A very busy several weeks!
on A Serendipitous Journey (Kenya), 14/Apr/2010 07:18, 34 days ago
I just received a comment from a very good friend ridiculingmy last blog posting, saying she was having a“snooze fest” reading it and telling me I forgot to mention all of the fun I’ve been having over the past several weeks. She’s right - sincewhite water rafting in Uganda, my social calendar has been very busy!GLOBAL EDUCATION IN NAIVASHA - Just 2 weekends after whitewater rafting, I went toFisherman’s Campon the shores of Lake Naivasha for theVSO Global EducationCommittee meeting. The theme for VSO’s global education workshops is climate change, so it seemed fitting for the meetingto be held atLake Naivashawhich has experienced devastatingly low water levels due to low rainfall and flower farming, among other factors. It was such a treat to meet in a room overlooking the lake famous for its hippos and pelicans, while watching colobus monkeys climbing through the trees. We also had the opportunity to visit a flower farm which exports more than 100,000 roses per day to Holland, learn how the flowers are grown, and see its impact on the environment, the lake and the local population.(More to come on this in a future posting…)ST PADDY’S DAY CELEBRATIONS - I live with a volunteer from Ireland, so the following Saturday, March 13th, I joined her and our other Irish friends for the black tie Irish Ball at the Hilton Hotel. The Irish Ball is renowned as one of the most fun events in Nairobi and it didn’t disappoint! (The tickets sold out even before they were printed.) After enjoying cocktails and a lovely meal, the party went on until the very early hours of the morning. A few days later, we went to a St. Paddy’s Day celebrationin at Kingellis in Lavington, which was decorated in green and white shamrocks and had an excellent Irish band playing.SOUTH AFRICAN WINES - The next weekend, March 20th, was the annual wine show at the Holiday Inn in Nairobi. Along with a dozen friends, I tasted several South African wines around the poolside while catching up and socializing.VSO PLANNING WORKSHOP IN KASARANI - All of the VSO volunteers from around Kenya and representatives from each of our organizations spent the following week in Kasarani, just north of Nairobi, for an annual review workshop. This gave us the opportunity to share experiences and help shape the VSO plan for 2010-2011. The most memorable‘social’ part of the week was when VSO volunteer Rachael who lives in Kasarani invited several of us over to her house one evening and an entire party matatu of us showed up. The look on her face was priceless!MOUNT LONGONOT (TAKE 3)– On Saturday March 27th, Emma, Rebecca, Carol, Mike and I climbedMount Longonotfor the third time. The view of the East African Rift Valley escarpment, Lake Naivasha, the rolling green hills and the dry dusty flat plains never grows tiring. It’s truly spectacular! And getting out of the city and breathing the fresh air is just good for the soul!AND THE HIGHLIGHT… EASTER IN DIANI BEACH! – I had been waiting for this moment for months! On Good Friday my friends and I hopped on a MASH bus at 8 am and before dark we were on the coast in Diani relaxing in the lounge ofStilts Eco-camp, a camp situated right across from the famousForty ThievesRestaurant. Stilts is a backpackers place (KSh 900-1200 per person per night) where you stay in bandas which are literally raised on stilts several feet above the ground. The staff are really laid back and they even have barbeques around the campfire for those who wish at night. We really enjoyed it there - especially all of the monkeys running around!We spent from Saturday morning until Monday night swimming, suntanning, reading, and enjoying the nightlife at Forty Thieves. On Sunday, the monthly“Blankets and Wine” event which takes place on a monthly basis in Nairobi was moved to the beach and we spent the afternoon listening to East Africna musicians while watching the waves of the Indian Ocean crash up against the shore. The highlight (perhaps of the entire weekend) was when our not-so-modest Irish friend Alan jumped up on stage with the principle boy band act and started proving to the crowd that white men can in fact dance! There were a lot of familiar faces from Nairobi and we met up with several friends unexpectedly. By Monday night we all reluctantly dragged ourselves away the beach to head back to Mombasa, where after a city tour, fresh juices and a Swahili meal, we hopped on Coast Air bus for the overnight journey back to Nairobi.And for those who are wondering: yes, in between all of these social events I have been working and getting a fair amount accomplished at my placement too. Work hard, play hard!The fun continues as this weekend I’m going back to Hell’s Gate National Park to go cycling beside the wildlife and hike through the volcanic gorge again.