Hey Harvard! Nice snow you've got there

Hey Harvard! Nice snow you've got there- about two feet of it. Impressive. I've never seen so much snow except at a ski resort.

I'm back and down to business. The only downside of it all is that it took me forever to get rid of the jet-lag! Considering that Kenya is 11 hours different, that's a lot of time zones! I was getting up at 3 am for the first few days, but I'm finally re-adjusted.

Some exciting developments:

1. I got a new job :) Every morning, I get to deliver the Crimson (the Harvard Newspaper). That means I'm up at 7:00 AM every morning, waddling through the snow with an arm full of papers.

2. I've got a whole new load of classes. I'm taking Swahili, Spanish, a sophomore tutorial on African and African American Studies, and Film for Social Change, where I am learning about how to make documentaries and edit/make films. Pretty cool!

3. Quidditch Season has started up again, but our first practice didn't exactly go as planned. Our playing field has been converted into the official snow dumping area, with piles 10 and 12 feet high. Plus, our half hour practice was interrupted twice by dump trucks of snow being deposited on our playing field... We are playing a team from Finland in two weeks, so hopefully we'll get this whole snow problem figured out by then.

Until next time!

-Laura

P.S. Welcome to February! As you can tell, I've changed my background in honor of Valentine's Day!

Last Day!

Our last day. My last blog in Kenya. So many lasts!

There are so many little things here, that you either have to get frustrated or just laugh at the world. For example, they installed locks on our door to make us safer, but they installed the door handle upside down, so you can’t open the door from the inside. Time and time again we have forgotten and closed the door, locking ourselves in the room, and having to be rescued. When there is no water to shower for the 4^th day, when the toilet won’t flush, when you are awoken time and time again by dogs or roosters or wild lions sitting hungry out your window ready to eat you (just kidding) we have all learned just to laugh at the situation and appreciate the things that do work even more. I am so excited for a hot shower, for my own bed, and especially for clean feet! I can’t wait for clean feet.

Today we taught for the last time at the lower school, and were greeted by cheering children at the gate, wanting to touch us, to hold our hands, just to spend time with us. When they heard it was our last day, we almost got trampled by a mob of children, climbing on tables, singing the songs we taught them at the top of their lungs. It was a joyous goodbye.

We took more pictures, as all the teachers wanted pictures together to remember. We played outside one more time, spinning the little ones around and just talking with the older ones about life. We bought and ate lots of mangos and pineapple and all the other fruits that will never be as sweet back in America.

As a final gesture, we left the pictures we took on their computer. This computer was undoubtedly the biggest contribution we have made to the school.  Teresa and Steven, having never used a computer before, now are comfortable with email and Microsoft Word, and they are so excited about what these new skills will do for them and their hundreds of children.

As we watched the sun set over the sugarcane fields one more time, we realized what an incredible three weeks we have spent we truly inspirational people. Teresa and Steven put everything they have into the lives of these children, completely devoting their lives to uplifting their community. We promised to return, knowing that what we built here will be life-long relationships.

Goodbye to the beautiful people here at Wema. You will be dearly missed.

 

-Laura

 

 

Second to last day

So my day started off at 2:00 AM, when I was awakened by something falling on my head and all round me. I thought the roof was falling down, that is until I realized our resident rat was dropping little digested presents on me, as well as knocking dirt down from the rafters. I moaned in a half-asleep state and begged Esther to let me sleep with her for the rest of the night.

Once the rooster crowed and the day really began, we did a lot! In the morning we went to visit one of the directors, Steven, at the sugar factory where he works. He uses the money from his job to support the orphanage, keeping just enough of it to take care of his family. The factory was pretty impressive. We saw the giant truckloads of sugarcane, the chopping of the cane, the melting and boiling, and the condensing into sugar. Plus, we got to taste it every step of the way! We got to walk in between the steaming pumping hissing load machines and up on the platforms just like the workers, something that in a security and safety-minded America wouldn’t be possible. We returned and taught classes, played with the kids, and finished taking pictures of all the orphans.

Just sitting and talking with the kids at night was wonderful. They had so many questions about America and my life, and they all just wanted to touch my hair, something they had been too shy to ask before.


I began packing today, and tomorrow is our last day.

Night all!

-Laura

We are back!

We are back and rolling onward with tasks.

A few days ago, the 5^th grade had a blast painting letters to make out a 

sign saying “Wema Children’s Centre.” Today we took a picture for their website with the children holding their posters.  (Picture #1)

For the touching moment of the day, three little girls don’t have shoes, so we brought them into town after class and bought them shoes. The little girl on the left is named Zenna, and she is a precious little girl, but she doesn’t say a word and I have never seen her smile. She is only 5 years old and a recent orphan. She speaks her mother tongue and little Swahili, and she is very shy, living very much in her own world. When we put black school shoes on her, she didn’t want to walk and looked quite upset. It probably feels pretty strange to wear shoes if you aren’t used to it, so we bought them all a pair of sandals as well. She didn’t like the sandals either, but at least she looked a little happier. The older girl, Lucy, however was very proud of her new shoes. She cracked a big smile and kept looking down at her new shoes with delight as we walked back.

We also went to their tree farm. The directors purchased 3 acres, and planted trees to follow the Millennium development goals for environmental sustainability and in hopes of using the wood as building material and firewood when the trees mature. We took video of the directors talking about the needs of Wema and about their commitment to the future of their community.

Alex helped to set up a Penpal program with his high school, having the oldest students here communicate with seniors at his old high school. Every day at 5:00 we teach computer and HIV, and the students love it! They tell us everyday not to forget to come teach them computer. Many of these 17 and 18 year olds have never touched a computer, and their joy at seeing Microsoft Word and just learning how to type their names is incredible.

 

Until later!

 

-Laura

Uganda :)

So we have now officially been in 4 countries in less than 3 weeks: USA, England, Kenya, and now Uganda. The director’s oldest daughter Liz, accompanied us, and she had never been to Uganda either.

We are right on the border, so it only took about an hour to get to the Ugandan border (Picture #1). While most Kenyan are friendly, we had a scary moment at the border, when our driver started making sketchy dealings. He demanded more money, and when we gave it to him, he handed it off to a man who ran off with it, and then demanded more. We didn’t want trouble, so we gave it to him, but when he insisted he drive us across the border, we got scared. “Get in. Get in now, they said,” too urgently, pulling at our bags. Walking past lines of guards with guns, we refused, and crossed the border by foot, telling our driver he would never get our business again.

The locals are used to it, and think it is perfectly safe, but all the guns everywhere put us on edge. We have gotten somewhat used to the checkpoints in Kenya, but Uganda was a whole different story. There seemed to be soldiers everywhere. However, what we saw of Uganda in a day was beautiful. The soil in Uganda seemed even redder than in Kenya, and the greens lusher. Everyone spoke very good English, and there was so much to see.

We took a ride on the Nile, and I touched it! We saw scampering little monkeys, giant birds, and although we didn’t see any, the driver told us the Nile was full of alligators! The boat driver took us to the source of the Nile, and we took lots of pictures. 30% of the water comes from bubbling underground sources, and the rest from Lake Victoria. We ate dinner and watched the sunset at a little American restaurant, full of European kayakers and a Navy Seal who had been to nearly every country in the world, been shot by the Taliban, helped the British hostages in Columbia. We listened to all sorts of fantastic stories, and then headed back to our hotel late.

The next day, we went to Bujagia Falls, a beautiful Nile waterfall (Pictures 2 -4).
We crossed back over to the Kenyan side, and went to a market. People directing us this way and that, women carrying parcels on their heads, and the general hustle and bustle was exciting, especially for those who hadn’t seen the market scene before. However, it was already getting dark when we started our journey home.

We seem to have bad luck with drivers, because on the way home we were scared out of our wits as the driver zoomed along the dark road, zipping around corners at speeds far too fast for our comfort. The other passangers seemed unphased, but we begged the driver to slow down, knowing that car accidents are among the highest causes of death in Kenya. The faith of the family we are living with is truly incredible, usually praying for over 4 hours a day.  It is wonder at such belief, but when you are hurtling through the darkness at what feels like 90 miles per hour, all that is left to do is hold your friends hands and pray.  

We have never been so happy to get back to the orphanage. The kids all ran up to us and welcomed us back, and in the warm glow of the still working electricity we shook hand after hand ad looked up into beautifuk grinning faces.

We have 3 and a half days left and so much to do.

Love, 

Laura

Onto Uganda

As you may know, we are staying almost right on the border of Kenya and Uganda, so for the weekend we are going to stay at the mouth of the Nile river! It is only about a three hour drive. Today is Sara’s last day here, and then we will drop her off at the airport before returning to Wema for a few more precious days,

 The kids  themselves do all of the building, so we spent over two hours carrying bricks today and stacking them, in hopes that soon, with help from donations, they will be able to build real dormitories for the orphans, so they will have a home, and won’t have to live in the school.

 I have spent a lot of time the last few days taking pictures of all the children and then sitting for hours with Teresa and some of the teachers, making sure we get all the names correct. However, finally I have a database of beautiful pictures of 106 children. It feels like we are really making progress.

 Sara and Esther have been working all week on skits on HIV/AIDS and drug abuse with the 8^th grade, and today we filmed the final skits and had a competition. Organizing them all was very hard, because all the other classes wanted to watch too. They crowded around the windows and tried to sneak in the doors for the thrilling occasion. However, finally we got everyone organized, and the children were amazing actors! There were crying mothers and cross-dressing, and everyone had a blast.

 And the biggest news of all… We were teaching a class when suddenly, the electricity came back on! We are all very excited! We have been charging everything we can for our weekend journey. Not having electricity has made us appreciate so many little things like showers and clean water. We are so happy!

 For the touching moment of the day, Alex’s sister let him bring her old Mac laptop on the trip, and she was so kind in allowing us to leave it here at the school. Today, Alex told the directors, and it was a beautiful moment. We told them we had a surprise, and when they found out they smiled and laughed and clapped, and we celebrated together. They were so excited. I can’t tell you how much the orphanage will get out of this computer. Access to the Internet is access to the whole world, and from the look on their faces, it sure felt like we had given them the whole world.

Red Dirt Roads and Smiles

The whole time we have been here, we have never seen another white person. Some of the younger children are afraid of us, and the older children hold onto their younger siblings timidly as we pass along the road.

I went to the market to buy mangos, and I bought them in Swahili.  All the women laughed and crowded around me, asking me questions. “Kwa nini unajua Kiswahili?” (Why do you know Swahili?) they asked, and some of them invited us to their houses.  Others came over, all with these huge inquisitive smiles. They say that there are certain moments in life that make all the rest of the moments worthwhile, and this was one of those perfect moments. Hands full of mangos and mouths full of corn we bought for 10 cents, we made our way along the red dirt road, saying hi to everyone we passed, a growing trail of children following behind us. “How are you?” we ask? “How are you?” they repeat in a nasally high voice. Apparently, they say that Americans talk through their noses. But we just laugh and talk to each other in a high nasally voice, and the children laugh.

 We taught art lessons today, and the 5^th grade painted with the watercolors Esther brought. I love walking into class. They children all clap and smile, and say “Hello Madam Laura! How are you?” They painted a sign saying Wema Children’s Centre, and tomorrow we will take a picture with the orphans, and we will use the picture for the top banner on the website we are working to create.

Now the sun has set and we are once again without electricity. It is unusually cool tonight, and I put on a sweater to keep warm. All of our cameras have stopped working, and Alex went into town to charge the computer for three hours. They say we will have electricity tomorrow. We will see.

Hakuna umeme (There is no electricity)

After our adventures and travel, we all napped the day we got back, and then made a list of everything we need to do before returning home However, as darkness fell, we quickly realized that there was no power. Someone had stolen the transformer! We told stories by lamp light, and went to bed early.

 The next day, the others walked all the way to town to charge our computers, only to be told the transformer in town had been stolen too! No electricity also means no water. The orphanage usually is connected to the Kenyan water supply for the Western province, but with no electricity there is no pump, and thus no clean water. The orphanage has a well, but the well is contaminated with sewage, and has to be dug deeper to be safe. The power goes out often here, especially as power is rationed. The need for a new well is great, but there are so many other needs as well. Before going on the trip, we emailed over 50 non-profits who work in Kenya, but we did not hear back from any willing to help. Every night they pray for us and our well-being and for all the children without homes who the orphanage does not have the resources to take in. It is uplifting, sobering, and motivating all at the same time. Often they will pray for over three hours, believing so completely in the power of God and miracles and that life will get better. Their faith is like nothing I have ever seen in America.

 There is still no power right now at the orphanage, so pardon me for not writing for the last few days. However, the transformer in town has been replaced, so I am charging the laptop as I write this.

 Today we took pictures of the orphans for the website (The included picture is the one the orphans took of me), and we also gave them balloons. The kids were so excited, but we didn’t bring enough, so we felt terrible. “Teacher, teacher please! Assist me with a balloon!!!” they came one by one with their big sad eyes and hand outstretched, only to be told we had already given away all the balloons, so we swung them around through  the air until their sad faces turned to giggles. It can be very overwhelming at times here. So many children begging for so much that we don’t have. 

 And running through the sugarcanes and countryside, past cows and chickens, and children laughing and holding onto their 3 cent balloon as though it is the coolest thing they have ever seen, I can’t help but feel excited myself, caught up in the simple moments of joy so often taken for granted back home.

Love,

Laura

P.S. Check out Sara's blog she just made!

www.sarahollis.blogspot.com

On the open road

The safari was amazing, and we took great pictures. This morning, I got this great one of a hippo in the body of water that the hotel is above. If we want other volunteers to come and stay at Wema as an eco-tourism location, it will be nice to show that the guests can also go on an amazing safari while they are here. The internet was also very helpful, and we had made a list of all the tasks we need to accomplish before heading home. Nevertheless, we were all ready to go back to the orphanage today.

However, as always, life is never that simple. Massai Mara is most of a day’s journey away from Bungoma, so the Fairmount first took us in their van to Kisumu, where another taxi driver was supposed to meet us. However, he wasn’t there. We kept calling, and he always insisted he was only a minute away. Finally, two and a half hours later, he showed up in a run-down van, and off we went.

The engine clicked and clacked and roared as we drove along, but we didn’t think much of it. We bumped along for hours into the setting sun and on into the darkness, following the exact path that had taken us here just over a week ago, that is until the car suddenly stopped all together. It was pitch black in the middle of nowhere. The driver tried time and again to restart the engine, but with no luck. He finally got out of the car entirely and got on a motorcycle, without explaining anything, leaving us alone with one other passenger.

We were concerned that the other cars wouldn’t see the van in the dark, so some of us got out, but the other passenger said we should stay inside. She finally explained that he had went to get fuel, so we sat and waited, watching the traffic zoom on by. We finally called the orphanage, and then just waited.

Suddenly, we saw a man’s face approaching the window, knocking on the glass. I heard someone in frint scream in fear, only to realize that the orphanage directors had come find us, and in fact the van had stopped only about 1 km away.

The driver had returned with fuel, and suddenly, after a few tries, the van came to life. We all piled in, and in just a few minutes we were home.

A little adventure, and it is great to be back. Unfortunately, one of the directors has Malaria, but we are all hoping he will feel better soon.

Massai Mara

Yesterday at 4:30 AM, we were downstairs and in a taxi off to Massai Mara, but when we started getting close, the paved roads turned to dirt and rock, and we went bouncing around, at times not even sure where the road was. We held on and shrieked as we crossed small streams, and held our breath as the wheels spun in the mud. After asking directions and more hills, rocks, mud, and streams, we at last arrived, thankful and tired. The Fairmount hotel is truly amazing. It is a miniature oasis with a pool, a location looking out over body of water full of hippos, and the grassy plains on all sides in the distance.

We spent the morning by the pool, and then went on an afternoon safari, and then another safari this morning. How was it? Well, the pictures can tell most of the story. It was incredible. We saw everything, including a lion feasting on its pray, cheetahs just a few feet away, and we even did a walking safari where we were so close to a rhino, we could make out every wrinkle in his skin.

As you can tell, we have Internet here! So, I have uploaded photos for previous blog posts. However, the Internet is still slow, and there are so many good pictures, so slow that I uploaded them here.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=105139&id=1313988216

On another note, Internet means I got to check my grades finally, after the last week of struggling frustratedly with too slow internet access and computers too old to download PDFs. I got a 4.0 for this semester, with As in all my classes. I was very happy.

We are also using Internet to try and contact non-profits for Wema, who may be able to help. There are so many orphans in the village who need a home, but Wema just doesn’t have the facilities to support them. The directors are amazing and do everything they can to help. They have a garden to grown food to support the children, and they ask for donations of food from local farmers, but they have so much bigger dreams. They want to help the community with adult education programs, and they want to taken in more orphans from their community. Right now, the children sleep in the school, often with worn out or no mattresses, and for the government to recognize them as an orphanage and help at all, they have to have separate facilities. The orphans even help build themselves, making and stacking the bricks, plastering and painting to reduce building costs. It would be so amazing to be able to help build an orphanage and return to see the finished product.

Tutaonana Kesho (Until Tomorrow)

-Laura

Off on an adventure!

At 7:00 AM this morning, we were up to meet the 8^th grade for a special project. The kids learn so much about AIDS in school, and they have all the facts memorized. They can name how it is spread, all the stages, and they can even explain the science behind the virus in detail. However, when it comes to actually talking about AIDS, there is a lot of stigma. When we asked a large group of girls on camera if they knew anyone with AIDS, they all said no, although 1 in 5 Kenyans have AIDS. So, yesterday, we taught a science class. The kids made posters, and today for class they got to hang up in their communities to inform people and try and start conversations. This kind of community involvement and “outside the book” kind of learning had never been done before at Highway Academy. The teacher was fascinated and very supportive, and the impressively focused and empowered by their opportunity. They all held up their posters with big proud grins, and wanted their picture taken. We hung them all over town.

Sara and Esther are also working with them to do skits to film and make a video about AIDS.

Then after class, it was time to go to Lake Victoria. We had arranged for a van, and bumping and jumping and swerving along potholed roads, we made our way along, stopping to take a picture straddling the equator. Two and a half hours later, we arrived at Lake Victoria. Wow! The second biggest lake in the world????? Pretty cool, huh? Well… not really. In fact, when we got to the weed-filled edges of this famous landmark, we were all pretty disappointed. It was just a big green lake. However, that was before we found out that the lake was full of hippos, the second most dangerous animal in Africa, after the Malaria-carrying mosquito.

That’s when our adventure really got started. We rode with Kenyans on the back of their motorcycles to go to the location of the boat ride (Safetly, Mom, don’t worry). We saw all sorts of birds and plants in Lake Victoria, and we got really close to the hippos. They are amazing looking, and did you know that they are pink?

We will spend the night here in Kisumu and then head to Massai Mara tomorrow for a safari.

Love,

Laura

A Big Day

Today was a big day. We went to the primary school at 8:00 AM to go to second grade Swahili class, where we learned about greetings and manners. Here! I'll teach you too!

Ask: How are you? Habari? (Pronounced huh-bar-ee)

Answer: Good. Nzuri (Pronounce in-zur-ee)

Now you know some Swahili too :)

After teaching English, we took a photo together with all 106 orphans, ranging in age from about 4-18. The kids absolutely LOVE taking photos, because they get to see themselves on the camera. They laugh and point, saying "Huyu mimi! This is me! This is me!" They jump up and down trying to see, laughing and screaming in excitement.

The touching moment of the day was after class ended, and we asked for a hug from some of the orphans. They hesitated, shying away, unsure if this was alight, and we realized that although this is a wonderful orphanage, the children do not get hugs, as there are so many, and the teachers are there to instruct, not to be their parents. Yet, slowly they came, one by one, not sure where to put their hands or what to do, but the last little girl looked up shyly and then jumped into my arms grasping me in a big bear hug, and not wanting to let go. These children are so mature. I cannot imagine not being hugged as a small 7 or 8 year old.

The children all know our names now, and they beg us to teach as we pass by their classroom. "Welcome you come teach me today?" a little girl shouted out the window as we passed.

It is so beautiful here.

-Laura

P.S. Tomorrow we will be traveling to Massai Mara to go on a Safari, and we will be staying at a hotel with fast internet, so in the next few days, I will upload photos onto the old blog posts!

Touching Moments

Life feels so worth while here. There are so many touching moments each day, so many smiles, and so many firsts. At the primary school for grades 1-3, the children just stood around us at recess, hundreds of curious eyes looking up at us, hanging on our every movement. They spoke no English yet, and we spoke very little swahili, but we managed to make a huge circle and play Duck Duck Goose. We also played follow the leader, and let me tell you, there is something exhilarating about running around doing silly movements and jumping up and down, and having over 100 children following your every movement and giggling.

Also, did you know that pineapples do not grow on trees? We certainly did not, nor had we ever seen a banana tree before today.

My friend Meredith's mother is an astronaut, and she brought lots of pictures of space shuttles and space, so we are teaching one lesson on space to each class. We taught our first today, and it was wonderful. The kids leaned forward in their seats, smiling slightly as we told them about what floating is, picking up a small kid to demonstrate. We all crouched down, and everyone shouted "3, 2, 1, Blastoff!" jumping high into the air with uproarious laughter. The children loved the pictures, and so we gave away some of the pictures at the to the students who could answer questions about space. They held the pictures and just stared at them, while the other students begged to see as well. Meanwhile, the teacher was intently taking notes in the back, and when Meredith gave her pictures too, she just lit up, absolutely fascinated by what she had learned. The students are very good at memorization and reading, but they don't usually get to sing songs or pretend to be astronauts in class, and they loved it.

We taught a computer class to the kids in the afternoon, and the children could hardly contain themselves. The giggled when they learned about clicking. Dragging was a little harder, but they begged to keep practicing typing even when we had run over our half hour. The laptop was like nothing they had ever seen. Again, I wish we had a laptop for them. Growing up knowing about computers would help these children's futures so much. It is the connection to the rest of the world that would open up nearly infinite doors for them.

On another note, they killed a chicken for us today. We were extremely flattered, and a bit taken aback to open our dinner and see a chicken's head sitting there. The directors were very proud to have killed the chicken for us, but we insisted that we loved beans, rice, and potatoes. They thought this was strange, but chickens are expensive here, and animals do not have to die for us.

We all brought colored pencils and markers, and in the evening we let them draw. The children loved coloring! They only get pencils in school, so coloring and drawing were very exciting. The kids drew lots of pictures and kept asking to draw more. It would be wonderful to get donations for crayons or colored pencils for the classroom. The kids and teachers would be so happy.

Exhausted as usual, struggling to keep my eyes open to finish this,

-Laura

Down to Business

Most of the teachers have have returned, and we got down to business. We all taught classes today, and the children are such good students! Even in the classes where teachers were still on holiday, the students sat quietly by themselves in the classroom, until the next class period, when they hoped a teacher would be available. If 30 kids were alone in a classroom in America for hours, when the teacher returned, I can't imagine the mischief they would have gotten into!

In the morning, we went to the lower primary, where the youngest kids go to school. They were very excited to see us, but one little boy cried, and clung to his teachers legs as he looked on at us in horror, having never seen a white person before.

Later, we taught English to the older kids, using the popular American song "Hot and Cold" by Katy Perry, because the chorus uses synonyms and antonyms with lyrics like "Because you're hot and your cold" "you're in and you're out, " you're up and you're down," "you're black and you're white." Meredith played the guitar and the kids LOVED it.

Then, the next teacher hadn't come, so we learned the words to Rihanna's song "Umbrella," and once the kids knew it, we videotaped it, and we will send it to Rihanna.

The days are so long here, and we do so much! I went to Swahili class with the 5^th grade today. It was very hard, because we were learning words like cylinder and pentagon, and zig-zag line, but I tried and the students and the teacher helped a lot.

We also brought out some of the jump ropes we had brought for the trip, and the girl got so excited! We took a picture of one of the girls with the jump rope weeds they use, but the problem is they break easily. The girls played for hours, and we jumped on into the red of the setting sun, and until the first star lit up in the sky and we were called away for dinner.

The most rewarding experience for me was teaching the directors of the orphanage about computers. I showed them how to open a document and type, capitalize, bold, use the shift key, save etc, and they were just ecstatic. They have a few computers, but they so old they are almost unuseable, so they have to go into town to use the cyber café and send email. Their printer is also broken, so printing assignments for school is a real challenge and expensive to type documents and print in town. None of the children know how to use computers either. One laptop for the school would make such a difference in all of their lives. We will try.

-Laura

P.S. Check out my friend Alex’s blog for more stories and pictures!

www.alexbreinin.blogspot.com

First Day of Classes

So far, there have been about 100 orphans here at Wema, because the school was on holiday, and here, the school year starts at the same time as the new year. However, it reopened today, and 300 more children, wjo have a home to go to, came today and will be coming in the next few days. There are mostly the paying children, who help the orphans who live at Wema with their tuition.

In the morning, we met with the teachers, and tomorrow we will sit in on classes. I will be going to two classes. I will be a student in Swahili class, and I will help instruct English.

The hit of the day was definitely Musical Chairs. We used the bark of sugarcane for markers for chairs and blasted music through our Ipod speakers, and the kids loved it. They picked up the came right away, and a whole crowd gathered to watch and cheer on the players. It is amazing how excited the kids get about little things like a new ball or learning a new game. It makes you realize the joys of small things all over again.

We went into town to buy water and internet, and on the way back we carried the water on my head, or at least tried... I'll get better :)

A new experience for me, was I got to see a newborn calf! They called us over, and told us one of their cows was calfing! We didn't see the actual birth, but as the sun went down, we rushed over to see the cow licking her newborn. They only get about one calf a year, so we felt pretty special.

My athletic Harvard friends have decided to go on a 5 mile run every day through town, so I thought I'd give it a try today. Running through town was so fun. Everyone waved and cheered us on, and we said hello to hundreds of people as we ran by. Then, we ran out of town and down a hill along the sugarcane fields blowing in the gentle breeze. It would have been beautiful, if I weren't dying trying to keep up with two marathon runners! Maybe I'll just stay and play with the kids tomorrow.

At bedtime, we read the kids stories and fell exhausted into our own beds.

Until Tomorrow,

Laura

Day Two

We woke up at 4:30 AM by the roosters, but we were exhausted and went back to sleep until 9, which is very very late here, as the children are up by 5:30 every morning with the sun.  

In the morning, we went to church in the school house, where the teachers led prayer, and the children all sang songs. Meredith played the guitar, and the sermon was all about our arrival as a miracle from God.

It is heartbreaking the amount of faith they place in us. They have no cars that work, so when the kids get sick, they don't have a means of taking them to the hospital. The kids all sleep  two to a bed, their dormitories are not complete, and this year they ran completely out of food, having to borrow from the local farmers. They have a contaminated well, and their teachers are paid just enough to live on. Yet, the school is one of the best in Kenya. The examination results just came out, and they got the 2nd best school in the Western Province. In is a formidable task the teachers have given us in asking for help.  We are 19 and 20 years olds, totally clueless, but we will do what we can to help.

The rest of the day we spent playing with the kids, and the excitement over the little gifts we brought was almost too much. They hadn't ever played with Frisbees or a baseball bat before, and they shrieked with excitement when we brought out the balloons. Duck Duck Goose was a big hit, and the children sat around us excitedly for over half an hour as we blew up a giant inflatable ball. The best part was when I got tired and sat down, all the little girls would come over and sit with me and smile, wanting to play with my hair.

The kids hadn't seen many cameras either, and they were very excited. They all giggled to see themselves on video, and they all wanted to be in pictures. They were so enthusiastic; the hardest part was getting them far enough from the camera to get a picture of more than one of their noses. :)

Here, I am so glad to speak some Swahili. The kids speak some English, but with our American accents, it is hard to communicate. I can understand enough to get by, and I explained a few games in my broken Swahili, wishing to learn so much more.

We'll be up at 6:00 AM tomorrow, so for now usiku mwema (Good Night).

-Laura

P.S. I have pictures, but uploading them is difficult, so I will try tomorrow.

We are here!

Two days of airplane travel later, we arrived. The road from Kisumu to Bungoma was the most pot-holed road I have ever seen. It was paved, but it would probably have been faster if the whole road was unpaved because the holes every few yards went all the way down to the dirt below. Zigging and zagging crossing back and forth, bottom of the car scraping, we bumped along. Suitcases on our laps and between our legs, we went onward for hour after hour, the sun setting, and onward into the blackness, we at last arrived.

And wow, were we welcomed. Even though it was pitch black, over 100 orphans came out to meet us, chanting "Welcome!" to us. They danced and sang, and thanked us, and we paradrf to the other side of campus, where they sang more! They had been practicing just for us. We shook every child's hand, and the children followed us all the way back to our rooms, and we left them with promises of being together tomorrow.

They had cooked us an amazing meal with chapati, rice, meat from a cow killed for their graduation ceremony and for our arrival, potatoes, soup, and more. We were really hungry, as well as taken aback and flattered with our welcome.

And, another wonderful surprise was the stars. I have never seen so many stars. They say sunsets are beautiful here, but I had no idea how many stars are in the sky.

Wishing on one that you are all enjoying your new year.

Good night (our first in Kenya) from some exhausted, excited, and elated travelers.

-Laura

London

Hello!

I'm on the express train with Alex after a few hours in London. We saw Big Ben, Parliment, the War Cabinets, Buckingham Palace, and so much more. A wonderful 3 hours and my first time in Europe.

Our train is arriving! Write next time I have internet!

Love,

Laura