SAFARI

I went on my first African safari this weekend. Paul, Chris, Kami, and I headed about three hours north of Nairobi to visit two parks, which lead us into the northern hemisphere and a stop at the equator. It was my first time in the northern hemisphere in three months!

Here I am at 0 degrees latitude...


Despite what people think, water does not swirl in the opposite direction when going down a drain or toilet in the southern hemisphere. It's the same whether you're in the north or south. They had funnels to test it at the equator. I've also tested it in Brazil. Same results - no difference.

The lodge we stayed at sat near the base of Mt. Kenya. Each morning I woke up at 6 am to see a beautiful sunrise as I had quiet time with God on the balcony. Here was the view from our room...We saw three of Africa's "big five" (buffalo, rhinos, and elephants). If you can't see, those are rhinoceroses behind me. I still need to see leopards and lions to see all five of Africa's famous beasts. I'd like to see a cheetah too. Although we didn't see the "cats", we saw a lot of beautiful herbivores.We ended a full day of safari with a beautiful sunset as we hoped and waited for lions to come out. Although the lions didn't expose themselves, we did watch vultures eat a zebra carcass with the setting sun behind them. Overall, I'd say my first safari was a great success.

Being out in the beautiful expanse of Africa, seeing all the variety of animals, and driving through jungles and savanna... I love it. Friends here have said to me, "It's cool to see all the animals," but for me it was more than that. I can't completely explain it, but I know God has brought me here for reasons beyond teaching at Rosslyn for three years. It's exciting to think and anticipate what He has planned. All of this probably sounds cheesy, but I feel like these three months in Africa are the beginning of something bigger. Who knew that elephants and giraffes could have such an impact! :)

Lovin' Laundry Day!

It hasn't been raining nor has our water been turned on. However, after four days without water, a large truck came and filled our reserve tank, which should last for a couple weeks. Although we're still rationing, we have water to shower, clean dishes, and wash clothes. So I've spent the last two days washing clothes, and I am happy to do laundry! There weren't even enough clothes lines in and outside the house to hang all my laundry. It's a good problem.

We are currently experiencing the "short rains", which are supposed to last about five weeks. The temperature has dropped (I wore a long sleeved sweater to work this week!), but the rain has only come twice. If it doesn't rain a good amount this season, then we're in for a tough "winter" of rationing water until March when the long rains come. Thank you for your prayers. Rain seems like a silly thing to pray for, especially for my Oregonian friends, but it's a big deal here. No rain means a lot of trouble for most of Kenya (and no laundry for me). Please continue to keep us in your thoughts.

Day 3!

Three days without water and still the faucets are void of a single drop. That's right... Three days of no showers, three days of not flushing toilets, three days without drinking water, and three days of not washing dishes. We've found ways around our limited supply of water, however. We went to a friend's house on Sunday night for showers. We pray each night for rain to fill the buckets we've placed outside, which has been successful once. This took care of the toilets. I'm filling up multiple water bottles with drinking water at school each day and bringing them home to quench thirst and brush teeth. Then today a small dribble was found on the faucet outside our back porch, so we're leaving it slowly dripping and washing the dishes with that. Tonight I used some of our collected water to boil eggs. With the left over boiled water (full of chicken poop from the eggs) I flushed my toilet. I won't even mention the laundry issues!

Here I am recycling the boiled water to flush the toilet.So every time you use your kitchen sink, flush your toilet, start a load of laundry, drain your pasta and just let the water flow down the sink, you can think of me. Please keep praying for rain, so our water shortage ends. And pray that the Nairobi City Council turns our water back on.

Let it rain! Let it rain! Let it rain!

We are completely without water today. We have been rationing water for a few weeks now. The school only uses water for flushing toilets, and my large pile of laundry at home is heaping. I must admit I wish it would rain. That's how bad it's gotten! So today when I got home from another day at the pool, I was a little happy when I had to run in the house to prevent being pelted by raindrops (because when it rains here, it pours). As I ran down our steep driveway, I stopped to laugh at Wendy, who was washing dishes outside in the rain.For those of you who have been praying for rain in Kenya, keep praying. It's working!

A Day Off...

Today was Eid-al-Fitr, the end of Muslim Ramadan. Being that Kenya has a large Muslim population, it is a Kenyan national holiday, which means that I got the day off work. Although it was strangely in the middle of the week, it was a much needed break, since we haven't had a day off school since August 11. So what does one do with a free Wednesday in Nairobi?

Hit the pool!

The Windsor Golf Course and Resort is a ten minute drive from my house. For 300 shillings (about $4) you can enjoy a day by the pool-side, with waiters bringing you anything from the menu your heart desires.

The golf course provides a beautiful view, with a 5 km walking path you can walk or jog for free. Monkeys scurried across our path several times as we got our morning workout in, walking the golf course path before a dip in the pool.

This was the view above me as I laid on the plush lounge chair all day.After being at the pool all day, drinking 3 liters of water, going to the bathroom every 30 minutes, and applying sunscreen several times, I came away rested, relaxed, and a little tanner. It was a perfect day off.