Hello!

Well, I have nothing too interesting to report, so I thought I'd write about some random stuff. Since I've spent a few full days in Nairobi I'll tell you my routine while here (everyday is different, but I'll simplify it).
When I'm in Nairobi at Asgar's house I wake up around 8ish at shower. Showering is actually rather interesting because I have to hold the shower head and there is no shower curtain... so, that takes a while. By the time I'm showered, dressed, and ready, Lisa is here. I go downstairs and have coffee and some sort of fruit for breakfast (mangos are my new favorite!). Then Lisa and I go to the office and talk while she works... we share stories about Kenya and the US, it's quite fascinating. Throughout the morning we probably have two more cups of coffee (tea in her case). Lunch time, Asgar cooks for us (he loves to cook). It's different each time... I've had veggies, potatoes, chapati (bread), samosas (triangle things filled with, well, veggies in my case, but also meat), and lots of rice… and almost everything is cooked in curry. After lunch we normally get another cup of coffee... of course. Then, we do random things. We've run out on trips to pick up things, people are in and out of the house (so I've had many conversations with new people, which is always fun), and time flies by pretty quickly. The few nights that I've been here I've hung out with Lisa. We've gone out to different places just so I could see more of Nairobi. Asgar drove us once; the other nights we went out we took matatus. I've met a few of her cousins and friends- it's always fun seeing people’s reactions when they hear I'm from the States. When I say I'm from Wisconsin people generally say "oh don't you have a lot of cheese there?" or ask "Why is WI always mentioned in movies". Most people comment on my blonde hair (as I've mentioned before) and when they find out I have blue eyes they tell me I'm just like a doll. Here, when people guess my age, they think I am 21 or 22 years old! In the States I would never be taken for that age.
Most people speak English (they have brittish-like accents) but they also speak Swahili and generally their native tongue (example- Lisa speaks kikuyu). They will speak other languages with each other, or a mixture, so I often have no idea what is going on. Swahili words are thrown in when they are speaking to me; one word I've picked up on is mzungu- which means white. Also, they have different words for things than we do. Most of the time it's easy to pick up on, but there are some which have caused some confusion. The easy ones are: torch = flashlight, zed = z (the letter), serviettes = napkins (napkins = diapers), and there have been so many more that I can't remember. The word that caused the most confusion was used on the way home from Tsavo. I felt the car kind of jolt and Asgar pulled over to the side of the road. I asked him what happened and he says "puncher". I thought I misheard so I asked again and he repeats "puncher". He gets out of the car and starts doing stuff and I'm sitting there completely confused thinking that I really must be dense when it comes to cars to have no idea what a puncher is. Actually, puncher just means a flat tire. When me and Asgar were out fixing the tire (okay, he was fixing it, I was holding stuff) two boys came along. I thought they were coming to help us, but they just kind of stood there. Asgar quickly finished, told me to get in the car, and we sped away. Asgar told me that you need to be very careful of those people (the people along the side of the road) because they will often beat you up and steal from you. Another small difference in speaking I noticed when Lisa talked to her friends about me. She says "She is called Devri" she never says "her name is Devri". Having taken French and Italian this didn't shock me because that is more along the lines of how they say people’s names, but hearing it in English sounds quite funny.

A few other random things I've learned/noticed:
Every school here, whether private or public, has school uniforms.
When people come over you immediately offer coffee or tea (never water or soda);
There are hundreds of kiosks along the side of the road and almost all are selling bananas.
Most people here walk around so there are thousands of people, right next to the car, which I think is quite dangerous with the driving here!
The matatus can charge you whatever they want; if I were by myself instead of with Lisa I would probably be charged way more.
Along every street side where there is parking and in every parking lot there are people who help you park and get out of the spot and watch your car while you are away. Then you tip them afterwards.
The funniest sight yet was when I saw marabou storks sitting in the tree. Marabou storks are HUGE and since I’m obviously used to seeing robins and finches in trees this was strange and hilarious.
Most people here do not have cell phone plans. Instead they buy these little scratch cards that have a number on them which they punch into their phone and then they have a certain amount of money in their phone to use.
White children who were born and raised in Kenya are called KCs (Kenyan Cowboys).

Well, that’s all I’ve got for today! I’ll be writing again next Monday. Mungu abariki!

Jambo! Well, friends and family, I've decided I am never coming home... I love it here too much! I'm running away and living with the elephants... okay, but honestly, this is the most amazing place. My boss, Sheena, told me that if you only travel once in your life you have to go to Africa. I completely agree.
Last time I wrote was Friday. That night I went out with Lisa to some clubs. We took a matatu (small 14 seater bus) around town. It was an interesting experience just because I got so many stares. I seriously would walk around and people would stop and turn their heads to watch me. Lisa says it's not just because I'm American but also because of my blonde hair.
Saturday morning Asgar and I left for Tsavo. It took us two hours just to get out of Nairobi then another 4 hours to get to Tsavo. Along the way we passed through many small towns. I didn't get any pictures because we were driving, but I wish I had. The building in these towns are made of sticks and rusted sheets of metal. Many of the houses are just small huts made of mud. I can't even explain how sad it was to see these horrible conditions.
Once we reached the park we went for a game drive. Then we went back to the lodge for dinner and went to bed early. The next morning we left early and went for a 6 hour game drive. Here are the animals I saw in the park: elephants, giraffes, buffalo, hippo, dikdiks, gerenuks, water bucks, kongonis, zebra, baboons, another type of monkey, ostrich, crested eagle, fishing eagle, secretary bird, ground hornbill, red beaked horn bill, yellow neck spur fowl, guinea fowl, two types of herons, warthogs, impala, and grants gazelle.
The first animal I saw was a HUGE baboon- it had the biggest butt too...I've decided I don't really like baboons, Asgar says they can be dangerous. I prefer the other, cuter, monkeys we saw (go figure). We saw many herds of elephants throughout the drives. The second herd we spotted were standing right in the middle of the road. They had a young (2 week old) baby with them so they were very wary of us. They clumped together and started marching down the road towards us with their ears flared. Once they got off the road we drove past them; the one closest to the road gave me a very intimidating look! Tsavo elephants are very red because of the red dirt and they are also quite aggressive because of all the poaching done in Tsavo. This herd, like most others I saw, were all female. The females stay together (the males only approach during mating season) and the matriarch (leader) guards the baby very closely. During the second game drive I saw a few Bull Elephants (male) who stay by themselves, and I also saw a group of bachelors playing in the water (which we watched during lunch).
I saw a herd of over 200 buffalo. Buffalo are the funniest and scariest looking creatures. They seriously can give a death stare. We drove so close to them I honestly thought they were going to charge us. Buffalo are the most dangerous land animals and hippos are the most dangerous animal in water... I found this funny since both are vegetarians. The hippo I saw was half submerged in water but still pretty cool. We saw many many many zebras. And they often had babys with them, which were so cute!
Some of the smaller animals were actually the most impressive to see. The secretary birds (which look like they are wearing black stockings and have quills-hence the name) were a rare find as were the gerenuks (giraffe antelope). I saw three gerenuks, including a baby, and Asgar says I should consider myself very very lucky for that sight. The dikdiks are the smallest of the antelope. They are about the size of a rabbit (although much skinnier) and are very shy- they run away as soon as they spot you. You always find dikdiks in pairs because they mate for life :) Warthogs are actually very shy also. I saw three of them and I fell in love- they are adorable! Another rare find was baby ostrich. I saw a mother and about 10 of her young. Later I saw a male and female ostrich together. The females are brown and the males (who are complete show offs!) are black with some white- very beautiful. Watching ostrich run is a very funny sight!
Last night during dinner a group of two hundred buffalo (possibly the same group I'd seen before) came to the watering hole. I got to watch a couple of them fight each other.
We also went to the elephant orphanage. The orphans have grown quite a bit and they've become more independent. So, I got to get really close to all of them and pet one for a while but they do not come right up to you as they used to. It was a little disappointing but this independence is good for them! (And I get to go to a place in Nairobi to pet baby elephants... so of course I can't be too disappointed). One of the elephants had a cut in his ear from top and bottom nearly meeting in the middle. This was from a wire trap. I will never be able to understand what is going through peoples minds when they hurt/kill these amazing creatures.
I did not get to see any cats, sadly. But Asgar assures me I'll see a lion in the Mara or Amboseli. I cant wait!
On Thursday we leave for the Rhino Charge. I won't be back until Sunday or Monday. For those of you reading who do not know what the rhino charge is... well, I'll explain it when I get back! For those of you who know what it is and saw the video you know how dangerous it looks. Well, apparently that video doesn't even show the worst of it so I was quite relieved when Asgar told me what we would be doing is meeting the team at each check point to watch them and help them there. There is a competitor and a spectator camp ground. I am staying at the competitor camp ground with Asgar, his team, and more of their friends. There are 20 men in all in the group... and I'll be the only girl. This will be interesting. Well, I will be writing again in a week. Kwa heri!

Hello everyone!
I haven't written in a few days so I have quite a bit to report. I spend Wednesday and Thursday in Nairobi. Asgar's Care for the Wild office is in his home so I met his assistant the first day. Her name is Lisa; she's 23 years old. It's really nice to have someone my age (well, close at least) around. We've had lots of fun sharing stories, figuring out differences and similarities between the US and Africa, and talking about the wildlife here (she is going for her degree in wildlife management). She has shown me around some places here in Nairobi which, again, has been fun since she's so close in age. Over the past few days I've been reading a lot of magazines/books on Kenya and Asgar has filled me in on some projects he's working on. Asgar works for Care for the Wild, volunteers with Friends of Conservation and Project Jambo, and volunteers/partners with even more places. It's incredible how much he does. Although Asgar's main work is with the wildlife, he shares my belief that you need to help the people and the environment also. It is impossible to expect results unless you work with all three areas simultaneously. He told me about a project being worked on with the Maasai that is very interesting. The Maasai have not accepted modern day living yet (which I think in some ways is great, technology can ruin life in some ways) but there are some aspects which they need to accept. The Maasai still believe the women should serve the men, and sadly, without education the women believe the same thing and treat the men as gods. The Maasai women cook, clean, gather firewood, get water, etc. As more Maasai are educated this will hopefully begin to change. The project that Asgar is helping with is trying to supply villages with biofuel so that they can cook and have some light with it. With the light, the kids will be able to do their homework at home (it's dark when they return home from school so they are often unable to do it or they must stay late at school to do it).
This morning we got up early and drove to Machakos. On our way to the town, and in the town we passed through many poor areas. Areas that aren't nearly as bad as some places, but still it was heartwrenching. The houses were spread out through the fields and quite small/run down. It's quite difficult to explain what I was feeling as I saw this. Because of films about Africa and such, these parts didn't shock me (again they are not the poorest areas) but I hated seeing how little these people have compared to most Americans. In Machakos we visited a school for the physically disabled. We went there to deliver a wheelchair to a girl named Eunice who has no legs and had the tiniest, more rickety wheelchair you could imagine.
Eunice is one of ten girls that Project Jambo supports. Project Jambo sponsors girls from extremely poor families- it helps them pay their school fees. Education is SO important, especially for girls since they are still overlooked here. Most girls do not make it to secondary school. Project Jambo wants to add more girls to their program and also wants to begin supporting boys who have worked hard so far in school.
Back to the school: The school currently has 170 children (both boys and girls) attending and is looking to add more. The area which they own is very small; it has I think 3 or 4 different classroom buildings, washrooms, two dorms, an office, a church building, and a physical therapy room. The dorms (one boys, one girls) are single rooms packed with small metal bunk beds. The school desperately needs more funding, larger facilities, a full time physical therapist, and more- but still, the school is doing amazing things. The kids there are taught money making trades such as bead working and leather crafting. The money from the items sold goes directly to the child who made the item. This way, when they leave the school they will hopefully have some money to start off with.
The physical therapy room was very shocking. First off, the physical therapist visits only twice a week. The kids there really need to have a full time physical therapist and doctor. The physical therapy room had such little equipment- a few weight sets, one exercise ball, two old exercise bikes and that was about it. I was in shock. But still, it was amazing to talk with the teachers, watch the more able children help the ones in wheel chairs, and watch/listen to them as they learned.
Both the school and Project Jambo need funding. If you are looking for an organization to donate to these both are amazing, and after meeting the children, both the school and Project Jambo are already dear to my heart. If you want more info about either please ask!
Side note: I saw an ostrich today along the side of the road to Machakos! It was awesome, they look so funny!
Well, it's time to go have my 4th... or 5th?... cup of coffee. They drink so much tea and coffee hear, I fit right in! Tonight I am going to a club with Lisa and a couple of her friends. I'm trying to experience every different part of Africa that I can! Tomorrow Asgar and I are off to Tsavo- first stop is the elephant orphanage :) I'll be back on Tuesday and I'll post some pictures and stories then!
Also, thank you to all of you who posted comments and are praying for me!

Jambo! I'm finally in Africa! And I've already discovered alot of things in the past day... the first being that I cannot sleep on planes. So, I have now been awake for 31 hours. And yet I'm not feeling it thanks to all the coffee they served! I was so glad to get off the second plane in Nairobi; I am so excited to be here! Asgar drove me around and told me about some of the things we will be doing before we came back to his house. The driving here is crazy! I didn't see any speed limit signs, but Asgar assures me there are speed limits (though they certainly weren't followed). And forget stopping at red lights, everyone just zips through them at night because there is frequent mugging. Oh, and as for the traffic lanes, well, I saw them marked, but I get the feeling that they really don't matter, you just basically zig-zag around... but don't worry mom and dad, I felt perfectly safe! We did actually stop at one light, because the president and his 20 cars were passing! So, I've seen the presidents car on my first night, how cool! Asgar told me about the different projects he works for, which I will talk more about later because I want to do them justice. He does so many different things and I am so excited to see it all first hand. Well, I'm off to do some reading and then sleep! I'll blog again soon once I have something more interesting to share!

In less than 24 hours I will be on a plane to AFRICA! I can honestly say, after a year of planning this, I really never thought this day was actually going to come. I'm excited and terrified... and yet, it still doesn't seem real. I'm hoping once I step off the plane I'll start believing it.
This trip took an unbelievable amount of planning; there were so many random details... and shopping trips. And I couldnt have done it without my mom's help, so mom (since you're probably one of the only ones reading this) thank you!
I don't know how often I will get to post on here, but any chance I get I will put up pictures and tell you what I've been doing. Please keep me in your prayers!