A Hard Day Shopping We were up ready to go to Kisumu today. We were all feeling a little bit of the fatigue from yesterday’s arduous journey to visit the grandmothers. Breakfast is served and we get through it quickly (don’t ask me how!). We arrive at the school by about 7:00am and even beat some of the students this morning. Charles arrives at about 7:20 am and we find out that he had slept in due to exhaustion from the previous day’s trek as well. Our 7:00 am taxi ride to Kisumu arrives at 7:30 am and we set out [View Full Entry]

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All In A Day's Work We ordered breakfast the night before, to be ready at 6:00 am. It was a great breakfast and Raphael got it (almost) all right. We were out the door and at the school by 7:00am. Our taxi driver, scheduled for 7:00 am, arrived at 7:30 am and we were on our way to Kisumu at 8:00 am. Right on schedule (by African-time)! It was a wonderful drive. The highway was a little more “pot-holey” than I remembered. Apparently, this is due to the post-election violence wherein protestors lit tires on fire on the highway, causing [View Full Entry]

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You Gotta' Have Heart.... I’m up before the girls are and head down to breakfast to get an early start on the day. I tried to get through breakfast quickly, but to no avail. I asked for just the eggs this morning. “Yes”, he replied, and off he went to bring my cereal. The cereal arrived in due time and I insisted that only eggs and toast would do this morning. With a quick nod of the head, he headed off to prepare a morning coffee for me as well as a fruit dish, while I ate the cereal. “No [View Full Entry]

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Jennifer and Heather Overwhelmed by the Official Welcome to the School We’re up early, and head down for breakfast. Rapheal is our server and he is a noble soul, indeed. He takes the time to learn all of our names, and discusses with us all of the previous volunteers that he has met in the last 2 months through One Child’s Village. Breakfast is a big affair. First, cereal is served. Each item is laid out on the table fastidiously. A napkin, a knife, a fork, a spoon….then again for the next person, and the next. Then he disappears for five [View Full Entry]

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What's That On Your Shoes, Heather? It’s 6:00am, and we are scrambling to get out of bed and into the shower. Everyone has their own version of early morning grogginess, but no excuses are accepted as we trudge our way down to the breakfast buffet. Time was short so all we could do was grab a handfull of bun and cheese sandwiches. Our driver Joseph is waiting and we pile into the van with dulled eyes, hungry bellies and 300 pounds of overweight luggage. The bus depot was an interesting mix of women, children, business people, students, grandmothers,….all looking to [View Full Entry]

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You want to pet a Cheetah? First full day in Nairobi, we hit the ground running. Heather and Jennifer were picked up by their driver Simon for the day, while I met with Rahul for the morning to sort out some business stuff. Foir me, it was all lawyers, bankers, and agents. For Jennifer and Heather, it was a morning full adventure as they first visited the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust Elephant Orphanage, and then the Animal Orphanage in side Nairboi National Park. The Elephant Orphanage was an opportunity for them to learn about the challenges that the elephants are [View Full Entry]

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The Eagle has landed Well, it was more like a wet pigeon, really..... Heather and I landed in London at 11:00am, a little tired from the Air Canada Economy class flight. Food, service, babies crying and everything was pretty average for Air Canada, so can't say much there. At Heathrow, we decided to start the adventures early by taking a quick trip into London. We grabbed the Heathrow Express and got into Paddington station in 15 minutes. A few Underground tube station changes and we were on our way out to Brick Lane on the east end of London. Very good [View Full Entry]

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Jennifer is in the skies! Well, Jennifer took off this morning on an earlier flight and is now in the skies headed for Kenya via Minnesota, through Amsterdam, to Nairobi. For those who don't know yet, Jennifer is my niece, but also an incredible hard-working Volunteer Coordintor for One Child's Village. So she will hit the ground first in Nairobi, while Heather and I are still in the air. We leave the Edmonton International Airport tonight at 7:50pm (8 hours to London). Actually, we have planned a slight detour (time permitting) to take the Heathrow Express (bullet train [View Full Entry]

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Announcing a New Trip to Kenya Hello Everyone!! It's time again for another trip to Kenya. This time, I (Todd) will be travelling with two volunteers (Heather and Jennifer) and we have a very busy itinerary ahead of us. There are several projects that we will be implmenting while there, including an art project and a new healthcare clinic at the Bumala school. Likewise, we will be having a community celebration and grand opening of our volunteer centre. We will be leaving on September 7th and arriving in Nairobi, Kenya on September 9th. Two days in Nairobi gett [View Full Entry]

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Hello! Well I have returned from Bumala and I leave for Canada tonight. I did not have internet access while in Bumala - yet so much has happened! I may have to write the updates in installments. (Thanks in advance for indulging me… ;) Feb 17, Tuesday We decided to see what the road trip would be between Nairobi and Bumala, rather than flying. We had a 7:30am departure on Feb 17 with Charles and Pius in a 7-seat mini-van. So lots of room for the extra luggage we had, i.e., children’s clothing, school supplies, books, computer gear, etc. from generous [View Full Entry]

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