Global Issues Service Summit 2014 in Accra...

Cora and I spent five days in Accra, Ghana (our first trip to West Africa!) this past week. We enjoyed 3 amazing days of inspiring speakers (including Mariatu Kamara, author of The Bite of the Mango and survivor of the civil war in Sierra Leone), workshops and panels and our 13 ISK students were challenged to imagine their roles in making our world a better place. We were also able to tour some cultural sites (including the fantasy coffin makers of Accra) and shop in the markets before flying back to Nairobi. We both feel keen to explore more of West Africa and are dreaming of itineraries for the future.

Our fertile garden...

As our family and friends in Canada suffer through a long, cold winter, we are enjoying a gorgeous summer in Nairobi. Temperatures are warm, the sun is always shining and our garden is producing a wonderful array of edible treats. From tree tomatoes (tamarillos), avocadoes, bananas and one lone apple to peppers, rosemary, spinach and rainbow chard, we are feeling very blessed. Just today, for lunch, we picked fresh tree tomatoes and ate them right away, still warm from the sun. If only we could package up a little sunshine and send it to Ontario.

Camel trekking in Laikipia...

Every year our high school students and teachers spend one week on an adventure somewhere in Kenya (a "week without walls", a.k.a. known as inter-cultural trips). This year, Cora went off to the Mara to camp with her friends and spend time with the Maasai. Brian and I took a group of 28 students to a region near Mount Kenya known as Laikipia and we spent five days hiking, riding camels and enjoying the beautiful savannah. It was quite magical to ride a camel for the first time, flanked by clear views of Mount Kenya on one side and the Aberdares on the other, surrounded by zebras and other grazers. Elephants ambled through the bush across from our campsite in the morning and hyenas visited at night while the Milky Way sprinkled its way across the night sky. It was a lovely way to spend a week with a great group of students.