Updates galore!

Pictures above from Left to Right Top to Bottom:

1. Winnie and I at Koboko Bay Resort a 10 min walk from my homestay sitting on the side of Lake Victoria
2. Kids from the community walking water they have taken out of the lake back to their home
3. Me cooking Chapati at my homestay house!
4. Diana and I working on the start up on the financial systems for Kolwa Community Bank
5. Winnie and I in front of a Tuk Tuk before going into the Sunday Market
6. Me explaining the importance of the car that I am giving them because it was from my nephew Ty who is six years old. One little one in the yellow jacket already has his eye on it :)
7. The children lining up waiting to receive a toothbrush each - Thankyou Josephine and Justin!
8. Giving the soccer balls out to the rural boys youth group
9. Judith's son who is trying on his new sunglasses - this was the first time I had seen him smile since I arrived :)

So I just finished my second week here in Kenya... first week in Kisumu and it has been a whirlwind! Each day seems to go slowly probably because it takes forever to get something done here but now looking back the time has passed quickly! I also find that I speak in broken english here and I think it is affecting my writing so bare with me :S
After my last blog I was able to finish giving out the 140 pounds of donation clothes, hygenie products, pens, pencils, crayons etc. First we went about an hour out of town into the rural part of Western Kenya and met a new community group that is in the process of setting up. These individuals never see volunteers - almost all NGO's are found in urban settings. I was given donations of soccer balls and soccer jerseys from Langara College that I wanted to donate to a girls youth group that played soccer here but that was not possible so we made sure to give it to a rural boys youth group that plays soccer. During the visit I was able to give out the soccer clothing/items, youth and adult clothes. The community was so thankful and appreciative the organization I am volunteering with explained that rural settings often never receive donations and almost always are in more need than urban groups. I have posted a picture above where I am giving the soccer balls to the youth group.
After we left that town we drove another hour to where Omondi, the organizer of my stay, grew up - in another rural setting. It is very green where Omondi is from and you will find coffee farms surrounding the area. We visited a school, picture posted above, where a lady probably in her 80's is taking care of 30 orphaned or single parent children aged 2-7. She takes them in daily from 7am to 3pm - feeds them, washes them, and teaches them. The children were so adorable. Half weren't sure what to do with me and a few ran crying because they have never saw a white person in their life before. Others came up to me with large smiles and wanted to shake my hand immediately. It was very touching! While we were there we handed out a toothbrush to each and every child - you can see them lining up in a picture above. Thank-you to all of you that donated hygenie products and childrens clothing as this school had NEVER received donations since its existence. The community helps keep the school running. An experience like that makes it all worth while. I have posted a video of the kids singing to thank us for the gifts below.

This past Sunday I had my first free day since arriving! So Judith, my Mom here, and her daughter Winnie took me to the Sunday market which was sooo busy - full of clothes and food for sale. It was an interesting site all the used clothing that had come from all over the world to Kenya for resale - it is big business here! On the way to the market I took my first ride in a tuk tuk which is a covered motorcycle that fits about 3 people. I have a picture of Winnie and I standing next to it above. After we headed to Tusky's supermarket where I treated all of us to a drink and ice cream. We also bought bread for the entire family. In total it cost 370 KYS which is approx $4-5 CAD. This is very expensive to them and I don't have the hear to tell them that it is very cheap in CAD terms.

Later Winne and I walked to Koboko Bay resort which is a beautiful resort sitting on the edge of Lake Victoria about a 10 min walk from my homestay house. The resort has little huts to sta in, a pool and lounge area. We sat and each had a coke which was 70 KYS which is very expensive in Kenyan terms because we usually buy them from a store at 30 KYS. Winnie grew up in this area but has never visited Koboko Bay Resport before because she has no mone for such things. When we were at the market the last 5 KYS she had she gave to a begger which I told her not to do because it was only reinforcing the begger to do it more. Winnie is a single Mom and needs the money just as much as the lady begging but she has such a huge heart that she would give it to someone she thinks is poorer than her!! My heart sinks when I see this happening.

I learned how to cook Chapati the other night and I can't wait to cook it at home! It is like a pita that they eat with almost every meal here! Hopefully I will learn how to make a few other things too before I leave - however I am definitely missing our salads from home!

Yesterday, I worked on the start up of the Kolwa Community Bank in the Nyalenda slum here in Kisumu - everything is done super slowly and simply. We even create the ledger books for all the transactions that take place in the bank! It can be a complicated process for the bank ledger so I am surprised it is kept straight without a computer system! But that is unfortunately what happens with little resources! Alright until the next story! Love from Kenya, Kristy