Thursday 1 November 2012



Sorry all for my lack of postings. Here is a brief update on what has been going on recently:
ENJOY and feel free to comment! Thanks to those who have!

I have learned from the past weekends that Birthday parties in Kenya are how we should celebrate them at home. Basically they are all day events, they have bouncy castles or blow up slides for the children to play on while the parents and older youth eat and chat. The two I have been to so far have been so fun and I have eaten so much I can hardly walk out the door. The food is amazing! I promise I will come home knowing how to make chapati, ugali and all sorts of Kenyan delicacies so I can share them with you.

 
This past weekend I got to run the Nairobi Standard Charter Half Marathon with my host dad. It was an amazing experience. Being a runner, it's one of the great races the world has to offer. There were thousands of runners. My favorite part and my inspiration throughout the race was seeing the Kenyan Olympians running (passing) all of the 'average Joe' runners like myself. It was so great to see that many people running for a cause. My host dad gets enjoyment when he tells his friends that I am his first born child. I am also in the process of being adopted by another family two. I think I have like four Kenyan mothers now. Everyone is so welcoming here!

I am starting to get into a routine at work I have posted pictures on the OAIC website (oaic.org) if you would like to check them out. I will soon be writing stories to come, which are going to be more formal than this blog. We have other projects we are working on like a peace bench for Nairobi area to help promote peace especially approaching election time.

I have become very adventurous recently through forms of transportation. In Kenya public transport is mainly through matatus which are vans that carry about 15 people or so. The other day while in a matatu heading back from the Westlands area to the apartment (about a 20 minute ride with stops) our matatu ran out of gas in the middle of an intersection. Not to mention matatus do not really follow normal traffic rules. Once they get tired of waiting in traffic they simply go around cars ridding through the middle of the road. So that's where we were stuck in the middle of the road on the wrong side of the road stuck. This stuff happens all the time so two guys got out and pushed the matatu to the side of the road where we waited for the conductor to come with gas.Once the conductor came we proceeded down the wrong side of the road. I had my eyes closed the entire time!


2 comments:

  1. Yet again, an amazing post! Love hearing about your adventures- bouncy houses, great food, a half marathon and traffic hazards! All in a day's work, huh? Keep up the great work and know that you are prayed for and thought of by many people!!!

    Katherine

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  2. Wow! So very interesting! Keep us updated. It's fun to experience it through your words. I'd love to go there one day, especially because we had an exchange student from Kenya for one semester. It was so fun to learn of Kenya through him and I always thought I'd get there one day. Thanks for sharing your experiences with us!! :) We love you!

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