Uganda!

Jambo my mzungu rafikis!

I LOVE UGANDA. Seriously. If I could spend the rest of my time there, I would. We took the overnight bus from Nairobi. The only problem with the overnight bus is, if the extraordinarily bumpy road doesn't wake you up, then the police checkpoints where they flash lights and wave guns in your face will. Side note: the police here carry huge ass guns.

Uganda is gorgeous. Like rolling green hills, and the Nile is amazing. I also felt really comfortable in Jinja, our town. We stayed at this place in Uganda called Adrift. It's a little resort thing on the Nile. There is a bar, and little cabins to sleep, and its only $5-10 USD a night. There were also hot showers, and real toilets!!!! It's full of travellers from all over,and it was nice to meet people. We arrived there Saturday morning, and we took a couple of boda bodas to the camp from the bus stop. Boda bodas are these little motor cycles that drive you places for like 75 cents, like a way cheap taxi. I was so overtired, I just found them hilarious. There was like 6 of us, so it was like this fleet of boda bodas cruising through Jinja. We just hung around saturday, and napped, and then had some drinks at the bar. On Sunday, we went white water rafting down the Nile. IT WAS AWESOME!!!!!! One of the best things I've ever done for sure. Some of the rapids were grade 5, anything over 5 can't be done cause you'll drown. We almost went over a water fall, but the water level was too high and we couldn't paddle to it fast enough. We flipped once which was hilarious. The water like sucks you away and you just float down to where is calmer. On the stretches of flat water, we just laid on the raft and tanned. Even with reapplying SPF 50 like 6 times, I still got a little burn. I also have mosquito bites all over my face due to lack of nettage at the camp haha. It looks like I have chicken pox. Apparently, as long as you can afford the malaria meds, its no big thing. Still, I'm hoping for no malaria.

That night, we went bungee jumping. Adrift let's you go for free if you go naked if you're a girl. It's 70 $US per jump. Need I say more? Linn, Becca, and I went together so it wasn't as bad. We did it at dusk because a) its darker and less visible and b) there is a muslim community across the river so we had to wait until they were in for the night. There is a video, and its far enough away that you can't see details, but I'm still debating putting it on facebook. It was soo much fun!! Apparently news travels fast, and like the whole village came to watch.

Monday night was a lot of fun too. Like the whole bar was jamming to hakuna matata and circle of life. I just got back to Nairobi today, and I am going on a safari this weekend!!! I'll get back to Mombasa on Tuesday. Apparently there are a lot more volunteers there now, so it should be a bit more exciting around there.

I really want to go back to Uganda, but I don't know if I'll have time this summer. BOOO!! Anyway, this internet cafe is expensive as shit (4 shillings/min and 1000 is 15$ lol you do the math) so I should wrap it up.

I've only heard good things about the safari so I'm prettty excited. The weekend after that, some volunteers are coming to visit us in Mombasa. Then, Zanzibar for a weekend!

RAIN

I woke up to torrential downpour today. Apparently when it rains, the health centre opens later. The nurse was like "yeah when it rains, we sleep in", gotta love Kenya. I'm also pretty pumped because she has my cell number to call me whenever someone goes into labour. I'm determined to deliver a baby. I gave some needles today again, and on thursday I am going to work in community outreach. I think its just like giving immunizations on the side of the road? I'm not exactly sure. I also managed to get the nurses to use purrell between patients, seeing as there is no running water to wash hands. Also, the power went out for most of the day today. So, Becky was holding up a flashlight while we gave injections. I think I eat more fries (chips) and drink more coke here than I do at home. I 'm addicted to masala chips. 

OH and I should update you on the camera incident. While charging my backup camera, after destroying my first camera, I knocked it off the nightstand and now the lens won't come out. I'm going to Mombasa after community outreach on thursday to buy yet another camera. Thursday night I am taking the overnight train to Nairobi. I'm excited, cause I've never been on a train before. Then I'm meeting up with the rest of the gang in Nairobi, and we are taking an overnight bus to Uganda. Bungee jumping and drinking saturday, white water rafting on sunday.

LOVE

Hospital

I started at the hospital today. I LOVE IT. I feel much more useful. I gave needles to babies like all day. DPT, measles, and BCG. Obviously, the hospital is no where near the Canadian standards. I saw a nurse sneeze on a needle (like right on the sharp part) and then give it to a baby. She did not wash her hands once. She just hands out needles like randomly with no system for identifying who should have which immunizations. Med-error central. Carol would seriously unleash. The scale for weighing the babies is attached to a rafter in the ceiling with a piece of tattered cloth. Naked baby after naked baby gets into this little piece of material to be weighed (hanging from the ceiling). Half of them can't hold their heads up, so they just kind of flop over. Today alone, 3 babies almost fell. There is also a maternity ward, and the nurse told me I will help her deliver if anyone goes into labour while I'm there.

Tonight I'm making poutine for my host family, this will be interesting lol.

I'm trying to put pictures on facebook now, but these computers are effing slow as hell so we shall see if it works.

Sea Turtles

On friday I did laundry. I got lots of laughs there. Me and Becky apparently do not wash our clothes up to the standards of the women in the village. They all came to laugh. It was pretty funny though I'll admit. They do this weird scrub thing with their wrists that I do not have the muscle power for. We were all done and they were hanging dry and then more women walked by saying that they were not clean. Meh, they don't smell anymore.

Later, a few other volunteers came from Nairobi to visit for the weekend. We drank at 40 theives (as usual) and at like 2 am we went for a swim. We left our clothes and all our bags about 3 feet from the water. The tide came in, and everything was SOAKED. Both mine and Becca's cameras are ruined. We're past the mourning stage, its a laughing matter now. So then we decided to walk to the chalet that the other volunteers were staying at for the weekend, hahaha it was farther than we thought. We walked down the beach and the moonlight was soo bright and the water was so beautiful. BUT! there are these little gross sand crab things that run around, and they sneak up on you. We got to there chalet, and then security knocked on the door and said that we (becky and I) aren't registered guests, and that we had to leave. So we took a cab home at like 330 or so. And that was my friday!

Saturday, we went to see Fort Jesus. It is AMAZING! It was built in 1592 by the Portuguese. The view from the top is unbelievable. We also took a tuk tuk (cute little car like a golf cart but with 3 wheels, and they are taxis) around Old Mombasa. The coast has a very Islamic feel. There are mosques everywhere, and at around 8 every night you can hear the call to prayer. Its really cool, I wish I was allowed in lol.

And today we went snorkelling and to see the slave caves. Snorkelling was AMAZING! We took a boat to the reef and dived off. It was raining though, so it was a pretty cold boat ride. The lady next to me was sea sick, so I gave her some gum, and she was good to go. My goggles didn't fit right and I almost drowned trying to fix them, but then I got new ones and it was much better. We saw sea turtles, a sting ray, eels, and most of the fish from finding nemo. I will probably go back with Linn when it is sunny. Then we got back on the boat and went to an island, Wasini Island. It has no cars or bikes, and its really remote. We had lunch there (coconut rice, and everyone had crab but they made me chicken cause theyre super nice). Then we went to see the slave caves. OH MY GOD I AM TERRIFIED OF BATS. They fly at me and I get nauseas. Anyway, the slave caves are were the Arabs kept the slaves until they were shipping ot Zanzibar. There is still chains on the wall from where they chained up the ones who tried to escape. The slaves were kept there for 3 weeks. It was very creepy with the chains on the wall, and the scary gross bats.

Hopefully I will start at the hospital tomorrow. Tomorrow doesn't always mean tomorrow in Kenya time.

My Life as a Mzungu

I've got a little routine going:
Breakfast, School, Beach, Beach Bar, Sleep

I am still white as snow though. That SPF 50 is doing its job well... too well. People still point at me, and I still hear "Jambo, Jambo!" wherever I go. Becca and I are like
The orphanage is not really an orphanage at all. It's a school, and half the kids have village celebrities, we're kind of a big deal.
parents, and go home for lunch. Mama Hope asked me if I had anything planned for lunch, after I had given them tons of school supplies. She's not exactly greatful. Anyway, we are supposed to teach these kids, and about half speak fluent English. I've given up on teaching and just play games with them all day. It's not at all what I pictured. So, I am starting to volunteer at the hospital on monday. Becca worked at an orphanage in Thika and she said it was WAY DIFFERENT (and WAY better). She's also coming to the hospital instead. Mama Hope is in it for the money I think, and she grinds my gears lol. I hear good things about the hospital, so we shall see.

I'm starting to miss flushing toilets, running taps, and washing my hair. It'll pass I think. AND, UGANDA NEXT WEEKEND!! White water rafting down the Nile and bungee jumping!!

So, last night we ended up getting drunk with the British army guys and ended up at Shakatak's. Apparently, it's a common place for hookers to pick up white men. Imagine, there were about 7 white guys, and me and becca.

Well, that's all I can think of for now!
I'll write again soon!
XOXO

Orphanage

Today was the first full day of placement at the orphanage. The kids are alright, kind of cute, but very calm and quiet. During the day they are in school, and we are supposed to teach. I suck at teaching. The teachers suck at teaching worse than me though. After lunch they just kind of left (I'd like to point out that they are the ones that get paid while we run the school, literally). So, I gave up and we played football (soccer lol) and did puzzles all day. The only subject I can sort of teach is math because there is little English required. They all speak English, but it's their second language. I think next week I will work at the rehab center for teen boys, or at a hospital. I'm still having lots of fun. We met some British army boys at the beach. We're going back again tonight for margaritas.

This weekend will be fun! We are going out friday night for margaritas. Saturday we are going to explore Mombasa, and then to Fort Jesus and then to the elephant santuary. Sunday we are going snorkelling, swimming with dolphins, and to see these caves on an island.

I almost forgot to tell you how much of a spectical we are. I have been pet 3 times, and I had one little girl stop and stare with such awe that I couldn't help laughing. A lot of little boys try and tell you they are Barrack Obama's cousin, and one guy asked me if I was a celebrity lmao.

I'll try and put pictures on facebook next week sometime, after snorkelling and what not.

LOVE

Mama Hope

Jambo!
This will be short, I'm on my way to the beach. Becca and I started work at the orphanage today. Its a little hut with a grass roof. The kids are very shy. Some of them have AIDS, it's really sad. One little boy with AIDS was really sick today, and has really bad jaundice (his eyes were bright yellow). I asked when the last time he saw a doctor was, and they said last week. I'll keep an eye on him, and if it gets worse, I'll make sure he goes back.

Mama Hope, the lady who runs the orphanage is a bit sketchy. The only time she can speak English is when she's asking for money. Most of the time we will be teaching. We are just here printing some worksheets for school tomorrow, and then headed for the 40 theives. The 40 theives is a beach bar. It's AMAZING! It's like little tiki huts right on the white sand beach with palm trees all around. It's the hang out for volunteers. There is another volutneer program, Camp Kenya, just down the road.
I'll write more later. I'm having lots of fun, and I'm still working on starting a needle exchange program!

BYE :)

KENYA!!

JAMBO!!!
This is going to be a long one, bare with me.

I'M HERE!!! What a journey:3 planes, an 8 hour bus ride, a tuk tuk (<3), fairy boat, and matatu ride. I'll start from the beginning.So I arrived in Nairobi on time, but Cleo, the guy picking me up, was not. Some guy offered me his cell to call cleo and he said he was on his way, just stuck in traffic. I met up with a couple other volunteers at the airport and we waited together. We piled in the van and headed for Regina and George's house. They own an orphanage in Nairobi and some volunteers are placed there. It was cute, and there was about 10 or 11 other volunteers, all around my age. The next day we had orientation, and went to the mall to get phones and water (my cell # in Kenya is 00 254 731 114 1144). The next day a group of us went to the monkey park. The monkeys are quite accustomed to humans and its not uncommon for them to jump on you and snatch things. I had peanuts and I was all ready to feed them, and like 6 ran at me. I freaked out and dropped the peanuts. I was braver with the second bag of peanuts. I took one out and one was grabbing it out of my hand, distracting me (they are smart monekys) and then the other snatched the whole bag out of my other hand and the 2 ran up a tree and shared it. Then we went to the Masaii market: home to the pushiest sales people in Africa. This one guy followed me for 45 minutes, telling me that he is the "African Picasso" and I'll be sorry if I don't buy his masterpieces which will be worth billions one day. We then went back to Regina and George's for the night. Saturday night, I took the overnight bus to Mombasa with Becky, a volunteer from England.

I feel alot safer in Mombasa than in Nairobi, people stare at me in Nairobi like they are looking for something to steal, but in Mombasa they just stare cause I'm white. Mombasa is on an island, which I didn't know. Mombasa iS HOT! No, like really hot. A sauna 24/7. I sweat so much I pee like once a day, and that's saying something. I am ALWAYS hot and sticky. I'm getting used to it though. The home in Mombasa is not as nice at the one in Nairobi. I have no running water, and I think she said something about rats, I couldn't really understand, but I didn't want to know so I didn't ask her to clarify. I live in the hood. Needless to say, its dirty, and there are random goats and chickens hanging around. The family is really nice though. I actually really like Kenyan food. I eat lots of rice, and chipati (sp?) which is like a tortilla. Home is only a 3 minute matatu ride away from the beach. The beach is GORGEOUS!!! It's paradise. There is snorkelling and camel rides on the beach as well. Camels are HUGE!! I was thinking like cow-size ish, but no, they are really tall! The beach boys walk around trying to sell you stuff (they start by asking you if you are a celebrity). The best way I've discovered to handle the beach boys is to say you're here volunteering and you're not on vacation so to go down there (point far away) cause you think you saw some tourists on vacation over there.

Whenever Becca and I walk around town in Mombasa, the kids stop and stare and yell "mzungo mzugo!" (white person) and say "jambo" (hello). So we basically walk around saying Jambo Jambo Jambo, because every few feet a group of children are talking to us.
The traffic here deserves its own paragraph. CRAZY DRIVERS times a million. Like I've been in 2 accidents already. Well just other cars lightly bumping into us. The main way to travel is Matatus. THEY ARE NUTS. They are these little 14-seater vans that pack in up to 28 people ) the max I've seen). They take you places for like 20 shillings (1000 shillings=12 dollars, you do the math). They crank music and some have tv's and black lights. They are hilarious. People jump in and out and there is a faretaker who like hangs out the window trying to recruit people.

My placement is at Mama Hope's orphange. I met Mama Hope, she's alright. I didn't go to the orphanage today though, just a rehab center that is run by my host dad, who also runs the orphanage. The rehab center is for teen boys, but most are in their 20's. Becca and I cooked the boys (there is about 9 of them) spaghetti for lunch. They never had it before and had no idea how to eat it. Some ate with their hands, and some with 2 forks. I want to spend some time volunteering at the rehab center as well as the orphanage and a clinic. I've been talking to Cosmas (host dad), and he's trying to develop a rehab center for girls. We also talked about setting up a needle exchange program, as there is nothing like that in this city. I don't know how easy that will be to do, but if anyone has any idea's I'm open for suggestions. Cosmas also needs any type if information on rehab, and the process of stopping addiction. The common drug here is heroine. Anyway, if anyone has an information, ideas, or suggestions, send me an email (ally18_@hotmail.com).

Anyway, I'm going to the beach! I feel like I'm melting. I'll try and write again soon!!Kwaheri!