Time is flying!!

And it's definitely because I'm having a blast! So Monday of this week I spent most of the morning in the city trying to pick up some packages that have found their way to Kenya, and that have my name on them! Little bit of a hassle, but I should have them in my possession by Friday...hopefully. Later that morning, I helped another volunteer who is placed at a school in Kibera, the largest slum in all of Africa, teach swim class!! The pool is not far away, located on the grounds of one of the local universities. I had a blast! After the basics of freestyle, doggy paddle, and backstroke, we taught them handstands and how to play chicken!! It was great--they absolutely loved it and their giggles as they sat on our shoulders trying to push each other over was hysterical--I could hardly keep myself upright I was laughing so hard! Then I headed over to the orphanage, where they have a community football (soccer) game every Monday afternoon. Everyone from the community is invited to come, to play around with the kids for about an hour. So after going hardcore for the rest of the afternoon, I don't know where I found the energy to go for a run with another volunteer after we returned home, but that was an adventure in and of itself...I felt like I was training for the steeplechase due to the fact that the "sidewalks" here are basically rocky dirt paths with no less than 50 potholes in a 10 foot stretch, and you have to weave in and out of several types of obstacles...which could range from animals, people, bushes (with thorns), huge puddles that turn into small lakes when it rains...you get the picture. Running for 20 minutes felt like a marathon in a cross-country course! Tuesday I realized I might have overdone it with all the exercise from the day before, so I will try to do a better job of pacing myself the rest of this week. Today I have just returned from visiting another hospital, this one located in Kikuyu, about a 45-minute matatu ride outside of Nairobi. It was started by the Presbyterian Church of Eastern Africa, and the hospital campus itself is beautiful, the focal point being the first PCEA church to be built in all of Kenya. Then the hospital itself spreads out from there, with a different building for each ward and department, all connected by open breezeways and walkways lined with the most beautiful plants and flowers. I first visited the rehabilitation center which is a short 5-minute walk down a hill from the main hospital campus. The physical therapists there answered some questions and showed me around, then pointed me in the direction of the main campus, where I found the occupational therapist, who was busy attending to an outpatient that was coming in with a 3-week old transmetacarpal amputation of his dominant right hand due to a work injury--he got his hand stuck in a machine that is responsible for shearing hot pieces of metal into sections. We also saw a man in the ER that had fallen that morning and needed a wrist cock-up splint for his dislocated right wrist. I spent about 3 hours with this OT, who was so happy to show me her work and ask for my input on different things. She shared with me that the majority of the cases she sees are injuries from the local steel factory (amputations like the first patient I saw), as well as pediatric patients with cerebral palsy. She has been working at the hospital for a year and is still waiting on getting basic equipment, so she has been substituting what she can with the PT equipment. She would love to come to the US to get her masters degree, then return to Kenya, to her people, not forgetting her roots and where she came from, because as she told me, "Roots are what make you stand up." She was just the most amazing person to talk to about our shared profession, and see her in action with a few patients. Visiting these different hospitals and talking with the OTs has given me a much deeper insight into the culture here as well, so I'm going to try and visit one or two more before I leave.

I'm really starting to feel like a member of the community, too, not just a tourist with a cause. Being greeted on the street by people I've met by visiting the different projects i-to-i is involved with, as well as feeling like a regular at the places we frequent all the time, really makes a difference, as it took me a few weeks to get accustomed to the stares and attention my white skin tends to draw. I still can't believe this is my 5th week and I only have 2 more to go after this one! Still waiting to hear what my project will be in Tanzania, but I'll be sure to let you all know as soon as I find out. Oh, little promo here...be sure to check out my friends' blogs listed on the right side of this page, who will be travelling to New Orleans to help rebuild with Habitat for Humanity, and the others who have relocated to Ireland for the year!

Celebrated Fat Tuesday with a chocolate frosted donut and a chocolate milkshake last night--that was the most junk food I've had since I've been here...my system is still recuperating!! And for those of you that are familiar with it, I have introduced "Nutsy" to the other volunteers, and they love it--can't get enough of it!! For those of you that have no idea what I'm referring to, Nutsy is probably the best card game ever invented! So to all my friends and relatives that know and love the game...Nutsy has gone global!!

And I think I'll end with one of my favorite memories from when I was in Africa 2 years ago that I was reminded of Monday night...the night skies here are fabulous!! On top of the highest mountain on the continent, you feel like you could just reach up and grab a star! Well, back in Africa and not as high up this time, the stars are still spectacular!! I swear there are twice as many and they look so much brighter here! The moon was absolutely incredible the other night, just a sliver, but the whole of it was silhouetted, which I've never seen before!! Was pretty excited to see a shooting star as well! And yes, I made a wish...