Our last day. Our last day. Sad. Sad. Sad. Sad. Sad. Sad. We went to the school in the morning so do an assembly. We had prepared a lot the night before, but were still nervous. We taught them some songs and each said some words of thanks. Drama is a big part of worship in Africa, so we did a small skit for them about being children of God no matter the colour. Then we handed out small Canadian flags, Canadian pins, and toothbrushes to all the students and teachers. Mr. Minnesma and Mrs. Boer presented each of the teachers with a Bible.
Then it was time for goodbyes. This took about 2 hours and included a lot of handshaking, hugs, picture taking and some tears. By the end my cheeks were having spasms from smiling for so many pictures. As we drove away, all the students waved to us. To keep us from crying, Simple cranked his R&B cd to make us smile. We met up with Sister Rosemary and Pastor John for lunch for some last minute things. Then we went back to the apartment to pack everything up and have some showers. Then we said goodbye to Kellee and Ken and drove to the airport. At the airport, we had to say goodbye to Simple. We teased him about missing us and crying. He waited by the window for us because security started right at the door. We waved to him as we checked in our bags and blew him kisses. Right before we got on the plane, we called him to say goodbye again.
Our plane took off at midnight. We all slept for most of the flight. We are now sitting in Heathrow. We got here at 5:30 in the morning and have a 6 hour layover. We will leave at 12 noon and get to Pearson at 4:30.
Thanks to everyone again for your support of this trip! We did not want to leave Kenya. We must have said that about a hundred times. We loved every minute of our experience here. Thank you for your prayers. Thank you, Sud Academy, for letting us disrupt your classes and for being so welcoming. Thank you, God, for keeping us safe and loving us. This experience has changed our lives.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
a walk to remember
yesterday it was saturday, so there was no school. our driver simple took us on a safari. we left at 6 in the morning. we saw giraffes, flamingoes, zebras, wildebeasts, rhinosauruses, gazelles antelopes and even a lion! the roof of our van lifted up so that we could stand up and see out the top. it was really fun. we had p.b. and j. sandwiches (which were made by marijke and wil) for lunch. it rained for half the day and was beautiful for the rest. we got back at about 9 at night. the whole ride home we listened to some r&b cd that simple had.
today is sunday, so we went to church. the headmaster, ojok bosco, took us to his church. it was a small tin building in kamiguarra (the market/slum area near sud academy). they put us in the seats of honour at the front. we introduced our selves. the whole service was in english and translated into dinka. they had the sunday school sing and dance, some teens did a drama about believing in God not in witch craft. then they asked mr. minnesma to preach. he was not prepared to preach but he pulled it off quite well. after the service, we went to the chair lady's church and a group of mothers sang and danced for us. it was beautiful.
after lunch, we went to kibera, the second largest slum in africa. it was a little scary. before we went in we prayed, but we were with a woman named susan who showed us around. we were pretty on edge at first. there were no other white people in the slum the whole time we were there. as we walked through, all the little kids smiled and waved at us and called out 'how are you?'. we could hear the whispers of 'mzungu' everywhere. mzungu is kiswahili for white person. it was scarier for the girls because we got shouted at or just stared at. the slum itself was filled with garbage. every building was half house, half shop. i have never seen anything like it. the ground was pretty muddy because it's rained a bit here. there was garbage everywhere. it smelled like food, and garbage and sewage and people. there were really skinny dogs and goats running in between the people and the piles of garbage. when we got to the top of a hill, we could see down over the slum. the shanties looked like piles of tin piled together with people walking between them. it hasn't really sunken in yet, but it will when we are on our way home.
tomorrow is our last day. we are doing an assembly in the morning for them, then spending the rest of the day saying our goodbyes (which will take forever and lots of tears). our plane leaves at midnight. the airline we are flying with is on strike right now. only 60% of the flights are flying out, but our flights are 2 of that 60%. the schedules are going to be all messed up, so we could be in london for 2 hours, or 2 days. we will get home eventually.
thank you for your support everyone!
asante sana and nakupenda!
Saturday pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/SaturdayAmazingAfrica#
Sunday pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/SundaySudanaseChurchKibera#
today is sunday, so we went to church. the headmaster, ojok bosco, took us to his church. it was a small tin building in kamiguarra (the market/slum area near sud academy). they put us in the seats of honour at the front. we introduced our selves. the whole service was in english and translated into dinka. they had the sunday school sing and dance, some teens did a drama about believing in God not in witch craft. then they asked mr. minnesma to preach. he was not prepared to preach but he pulled it off quite well. after the service, we went to the chair lady's church and a group of mothers sang and danced for us. it was beautiful.
after lunch, we went to kibera, the second largest slum in africa. it was a little scary. before we went in we prayed, but we were with a woman named susan who showed us around. we were pretty on edge at first. there were no other white people in the slum the whole time we were there. as we walked through, all the little kids smiled and waved at us and called out 'how are you?'. we could hear the whispers of 'mzungu' everywhere. mzungu is kiswahili for white person. it was scarier for the girls because we got shouted at or just stared at. the slum itself was filled with garbage. every building was half house, half shop. i have never seen anything like it. the ground was pretty muddy because it's rained a bit here. there was garbage everywhere. it smelled like food, and garbage and sewage and people. there were really skinny dogs and goats running in between the people and the piles of garbage. when we got to the top of a hill, we could see down over the slum. the shanties looked like piles of tin piled together with people walking between them. it hasn't really sunken in yet, but it will when we are on our way home.
tomorrow is our last day. we are doing an assembly in the morning for them, then spending the rest of the day saying our goodbyes (which will take forever and lots of tears). our plane leaves at midnight. the airline we are flying with is on strike right now. only 60% of the flights are flying out, but our flights are 2 of that 60%. the schedules are going to be all messed up, so we could be in london for 2 hours, or 2 days. we will get home eventually.
thank you for your support everyone!
asante sana and nakupenda!
Saturday pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/SaturdayAmazingAfrica#
Sunday pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/SundaySudanaseChurchKibera#
Friday, March 19, 2010
i will remember you until i die
sorry that i didn`t write yesterday. the internet was down last night.
yesterday, we took all of the sud academy to the arboretum. it`s a beautiful park in nairobi. the students arrived in 4 big buses. they all shook our hands and thanked us for the day. we all walked to the open field. the older boys started playing soccer right away. their style of soccer is really fast and rough. marijke, avery and i were going to play, but we were a little scared that we would get run over or something. we opened up our case of embroidery floss and we helped kids make bracelets for 2 hours. there were monkeys in the park. they were like african squirrels. for lunch, we had mandazi (an african deepfried flour bun thing-really good), coke or fanta, and 2 bananas. the students loved it because normally they get a big bowl of rice and beans.
after lunch we played a girl`s game of soccer. then we played some games with them. they loved playing the squeeze game and leg wreslting. we took so many pictures that day. we had to chase them onto the bus because they all wanted to stay with us.
the next day, we went to the school in the morning and just hung out with the students. we taught them some songs and dances and they taught us some of theirs. that was a lot of fun. they really opened us to us today and told us their stories. they had a teacher vs. student volleyball game. wil was sick today, so it was only marijke, avery, mrs boer and i at the school. mr. minnesma, kellee and one of the teachers went shopping for textbooks and school supplies for sud academy.
in all, it was a pretty good day. the title of this entry is called `i will remember you until i die`. this is what one of the students said to us today.
Thursday pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/ThursdayDayTripToTheArboretum#
Friday pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/FridayPurchasingBooksChemistryLabEquipment#
yesterday, we took all of the sud academy to the arboretum. it`s a beautiful park in nairobi. the students arrived in 4 big buses. they all shook our hands and thanked us for the day. we all walked to the open field. the older boys started playing soccer right away. their style of soccer is really fast and rough. marijke, avery and i were going to play, but we were a little scared that we would get run over or something. we opened up our case of embroidery floss and we helped kids make bracelets for 2 hours. there were monkeys in the park. they were like african squirrels. for lunch, we had mandazi (an african deepfried flour bun thing-really good), coke or fanta, and 2 bananas. the students loved it because normally they get a big bowl of rice and beans.
after lunch we played a girl`s game of soccer. then we played some games with them. they loved playing the squeeze game and leg wreslting. we took so many pictures that day. we had to chase them onto the bus because they all wanted to stay with us.
the next day, we went to the school in the morning and just hung out with the students. we taught them some songs and dances and they taught us some of theirs. that was a lot of fun. they really opened us to us today and told us their stories. they had a teacher vs. student volleyball game. wil was sick today, so it was only marijke, avery, mrs boer and i at the school. mr. minnesma, kellee and one of the teachers went shopping for textbooks and school supplies for sud academy.
in all, it was a pretty good day. the title of this entry is called `i will remember you until i die`. this is what one of the students said to us today.
Thursday pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/ThursdayDayTripToTheArboretum#
Friday pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/FridayPurchasingBooksChemistryLabEquipment#
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
another day, another story, another joy, another tear, another memory
today was the third day at sud academy. we finally remembered a few names. we spent today with the primary classes. first we went to class 2 and 3. we read a bible story with them, the one about the little children coming to jesus. the teacher had to translate for us because most of them speak swahili and haven't learned much english yet. then we taught them 'he's got the whole world in his hands'. they loved it and their teacher promised to teach it to them later. we made a paper chain with them. each link had their name on it. we made some extra links that said canada, kenya, sudan, God and Jesus. we strung it over the chalk board.
we went to class 4, 5, 6 and 7, 8 next. marijke and mrs. boer went to the younger group. wil and mr. minnesma went to the older group. we made friendship bracelets with them, so i went back and forth between the 2 classes. avery was sick so she stayed at the apartment. we had so many people asking where she was. it was a lot of fun.
the students were holding their christian student union. we attended. it was like a church service. they made us sit in seats of honour. they sang a few songs, which we didn't know, but clapped along. they introduced the elders, treasurer, secretary, and teachers that helped out. then one of the students preached a message and a teacher did a follow up. then they asked us to sing a song. we were not prepared but we sang 'reign in me'. they loved it. they prayed for us and blessed us. it was kind of wierd, because they have so little, but they don't even complain. instead, they bless us.
after lunch, we just hung out with the students. we visited different classrooms, talked to students, gave out our email addresses (all the kids want to email us or add us on facebook).
tomorrow, we are taking them on a field trip to the aboritum (sp?). they are very very excited. the headmaster instructed them to wash themselves and be very clean for tomorrow. he also told the little ones not to get lost. we hope to play some soccer/football with them. we are very excited.
Pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/WednesdayVisitingPrimaryStudents#
we went to class 4, 5, 6 and 7, 8 next. marijke and mrs. boer went to the younger group. wil and mr. minnesma went to the older group. we made friendship bracelets with them, so i went back and forth between the 2 classes. avery was sick so she stayed at the apartment. we had so many people asking where she was. it was a lot of fun.
the students were holding their christian student union. we attended. it was like a church service. they made us sit in seats of honour. they sang a few songs, which we didn't know, but clapped along. they introduced the elders, treasurer, secretary, and teachers that helped out. then one of the students preached a message and a teacher did a follow up. then they asked us to sing a song. we were not prepared but we sang 'reign in me'. they loved it. they prayed for us and blessed us. it was kind of wierd, because they have so little, but they don't even complain. instead, they bless us.
after lunch, we just hung out with the students. we visited different classrooms, talked to students, gave out our email addresses (all the kids want to email us or add us on facebook).
tomorrow, we are taking them on a field trip to the aboritum (sp?). they are very very excited. the headmaster instructed them to wash themselves and be very clean for tomorrow. he also told the little ones not to get lost. we hope to play some soccer/football with them. we are very excited.
Pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/WednesdayVisitingPrimaryStudents#
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
the same sun that shines on us, shines on you
second day at sud academy. more memories. this morning we visited the secondary level classes, form 1-4. first we showed them a video that tyler minnesma made for us of the spaghetti lunch we held at our school. the video showed many students and teachers saying hello to sud academy. the students of sud liked it a lot. whenever some one on the video said something they particularly liked, they clapped. when the video was over, they asked questions about our school and canada. they wondered where we got food, and why we did not wear uniforms, and how did christopher colombus discover america? was it a land with no people? they also asked many times if they could come visit us. the thing that really touched our hearts was their continual thankfulness. we recorded many beautiful stories. we then handed out letters to them that students from ldcss had written to them. that was really entertaining. they loved the letters and kept asking us if it was a boy or girl, what did they look like, and if they were nice people. they wanted us to promise that we would deliver the letters to them.
after we were in the classes, we talked to more students and played frisbees. tomorrow we hope to visit the primary classes.
Pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/TuesdayMeetTheHighschoolSection#
after we were in the classes, we talked to more students and played frisbees. tomorrow we hope to visit the primary classes.
Pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/TuesdayMeetTheHighschoolSection#
Monday, March 15, 2010
View pictures on-line
We have been trying to get some pictures on-line (on Picasa), however often the Internet is too slow to post them. Please check at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip
karibuni
karibuni means welcome in swahili, something many people told us today. today was our first day to visit sud academy. we had all been looking forward to this day for a long time. when we first got to the school, the kids were already crowding around the gate to meet us. the headmaster unlocked the door in the gate and let us in. all the young children started shaking our hands and say 'hi, fine'. the older and secondary students looked almost mad. but when we asked kellee, she told us that the sudanese are very serious by nature, but the younger ones act more like kenyans because they have adopted that nature. we met the headmaster ojok bosco, who always wears a hat. he showed us his small office, then lead us to the staff room (also very small) to meet the staff.
they had an assembly to welcome us, their 'esteemed, most honoured guests'. we got to sit in seats of honour with the teachers. they sang a few songs with us, then their choir came out and sang a song something like 'we are so happy today, we are so happy to see you'. they wanted to show us some traditional sudanese culture, so they had some tribal dances for us. first only the older guys danced with drums, then the girls came too. they invited us to dance with them, but we can't even dance in church let alone tribal dancing. they all had 2 sticks, or metal pieces with they clapped together. one of the dances was supposed to symbolize the cow. the men lifted their arms over their heads, to become the horns, and stamped their feet. the girls put their arms straight behind their back and stamped their feet in a different pattern. it seemed to be kind of a competition because they would stomp faster and faster until one person quit.
they also presented a drama for us. the first was about a man who steals food from another man because he thinks he is blind (that's what i understood from it) and the second about 4 people who pretend to be blind, deaf, or missing a limb so that they can beg for money. in the end they mix it up and the people they are begging from find out. it was funny, even if we didn't understand everything. then kellee introduced us to the school and we all said our names. while we were talking, some students came out and gave us necklaces and bracelets as presents. we realized later that these were their own jewelry. we were so honoured!
after the assembly, they didn't have classes for the day. we had lunch (beans and rice) and talked and played volleyball. the students were so interested in canada and how it compares to africa and who we were. the most suprising thing to us was that they had never met white teenage girls before. each girl (except for mrs. boer) were proposed to at least a few times. they straight out asked us to marry them because we were beautiful and white and canadian.
they loved talking to us and shaking our hands. the little kids wanted to play with our hair. they all wanted our phone numbers and email addresses. they were all so friendly and welcoming. the only problem was that we met about a hundred kids in 4 hours and had a lot of trouble remembering their names. some of the seemed offenced, some did not. but when ever we were walking away, they all were scared we were leaving and wanted us to assure them that we would be back tomorrow.
it was an amazing day. we are all sunburnt, but cannot wait to be back tomorrow. we feel blessed to know these amazingly welcoming people.
Pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/MondayFirstDayAtSudAcademy#
they had an assembly to welcome us, their 'esteemed, most honoured guests'. we got to sit in seats of honour with the teachers. they sang a few songs with us, then their choir came out and sang a song something like 'we are so happy today, we are so happy to see you'. they wanted to show us some traditional sudanese culture, so they had some tribal dances for us. first only the older guys danced with drums, then the girls came too. they invited us to dance with them, but we can't even dance in church let alone tribal dancing. they all had 2 sticks, or metal pieces with they clapped together. one of the dances was supposed to symbolize the cow. the men lifted their arms over their heads, to become the horns, and stamped their feet. the girls put their arms straight behind their back and stamped their feet in a different pattern. it seemed to be kind of a competition because they would stomp faster and faster until one person quit.
they also presented a drama for us. the first was about a man who steals food from another man because he thinks he is blind (that's what i understood from it) and the second about 4 people who pretend to be blind, deaf, or missing a limb so that they can beg for money. in the end they mix it up and the people they are begging from find out. it was funny, even if we didn't understand everything. then kellee introduced us to the school and we all said our names. while we were talking, some students came out and gave us necklaces and bracelets as presents. we realized later that these were their own jewelry. we were so honoured!
after the assembly, they didn't have classes for the day. we had lunch (beans and rice) and talked and played volleyball. the students were so interested in canada and how it compares to africa and who we were. the most suprising thing to us was that they had never met white teenage girls before. each girl (except for mrs. boer) were proposed to at least a few times. they straight out asked us to marry them because we were beautiful and white and canadian.
they loved talking to us and shaking our hands. the little kids wanted to play with our hair. they all wanted our phone numbers and email addresses. they were all so friendly and welcoming. the only problem was that we met about a hundred kids in 4 hours and had a lot of trouble remembering their names. some of the seemed offenced, some did not. but when ever we were walking away, they all were scared we were leaving and wanted us to assure them that we would be back tomorrow.
it was an amazing day. we are all sunburnt, but cannot wait to be back tomorrow. we feel blessed to know these amazingly welcoming people.
Pics at: http://picasaweb.google.com/SUDtrip/MondayFirstDayAtSudAcademy#
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