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We were given a warm welcome at IcFEM HQ on Friday, reuniting with several friends met during our first visit last March and meeting new members of the team. This blog post covers the trip from Nairobi and the first couple of days settling into our new life.
Having bid farewell to Ben & Helen in Nairobi (thanks so much guys!!) our coach journey up to Kimilili delivered mixed emotions, fluctuating from the joys of leaving on time with all our luggage and seeing Zebras amidst some amazing views over the Rift Valley, to the less enjoyable experience of an hour delay at the site of a recently overturned school bus which had fallen into a ditch causing several injuries to the children inside. We can vouch for some good roads all the way to Eldoret (passing one of Mike's mum's schools in the process), but the final leg of the journey to Kitale was somewhat bumpy and slow. Future trips might finish in Bungoma rather than Kitale due to the road conditions; time will tell!
Arrival at Kitale was notable for confirmation of safe arrival of Nightingales (x 2) and luggage bags (x 6), and more so for being met by a friendly face since Simon Daniell had kindly driven up to meet us. We are living with Simon and his wife Jane in their house which they were in the process of building when we visited last year. Progress since then has been dramatic due to a dint of hard work (and no little skill) and the result is superb; photos to follow in future blog posts!
The first few hours were somewhat surreal but enjoyable, settling into our lovely room and starting to unpack, catching up with Simon & Jane over some tasty food (lots of fresh vegetables and fruit - more on that another time!) and then collapsing into bed under a mosquito net. Morning was heralded by the local cows and cockerel; slightly different from the sounds of Valley Park but something we'll no doubt get acquainted with on a regular basis. We also missed out on election news developing back home as there is no TV here and we didn't bring a radio to pick up BBC World Service; a rookie mistake indeed.
A quick visit to the IcFEM HQ enabled us to show our faces in advance of the formal induction. We spent the weekend at a football tournament organised by some student from Holland who are driving from Holland to South Africa for the world cup. The have a charity called Orange Kids that arranges sports matches for the children of Africa.(Becky was very jealous of their orange Landrover). It is also rain season here so spent half the weekend walking in mud and then needing to wash our feet/legs!! The final part of Becky's registration exams will take place on Sat 15th May for which we'll be making (maybe literally) a flying visit to Nairobi. That aside, we'll be able to fully get stuck into life here and will let you know how things are going soon.
Bye for now, Mike and Becky
- comments
nessie This blog is getting very interesting and is like the first few pages of what you know will be a very exciting adventure.
Ann Good news for you, Mike and Becky! Hopefully you can buy a radio which picks up BBC World service (88.1 FM) in the Market on Thursday. Should cost you around 800/- - ask someone to get it for you and you may get it for less!! Do it yourself and be prepared to pay 1000/-. Still under GBP 10!
Jemima Christie Well the election news is that David Cameron is now our PM but has jumped into bed with Clegg so we shall see what happens... Glad you have arrived safely and settling in. Monty has been missing you greatly and managed to get himself 3 ticks last week on a trip to the New Forrest. Keep enjoying yourselves. Lots of love and hugs JAM
Dan Rivett Hey guys! So glad everything is working out for you so far - place looks very nice indeed. Hope the exams went well Becky. Glad you had a good time with Ben and Helen, they're really lovely aren't they?! I must email them to thank them for putting you guys up. We're currently busy packing ready for moving out to the in-laws on Saturday. Got a van for Saturday so hopefully won't be too bad. When you've settled in and a bit less busy you'll have to post about cooking and stuff out there as would really like to see the type of recipes and food eaten out there, even with the limitations I expect Mike to be getting creative soon in that department! How's your internet connection, just internet cafes at the mo, or do you have a 3G connection in your home yet? Be great to skype with you guys in a few weeks when we're both settled in (!!) and catch up if poss. Right I look forward to the next installment!