I had hoped to post this before the weekend began but didn't quite get to finish it. I was busy packing so that the four of us could head south for a safari! The weekend was incredible. I'm currently working on editing photos and will have them posted as soon as possible. This week is going to be full of photo posts, so be sure to check the blog often!
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| Sammy was awfully excited to be on safari! |
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Last Saturday, Pete & I were able to get away together for the afternoon. It was lovely. Ella & Sam stayed with our neighbors and a friend called a taxi for us. Out here, it's best to stick with people you already know and trust. And we've been advised it's not a good idea for us to take public transportation. We don't take lightly the advice given to us by those who have lived here a long time.
Our hot date began after we dropped Ella & Sam off and headed up the road to meet our driver, Sammy. Sammy met us near the hospital in a little white car designated as a taxi. As you can see, the seats were red and green and there was silver tinsel hanging from the ceiling. This was actually very nicely decorated compared to other small-country taxis I've been in. Nice job, Sammy.
Sammy dropped us of in town (about a 10 minute drive from the hospital) at one of the grocery stores. We were hungry, but first, we needed money.
We walked down a few streets looking for a bank and eventually found an ATM. No luck. Electronics aren't all that reliable out here, so we went searching for another. There are only two locations in town with ATMs, so after the second one also wouldn't work, we ended up swapping US cash for Kenyan shillings. My favorite part about that exchange was when our teller asked how Mr. Obama is doing. I could tell from their smiles that they are proud he has a bit of Kenya in him.
We had been told to only eat packaged food in town (our systems are not
used to the food/water here). We wandered through this entire grocery store,
looking at all of the interesting things for sale. The grocery stores out here are quite small. The isles are tight and, wherever there is space, more things for sale are stacked up on the floor.
I saw this pot in multiple stores. It was definitely calling my name, but we decided this little guy will have to wait to join our kitchen family in the future. If it's still around, we'll get it next time we're here.
Is it any wonder I found chocolate? I hadn't had any in a while, so once we finished at the grocery store, we sat right out front and shared these lovelies.
Motorcycles are everywhere in Kenya. It's the cheapest form of transportation, so they are used as taxis. Although the law permits them to only carry one passenger, we often see them with three or four, including babies.
I don't remember the names of these, but it was something sweet and tasted a bit like the old Corn Pops cereal. Pete was a fan. I stuck to my chocolate cookies.
We found a bike shop, so of course we had to swing in. We talked to the guy at the shop for a bit before taking photos with the bikes. I don't think we'll ever have motorcycles here. A bit too dangerous for our taste.
At one point while we were walking up the street, we heard a helicopter not far overhead. As it got closer, a crowd of people, cars, and motorcycles started rushing past us. When we turned around, we could see that the helicopter had landed and swarms of people were gathering in the field around it. We were curious about the commotion, but we didn't want to get any closer since we already stand out and don't need to put ourselves in sketchy spots. Elections are in less than a month, and we realized this was a politician coming in to give a speech.
Another common sight is for people to sit in front of shops working on sewing machines. There were a couple of men sewing in front of the Family Fashion Centre.
We eventually crossed the main road through town to check out shops and stands on the other side. All the walkways on that side were dirt.
We went into one shop to look at dresses for Ella. These dresses are often worn by our neighbor girls on Sundays for church. They are colorful, with very simple stitching and no hems. We bought one for Ella (an adorable yellow version) but we haven't given it to her yet. I'll be sure to post a photo of her when we do. She's going to be excited!
I think these were cooking oil containers, but I think they may be used for water. I've seen them carried by many women.
This photo was taken next to the bigger grocery store on the edge of town. Everything in incredibly green here.
And finally, this was taken right next to the photo above from the second floor of the building where the grocery store is located.
One place we did not get to visit in Bomet is the teacher training school. I'm hoping to go with a friend, as training teachers is something I'm very interested in. That's one of the reasons I'm currently working on my Master's of Education. On another note, sorry about the quality of the photos. It was cloudy while we were in town and I only took the pictures with my iPhone. That was the most discreet way of capturing them. I didn't want to pull out my big ol' Cannon. We stood out enough already.
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One thing I discovered in the last week is that rain water is great for hair. I had been washing my hair with the water coming from the faucet during showers, but my hair was getting nasty. Really nasty. It was so bad that I couldn't even brush it. Then one of the other missionaries told me to try rain water. It was amazing! My hair is soft again. Soft hair is just one of those little joys that I usually take for granted.
I took Ella up with me to get the rain water. It is stored in a huge barrel that collects the water from the top of our building.
The bottom of the barrel has a spigot. I filled up one of our bottles and warmed it in a couple pots on the stove. It wasn't as tricky to use as I thought it would be.
Of course Ella had to do a little dancing next to the garden while I filled the bottle. I love that about my girlie.
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It's a quiet Sunday afternoon here. Ella is playing soccer with the other kids outside. Sam is sleeping, and Pete is reading. As soon as I post this, I'm going to do more photo editing so I can get our safari pictures up soon. I hope you're able to have a day of rest, as well.
Kwaheri!
Fun date!
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