Sorry we didn't get a chance to post last night - the internet connection here has a mind of its own! We can't believe tomorrow is Friday already...everyone has been commenting that at some points we feel our time is inching by but most points we are stunned by how quickly our hours have past. The cold weather has been continuing unfortunately- our only regret is that we did NOT pack for cool weather! Which is ironic, since we're from Michigan and have numerous cool-weather clothing options :/
Our days are very long here, although the sun goes down at around 6:30. We are all up and active by 7 AM and don't go to bed before 10 PM so it doesn't exactly feel like summer but there is so much to do in one day! Yesterday we ate a delicious breakfast which included the Kenyan doughnut and drank the infamous/traditional chai tea. Then we set off for the school where the students each brought water from their own homes that they could look under the microscopes we brought. They really enjoyed the new lab equipment! We also tested their water for pH, alkaline, and hardness. We are also in the process of a bacteria coliform test that is currently incubating and will be ready for analysis tomorrow...just in time!
Mary Wykstra's main colleague, Cosmoz, has been a blessing to us this whole trip! He is in charge of bringing us out on the game counts in the morning and at night AND is the one who makes us our chai tea lattes to enjoy. He goes with us to the school and interacts with the kids so well - an easily-loveable guy. We split into four groups with the students while doing our water labs, which gave us all a chance to get to know those in our group on a more personal level. The kids enthusiastically greet us every day - they love to wave and say, "Jambo!" which means "hello" in Swahili. As they became more comfortable with us, they spoke English more and more easily and asked us many questions about our lives. They also love to take pictures with us and view the digital images on our cameras.
Today we had the chance to split up into our groups and walk together to various water sources. Every group had a different experience on their walk- some sang the whole way in Swahili, some asked endless questions about life in America, and others just shared about their lives and inquired about ours. The walks were beautiful, although the water is not. The water sources here look more like giant puddles and its scary to see all the cattle and goats that walk through and poop there. The students tell us that we are "very, very lucky" to have water piped in our homes, and we are reminded of this blessing constantly while we are here.
Our mornings have consisted of taking walking tours of the surrounding land with Mary's staff members: Puce, Jimmy, and LaMomba. Even though the sun hasn't been out, the areas are fantastically beautiful and home to tons of animals we have never seen outside of a zoo - baboons, wildebeests, and dik-diks (small deer-ish creatures). All of us have been walking at least 3-6 kilometers a day and are feeling it in our butts and thighs :)
This afternoon was one of the most rewarding opportunities that we have ever had. We were each able to give away at least two or three backpacks to the students in our group. It was amazing to see their faces absolutely light up at the sight of a box of pencils or a t-shirt. They had never been presented with such a bounty of things before and one of the first things some of them did was share...it was such a blessing to watch. They all wanted pictures afterwards with their backpacks and to learn the new card games they had received or strike a model pose. Such a fun half hour, I'm sure not much can compare to the joy we witnessed in giving just the donated school supplies and backpacks.
To complete our wonderful day, we attended the school's chapel service where we got to sing hymns with the kids and listen to their chaplain give a message. The kids also wanted US to sing for them, so we shared some of our "American" worship songs with them. We had so much fun getting to know the many incredible students at Kiiwa Kiu and are looking forward to our last two days with them! We hope we don't have any more internet problems so we can keep you updated.
Although the wonderful food has been continuing (rice, spiced beans, kale, tilapia, YUM), we are all starting to miss some of our American weaknesses - Little Caesar's Crazy Bread, chocolate chip cookies, and Qdoba - just to name a few.
Tomorrow we will try and post pictures - missing you all!
PS to Eli and Isaiah Dyk: Your dad saw your favorite animal today - the gnu!
