Finally in Kenya!

I made it! Sorry it's taken me so long to give you an update, it's taken me a while to purchase an internet modem since we have to go back onto town to get it, and we only go into town once a week...

Whew! After two 9 hour flights and a 10 hour layover, I finally arrived in Kenya on Saturday morning! I met up with 4 of my other team mates in Amsterdam, and we got along great! We were hoping to get to explore the city, but we were all so tired that we decided not to go out, and we all ended up sleeping in the airport chairs... or on the floor. We did get to talk quite a bit though, and I was so blessed and encouraged to get to know them and fellowship with them before our next flight.

We were met by one of our DTS leaders, Joram, and other staff, then we were led to our waiting vehicle, which was perched precariously over the sidewalk... and not in a parking spot. (Talk about parking violation back home!) We all crammed in (no one wears seatbelts here) and drove the 45 minutes to the base. The drive was like nothing I've ever experienced! 1st off, Kenyans are VERY aggressive drivers. Horns honking all the time, though not in anger or frustration, more of a "hey, I'm here and coming into your lane, so watch out!" kind of way. People walk all along, and accross, the roads and highways and think nothing of it. Apparently people get hit/run over all the time, and seeing a dead person on the side of the road is common. Sometimes the roads are paved, and sometimes main roads just turn abruply into dirt, no cones or warning signs, continue on dirt and eventually return to pavement. There are no signs or posted speed limits; each car is allowed a maximum speed by law, varying by vehicle. Some of the roads dont have lanes marked, and it is totally fine to drive on the "wrong side" of the road to get around other cars. Just move back into your "lane" before running into oncoming traffic. At first, we were quite alarmed by all this, but we realized that the people living here have been driving this way for years and know what they're doing, so it doesn't bother me too much. I just know that I wouldn't want to drive here! :) On the road leading up to the base we passed zebras, gazelles  and giraffes just grazing on the side of the road! Crazy!
Our 1st day, we went into Nairobi to do some shopping for things that we need. We definitely stand out; white people are called "muzungus", and the local guys show no shame in hitting on the muzungu girls. I'm curious to see which of us gets the 1st marriage proposal. Hahaha! There are so many people! And everyone walks or takes public transportation. Few own cars; they take something like a taxi, called a mutahtu. It's kind of like a mini van that seats 12 but usually ends up taking 20. It's hilarious. Yes, we took one back to base with our team in it. So funny, and quite bonding. Haha!

My roommates are awesome! There are 4 of us in our room. We all get along great and our personalities mesh wonderfully. I see no reason for us to ever have any quarels, praise the Lord.

The rest of my team is great! Originally we thought there were only going to be 13 of us, but it turns out that there's only 13 "Westerners". :) There's almost 25 of us in total! However, the boys are horribly (yet somewhat hillariously) out numbered by the girls. There's about 7 guys and the rest are us girls.

We started the 1st day of classes on Monday, and I'm very excited to see how we shall be growing individually and collectively as a team. Each morning we have breakfast at 6:30, devotional time from 7-8:30, classes from 8:30-1 (we get a tea break, don't worry), lunch at 1, jobs on base (helping cook food, split firewood, pre-school/elementary school help, cleaning bathrooms, etc) from 2:30-4:30, free time till 6, dinner at 6, bible study at 7:30, and lights out at 10. Right now I'm assigned to miscellaneous help, so my dutys will differ every day (most likely peeling potatoes or helping sweep out the dinning hall). This week we are studying the book of Titus.

I would difinitely appreciate prayer for health (the food is very... *different* here.), as well as against homesickness; continued bonding of our team; and a listening heart to wherever the Lord is leading.

That's probably more than you want to hear for now, but so much has happened and I'm afraid this is the condensed version! :) Thanks for checking in! I'll try to post again soon!