Bonjour!

So I have officially left Kenya, and I do not like it one bit. Our flight left at 11:30 last night, and everything was going smoothly at first. I managed to sleep for almost 7 out of the 8 hour flight which was super! But, as we got closer, we were informed that we were being rerouted from Paris to Amsterdam because of bad weather. After arriving in Amsterdam at 6:30, they kept us on the plane until 9 when we were finally let free. To make a long story short, we did get another flight to Paris, but it doesn't leave for another two hours so here I am writing my last blog post.

First of all, I was in a rush when I was writing my last blog post so I forgot to add this. All of you new englanders look at the picture of me and my African family, and try to find the logo for the team we all know and love on someone's shirt. During my time in Kenya I saw a Boston sweatshirt, a Boston hat, a red sox jersey, and this last logo. Such a small world we live in.
Second, here are some pictures from the safari! Because we were in the Massai Mara during the off season there weren't a lot of other tour vans which was really nice. In Kenya they have a group of animals called "The Big Five", which includes the African buffalo, lions, cheetahs, leopards and rhinos. We were lucky enough to see all of them except the rhino.

Two cheetahs killed a wildebeast, which unfortunately we missed but we got to watch them eat it! The wildebeest's stomach started to fill with air which is the big balloon looking part of it

Bijschrift toevoegen

One shy lion

At first this leopard was up in a tree sleeping which was exciting and all, but then a mama warthog and 4 babies trotted by, and Mr. Leopard decided he had found lunch, so he scurried down the tree and hurried after them to snatch up one of the babies. We didn't get to see the kill, but we heard a screech that we assumed was one of the poor little babies getting caught.

Poor guys :(

Me, Liz and our excellent guide Dennis at the Tanzania Kenya border

I just started making a list of everything that I'm going to miss in Kenya, but it got way too long so I figured I'll just post the list of things I will NOT miss.

1) My bicycle

2) The flies

As you can see, there isn't much.

Finally I want to give a big thank you to Deb and Greg for putting up with me for two whole months. We really had a great time together and I will miss you both dearly!

To all of you poor souls who have been reading this thing for two months, I want to thank you for all of the support and encouragement that has kept me going. According to the stats page which I'm not quite sure I believe, my blog has been viewed 1,829 times. Dad and Grandma I'm pretty sure about half of those are from you, but still that is just crazy. I'm glad I could entertain all of you but unfortunately my life will be pretty normal from now on so I won't have anything to write about. But if I come to Kenya again I'll be sure to write!

Lots of love,

Molly

tuanana

On Saturday, my aunt and I went to Kasarani to visit some of the houses of the people I have met here, which was one of the highlights of my trip here. The first house we went to was my friend Pendo's house. I had already met her whole family and this was absolutely my favorite visit. She has two little sisters, little Pendo and Mercy who are just the cutest. Mercy is very shy, but Pendo is incredibly outgoing and hysterical. I brought them some markers and paints and paper, and some stickers, which from the picture below you can tell were a big hit. Little Pendo took a whole sheet of stickers and went around and put stickers on everyone. We were served a huge breakfast here, including eggs, biscuits, chai, coffee and lots more. Pendo's parents, Margaret and David are very sweet people as well, and they have both told me I am now part of their family. David's direct words were "Molly remember, you will always have a family here." While we were there Margaret took off a gold (or gold plated we're not quite sure) chain from around her neck, and put it on me. I asked if she was sure she wanted me to have it, and she said "This necklace is not nearly as precious to me as you are, of course I want you to have it." Out of everyone I have met here, I will definitely miss this family more than anyone else. 

Me, little Pendo and big Pendo

Me and the fan

Our next stop was James, my motorcycle driver's house. It was really nice to meet his whole family, which includes his wife Caroline, his one year old son Kelvin, and his niece Cynthia, who is living with them while she goes to secondary school. Here, we were served a lunch of some sort of goat soup, potatoes and carrots, and chapatis, which are kind of like crepes but not really. His house has three rooms. There is a kitchen, a bed room and a living room/ dining room.

One of the rooms of James' house.

Our last stop was at Madame Mwangi's house. She is another one of my favorite people here who I will miss dearly. The hardest part is that when I am home, I will barely be able to communicate with them because internet and computers are so scarce. Here, we were served some fresh fruit which was delicious, but I was absolutely stuffed after all the food we had already been served.

Me, Madame Mwangi and her children Lillys and Kuria

Along the way we stopped very briefly at some other houses, and I saw many of my students along the way which was fun. Right now, we are at the Massai Mara for a safari. The camp we're staying at is VERY nice, and we have seen lots of animals. I will write one last post with pictures of animals, probably when I get to Paris. Tonight is my last night in Kenya, which seems crazy to me. 

Oh, and the title of this post means, see you later. At every house we went to, I was asked when I will come back. I told everyone I hoped I'd be back next summer, but who knows. Every time I said goodbye to someone, they would say "This isn't a goodbye, this is a see you later." So for this reason, I am going to create a Send Molly Back to Kenya Fund :) If anyone wants to contribute, just let me know! I'm not actually, but in all seriousness I really hope I will have the opportunity to come back sometime soon.

Harambee

Yesterday was the harambee, which turned out to be a really fun event. A harambee is a type of fundraiser here, where people bring money and present it publicly. It was supposed to go from 10 am to 1 pm, but of course, it ended around 5 instead.

The picture above was the set up for the harambee. There was one tent for the students and their parents, and another one for all of the important guests. Deb, liz and I were under the important guests tent, but I didn't stay for very long. I had much more fun hanging out and talking with the students instead of sitting with the important people. Once I escaped and then they started talking about me so I had to race back up (whoops.)

The choir performing a traditional song and dance

In this picture, the deputy mayor is dancing with one of the students. The mayor of the whole town of Naivasha was there as the guest of honor. He was a really sweet man, and he's the youngest mayor in all of east central africa!

So. This was one of the best parts of the day. Deb was giving a speech to everyone, and she called me up to give me a gift. I was given a St. Andrews school uniform including the sweater, the shirt, the tie, the skirt, and the socks.

Everyone there absolutely loved it, and of course the students wanted me to put it on right away, so I did.

NOW can you find me? :)

I wore it the whole afternoon, despite the dreadful heat in that sweater. I asked the students how on earth they deal with it, and they just said they got used to it. I'm pretty sure I made all of the students and teacher's day and of course, they all wanted to get a picture with their new student.

The next gift I got was just as exciting for me. Madame Mwangi has these two fleece shawl/ scarfs that she would let me wear when it was cold, or after I arrived on a rainy day. As a graduation gift from swahili, she made me one!

Madame Mwangi, Me, and her daughter Lillys.

The last picture is a photo of all of the important people who were at the harambee.

Front and center with the gigantic badge is the mayor

That's all for pictures, so now I'll tell you about the actual success of the harambee. Peter's goal was 5 million shillings, which is about $50,000. Unfortunately the turn out of the event wasn't nearly as high as he expected, and only 2 million shillings was raised. That is almost enough money to build either two classrooms, or a science lab. The problem is he needs both for the upcoming school year, starting in January. There are two form 1 classes coming in, and there isn't any space to put them. Also, the form 4 students need to complete a science lab course, and if they don't they can't graduate. Hopefully Peter will be able to find a way to build both of these. If there is anyone who did not contribute already, and wants to donate, please let me know! St. Andrews could really use help. BUT, for those who did contribute, I was able to donate 64,000 shillings, which is equal to $680. I was given a big round of applause, and I could not have done it without you. 

This week we are doing all sorts of outdoors adventure activities, like a hippo boat ride, and a picnic lunch among giraffes, zebras, etc. Next saturday I am going to Kasarani to visit all sorts of people, including James the motorcycle driver, Madame Mwangi, and several students. Sunday we leave for our safari, so unfortunately that will be the end of my blog! 

Ps. Don't forget to turn back your clocks! It's such a strange concept not doing that here. Anyways, I hope you have a wonderful Sunday.

Naishipai

Today was my last day at St. Andrews, and boy was it a sad day. Tomorrow is the big harambee, which is the term for a fundraiser here. Unfortunately I couldn't teach, because they were cleaning up the school, but I came for the last few hours of the day. When I got there the students were doing a bunch of different things, such as cleaning, moving dirt, putting up tents and making badges for people to wear. A group of girls were in one room singing traditional Kenyan songs and dancing which was so much fun to watch. I even jumped in and danced with them which they loved, despite my terrible dance skills. About an hour after I got there, Deb and my aunt Liz arrived for the goodbye ceremony that Peter had planned. Of course like everything else  in Kenya, it began an hour after he said it would. Good ol' Africa time, I'm going to miss it.
The whole goodbye process was easily the best and saddest part of my whole experience here. Peter said wonderful things about me, and he gave me a letter of recommendation which will be very helpful when I try to get credit for the teaching I have done here. After the letter, he gave me all sorts of presents from the school! He had me stand there, while one of my favorite students, Margaret came and dressed me up in my new presents. Included in the ensemble was a traditional Maasai (one of the tribes here) cloth, two necklaces, a bracelet, a pair of sandals and a three carved giraffe all together. Here is a picture of Margaret putting everything on.

I was also given posters by two of the students which will definitely go on my wall at college. After all of the wonderful gifts had been given, I had a chance to give a speech to all of the students which was incredibly hard to do without crying. Luckily I made it through and got a few laughs out of them with my swahili words. I don't think I realized how much I am going to miss St. Andrews and all of the students there until today. Two of the girls I have become very close with started crying which made it even harder for me. After some more speeches from several teachers and students, everything came to a close, but not before a lot of hugs and of course some pictures.

Me and Margaret with all of my lovely presents! 

If you are having trouble finding me, look for the only white person in bright red :)

Luckily, I didn't have to say any final goodbyes today because they will all be at the harambee tomorrow. But still, today was the first day that it has really hit me what I am leaving behind here. I don't know why I ever thought it would be easy to leave these students. Every time one of them came up to me today and told me how much they were going to miss me it broke my heart a little bit and it made me want to stay here forever. BUT, as Peter told the students, I am a student too, and as hard as it is for me to go, I have a duty to learn just like they do. One thing is for sure though, I need to come back here in the next few years.

OH I forgot to explain the title of the post! The students gave me a maasai name, Naishipai, meaning something along the lines of "Happy Woman" which I thought was very fitting :)