A successful school trip

The children had a fantastic time on their trip to Nairobi.  They visited the Giraffe Centre...

the animal orphanage...

The children from Nanyuki school are going on their school trip on Wednesday!  I have been told that they are very, very excited!  Rose is worried that they will not get any sleep the night before.  I hope they have an unforgettable day.  I will keep you posted.

School trip to Nairobi

Rose mentioned that wouldn't it be lovely if, one day, the children could have a school trip to Nairobi (most of the children have never been out of Nanyuki).  So we set about costing such a trip and gave Rose some of the fund-raising money we had to cover the trip for 70 children.  The children will set out early in the coach to Nairobi (about 3 hours) and visit the Giraffe Centre. Incidentally we visited this wonderful centre on our way home and chatted to the staff.  They said the entrance would be free to the Nanyuki school children and could we just give a donation.  You can feed the giraffes and even hold the food between your teeth for them to take - you get a bit of a face wash!

Also on the trip the children will visit the animal orphange where thay can meet a lion, leopard, cheetah, various monkeys, hyena and ostrich to name but a few. They then will move into the city centre to pay a visit to the national museum and Snake Park situated next door.  We have also included in the money packed lunches, snacks and ice-cream.

Sarah, one of the volunteers still there, will be going with them and will be able to give us details of the trip.  Have a wonderful day!

The Quarry Folk

We visited the people who work in the quarry - these include men, women and their children.  It is a very hard life as it is all done by hand!  The stone is dug and crushed as small as possible.  It is used for buildings and roads.  It takes two weeks to crush 1 tonne and they would sell it for 700 Ksh (which is less than £5).

There is a company which has set up further up the road and they have machines to do the work and fetch far more money for their stone.  The quarry people explained that they need to be quick getting their sacks up to the lorries to be able to sell their stone. Quite often they sell their stone and then this in turn would be sold on for much more.  This seems so unfair but nothing can be done about it.

The children we met at Nanyuki prep school will often, when returning from the school, work in the quarries.  You couldn't meet nicer people than these folk who spend so much time in the quarry.

From A to B quite painfully...

Apart from walking we have been travelling around in Rose's
old 1983 peugeot truck which means most of us have to travel
in the back, (we have to hang to prevent ourselves from being
bounced off!). It has no mirrors, indicators, seat beats and no hand
brake!.. Oh the wipers don't work which we discovered during one
of the many storms out here.

The tracks are incredibly bumpy and (when in the taxi) we quite
often hit the bottom of the car.

Each day at about 3, Mwangi (taxi driver) comes to the school to take
the youngest back to their slums - he makes 2 journeys and can get 12
children in the car in one go!..

Christmas has come early...

Snowflakes hanging from the school tree, headteacher Rose dressed up as one of the wise Kings, well maybe Queen of Nanyuki Prep. Gifts from England were handed out to all the children - books, toys clothes and shoes - one of the oldest girls Ann received a pair of shoes so she has a second pair (other than her school shoes) which she can wear for church.
'Christmas lunch' was githeri (maize.and beans).

Rose at home...

We visited Rose and her grandmother (who remarked on how healthy I look!), in her home in the suburb (slum) of Bluegum (named after the eucalyptus trees).  They were very pleased to see us.  We had many peering eyes on us from the curious neighbours and chickens!  We gave Rose a letter and gift from her new english penpal (rafiki) Lilly and she has said that she will write back...

'Or_fun_age'

Today we have had great fun at the orphanage. Some of the children from here
attend Nanyuki Prep school. I held a make-up session with the girls. We made up games, relay races and frisbee.

At the end of the afternoon Rose turned up with a large holdall containing the football shirts and shorts we have gathered and brought over from the UK. Every child at the orphanage received a shirt - 61 in total. The shorts came in useful for the girls who require these for school.

I gave a pair of football boots to John - the orphanage's star player, whom I had promised I would bring a pair 12 months ago when I was last here. John was delighted and kept saying 'thank you' and 'asante sana'.

I was very touched and tearful when the children were prompted to give some speeches. They thanked me for 'everything' I have done for them and for coming back to them (as promised!). Kevin prompted me to say a few words in return....
I said 'Karibu', for it is my pleasure to do such things....

The Feeding Project

The children of Nanyuki prep school attend school each day during the
holidays to receive a meal - this may be the only meal of the day.

The food is prepared by Rose in an open-air kitchen! We helped with
todays preparations and we bought cabbage and beans for them. The beans needed
sorting to remove dust, twigs etc. After washing, the beans were placed
in a large pot on the fire to cook. Rose added salt to quicken the
cooking process and to soften the beans.

In another pot cabbage was shredded and onion added for flavour. Once
cooked the two were mixed together - here Kevin assisted using a very
large wooden spoon.

When all the food was ready two of the larger boys carried the pots to one of the
class rooms. The older girls then served the food equally, with rice onto
plates and a banana was then placed on top. They served the younger children
first and then themselves.

When all the food was eaten (and there is never anything left over) the chldren then
washed the dishes and pots.

We had some of the bean mix and it was delicious!..

New School Books...

Education is so important here in Kenya. At Nanyuki prep school
the children are divided into classes: Nursery (from 3yrs), pre-primary,
Standard 1 through to 6.

The school is a wooden structure 2ft off the ground and built in an L
shape.

They have some essential text books but need more so they at least have
one book to share between two children. With some of the money we
raised
we were able to buy all the needed books (about 130).

The subjects are: Maths, English, Kiswahili, Science and Social Studies.

The First Day...

We have had a lovely day visiting Nanyuki Prep School. Though it is school holidays, the children still come in as there is a feeding program in place. They are fed lunch - usually Ugali (maize) and milk, although this may be the only meal they could recieve for the whole day.

(Ugali)

During the day we did a number of activities with the children including a huge skipping race, however an amusing moment occured when one child took hold of the skipping rope handles and threw the rope behind to get ready to skip and accidently hooked another child pulling them together as she began to skip. Fortunately we managed to stop any real harm from forming, and spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing in the heat reading and chatting. We also paid a visit to the orphanage - they all remembered me from last year!

It had been a hot day but suddenly dark clouds began to gather so we quickly left as we were in an open-aired truck. Luckily enough we just made it back in time before the storm reached us....

Off to Kenya!

We are off with 5 heay suitcases mostly full of football shirts, toys, games, books for the orphanage.  We should arrive in Nairobi tomorrow morning to meet Rose.  Very excited!

Preparing to return to Kenya

I will soon be setting off to Kenya once again.  This time with my other half, Kevin.  We will be staying with (Mama) Rose (who put me up or put up with me last year!) and her family.  We have shared many emails throughout the year and are very excited to be meeting up again. 

After much fund-raising (including an auction and fete) we have more money than last year to take with us - so thankyou everyone who were involved in these activities and those who were kind in their donations.


Rose is determined to meet us at the airport and has informed me that we will stay at a b&b on the 'highway to Nanyuki'.  She will stay at her daughters' hostel nearby.  The following day we will travel the 200km to Nanyuki.

She also tells me that there are now 61 children at the orphange (ranging from 4 to 19 years).  We will also meet children from her school (ages 3 to 14 years) - who need to stay at school to be fed as there is no food at their homes.  I will find out more when I am there.

For more details on Nanyuki click on the link below:
wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanyuki

Meet 'Little Rose'

When I first met Rose she was outside her home - a wooden shack with no furniture, running water...well nothing really.  Her great-grandma, 86 years, was washing clothes using a bucket of water - she was pleased it had rained the previous night.

They needed to be re-housed quite urgently.  They were having problems with jiggers' (fleas that infect feet) and had no running water.

I was very keen to find a home for Rose before I left.  This came about and on Wednesday I went to help them move.  I wanted to enter their curent home, which they wouldn't let me before in case I got 'jiggers' but I was insistent this time.

So after being sprayed with insect repellent, I went inside and encountered a camel's leg!  They had been given it for food but nevertheless I wasn't keen!

While loading up the car with their possessions I'm afraid I refused to let them take the camel's leg in the car.  I just couldn't imagine it across my legs.  I promised to buy dinner instead.

The money raised paid for Rose and her grandma to move into a better home.  We bought a bed, chairs, table, stove...and the rent includes running water.

I went to visit Rose one last time before I left for the UK.  I bought her a new dress, shoes, writing materials and sweets.  She didn't stop smiling - which was wonderful...

AT THE ORPHANAGE

The boys LOVE football, especially Arsenal and England!  They were allowed to use a nearby field to play.  The boys were delighted with the football shirts I took and put them on straight away and went to play football even though we were in a middle of a tropical downpour!

One day we had a lovely make-up session with the girls.  Though once they had painted their nails they immediately took it off again to try a different colour.

I promised to return the following year (which is now next month!) with more football shirts so please, if you are throwing any away, pass them to me.

Last year I spent an amazing two weeks as a mzungu in Kenya.  From Nairobi I travelled 200 km north to Nanyuki, a small town near Mount Kenya.

I spent a great deal of time at CEDC (Children under Especially Difficult Circumstances).  The children here are some of the friendliest I have ever met.  They range from 5 to 19 years, 57 in total.  Most of the children at the centre are orphans and have been living on the streets.  At the Centre they have three meals a day and share dormitories and wash rooms.  Education is very important here as they believe the studying will result in a better life.

As I am a karate Instructor I had a go at teaching the children.  They were very keen and attentive.  They would clear a space in the class room and sweep the floor.  Sometimes we would be watched by a passing sheep poking its head into the doorway!