Archive: November 15, 2007

Escape from the slum

Last week Hannah and I took pretty much everyone from Mama Tunza's out of the slum to visit the animal orphanage at Nairobi National Park. We rented two buses that were likely meant to hold 50 people each and crammed 131 orphans, 8 teachers and Hannah and myself into them.

The only bad news was that we had to pay for the orphans to go in (we had heard they would get in free if we had documentation they are orphans, but apparently not) but it was well worth it. They had so much fun and we had so much fun watching them. They pretty much ran around for 2 1/2 hours, checking out cheetahs, baboons, lions, ostriches etc. It was so awesome just to get them outside in the fresh air, they are so cramped at Mama Tunza's. Plus I got to meet some of the other kids who aren't in the class that I teach, so that was great.

The really fabulous news is that the kids will soon escape the slums for real. Work has just begun on a new Mama Tunza's in Ngong, a rural area on the outskirts of Nairobi. Hannah and I checked it out on Friday and it is amazing. They have purchased an acre of land, so there will be plenty of room for the kids to have a playground and a field.

Mama Tunza's in Kibera will remain a school and they will still have kids come for the day program (where they feed the kids and look after them...how i spend my time when I'm not teaching). The orphans will move out there as well as some of the teachers for the younger grades. I am so excited for them.

I do a bit of teaching for the grade 4 class. I gave them all dictionaries yesterday and they were so excited. Also cause a bit of a fiasco yesterday handing out stickers. Otherwise I hang with the little ones. With Hannah's help I've been taking them outside in shifts. Some of their favourite activities to do with me is play with my hair (which they can do for hours, it's such a different texture from their own) and trying to rub off my freckles (they always rub the dirt off my legs, you get flithy walking in Kibera, and think my freckles are dirt too)!