Some pictures

Playing with the kids

Playing with the parachute

Porridge time!

With Jemima, Lucy and Samuel's daugther

Wild zebras on the way from Nairobi to Molo

Weekend in Nakuru

Ok ok! Sorry for the delay in updating the blog... I've been busy and as I said the connection here is not that good so you have to be patience. I'm doing things the african way... african pace... :)

Last Friday I went to Nakuru to spend the weekend with Susan, Lucy's siter. It was a very good weekend. We went to visit the Menengai crater and one cave. The view from the crater was amazing but the cave left me breathless. It was a very deep and big cave where people go to pray and they stay there for weeks no eating. I found it fascinating, I can't really explain how it was. I wish I could upload pictures but it takes ages here and then the laptop freezes...

On Monday I went to Susan school. She is a kiswahili teacher in a secondary school in a very remote area. I went to one of her classes and the student asked me loads of questions about my country. I had a very good time there with them. When we walked out to take the matatu to go back to Nakuru all the kids of the primary school nearby saw me and placed themselves around me staring at me and touching me. Susan told me that likely they never saw a mzungu (white person) and they found it fascinating.

For me it's weird thinking that the pupils at Susan school were going to go home that day and the first thing they would tell their parents is that a white person visited the school today and they could ask her questions. It makes me feel weird but I don't mind answering their questions because I can travel and see other worlds but they can't because they can't afford it and asking me questions is the way for them to travel and knowing about other cultures and countries.

I contacted one clinic in Nakuru that treats the Trachoma. I called them and at the beginning they were avoiding me but I insisted and I got to talk to this Bob who told me that first I have to take the kids of the school to the hospital in Molo and once the doctors can confirm that they have trachoma I can call him again for the treatment. Virginia, the american volunteer, told me that the only thing that the doctors in Molo do is giving them eye-drops saying that they have an allergy. So, this time I'm going to go myself with the kids and I'll be very pushy! Wish me luck! Then I'll take them to Nakuru.

I'm back today from Nakuru, so tomorrow I'll go back to the centre to see my kids... I don't see them since Friday! You know, these kids eat everyday the same. Every single day ugali and some vegetables or rice and vegetables, and they don't complain. I'm eating the same they eat and I'm struggling by now... A kid in Spain or Ireland would complain but these kids don't. They don't eat meat, or fish, or eggs and for most of them the food that they have at the centre is the only one that they have for the whole day. But they don't complain. Sometimes I find it hard seeing how some kids run barefoot when I'm playing games with them. But they don't complain. I love seeing them having fun and laughing and smiling when I play with them. Sometimes they want to feel my hair or my skin and I let them do it because if that's what makes them happy for at least few minutes, I'm happy too.

Things are tough here and sometimes is not easy for me but when I'm with the kids and I see they are happy because I'm around I forget about the rest and I keep going!

Busy busy busy!

Hi again!

It's been a while since my last post but I've been very busy here and the internet connection is not very good...

I'm all settled down by now. I go to the centre every day and I play with the kids, with the little ones I have problems with the communication because they don't speak english but the teachers are helping me a lot. They are very nice. Lucy, Zippy, Jeff, Yvonne, Martha, Miriam, Jen and Duncan.

Aina, moltes gracies pel paracaigudes, els hi encanta! Estic esgotada de tant jugar, ja penjare fotos!

I'm the only white person in Molo and everyone is looking at me. It's a little bit uncomfortable because they don't just look, they stare and point at me. I'm getting used to it though but I found it difficult... The streets have no pavement and everything is all dusty.

At the centre the kids have just one main meal of ugali and vegetables and they have a cup of porridge in the morning and another one before they leave. There are 180 kids in the centre, at the moment there are no rooms for them to spend the night in so they spend the night with guardians. Lucy and Samuel want to buy an old hotel that is not in use anymore to use it as an orphanage but they need funds...

There is another american volunteer here right now, she is a nurse and she told me there is a lot of kids with trachoma around that will go blind if they don't get the treatment. The treatment is just one gram dose of azithromycin but here it's very difficult to find it...

Well, I gotta leave, I'm running out of battery and there is no electricity at the centre...

Hope you are all well!

My first day at the Chazon Children Centre

Hi everyone!
I think I have more time today to write so I'm going to try to explain what I've been doing so far.
Ok... where do I start? I got to Nairobi the 1st of February at 9am, getting the visa was quick but not waiting for my bags that were the last ones coming out...
Victor, Lucy's cousin, and Kamau, Lucy's step brother, were waiting for me and we went to Elizabeth's house, Lucy's sister, to leave all my stuff. Then I spent the whole day in Nairobi with Victor.
To be honest, I found Nairobi very chaotic... loads of people and cars everywhere. You have to be brave to cross the roads because the cars don't stop! I bought a SIM card with Safaricom network: 00254715215343
Then we went back to Elizabeth's house and had dinner with her. Elizabeth and Victor are very nice. I didn't get to spend that much time with Elizabeth because she works as a secretary in a school and after that she goes to college. She's a hardworker! So I just saw her at dinner time. Victor was very helpful, we talked a lot and I asked him loads of questions about Africa and he was curious too about our lives in Spain and Ireland and he asked me questions too.
I spent the night in Nairobi at Elizabeth's place and the next morning Samuel came to pick me up from Molo. On the way to Molo I got to see wild zebras!!! The trip took about 4 hours and finally... I got to Molo!
I met Lucy, she was very welcoming! I'm staying in Samuel and Lucy's house, they are accommodating the house for the volunteers. Lucy told me that in one week we'll have a proper bathroom but... meanwhile... I have to use the letrine and have showers using a bucket :)
Lucy and Samuel have a lovely and beautiful baby called Jamima, she's 1 year old and she keeps climbing the chairs and tables... I think we are going to be good friends!

Today I had an orientation with Lucy, we talked a lot and she explained me how they started the centre. Lucy and Samuel had a restaurant in Molo and they saw that loads of the kids of the streets went in begging for food. They gave them food but they wanted to help them more, so they sold the restaurant and created the centre. With a lot of help of the volunteers that have been coming they are getting more organised and getting more facilities for the centre. I have to say that Lucy and Samuel are my heroes! They work a lot everyday just to give food and education to these kids, they sold their lands and their business just for these kids.

It's been my first day at the CCC today but I just went to know the centre, the teachers and the kids. I went with Lucy after the orientation that we had in the morning. When I arrived to the centre the kids were outside playing. They all run towards me and they all wanted to shake my hand. Then they went to their classes and I went class by class introducing myself and saying hi. The ages go from 3 to 14 and they are a total of 180 kids, the little ones don't speak english... they are starting to learn.

Tomorrow I'm going to Nakuru with Lucy to buy some text books.

I'm still settling down. I still can't explain how I felt when I saw the centre, the kids and everything Samuel and Lucy are doing for them. I was so moved while Lucy was showing me everything and telling me some stories of the kids and knowing what they are doing for them that I was nearly crying...

I gotta go now. I hope I can update this soon!

Take care!!!

Habari!

Hi!
This is just a short message to say that everything is fine. I'm in Molo already and enjoying it so far! I have no time now to write but I will tomorrow if I can even though the connection is quite slow.
I have to say that this is amazing and the people are extremely friendly.

Kisses for everyone!!!

Hola!
Escribo un corto mensaje solo para decir que estoy bien. Que ya he llegado a Molo y que de momento estoy disfrutando mucho! No tengo tiempo para escribir ahora pero lo intentare manana aunque la conexion va bastante lenta.
Todo esto es increible y que la gente es muy simpatica.

Un beso para todos!