Midterm Week--Mombasa Visit

October 18^th

I can’t emphasize enough how much I love teaching at Gathirimu Girl’s School. Every day I am excited to go and be with my girls. The girls and I have grown very close to each other and the days when I am away we miss each other a lot. The majority of my time in the village is spent there—teaching lessons, preparing for lessons, coaching, or just hanging out chatting and spending time together. They never cease to have questions for me about America, my family, my friends, and myself.

This last week the girls had midterm exams starting on Tuesday and lasting until Thursday. On Friday they got to go home for midterm break and spend a few days, until Tuesday, with their families. Because I do not teach any examinable classes, I decided to take this free time and spend it exploring a bit of Kenya. I was fortunate enough to travel over to Mombasa, the Kenyan coast, for a little less than a week. Words cannot fully express how beautiful the Indian Ocean and coastline is.

Most people travel to the coast by bus at night as to get there in the morning. It takes about eight hours to get from Nairobi to Mombasa. We originally planned to leave on Monday night but plans changed and we left on Tuesday evening instead. Morris Mwaniki left early Tuesday to get bus tickets for the evening, while Mary and I traveled to Banana to spend the day with her family until it was time to catch the bus. We left Nairobi at around 9 o’clock. The majority of the bus ride we all chatted, listened to music, slept, and stopped at 2:00am for dinner. We were all laughing at the idea of eating dinner so late (or early). Although late, it was nice to be able to stop, eat, and use the bathroom. At 5:30am we arrived in Mombasa town—feeling sticky and ready for a shower especially from the long ride and humidity.

The week was filled with fun adventures but there were a few highlights. Some of my favorite memories from this trip will always be walking along the coastline on “Pirates Beach”, spending the day in Haller Park, visiting Fort Jesus, and late night evenings chatting with close friends while drinking tea. I traveled down to Mombasa with Morris and Mary but we met some friends from Nairobi while we were down there—Mwangi, Ben and some of their other friends. While we were there we also met some more people and always had a good time.

On the first day that we got there we spent our time walking on the coastline at a place called Pirates Beach. This is a very popular and beautiful place in Mombasa. This was my first experience on any kind of beach like this. It was beautiful—the white sand, the clear blue water, palm trees, and perfect weather. We were stopped often by Kenyans trying to sell us boat rides, snorkeling trips, etc. It was never too bothersome and because Morris was the main male they always talked with him first. During this afternoon I took a ton of pictures, enjoyed the atmosphere, and chatted with close friends. It was this first day that I got really sunburned. I forgot to use my sunscreen and suffered slightly for the rest of the trip. It was interesting because I had to explain the whole process of sunburns to Morris and Mary. They were surprised with how red I got.

 

The next day we went to Fort Jesus. This is a historical fort that was built by the Portuguese and declared a national monument in 1958; opened to the public in 1960. Fort Jesus is visited by almost all tourists that come to the Kenyan coast. We had a tour guide showing us all the different parts of the fort and taking pictures for us. It was very interesting and full of all sorts of history. The fort lays on the edge of the coast and when looking out you see how beautiful the environment is. I really enjoyed this day and spending time with Mary and Morris is always the best.

Morris and I ventured off to a Kenyan National Park called Haller Park on Thursday. Mary was not feeling well this day and decided to stay in and see if she could rest and get healthy. Haller Park is a beautiful place. We walked around the forest, took pictures, and saw all sorts of animals. The main animals were crocodiles, hippos, giraffes, fish, snakes, and turtles. I got to hang with a turtle that is 130 years old! When I was at this park I also got myself my first souvenir from Kenya—a children’s book about the real life relationship between this 130 year old turtle and an orphaned hippo. It is a super cute book and I was excited that I actually got to see the main character as well! We also got to watch the hippos and crocodiles getting fed. I had so much fun on this day—it was probably one of my favorite adventures since I have been to Kenya. If you know me you know I love hiking and nature. The forest in this park was absolutely beautiful and I enjoy learning about the different and new trees, flowers, etc.

When we were not traveling around the coast and playing the tourist role, we were typically relaxing, drinking tea, and chatting with our friends from Nairobi. It was an amazing little vacation and I think I will definitely visit again before I leave Kenya.

October? What!

October 3^rd

I can’t believe it is October already! It has now been officially over a month since I have lived in the village. The more I am here the more I am falling in love with the people, the environment, and the way of life. I can’t help to think how lucky and blessed I am to have this experience. Every day is a new adventure in which I am very grateful for.

Like always, the people in Kenya are amazing. I have been asked several times what my favorite thing about Kenya is and every time I say the people. It is not just within the family that I am staying in but the whole community. This all inclusive community includes my family of course, the girls at the high school, the kids at the primary school, the staff at both schools, the members of the church, the people I walk by on my way home, etc. I am constantly greeted with warm smiles and a welcome. The most common phrase I hear is ‘caribu’ meaning ‘welcome’.

The longer I am here in Kenya, the more family I gain. Every new event or family function I meet more people that I am related to in some way or another. I love it! Recently, I have been traveling to Banana, a village located almost within Nairobi, nearly every weekend. Mary’s (my Kenyan sister) brother Peterson is getting married on November 26^th. The planning process is a little different than at home and they have weekly gatherings with the wedding party and other family members to plan and prepare for the wedding. I love this and always look forward to Sunday’s because I get to relax at Mary’s home with some of my favorite family members. I absolutely adore Mary’s mother and I always feel so welcomed when I come. Also, Mary has a handful of nieces and nephews that I really enjoy playing with while I am there—they are some of the cutest kids I know. As far as the wedding goes, I have been invited to be a bridesmaid in the wedding. I was very surprised by this invitation although I am very excited and looking forward to the big event. Even with being in the wedding, I am not part of the planning process or meetings. This is due to the language barrier taking place at the meetings. Instead of staying in the main room with the bridal party, I tend to play with the kids and chat with other family members.

Because Sundays are consumed by our Banana visits, on Saturdays we find some sort of adventure to go on. I am always really eager to see new places and explore Kenya. Mary, Morris, and I have been going to new places each weekend. The weekend before last we went to a place in Thika called 14 Falls. It is a gorgeous sight with, as you can imagine, 14 waterfalls surrounded by a beautiful backdrop of Kenyan wilderness. While there we explored all over and around the waterfalls, took a small boat ride to the other side of the falls, and took a number of pictures. It is a quaint and peaceful environment. To me, it is one of those places that I could stay for days, relaxing and listening to the falls and the sounds of nature. One thing I do know, I will be back there before I go.

Last Saturday we went to Nairobi to the National Trade Show. There were many educational booths displaying everything about Kenya, animals, food, and a TON of people. In my opinion the amount of people was overwhelming. There were many times that I was holding Mary’s hand just to make sure I was still with everyone. Beyond the crowds of people, I had a good time explore and spending the day with family—Mary, Morris, Dennis, and Mama Joe.

During the week I am more than busy teaching both at Gathirimu Girl’s School and Mitahato Primary School. I have worked with my schedule and both principals to fit in the maximum amount of time at each location. I am teaching form one and form two (freshman and sophomore) Life Skills and PE. I think I will be adding on form three and form four for PE because of the amount of requests that I have been given. Currently, at the primary school, I have been focusing on implementing the Pen Pal Program. Every day, I spend an hour with class three and an hour with class eight at the end of the school day to teach lessons leading to the final product, the letters. If I have a free morning, in which I am not teaching at the high school, I go to the primary school to help out in the classroom. After teaching at the primary school, at the end of the day, I head back over to Gathirimu to spend time with my girls. This typically includes playing basketball or other sports, relaxing and chatting with the girls, showing them pictures, listening to music, etc. I value this time with the girls and look forward to it every day—it is probably my favorite part of the day. So, a typical day for me includes: either starting at home preparing in the morning or starting at the primary school, then walking to the high school to teach a PE lesson or two and Life Skills, then running back to the primary school to teach class three from 2-3 and then class eight from 3-4, and then I go back to the high school to be with the girls until around 6 (when it starts to get dark). It sounds busy but it is absolutely perfect for me—I love it!

Teaching, learning from, and being with the girls at Gathirimu high school has been an amazing experience. I am constantly excited to spend time there—I can honestly say that there is never a time that I am not eager to go. Interacting with the girls has already taught me more than I would have ever expected. I have only taught two weeks of Life Skills classes but I know that this time together is hugely important and valuable (for the girls and myself). We touch over topics like core values/qualities, self-awareness, self-esteem, friendship/relationships, stress management, and whatever else I am able to fit into the term. I am very open with the girls and I constantly encourage them to be open with me as well. This includes asking any questions that they might have. Many of them fear asking questions out loud so I allow them to write notes and pass them up to me during class. I also encourage one-on-one meetings to any of the girls that feel the need or want to chat with me. I have had a few meetings so far and they have been very positive.

From both the questions I have received and the conversations I have had with the girls, I know that these girls face many very difficult challenges in their lives. It pains me to hear what some of them have had to go through, but on the other end it inspires me to hear their positive spirits and the attitude they are able to have when life is unbearable. Many of these girls, at age 14, have had to endure more than I can even imagine. I had the gift of talking to a form one student for a little over two hours the other day. This talk, I can honestly say, changed my life. Her faith, strength, courage, and smile inspire me to be a better person. I believe that sometimes God places certain people and situations in your life to help you along your own journey. This was definitely one of those times. I walked home that day filled with so many different emotions. I wanted to break down and cry from hearing about all of the pain she has had to bear. Even with this emotion, there was no way I could cry because if she is strong and has a positive outlook on life then who am I to be negative or overcome with sadness. Through the pain and sadness that I feel for some of my girls’ situations, I am choosing to follow their lead and have courage, strength, and faith.

As many of you know, a common challenge that Kenyans face is poverty. This ranges in all different forms and situations. Some are struggling to put food on the table. Some are struggling to have shelter to sleep or clothes to wear. Some are struggling to send their child to school. The struggles are numerous and at times seem never ending. It is for this reason, what I have experienced and what I have seen, that I aspire to create my own non-profit organization or sponsorship program. My main focus is education. Obviously, I feel that education is a fundamental part of life and it is hugely important. Here, in Kenya, it is very common for pupils to not finish or even get to the high school level. A huge factor in these situations is school fees. While I am here and as I travel back home I plan on creating a program to sponsor needy family/students in finishing their education. Because of the environment that I am in, I plan to primarily focus on Gathirimu high school—at least to start. There are already a few girls there that I know need support in order to finish even the school year. I am working to find sponsors for these girls to finish high school. Education is everything. Not to “advertise” but if anyone is interested in sponsoring or being a part of helping please let me know. If you are interested it would be best to email me at hopemegen@gmail.com.

I want to get this post up quickly now that I have internet again. I have heard many people have wanted to hear what I have been up to. Sorry that it has taken me so long to post since last time. My goal is to post every other week or so—although I will post again very soon about my latest adventure. Thanks for reading and you’ll hear from me again very soon. Miss you all like normal!

 Some of my girls at Gathirimu