I can't believe it is time to come home. Today is our last day in South Africa. It's been an amazing and odd trip adventuring around the southern-eastern coast of South Africa. Many funny stories to share which I will when we return. The internet access has been so spotty I havent had much time or access to write much or post some of the really neat pictures we have taken, both from South Africa and Kenya.
I was very sad to leave Nairobi after such a short time. I made some very nice friends and really loved working with MSDP and look forward to continuing those new friendships. When home I look forward to sharing stories and pictures of the work being done there by some wonderful people.
Andy met me in Jo'burg where we explored for a few days - spending a whole day at the Apartheid Museum- Incredible! From there we flew to Cape Town, saw a few sights and headed south east going to Cape of Good Hope, the Cape of Alghulus (sp?), Hermanus,Swellendam, Mossel Bay and back to Cape Town where we took a boat to Robben Island yesterday. We saw beautiful countrysides, the southern most tip of Africa, the Indian and Atlantic Oceans collide, very kind and interesting people, a group of Harley Riders on holiday from Jo'burg (mostly women), some back roads and finally a few towns that no one else on holiday has probably ventured too (in other words we kind of got lost:-)).
It's been a great time with lots and laughs too! Well must sign off so we can check out a few more things in Cape Town before we head to the airport for our flights. We depart at 11:55 p.m. tonight and arrive in Atlanta at 8:30 tomorrow night. All in all - 26 hours of travel.
See you all soon!
Much love!
E
Monday, September 26, 2011
Monday, September 12, 2011
Very Sad day in Nairobi
It's been a very strange day. This morning when I arrived at MSDP the entire staff gathered for the Monday morning prayer session. We sang, prayers were said and we study a passage from the bible. It was a very nice and inspiring way to start the week. Two hours later we first starting hearing about the fire occuring in one of the slums MSDP serves. As the reports started coming in it was very clear it was going to be very bad. The staff was very concerned for the safety of the beneficaries living in Lunga Lunga. Once the fire was contained the entire staff (myself included) road two matatus(small buses) and walked through two other slums (Kayaba and Reuben) to get to Lunga Lunga. From where we stood we could see the area of the fire, a surprisingly small area. It was incredible to think that well over 100 people had perished and 100 plus were headed to the hospital. The red cross and fire fighters were still pulling bodies from the ruble. The hospitals are filled to capacity and I wonder what expertise they have dealing with so many burn victims.
The residents of the slums are working so hard to survive and this tragedy will have long reaching impact. In talking with one of my roommates, this slum will most likely be bulldozed and thousands will be displaced. Believe it or not, the residents pay rent for the tin shacks they live in. There is no running water and so the residence must pay 3 shillings to use the restroom (a whole in the ground) and 5 shillings to shower. Some residence have electricity but many do not. If Lunga Lunga is bulldozed then all those residence will have find somewhere else to live driving up the prices in the other slums.
I have been so impressed with the services provided by MSDP. In addition to assistance with food and rent, they have a multiple job training programs and help women set up small kiosk business. The women are all part of savings and loan groups that have been set up by the center. Every Friday over 100 women come to the center and in addition to educational programs, they meet in their subgroups of savings and loan groups. Each women contributes 20 shillings and then they give it to the person who needs it that week. The women who recieves the loan then has a set time to pay back the money as well as interest. This process has allowed these women to grow their business. Last Friday a representative from Incorporated bank came to deliver the women their savings bank cards. As a result of this program, all of the women were able to open saving accounts! In Kenya there is a process called MPESA which allows people to do banking via their cellphones. Everyone has a cell phone. They are very cheap and accessible. A women can go to an MPESA kiosk and give them the money they want to deposit. The women then recieves a code to input in her phone and she can then send the money to her bank account via the phone. Since there are no ATM's or banks close, this is an amazing tool that makes utilizing a bank account possible. As I sat and listened on Friday, I couldnt stop thinking about the work of a professor at Washington University. Michael Sheridan has been doing work for years on the benefits of saving accounts and how they can help move people out of poverty.
This tragedy is a good reminder of how fast life can change, to live every day, and how thankful I am for all that I have been given.
I hope you all are well!
Much love!
E
The residents of the slums are working so hard to survive and this tragedy will have long reaching impact. In talking with one of my roommates, this slum will most likely be bulldozed and thousands will be displaced. Believe it or not, the residents pay rent for the tin shacks they live in. There is no running water and so the residence must pay 3 shillings to use the restroom (a whole in the ground) and 5 shillings to shower. Some residence have electricity but many do not. If Lunga Lunga is bulldozed then all those residence will have find somewhere else to live driving up the prices in the other slums.
I have been so impressed with the services provided by MSDP. In addition to assistance with food and rent, they have a multiple job training programs and help women set up small kiosk business. The women are all part of savings and loan groups that have been set up by the center. Every Friday over 100 women come to the center and in addition to educational programs, they meet in their subgroups of savings and loan groups. Each women contributes 20 shillings and then they give it to the person who needs it that week. The women who recieves the loan then has a set time to pay back the money as well as interest. This process has allowed these women to grow their business. Last Friday a representative from Incorporated bank came to deliver the women their savings bank cards. As a result of this program, all of the women were able to open saving accounts! In Kenya there is a process called MPESA which allows people to do banking via their cellphones. Everyone has a cell phone. They are very cheap and accessible. A women can go to an MPESA kiosk and give them the money they want to deposit. The women then recieves a code to input in her phone and she can then send the money to her bank account via the phone. Since there are no ATM's or banks close, this is an amazing tool that makes utilizing a bank account possible. As I sat and listened on Friday, I couldnt stop thinking about the work of a professor at Washington University. Michael Sheridan has been doing work for years on the benefits of saving accounts and how they can help move people out of poverty.
This tragedy is a good reminder of how fast life can change, to live every day, and how thankful I am for all that I have been given.
I hope you all are well!
Much love!
E
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Day 3 at Mukuru Slums Development program
Sasa!
I learned recently that Jambo is actually only what people say to tourists. Sasa or Mambo is how you say hello if you’re a local. I said goodbye to my Mom on Monday and headed over to a neighborhood called South B where the apartment is that I am staying for the time I am here as well as the office for the Mukuru Slums Development Project. I dropped my bags at the apartment and went straight to the office.
I met the director and the manager of the social support services where I will be spending most of my time. I received a tour and a briefing on all of the services provided by MSDP. It is a fairly large operation with several different branches. Prior to 2006 all of these branches operated separately but in 2006 they merged together and formed a formal NGO. The social services department is made up of Economic empowerment, Medical support, emergency feeding, temporary rent, transports , referral, networking, HIV/AIDS psychosocial support, and a cash for work program. There is a Children and Youth department which has a weekend sports program, and a rehabilitation center. There is a skills center which beneficiaries can learn hairdressing, catering, plumbing and masonry, and arts and crafts. Within the Mukuru Slums MSDP has created a secondary school and finally a waste management program. If you would like to learn more MSDP has a website. Just type in Mukuru Slums Development Project in your search engine and it should come up.
I have had a chance to go on a home visit, work with part of the economic develop program making jewelry and tye dye marbling of large fabrics. Tomorrow I will be going to visit business’ that MSDP has helped women get started and also one of the cash for work projects. It’s been a very informative experience so far.
I am sharing a 4 bedroom flat with two university students from Yugoslavia, two from Austria and one from Ireland. One of the students is doing an internship at MSDP and has helped me get settled and figure out what I am doing. The rest of the students are at other social service agencies and have all been here for 3-6 months and very passionate about the work they are doing. It’s been wonderful to talk with them all and learn about what their organizations are doing as well.
As I am typing I am listening to the evening Call to Pray from the local mosque. It is a wonderful surprise. After spending early July with Kids for Peace and learning about the Call to Pray it is great to actually experience it.
On a sad note, I received news today of Jim McLeod passing. It makes me very sad to know his light has left this world, but I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to know him. If you are so inclined, please keep his family and friends in prayers.
I hope you are all well! Time is flying by and I will be home before I know it.
Much love!
E
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Wow how time flies!
Jambo!
Mom and I are back in Nairobi at the Stanley hotel. Though I thought we would have more access to internet I was incorrect. Cell phone coverage was amazing but not so for internet so I will be doing some postdated up loads in the coming days. That is, if I have access to wireless when I am in Nairobi. I certainly hope so.
Mom and I had a wonderful trip. We started at Amboseli, which in the Masai language means dust. That pretty well sums it up! The ground is just dust with a few plants and trees. Its a very fragile ecosytem and the animals are a blessing and a curse to the ground is what we were told. We saw so many animals, up close and personal! Elepants, at one point a herd of 40, Wildabeasts, zebra's, gazelles, girraffe, and even lions! We had a wonderful guide named James who shared so much information with us about the Amboseli and it's inhabitants, inlcuding the Masai. We shared a land rover with a couple from Japan, and a young man from Mexico, though his parents were from China and he is currently living in Leggos. It was really neat to get to know them and share this experience.
From Amboseli we flew back to Nairobi and were taken to Lake Nakuru. It was about a four hour drive through some very interesting landscape. John, our driver, was so informative. We learned about the different communities we were going through and then once we got to the park he told us all about the animals we were seeing. The funniest part of the trip occurred as Mom and I were waiting in the parking lot outside of the Lake Nakuru park while John was getting tickets. Huge baboons were playing everywhere. We had watched them get into a car that the owners had left their windows open while they too went to buy tickets. The baboons had a field day in their car, dumping their sodas all over the inside and wrecking whatever they could find. John told Mom and I that he was rolling up his window so that they couldnt do the same while he was gone. I missed the fact that even if we were sitting in the car waiting the baboons might wish to come in for a visit as they were not at all shy. Mom and I were sitting in the van looking out her window and when I turned back around a huge male baboon was pulling himself up threw my open window. You always hope you will handle these situations with grace and little fuss.... yup-didnt quite happen that way, I screamed like a girl and pushed the baboon away. The baboon then sat under my window and pouted. Mom and I laughed. I really have no desire to see another baboon that close again.
From Lake Nakuru we drove back to Nairobi and flew to Masai Mara. We were greeted by a game driver that took us to our next home, the Governor's Camp. While signing in the manager explained to us that after 6 p.m. and before 7 a.m. we must be escorted by armed guards (who carried automatic weapons and rifles!)to our tents because of the animals that meander through the camp. The night before we arrived a lion and lioness had taken a courting stroll right in front of the tent we would be staying in. We both thought maybe they were exgarreating a bit, however as we were escorted to our tent we could see the lion tracks, elephant tracks, walked right past a wharthog and were shown a 6 foot crocodile nesting 200 yards from our tent! Needless to say we saw some amazing animals and I cant wait to post all of our pictures. I tried to post some tonight but the one I did get up took forever!
From the Mara we returned back to Nairobi and went to Swara Plains for two nights. It was wonderful to see what David Hopcraft has been doing and yesterday we had a very nice lunch together. We left Swara Plains this morning and had a very full day of sightseeing. We started with visiting the baby elephant sanctuary, then went to the giraffe sancturary where we were able to feed the giraffes, and finally we ended at the Karen Blixon museum. She was the author of Out of Africa and seems to have had large impact on the area just outside of Nairobi.
So that is our last week in a nutshell. Mom flies home tomorrow and I head to Mukuru Slums. It has been a wonderful week and I cant believe how fast the time has gone. I hope that in the coming days I will have more internet access so I can write more but if not I am sure when I get to a real hotel again in South Africa I can post more.
I hope you all are well and fall is in the air back home!
Much love!
E
PS- I am writing fairly quickly so please forgive the misspellings and typos!
Mom and I are back in Nairobi at the Stanley hotel. Though I thought we would have more access to internet I was incorrect. Cell phone coverage was amazing but not so for internet so I will be doing some postdated up loads in the coming days. That is, if I have access to wireless when I am in Nairobi. I certainly hope so.
Mom and I had a wonderful trip. We started at Amboseli, which in the Masai language means dust. That pretty well sums it up! The ground is just dust with a few plants and trees. Its a very fragile ecosytem and the animals are a blessing and a curse to the ground is what we were told. We saw so many animals, up close and personal! Elepants, at one point a herd of 40, Wildabeasts, zebra's, gazelles, girraffe, and even lions! We had a wonderful guide named James who shared so much information with us about the Amboseli and it's inhabitants, inlcuding the Masai. We shared a land rover with a couple from Japan, and a young man from Mexico, though his parents were from China and he is currently living in Leggos. It was really neat to get to know them and share this experience.
From Amboseli we flew back to Nairobi and were taken to Lake Nakuru. It was about a four hour drive through some very interesting landscape. John, our driver, was so informative. We learned about the different communities we were going through and then once we got to the park he told us all about the animals we were seeing. The funniest part of the trip occurred as Mom and I were waiting in the parking lot outside of the Lake Nakuru park while John was getting tickets. Huge baboons were playing everywhere. We had watched them get into a car that the owners had left their windows open while they too went to buy tickets. The baboons had a field day in their car, dumping their sodas all over the inside and wrecking whatever they could find. John told Mom and I that he was rolling up his window so that they couldnt do the same while he was gone. I missed the fact that even if we were sitting in the car waiting the baboons might wish to come in for a visit as they were not at all shy. Mom and I were sitting in the van looking out her window and when I turned back around a huge male baboon was pulling himself up threw my open window. You always hope you will handle these situations with grace and little fuss.... yup-didnt quite happen that way, I screamed like a girl and pushed the baboon away. The baboon then sat under my window and pouted. Mom and I laughed. I really have no desire to see another baboon that close again.
From Lake Nakuru we drove back to Nairobi and flew to Masai Mara. We were greeted by a game driver that took us to our next home, the Governor's Camp. While signing in the manager explained to us that after 6 p.m. and before 7 a.m. we must be escorted by armed guards (who carried automatic weapons and rifles!)to our tents because of the animals that meander through the camp. The night before we arrived a lion and lioness had taken a courting stroll right in front of the tent we would be staying in. We both thought maybe they were exgarreating a bit, however as we were escorted to our tent we could see the lion tracks, elephant tracks, walked right past a wharthog and were shown a 6 foot crocodile nesting 200 yards from our tent! Needless to say we saw some amazing animals and I cant wait to post all of our pictures. I tried to post some tonight but the one I did get up took forever!
From the Mara we returned back to Nairobi and went to Swara Plains for two nights. It was wonderful to see what David Hopcraft has been doing and yesterday we had a very nice lunch together. We left Swara Plains this morning and had a very full day of sightseeing. We started with visiting the baby elephant sanctuary, then went to the giraffe sancturary where we were able to feed the giraffes, and finally we ended at the Karen Blixon museum. She was the author of Out of Africa and seems to have had large impact on the area just outside of Nairobi.
So that is our last week in a nutshell. Mom flies home tomorrow and I head to Mukuru Slums. It has been a wonderful week and I cant believe how fast the time has gone. I hope that in the coming days I will have more internet access so I can write more but if not I am sure when I get to a real hotel again in South Africa I can post more.
I hope you all are well and fall is in the air back home!
Much love!
E
PS- I am writing fairly quickly so please forgive the misspellings and typos!
Saturday, August 27, 2011
We made it!
We are finally here! After 2 planes, 16 hours of flying, 3 hours hanging in Amsterdam and a short ride from the airport Mom and I are settling into our hotel room at Stanley in downtown Nairobia. Since we arrived at 9 p.m. we didnt get to see much of the city but the people we have been just wonderful.
We meet Sammy, our driver tomorrow at 6:15 a.m so it will be an early morning but cant wait!
Hope you all are doing great!
We meet Sammy, our driver tomorrow at 6:15 a.m so it will be an early morning but cant wait!
Hope you all are doing great!
And we are off!! August 26-27, 2011
Jambo!
It has been a busy few days getting ready for this adventure! After a very quick two weeks in St. Louis, Dillon and I jumped in the car and headed to Atlanta on Tuesday. Dillon will be staying with his “cousins.” Andy, Molly, Taylor, Dalton and Sam have a small zoo of animals which Dillon LOVES!! Unfortunately the cats, Daisy and Twinkie, don’t really have the same love for him. Perhaps 5 weeks together will bring love and happiness amongst them all.
Mom flew in yesterday (Thursday) and after a morning of last minute errands, Andy took us to the airport today to catch our 5:30 p.m. flight to Amsterdam. For those of you who have traveled with me (SusanJ) you know how much I love to arrive hours early to the airport, I think I am improving! We made it to the airport 2.5 hours before our flight and it was all ok! For those of you who haven’t traveled with me, my preference even for USA travel is to arrive AT LEAST 2 hours in advance. International travel – I tried for 4 hours but the laughter that suggestion received made me reconsider and at least drop it to 3 hours.
Mom and I got checked in and headed to our gate. After a light snack we boarded and were met with the nicest flight attendants. We were shown to our seats by a young gentleman who said I was sitting in the “Shakespeare seat” -2B. He departed with a few witty remarks and then we settled in, played with all the gadgets attached to the seats, opened our complimentary travel kit which includes some nice travel accessories including socks, a toothbrush and can you believe it, a shoe shine kit! Since this is literally the trip I have dreamed of since I was 18 I decided to go all out and we are in business class. I feel a bit like the Clampets on vacation, in awe of all the newfangled fancy accessories and such. On our next flight, my mom and I are sitting on the 2nd story of a 747!! I remember as a child hearing about these double decker planes and thought how cool is that! Well, I will let you know! Hopefully they haven’t changed equipment on us.
We arrive in Amsterdam at 8:15 a.m. Amsterdam time (that’s 2:15 a.m. eastern time) and catch our next flight at 11:00 am to Nairobi. We land at 8:15 p.m. (or 12:15 eastern I think). At Jomo International Airport we will be met by our travel agent’s representative and taken to our hotel in downtown Nairobi. It will be a short night after a long day of traveling as we are to meet our transportation guide at 6:15 a.m. the next morning and our Safari begins!
We will start our safari adventure at Amboseli which is just a short flight from Nairobi. We arrive at 8:10 a.m. at the Amboseli Airstrip. I guess that means we are roughing it! No gates or concourses. From there we will go and check into the Serena Lodge. After checking in we will spend Sunday and Monday game viewing.
Tuesday, August 30th, we return to the Amboseli airstrip and take an 8 a.m. flight back to Nairobi where we will be met by a guide who will drive us to the Rift Valley. We check into Sunbird Lodge at Lake Elemntaita. From there we will spend the rest of the day at Nakuru National Park for another game drive. From what Raza, our Africa Mecca reservations officer, says this will be a long day. The drive to the park alone is 3 hours. We will return to Sunbird Lodge and spend the night.
It sounds like we will have our first “leisurely” morning on the 31st. We drive back to Nairobi and catch a 3 p.m. flight to Masai Mara. This is a pretty short flight. We arrive at 4 p.m. and are met by the Governors’ Camp guides who take us to Masai Mara and we check into our tents. We then have a late afternoon/evening game drive . The next morning we have the option to take a 5:30 a.m. balloon safari. Mom and I are still discussing this option. Of course Raza “mentioned” it but didn’t mention the price. Whether we choose to do the balloon ride or not we will spend September 1st driving through Masai Mara.
The next morning, September 2nd we will do some exploring in the morning and then return to the Masai Mara airstrip to fly back to Nairobi. We will be met at the Wilson airport by a representative from Swara Plains who will escort us to Swara Plains were we will stay until the 4th. Now for you in the audience who have an NLC/AYF connection you may remember hearing about Swara Plains three years ago when the founder. David Hopcraft, at Miniwanca was a forum speaker during the NLC. Unfortunately I was unable to make it to Conference in time to meet David however I had spent the year prior communicating with him via email. When he was first mentioned as a possible forum speaker I went to the Swara Plains website and thought to myself, “someday I want to go there!” Someday is here!! I can’t believe it.
From the sounds of it, Swara Plains will be our opportunity to relax and enjoy our surroundings without the use of a vehicle for the first time during this adventure. And so this is how we conclude the safari portion of the adventure! On the 4th we return to Nairobi and spend the night. Mom flies home at 6 p.m. on the 5th and at noon I head to the Mukuru Slums Development Project where I will be doing case management follow up with the beneficiaries as well as a little group therapy with the women’s groups. I am very excited for this portion of the trip. I am looking forward to seeing how NGO/non profits work in Kenya and to have the opportunity to learn firsthand what the biggest challenges they face every day. The project manager has helped me find housing in a guest house on the edge of the slums for the two weeks I will be volunteering. From what I understand I may be spending a lot evenings inside until I am comfortable and understand my environment. Thank goodness for the Kindle! I have 10 books with me in a tiny tiny little tablet. I know this makes me sound old and out dated but Wow! I cant believe where technology has taken us.
If all goes well I wrap up my volunteer work on the 16th and then catch a flight from Nairobi to Johannesburg , South Africa on the 17th. Andy, my brother, should be arriving in Johannesburg on the 16th though he did mention today that he had a very very tight connection in Ethiopia. Keep your fingers crossed that it is a smooth and uneventful trip for him. We are renting a car and then spending the next 9 days making our way to Cape Town. We haven’t really planned much for this section of the trip but that is how Andy and I travel best together. The only thing we know for sure is there are some amazing scenery, some pretty nice wineries and a very interesting artist hub in Cape Town. We will probably spend at least 3 days in Cape Town before we depart on the 27th of September. Our flight goes from Cape Town to Johannesburg and then Johannesburg to Amsterdam and then Amsterdam to Atlanta arriving home on the 28th.
Dillon and I plan to return to St. Louis by the 1st of October just in time for my favorite time of year in St. Louis- Fall!
I am typing this on the flight the flight to Amsterdam. All the other passengers are asleep so I suppose I should try and do the same. Hopefully during our 3 hour layover we will find an internet connection so I can post this. I hope you all are doing well and for those of you in the northeast, that Irene is not wreaking too much trouble in your area!
Much love!
E
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
8 days and counting!
Eight days and counting! A week from Friday Mom and I depart from Atlanta bound for Nairobi and what looks like an amazing 6 days of sightseeing in 3 different parks and animal perserves. It is unclear how much internet access we will have during our expedition, however if possible I will post a bit about the trip.
In addition to the traditional safari, we will be spending two nights at Swara Plains. For those of you AYF'rs you may remember David Hopcraft was a forum speaker 3 years ago at NLC. Swara Plains is animal perserve he and his family founded. While preparing for his forum (prior to my little cancer sabatical) I learned a bit about Swara Plains and thought how someday I would love to visit! And now I get to visit and see this amazing place.
We will return from Swara Plains to Nairobi and Mom will head back to the states and I will head into the next portion of this adventure. If all goes as planned, I will be volunteering for two weeks at the Mukuru Slums Development Project. Not quite sure yet what I might be doing or even where I might be staying but I am sure it will all fall into place. This portion of the trip is incredibly exciting and a wee bit frightening as I dont have any idea what to really expect. I have a feeling the dicotome of experiences may take a bit to wrap my head and heart around; wealth, priviledge versus extreme poverty and all that goes with it.
Once those two weeks are up, I will fly from Nairobi to Johannesburg and meet up with Andy. We will rent a car and will spend the next 9 days finding our way from Johannesburg to Cape Town. This is section of the trip that has absolutely nothing planned yet, and perhaps wont. It's fun to wander and see what comes your way.
So, eight days and counting!
In addition to the traditional safari, we will be spending two nights at Swara Plains. For those of you AYF'rs you may remember David Hopcraft was a forum speaker 3 years ago at NLC. Swara Plains is animal perserve he and his family founded. While preparing for his forum (prior to my little cancer sabatical) I learned a bit about Swara Plains and thought how someday I would love to visit! And now I get to visit and see this amazing place.
We will return from Swara Plains to Nairobi and Mom will head back to the states and I will head into the next portion of this adventure. If all goes as planned, I will be volunteering for two weeks at the Mukuru Slums Development Project. Not quite sure yet what I might be doing or even where I might be staying but I am sure it will all fall into place. This portion of the trip is incredibly exciting and a wee bit frightening as I dont have any idea what to really expect. I have a feeling the dicotome of experiences may take a bit to wrap my head and heart around; wealth, priviledge versus extreme poverty and all that goes with it.
Once those two weeks are up, I will fly from Nairobi to Johannesburg and meet up with Andy. We will rent a car and will spend the next 9 days finding our way from Johannesburg to Cape Town. This is section of the trip that has absolutely nothing planned yet, and perhaps wont. It's fun to wander and see what comes your way.
So, eight days and counting!
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