First of all, HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA LOU AND MARCELLA!! I'm sending you lots of warm birthday wishes from Nairobi. :)Second of all, I'm running out of time to write but I'll quickly explain these photos!
1. My friend Patrick and I visited a Masai village outside of Nairobi on Sunday with one of our program staff whose family lives there. We climbed up on these big rocks overlooking the rift valley and it was absolutely beautiful. It was a nice, peaceful escape from the city for a day and it was really cool to see how traditional Masai still live. We were literally dropped off in the middle the dry, dusty savannah by our tuk-tuk driver (could be described as a cheap, 3-wheeled taxi) and had to walk about 20 minutes through bush to their home with no electricity and no running water.
2. Typical Nairobi traffic. Notice the random vendors mulling about trying to sell knick knacks through your car window. A couple weeks ago some guys even tried to sell us puppies through the window!
3. My (new) youngest host sister and I.
4. A group of us after climbing up Ngong Hills, looking over the Rift Valley. We went to see the one working windmill the government has built up there to bring power to the village of Ngong. Apparently the second windmill has been waiting for a replacement wing from Denmark (I think?) for almost 7 years!
5. The edge of Kibera slum. My new home is right on the edge of this area (although my actual home looks very different from this), so it definitely has a different feel in the neighborhood. I walk about 40 minutes to school now, but it's an interesting walk, passing by everything from the slum to one of the biggest outdoor markets to the Sudanese and Polish embassies.
Well, I'm off to another big adventure this weekend...
Stay warm in Minnesota!
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Hey Sexy! I'm so glad your new host family seems to be working out much better. That little girl is absolutely adorable! I'm sure they feel very lucky to have you in their home.
ReplyDeleteWe missed you at dinner the other night for Grandma and Marchella's birthday dinner. But don't worry, dad did remember to sign your name on the card...(after Marchella opened it and reminded him :-). I was very happy to get to know Vijay and Rekha. They are sooo sweet!
I will send you an e-mail about how my interview went. It was crazy!
Good luck on your adventure this weekend! Love you.
Hey B,
ReplyDeleteLove the pictures. It adds so much for us to be able to picture some of the types of settings that you are experiencing. I want to hear more about the Masai village, and will of course be thinking of you this weekend on your next adventure:Camping on the Nile- wow! Just another ordinary weekend, I guess.
Have a terrific time, and of course, stay safe.
Missing our B,
love Mom and Dad
Hey Bridget!
ReplyDeleteI've been meaning to check out your blog for... well, since you left... Anyway, I finally got my act together and scoped it out. Pretty sweet! I gotta say it's pretty awesome you're over there in Africa. The thought of living over there for that long intimidates this "apparently not such a worldly naval officer." Mad props!
I also wanted to let you know you're doing a great job on the blog. Cecelia and I, well more Cecelia than me, have one of our own and it's amazing how much time it takes to write about what's going on. Especially when you're doing cool stuff all the time, as is the case with you now. Also, that pic on blog cover is awesome! Did you upload that or was it an option when you created the blog? Either way, it's a great opening statement for the blog.
To be honest, I don't really remember how long you're going to be over there. I'm sure my Mom told me, she's pretty good about giving me updates from back home. Anyway, I hope the rest of the trip continues to be a success. I've made your blog's page a tab on my internet browser so I'll be seeing what's up more often. Can't wait to see more!
Sean
PS
If you're curious or have the time, or want to compare blogs, our blog's link is http://www.ceceliaandsean.blogspot.com/
Bridget,
ReplyDeleteLove those pictures'1 Is that a huge TV monitor in the upper left picture of the Nairobi traffic jam? What a country of contrasts: right in your face.
We are so glad you are enjoying your new host family. Seems like a "community center"
On the news I heard of a human rights activist man who was shot in Nairobi last week or so. Did you hear of this as well?
He worked for people who live in the slum area in Nairobi.
As bad as that is there in the slum, the situation in Haiti just south of us in the Carribean is just as bad if not worse in the cities and rural areas. Ironically, the other half of the island of Haiti is the Domincan Republic which flourishes.
Great job sharing highlights with us.
Love
Mike D