Nurse Natalia

Hello everyone. I know its been a few days since we last spoke. That is because there hasn't been much to talk about. Life here at the Nest is pretty regular and consistent. Without the Austrians here it is just the two of us and we've had to make our own fun. We spend more time going to Limuru town, playing with the kids and chipping away at our large variety of board games that were left behind from other volunteers. Most of them are in German, which makes things slightly more difficult, but we are determined to get through all of them! I don't know if it is Irene's influence, but the volunteers that have been here seem to be overwhelmingly German speaking. Whether they're Autrian, Swiss or German. I'm not complaining; I need more German practice anyway.

Last night, I was all settled in last night for a quiet evening of catching up on much needed reading, when Edith came in to our door looking for some medication. She was really sick and since Christina had been the nurse, our house was stocked full of antibiotics. In the least sketchy way possible, we made sure to safely bring down her fever with the use of some lovely antibiotics. Without going into details, we took care of our ill social worker. She is one of the greatest women I've ever met. She is very warm and welcoming to us volunteers when we arrive. It was the least we could do to return the favor and look after her. 

While we were taking care of Edith, who should walk in but Christina! The Austrian nurse herself had come home. She and her family were spending one last night at the Nest before heading back to Austria. She saw that her work had been done, by nurse Natalie (I think I see a future there) and went to bed. 

 

My quiet evening turned into a night full of surprises. Though I didn't get any further in "Sense and Sensibility" our little house was full of friends and felt more like a home. 

It seems like everyone is getting sick around here. I think it is the weather. (yes, I'm going to talk about the weather some more. It never gets old.) These past two days have been the coldest I've ever felt in Kenya. I actually had to wear a long sleeved shirt! Imagine that! Can you believe the struggles I have to endure?!?! Nah, I'm just kidding. In all seriousness, Limuru is the coldest region in Kenya, and I'm really feeling it. Maybe I'm just acclimating to the temperature. I can't imagine how cold it must feel in Oregon right now. Lucky for me, I get home right when the temperature starts to take an uphill turn. There will be no "hitting of the slopes" for me, nor "Shreddin' the pow" up on Mount Hood. 

All the kids are getting coughs and have runny noses. The staff is having a hard time too. This is cold season, so I'm taking extra precautions to stay healthy. The last thing I need is to get sick. 

We have a new client here staying with us. She has a little boy and she is deaf. It has been interesting trying to communicate with her. Yet another reason to kick myself for not learning sign language. If someone had asked me to describe my expectations of Kenya, I wouldn't have even gotten close to the reality of living here. There are so many things I could not have prepared for, and half the fun is discovering those little mysteries as they come. Yes I should have packed dental floss, (I can't find it anywhere in Limuru!!!) but I still have so much to learn. 

As the elections come closer, we are all praying for peace. I'm not worried about my own safety since the violence is mostly among tribes, but unfortunately I can't say the same thing for my newly found Kenyan friends and companions.

It is starting to get dark here which means the kids playing out in the field in front of our house are being called inside. Maybe tonight I'll finish a few pages of Sense and Sensibility, or I'll start a new book.  Out of Africa by Karen Blixen has been calling my name. If I finish one by the time I leave the Nest then I will leave it behind so someone else can enjoy them. 

Good night and God bless!

xoxo Natalie, or as the kids say, Natalia

 I almost forgot! On the austrians last day we took a walk to the nearby tea plantation. It was a hot day, but the austrians said the view made it seem like they were in Austria already. Look at those rolling hills.

 Edith with little baby Peter. 

 The Zebras were the blurry ones. Not my camera. I swear.

 Out in the bush bush.

 This is one sunrise worth waking up for.

AAAAAAAND all our new friends. So cute.

Life in the bush bush.

The past few days have been crazy! I though I was busy before, but that was nothing. I've woken up with the sun 2 days in a row, gone to bed long after it has set and filled every hour in between. The Austrians left for Austria yesterday. It was tough to say goodbye, but I'm fairly certain that this isn't the last I'll see of them. The last Nest always holds a farewell party for departing volunteers, so we spent our last night together as a huge family of 60+ kids and staff, singing, dancing and eating a traditional Austrian dish. I thought it was delicious but the Kenyans, for some reason, hated it! Awkwardness aside it was still a fun night. I finished my first 11 day shift at the nest on Wednesday as well so the 4 of us said goodbye to the Nest (my farewell was only temporary) and went our separate ways. I took the Nest's van into Nairobi leaving at 6:30 yesterday morning. I rested a bit back at "home base" aka the Tolley house, then set off for Nairobi city center where I met my good friend from high school, Chloe.
I can not get over the pure luck of our encounter. Luck doesn't even really describe what happened. One could say fate brought us both to Nairobi, Kenya with overlapping schedules. Some might call it coincidence. Nevertheless, we two West Linn girls met up on the opposite side of the world. I think, in a way, we brought a piece of home to each other and I swear we're living parallel lives. She begins working at Starbucks when she gets home in a few weeks. The parallels go on and on. We even dressed similarly. Okay, enough of the supernatural. I had a blast experiencing more Kenya "firsts." First time in Nairobi City central, first Matatu ride, first Matatu ride ALONE, first cup of pure Kenyan tea, first time using a pit toilet. Chloe and her Kenyan friend Kelvin taught me the rules of Nairobi City as we walked about. The saying goes "if you run into someone on the street, don't stop to apologize unless they're dead." Hah. Hah. That's funny right? It's a morbid way of saying that there is no room for cordiality on the sidewalk. This was a little difficult at first for me to just ram into people without feeling bad, so we made a game of it. Whoever gets the most shoulder shoves by the time we reach our destination wins. (there was no prize) I had gotten up to 13 and I started feeling like a real Kenyan, not a Muzungu!

~side note, I looked up the direct translation of Muzungu from Swahili. It literally means "confused person wandering about." It is my goal by the end of 4 months to be anything but THAT.

They allowed me to get my fill of the city before we headed out to the YWAM base camp, where Chloe has been living. I had no idea what I was really getting into. We took a matatu to Machakos. After leaving the city I felt like I was driving through a scene in the Lion King. We were entering the bush bush. Zebras could be spotted from the road grazing like nobody's business. We arrived to the camp and I was greeted by many of Chloe's partners in crime. All YWAM volunteers and staff, most were just out of high school or older. They came from all over the world.
This is where my story starts to get interesting.
So far, here in Kenya, I've come across many languages. As a language buff, I am in heaven. I heard lots of German from my Austrian buddies. I spoke a bit of Spanish with Marina. English of course is spoken everywhere. I'm picking up some Swahili, emphasis on the "some" part. And get this, Norwegian! I got to use my Norwegian. I had lost all hope of using it here, but my time finally came. One of Chloe's work partners, Marit, is from Norway. When I heard this little piece of information, I started wracking my brain for all the conversational Norwegian I know. Marit had no idea of my hidden talent when we were first introduced so you can imagine her surprise when I followed up our handshake with "det gleder meg." I was probably the most excited, but how often does that kind of coincidence happen? As I implied before, it was a day full of coincidence. That is a total of 5 languages. (Sorry Mom and Dad, I don't think I'm ever coming home.)
The rest of the evening was spent conversing with people from all different backgrounds. We woke up the next morning to go for a safari/sunrise walk. The animals we didn't scare away included gazelles, wildebeests, bunnies, and zebras!!! It still fells so surreal that I am here in Kenya frolicking through the savanna with zebras. We unfortunately, didn't walk far enough to see any giraffes but I'm sure I'll have another chance to see them. After breakfast of bread and tea, it was time for me to get on my way and start the long trek back to Nairobi. This time, however, I didn't have Chloe and Kelvin showing me the way. The Matatu rides required all my concentration. I spent my two rides and one transfer mentally filing away all the advice they had told me as well as advice I'd acquired from previous trips. "Don't talk to strangers. Don't slow down. Don't look up. Look both ways before crossing the street. Pretend I know what I'm doing." I managed to make it all the way to village market in one piece. There was a masai market going on so it was the perfect place to mill around while I waited for Luis to pick me up.
Upon getting home I had approximately 30 seconds to change out of my sweat safari cloths and slap on some sunscreen before heading out on the next adventure.
The 4 of us, Luis Sydney, Ben, and I, drove out to the town of Karen, named after Karen Blixen, my idol, to visit the elephant orphanage. We had tickets to a private showing which meant we got to step over the fence and actually interact with the little babies!!! All of the elephants were either abandoned by their mothers or left as orphans after their parents were killed by poachers. They are rehabilitated, then reintroduced into the wild. They were so cute rolling in the mud and spraying us all with dust. The orphanage is located right next to the Nairobi National park which allows the elephants to graze and wander during the day until they are called in by name to spend the night indoors with cozy blankets and a bottle of milk every three hours. There is also a seven year old Black Rhino at the orphanage. He has been in the orphanage since his mother abandoned him and will never be able to return to the wild due to a genetic condition that blinded him at birth. I have never been so close to such massive wild animals. I've also never had so much dirt sprayed in my face.
I don't know what I have in store next. All I know right now is that we're having grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner.
I have a feeling I've left out quite a bit of detail. The past three days are still swirling around in my mind, so I apologize for any vague-ness. Maybe a few pictures will fill in the blanks.
For now, I'll cut my rambling short, but you'd better expect more soon.
Har det bra!!

Saturday Mass

02/16/13

(This post is a few days late. It got lost in the drafting process.)

Today we started our new working schedule. The director's wife, Millicent, has started a new plan for us volunteers. We split up to get more work done. Today, however, I didn't get to see how this new schedule worked out because I was invited to take the kids to saturday mass. 

The mass was held in Nairobi in a giant park. I couldn't even begin to count how many people were there. Hundreds, maybe even thousands. It wasn't the most eventful thing to do but I got a chance to spend time with some kids that I hadn't become acquainted with yet. I had kids hanging from both arms while I was trying to find some shade. I also couldn't help but notice the unabashed staring I got from all the kids. They followed me around and tried to sneak in little pokes or daring each other to get closer. At first I felt like a celebrity, but then I started to get a little irritated. The heat combined with everything else was a bit too much. I realize now, that though many of the children acted like they've never seen someone as blindingly pale as me before, they really have. Just not so close up and personal. 

Loooooong Day

02/19/13
I've decided I should start writing earlier in the day because, by the time 18:30 (6:30pm) rolls around, I'm beat. Then arises the problem of forgetting what happened the day before. There is no way, however, I could forget my day yesterday.
It all started a few days ago when I asked Edith, the Social Worker, to take me along with her to court visits.
She came up to me yesterday morning around 9:00 and invited me to come with her to pick up a new baby for the halfway house. Neither of us knew anything about the baby until after we made the 1.5 hour drive to Naivasha to pick him or her up. We drove over multiple mountains and I caught a marvelous view of the Rift Valley. We drove past the Aberdares Mountains and finally, to Naivasha. The roads were torturous the entire way.

Side note:
I can't remember if I've described the driving here in Kenya. If I have already, well, here's another update.
Driving in Kenya is INSANE. It is mad. First of all, they drive on the left side of the road, which is enough to keep me on the edge of my seat. Second of all, nobody wears seat belts. They might as well be fictional characters. Third-ly, People drive SO fast and pass each other. The quickly advancing oncoming traffic doesn't concern them as much as it concerns me. I've seen too many cars coming at me at full speed. All of this would be enough if it weren't for the conditions of the roads. Edith explained that the current president, who is up for re-election, must not live in Kenya, because there's no other way for him to ignore the road conditions. Drivers swerve around the many potholes or screech to a stop right in front of them.
By the time we got there, I, the hopeless American, was sick to my stomach. It might take me longer than four months to get used to the driving. Kenyan passengers seem to be immune.

But I digress. The baby turned out to be a little boy named Peter with the biggest eyes I have ever seen. He was confused and scared when we picked him up, which is completely understandable. The woman that brought him to us explained his situation. She told us that Peter's mother came to her one night asking for a meal. After eating her fill, the mother said she had an upset stomach. She went to use the bathroom and never came back. She left her child alone with a stranger who, thank goodness, called the child and gender deputes who then contacted the Nest. That is a common process for any child coming to the halfway house. Peter had no sigh on neglect or abuse. He appeared well fed. On the way to the court office, another ordeal in itself, Edith did something I've never seen before; she changes Peter's diaper on the seat of the moving van. Remember how I explained the road conditions? Yeah, I had to hold Peter's arms and head to keep him from rolling off the seat.

We finished the court procedure, completed all the paperwork -The Nest makes sure to tackle the process very throughly. We don't want to have an unhappy mother coming to us and saying we've stolen her baby- and arrived at the halfway house around 17:00. As we were about to leave the halfway house, a gaggle of locals jumped aboard the van to catch a ride with us to Limuru. Our other driver, also named Peter made quick time, but not before making a few pit stops. The larger of the two was to pick up 6 slabs of wood all longer than the van itself. We rode the rest of the way home with the back end of the van open and the 7 of us clinging to the slippery planks to keep them from falling out.
I made it home around 18:30 and crashed. I apologize for not writing sooner, but I couldn't find the energy to pick up my computer and turn it on.
Today, we are preparing to say goodbye to the Austrians. They leave on Thursday. It will be a bitter-sweet goodbye. They have made me promise to Skype them and keep them updated on the goings on here, but I think everyone will miss their presence.
We are cleaning the house today to make it look nice for the inevitable visitors who will be coming with Irene on Wednesday. It's hard to believe it's already been over a week since I've been at the Nest. The time has flown by. I go back to Nairobi for my days off starting thursday. I'm excited to see more of the city. I'll have to ask Frank to show me around when he has the time. There are apparently really cool markets in the city center on Saturday and Sunday. We are also taking a trip to the elephant orphanage. I'm so excited to see the little "tembo." I also will get to see Chloe this weekend. Yay! She's been in Kenya for a while working with YWAM. I am checking more and more things off my Kenyan "to do" list. I also would love to visit a slum. I've heard walking into the Kibera slum is like walking into a different world.
That's all I can say now. I'll have more to write later. As pooh bear would say: Ta-ta for now!!


tembo = elephant (in Kiswahili)

New Friends

02/15/13
Gosh darn it Kenya. You've done it again. Every day is the same. Somehow, everyday I find another reason to fall in love with this country again and again.
It's been a heck of a week, for sure. I can't believe it's only been a little over a week since I left home. I feel like I've packed enough activity and emotion to last a month. That said, homesickness will not win this time. Kenya has me in its tight grasp, as do the kiddos, and neither are letting go. Caring for these kids is without question the most rewarding experience I've ever had. I come home every day exhausted, but smiling. I know I'm not supposed to have favorites, but I can't help it. I've got this friend. Her name is Meppo. She is seven years old. When Meppo first came to the Nest a few months ago, she couldn't walk, she didn't show any sign of comprehending when spoken to, and she didn't speak at all. Today she greeted me by running towards me with her arms wide open. She is mentally handicapped and her progress is slow, but if there was a place that could teach her to speak and run and play, this is it.
After our night-before-Valentines-day celebration of sappy movies and chocolate, we spent the real Valentines day the way an Austrian would, by not celebrating at all. Thank goodness for that. I can't say I miss the huge advertisement displays. Instead of getting sappy all over again, we spent the night eating homemade chapati with avocado (SO GOOD), doing our workout, dying Christina's hair, and just dancing like idiots. (okay, so I danced like an idiot while they laughed at me.) The only thing missing was my German lesson.
After 8 days of working, each volunteer gets a two day break. It just so happened that all four of the other volunteers had their days off today, which left me alone. In a different environment I would've probably been terrified to go to work all by myself, but I had a blast today. Since I wasn't surrounded by the other volunteers, I was able to reach out and get to know other members of the staff. From these conversations I learned so much about the upcoming election and the surrounding chaos. There was an outrageous amount of violence between tribes during the last election and everyone is praying for peace as the time approaches. The main violence occurred after the results came out and people were unhappy with the outcome.
On top of learning about Kenyan politics, I made a few new friends today. I hope my parents are okay with 3 austrians and multiple Kenyans coming to visit because I've invited them all to come stay with us. I have a friend who has promised to teach me swahili as well as make me delicious Kenyan coffee. Between that and German lessons from three Austrian friends who like cooking, I don't think I could be any happier. I don't have a beautiful golden tan yet but I've managed to get a sunburn or two. We'll see what kind of condition I'm in in four months. Until then, I'll enjoy every gritty grimy moment here, (I come home with filthy feet and dirt under my finger nails every day) and thanks to today's 2 mile walk to fetch milk, I am ready for bed.
Goodnight!

Just an ordinary day

02/13/13
Today is Wednesday, which means Irene is coming to visit. She lives near the halfway house which is about 20 km closer to Nairobi, but on Wednesdays, she comes to see us out here in Limuru. The morning has been spent cleaning up the volunteer house and making sure everything looks just so. In a bit we will head back over to the nest to watch the children while the staff meets and goes over weekly news. It was this same time last week when I came to visit the nest for the first time. Maybe Irene will bring some visitors along with her when she comes. I am wondering if we will get another volunteer soon. It is impossible to know since, like me, they usually show up unannounced. The Austrians leave on the 20th and I'm really going to miss them! They have big plans though, so it is their time to go. It seems strange that we are on complete different stages of our journeys. Theirs is coming to an end while mine is just beginning! I can't believe I've already been here a week. It seems like a lot longer than that. I've managed to pack so much into this one week.
Since tomorrow is Valentines day, we are going to celebrate tonight. The night will be filled with sappy movies and lots of chocolate.
To all my family and friends back home, Happy early-Valentines Day. Love you lots!
XOXO

The Nest Children's Home

02/12/013
Here at the Nest
I know I said I would be away from the internet for a while, but SURPRISE! I just couldn't stay away. How would I best describe these last 2 days? I've barely had enough time to  eat or sleep because I've been the best kind of busy. Let me repeat. The BEST kind of busy. (okay that's a lie, I can always find time to eat) My life is full of so many wonderful people. Life here at the Nest is quiet, but it is the kind of quite I need. The children will take any chance they get to sneak in a hug or hang from my arms. They all seek affection, especially the little ones. I spend my first day here in the nursery, covered in spit and mysterious goo. The rest of the day was spent doing laundry. At lunch time we made our way down to Limuru, the neighboring town, to buy food and supplies. Like many volunteers before me, I had arrived completely unprepared, so I had to stock up for the next 11 days. It was so fun to walk around the fruit market and see all the exotic items. I can buy HUGE mangos for only 30 KSH. That's like $0.34. The children outside their houses on the way home from Limuru see us "Mzungus" coming from a mile away. They love to practice their english phrases on us. They say "Mzungu, Mzungu! How are you!?" "Mzuri sana," we say back, or simply "how are you." Their vocabulary is a bit limited...
I feel like I've had ants in my pants all day. Literally. As another volunteer and I were doing laundry today, we noticed a few of the nursery's nappies had fallen off the line. Once we looked closer we realized they were swarming with ants. As we were pulling the other clothes out of the way and off the line, the children saw us working and came running over to help. You can only imagine how that turned out. I spent the next 5 minutes frantically pulling and shaking ants off poor Alex who had SAT DOWN in the ant swarm. These are not like your normal North American sugar ants. These ants bite hard and hang on tight. The poor kid got through his little escapade without any tears. What a trooper. As for me, I still feel like they're crawling all over me.
Things are winding down here in the volunteer house. We finished dinner and went for an afternoon walk. In the background of my own little world, I can hear grey's anatomy in German thanks to my three austrian housemates. They have promised to teach me German. So far I can say "I walk, he walks, she walks, we walk, you walk." "Ich gehe, er geht, sie geht, wir gehen, du gehst." Pretty impressive, huh.
Tonight, we met a local girl named Nancy. She was very nice to us. It seems to me that Kenyan customarily are used to having guests over often. She showed us to her house, which was about a 3 minute walk away from our house where her dog had just had puppies. They were the cutest things I have ever seen. (besides sammy, of course) These pups were little fuzzy balls of joy. Nancy invited us in, gave us chapati, a delicious tortilla-like bread and offered to trade novels with us.
It made for a pretty relaxing afternoon which turned into a lovely evening.
That's all for now.
Lala Salama!

The place where I ACTUALLY learn something new every day

02/10/13

Jina Langu ni Natalie!! (My name is Natalie)

Quite an interesting day we had yesterday. I got to Skype with my parents, and Sammy, for the first time since I arrived here. It was great to see their faces, but it made me so homesick. After saying a tearful goodbye I made my way down stairs to the kitchen where my aunt was waiting for me with a warm pancake breakfast and a hug. I am in good hands here. 

We spent the rest day running errands and preparing for the barbeque we were to attend that night. We baked snicker doodles just for the occasion. mmmmmm!

The barbeque was at the home of a woman whom Luis and Lisa knew from Indonesia. Good food. Good company. Good view of those silly monkeys that live in the area. Good conversation. Most of it in French, go figure. If only I knew more than 4 words....

I went for a run this morning intending to get a little exercise. I had no idea the altitude would effect me so much. (That's just my excuse for being really out of shape.) So I decided to take exercising, like everything else, one step at a time, pun intended. Here's my thinking, I have 4 months to become an olympic athlete, so I feel no need to jump on board and run a 10K immediately. (By the time I get home, though, I'll be running laps around YOU Aunt Joanie!!) There's no need to rush into anything, really. It may seem obvious that, yes, I am using exercise as a metaphor for something bigger, but enough of my personal musings for now. Time for brunch! Were headed to le Rustique. Yumm!

This is my last official post for a while. 11 days exactly. I'll be heading to The Nest this afternoon/evening and will have limited internet access. That just means more stories, and even more pictures when I return!

Kwaheri!

Just havin' some fun with my friend Jerry the Giraffe. This picture is 100% authentic, FYI.

My view from the patio. 

Yep I live in paradise.

Workworkwork

02/08/13
     I didn't get a wink of sleep last night because of one single pesky mosquito that buzzed in my ear all night. At this altitude, mosquitos don't carry malaria, thank goodness. However, that doesn't make them any less annoying.
     By some stroke of magic, maybe the altitude is keeping me awake, I haven't crashed yet from my lack of sleep. I spent the day at work with Lisa, my aunt. She works for USAID so I spent the majority of the day reading through material about new and emerging diseases. Though it was all very fascinating, I had the heebie jeebies by the time lunch rolled around. We took a break from "Casual Friday" to go on a tour of the Embassy. I'm not sure how much I'm at liberty to say about the Embassy so I'll leave it at this: the place was HUGE. It was strange to see so many Ex-Pats around. A coworker of Lisa's told me that Kenya has a large population of young Ex-Patriots like myself. I have yet to meet some, but I'm sure once I find one, I'll inevitably find others.
     The embassy and USAID offices were very busy and full of hustle and bustle. Lot's of world changing business going down I assume.
     We then took a trip around town before returning to work. It is amazing how quickly the social classes shift by just driving a few kilometers down the road. In one part of town, a part that I hadn't visited before today, the streets were full of people selling anything from board games, to cleaning detergents, to live puppies! Which makes me a little sad. Who knows where they came from and what kind of life they will have.
     On a lighter note, we have some exciting trips planned in the coming weeks. There is a lake close by that has wonderful hiking, water sports, and walking safaris. (so I've been told.) I'm a little bit scared and a lot bit excited with the idea of being a stone throw away from lions and elephants. I'll be sure to take a lot of pictures.
     Slowly but surely I am acclimating to a different lifestyle. I know it's only been 5 days but I already am shifting away from the GO GO GO mentality of life in the States. It's definitely a work in progress. I naturally want to be doing something constantly, but the whole point is to slow down. This way I can watch, observe and learn.
     I'm thinking about all my friends and family back home. I miss you guys, but I'm not ready to come home yet!
Until next time!

First Impressions

02/07/13
First Impressions: Nairobi
     Whew! This post is proof that I arrived safely. I'm sure you've all been dying for an update. Internet has been a bit flakey so I'll fill in the gaps from the last few days. I arrived on tuesday night having lost a day to travel. Nairobi is a much bigger city than I expected. It is beautiful and very rich in many cultures. There are multiple city "centers" which are essentially big shopping malls. I haven't yet been to the official city center which consists of a lot of office buildings and markets. (so I'm told)
Lisa and Luis' home is absolutely beautiful. They have furnished it with pieces they have collected from their travels over the years. The yard is very spacious and lush. (pictures to come) Frank, their gardener, has been trying to teach me Swahili. I've forgotten practically all that he taught me today, but I still have almost 4 months to learn. He likes to teach Swahili, I like to learn. He likes to drive around, and I want to see more of the city. I think Frank and I will get along just fine.
The Tolleys also have a house keeper named Ruth. The two of us have had some pleasant conversations. I hope to get to know her better. Ruth is a very kind young woman, and I'm finding it hard to accept that she is employed help. The wealthy of Kenya, and I'm sure all over the world, live an interesting lifestyle. I understand hired help is work that might not otherwise be available, but it feels strange to have someone hired to do my laundry and housekeeping.
Kenya is a very accelerated country. It is the hub of East Africa and a lot of business comes through Nairobi, the capital. I see a lot of Ex-Pats around town. I assume most are here for work such as peace corps and similar organizations or for tourism. Even for the amount of wealth, there is overwhelming poverty. I live about 5 miles from the Kibera Slum, which surrounds a major highway and spans for, what seems, forever.
Though I should have spent my first few days acclimating to the time change, which is 11 hours, I didn't want to be cooped up in the house all day. I set out on what I came here to do. I visited both locations for The NEST yesterday and met many wonderful people, most of whom are from germany or Austria. There are 4 young adults living in the Volunteer home at The NEST in Limuru, and I will be joining them next week. 3 of them are from Austria, and the 4th is from the states. The children, though traumatized and coming from broken homes, are sweet and good natured. They do their own laundry and daily chores. I am excited to see what kind of adventure this volunteer work will bring.
The safety in Nairobi is varied. There are many car-jackings and robberies in the city, mainly after dark. But for the most part, people are friendly, helpful and forthcoming. I feel safe enough taking a taxi. I haven't ridden one yet but the Mtatu are a good way to get around town. (During the day)
The weather has been uncommonly warm. (just in time for my arrival!!) I'm told the rains start in the next month so that should be.... interesting.
All in all, I feel like there is no way I could have prepared for this trip. I'm kicking myself for not bringing any dental floss and not enough pairs of pants, but that is where the adventure starts. Now I get to experience going into a supermarket and, get this, buying my OWN dental floss! Sure, I get homesick from time to time, but I wouldn't dream of going home. This adventure is just beginning and I know my family is doing just fine without me.
This post is most likely dated for yesterday since my internet is down, but that just means even more posts once it starts back up again.
Kwaheri (Goodbye) for now!