Meeting some folks on a Habitat site

This past weekend, Cora & Brian were part of a 21-person team that started the first Habitat for Humanity home in Eldama Ravine, north of Nakuru in rural Kenya. The village "watoto" (kids... plural!) came out to encourage our mostly-female Habitat team that worked under the supervision of a local construction expert. The Habitat client is a woman who earns a living selling honey at the side of the road. Her current home is a basic mud structure that is under attack by local insects. The H4H home, when finished, will be made of bug-proof stone! The honey-lady, as we called her, has become a H4H homeowner with "sweat-equity" and a long-term affordable mortgage. What a great opportunity to meet some great people and build some muscle!

Riding, English style...

After her birthday trail ride this summer, Hannah fell in love with horses, and we've been lucky enough to find a horse farm not far from our apartment. Hannah and I went on Sunday for the first time and I took a lesson, too. Thank goodness my horse, Tornado, didn't live up to his name because I couldn't even canter without thinking I was going to plunge to my death. I spent most of the hour just walking along the track. Hannah, on the other hand, had a great time and learned how to trot easily. She'll be back again next weekend learning how to handle her horse, Janet, and she's very excited.

Our newest family members!

For just over one week we have been enjoying a lot of cuddling with two little kittens who have joined our family. They are about 5 weeks old and they are currently named Ginger and Pepper (although there is an ongoing debate about whether or not those names will stick). Little Pepper only has one ear (a birth defect) and this makes her even cuter. The cats are adorable and very playful and entertain us all constantly. It's really nice to have some feline friends around again.

Flamingos and Wildlife at Lake Nakuru National Park...

This past weekend we ventured to Lake Nakuru National Park to see more animals and were treated to up-close encounters with white rhino, a few lions, tonnes of baboons and vervet monkeys, water buffalo and lots of birds. Several monkeys really wanted into our car to get at our snacks and, right at the end of the day, one was successful. Brian turned his back for a minute while the front passenger door was open - that was all the opportunity this monkey needed. It leapt into the front seat, looked into the backseat where Hannah and Cora were shrieking, and grabbed a bag of dried apricots. It then climbed a nearby tree and opened up the bag to thoroughly enjoy our food. Very funny. It was a spectacular day!

More Adventures...

This was a busy (and good!) week featuring a two-day getaway for all of us on Thursday and Friday. ISK has two-day trips at the beginning of the year for each high school class; the idea is to help each class gel at the beginning of the year, and activities are geared around team-building and relationship-building. It is a great idea, and both Hannah and Cora had a fabulous time with their classes. Cora went off to climb Mount Longonot and hike in Hell's Gate National Park; Hannah went to a wilderness camp south of the city to go rock climbing; and Brian and I went with the grade 10 class to Sagana, a wilderness area north of the city, where we did some white water kayaking (the group photo, above, shows the teaching team that accompanied the grade 10 group). Saturday saw a return to Karen to visit the kitties at the KSPCA, take a tour of the Kazuri Bead Factory (and of course another visit to the shop) and then to engage in a search to order bookshelves and desks from roadside furniture builders on the Ngong Road. It is such a colourful stretch of road! Handpainted signs, vendors and the sound of hammers and welding torches blend with free range goats and busy traffic. The bird sighting of the weekend involved a small flock of cinnamon-chested bee eaters just outside our apartment building. They are extremely beautiful.

Wildlife around Lake Naivasha...

Last weekend, August 27 and 28, we spent two exploring the Great Rift Valley and Lake Naivasha. It was absolutely stunning! We spent Friday with the Wilders driving into the valley and exploring Crescent Island, an island made from the rim of a volcanic caldera that was teeming with non-carnivorous life. Zebras, wildebeest, hart beast, gazelles, impalas, giraffes, hippos and spectacular birds were abundant and we were able to stroll among the animals. It was so beautiful. We spent the night at a lovely quiet lodge on the edge of Crater Lake (aptly named because it is in the crater of an extinct volcano), where the only sounds were the crickets, frogs and - in the middle of the night - rowdy colubus monkeys on the roof of our cabin! We walked with a troop of about 20 giraffe through the woods at sunset and then, the next morning, enjoyed three hours of walking among the animals. It was a magical place. (More photos on Facebook - here are some highlights.)