Hello everyone! I don't have much time at the moment, but I wanted to check in and let you all know what's going on! We're camping lakeside at Lake Naivasha right now, and I am neighbors with a hippo. A real live hippo! Don't worry, he seems kind of nice. Not too hungry-hungry. There are also monkeys EVERYWHERE on the campsite. It's quite distracting when we have lectures.
So basically, our "risk management" warnings for this week were:
1. Don't shine your flashlight directly in the eye of the hippo.
2. Don't leave food in your tents, or else monkeys will rob you.
Pretty awesome, right? This is school.
This campsite is much different from our last one. We were staying at Elangata Wuas before, where was incredibly hot and dusty. 38 degrees Celsius! How do you feel about that, Montreal folks? Enjoying your -40 weather?
While in Elangata Wuas, we each spent a night at a traditional Maasai homestead. We stayed in little tiny mud huts, and I slept on a cowhide bed with three other people (pictures to come soon!). We were shoulder to shoulder the entire night...It was a bit more than a tight squeeze. Our youth guide, Hellen, was so sweet and taught us so much about Maasai culture. All in all, it was an amazing experience, and so interesting to see the different lifestyles that people live!
(And I got to milk a goat.)
My class for this session is Ethnobotany, Health, and Nutrition. We're learning about all sorts of local plants, and the traditional uses for them (like as traditional medicine, food, or even for household uses). We've been visiting various types of farm. First we went to a commercial vegetable farm. Then we went to a flower farm where they breed roses to ship off to other countries. Today, we visited a local farmer in Naivasha, who is in between subsistence farming and commercial farming... He had really impressive fish ponds. And adorable sheep!
Tomorrow we're hiking Mount Longonot, and in a few days from now, we'll be packing up our tents and heading to Maasai Mara!
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Friday, January 18, 2013
Ufanisi [development]
Hello world! Tonight is my last night in Nairobi, so I figured I'd squeeze in one last blog entry before I travel out into the land of no internet/phone service. (Most of the places on my trip, I will have service, but apparently at our next stop, Elangata Wuas, the connection is really poor.)
It's been an insanely busy week, and it didn't hit me until just last night that yes, this is actually school. Every spare moment is spent journaling, reading, or researching.
ANYWAYS, here's a brief summary of everything I've been up to in the past few days:
On Wednesday, we went to the UN and learned about all sorts of nifty things, like energy efficiency and Kenya Slum Upgrading Program (KENSUP). We got to wander around the the compound, which was absolutely beautiful. It basically looked like a resort... Forget about working for the UN -- I just want to live there! A few of us wandered up to the roof to check out the solar panels...it was a pretty neat adventure, and we managed to not get in trouble with the security guard!
From there, we walked down the road to Canada High Commission, where we were welcomed with tea and cookies. We got to hear various politicians talking about all the things that Canada does in Kenya. I fell asleep during the security briefing, during which they apparently told us how to stay safe while travelling in Kenya. Ooops! Silly jet lag!
We took a break to do some speedy grocery shopping, then headed back to the High Commission for a reception. Here we mingled with the students we had met from the University of Nairobi, as well as students from the United States International University. Oh, and there was an open bar.
Thursday we visited Nairobi National Museum, and I had my first real class! Ethnobotany, Health and Nutrition! I never thought I had an interest in plants, but it was really cool! We got to go into the herbarium, where they have a massive collection of dried plant species organized in huge cabinets. Then we went into a garden, where I touched a plant that stung like crazy and ate another plant that tasted horrible, all under the instruction of my professor.
The herbarium was a really behind-the-scenes thing that is not open to the general public, but the actual museum had a lot of cool things about Kenyan culture and wildlife. AND THERE WAS A SNAKE FARM. Black Mambas. Yep.
Today we were supposed to go to Kibera, East Africa's largest slum. However, there's a lot of political activity going on right now, and due to anticipated violence, it was unsafe to actually visit the slum. Instead we met a couple of NGOs that work within the slum. Maji na Ufanisi (Water and Development) focuses on improving the water and sanitation in the slum. Vision Sisters is a group of women who are focusing on empowering women in the slum and providing resources for women who who face violence/abuse. Both of these organizations were incredibly inspirational.
Unfortunately I have no pictures for you this time! Wednesday, we were not allowed to bring our cameras to the UN or High Commission. Thursday, my camera was out of battery. Today, well, today I just didn't take any photos.
Welp, that pretty much sums up my week! I will have even awesomeR stories next time I blog, because we're about to travel to a Maasai community where we'll get to do a home stay, and from there we go to a lake where there is a threat of hippos charging through our campsite. YAY SCHOOL!
Later gators!
It's been an insanely busy week, and it didn't hit me until just last night that yes, this is actually school. Every spare moment is spent journaling, reading, or researching.
ANYWAYS, here's a brief summary of everything I've been up to in the past few days:
On Wednesday, we went to the UN and learned about all sorts of nifty things, like energy efficiency and Kenya Slum Upgrading Program (KENSUP). We got to wander around the the compound, which was absolutely beautiful. It basically looked like a resort... Forget about working for the UN -- I just want to live there! A few of us wandered up to the roof to check out the solar panels...it was a pretty neat adventure, and we managed to not get in trouble with the security guard!
From there, we walked down the road to Canada High Commission, where we were welcomed with tea and cookies. We got to hear various politicians talking about all the things that Canada does in Kenya. I fell asleep during the security briefing, during which they apparently told us how to stay safe while travelling in Kenya. Ooops! Silly jet lag!
We took a break to do some speedy grocery shopping, then headed back to the High Commission for a reception. Here we mingled with the students we had met from the University of Nairobi, as well as students from the United States International University. Oh, and there was an open bar.
Thursday we visited Nairobi National Museum, and I had my first real class! Ethnobotany, Health and Nutrition! I never thought I had an interest in plants, but it was really cool! We got to go into the herbarium, where they have a massive collection of dried plant species organized in huge cabinets. Then we went into a garden, where I touched a plant that stung like crazy and ate another plant that tasted horrible, all under the instruction of my professor.
The herbarium was a really behind-the-scenes thing that is not open to the general public, but the actual museum had a lot of cool things about Kenyan culture and wildlife. AND THERE WAS A SNAKE FARM. Black Mambas. Yep.
Today we were supposed to go to Kibera, East Africa's largest slum. However, there's a lot of political activity going on right now, and due to anticipated violence, it was unsafe to actually visit the slum. Instead we met a couple of NGOs that work within the slum. Maji na Ufanisi (Water and Development) focuses on improving the water and sanitation in the slum. Vision Sisters is a group of women who are focusing on empowering women in the slum and providing resources for women who who face violence/abuse. Both of these organizations were incredibly inspirational.
Unfortunately I have no pictures for you this time! Wednesday, we were not allowed to bring our cameras to the UN or High Commission. Thursday, my camera was out of battery. Today, well, today I just didn't take any photos.
Welp, that pretty much sums up my week! I will have even awesomeR stories next time I blog, because we're about to travel to a Maasai community where we'll get to do a home stay, and from there we go to a lake where there is a threat of hippos charging through our campsite. YAY SCHOOL!
Later gators!
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Ndovu [elephant]
Jambo! I have now spent two whole days in Nairobi, and we've been so incredibly busy! Yesterday, we started off by going to the Elephant Orphanage. This is where Kenyan Wildlife Services takes in baby elephants who have lost their mothers (sometimes due to natural causes, but usually because of human causes). We were there at feeding time, and watched the keepers feed the elephants huge bottles of baby formula (yep, formula for human babies...I guess it would be pretty difficult to milk an elephant).
The baby elephants are rescued from the wild, nurtured until about age 3, and then released back into a national park when they are ready. Sometimes, they even come back to visit to prove to their keepers that they are doing just fine on their own.
They really were adorable! I even got to touch one! One of my fellow students and I decided that we are going to go halfsies on an elephant. Her name will be Ophelia, and she's going to travel home on the airplane with us.
Oh, and this is my favorite picture of my journey so far -- up close and personal with an elephant pooping. Something I never expected to see in my lifetime!
Today we hung out with students from University of Nairobi, and they showed us around the city. Tomorrow we're heading to the UN to learn about development issues regarding the slums in Nairobi, followed by a reception at the Canadian High Commission.
All in all, life is grand!
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Jambo, Kenya!
Hey y'all! Not really much to say at this point other than I made it to Nairobi safe and sound! We just got in about an hour or two ago, and are all checked into ICIPE, which is an insect research station that we'll be staying at for the week. I slept for most of the second flight, but it was wicked neat to fly over the Sahara! It's just after 1:30AM right now though, and I have to be up and out by 8AM to go to Nairobi National Park -- gonna see some Walters and maybe some Simbas! (For those of you who are unaware of who Walter is...get with the program!) We've only been here for an hour or two, so there's not really much else to tell (unless you want to hear about the airplane food).. but now you all know that I am here, I am alive, and I am happy as a clam!
Anyways, off to beddy-bye I go!
Anyways, off to beddy-bye I go!
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Time to fire up the ol' blogaroo!
Hey there, folks!
As I'm sitting here watching mindless daytime television for the last time in a very long time, I've decided maybe I should check to see if this ol' sucker still works! And wouldja look at that-- it does!
So, I'm sure you all know by now that I'm leaving for another journey to East Africa in 10 days. This time, it's for school. I'll be taking a full course load (5 courses) with McGill professors as we travel through Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. I haven't chosen any classes yet (and won't until the program starts), but in case you're curious what kinds of neat things I'll be studying, check out this website.
I have a week of orientation in Montreal, so I'm heading back north on Friday. I've been told that orientation will consist mostly of professors trying to sell us their courses, but there will be some Swahili lessons as well! Also, it will be a great opportunity to get to know the other 34 students before having to spend three months camping in tents with them.
Yep, that's right... Camping. While some nights we'll be staying in lodges and maybe even hotels, I've been told that the majority of our nights will be spent in two-person tents. Anybody got any advice on how to keep the lions and mosquitoes at bay?
After the program ends on March 26th, have about two months to do whatever the heck I want. The first week will be spent as a beach vacation with the other students, followed by a week of climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro! Then, I'm hoping to find some sort of internship or volunteer work before coming back home to Boston on June 9th.
That's a REALLY long time from now though. Right now, I should mostly just be focusing on packing. As you can see below, I am still extremely unorganized.
But look! Pappy will be so proud that I'm taking a Sudoku book!!
Santa gave me all sorts of neato gear for Christmas...how is he always so smart?! Among many other handydandy things, I got an awesome 65L backpack, a really cozy sleeping bag, a compressible pillow, and a nice little pocket knife (courtesy of my awesomepossum brother, Mike!) I think I'm being much smarter about packing than I was last time, but I guess we'll find out as time goes on whether or not I have everything I need! (I definitely won't forget the Nutella this time!)
Anyways, I guess I should get started on my chores (and back to this incredibly riveting Lifetime movie...har har har). Sorry that this post was a bit less than thrilling, but have no fear! More exciting times are just around the corner! Hopefully I will have adequate internet access while in East Africa in order to maintain this blog. If not, welp, we'll just have to catch up in June! :)
As I'm sitting here watching mindless daytime television for the last time in a very long time, I've decided maybe I should check to see if this ol' sucker still works! And wouldja look at that-- it does!
So, I'm sure you all know by now that I'm leaving for another journey to East Africa in 10 days. This time, it's for school. I'll be taking a full course load (5 courses) with McGill professors as we travel through Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. I haven't chosen any classes yet (and won't until the program starts), but in case you're curious what kinds of neat things I'll be studying, check out this website.
I have a week of orientation in Montreal, so I'm heading back north on Friday. I've been told that orientation will consist mostly of professors trying to sell us their courses, but there will be some Swahili lessons as well! Also, it will be a great opportunity to get to know the other 34 students before having to spend three months camping in tents with them.
Yep, that's right... Camping. While some nights we'll be staying in lodges and maybe even hotels, I've been told that the majority of our nights will be spent in two-person tents. Anybody got any advice on how to keep the lions and mosquitoes at bay?
After the program ends on March 26th, have about two months to do whatever the heck I want. The first week will be spent as a beach vacation with the other students, followed by a week of climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro! Then, I'm hoping to find some sort of internship or volunteer work before coming back home to Boston on June 9th.
That's a REALLY long time from now though. Right now, I should mostly just be focusing on packing. As you can see below, I am still extremely unorganized.
But look! Pappy will be so proud that I'm taking a Sudoku book!!
Santa gave me all sorts of neato gear for Christmas...how is he always so smart?! Among many other handydandy things, I got an awesome 65L backpack, a really cozy sleeping bag, a compressible pillow, and a nice little pocket knife (courtesy of my awesomepossum brother, Mike!) I think I'm being much smarter about packing than I was last time, but I guess we'll find out as time goes on whether or not I have everything I need! (I definitely won't forget the Nutella this time!)
Anyways, I guess I should get started on my chores (and back to this incredibly riveting Lifetime movie...har har har). Sorry that this post was a bit less than thrilling, but have no fear! More exciting times are just around the corner! Hopefully I will have adequate internet access while in East Africa in order to maintain this blog. If not, welp, we'll just have to catch up in June! :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)