old castle that used to be a fort, and when we climbed the stairs we found an art gallery. There were men painting and men trying to sell their paintings, which were all beautifully done. After exploring there, we went to the museum and learned a little of the history of the island. In the evening vendors line the streets selling all kinds of local food, fresh seafood, and drinks. The smells are fantastic, and Becca and I enjoyed eating as we watched the sunset over the water. One more night of sleeping, then on to Dar es Salaam.
Day 9 – January 3
We woke up early to get a start on the madness of our morning, but even then travel was a bit of a scramble. Because of the turmoil in Kenya, the buses from Dar es Salaam to Nairobi were no longer running, which meant that we needed to fly. When we went to the travel agent, we found out that we could only pay in cash for our plane tickets. I mentioned the exchange rater earlier, and I’m sure you can only imagine how much money I had to carry to pay for a plane ticket that cost roughly 300,000 Tanzanian shillings, paid in 5,000 bills. It was crazy. But God is gracious, even to those who are pressed for time, and we made it to the ferry with plenty of time to hop on board.
Arriving in Dar es Salaam about 2 hours later, we once again had no idea where we were going. I knew the Safari Inn was a cheap place to stay, so I stopped in at the Chamber of Commerce to enquire about directions. I’ve found that when people in East Africa do not know where something is, instead of saying “I don’t know”, they will give you directions anyway. I could tell this lady didn’t know where the Safari Inn was, so I thanked her for the directions and followed the sign that said “Tourist Information”. The lady there drew me a map, and after navigating through the unfamiliar streets, we found the Safari Inn.
The first and last thing we did at this cheap hotel was watch the news. Things weren’t looking good, but we also knew that the media could be over-dramatizing things. We found a grocery store and stocked up on rice, beans, bread, and other essentials in case grocery stores in Kenya were still closed. We headed back to the hotel for our last sleep in Tanzania.
Day 4 – January 10
We found a couple taxi drivers to give us a ride to the airport. Everything was fine until I heard metal scraping on the road and noticed our driver pulling off to the side. Instead of telling us we had a flat tire, he got out, opened my door for me, and pointed. I squinted into the distance and realized he was pointing at the airport. I thought to myself, of course we got a flat tire! Of course we get to walk the rest of the way! It made me laugh. I should have expected something like this to happen. Fortunately, it was only about a 10 minute walk to the airport, so Felix (our driver) did get us pretty close.
The flight was nice because it got us to Nairobi in an hour instead of 16 hours. Despite the extra cost, flying instead of taking the bus was a huge blessing. After asking around at the airport, everyone said the roads were clear and we would be fine to go home. We got a ride from a taxi, and as we drove past Uhuru Park (the location of the alleged rally), we saw at least 100 police men, lying around looking bored. The rally had been cancelled, but the police were still out in full force. We got home and found everything pretty much back to normal. The roads were calm, people were walking around, and we were all glad to be home.
Zanzibar
Day 1 – December 26
We woke up at about 5:30 in order to get to the bus station by 6:30. I was pleased to see that the ride from Nairobi to Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) was going to be a comfortable one. The bus was similar to the motor coaches I used to ride when I gave tours in Alaska. 16 hours later I was no longer marveling at the comfort of the bus, but it was a good start to the journey. Those aboard the bus with me are as follows: Kayla (roommate and close friend), Criag (Kayla’s fiancé), Becca (art and French teacher), and Steven (math, computer, Bible teacher). It was a great group to travel with.
As we drove through southern Kenya, the terrain gradually changed into rolling, green hills. Women wrapped in scarves and blankets carried their babies on their backs, and soon our bus came to a stop. The driver didn’t say anything, but someone in the back of the bus, sensing our confusion said, “Border.” So we went on our wild goose chase to enter the country of Tanzania. After shoving our way through the chaotic lines, we finally got our visas to enter the country. Then we hopped back on the bus for the rest of our really long bus ride.
The rest of the ride was beautiful. We even saw the base of Kilimanjaro when we were in the town of Moshi. One day I hope to see the top of that mountain! We arrived in Dar es Salaam at about 10:00 that night. One of the families who went to our school last year now lives in Dar, so we waited for Mr. Kim to come pick us up from the bus station. Because of English-Korean language barriers, it was quite an ordeal to communicate to Mr. Kim exactly where we were. Eventually we made it to their house, slept a few hours, and then…
Day 2 – December 27
Went to the ferry terminal to get our tickets to Zanzibar. The ferry ride was about 2 hours, and then we were in Stonetown, on the island of Zanzibar. Our next task was to find a ride to Nungwi, a beach on the northern part of the island where some other friends were staying. Through a series of complicated transactions, we finally made it to the Nungwi Guest House, where we would be staying for the next 2 nights. The five of us weary travelers met our friends Brad and Grant there. And finally we were at the beach and could rest. Ah…
The beach was amazing. Bright turquoise blue as far as the eye could see with old, rugged fishing boats scattered throughout the expanse of water. There were plenty of people lying out and swimming, and this being my second trip to the Indian Ocean (I went to Mombasa in Kenya last Christmas), I knew that the water would be warm and pleasant to swim in. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, I have vivid memories of dedicating my first 10 minutes of swimming to getting numb. Once that point was reached I had a great time in the water! Needless to say, the Indian Ocean is nice.
Days 3-7 (December 28 – January 1)
We spent these days in Nungwi hanging out on the beach. Here are some highlights.
*the beach (obviously)
*breakfast with mango, pineapple, banana, chapati, tea
*going for walks in the morning, discovering hermit crabs
*watching the beautiful people of Zanzibar fishing, swimming
*shade
*swimming
*dinners that lasted for hours
*moving to a new, cleaner hotel
*feeding sea turtles
*homemade mango ice cream
*walking back to our hotel along the beach by the light of the moon
*getting stung by a jelly fish
*riding on the back of my friend’s motorcycle at sunset
*practicing my Kiswahili and failing miserably
*talking to interesting people from around the world
*sunscreen applied at least thrice a day
*the slow pace of things
*sunsets
*the Tanzanian shilling to U.S. dollar exchange rate: 1,150 to 1
*Kayla, Craig, Becca, Steven, Brad, Grant
*huddling with above company inside the little, air-conditioned liquor store drinking cold Coke in a glass bottle
*ushering in the New Year on the beach
Day 7 – January 1
Things grew a little tricky once we heard about the election results in Kenya. Since Kibaki was elected, those opposing Kibaki got upset and started rioting around the country. This made it unsafe to travel to Kenya, making us refugees in Tanzania. Now, life on the beach certainly isn’t rough, but we were getting worried about when we should head back to our home in Nairobi. Today we packed up our stuff and headed to Stonetown, the place we would ride the ferry from. We took a daladala, which is like a big truck with a roof and benches in the back for people to ride on. It was a beautiful, fun ride, but my back end was definitely ready to stand up once we arrived.
By this time, Grant had already left to go back to Sudan, where he works for Samaritan’s Purse, and Brad showed us to the hostel where we would be staying. The hostel was an old Anglican church, and it was an interesting place to stay. It had a lot of character and also a lot of mosquitoes. We walked around town for a bit, looking at the shops and all the little souvenirs that strongly resembled the ones we can buy in Kenya. Stonetown has narrow roads and high buildings rising up along the sides. Walking along the roads is like walking through a maze, and it definitely has a really neat, historical feeling to it, almost like I would imagine small towns in Italy. On these narrow roads, vehicles don’t exactly watch out for you, and I had a couple close encounters.
Day 8 – January 2
Awoken at about 4:45 A.M. by the call to prayer right outside my window, I managed to fall back asleep for a couple more hours. This was our day to hang out in Stonetown. Becca and I spent the day walking around and exploring. We found an old castle that used to be a fort, and when we climbed the stairs we found an art gallery. There were men painting and men trying to sell their paintings, which were all beautifully done. After exploring there, we went to the museum and learned a little of the history of the island. In the evening vendors line the streets selling all kinds of local food, fresh seafood, and drinks. The smells are fantastic, and Becca and I enjoyed eating as we watched the sunset over the water. One more night of sleeping, then on to Dar es Salaam.
Day 9 – January 3
We woke up early to get a start on the madness of our morning, but even then travel was a bit of a scramble. Because of the turmoil in Kenya, the buses from Dar es Salaam to Nairobi were no longer running, which meant that we needed to fly. When we went to the travel agent, we found out that we could only pay in cash for our plane tickets. I mentioned the exchange rater earlier, and I’m sure you can only imagine how much money I had to carry to pay for a plane ticket that cost roughly 300,000 Tanzanian shillings, paid in 5,000 bills. It was crazy. But God is gracious, even to those who are pressed for time, and we made it to the ferry with plenty of time to hop on board.
Arriving in Dar es Salaam about 2 hours later, we once again had no idea where we were going. I knew the Safari Inn was a cheap place to stay, so I stopped in at the Chamber of Commerce to enquire about directions. I’ve found that when people in East Africa do not know where something is, instead of saying “I don’t know”, they will give you directions anyway. I could tell this lady didn’t know where the Safari Inn was, so I thanked her for the directions and followed the sign that said “Tourist Information”. The lady there drew me a map, and after navigating through the unfamiliar streets, we found the Safari Inn.
The first and last thing we did at this cheap hotel was watch the news. Things weren’t looking good, but we also knew that the media could be over-dramatizing things. We found a grocery store and stocked up on rice, beans, bread, and other essentials in case grocery stores in Kenya were still closed. We headed back to the hotel for our last sleep in Tanzania.
Day 4 – January 10
We found a couple taxi drivers to give us a ride to the airport. Everything was fine until I heard metal scraping on the road and noticed our driver pulling off to the side. Instead of telling us we had a flat tire, he got out, opened my door for me, and pointed. I squinted into the distance and realized he was pointing at the airport. I thought to myself, of course we got a flat tire! Of course we get to walk the rest of the way! It made me laugh. I should have expected something like this to happen. Fortunately, it was only about a 10 minute walk to the airport, so Felix (our driver) did get us pretty close.
The flight was nice because it got us to Nairobi in an hour instead of 16 hours. Despite the extra cost, flying instead of taking the bus was a huge blessing. After asking around at the airport, everyone said the roads were clear and we would be fine to go home. We got a ride from a taxi, and as we drove past Uhuru Park (the location of the alleged rally), we saw at least 100 police men, lying around looking bored. The rally had been cancelled, but the police were still out in full force. We got home and found everything pretty much back to normal. The roads were calm, people were walking around, and we were all glad to be home.
Friday, January 04, 2008
Hello everyone.
Thanks again for your prayers. After spending the last 10 days in
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Hello everyone.
Many of you may have been following the news and hearing about all the violence following the presidential elections in Kenya. I just wanted to let you all know that up until this point I have been safe. I have been in Zanzibar, which is an island off the coast of Tanzania. It is beautiful and amazing here, but now my friends and I are wondering when we should go back to Nairobi, our home. We picked a perfect time to leave the country, and now we are wondering what the perfect time would be to go back. As of today, we are thinking of leaving on Jan. 4th. We are taking a bus from Dar es Salaam to Nairobi, which is about a 14 hour trip. Please continue to pray for us as we travel and especially for the nation of Kenya and its people. Politics are very tribal in Kenya. The presidential candidate who was re-elected, Kibaki, is a Kikuyu, and the candidate who was defeated, Odinga, is Luo (I'm not sure how to spell it). I won't go into all the details, but BBC is a good source for news. Please continue to pray. I will let you know when I get back to Nairobi, that is, if the internet is working there!
Many of you may have been following the news and hearing about all the violence following the presidential elections in Kenya. I just wanted to let you all know that up until this point I have been safe. I have been in Zanzibar, which is an island off the coast of Tanzania. It is beautiful and amazing here, but now my friends and I are wondering when we should go back to Nairobi, our home. We picked a perfect time to leave the country, and now we are wondering what the perfect time would be to go back. As of today, we are thinking of leaving on Jan. 4th. We are taking a bus from Dar es Salaam to Nairobi, which is about a 14 hour trip. Please continue to pray for us as we travel and especially for the nation of Kenya and its people. Politics are very tribal in Kenya. The presidential candidate who was re-elected, Kibaki, is a Kikuyu, and the candidate who was defeated, Odinga, is Luo (I'm not sure how to spell it). I won't go into all the details, but BBC is a good source for news. Please continue to pray. I will let you know when I get back to Nairobi, that is, if the internet is working there!
Thursday, December 13, 2007
thanks to mr. craig gilley, i now have a camera again! hooray! here are some random pictures...
we went for a walk at the arboretum. here is craig (kayla's boyfriend), me, steve, and momo (weekend friends...not teachers).
notice anything weird about this monkey? sorry if i've offended anyone, but i couldn't resist.
loretta weeks teaches first grade at the school. all of us younger lady teachers call her mama, and every once in a while, if i'm really lucky, she tells me i am her favorite daughter. that changes from day to day. loretta and her husband are leaving after this semester to move to uganda. i'm really going to miss her, and so is the school!
our little christmas tree
when kay and i are coming home from school, the boys in our neighborhood often ask for a ride down the long, winding hill that is our driveway. i think we piled 10 of them into our little car once. it's always a noisy ride!
we went for a walk at the arboretum. here is craig (kayla's boyfriend), me, steve, and momo (weekend friends...not teachers).
notice anything weird about this monkey? sorry if i've offended anyone, but i couldn't resist.
loretta weeks teaches first grade at the school. all of us younger lady teachers call her mama, and every once in a while, if i'm really lucky, she tells me i am her favorite daughter. that changes from day to day. loretta and her husband are leaving after this semester to move to uganda. i'm really going to miss her, and so is the school!
our little christmas tree
when kay and i are coming home from school, the boys in our neighborhood often ask for a ride down the long, winding hill that is our driveway. i think we piled 10 of them into our little car once. it's always a noisy ride!Thursday, November 22, 2007
Since I have lost my camera, I thought I would put some pictures of past adventures on my blog. Some other teacher friends and I went to a place called
Activity 1: ride a camel
Activity 2: feed an ostrich
Activity 3: explore a well-lit cave
Activity 4: walk behind a waterfall
Activity 5: go for a boat ride
Conclusion: Paradise Lost is a fun place with random things to do. I think the paradise is still lost, though. Let me know if any of you know where it went.
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