211/365

211/365, originally uploaded by britrosewhite.

I used to use collages to save time but NOW I am going to use collages to save money! I take so many pictures and the more information you send across the internet, the more money you use up. I used all of my money video skyping with my family the other day, so now I am going to be very frugal. I can walk to Java House where there is free wifi, but I can’t walk back after dark which is when everyone in the states comes online!

So anyway, I take a lot of pictures. It has been difficult only picking one per day (though when I started this blog, that was the original idea). You should be able to click on the collage and zoom in on it to see each photo with clear resolution.

The last few days Amy and I have either been in the apartment or sitting at Java House. We were eager to do something! So when I checked my phone at 9:15 this morning and saw a text from Faustin saying be ready at 9:30...we were excited despite still being in our pajamas and not having showered in a while. Thankfully, this is Africa, so everyone is late!

Nanu picked us up and to our surprise all of the Chola’s kids were in the van with her! We had no idea where we were going, why, and with whom. Pastor Chola works for CMM which is the ministry that put on the teen camp. He is also the pastor of Destiny Chapel, where Amy and I are attending church. Last August I stayed with the Chola’s for two weeks and we are going to live with them in October. They have four crazy awesome kids: Duncan (11), Shiro (9), Nzingo (7?) and Monje (5).

Nanu took us to Village Market to hang around and wait for their parents to finish their visa appointments at the US Embassy. We had such a blast with the kids! We looked at high healed shoes, wedding dresses, visited a toy store, and Amy and I bought them cotton candy. By that time, Pastor Chola and his wife, Pauline, came back and took us to a Swahili restaurant that I would never have known existed on the property. I ordered tilapia and rice. Take a look up there at what they sent me.

We were told that the brain is the best part and...I just decided to take their word for it. However, when people start chanting and ask me to eat something, I can’t turn it down! I don’t know what it is. Maybe it goes back to the time when I used to eat strange concoctions in the jr. high cafeteria for money. So I ate a fish eye. And not just the eye ball, but all the SLIMY SICK stuff behind it. Amy has pictures of that and they are not pretty.

Duncan DID eat the brain, however, so Amy promised him ice cream in return. I don’t know if the ice cream was more for us or the kids, but it certainly hit the spot. I normally order one scoop in a kid’s size...today I got two scoops in a cone. I mean come on, I ate a fish eye!

By the ride home, we realized we’d given four kids who generally never eat sugar an insane amount. They were hopping over seats and taking off layer after layer to cool off. That’s what the Americans do...feed the kids sugar.

I may have mentioned that our team brought over 300 pounds of shoes. We have some left so we let everyone pick out some new ones to take home. They had a blast trying on shoes, especially Nzingo. She may have slipped out with five pair.

So tomorrow the new adventure starts. We are leaving in the morning to go to the market with Pauline. We can’t carry anything with us and have to wrap our hair in scarves. She is going to stock up on food for the family reunion and I’m so excited to visit this place. We leave early Thursday morning for Taita (I found it online!) and we will be there until Sunday. The actual party will take place Saturday night and Pastor Chola told me no one sleeps then. We can if we really want to, but it is an all night party so if you get tired, you find a place to lay your head and there you are. There are no roads so we may have to hike some and push the car because it is very hilly. He is trying to get electricity for the all night party but only a few places will have it in the entire town. We’ll have to buy bottled water in a city an hour away. We’ll have to use the restroom in a dug out hole. I mean...wow. I can’t wait to share about that experience.

The good thing about Taita is it’s an hour and a half from Mombasa, where we’ll be staying for an entire week (at this hotel for free!). I may be able to get some internet while I’m there. The beach! The Indian Ocean! We might even go to Malinda one day. I’m STOKED.

We were brainstorming places to go once we return and we decided to take the rest of our shoes to a school for blind albino children about 2 hours from here. Miss Pauline says they will break our hearts and they’re need is greater than some of the orphanages in Nairobi. Last they heard there was only one Braille Bible in the entire school so we are hoping to find some more to take with us as well. I can’t wait to visit there.

I know that this post is a little wordy but seeing as I won’t be able to update for a few days, I thought I’d take my time with the details.

If you’d like to pray, I have a few requests:
No sickness! I am starting to get over my cold, but Faustin came down with a fever and Duncan was not feeling well this afternoon.
No stomach problems! Amy and I have not lived on a diet of Swahili food alone so who knows how it will effect us. Getting sick with a long drop instead of a toilet might be a little too much to handle.
Honestly...please pray that we don’t get cold at night! I just hate that. It gets to 50 here at night and Taita is a higher elevation and I’m not sure if insulation is a priority there...

So I’m off to pack my backpack with the essentials: hoodie, swimsuit (the call them swimming costumes), and lots and lots of granola bars. See you on the other side.