Finals, Running Errands, Flat tires & Family Parties...oh and Merry Christmas!

I know. The title is exhausting. Living it was even more so. But I finished my first semester of finals! I'm so glad to have that behind me. One semester down, three to go. Not sure if I passed my classes but they keep telling us that 1) grades don't matter and 2) everyone survives so I am holding them to their word.

I found out last week that I got into the Moab 1/2 marathon to be held in March so I'm now trying to work up my endurance and speed. During finals I decided to multi-task by running my errands. Literally. So, I ran 1 mile to the post office then another 1/2 mile to the bank (3 miles round trip) and decided to keep going awhile longer and ended up running 6.5 miles! Not too bad, I think. Now I just have to double that and I'm good.

So, my friend Lynne was in town from Michigan this week and a couple of us drove up to Salt Lake Friday night to see her. We chatted until 11pm when we decided we should head back to Provo. On the way home I started to hear a strange noise and then came the strange shaking. I started to freak out and the girls riding with me at first thought it was just the road with construction and all. Well, long story short we finally made it off the University Parkway exit and I pulled into the closest gas station. When I got out I could see and smell my back tire smoking. Flat. Three girls, two guys (a new friend, Parker, and a not so new friend, Broderick, joined the ranks to help) and 45 minutes later we were on our way. Monday will now be devoted to getting my tire and oil changed. Merry Christmas to my car!

Sadly, our family Christmas party to be held on Saturday was canceled due to inclement weather but some of us still had an impromptu get together at my place. Pauline was driving to Nephi so she came the rest of the way to Provo with Jadon and some darling North Pole cupcakes. Danette came down with a sewing project. Glen stopped by with Ilham and the adorable Brody. Rebecca dropped in last with Lainie, Morgan and Nicole. We ate, held the baby and all had a great time. This is when I learned from Morgan taught me that "a hypothesis is an idea you can test." She's four, mind you. I also discovered how very un-kid friendly my condo really is but both the kids and my carpet survived so we're good.

Still Here

It's a strange time to finally pick this up again. Finals are creeping up and I should most certainly be studying right now but instead I started to catch up on everyone's blogs and decided that mine was well out of date.

I won't bore you with much detail of the last 3 months but I will say that it's been quite the ride. I started the MBA program at BYU with 2 weeks of orientation (whew!) and a river rafting trip in Idaho. I was given the best group of study partners anyone could ask for (The Six Pack, as we like to call ourselves) and have survived the great internship hunt which consisted of info sessions, informational interviews, first interviews, dinners, fly backs and...the wait. And the results are in! I will be working at HP in Palo Alto, CA for three months next summer. I'm quite excited for the opportunity and am glad to know where I will be going come May. School is great but I often miss the slow-pace of Mombasa. They say the grass is greener on the other side and as I sit here looking out my window I can most certainly guarantee that today it is!

Mombasa, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

Over 300 matatu rides. 3 new scars. 7 roommates. 1 mosquito net. 1 case of the stomach flu. 3 new training programs. 1 (modest) beach bonfire. 5 blisters. Approximately 80 meals of beans & rice. Countless power outages. 1 trusty fan. The 1st World Cup in Africa. 1 cat. 3 geckos. 1 birthday (let's not count the candles). 4 evenings in the air conditioned movie theater. 2 Tilapia served with the head and skin still intact. 1 fantastic maid. 40+ loads of laundry washed by hand. 3 church callings. One reliable 10.1 inch red netbook. 18 mosques. 3 broken shoes. Not nearly enough mahambri. Thousands of ants. 1 school of dolphins. 3 GB worth of pictures. At least 6 sunburns. 1 unusually long rainy season (no complaints here). 3 umbrellas. 150 anti-malaria pills. 0 cases of malaria. 4 lovely and all too fleeting months.

The Final Countdown

It's official. I can now count the days I have remaining in Mombasa on one hand. And as one might guess, I'm having all sorts of mixed emotions. However, I won't bore you with all of that. I spent my last weekend (tear) in Mombasa by myself. Denise took off around 3am on Saturday which left me free to do whatever I wanted with the day. I decided to go visit yet another market and take in more of the sights. This time it was off to the Kongowea market.

I have a few pics to share but first I wanted to introduce you (below) to Mama Rose (left) and Rehema (right) from Yehu. I aspire to become like these two women. They are two of the most generous, sincere, funny and caring people I know. And I don't ever remember them not smiling...except perhaps when they're sick with Malaria and still trying to work. Oh yeah, did I mention that they never complain?

Okay, on to the market. Check out how they stack their produce...oranges in this case. You see stacks like this all over. I can't even get a straight line of dominoes up without knocking them over.

Nearly everyone tops the walls around their property with broken glass from coke and other soda bottles along with any other glass one can find. It's meant to be frightening, I suppose, but I find it pretty in its own way.

There is a building at the end of the market that houses thousands and thousands of bananas-or plantains? Someone please explain the difference to me. Guys with handcarts line up here every morning, fill up their carts and pull them across the bridge into town. We pass by this scene nearly everyday. It never ceases to amaze me to see them pull their huge carts through town and in bare feet. I was hoping to capture the crazy amount of bananas (or plantains) but this was as close as I could get before they started getting upset with me. Just imagine this stack times about 27 and you've about got it.

It's My Birthday!

The whole country celebrated today! Ok, maybe not specifically for the day of my birth but celebrations there were. President Kibaki announced that the new constitution was voted in successfully and there were celebrations all over town. We even passed an impromptu parade of motorbikes on the way home from work today. We asked Mama Rose about her voting experience. She said that she's never voted before because she never believed in someone enough to fight the crowds to vote but felt that this vote really mattered and she wanted to be a part of it. She showed us her finger that marks you've voted. You can see the black mark on her left pinkie. This keeps anyone from voting twice. Whatever happened to the "I Voted" stickers? It was quite exciting to watch Kenyan history in the making. It really is a great day!


So, Denise made some yummy scrambled eggs and toast for my birthday breakfast. Thanks, Denise! Here we are enjoying our Milo (chocolate malt drink).

Work was busy and quite routine but after work we went to Mikaye, a really great Kenyan restaurant that Andi & Aaron introduced me to in November. I got the Tilapia (this time with my camera handy) which was oh so delicious. We picked up some ice cream and cake on the way home for the restaurant and will spend the rest of the night chilling at home. Overall, it's been a great birthday! Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes!

Happy 4th...of August!

There may have not been any 4th of July celebrations here in Kenya but everyone is pretty excited for August 4th. Today has been declared a holiday because it is today the country votes on a new constitution. For months everyone has been discussing and debating this vote. You hear about it on the radio, see it on billboards and it's frequently discussed in the office. There has been some opposition to it along the way but everyone feels confident it will pass. And although I have no vote, I will still be (very much!) enjoying the day off.

Oh, and Happy Birthday, Aunt Amy!

Week Of Field Trips

Someday I will take my yellow scarf to the beach and run into the ocean as it waves behind me!


Last Saturday/Sunday consisted of a seminary/institute lesson, a talk in sacrament meeting, a Relief Society lesson and an after church meeting with the Relief Society president to teach her the ins & outs of Visiting Teaching. I finished preparing my talk Sunday morning and ran off to the internet cafe to print it off. I realize that I should have prepared far enough in advance so that I could have printed it off on Saturday but it just didn't happen. The internet cafe was still closed when I got there and I'll be the first to say that it served me right. I ran to church and got there early so I started to jot down everything that I could remember of my talk. That's when 25 white visitors walked in the door. As if it wasn't bad enough that I didn't have my talk with me, I now had double the audience (ok, I exaggerate...there are more than 25 members in the branch, but still...) They were all coming as part of Coins for Kenya. I hadn't heard of it before and am still not really sure what they do but it was fun to meet them all. Anyway, the talk and lessons all went well.

On Tuesday I took Denise to Changamwe (an area north of Mombasa) to visit some center meetings where the women make savings and loan payments and discuss any issues/needs. Denise interviewed some of the clients about Yehu's products and other marketing information that she's been gathering. This little girl and I became new friends. We played with her rocks and bottle caps during the meeting. I couldn't resist pulling out my camera. Isn't she a doll?

After our visit to Changamwe the plan was to then pack some clothes and head down to the Pope's for the night so we could attend some more centers the next day. We packed, stopped by the office for a minute and caught transportation to the ferry. It was rush hour so we were packed in like cattle all waiting to get on the ferry. After another matatu ride and meeting up with Louis & Chriss we finally made it to Diani. We ended up staying two nights down there and had so much fun.

On Wed Louis let us use his truck and we went to the new Msambweni branch after which we went to two different center meetings. At the second meeting the women gave us gifts. Denise received a pretty sweet woven mat. I received a lovely food warmer (see below).


Here's where I need all of your votes. To keep the food warmer OR not to keep the food warmer? That is the question. Don't get me wrong. I absolutely LOVE that they went out of their way to give us something and I more than appreciate the gift...but do I really need to keep the food warmer to remember them by? Back at the head office everyone looked at my food warmer with befuzzlement (pretty sure that wasn't a word until just now). So, I know I'm not the only one that wonders what one should do with the gift. I asked several people what the phrase means. I got several different answers but they were all something along the lines of, "To have peace and joy there must be understanding between one another." I wonder if the wife put that on there because she burned dinner. Just a thought. My favorite part of the center meeting was actually 'dancing' with the women. Let's be honest...I don't dance. I met a 3-year old girl on the matatu today that has more moves in her short three years than I will ever acquire. But back to the center meeting. Some of the women started singing a song that ends with them picking a friend. Yep, I got picked! I was pretty excited until I realized this meant I had to join my new friends in their dance. Good thing they don't mock...or at least I don't understand them when they do :)

Later we met this butcher Omar (below on the right). Last year his business was run out of a small stand. Raw meat from a stand...yikes! But then he joined Yehu and within a year has built a new (and hopefully cleaner) home for his business. There aren't many male clients in microfinance but the ones I've met are stellar.

Today I said goodbye to our cleaning lady, Gertrude. This woman has got to be one of the sweetest ladies I know. I just learned today that she's going to have a baby next month. I had suspected for awhile now that she was pregnant but I certainly didn't expect her to be due next month! I'll admit that at first I felt horrible that we had someone clean up after us but then I realized that work is scarce down here and this was an opportunity for her to support her family. I will certainly miss her.


Before Seminary/Institute Denise and I went to the wood carvers' shop. While Denise was shopping I met up with Janet (the Primary president) who works there. She walked me around so I could see all of the carvers and say hi to her friends. This guy was one of my favorites. Check out his handy work!

Today was also my last seminary/institute lesson and so of course we had to take a class picture. From the left we have Herbert, Catherine and then Penina. The little girl is Penina's cousin and I'm totally forgetting her name. Anyway, these guys are pretty awesome. I'm really hating all of these goodbyes.

Show & Tell

I decided to post another round of pictures because it was so hard to narrow them down last time. Besides, I know that most of you would rather see pictures than read my boring narrative. So sit back, relax and enjoy the 'slide' show.

First, there's this really cool tin Coca-cola wall that we sometimes drive by in the matatus on the way to town. I got this shot by sticking my hand out the window and hoping for the best. I kinda liked the result.

Anyone want a fresh banana?

Perhaps you prefer red bananas...

There are so many mosques here. Each one is so unique and incredible in its own right.

The Muslim prayer caps are equally amazing. They come in all sorts of colors and patterns. In November Andi and I met a vendor who was pretty excited about our interest in his hats. He went into the alley behind his stand and pulled out a thick metal chest with a huge padlock. Inside were the most beautiful handmade prayer caps I could have ever imagined. He said one had taken 6 months to make so far and it was still unfinished. Amazing! Anyway, I have to be careful that I don't give the wrong impression when I often find myself staring at the men's hats.

And this is the view from the back of our office. They call the area the alligator slums and off in the distance you can see the ocean. It's beautiful and humbling altogether.

Old Town

Today I went to the airport to pick up a new intern for Yehu. Her name is Denise and she will only be here for a short 3 weeks. She came in around 9:30am so we decided to make the most of the day and headed back to town after dropping off her things. I threw caution to the wind and snapped as many pictures as I could.

Our first stop was at Mombasa's famous tusks. There's really nothing spectacular about these guys but they are somewhat of an icon here, so we of course did what every good tourist should...ran back and forth through traffic to get some shots of us standing next to them.

We passed by this incredible hotel (below). Much too rich for my budget but it didn't stop me from drooling as I took this shot.

Our next stop was Fort Jesus. I went inside last Nov when I came to visit Andi & Aaron. Today we both decided to just walk around and enjoy the view. It's still pretty impressive from the outside, don't you think?

Just outside the fort is a great place to sit and enjoy the ocean view. I loved watching the people as much as the scenery. This guy was one of my favorites.

A short walk from Fort Jesus is Old Town (below). The streets are lined with incredible buildings and cute shops. Pull out your bartering skills and your best poker face, these shop owners are pros.

A door (among many) that I just fell in love with.

And speaking of love...here's a man after my own heart. Can I just say how glad I am for the invention of the steam iron? This guy's old school. I wish I had a better shot of his iron but I was a bit shy to ask him to interrupt his work just so that I could have a pic. Ah well.

A few of my favorite things...

This weekend I decided to head into town and take pictures of some of my favorite things in Mombasa. Here's a sample...

Alleys upon alleys of shops at the market. It's a shopper's heaven...just don't take a wrong turn.

Fresh produce. Sweet potatoes and bananas and green oranges. Oh my!

You know that line in the movie Sense & Sensibility (the version with Emma Thompson) when Colonel Branden says (with that fabulous voice of his) of India, "The air is full of spices." Well, that's true of Mombasa, too.

When billboards just aren't enough...

I also stopped by the butchers. I don't think they get many visitors because they got quite excited when I wandered in...and stayed. Where other shop owners pressed me to buy things these guys were just excited to show me what they had been chopping up. As a result, I got to see a whole goat carcass, a half goat carcass, a goat head, some goat feet and a goat stomach. Yum. One butcher didn't want me to take a picture of him unless I was in it. So I (crazily) entrusted my camera to one of the guys. They were all very excited to see me walk around behind the counter and hold a sticky (yes, with blood) knife over a pile of goat heads. I had to suspend all concerns I've ever had about sanitation (and there are many) to smile for the camera. The sad thing is that the nice man who took the picture didn't really know how to use it so I ended up with a blur of colors. Oh well, I think the mental images will stay with me forever. Here's one of the guys holding some cow feet. You can see intestines hanging in the back.


Today I went to visit the Mombasa branch. I'm technically within their boundaries and should have been going there all along. I saw Kenneth (the previous Changamwe branch president) and his wife, Caroline. It was SO good to see them. After church Louis invited me to their house in Diani for dinner. We had yummy spaghetti and chocolate cake. I didn't realize how much I missed cake. Before heading back I went down and took a walk on the beach. Oh how I love the Indian ocean! The pictures certainly don't do it justice but here are a couple of them anyway. The second pic is the back of the Pope's house. Beautiful, eh? The weekend really could not have been better.

Happy 4th!

They opened church today by reading the date, July 4th, before quickly moving on to other announcements. Little attention was given to it by either the person conducting or those attending. I, on the other hand, immediately began to think of fireworks and backyard BBQs, completely missing the announcements.

I have been thinking about Independence Day ever since (the event, not the movie). I thought about it as I sat in church meetings that are both conducted and attended entirely by Kenyans, myself excluded, and yet are all held in English. I thought about it as I watched a policeman stopping and interrogating drivers on my way home, wondering if the policeman had a legitimate reason for stopping them. I thought about it as I passed children playing games in bare feet.

I will never know what it's like to have my country's official language be a second language to the majority of its population. With some exceptions, we are fortunate to live in a country where we don't have to distrust and fear law enforcement (except perhaps when I'm speeding). And despite current economic calamities, we still have a great amount of abundance in America. I'm not suggesting there is no poverty in America. Sadly, it has a place in every country. But there are millions of people in countries around the world who are living in slums. They lived there long before any recession and they will continue to live there long after the rest of the world recovers.

Today I feel especially grateful for my home. I'm grateful for the inspired men who fought for independence and created a unique government designed to protect the rights of its citizens. At the same time, I am grateful to be spending this Independence Day in Kenya. My life has been immeasurably blessed by examples of humility, charity and gratitude from the last two months. They are certainly examples I hope to never forget when I go back home to a very blessed life.

Sunset

While it's only 9:30 am in UT, I just enjoyed an incredible sunset in Mombasa.

Fast Food, Patience & the Beach

When I arrived I was given some advice. I was told to take pictures of everything that seemed strange to me because after a while they wouldn't seem so strange. Sure enough, I got used to things. I thought of that advice this week when my lunch arrived. In little black bags. This is how our lunch arrives each day. It seemed so strange when I got here to rip open the bags and pour out my lunch. But these days it's just business, er lunch, as usual. And so I give you Kenyan fast food...

Speaking of fast, Kenyans just aren't. Nor are they even on time. I've made several appointments where I rushed to be on time only to find myself waiting. And waiting some more. One time I was told the person would be there in 3 minutes. Later I learned that you add ten minutes for every one that they tell you to wait. Sure enough, it took them 30 minutes to arrive. And if it's church related, it's even worse. Mormon Standard Time + Kenyan Standard Time=Don't hold your breath. Just yesterday Judy and I went to Nyali beach. The plan was to meet at 10. Yeah, we finally made it there around 11:30.

Anyway, it was amazing. The beach is only a 20 minute walk from my apartment and this is the view. I really am living in paradise.

Judy and I had so much fun. She doesn't know how to swim and asked me to teach her. Since I never really took swimming lessons it was more like the blind leading the blind. But apparently her definition of a good swimmer is someone who can keep their head above water. That I can do. So, I decided to teach her the reliable back float. I figured I couldn't really lead her that far astray with a back float. This attracted three other girls who insisted we teach them too. Then a group of 10 boys came with their soccer ball and we had our own world cup at sea. Then we packed up and rushed home to change so we could still make it to institute. Overall it was a great day, even if it started late.

Please don't judge the hair. It's windy and I've just been swimming in the ocean :)

The World Cup 2010!

I realize that the World Cup is well under way and this entry is somewhat belated. Everywhere I go there is talk about who was defeated the night before and what matches are lined up for the coming days. I hopped in a matatu after church on Sunday to have the man next to me comment that it must be such a sad day to be an American. We had recently lost a match and he felt quite badly for us. Sadly I have no television to tune in to all of the excitement but I peek over the shoulders of people reading the newspaper, which is all World Cup these days, and I'm constantly listening for updates at work or in the matatus.

For several weeks now the sounds of Shakira and K'naan (below) can be heard everywhere you go. And I mean everywhere. Just last night I heard the 4 year old upstairs singing "Wavin Flag" as they were eating dinner. I love love love "Wavin Flag." I'm not ashamed to admit that I get emotional when I listen to it.

But today Juma greeted me with a head hung low. He informed me that it seems as if not a single African team will make it past the first round of the World Cup. Hosting the event is now like salt on an open wound of defeat. Still, it doesn't seem to stop the crowds from gathering around small 13" TVs at cafes and hotels around the city to watch every last minute of it.

Eat Dessert First

Yesterday we had a Relief Society activity. I was asked to teach the sisters how to make some American desserts. I went with the classics, Banana Bread and Apple Crisp. The plan was to meet at the church at 10am. At 9am I packed up a ridiculous amount of dishes and ingredients and made my trek to Changamwe. This consists of two matatu rides and a mile walk. Caroline calls me at 10:20 to tell me that they decided to move it to her house but not to worry because she was sending someone to pick me up. An hour later 5 more women showed up to her house. Then we all waited another hour while they finished fixing the oven.

During the wait, we had a great time chatting and watching funniest home videos and part of a random Nigerian film. During one segment of home videos with various people falling and/or doing stupid stunts, Caroline turns to me and says "Americans are funny." She didn't mean we were witty, she meant we do crazy things that they don't understand. I had no defense.

We finally made the bread and apple crisp. Both were a big hit. After we all ate our share of dessert Caroline pulled out a huge pot of rice and another of beans. Lunch! We were so full already but what can you do. Overall it was a great activity.

I sure do love these women!