a whole new world

Last night did not feel like Africa. It felt like a new place. A big city in a land I had never known. A land where giraffe roam in the mornings near the airport and serengeti trees line the streets. A land where gasoline is $1.22 in US money and a place where being white was an absolute minority. Even though this was all new... it did not feel like the Africa I had always heard about.

Until this morning.

A short 5 minutes away from Nairobi "city in the sun"... a prominent and industrial metropolitan area that is the biggest city in most of East Africa... was a slum called Kibera. We loaded up the vans and piled in. Immediately the city ended. No tall buildings. No gas stations. No business people. No construction. No running water. No electricity. We were in the slums.

I am not trying to be dramatic or emotional. This is all purely true.

Tears filled my eyes as we entered the slums. The trash is piled along the side of the streets. Every bit of their trash.. even toxic.. is thrown on the street. Chickens are in the trash. Later those will probably be cooked and eaten. Sewage is on either side of the road. There is no running water. Women carry large jugs on their head about the size of a gatorade cooler for a football game. Children roam the streets alone. Many school children walk together hand in hand, but some children sat alone on the side of the road. Military men stand outside with machine guns. The houses are 10 ft. by 10 ft. and house about 5 people. About 100 people have to share the same outhouse.

At first you think it is just one row of tin shacks with little markets inside of them. Vegetables, shoes, hanging dead animals for meat, drinks, and clothing are sold in the markets. Then you look up.

The shacks go back for atleast a mile. Thousands of people living in this. I am in complete and total shock.

As our vans drove past the school children on the way to park we heard them say "muzunga". That is what they call white people. Our vans parked. Immediately we saw the children sprinting around the corner. They helped us out of the car and gave us huge hugs. Their joy and hope in the midst of devastation brings me chills... and I will never forget that moment.

We painted a medical clinic today. It was for a nurse winnie that Mocha Club supports. She said her typical day treatments were malaria, typhoid, mumps, septic wounds,diharrea, fever, and cuts. Can you imagine? Just a typical nurse's clinic that only treats the school children deals with these deadly diseases daily. We painted her clinic blue. That bright color seemed to enlighten us all and symbolized hope for these children.

We left to eat lunch. We ate at a really nice restaurant called Java House. It was really interesting to switch from slum to that within then minutes. I met missionaries who are building a village for AIDS orphans in Tanzania. I really feel like that would be something I would love to do some day. They have only built 3 of the thirty cottages of their village.

I saw a woman wearing TOMS shoes today.

I also heard the intercom for the Islamic believers to pray towards Mecca. I heard a man leading a prayer for the Muslims in Kibera.

WHAT A DAY... and it is only 6:00 day one. I am thankful, inspired, and grateful. I am disgusted with myself to be honest.

IF MY PARENTS ARE READING THIS: My email inbox is full so I cannot send out emails. I wanted to send you some but it would take forever to delete. I love you so much. Thank you for encouraging me and giving me this experience. I am learning so much more than I ever thought I would. I hope that one day our whole family can experience this together. It is changing my view of the world and it is only the start. I miss you. Love you. Thank you! Please call tiffany if you need me.

Keep checking in!!!!

Word:
"mizunga" (unsure of spelling) white people
lion= simba
kwaheri= good bye

prayers: that this will not be an experience. That this will bring me to my knees and change me.

For Benson, our leader. He is taking us into Kitui tomorrow. It is about 3 hours away. We will be with the orphans there.

For the people of Kibera. That the children will be provided with the education and health they need to get out of the slums,

THANKS!

leaving on a jet plane... JAMBO KENYA

WE ARE HERE SAFE AND SOUND! Hallelujah. The whole gang is here at our hotel about to go to bed for the night. Here it is eleven pm.. you guys just got out of church!

Here is a brief summary of our travels:

Friday--rode with the parents to Atlanta. Had an awesome meal at Fogo de Chao. I am so thankful for their support and enthusiasm about this opportunity.

Saturday--flew to DC. Sat with Cameron for four hours while waiting to check our bags in for British Airways. We got to choose seats. Our plane was a 747 400 so it was a double decker. Ofcourse I asked for usptairs. The man looked at me and basically said there was no way possible unless I was ready to fork out $10,000 one way. Nevertheless we took regular seats in the back. When we met up with our team at the gate we all hopped in the massive plane to realize we were the majority of the passengers... and there are only twenty of us! I took a whole row of five seats to myself and slept across them. The flight attendants (mark and andrew from Scotland) hung out with us and showed us card tricks. It kept the 6 hr flight interesting. Hey... this British Airway strike helped us out... each of us had our own row!
--we arrived 6:30 this morning (London time). In London I bought some strange ginger detox juice and some other juice that had no "nasties"... no chemicals. WOOHOO organic.

Sunday-- Flew out to Nairobi around 10:40. Got here 9:40 pm Kenya time. Customs and everything went very well. We hopped in our bus and rode through town with our driver named Felix. He took us to grab PIZZA. First African meal... cheese pizza. The people here are so hospitable and eager to love on us. Cameron met the most wonderful Kenyan women on the plane. They taught her all about culture and language. She is my roommate so she will teach me tonight. War Eagle. We are staying at a lovely place called "gracia house" and we have mosquito net canopies. I am pretty stoked about those. a- because they look awesome b- there are MASSIVE mosquitos.

Tomorrow we will be up and running around 8. We will be in Nairobi tomorrow and then the slums the next few days. If you don't see any posts for a few days... don't give up on us!!

Swahili words:
twiga-- giraffe
asanti--thank you

prayers: to break us

planes, trains, and automobiles

So you know how I was telling you about the British Airways strike? They figured it out for us! GOD IS GOOD!

This was what Cameron and I were going to have to do:

drive to Atlanta, fly to DC, get a taxi from Dulles airport in DC to the Reagan in DC,fly to JFK in NYC, fly to London, and then fly to Nairobi.

The thought of two college girls navigating through 5 airports and the Capitol of the USA in one day alone would have been an exhilarating and most likely hilarious adventure. Lots of laughter, lots of food, lots of "how do you get to terminal a", and lots of hustlin' to baggage claim.

I am a little sad that we don't get to laugh about this travel experience, but a shorter flight time is rockin'.

Now we just go straight to DC to London (hoping to sneak out of airport to say hi to Big Ben and sing a Beatles song). What a blessing! We will arrive in Nairobi May 30. There's no tellin' how many peanut bags and ginger ale cans will be emptied by then. For some reason ginger ale is better on an airplane.

I am sitting in my grandparents house after a big day of packing. They have been so great to help out. My mom is driving up here and my dad is already working in the Ham, so my parents and I will leave tomorrow for Atlanta.

I am attempting to make headbands that Amanda Claire taught me how to do so I can wear some and give some to the girls. AC, praying for your summer at Winnshape!

Swahli words (i forgot on the last post)
1. Jambo= hello
2. Hakuna Matata= No Problem ("it's a problem free... philosophy..." get it?)

Prayers: There is a woman who runs a school/day care for orphans in Kitui. I do not know her name yet, but I will get back with you. She has selflessly given and poured into these children. It's on my heart to lift her up today!

T- 3 DAYS!

Friday we're driving up to Atlanta (camilla... FOOD) and Saturday is the BIG day.

ONE problem: British Airways went on strike! We are praying and trusting that they can figure this out.. We are supposed to board that airline to London. If something doesn't work out they will probably re-route us.

Watch the video I posted from the other day! It is incredible.

This is a brief summary of what we'll be doing exactly:
Day 1-3ish: Driving 3 hours to a slum in Kitui. There we will be working at an orphanage. The conditions in this area are harsh. The sewage lines the streets and homes are scraps stuck together of various materials. Many children have lost parents due to disease, and many are suffering from disease also.

Day 3ish-6ish: Traveling back to Nairobi to a slum called Kibera. There we will be working with a vocational school. This teaches older kids and adults how to master certain trades so that they can provide an income for their family. Sunday we will go to church with them.

Day 7ish- the end: We will be with a high school. There is a bead and jewelry place nearby that provide many jobs for the women. I cannot wait to see (and purchase) their handmade jewelry. We will also be talking with girls about hygiene and how to protect themselves better since the AIDS epidemic is highly prevalent there.

Last day: SAFARI!

Nothing else is really new. I started my job today, but I don't really start working until I return from Kenya. I LOVE MY JOB!

Zac is begging me to adopt a 16 year old boy from Kenya so he can have a brother that can go to school with him when we move to Birmingham. He was going to nickname him "Soul." Didn't sound like a bad idea to me.

Thank you friends for all of your encouraging messages and texts. I Love you! What a blessing you are.

ps..Laurel,Anna,Morgan, and Laura Langley start their adventure today to Jackson Hole. Enjoy the journey!

Again... WATCH THE VIDEO!! (scroll down to last post)

"pre-gaming"

Down to the final stretch and about to burst with excitement!

We ran around town this week gathering the last minute things I needed for the trip (art supplies for the schools and orphanages, clothes that are appropriate for their culture, and...... pepto bismol... lots of it) :) I felt bad for my family and Nick as we swarmed through the Walmart aisles.

As we were shopping at walmart my mom and grandmother were in the food section looking for snacks. They kept urging me to get FiberOne and Nutrigrain bars. I quickly responded, "I'm going to Africa... I don't think I will need any fiber." Sorry.. maybe that is t.m.i

Every week we have had a teleconference with our team members. It's rather strange that we have never seen each other before. I guess that'll be interesting finding everyone in the airport. But hey... it adds to the adventure! Bring it.

May 29th. I can't help but dance in circles around the kitchen because in one week we will experience joyous souls dancing with hope in the midst of famine, disease, and poverty. Humbling? absolutely.

Swahili word of the day: Rafiki=Friend

Prayers: Safe and smooth travels

Africa Trip from mike lewis on Vimeo.