bike trip

I’ve been told many times that you never know what your day is going to be like. Last Saturday was one of those days. I had settled into my new home and was looking forward to going to the market in the next town as I had been told it had more selection and slightly better prices. A group of us decided to go out on bikes. As we left I mentioned to one of my teammates that I forgot to grab my jackknife but didn’t worry too much about it, after all what can go wrong on a short bike trip. Yes my bike was kind of noisy and really old but it had just had a tune-up so it was good to go… or so I thought. We took the short detour through a field and started to cross the airstrip when I heard a clunk from my back tire. I looked back and saw nothing wrong and assumed it was just one of the many insignificant noises my bike had already been making (either the tire is warped or the brakes are misaligned, I’m still not sure which). I continued on and soon after the chain came off, a quick stop to put it back on and I was good to go again. Soon after the chain fell off again and I thought I better line it up on the next tighter set of gears as it seemed loose. As I attempted to do this I realized that my back tire was completely out of place and was ready to fall off. Needless to say that ended my market trip before I was even ½ way there. Instead I ended up walking my bike back to the compound. Yet through it all I still had fun. The trip back provided me with a chance to try and chat with a number of local girls though I’m not sure how much of my poor Arabic they understood. I must have looked pretty funny walking what appeared to be a perfectly good bike and attempting to speak Arabic. I did make it to the market this weekend and from now on will remember to bring tools with when I take a bike out for even a short trip.

Life in Nairobi

I know its been a while since I’ve last updated the blog. I’ve had many ideas on what to write but so much as happened that I don’t really know where to start. Its also hard to believe I’ve been in Nairobi for a month already and am heading to South Sudan this week. In many ways I’m ready to go yet in other ways I feel like there is so much to do and learn.

Life in Nairobi has been busy and interesting. Early on I learned that things change all the time out here. Within the first week I was asked to move from one apartment to another due to some unforeseen complication. Although the moving came as a surprise, it was very beneficial as I ended up staying in a more central location which was very helpful for the many things I had to do that I wasn’t expecting. I’ve also switched the language I will be learning and now will be learning Arabic as it has become the trade language in the area of South Sudan I will be working in. I also learned calling ahead before going to a destination is key, especially if its farther away.  About a week after I got here I took a cab with my fiancée to the Canadian embassy to take care of some paperwork he needed done. The website showed that it was open until noon but when we arrived there at 10:45am we found out that they had changed their schedule for the day and were only open until 10:30am. Needless to say I got to know a little more of the city but we didn’t get much else done that morning.

Walking is the main way to get around. Most of the places I have needed to go to are within a 20 minute walk of my apartment. There are times however when a bus/matatu is a better way to travel. One such occasion was to get my computer repaired. The previous 2 trips to this office I had walked 40 minutes there as I wasn’t sure how the bus system worked. It was an interesting experience trying to figure out were the buses went and how to get on/off.  Just looking at the bus monitor person can result in them stopping to pick you up as you walk on the side of the road. I accidentally figured this out one of my first times out walking and had a bus stop to pick me up when I was just looking at the traffic…. Oops. 

Shopping here is great. There are tons of fresh/fruits veggies available at the local market. It’s also an adjustment as many premade/processed products are expensive. As a result I’m finding great recipes to make homemade bread, salad dressing, and other foods that in the past I would have just bought. They even have the dutch cheese which is about the same price as the cheddar I normally buy. Needless to say I’ve switched to the dutch stuff J I also got to see how this cheese is made during a tour of the local cheese factory. I’m tempted now to try and make my own cheese. It should be interesting.

Arrived in Nairobi

Hello from across the ocean. Yes I have finally arrived in Africa. I can't quite say South Sudan yet as I'm currently in Nairobi and will be here for a few weeks to complete my orientation and attend an annual employee conference. After that I will be heading into South Sudan to begin work. I arrived in Nairobi Thursday evening after 17hrs of travel time. Friday was spent shopping for all the supplies I need in South Sudan and getting it all packed for shipping.  Saturday I spent time in the local market and also was a time to relax.

Differences I've noticed so far while in Nairobi
- they drive on the opposite side of the road and the drivers side of the vehicle is on the Right (yes I've already made the mistake of going to the wrong side of the car). This is probably the biggest thing to get used to for me.

- Mosquito nets on the bed – In Nairobi the risk of malaria is low but the nets are still great to keep out the bugs.

Similarities
- The Nakumatt is similar to Walmart and has everything. This is where I spent most of my Friday shopping.  
- There are a lots of product names that I'm familiar with (Delmonte, Sony, Nutella, and even Canadian maple syrup) although at more expensive prices.
- Hot water for showers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Newsletter

I've got a new newsletter out. If you would like to have a copy or would like to be on my email list please e-mail me at daninews10@hotmail.com.

update

Many of you probably know that I was hoping to leave in late December/early January for Africa however that has not worked out due to some logistical issues. I am now planning to leave in mid/late April. I am still working on the details and am hoping to book my flight in the next few weeks. In the mean time I have been able to return to work and I am taking the last course I need for my Masters of Nursing (the one I was planning on taking in Winter 2014). 

Danielle

support and my budget

I thought I would post a brief followup to the the last post. I now have a final budget and have 90% of the support I need to leave for my orientation in Kenya. This means I can now start working on booking my flight and will hopefully be heading out in early January.

Thankyou again to everyone for your prayers and support.

Danielle

December update

I thought I'd post a brief update as to how things are going. You may have noticed that I haven't changed my support level in a number of weeks. This is not because I haven't been getting support, I've been blessed with alot of support from many people and thank you to everyone for that. A few things have come up with my budget and are in the process of being finalized. As a result of this I don't have a firm number with which to calculate my support. I hope to get a final budget in the next week. Until then my support meter is based on an approximate budget calculation which is the highest my budget should be.

In the meantime I am continuing to prepare. Thursday I hope to have the last of my vaccines. I never realized how expensive the vaccines are. For example the rabies vaccine series costs approx $660. Usually travel vaccines are not covered under health plans but I figured I'd see if I could get it covered through my school plan. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the vaccines were 80% covered. Therefore this year my school plan will be well used and well worth the cost.

My passport is updated and I've already gotten it back. This was another great surprise. When I went to submit the forms to renew it I found I was about the 10th person in line(this was a good 10 minutes before the office even opened). I then started to wonder how long it would take to process given how busy things were and that the Christmas holidays are coming which means people travel more. They say it normally takes approximately 10 business days to process and much to my surprise I got mine in about 3 business days. 

I'm continuing to prepare and getting things organized. Once I get my budget finalized and approved I'll have a better idea of where my funding is at and if I will have the funds to leave in early January.

Praise
- for the generous financial support
- preparations that have gone smoothly so far
- for finishing school, passing the exam, and officially being a Nurse Practitioner

Prayer
- that the budget be finalized soon
- guidance as I make final decisions and continue to prepare


Thanks again to everyone for all thier prayers and support,
Danielle