Makongeni Village :)

So after leaving Mwaluganje and feeling very sorry to say goodbye, we arrived at Diani beach, our fist stop before settling into our new camp at Makongeni. We got off the truck after a roughly 2 hour drive, walked down a road to Forty Thieves (where we would come to love and have many amusing drunken times), and the first thing we all saw was the tropical blue sea. Everyone ran/hobbled down in their flipflops, ran through forty's, down the beach and straight into the sea! Only after we had done this did we realize everyone was staring at us, most likely thinking "damn tourists" but we couldn't care less, the feel of being in the sea after 2 weeks in the heat was the most amazing feeling!
We then went to the camp at Makongeni. We arrived and instantly Duncan, our new leader was outside the gate smiling up at us. This was a massive comfort, as i think we were all really worried that no one would compare to Stevie, who we all still miss so much. We settled in to the camp quite quickly, but it felt so alien and so strange compared to what we were used to. There was no fantastic view of endless bush, no elephants, no isolation. Instead we had people a plenty in the village to socialize with, we had CABBINS instead of tents, we had more than 3 showers! We had a seating area with comfy chairs! a big table with benches all around! It was lush. And i hate to say this, but we had the best thing of all, something i didn't think i would miss at all... we had.. A TOASTER! Oh.. and internet..
So after getting into groups of 5 for the girls and the boys simply getting in their own cabbin, we settled in, unpacked, picked our bunk beds (not just mattresses, BEDS!) and sat around the new sofas for our first talk with our new leaders at our new location. We spoke with Duncan and Rosie, Duncan who is more the boss, who deals with organizing things etc, and rosie who is more the project leader. We were introduced to the staff who would be helping out around the camp, and talked about the projects we would be doing. I couldnt wait to get started, with every word of Duncan's, i got more and more excited, i was practically wriggling in my seat. I probably looked like i needed a wee, but oh well.
We then had a brief tour of the village, we were shown the internet cafe (HELLO NEW HEAVEN), met some of the locals, went to the school, the local hospital, were told about the previous projects and the 'Rafiki Kenia foundation' and then went back to Kamp to relax and have dinner. At this point i think i was full of mixed emotions. I was sad to leave the elephant sanctuary, i really was, but suddenly i felt this was going to be an amazing next 4 weeks.

We started off gently, having a village orientation, meeting the people who would be helping with the projects, the local boys who would become our friends, and looking at the things we were going to build etc. We then started work on the nursery, which is an on going project, and has been having work done on it for about 2 years. Its a big brick building, and we were itching to get started. Combo, the guy who knows everything about how to build, how to make cement, how to do just about any DIY thing, and who also is a great laugh, started by attempting to tell us how to make the cement. How unnecessary, as we were pros at this from making the bricks at the school in Mwaluganje. The new thing about this project, was that the bricks were already made!! All we had to do was make the cement and layer on the bricks! How hard could this be, i thought. More so than we imagined!!! Once you had mastered the art of flicking on mud onto a wall, using the right flicking motion and being quick enough, but not too quick so you dont flick it back into your face and some how always manage to give yourself a Hitler tash, and smoothing it down in the appropriate way, not flat, with bumps, but not too messy, we found this was great fun and really enjoyed it, some more than others. At first i think there was a bit of a problem, as there wasnt so much for everyone to do at the same time, which was new, as at Mwaluganje its probably the most intense and hard working few weeks of the project, and seeing as we did this first, we were ready for work, we were ready to prove ourselves and we wanted to get down and busy! So it took a while to get used to being a bit more laid back and having a different environment as well as a different scheme of work! Also, it wasn't just us anymore. We were so used to just working us 12 together in the middle of nowhere, now there were villagers! A community! SOCIALIZATION! Some of the local boys would come and help us out, which proved to be a great way to learn, a great laugh, and a great way to get to know each other! Within days, most of us (sorry jenny, Ann and Sarah, i guess you're just not as cool as us!!) had bracelets with our names on (bar Nadia who's actually said, Nidia), made as a welcome present. Some even got two ;) We continued this project for the next two weeks, which was really good and we made some really great progress. It's just a shame we couldn't finish it, but i wish luck to the next groups who continue to make it, and i hope you enjoy it as much as we did!!

On the tuesday, it was Peace Day!!! This seemed to be a big event here, and proved to be quite an experience! One i wont forget in a hurry!
The whole village seemed to be involved in one way or another, it was such an amazing atmosphere! Something i rarely experience at home! If ever! We were told that morning that it was indeed peace day, and that it would be nice if we could perhaps prepare a song, or a poem. This of course meant, you have a designated slot in the ceremony and if you dont prepare anything you will feel jolly foolish!! Luckily, some of the girls went to the internet cafe and printed out some poems on peace! They were really good, even the one that was written by a wannabe pimp or something, and used the word brother in ever other sentence. How very G of you b-unit! ;) <3
So we walked out of the camp, not knowing what to expect, and heard laughter, clapping, music, a voice commentating the event. Suddenly we felt a bit nervous, this was something very new to behold! We entered the main place of the event, and sat down with all the kids in the school and some of the village people. There was a performance from the acrobat group (who. were. amazing.) a dance from the local womens group, and singing, and then some lovely poems from the Muzungu's! It was so good, we really felt like part of the community, a brilliant welcome!!!
After the ceremony, we were going to be playing sport with the kids, netball with the girls, and football with the boys. It then started to rain. In kenya. Rain. Brilliant.
After our previous encounter with netball and school kids, we were all expecting another battle to the death, but this time there were rules!! there was no biting, no pushing, no punching and no pulling of the ear piercings! We had a really good game, got soaked to the bone, and lost only by 10-9. We all shook hands (which did not happen in the game at Mwaluganje) and then talked and played with the school kids, whilst the boys got ready to play football!!
It was a brilliant day, and really got is involved with the community. After this day, i think we all felt so much more comfortable and settled into our new environment. It was great to be around such lovely, warm and welcoming people, and we were in for quite an experience!

We also did some teaching in the afternoons, so that we weren't doing too much heavy work in the heat and could have a nice "laid back" after noon. Laid back is not quite the word i would use to describe the teaching.
Teaching IT was very challenging, as the people we were teaching were completely new to computers. I was teaching a girl called Mummy from the sewing school, who was so sweet and smiley i think that eased my nerves enough to feel like i could actually do this! The first lesson started off painfully. The communication wasn't at its best, which already was a bit of a struggle. I also didnt realise she woudlnt know anything about computers, not even how to use a mouse. At first i just wanted to cry with frustration and storm out, i had never done anything like this before and i felt like i was completely on my own with now idea what i was supposed to be doing or how to get through to her. But as the lesson went on i think we both got used to what we were doing, and she proved to be a model student! She was a fast learner, which was lucky for me! and she was really sweet and tried her hardest at everything i tried to teach her. Teaching IT was a new project, i think we were the guinea-pigs for this actually, so it was sort of trial and error. At first i thought, nah this is pointless, she wont remember any of this, we're wasting there time, and we're wasting our time.
After a week, and only had having one lesson, i had the same girl again. I thought to myself, oh good, i'll have to do the exact same thing for another hour or so. This is going to be great. I asked her to do the things we had done the week before, just to see how much she had remembered. And to my surprise, she had remembered everything! I couldnt believe it, it was an amazing feeling, I had taught someone something, me!
Throughout the week the same girl would come over to my computer and i would teach her various things, how to type, how to use the mouse, how to use word, paint and power point. We even used the internet one day for pictures, which at the time was slightly horrific. Google, you must sort out your pictures as some are HIGHLY inappropriate. I innocently said, type in your favorite food. So she typed in Banana, what could go wrong? funny cartoon images popped up, we had a laugh, it was all going well, until she scrolled down to reveal a pornographic photo of two girls using bananas in ways a banana should never be used. I will never look at a banana in the same way, ever again.
But apart from the banana incident, i grew to really enjoy teaching IT, which is something i never thought i would say! and I will always remember Mummy and our sometimes slightly embarrassing moments :) Again, thank you Google.

We also taught in the school. We split into pairs and taught either class 2 or class 3, which is basically 8-12 year olds. I was paired up with Nadia, WHAT A TREAT! We only taught for a week, then swapped with the other 6, then would teach IT for a week.
The first few days went pretty well. We taught maths and English, sang songs and played a few games. The class generally was really sweet and quite well behaved, except for a few cheeky little buggers who were a little bit difficult, but nothing we couldn't handle ;) Nadia turned into someone else when she taught, she was loud, confident and really held the role well! i was VERY impressed! When she told the class to be quiet a few times i felt like i should sit down and shut up too, then remembered that i was also a teacher, and would stand there looking all smug. I think i struggled more than Nadia with the teaching, i dont have as much a strong voice to shout over the class, and sometimes i just wanted to play with the kids rather than have to tell them off or tell them to do something. But we got by and all was going so so well... until the last day...
It was a warm, sunny afternoon, and it was our last lesson we would be teaching. We were tired, as it was the end of the week, and just wanted to get it done, but were a bit sad to have to leave the class. Oh how this would soon change...
We planned a simple, fun lesson as it was the last we would teach for two weeks, and the last week it was a choice of two so we might not even have to teach, it would all depend on our previous experiences, and seeing as it all had been running smoothly i thought, what could go wrong.
For some reason the class were particularly rowdy today, maybe it was a shitty lesson plan, maybe they were also eager to get to the weekend, i don't know, but we thought it would be nothing we couldn't handle. Oh how naive we were. Half way through the lesson, they obviously were getting bored, but we were so eager to get the lesson done we just going with our lesson which was based on the alphabet and hand writing. Not the most fun thing in the world, i will admit. I started to give up a bit, and the heat had obviously gone to my head. Usually, if you should BE QUIET, KIMYA, and SIT DOWN, the majority of the class would do what they were told, and the ones who wouldn't would get a good old stare whilst hands on hips until they were so scared they would shut up. However, i think the more we would shout, the more they would run amok, and before we knew it, hell had broken loose and we were acting in very strange ways in an attempts to calm them down. I stepped up to have another go of shouting "Guys come on, quiet, sit down..." but instead, I think i had an out of body experience. I floated to the top of the room and witnessed some crazy white girl screaming "ITS YOUR EDUCATION, WHY WOULDNT YOU WANT TO MAKE THE MOST OF IT" and things like this that was completely ridiculous because, lets face it, the alphabet isnt all that important and im sure they will make it in life not having drawn the letter a and an apple and spelling it the correct way in one lesson of madness.
We then thought, it had become beyond a joke and it was time to change exercises, and try something different. We tried to make a game out of writing the sentance "the sly fox quickly jumped over the lazy dog" as this contains all the letters of the alphabet, and they loved writing or rubbing off the chalk board, so we thought we would ask them to put their hand up (ideally quietly...) and one at a time come and rub off each letter. This started off really well, they were quiet, well behaved and it was all running smoothly. Then came the last few letters. They all wanted a go, they were getting up, on the tables, climbing over each other, screaming TEACHER! TEACHER! or even the occasional MUZUNGU (white person, not the best thing to be yelled at when in a bad mood). And then it came to Z. I held the board rubber ( a sponge) and looked aghast at the crazed children in front of me. To a passer by they must have thought the children had taken over, as that was what it sounded like. And lets me honest, they almost had. I turned to Nadia and went "oh god how will we ever choose" (the head had DEFINITELY gone to our heads at this point) and Nadia replied, NO ONE, grabbed the sponge, stormed over to the board, and screamed at the top of her lungs, AND THIS, IS Z, and with one foul swoop, and i swear to god her eyes flashed red for a split second, Z was gone. Luckily the lesson was over and she then screamed KWAHERI! KWA-HAR-IIIIIIIIIIIII and we basically stormed out. The kids seemed to have not been phased at all by our moments of madness and were hight fiving us, shaking our hands, and i even got a kiss on a hand. We were so close to tears we stormer out the school, walked a long way back to the camp so we didnt have to play with the kids or see any of the other team, and stormed (literally marched) off into the direction of the internet cafe. After we had walked round the corner, we both burst into fits of laughter, mocking our hideous lesson and hilarious last 10 minutes. I dont remember the last time i have laughed so hard, im sure we scared away all the children around us. It was hilarious. I think it was one of those moments that you either laugh or cry, and in the end we were laughing so hard we were crying. It was the perfect end to a busy week.
The teaching was quite an experience, it was overwhelming, it was hard work. After lunch each day we would sit there till it was time to go and teach and plan our lessons, we would use up all our remaining energy in the lessons, but my god was it worth it. Im so proud of all of us for doing it and for how successful everyone was, even me and Nadia with our amusing end. There are ups and downs in every project you will probably do, and teaching may sometimes seem like it has more downs than ups, but when you have finished it there is nothing more satisfying.

By the time it had come to each evening, we were usually absolutely exhausted. Most nights we would be in bed at 9, which seems to early at home, but so late here.
We decided though, that it would be good morale and good team spirit to do some more group things, so some of the evenings would be taken up by something new and fun. We went to the local cinema a few times. The first time, and the most exciting time, we watched the Lion King. There is something really special about watching the Lion King in Africa! how strange!! And it was Bryony's first time to watch it!! Deprived child!
We also had a BBQ on monday nights which was so. good. And a quiz some nights!! which was really fun and one night the winning time ( my team, which was weird as i have never one a quiz!!) had to do the next quiz, so we did previous team tusker quotes, then a music quiz which i handled and hopefully was fun for the others. If not, sorry guys, i got a bit excited!! One night we went to an african restaurant called African Pot which was so much fun, and we had some really delicious african food. We also had an african food night back at the camp which was brilliant as a) it was free and b) there were loads of delicious dishes for us to try and we all really enjoyed it. And on a friday afternoon off, we went to the local markets which was amazing, but perhaps the completely wrong thing for me to do as i spent most of my money of various materials and Cangas! woopsy! One night Duncan came over to us holding something we all got far too excited about.... TWISTER!!!!! we had a night full of ridiculous amounts of fun, and some VERY compromising positions, and loved every second of it! There was also a lake nearby that the village boys took us to sometimes. It's such a beautiful place to go, and we had a few really nice afternoons there where we would just sit and chat, and once watched the sun start to set, which was really pretty :) Another afternoon, everyone went to the mangroves to climb coconut trees and drink the coconuts which sounded like a fun filled evening, however i missed this event as i was sat in a chair for two hours getting my hair braided by a local woman! and when i say braided, i dont mean a pretty little string braid, oh no, i got the whole shabang, plaits everywhere, and now look like quite a little tribal person!!! the others say it really suits me, but i think its still growing on  me! although, i am loving the fact i dont have to wash it very often ;)

We have also started a new project which was really exciting! This project was the Porridge Project! :) and that basically is all it was. Two of us every morning would go to the nursery and make porridge for the children. The porridge me made there, wasnt the porridge we were quite used to, and was more of a porridge flavoured drink. We would cook it on an open fire, stir it for as long as it was cooking for, then poor it into mugs for the children. They would then line up nice and quiet and wait their turn! We would then join them and drink porridge with them and take funny photos, which they absolutely loved, then we would play games, sing songs and most often, make a massive fool out of ourselves. The hokey-cokey was a favourite, along with some of their own songs that we found very fun to dance along to. A few times they would single us out, and whilst they would sing their vibrant songs, they would make the two of us, or one time, just me, stand right in the centre of a HUGE circle of giggling children, and dance. This normally would be fine, only to all those who know me, know I dance really rather tragically, and i dont think i have ever embarrassed myself quite so much in one go. It. was. brilliant.

Another project that we made our own, was building the Mama's house. The local Mama is an old woman who travelled here on foot, I'm sure someone said from Tanzania, something like 50 or 60 years ago. She still has scars on her face from her tribal cuts. Along with her, live her daughters, her grandchildren, and her great grand children. Its a house of something like 10 people? and when you see the house, it breaks your heart a little bit. The walls are all starting to slope inwards, about to fall at any point. The size of it would shock anyone when you hear how many people live there. And then you go in the small room where they all sleep, no beds, just woven dead palm leaves as a mattress. Seeing this house motivated us all to start building their new home, and the second we started it we just fell in love.
It was SUCH an enjoyable thing to do, and was so interesting seeing and experiencing how African people build their own homes! What a skill to have!!!! Hello, new Thomas home!
We started by clearing the place the new house would go. This wasnt too complicated, as the house had been started before but had then fallen down, so the foundations were already there, we just had to clear and dig the place out again. We did this with spades and hoes, and worked as hard as we had worked at Mwaluganje. When this was done, the holes were made and the structure of the house was put up, using big sticks, more like small trees, and rope to tie it all together! We dug all the mud that as to be used for the house, and soon got started on the best bit. The mud.
We made the mud like we made the cement, a familiar process, so we were at least speedy at getting the mud prepared. We would dig it into a pile, make a crater, fill it with water, cover it up, but then, instead of doing it all again, when we covered it up we would jump in, bare foot and mix it with our feet. This was AMAZING, a typical Lauren thing to do! I enjoyed this so much more than i think is natural. We would wade in the mud to our lives content, until it was all ready to start making the house. We made the mud into balls, and would basically layer it up and form the walls, a slow moving process, but seeing the house slowly becoming formed was such a satisfying feeling. Every morning we would walk the 10 minute walk or so, and as soon as the house came into view we would all beam with joy at the work we had done, and at the progress we were making!
One day me and Sarah made the door for the house with Combo. This was really fun and very entertaining, as the saws arent the sharpest of saws, and my arms arent the strongest of arms! we measured and cut down the lengths of wood we needed for the frame of the door, and by the time we were banging the screws into place holding the frame together (VERY stress relieving, if you ever feel tense, grab a hammer!) we could see our work actually taking the form of a door! The most hilarious part of this little task, was definitely the plaining, or.. whatever its called? you know, the sanding bit... Me and Sarah managed the sides of the wood perfectly, but when it came to the main width of the wood, we struggled a treat at first and only seemed to make small bits of dust, whereas Combo would be sanding it down into a nice big smooth bit of wood, leaving behind great long ringlets of wood. Damnit. Sarah then got the hang of it, leaving me there sweating and swearing pleading with God to let me make just one side of wood smooth. Eventually i got the hang of it, but hardly. Perhaps wood work is not my call in life. But i certainly have grown a new fondness for carpenters. Hello, future carpenter husband.
When we finally finished the house, i dont think we could quite believe that we had actually been the ones who had made it? Seeing something being made, and the last results are two very different things, and was very surreal to see a big strong house. If that falls down, i dont think i will be able to live with myself, after all the hard work that went into it. Good luck to the family that live in it, and please, please, dont touch the walls in case they do indeed fall down. In the afternoon, we went back to the Mama's house, and had an opening party.
We played with the children, watched jenny flapping around after them making us all laugh non-stop, sat and talked, ate chipati's (mmmmmm) and even helped make a few. Seeing the house being used and lived in was something really special. It didnt look like the same house that we had built ourselves, and was a very strange feeling indeed seeing it all come alive. Then, the mama gave her thanks. She said thankyou multiple times, she said she had seen groups come and go and never thought the house would ever be done, she didnt think she would see a new house being built for them, and was very grateful. She speaks no English, so Duncan had to translate everything for us. For all we know, she could have actually been saying, "you call this a house?!", but lets just assume he translated correctly. :)

The nights out in Diani were brilliant. Forty's, our new favourite place, is a bar/restaurant on the beach that we spent most of our nights out at. Getting a little bit (ha) drunk on a beach is so much fun. There was a bar, a dance floor, tables and big comfy chairs and then the beach and the sea, all giving uncountable unforgetable memories. Putting make-up and getting all dressed up after a hard week of work was like a sort of reward. "work hard, play hard", and play hard we did!
On other nights we tried a local african bar called the Tandoori bar, which we all really liked. This also had a small dance floor, and as long as you didnt mind local people staring in horror at our new and interesting dance moves, you were bound to have a good night.
We also went to a local club called Shakatak. We had heard so many different opinions of this place, and decided it was time for us to form our own. The night we went there, we danced the whole time, encouraging a lot of new attention from the local black guys, which wasnt always wanted but hey, what can you expect from a group of white girls. I even got a cheeky proposal! I think it was better than we all expected it to be, and all had a really good time.
Our nights out consisted of meeting new people, (hello Easy) getting excited at a free condom machine, not that we would be using them! drinking well into the night, dancing on the beach, running into the sea, chasing crabs, mingling with the other camp kenya groups, dancing with big, hairy, sweaty men who wanted to take jenny to a lake, and numerous other unmentionable incodents. The next morning there would always be a few victims of the previous night. Once i actually fell asleep in the toilet in forty's. woops.

On our last day in Makongeni, we went to the nursery and the primary school and gave out posters we had made for their classrooms to brighten them up a bit. :) this was really good to say goodbye and take photos and play with the children one last time. I will miss our morning breakfasts talking about our weird, malaria tablet induced dreams, the previous nights and what we would be doing the following week. I will miss our new local friends, and the walks through the village. The atmosphere here has been incredible. But i cant wait to move on to the next place, and experience a new African culture and a new African experience.
So good by Makongeni, and good by internet!

Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary :) Two Weeks in the Bush.

The elephant sanctuary, i think, is my idea of heaven.

We were so spoilt, and had everything we needed and more. Working toilets, bamboo showers which were roofless so you could look out into the sky (and get dive bombed by passing bugs...). The tents were huge, and could have easily fit in 6 to a tent, but nono, we had 2 to a tent and mattresses and plenty of sheets! and the food. Mum, your cooking will always be my favourite, don't get me wrong, but the food we have been having here is amazing. We've had sausage and mash, curry type things, spag bol, we even had banana fritters and chocolate custard one night... a very excitable night, i can assure you ! The camp is based on top of a hill, looking down onto the hills, rivers, bush land and elephants roaming the place. The most amazing view i have ever seen, one i could never tire of. We were completely isolated, no signal, no internet access, absolute bliss.

At the elephant sanctuary we had a group leader, called Stevie. King Stevie! This man is so dedicated to the elephants, and also to the groups who volunteer there, we had no trouble at all making ourselves feel at home. He was so funny, so lovely and so very cheeky! and we will never forget him.

The projects we got up to were so good, some very challenging, others very rewarding, but all amazing.
This elephant sanctuary wasnt one that you can touch and interact with the elephants, it was one that offers the animals a free life, a better life and a safe one. None of us knew what to expect, but this was just perfect. There's nothing like waking up to see a heard of elephants walking past by the river down the bottom of the hill. This also made the game drives so special. Each and every elephant we saw was an exciting experience, and each time never got dull. These animals are perfect and i love them so much.
The main focus of the elephant sanctuary and the work we were doing, was focusing on the Human-Elephant conflict. This involved all sorts of different work, some with the sanctuary, some with the local villages.

Inside the sanctuary, we got up to things such as road maintenance, in order to encourage other road users and support in the sanctuary, game drives, which allowed us to learn more about the elephants which helped us understand them more. We also worked with the elephant dung paper factory. What a giggle that was. They use the elephant dung and turn it into paper, which they can then use to make other things, note books, photo albums, cards, book marks etc. They make the paper with a wooden frame and a net type sieve,  to even out the dung and water and glue mixture, which is them laid out flat on a table. The water is then sponged out of the frame, then the frame is removed and a flat piece of paper is left to dry for about 6 hours. This is a good source of income for the sanctuary, and so much fun to make!

The road maintenance was a group favourite task i think. It's hard work, but very rewarding to see something you have done, and to know you have made a difference. We did this only twice. The first time, we had to smooth out a massive pile of dirt over a large area of a road to make it flat, reduce bumps and holes, and make it longer lasting and better to drive over. We were then the first ones to drive over our work, and even though it may sounds stupid, it was one of the best moments of the trip.
On the other occasion, there were trenches that had been made from over use and rain etc, which we had to dig out and smooth back over the surface of the road. For some reason whenever we do manual labour and hard work, it always seemed to be the hottest, sunniest day. But this did not discourage us, and we got the job done faster than Stevie thought we would! He later told us we were the most hard working group he had had. I actually felt so proud of us all, we are so lucky to have such an amazing group.

Outside the sanctuary we had to do other projects, with the school and also with local villages and a local women's group!
At the school, are main project was starting the construction of a new kitchen, as the other one was very poor in standards and the children deserved so much better. Most days here, we were making cement, ( a very tiring job) and making bricks, something i have found to love and enjoy more than i would have ever thought!!  we would all sit in a line shouting MUCHANGA, which (if spelt properly) means SOIL, for our wooden brick moulds, which would then make perfect bricks :)
we also started the foundations for the kitchen, which involved digging and hoeing a waste (or in my case, practically a shoulder length) ditch. Another day half the group finished the foundations by layering the bottom with large rocks and things, but the other half, including me, decided we would teach a lesson, an experience i will never forget.
6 of us sat in the staff room one afternoon, and the deputy head came and told us we would be teaching 12-16/17 year olds. Oh. My. God. here i am, expecting to be teaching kids songs and words in english, but ohhhhhh i couldnt have been more wrong. He went through the subject choices, and before i know it i've announced i'd love to teach maths! oh but of course. Me and maths. WHAT A MIX! so 3 of us taught maths, and 3 taught science. And not just any maths, ALGEBRA! the best kind of maths!!!! we were all up late that night (us not as late as the ones who taught science, god bless you girls, you had such a treat) doing our lesson plans (trying to remember how the hell to work out an equation) and the others were learning, to all our amusement, about the human body and the sexual reproductive system. I've never heard the word Vagina or menstruation so much in my life.
When it came to teaching, we were all so nervous. we sat in the staff room waiting for about half an hour in the morning, drinking VERY suspicious tea which we would all regret drinking later, and some triangle doughnut tasting things. we then went into our first class, class 6, kids who were only a few years younger than me and i was about to teach them ALGEBRA. At first I just thought to myself, what a joke, why did i ever kid myself to think i could do this!?!? But as the lesson went on it went so well, they were a little bit difficult, some just laughed, which was really quite scary, but it was a really good feeling. then we did the other class, class 7. OLDER kids. up to 17. thats a year younger than me. AHHHHHHHH!!!!
They were so different. they sat and stared. there was no laughter. just silence. i could have cried, i really could have. and we were doing more complex sums, some i didnt even understand the night before. so we began. still, silence. We battled through, and this turned out to be one of the most amazing experiences of the first two weeks. They got more into it, seemed to actually learn something! from me!!!!! i had to correct work in books, explain it, mark their work! it was amazing! and i am so happy i jumped into something new, i really suggest it. Never say no to a new experience.
We also worked with a tree nursery which was part of the schools project. This involved replanting seeded trees, filling sacks of soil and seeds, making beds for new trees, all sorts. this was quite a chilled out project, and i think anyone will agree the best part of it was Nadia accidently killing a tree. I will never get Stevies cries of "MURDERED! my poor tree!!!!! ohhhh she has slaughtered my tree!" out of my head. It only made it better when he did the exact same thing, and tried to blame Sarah. Oh Stevie.
We also had a farewell netball match! what a game. There were no rules, just two teams fighting for their lives!!! We had bruises, cut lips, infected eyes, body slams (mostly on my behalf) and all sorts of shocking behaviour!! these kids did not want to play nicely! so we did not either! and guess what, WE ONE! only after did it occur to me that we had just played dirty to a bunch of 13-17 year olds. Oh dear...

We also went to a women's group a few times, which was a really interesting experience! The people in the group were full of smiles and laughter, and were a pleasure to be around. Walking through the bush to get to them on the first day, we could hear them singing, welcoming us already. It was amazing. Their singing is unique and every time i heard them i couldnt get over how amazing they were! And they also made us join in with the dancing! which mostly consisted of shoulder shaking! Worked out the knots in my back a treat!
The first time we went there, they showed us around their small village, and showed us how they lived, and how they did every day activities, such as farming crops. We hoed a section that was to be used for vegetables, then we made a raised bed out of sticks which was going to be used for tomato plants! which we planted, then the next time we went we could already see them growing! We also picked beans, pealed them for the peas inside the pods, and then they showed us how they prepare them for eating. this involved drying, mashing and then a grinding process, which then leads to various outcomes, flour, beans, etc. They also taught us how to weave! I found this so much fun! the woman i think ended up just giving up on me and walking off.... oops...
We also had to dig these big trenches for them. This was bloody hard work, especially in the heat. we had 3 of us to a pit and then 2 or so of the locals helping. The pits were used for compost and keeping soil fresh so that it could be used for growing food etc. For some ridiculous reason, my three people had the biggest pit to dig, and im sure we were the three weakest! this took a while, but when we all finished everyone jumped in and just went all silly, taking photos and running away from praying mantis's!

We also did livestock deworming!! we walked around the local villages, and basically dewormed loads of goats with syringes of medicine! this was VERY amusing as goats make some very entertaining noises! bless em!

Then on the last night, we secretly arranged a big farewell party, partly as a sad farewell to the elephant sanctuary, which we had all grown to love, but also as a thankyou and goodbye to stevie, who we all love and  will miss so much! That was such a fun night. We all dressed up in our cangas that we had bought at the womans group, in different styles, put some makeup on, quite a strange feeling! and decorated the dining area with bedsheets in the form of bunting, the table with a big leafy display, and a thrown for KING STEVIE which we later filmed him in answering some questions about himself and about the past two weeks, which proved to be hilarious!

Leaving the Elephant Sanctuary was really hard as we had all become so familiar with the people, the scenery and the staff. Every project was amazing, we enjoyed every second, and it was hard to believe that we would feel so at home in another place. We left the next morning and set off for Makongeni, where we were to be spending the next 5 weeks in a completely different environment altogether. From wildlife, to community! Hello civilisation!

LAUREN FINALLY GETS INTERNET.

Right. Wrote out one big blog entry, then me being me managed to delete everything i wrote. so here i go again!!

Day One.

Arriving at the Airport was surprisingly drama free, and i say this, as even the simplest tasks with my parents seem to go to extremes. The journey in the car was one full of mixed emotions, i was so excited, but started to feel the nerves a bit. We got the the airport and met everyone else, this seemed to ease my nerves a bit as it made me realise that everyone was in the same boat, no one knew anyone and everyone's big smiles was a massive comfort. After everyone checked in and got all our bags sorted, we all said our fairwells to our parents. I'm not going to lie, this was hard. I wanted to let my parents know how grateful i was for everything they did, but all i could do was hug them and try not to cry. But the sadness of this soon went away when i got a phone call 5 minutes later from my mother, expecting her to cry DONT GO STAY WITH ME FOREVER, but oh no, instead of a loving phone call, i get "LAUREN! where did we park the car! we're lost!!" Good one guys, real smooth.

The first flight, to Nairobi went really well, better than i expected, as im a bit funny on flights, and always half expect something dramatic to happen, and after about 7 hours 45 minutes we landed and got all our bags, then went to meet Nadia, our fellow Australian! :) I have never met anyone to be quite as happy and smiley as Nadia. The second we met her, the first thing we saw was a massive smile, then she told us she had lost her bag, still smiling of course! I told you all Airports were stupid things.
So we all got on our next flight to Mombasa, then got picked up after trying to sort out Nadias bag (which was completely lost) and made our way to the Leap office, then on our way to Mwalugange  elephant sanctuary where we were to spend our first 2 weeks :) Two of the most incredible weeks of my life.

One day to go!

So, my first ever blog entry! To anyone who may read this, please do not judge or laugh at my poor spelling and tragic grammar!

After many hours of planning, folding, laying out and finally stuffing all my clothes into my beautiful new rucksack, i am finally packed! WHAT a relief! Now it all seems so much more real! i can't believe that tomorow i am going to KENYAAAAA! I am so so so excited! I have been waiting for this for so so long. However, i am mildly pooing my pants and will miss all my amazing friends more than i could ever tell them, even though its only 3 months!

Last night was a tear filled one, but a brilliant one none the less. SO good to see everyone before we all go our seperate ways, and i cant wait to see everyone again in the horrible English winter!! Good times. Thankyou to Georgia, for your letters which i will look forward to tearing into! And vicky and suz for the card and maltesers! And Holly just for being you. And rach and Bex for being the most amazing friends. And everone else for everything! I love you all so much :)

So Kenya in ONE DAY! The butterflies are rolling in, but i cant wait to meet everyone!!! And i appologise in advance for my awful first impressions!!

Good luck with everything, everyone, and make the most of your lives :) Stay in touch!
xxxxxxx

OH, and Happy Birthday Ash! Hope you have an amazing day :)