Being a kid in Kenya is different than it is in America. Being a baby is similar in the sense that they are held often when first born and bundled up, but similarities end there. Kenyans take the baby clothing a bit too far. I have a hard time believing that a baby will freeze to death in 100 degree temperatures, but sure enough the babies have socks, hats, multiple shirts, jackets, blankets etc. One babies can sit up they tend to be a bit more on their own. Often times they are supervised by older siblings, like a seven-year-old sister or brother. Mamas help out when they can, but women in my community are constantly working as they tend to be the farmers, caregivers, problem solvers etc. in the family. Babies become tough as there are no pacifiers, toys or items for baby amusement. Babies start playing with the other children at a young age and small children tend to be pushed around a lot as they become inducted into the pecking order. Kids here are creative and the ones in my compound do an excellent job of making their own fun. My favorites have been when they used the clothing lines to zip line (I had to resist the urge to join in, something I was grateful for when the mamas starting beating the children for doing it--I'm not sure what they would have done to me), made swings (which proved to be highly dangerous but they had a great time) and when they made a sled out of half of an old jerry can. I like that the kids play outside for the majority of the day. They don't sit around watching TV or playing on the computer because generally those are not things that they have access to. In America people are perhaps overly concerned with the health and safety of children. Parents baby-proof their homes, feed their children pediatrician approved food, Lysol all surfaces and micro manage every minute of their children's time. In Kenya children have a degree of independence and responsibility that continues to blow my mind. Every once in a while a mama will acknowledge that something is unsafe for a child. I was concerned on day when a two-year-old was playing with a machete (I seem to be ok with four-year-olds using them as toys, I'm not sure what that says about my future parenting ability) and asked her if that was ok. She said he wasn't allowed because he was using it to chop at furniture. She wanted me to beat him for her, which I refused to do. I am constantly asked to beat people's children if they are too busy to do so themselves and I have yet to do so. Children are beaten at home and at school, something that would not be viewed as ok in America. Here it is the solution that they turn to. I have tried to introduce different forms of punishment but the mamas haven't taken me up on it. To say that I am uncomfortable with beating people would be a massive understatement. Kids in Kenya go to school. At least they should. Primary school is mandatory but enrollment does not seem to be enforced. The majority of small children in my community do seem to be in school though. High school attendance is low, especially for girls. Schools in Kenya vary, but generally speaking they are no where near as fancy as their American equivalents. Students take far more subjects simultaneously and learn by rote in classes at least double the size of those in America. It is not hard to see why many children struggle in their classes. Kids here play football (soccer) for fun. Typically they make balls out of old plastic bags. They are excellent football players, way better than the kids in America, because they play constantly. There are no organized sports though. Schools have teams and some students play on them but there are no community leagues. There are no music lessons, zoo camps, dance classes or any of the number of activities that fill up the schedules of kids in America. On the whole however, it seems like kids in Kenya are just as happy as kids in America. I think it would have been fun to grow up in my village and look forward to spending another year with the kids who live there.

For six months during my time in Kenya I had a Canadian roommate named Magan. She became known as "my Canadian" due to the fact that there were two Megan's in my training group and it became really confusing. I made an excellent first impression, showing up sweaty and exhauted having just biked 20 miles and missed her welcoming celebration. I was not aware that she was going to be staying for six months, but I am very happy happy that she did. My Canadian came to volunteer with my first organization, and for a few weeks that's what we did. When everything started going down hill I was greatful to have a friend. I loved having a partner in crime when running around Kakmega looking for something to do, even if it was just sitting and drinking juice together on the steps of Nakumatt. My Canadian became an honorary member of Peace Corps, traveling with me to see other volunteers and helping with trainings in the community. When I had to move to my current village I brought my Canadian with me for the last few weeks she was in Kenya. I will always have memories of our time together, like when our bus hit a petrol truck, watching the lion king when I hadn't seen a movie in months, dealing with Skittles the cat, shopping for shoes and clothes in the market, chasing down the githeri lady (we loved her food a bit too much) and just hanging out. I'm sure that my Canadian and I will be friends for life, and while this short letter doesn't tell about our entire six months I think it provides a decent introduction.

I have a large birthmark on my left ankle* It has become darker over the years, fading during the winter and returning with my freckles when the sun returns* My cousin Amanda first noticed it when I was 6 and we were on a roadtrip in Oklahoma* Like the birthmark on my neck it was barely noticeable* My mom scrubbed my neck aggressively for what seemed like years before she realized that it wasn't dirt* Based on my past experiance I shouldn't have been surprized by the reactions to my birthmark and freckles in Kenya, well at least not all of them* In Loitokitok my host mama thought I wasn't actually washing my feet everyday, it took me awhile to convince her that I was* When I went to Gatunga in Eastern Province everyday the women in the compound would wash their feet together* The first day they were concerned* The first sign was when they handed me a rougher cloth so that I could scrub more effectively* Then one of them started scrubbing, which I have to say hurt a lot, as I tried to explain the misunderstanding* When she went for the steel wool I freaked out and she backed off* Kenyans, or at least the ones I know don't have birthmarks* They have scars from vaccinations and cuts but otherwise their skin is flawless* My freckles and birthmarks confuse them* The majority of people think that I should have them lightened or removed* I don't agree* People have many theoies about how I got my freckles and birthmarks* One nurse at my dispensary was very concerned about my health one day because she thought that my freckles were mosquito bites and that I was going to have some serious malaria* Granted if they had been mosquito bites I would have had hundreds, something I'm not sure my Malerone could handle* Another woman at the dispensary had a creative theory about my birthmark that I enjoyed* She said that my mother must have drunk some strong tea (tea without milk aka black tea) right before I was born, when feet were higher than my head* The tea landed on my ankle and stained it* I then told her that story reminded me of my mother's "theory" about why I am so short* My mother says that when she was pregnant she wanted a cheeseburger in the middle of the night and asked my dad to go and get her one* He said no* My mom says had I received the benefits from that burger I would have grown up to be a lot taller* The women at the dispensary loved the story because it was something they could relate to and laugh about, a sort of old wives tale that showed that people all over the world make up the same kind of stories to explain things that they may not fully understand* The day I told that story marked the first day I truly became friends with two women at my dispensary* I have always loved my birthmark and freckles and although I don't completely understand why I have them I'm ok with that because sometimes a good story is more fun and I am thankful to Kenya for giving that to me*

I've officially been in Kenya for a year* The time for the most part seems to have flown by* A lot has happened during my time here, the majority wasn't what I had expected, granted Peace Corps told all of us not to have expectations* When I boarded the plane in Chicago in a sleep-deprived haze I thought I would be heading to a small, rural community where no English was spoken and food and water were hard to come by* A community like Gatunga that Women's Global worked with* I thought I would learn Swahili an be able to speak with the locals confidently* I thought I would struggle with dressing like a mama* I looked forward to learning to play the guitar* I had ideas of the food I would be eating (focused around millet and goat)* I thought I would miss the internet, a virtually unlimited calling plan & other technology I had come to take for granted* Coming from a fairly urban environment I worried about life in a small village and the lack of 24 hour anything* I wondered what illnesses I would contract* I had no ides what kind of work I would be doing* I thought I would live in my village for my entire service* My first site was in a large town and I lived in an office* My current site is a village where I live in a house made of mud and poop (the cow manure helps the mud stick, we use it to make charcoal balls for the same reason)* A decent amount of the villagers speak English which is helpful because I was not taught Swahili* I am trying to teach myself but it's going a bit slower than I would like* My village is lucky* We ave two sizeable rainy seasons which means we can grow a lot of food to eat and sugar cane to sell* We also do not have severe water shortages like other parts of Kenya, our wells rarely dry up* I was worried about dressing like a Kenyan woman* I have never enjoyed wearing long skirts and as I over heat easily I was concerned about a ban on tank tops* Initially I resisted, but over the course of the year I have assimilated, perhaps too much* In the village I frequently wear a head scarf* I have once again become a fan of big, baggy tee shirts that I pair with three long skirts* I have only worn pants in Nairobi since moving to my village* I bought a slip yesterday after some ladies I work with pointed out that my skirts were showing a wear* I can't remember ever voluntarily wearing a slip* I bought a dress to wear in Kisumu a few weeks ago, a dress I would have worn in Chicago during the summer, and freaked out and ended up wearing a shawl over it because my shoulders weren't covered and the dress was knee length* I also haven't had a good hair day since our wearing in ceremony, but then again I have no desire to wear my hair down due to the heat as well as all of the people who want to touch it* I bought a guitar in Nairobi and I have learned to play it, hopefully the right way as I'm primarily self-taught although I did have Lorenzo's help with chords and my brother talked me though bar chords in a rather expensive phone call* I love my guitar, it helps keep me sane* My diet was a bit varied when I had my roommate Magan but now it's less exciting* I live off fresh produce supplemented with oatmeal, soya, popcorn, ugali (made from corn meal and water kind of like polenta) & the occasional pasta or rice* I am essentially a vegetarian, which people in my village think is a bit odd* We don't grow millet here* I have eaten goat twice* I can use my phone for internet sometimes, but there will be weeks where I have no access and have to go to town to use it and then hope that there is power* I only seem to want the internet to check email, I am ok with not being able to do that often* I don't use my phone much, I send some texts and make a few calls* Sometimes I only make one call in a week* While the cost of airtime is small in terms of $ it seems like a lot on a Peace Corps budget* I love living in a small village, I feel safe here* Recently I've started freaking out a bit when I go to my market town* There's too many people* Large grocery stores that I am unfamiliar with can be overwhelming* The malls in Nairobi are intimidating* It will be interesting to see how I react to Chicago when I've had another year in Kenya* I thought I woul get some kind of freaky illness, I did have an ameba which I guess qualifies* I had a lot of issues that I hadn't anticipated* I drank over twice the daily recommended amount of water and developed cysts due to matatus* I also have been having lots of flash backs to oregon trail fyi dysentry is not fun* I'm still figuring out what my job is here* I work with a variety of community groups and at a local dipensary (CLINIC)* A lot of the work I do is farming related, I really didn't expect to spend my time digging in shambas, making charcoal and rollling balls of charcoal dust and cow manure with my bare hands but I actually seem to enjoy it more than my time at the dispensary* I love my village and neighbors* I have no idea of what to expect this year, but I'm looking forward to what's coming because I know Kenya will keep me on my toes*

At the end of December I moved to a new site in a new village. The move was something that I had been debating for a long time and was not an easy decision but a necessary one for reasons that I won't get into now. The decision to move has been the best one I have made since arriving in Kenya as I love my new village, neighbors, work and home.

My new village is not too far from where I used to live but the differences are huge. My village is small, the village center is a fairly large size for a village in Kenya. There are mamas who sell produce everyday, at hours that are unpredictable and entirely dependent on the tasks they have to accomplish each day. There are a few small hotelis (restaurants) where I sometimes buy beans for 10ksh (12 cents). There are fundis (people who make things) who work with wood and metal. Fundis are amazing, they can make pretty much anything with almost no tools for almost no money. A fundi in Kakamega made me an amazing guitar case, it looks shady which is part of the reason that I love it, but it gets the job done and cost around $12. A fundi in my village made a briquetter and lid so that I can make charcoal. He even added a handle to the lid making it more aesthetically pleasing and improved its safety immensely. There are several dukas (shops kind of like the smallest corner store you can imagine) where you can buy anything you need just not necessarily everything you might want. You can buy biscuits, bread, flour, soap but no chocolate (my theory is that it would melt in the duka and be a disaster). One mama has a duka with a fridge for soda which is incredibly fancy and her patrons can always be seen savoring their cool, refreshing treats. There is an agrovet where you can satisfy your shamba (farm) and animal needs. There are a number of different kinds of seeds and pills for preventing chicken typhoid, the usual.

My new job consists of teaching health to mamas who bring their young children to the clinic. Currently I work with a translator but it is my hope that I will soon be able to give the talks independently. I also work with a mamas group that supports orphans and we are working on raising chickens. I am also trying to teach them how to make charcoal out of corn cobs and twigs.

I live in a family compound reminiscent of a cul de sac. It is a friendly place where everyone knows each other. My Swahili has improved because only a few people in my compound speak English well, the small children and grandmother don't speak English at all. My home is a nice, comfortable mud and dung hut. It has two prison cell sized rooms that are really all I need. The house has electricity (bare bulbs and one outlet) which is nice to have, but no running water. The lack of water is fine because I honestly don't know where a sink would even fit and the well is all of 15 feet from my door so I barely have to haul water.

I love my new home and while it is a far cry from where I used to live in America it continues to make me happy.

I am no stranger to travel, before coming to Kenya I had my fair share of crazy transportation such as the time I accidently took the nightbus in Morocco and used their shared taxis or being on buses in Peru that had people and livestock hanging onto the side for dear life* That said I was totally unprepared for traveling in Kenya* For starters you have to negotiate prices* While the prices are insanely cheap when converted to US Dollars they can be steep for PCVs and it's also a matter of principle* Unfortunantly when I arrived in Kakamega my supervisor did not tell me the correct price for the matatu (picture an extremely overcrowded VW van or minibus) trip from Kakamega to Kisumu* During the day the price should be 150ksh ($1.90) but I was told the night price (200ksh or $2.40)* I learned from this costly error and now make sure that I have the correct price so that I don't get ripped off* Touts generally aren't thrilled that I know how much trips cost which can lead to some interesting discussions but it always seems to work out* Basically they decide that they still want my money and because there's always room for one more I am welcomed onboard* In theory matatus should only have 14 passengers (that's what's painted on the sides of all of them) in practice this almost never happens and when it does it's because about 10 people decide to exit simultaneously* Matatus allow for no personal space which I'm kind of ok with, most likely because I'm tiny and fit into crammed spaces well* I don't usually have a problem sharing a row with 5 other people, holding some one's kid (or in one instance Magan) on my lap although it gets challenging when you're not actually on a seat (once again Magan)* I believe that the most crowded matatu I was on had a little over 26 people on it (I couldn't see everyone from where I was sitting--back corner holding onto my bag that was half way out of the window)* Sometimes, especially in more rural areas, people hang off the back and ride on the roof (I almost fell out of one because they couldn't keep the back shut and I was trying to keep a mama's chickens from attacking me)* Buses tend to be a bit better than matatus, they certainly cost more* A bus to Nairobi costs at a minimum 1000ksh from Kakamega, a matatu would probably be around 700 but negotiable* That said I've had some issues with buses* Sometimes bus touts decide that they want to buy food at the market so the bus stops for a few minutes, or people are dropped off and need to get their luggage from under the bus, these things are annoying but common enough that I've pretty much gotten over it* When things faze me at this point it means something's legitimately messed up, like when the bus Magan and I were on hit a petrol truck not one but twice* The bus had some dents but it was still running so we kept going* Don't worry no one was hurt* Arguably the most frusterating experiance was when I was trying to get to Nairobi for a doctor's appointment* There had been a bad bus accident the previous evening so they decided to inspect buses, fair enough* Unfortunantly this meant that my bus was pulled over between Kakamega and Kisumu and we were escorted to the local police station to wait for the inspector* Three hours later the inspector arrived* An hour later my bus failed the inspection* Everyone who had been on the bus was livid, including the nun I had been siting next to* She had some choice words for the driver* We all crammed onto a bus from the same company that had passed inspection (all of the seats were already occupied) to drive a bit down the highway (past the inspection checkpoint) to meet a replacement bus* At this point the medical staff had decided I should get off the bus in Kisumu because it was going to be around 9pm by the time the bus would be arriving in Nairobi and we're not allowed to travel after dark* The bus driver told me we would be bypassing Kisumu to save a bit of time so I had to convince him to give me matatu fair* I arrived in Kisumu 6 hours after I left Kakamega, a trip that should take an hour and a half (It's about 30 miles, roads in Kenya tend to be in bad shape)* I made it to Nairobi the next day* Other transportation options include piki pikis (motorcycles) which I refuse to ride because I've seen one too many accidents and drivers in Kakamega tend to be aggressive and often drunk, the same goes for boda bodas (bicycles)* Kenyans will be the first to tell you that piki pikis and boda bodas aren't safe and then proceed to use them anyway because they're cheap and available* Time isn't a priority, neither is space when the majority of the population is unemployed and living with 5+ children in tiny homes* Hence the embracing of matatus* I wouldn't say that I look forward to journeys in Kenya but sometimes you meet nice people and you can be assured that they're never boring*

Hi everyone, this post is a tribute to my cat Skittles who had a rather rough day on Sunday October 17th* Skittles typically enjoyed going outside to sun herself and chase the neighbors' chickens (she could probably run off with a chick but after seeing a hen go after her I'm pretty sure that she's still too small to do any damage to the full grown birds)* She never wandered off very far but tended to not want to come in when called so we would either leave the door open if it was still light out or make sure that the flap by our door handle was up sothat she could jump through it* It's really an excellent cat door for a skinny cat* On the night of the 17th we called Skittles in but of course she didn't come* We cooked dinner and kept calling her every few minutes and checked outside but weren't able to see her* All of a sudden we heard the crazy dogs who live in the next compound but like to make trouble in ours* At this point we heard Skittles, she was trying to get in the backdoor which our supervisor had locked (we don't have a key to that door) when the dogs began to attack her* Magan ran to get flashlights while I began making as much noise as possible because there was a real possibility that the dogs might attack us* We ran around the house and scared the pack off, which left us staring at Skittles who was wet from rain, all of her hair was standing on end and she was making a sound I had never heard before, Magan claims it was a hiss* I picked her up, holding her at arms length in case she was going to lash out and then handed her to Magan who carried her inside* She didn't move and was bleeding from several bites* Her stomach was swollen, one eye wouldn't open and when she tried to stand she fell over and didn't move* We were completely freaking out and were convinced that Skittles only had about a 10% chance of survival* With this in mind we set about making her comfortable and tried to determine what we could do to force her to live other than to use peer pressure (we weren't going to leave her alone)* It was at this point that if you had walked in our door you would have seen Magan googling "cat pain management" and heard me screaming into the phone "no, my cat was attacked by a pack of dogs" to a rather confused friend who is a nurse* Skittles spent the night in my room, on top ofa cushion, wrapped in a towel with her food and water dishes next to her* Magan and I carried her the room carefully, Skittles was a bit confused as she had never been in the room before but soon fell asleep* In the morning she was doing better which lifted our spirits, but as she still cannot walk properly and lives in mortal fear of the great outdoors and dogs we have determined that Skittles will be applying for her kitty passport and joining Magan in Canada where she will have more street cred than any of those other cats*

Hi everyone, I returned from In Service Training (IST) on Saturday* Training went pretty well, the second week was a lot better than the first* During the second week we learned a bunch of things that I am excited about sharing with people in my community* I would love to start composting and utilizing drip irrigation at the farm where we grow food for the girls in our program* I also hope to be able to travel to Tharaka and introduce the concepts to the partners of Women's Global because the region has been so heavily affected by drought* Water is a precious commodity in much of Kenya, I am lucky to be in an area in which there is sufficient rainfall* It's funny that I am learning so much about agriculture and advising people about their crops and soil management seeing as I come from a background where the only time I spent on farms was when I had to drive through corn fields to get to another part of the country or the fateful spring break I spent helping out on the sheep farm outside of Duffftown, Scotland* I have become passionate about conservation of resources including water, trees, electricity and other things that tend to be in short supply here* A friend of mine introduced some of the volunteers to the idea of making charcoal of of corn, something that should be fairly easy to do in Western Province as so much corn is grown here* The process would allow for fewer trees to be used for charcoal, save money for those making it as well as serve as an income generating activity for community groups interested in making and selling it* I stayed in Nairobi an extra day to learn about Fair Trade* Setting up a Fair Trade organization seems like a long process, but it is doable* Our group spent a day visiting agricultural sites to learn about different small scale income generating activities as well as good agricultural practices* We'll see what I end up being able to help put into practice* On a different note, we had an IST prom and I was crowned prom queen due to my awesome 1970s sea foam green prom dress* A few of us spent a day running around Nairobi, we went to see baby elephants, various animals at a park where I pet a cheetah, and giraffes (I fed and kissed one of them)* All and all I consider week two a success*

Hi everyone--Things at Grassroots are going well* The girls are still on break from school so we are doing activities during the afternoon* After trying to teach the girls how to play frisbee, I decided to buy a football (soccer ball) so that we could have more options* The girls really enjoy playing football and even though they have never had any formal training they are amazing players, one girl especially seems like if she lived in America she could get a football scholarship if she keeps playing (right now the girls are freshmen in high school)* For the past couple of days we have been playing frisbee, then having a lesson or discussion followed by football* Our football games are much different from the ones I used to play in back when I was on a team* We have no uniforms, no shin guards, no proper field, no goals* We play in a grassy bit of the compound and use our flip flops to mark the goals which means we're all playing barefoot and in skirts* It's a lot of fun and a great way to bond with the girls who are starting to become a bit more vocal and gaining confidence* I hope that their confidence continues to grow and can be seen in their school work this coming term* The girls are starting to develop ambitions, something they never had before and so now we are helping them to plan short and log term goals so that they can become the doctors, lawyers, community activists, nurses, directors, teachers etc that they want to be*

Hi everyone, things are looking pretty good today in Kakamega* I passed my last language exam in Luhya yesterday which means I will be able to stay here for the next two years, I am very excited because I love the work that I am doing, I need to start learning Swahili though because that is what people speak where I am living and working* I was planning on impoving my Swahili regardless because it will be useful when I am in other parts of Kenya, but now I have some real motivation and the support of my coworkers which is encouraging* I have been busy over the past week, partly from cramming for my exam* I puchased a bike so that I can go and visit other volunteers and get a bit of exercise* On Friday I rode my bike to my friend Rebecca's house which is about 10 miles away on a bumpy dirt road* I enjoyed the ride, it was difficult and I was drenched in sweat but it was nice to get out of town and see a bit more of Western Province* I went to Rebecca's to study because no one in my community speaks the dialect we were taught, but a woman she works with does* It was incredibly helpful to be able to practice* The volunteers who were testing spent the night before our test in town* It was great seeing all of them again and hearing what their sites were like* I also had the chance to see some volunteers who have already been serving for awhile, some of them live nearby so hopefully we'll be seeing more of each other* I have discovered that the pictures that I take with my phone are decent, so I'm going to post some of my cat Skittles today (we had to get a cat because there were mice running all around the office when I moved in) and I will try to post some more of the town etc so that you can get a feel for where I live* The girls in our program are currently out of school so the girl I work with and I have been conducting various activities for them* We have had workshops about goals, relationships etc and several sports days (they were a little confused by my frisbee but ended up enjoying a rather dysfunctional game of ultimate) and a song and poem day* I was playing my guitar during the song day, which went pretty well, but I need to learn songs that the girls know, the requests I received were for church songs and Michael Jackson* I'll try to update with some more photos soon, khulolane (we will see each other--Tsotso, a dialect of Luhya)

Hi everyone, first off I'd like to apologize for taking so long between posts, hopefully this won't become a pattern, I also think it's impotant to let you know that if I use any punctuation that would end a sentence the program thinks that I've finished qwriting and ends my posts which means this will probably end up looking a bit odd, I'll be using * for periods* The end of training was a lot of fun, difficult, and it's a bit lonely now not seeing all of the friends I made and my host family, but I really like the people I am working with now* One of the last things I did in Nairobi, the day of our swearing in actually, was to buy a guitar* We had to wait an hour for a taxi and then go on a bit o a wild goose chase looking for a shop with decent guitars but we finally found one* Bargaining for it was pretty funny, I ended up getting a pretty good discount because a friend of mine broke a string when trying to tune it and the sales lady was convinced that this meant that the entire guitar was now broken* What she didn't know was that my wonderful family had already sent me three sets of guitar strings and that my plan was to restring the entire guitar* I wasn't able to get a case or the guitar, so I was walking around Nairobi carrying a guitar that was down a string until one of my friends started carrying it and tried to serenade people (I say tried because without one of the strings the guitar was horibly out of tune)* We then crammed the four of us and two guitars into a cab to head back to our hotel, which took awhile due to traffic and getting lost but we called ahead and they made sure there was food left for us when we arrived* I love my guitar, I have a fair amount of free time during which my primary activities are studying Luhya and practicing the guitar so I'm making progress* Kakamega is a big town by Kenyan standards* It has three main roads, several large supermarkets, a large market and many government buildings because it is the regional capital* There is also a hotel with a swimming pool, I hope I get a chance to swim soon (maybe I can even teach water aerobics)* I enjoy the walk to town, it's around 2km and it has helped me get a sense of the community I will be a part of for the next two years* Today I was proud of myself for going to a shop an buying milk and eggs entirely in Luhya* I have another Luhya test in about 10 days so I'm trying to practice whenever possible* I enjoy working with my organization, I also like that I have already been able to become involved* I literally live at my job which has its pros and cons, but on the whole I'd say I like it* I'm going to have to go because my phone battery is about to die, but I will try and write more soon

I've been in Kenya for over two weeks now. So far training is going well, I've switched languages (from Swahili to Luhya) but other than that there haven't been too many unexpected changes. Luhya isn't a written language so studying is a bit hard but our language instructor is really good so it seems like learning enough to get by is possible. I plan on learning more Swahili once I get to my site because it should be useful when I travel outside of my region. I am going to be posted in the Western province, working with a group to empower women and girls. I'm excited about the work because of it's similarities to Women's Global. Loitokitok is dusty but very pretty, I see Mount Kilimanjaro every day when I walk to class, there's snow on top at the moment. My host family has been very welcoming, I have become good friends with my Mama. I have also had a lot of fun playing sports with my brother and sister. My baby sister is less scared of me now, I think within a week she will be willing to play games too. I hope to update again soon, sorry this is so short, the internet is a bit slower than I am used to.

I've created this blog to keep in touch with everyone back home (home being a loose term meaning pretty much everywhere that isn't Kenya). I'm not sure how often I'll be able to update it once I'm in country, but it should be a decent way to contact me as well as a good way for me to keep all of you up to date on what I'm up to in Kenya.

I've joined the Peace Corps and I am going to Kenya to do public health work which means HIV/AIDS work along with a variety of other health related tasks such as malaria education, water sanitation etc. depending on which region I am assigned to. I will be training in Loitokitok, which is southern Kenya near Mount Killamanjaro, for two months during which time I will be learning Swahili and skills related to my job. I will be staying with a host family during this time. I will try and post pictures when possible, but don't count on weekly photo albums because it's highly unlikely that I will have reliable access to electricity and I am not bringing a laptop.

I am very excited about going to Kenya, I have been thinking about joining the Peace Corps since I was in college. My time interning at Women's Global Education Project furthered my enthusiasm. I'm particularly excited about going to Kenya because Women's Global works to help give girls in Senegal and Kenya access to education. My interest in public health has grown over the past year through my work at The Children's Clinic. I have been running the portable dentistry program, which brings dentists to schools in low-income communities to provide dental exams, cleanings and sealants to students free of charge. I have a feeling that I will be doing some mobile health work, so the experiance should come in handy.

I will be sure to update you with a mailing address and contact information when I receive my post. Thanks for your support--it makes all the difference!