Nutrition team 2011 Arrives in Kenya!

After a very long flight (that full day layover in Montreal really makes it longer) we arrived safely in Nairobi. We squealed when we saw Henry, Susan and Shaad greeting us- all waving wildly from the second floor of the airport.
Our stay at Fairview Hotel was epic, as my son says. Staff so welcoming, comfortable beds, wonderful food and ice cold beer! The girls even dragged me to the gym..short lived but at least I tried. Harrison is battling a virus he caught from his brother in Canada and has not been 100%- sore throat and low fever. He is getting lots of rest and lots of fresh fruit and has not missed a thing!
We had the absolutely best day yesterday (Thurs). We went to the kikoi shop Biashara St. The shop keeped rememberd Kaylynne and Christina from their large purchases of kikoi last year for the Muchui Apron Project. I got some t-shirts for the kids and some beautiful kikoi myself. So hard to resist the hundreds and hundreds of patterns and colours. We picked up a delicious lunch at Java House and off to Kazuri beads we went! We had gone last year but this year was even better since we were able to tour the factory where the women make the beads. What an amazing place- from the clay from Mt Kenya through to painting and glazing these beautiful multi-coloured beads- these single mother’s painstaking work is truly amazing. After taking hours to mull over colours and have earrings made from the jars of loose beads, we trekked to the combi with our treasures. Seeing the tour made them all the more precious knowing that this business provides a dignified livelihood for the women, as well as medical care and transportation.
Today we are bouncing along the road to Meru. The gas fumes from the many combis trucks and matatus (taxis) combined with the dust from the construction had us grabbing for cloth to cover our noses. We have bought pineapples at the Dole outlet, and HUGE avocados, 12 mangoes, oranges, melon etc to from a small market take to Jennifer’s in Meru. Again, women running their stalls and gently encouraging us to buy more. One older woman has an enormous heavy bag on her back with a strap holding it around her head. Surprising to see some mud puddles and mud on the side of the road outside Nairobi; last time it was dry in June. Coming a month earlier is interesting in terms of observing different weather and seasons. But the most interesting thing to me is that the second time around is a much more relaxed experience for me. Knowing what to expect (within reason!) and seeing friends we made last year makes it so much easier to manage jet lag, etc. Harrison and Amy, our new nutrition interns are doing amazingly well. Harrison is pretty laid back and Amy has been to Tibet, so they are adjusting better than their old teacher Jen did last year.
I am reminded of what a privilege it is to be able to come to this beautiful country and be welcomed with wide smiles and warm hugs. And again feeling grateful for the network that has been established by Farmers Helping Farmers. Tomorrow we go to the Muchui Business Centre and Farms!