24 juin 2006, 08:59
new favourite place
Wow. I don't know where to begin. I want to say that it's nothing that I expected, but I am not even really sure what I expected. I arrived in Nairobi late Monday night (after 27 hours of travel, including a day in the TO airport and a wailing/violent deportee). As soon as we landed, it occurred to me that I was completely ignorant to the process - I didn't know where I was supposed to go, where I was staying, etc (yes, I know, so much for trying to be safe).
But after picking up my bag, I walked out of the gate to find a whole group of smiling Cosmos faces (complete with my name on a sign, which I always wanted to experience!).
The next day was an amazing experience in contrast. We went to a school in the morning where most children were sponsored to attend (secondary education isn't free). Village children were running around barely clothed and people sat on the side of the dirt 'road' waiting for something to do. The school itself was made out of mud and tin, and was clearly serving a terribly impoverised area.
The afternoon was spent at Kenya High, which is an incredibly affluent girls' boarding school (most are boarding schools). The campus was bigger than my university and the yard looked like a city park.
Wednesday to Friday were spent in similar, but less structured ways. We went to more schools, but also got to visit Nairoi university, the arboreteum, the Masai market, a engineering firm that designs sustainable farm equipment at low cost, the hospital (the only place in town I could find a phone), etc.
Today we are driving to the Mount Kenya region and spending a week there. Afterwards, we will be heading to the western part of the country, masai mara, mombassa, zanzibar, . . .
I've got so much to say (and many many pictures), but am running out of time here. Send me stories. Love you. Miss you.