T.I.A

Rafikis (friends) I just did a huge piece about the N'Gorongoro Crater and Lake Manyara and lost it when I clicked "post"!!!

But, of course, T.I.A (This Is Africa!) If I had a dollar for every time I've had to grin and bare it (which of course makes for a better story later when you grin and share it) I'd be able to sponsor every child in Africa. For instance I worked up the courage - no small feat for a shrinking violet like me - to sing karaoke solo the other night in Zanzibar, after the host announced there was a $20,000TSH prize for the best performance. I belted out "Livin on a Prayer" and got 84%. There were no other challengers after me. When we went to claim the hard earned prize at the end of the night we were told he'd changed his mind and there was no prize anymore. When we questioned him his response was "T.I.A". Ahhhh... grin and share it :)

So, my post on the Crater began by saying my 3 travel companions and I weren't really expecting much as the Serengti next door is so famous. Unfortunately it proved a disaster for us though, so we set out on day 2 with higher spirits and the resolve to make the most of whatever lay ahead. NEVER did we expect to come over the rim of the N'Gorongoro Crater and see the most stunning landscape we'd ever seen though. We were absolutely awestruck! This is a huge natural crater with lush forests, sweeping plains teeming with iconic animals, huge bodies of water painted bright pink with thousands of flamingos, and the odd safari car weaving it's way through the magic. We were like the wide-eyed tourists in the dwafed little jeeps in Jurassic Park. Not even the toilets - the worst we've encourntered yet - could detract from the sheer beauty of this place. We slept content that night in a "Glamping Ground" outside the Crater that even had a pool (our first was since we'd left Moshi!). We trawled through the roadside markets at sunset and I bought a powerful big canvas of a Buffalo staring out from tall african grasses, that the Rastafarian artist had affectionately named "Buffalo Soldier", after the Bob Marley song.

Asante Sana

Ahhh my friends from the four corners I am alive and well... Thank you for the concern! The reason for my absence - and I have missed reporting back so much - is that I have been caught up in raptures for my love affair with Tanzania. This place is mind-blowing.

To sum up the last week, I spent 5 days on Safari, one day bussing it to the depths of the countryside to meet my teacher's parents, and one day saying goodbye and exchanging heartfelt gifts before I head to Zanzibar tomorrow. I know, tough life right?

First stop on Safari was an authentic Maasai village. Well, authentic until the jewellery came out - then it was on for young and old to get the great white hopes to buy an anklet, a bracelet, a headdress... anything at all at a suitably inflated Mzungu price. It is a bit sad that this previously nomadic tribe is not primarily rooted, but they are happy people and live very well. The jewellery is thankfully stunning though and I happily bought something - albeit at a heavily negotiated and more reasonable price!

Day two was meant to be the Serengeti but unfortunately our car experienced massive difficulties and we broke down 5 times before crossing the plains and heading straight to camp. Breakdown number one was 2 long hours due to a broken fan belt. Naturally we used this time to whip out our Kikoys (sarongs), jump on top of the car, and do a remarkable Priscilla Queen of the Desert tribute photoshoot, much to the glee of passing cars.

Day two also gave us much time to study a special species not only unique to the Serengeti - the Retired American Tourist. There is no other creature quite like it. Oh you can't miss them. They all got the same memo that zip-off pants and khaki are the uniform of Safari (cos the animals won't see you coming in that huge jeep! Or hear those cameras clicking. Or hear you screaming at them on approach. Nope, the khaki outfit and camouflaged camera lenses as long as a fifth limb will help you sneak up on them really well!) One woman commented to her companions (we were 4 cars away but heard it clearly of course) "why won't the lazy hippos get up to say hello". One man leered as we passed "i'm just waaaaatching alllllll the perdy girls go by". Or my favourite at a roadside hole in the wall "do you have recycling or is it just the trash?". Clearly hadn't noticed the piles of burning rubbish everywhere you go! Now I must say that one of my dearest friends in the world is American and she flies the flag with pride. There are so many good ones... but this day we seemed to get every brash, insensitive, unsubtle one within a 100 mile radius. Very amusing!!

I so wish I could take a photo and report on everything I see. The man sitting on the side of the road with a rainbow coloured umbrella. Catching a Dala Dala (mini van - the only mode of transport in Moshi) with 25 people and a chicken crammed on it. Kilimanjaro on a clear day. A bawling child who miraculously recovers when you give them a hug and a kiss. The fossilised frog we found in our house laying perfectly on it's back like it was sunbaking..... oh so many things my eyes have seen and so many to report. The list in my bum bag is growing daily and I plan to do it justice when i find a moment in Zanzibar.

I have not yet even touched on the most beautiful place on Earth - the N'Gorongoro Crater. Absolutely, honestly and life-changingly breathtaking! We just stood, stunned, taking it in as we commenced our decent into the basin. Only 26 Rhino are still there and are virtually impossible to spot (nb: Elle Macpherson's recent admission she uses Rhino horn to stay youthful. Charming!) Or day 4 in a real life Jurasic Park - Lake Manyara. I will do these suitable justice in the coming days.

I will also tell you about once again being taken into the homes and hearts of rural Tanzanians during my big adventure to Same. And the last day of class today... I'll save that one till the froggie in my throat goes away. I have promised my Mama Africa, who has looked after me so well, that she will one day meet my Mama Mzungu - so mum you better buy that plane ticket... it's a cook-off! Dad, they have only taken me so deep into their hearts because you were born in Zimbabwe. They honestly think I am half African (and so do I!).

This is only the start of my relationship with Teacher Neema and the Khuba classes. I think I have found a project truly worth my heart. Stay tuned for more...

I miss my Harvey Bear more with every day but am buoyed by the knowledge he is being spoiled during his country retreat! I hope he's feeling better after his vaccination

xxx

Mexican Independence Day

This has to be a quick one but I must report that our Mexican fiesta last night was INCREDIBLE! You wouldn't believe it but there is a new Mexican restaurant in Moshi and we were it's opening night! We had the whole place to ourselves and spent the night dancing, drinking tequila, and eating Fajitas and enchiladas. There was a TV in the corner and the Tanzanian news had a story on the celebrations in Mexico - the whole room went wild!

One of the gorgeous norwegian girls was a finalist on Norwegian Idol so we coaxed her to sing and she was amazing. The Aussie guy we call "Dundee" demonstrated a Tequila Suicide for us (snort the salt, shot the tequila and squeeze the lemon in your eye)! Daniel sang the Mexican anthem and taught us how to dance like Mexicans. The tequila was passed around the table like a hot potato, Karl ate a whole spoonful of the hottest hot sauce any of us have ever tasted... and it all made for a riotous affair. All for about $10!

We got in at about 5am this morning so it's pole pole (slowly, slowly) for us all today. We have just got the most amazing group of people and everything we do is so fun.

I'm off on Safari now for the next 4 days - Lake Manyara, N'Gorongoro Crater, Serengeti etc so the next post will be an exciting one. Let's hope I catch a glimpse of the elusive leopard!!

Love to bubba Bear

xxx

Just another day in Paradise

The pics are up! Check out our incredible Ramadan Day here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=224510&id=635221360&l=8d309e8f01

It was back to school today. Katie and I are getting to know the children better as each day passes and each little personality is so unique. Some are cheeky, some are needy, some are very naughty! One little boy Casper is very clever and can answer any question you ask him, but he writes everything upside down and back to front. Dyslexia 101 but it's so hard to explain to Teacher Neema what is going on. Reminiscent of that incredible Indian film "Like Stars on Earth"... if you haven't been lucky enough to have seen it already - track it down and watch it (try Ebay). Amazing.

The little things still make us giggle. Today we covered the alphabet and they were learning "A is for Apple, B is for Ball" etc... and X was for Christmas! hahaha

The other volunteers are fantastic. We all sat around last night playing mild drinking games and getting to know each other even better. Everyone's really excited about our big Mexican fiesta tomorrow night. We've had our green, red and white outfits made by Mama Mona in Moshi, started making the pinata, magically tracked down a Mexican flag through one of the all-knowing street sellers, and are gearing up for a night of Nachos, tequila and dancing at the local wateringhole. We can't wait!

Thanks for all the gorgeous messages coming through from home. Really makes going away easier when you know how good you've got it back at base. Hope Harvey Bear is behaving himself!

xxx

Kilimanjaro

Yesterday we trekked the foothills of Kilimanjaro. My earlier inclinations to have a crack at climbing Africa's glacier-capped highest mountain were quickly dispelled after experiencing just one day of uphill climbing. I think they call it Kili cos the climb nearly kills you! But of course, like everything else in Tanzania, the walk is always worth it, and awaiting us at the end were caves, cliffs, waterholes and scenery like something out of Aavatar.

After trekking to the first two waterfalls we had a gourmet beef burger for lunch at a luxurious hotel at the bottom of the mountain. Then it was off for more trekking, this time to a stunning secret water hole tucked deep in the valley. A 10cm wide track led us there - a place our volunteer company has exclusive mzungu access to. We screamed like kids as we bravely jumped off the highest rock into the waterfall, then dried ourselves by the fire the guide had built under the cliffs. Cheeky moneys came past to check on us, and a pair of horn-billed birds guided us home. Our guide taught us the traditional song of the mountain, and you would have though we were drunk we were singing and laughing so much!

We went to a local home and tasted the local brew, but a highlight was making Tanzanian coffee from scratch. We separated, roasted, ground and brewed the coffee beans from scratch. The girls said it was the best coffee they'd ever tasted. Must've been good since it was the only coffee I've ever taken 2 sips of! We then drank honey straight from the hive, and finally piled our lethargic bodies into the rattletrap for the ride home. Our guide Hillary was a star and we tipped him generously.

The volunteer house was buzzing as everyone shared stories of their weekend. Some had been on Safari, some had been invited to a Maasai village for the day. We told of our Ramadan and Waterfalls days then excused ourselves for bed.

The other volunteers are fantastic. We all went out the other night to a nightclub called Kool Bar and had a wild time! Volunteers with other organisations in Moshi kept coming up and asking why all I-to-I people seem so fun. I think it is what you make it and we've all thrown ourselves into it 100%. Yes it is physically and mentally exhausting, but we're absolutely living the dream! Even when your feet drag and your eyelids droop, you still have the energy to smile. This trip has exceeded my most optimistic expecations and every day seems better than the last.

Love to everyone, and a big bum scratch for my Harvey Bear

xxx

Happy Ramadan!

Where to start to recount possibly the best day of my life? My stomach is stretched, my feet are swollen, my cheeks are sore from smiling so much, and my heart is very very full.

I have now been teaching my adult English class for a week. The women are so greatful and have told me I'm a good teacher. It's amazing to watch the lightbulbs go off as each person comprehends what they've just learnt. We covered greetings one day, words they've all heard but never known how to apply. They so loved finally understanding that "sun up to midday (noon) is good morning", "noon to sun down is good afternoon" and "sun down to midnight is good evening". They were really proud of themselves. Another day we did senses and the smell of African spices being prepared for Ramadan, and the chanting from the Mosque next door were very handy tools. It's amazing how much you can actually teach with so few resources.

To express their gratitude for my time and for teaching many of their children they invited me to the biggest celebration on the muslim calendar, Ramadan. They have not been able to eat or drink during daylight hours for a month, and are celebrating the end of this Ramadan period. I asked if I could bring some friends and they excitedly said of course... so off we went, not quite sure what to expect.

We set off at 10am - I had a backpack stuffed with cakes to give my hosts at each stop. First we met Teacher Neema, who'd be our tour guide for the day, and walked to her tiny village. Her and I are kindred spirits and I think she truly means it when she says she loves me. We walked for over an hour to reach her house, stopping along the way to meet teachers from other schools who'd asked her to bring us by in the hope they might get some volunteer support too. These "schools" vary immensely, from somebody's porch, to grand halls built by western sponsors, to rows of school desks outside under the trees. I don't think they see Mzungus (westerners) very often and they were so flattered we were taking the time to admire their home.

Neema took us into her home with such pride, and visitors came constantly to the door to say hello. She has so little money and so many people to feed, yet we were each given a bottle of Coca-cola and a bowl of rice & beans. We gratefully ate the offering, sure to leave just a mouthful to show they were generous enough to fill us up but not so stingy as to leave us hungry had we finished the whole plate. After lunch we all danced as apparently this helps with digestion of the food. It was so much fun.

We spent hours there talking with the locals, many of whom were parents of the children I've been teaching, and playing with these happy, cheeky kids. It strikes you how little they have yet how close the families are and how happy everyone seems to be. After eating our fill we were escorted a long way along the road by the village women and children. Finally they had to turn back, but Neema stayed with us.

The next stop was Zuena's house in Soweto. The conditions were very poor - just a cramped, compacted mud room - a bed pushed up next to a tiny coffee table on which a huge feast was presented, made especially for us! She was so proud to have us there and had dressed her tiny baby in a suit especially. Her old mother joined us, constantly saying Karibu (welcome), as did many of the women in the village. They watched ecstatically as we ate, and the babies cried because they were so scared of our white skin. Then again we danced. Nothing could be as joyous as 10 women who can't speak to each other dancing and hugging and laughing. The generosity was astounding and their gratitude incredible. After profuse "asante sanas" (thank you very much) we were off to Ahmed and Asha's house.

A nicer house by comparison, we were taken to a small sitting room with an ornate coffee table. Ahmed proudly told us he was a carpenter and had made all the furniture himself. The gorgeous children - all students of mine - left the room and came back 10 minutes later in pristine pressed shirts and pants, and pretty party dresses. We were presented our third full sized meal - rice and cabbage, and again we ate greatfully. One of the boys asked me to dance with him and was amused by my awkward Mzungu dancing. A cat in the corner had the most beautiful 1 week old kittens that we fell in love with. I took a family photo for them, as I did at all the stops, and promised to send them a copy.

Next was Mama's house. Mama makes the porridge the school children eat at lunch and her husband is the Treasurer of the school. This is the matriarch and patriarch of Soweto. They were immensely proud to host us and the spread mama presented was jaw dropping! Two types of rice, chicken, fries, fried banana, soup, 2 curries.... and again we sat down to eat a full bowl. Her elderly mother lay frail on a bed in the corner of the room and watched on as again we danced. They were wearing their best clothes and kept saying how "happy, happy, happy" they were to have us. We danced and we danced, and chatted - with Neema translating for both parties - and had the best time! These women are so vibrant and fun and full of joy.

Our fifth and final stop was Aisha's house and so again we kicked off our shoes at the door and sat down for a feast. We were really struggling now to eat more food but Neema insisted as it was made especially for us, at great expense, and they feel great pride in feeding special guests. As beautiful as it was, swallowing each mouthful was near impossible... but down it went, and again we danced. And laughed, and played with their gorgeous children. Aisha's little boy was petrified of the kangaroo key ring I gave him.

It was now 7pm and we had spent 10 hours, 5 bowls, 3 bottles, countless kilometres, and so many laughs making new friends in Tanzania. Asha, Aisha and Neema walked us all the way home - laughing and dancing in the street as we went. I slyly slipped Neema the bus fare and told her to rush home to her baby.

I doubt I will ever have an experience like this again. I have friends for life in these people and will make sure I visit them often over the next few weeks. Their pride and hospitality was incredible for little Esther Pedersen from Australia. Tanzanian people are in a class of their own.

So much more happened, and I hope the photos I will upload tomorrow will capture the sheer fun of the day.

Sorry to everyone who's been waiting for personal emails, but it's very hard. I have to walk 40 minutes to get to the internet and it's so slow to load even a page. I usually only have enough time to write this before it times out and I have to trek home. Miss you all heaps though!

Love to my Harvey Bear (who I hear has taken to barking so please get out the water sprayer mum and daddo!)

xxx

Making the most of Moshi

This is the best town, with something new to discover in every corner. My Swahili is improving every day, as is the English of the women and children I'm teaching. They're just so eager to learn and it's amazing just how much can be taught from something so simple as a picture book. These kids make fun by dragging each other around on potato sacks and drawing in the dirt with sticks, so to have a Mzungu teacher sit under a tree with them and spend an hour trawling the ten basic pages of a book illustrating "the Wheels on the bus" is nothing short of enchanting for them. We practiced colours and numbers and professions and animals, all while tricking them into learning with a song. Amazing.

I really have got lucky with my placement. My teacher Neema is nothing short of inspiring and is so happy to have us there. She treats us like an invaluable resource and constantly tells the class "one minute wasted with your teacher is a minute you'll never get back". A previous volunteer who also saw her unique magic has paid for English qualifications and she now works tirelessly to educate everyone in her poor village. Children in the morning, parents in the afternoon, and her family and friends at night. She never rests and on top of this has adopted an orphaned girl, has a baby and a 7 year old, and is only about 22 years old herself!

Last night was hilarious. Katie in the bunk above me, screamed when she found a lizard in her bed! Up I jumped in my undies, caught the (tiny little) lizard and saved the day! We were quite a sight, and my own doppelganger status to Bridget Jones was amusingly noted. We've also made a pact with Ryan and Daniel, two of the guys climbing Mt Kilimanjaro next week, that if they fail we will wax their eyebrows and underarms respectively when they join us in Zanzibar afterwards.

Daniel's the Mexican. We're having red green and white cotton culottes made for Mexican Independence Day (a big one apparently as this year marks 200 years of Independence and 100 years of Revolution) and trying to source the ingredients for our feast. Yes - 1 week out is the minimum needed for a fiesta like this!

I've also been asked if I'm interested in a job tour leading volunteers in Mombasa and I think the answer is a resounding YES!

Cuddles for my Harvey Bear - I miss him so so so so much. Unfortunately dogs are considered vermin here and are treated very badly. I saw a big group of little boys hanging a tiny puppy by it's legs and then dragging it through the dirt yesterday as it screamed. I got so mad and yelled at them! Our team leader said I could have bought it off them for a dollar and brought it back to the house so I've been sick with regret ever since. I hope that little puppy is ok.

xxx

Teacher Esther

I have found my calling!! Teaching is incredible.

Yesterday myself and Katie, another volunteer, started our class with Teacher Neema - the most passionate, charismatic, enthusiastic and fantastically eccentric teacher ever. She is so happy to have us here and we really made the most of the class. So much so that she asked if i would start an adults class for their parents that afternoon.

So... I've gone rogue, and have officially started my own adults class in the afternoon!! My placement people were fine with it as I'd signed up for adults anyway. The adults class was AMAZING! I took photos of my family with me and this instantly broke the ice. My brothers have plenty of marriage offers if they're interested!! hahahah

By the end of the class they had already learnt so much - plurals, pronunciations and the family tree. We finished by dancing and I've been invited to dinner at their houses. I'm about to head off now to do the 2nd class... and if the turnout at the children's session this morning is anything to go by I expect the room to be full. Word must have travelled that we're here as there were 3 times as many children as yesterday.... all excited to learn English from their Cray Mzungu teacher!!!

I'm having the time of my life. It's the end of Ramadan so the mosque has been waking us up in the morning as the sun creeps over Mount Kilimanjaro just outside my window.

The other volunteers and staff are amazing. There's a Mexican guy here so we're celebrating Mexican Independence Day next week by cooking Nachos and giving the cooks a night off.

So much to tell you but 1 minute left at the cafe.

Give Harvey big loves...

xxx

A Tanzania Welcome

This has to be a quick one but I have arrived in Tanzania to volunteer for the next month. EVERYTHING has exceeded my expectations! The compound we're staying on includes a stately - albeit slightly dilapidated - house with and incredible terrace right outside my room that overlooks snowcapped Mount Kilimanjaro! The staff are ridiculously friendly, the food ridiculously tasty, the weather lusciously warm. The other 20-somethings doing it with me are from all over the world and everyone is friendly and so nice. We've already started bantering so it's a great sign.

The first two days are entirely for settling in so after sitting around and getting to know each other yesterday we decided to check out town. I was blown away. Moshi is a big, bustling, friendly, completely unthreatening place. It's huge - would take most of the day to thoroughly walk the streets here. There's a food market that only photos could do justice to so I will take some snaps once I settle in a bit more.

They love the blonde hair and the Maasai necklace I picked up in Kenya. The huge hit though is my Akubra... they love to call out "sister, sister" in the street. I ate a local dish beside the road yesterday called Chips my eye. It's basically an egg omelete with hot chips cooked into it, topped with tomato, cucumber and sweet chilli tomato sauce. Surprisingly tasty but not so good for the hips!

Two unreal Norwegian girls arrived today after climbing Mt Kili... they've almost got me convinced to give it a shot myself! It's just such a majestic backdrop to the town. This muscle man from South Africa was trying to impress me at the airport telling me he was going to climb it in 4 days. The girls laughed at this as apparently the muscliest people fail at 3/4 of the way up cos their bodies need so much more oxygen and the altitude deprives them of it. Funny to hear that the commandos and action men who train the hardest are often the first ones to pull out up there for altitude sickness!

I signed up for teaching English to children in the morning and adults in the afternoon for the next month. I can't wait to start classes tomorrow. This place is amazing!

Give Harvey bear a chin scratch from his mumma!

xx

Girls Day Out

Late on Wednesday night Rob surprised Wendy by bringing her beloved niece Lily home with him from a business trip. The ruse was a success and everyone was in fine form!

After another cosy sleep it was up early for a girls day out. Lily is just gorgeous, and Wendy is every bit the doting aunty just like my Aunt Clairie. The parallels between the Aussie family and our Africa counterparts continue to amaze me. Says a lot about nature vs nurture.

After they returned from a morning horse ride we set off for Nairobi "Westfield". Accessing the carpark from the traffic mayhem outside once again called for Wendy's special brand of proactive persuasion, a skill she she hones daily. We were in, only to find the spaces barely big enough to fit a lawnmower, let alone our bush warrior Defender! 20 point turn later and we were squished in safely.

The shopping centre was surprisingly cosmopolitan. French patisserie, stunning furniture & clothing stores... I went in search of vegemite but sadly came up trumps.

Then again we risked life and limb on the roads of Nairobi. At one stage I squealed and commented it was like being on a rollercoaster - "look, no hands"! Was so worth it when I found a divine beaded leather dog collar and lead for my Harvey bear at the next stop. 

We then hit up the roadside op shops and I scored well. Followed by a famous bead factory that sells it's creations internationally.

We got home at 6:00 and I skyped Mum & Daddo. Never mind it was 1am Sydney time!! Got to see my gorgeous Harvey, and introduce mum & dad to Lily who's visiting her Aussie rellies in Feb. 

Cue sitting in Kenya airport now, waiting to board, bound for Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. It has been an incredible week with my incredible family. Their hospitality generously extended not only within their home, but their country too. In just a week I really felt like I got a sense of Nairobi... both sides of the coin. I am so grateful to have had a soft landing from where to launch my great African adventure.

Not sure how frequently I'll be able to update you in Kili, but I'll do my best. Missing everyone so much, especially my puppy dog.

Rumble with the Bear for me...

Xxx

Elephant Baby Mud Bath

Have you ever seen anything so cute in your life?

From orphaned children to orphaned elephants, today was a different rescue centre entirely! Up early and off to Sheldrick's (wasn't that the hotel in Dirty Dancing too?) a wildlife trust that rescues orphaned baby Elephants. Not even obligatory sad stories - one shy little one still had an open spear wound in her trunk - could dampen the sheer joy of seeing these little youngsters having so much fun.

We arrived just as they were being fed their bottles and given their daily mud bath. The mud serves as a sunscreen too asin the wild baby elephants uually shelter from the sun by hiding under their mothers. Due to poaching, retaliation for crop raiding, and all manner of crimes against this magnificent beasts, the mothers are gone and it's up to their dedicated handlers to raise them on human formula and love instead. We even saw the elephant dorms where a pile of hay for the bubba lay next to a trundle bed for the keeper. So much love!

In the vid here you can see my and Wendy's favourite little mischief maker - we called him Brat. He was the naughtiest, cheekiest little devil. There was an Indian television crew filming this joyous site and the immaculate model presenter got a little too close to the fun so Brat decided to gently barge her out of the way. She was not too pleased about being covered in red mud!

I hope these vids make you smile as goofily as I did. They were so cute flopping on each other and spurting mud everywhere as the keepers shovelled dirt onto them. Just look at those little bums running around in their wet trackie pants. Dirty Dancing of a different kind at this Sheldrick's!

Give Harvey a bath for me :)

xxx

The Nest

The Nest

(this is a necessarily long one, but persevere for the end will move you) 

Today was a day to make your heart break in two... One side for happy and one side for sad, but broken nonetheless.

Wendy took me to a children's orphanage that is very dear to her. She explained that in a country rife with corruption and expensive red tape, The Nest is a place run by a dedicated woman who sees every donated cent reach it's intended purpose. 

And so again we mounted our trusty steed - a Land Rover Defender whose suspension defies logic - and made our way out of cosmopolitan Nairobi and into the fertile hills of the Kikuyu tribe. I commented on the poverty of the corrugated collages that are their homes, but Wendy explained the Kikuyu are actually the wealthiest of the tribes and live rather comfortably, most with a small plot of soil to farm.

I could recount endless observations that shocked & awed me, but is little wonder everything here widens my sheltered eyes. There are a few mentionables though:

Coca-cola is everywhere! Every block hosts a bright red building, shipping container, demountable, hut, even a giant plastic coke bottle that sells the familiar fizz.

Most people walk everywhere (Maasai tribespeople with a distinctly spritely step) as they cannot afford the bus fare. Every single person, however, has a mobile phone.

The sight of hundreds of feeble little donkeys hauling huge loads while being whipped mercilessly is agonising to watch. In a country where the forgotten poor feel no-one cares about them, it is a sad reality that they too don't care about the plight of these poor beasts of burden.

The signs make me giggle all the time. One shopfront read: "Mushroom house -for all your mushroom needs!". A dilapidated van full of lads read "Young millionaires- roll wid it". I still haven't figured out what the slogan "black is the new pure" is selling. Wendy loved the huge American flag under the "Lebanese Shop" sign.

So, after a bumpy ride we finally snaked our way to the gates of The Nest. As with everywhere you go we were greeted enthusiastically and invited in warmly. We sat for a while with Irene who has run this house of hope for 20 years. She is passionate and pragmatic about the problems she faces and reflects personally that her trips to motherland Germany are hard because she never visits just as family or just as a friend because she's constantly got to be fundraising for The Nest. 

Shes buoyed by generosity though. The little boy who gave his first holy communion money, or the old lady who gave $20 euros but could barely feed herself, and how she's so conscious of responsibly using the donated money.

As we talked I asked about the story of the children. Most are orphaned or have parents in jail. The school was quite empty today as many of the children had been taken to visit their incarcerated mothers- thrown in without trial for everything from serious crime to walking in the wrong place on the street.

The Miracle Babies are an incredibly tragic story belonging to a number of the primary schoolers here. A horrible man in Britain, calling himself the Bishop, convinced childless african women he could deliver them babies by divine conception. He was then stealing or buying Kenyan babies at birth, and selling them on to these naive women who raised them in loving, happy homes. When his evil was discovered, rather than punish him and leave the children in the homes they'd always known, they were returned to Kenya and put in orphanages. No-one has found their birth parents and no-one is allowed to adopt them, so this is the childhood they'll now have instead. Remembering the happy times, and seeing their friends adopted by loving westerners. 

The saddest story was recounted when I commented on one particularly gorgeous little girl. She was brought to the orphanage one day when Wendy was visiting. Her father had raped her at 4 months old, and her mother was too drunk to notice. The tiny baby was so badly injured she needed reconstructive surgery to redefine her waste & reproductive chambers.

I have donated $500AUD to this incredible place to both thank Rob & Wendy for their hospitality, and to help these gorgeous children. They also have a great little volunteer house if anyone is interested.
 
It was a moving day, and one that makes my fortunate life in Sydney bittersweet. We are very lucky.

Give Harvey a belly rub for me...

Xxx