Archive for the 'Pictures' Category
Returning to Kenya
America’s been a great change of pace for the past five weeks, but I’m pretty sure I’ll be heading back to Kenya soon. VSO sent me an e-mail last week saying things are calming down in Kenya and it’s looking like it will be safe for volunteers to return. This brings up an important point…
Update Your Bookmarks!
The new address for this website is http://alaninkenya.org but the old URL, http://sarainkenya.org, will still work for a few months just in case there are any stragglers! As you may have guessed, Sara will not be returning to Kenya with me. She is going to stay in California and do one or more of the following: look for a job, go back to school for a Master’s degree, or hang out. She’s open to suggestions so don’t be bashful! And go update your bookmarks (yes, mom, I’ll help you)!
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Chillin’ in San Diego
No really, it’s cold here! The temperate Kenya I made my home the last three months is inconveniently still in east Africa, and I’m freezing my butt off here in San Diego. I don’t know if it was always this cold here (I did spend eighteen years of my childhood here), or if I’m just not used to it. Or, option three… is it global warming?! Where is that searing equatorial sun when you need it? Well I checked, and it’s thirty-one degrees of latitude south! It’s too far, but that won’t stop me from having a good time.
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Mzungus in California
To most Kenyans and visitors alike, the word mzungu means ‘white person.’ I, however, like to refer to the original meaning, ‘the one who comes around’. This definition makes more sense because, sadly, Alan and I will no longer be coming around in Kenya. I write this from Alan’s parent’s house in San Diego, California, where we are safe and sound.For the Love of Hair
Last week I realized that all women, all over the world, care a lot about their hair. Whether they’re getting it dyed, cut, curled, permed, moisturized, pleated (braided) or straightened, women spend countless hours of their lives tending to their hair. However, it seems to me that we want what we can’t have. For instance, I wish my hair were curly, like Alan’s, but not as crazy :) Curly-haired women want straight hair, blonds want dark hair, brunettes lighten theirs, and many of the girls at the college want my hair.
Back in Tala… with pictures!
Hakuna shida hapa (no problem here)! That is, my shamba seems to have been unaffected by my month’s absence, but the political stalemate is still the talk of the country. The violence has stopped for the most part (and it was never in OUR area of Kenya) but both candidates are claiming to have won the election and refuse to talk to each other. VSO calls this atmosphere an “uneasy calm” and they’ve decided to assess each placement on a case-by-case basis. Sorry, western Kenya volunteers! Tala’s safe for now, and we finally got the “OK” to head back on January 19th. This was good news because we were getting sick of being on house arrest in a crappy hotel in Nairobi with all the other volunteers.
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