Family Va-ca in Kenya!

So the fam successfully made it to Kenya, and we had a packed full week of adventures and fun! I barely gave them enough time to adjust to the 7 hour time difference, but they did a great job! They wore me out, so in brief, here is what our week looked like: maybe they can do a guest post and give their experiences better than I can (ahem, mom and dad!).

We started with 2 days at Hekima Place, the first orphanage I was in September and they got to play with the kids, pick avocado's off the tree and visit the new land that Hekima is building on. The girls loved meeting my family, and especially playing with all of our hair: especially dad's (see photo!!) They very rarely have any males in their life, so when a father figure comes around they are excited to receive love from them.

Mom was very excited to do some shopping while in Kenya, and we did plenty of it! We went to 2 open air markets that you must bargain prices. I would say she became pretty good at it- with my help, while Bridget may have been taken advantage of a bit- but we'll pretend like she was good! The conversion caused a few problems. We also went to a bead and pottery factory called Kazuri. They hire single mothers and give them jobs and health care for the children, we watched the women mold and paint the beads into beautiful jewelry.

I know you are all waiting to hear about the animals we saw, but we didn't see any. KIDDING! Of course we went on Safari to the Masai Mara and saw almost all of the Big 5. We saw so many Zebras and Gizelles we almost got tired of them. We saw a few lions as close as 10 feet away, giraffes, elephants, buffalo, warthogs- which are surprisingly cute, and most thrilling of all was a Leopard eating a gizelle in a tree! It isn't a trip to the Mara without getting a flat tire either. So in the middle of the wildebeast and zebras we had to get out and change the flat, pretty exciting! It was a fun couple of days, and a beautiful drive through the Great Rift Valley and the small villages of the Masai people who still live in huts cut off from the modern world.

Finally we ended at Mogra, the current children's home where I am. I was most excited for this because it has become like home for me, and I wanted to share it with them. We went into the slum and they saw the school and also went to a student's home in the slum. They experienced the sounds, smells and sights in the slum that I have come to love. I think Dad was more surprised that all 1000 students are (chaotically) let out for lunch at the same time, completely unsupervised than the poor living conditions of the home he visited!
Back at the children's home they were absolutely loved to pieces. We sat in the dining room and the kids completely surrounded them and started asking every question they could think of. Dad, being the teacher and business lover that he is spent his time teaching the kids about savings bonds, no joke! They all want to be economists now. The kids are still telling me that my mom is the most jovial and loving mother they have met, that my sister is just as beautiful as me (obviously!) and that my dad was so smart and friendly. They loved meeting the family and kept asking why they had to leave so soon. Another visit must be arranged!

Finally, we ended the week by going to a tea farm and learning how tea is made. Kenya is known for their tea and coffee, they export 98% of their production It was a beautiful and relaxing afternoon to learn the process and enjoy a beautiful tea garden. Did you know from the time a leaf is picked, a cup of tea can be made in 24 hours?

Overall,i would say we had a great week seeing all different parts of Kenya. I even got a few showers this week, quite a treat! It was a a blessing to be able to show them around first hand so they can now picture the places I have been. I look forward to showing the rest of you around some day in the future!
See bridget's photo's for a more complete tour: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/album.php?aid=2067992&id=1420980375