Onward...

Today is the second day of orientation and soon we are going to be taken to our volunteer placements all over the country. Yesterday we had a meeting in a hotel where we went over work expectations and some safety suggestions, went to a late lunch at a delicious Chinese restaurant, and watched some of the USA v. Italy football game at night. I learned that I am not going to be at the exact place I thought... still staying with Margaret in Lenana, but I am working at a newer project called Local HIV/AIDS support. Five volunteers have been there before and Irene the lady in charge of volunteer placement says they they really enjoyed it. Today we went to the Nairobi Animal Orphanage outside the Nairobi National Park and I got to go in a cage with 4 young cheetahs and pet them! They were very tame and seemed to enjoy the attention. There were also lions, a leopard, various monkey species, an ostrich, smaller cats, free roaming buffalo, and hyenas. We then returned to the central business district to change money, buy cell phones, and eat an authentic African lunch.

I wish I could put up pictures of the roadsides because they are so foreign and beautiful. Everything is lush and green and there are so many different road side stands and little market places. You can buy fresh flowers (including a dozen roses that are much cheaper than at home), fruit, roasted corn, soda, wooden furniture, vases, baskets, firewood, and stone. Many of the sides of the road drop off pretty steeply but have small plots of corn and flowers on them. On one trip I counted 20 public and private schools and every side street in most neighborhoods has a locked gated with a security guard and walls covered with barbed wire and/or cut glass. We also drove by Kibera, the largest slum, today. Four of us are going to take a guided tour next Sunday and maybe go on a safari to Maasai Mara the following weekend. I am so excited to finally start my work here. Miss you guys.