PCV in Kenya: Week 23

Monday

We have a new class schedule this week because of the new teachers in training at our school. Because of this, my first lesson doesn’t begin until 11:30 on Monday which is very nice. I spent the morning creating review guides for upcoming exams. My lessons went well today and my students are much more engaged and comfortable with me this term which makes classes so much fun. After lunch, I continued to plan some more before heading to the market. I hit the jackpot, finding some cute bags here today. In addition to these finds, I purchased bread and juice and stopped to chat with Dorothy. She gave me a bundle of bananas before I headed home. At home, Junior and Vikki (my neighbor’s children) were there to greet me. So, I gave them some of the bananas Dorothy had gifted me. I made stew for dinner and called Grandpa and Grams while I was cooking. It was so good to talk to them. After dinner, I started watching “The Judge” before calling it a night.

Tuesday

Today was a busy day! I first had a lesson followed by a meeting with Baba Charles, Cosmas, Peter, and Principal Richard. This meeting was to further our progress on the grant proposal. I am so happy to work with these people because they are extremely knowledgeable and helpful. After this meeting, I did a lab with my students and then ate lunch. After lunch, I taught one more lesson before going home. On the walk home, I called my mom to show her my walk home because she has been curious about what it looks like. At home, I did dishes then some yoga before warming up dinner. I ended my night by watching some more of “The Judge”.

Wednesday

I did not have to leave for work right away, so I worked on the grant proposal in the morning until staff from Peace Corps Medical arrived. They were here to check on the house and to make sure all was well with me at site. After this meeting, they were kind enough to drive me to school so I didn’t have to walk. At school, I taught one lesson and spent the rest of the day marking student books. After school, I heated up dinner and watched “Sex and the City” before calling it a night.

Thursday

I spent the morning working on the grant proposal before teaching a double lesson of chemistry. I then got some items in order before being gone all of next week for Peace Corps training. More Peace Corps staff came to my school today to discuss training feedback and teaching success. After this, I headed to the market for market day and found some new tops before going home. At home, I warmed up dinner and called it a day.

Friday

It was raining all night and this morning on my walk to work. I taught my morning lessons and completed all of my prep work for next week before going home early because I didn’t feel well. Back at the house, an electrician came to make a separate switch for the light outside my house, so hopefully I won’t have any more tiny bug infestations because they won’t be attracted to that light anymore. He also hung my smoke detector on the ceiling and removed all of the cobwebs up there which were two extremely helpful things. I packed for my upcoming trip, cleaned my house, and washed dishes before making dinner and calling it a day.

Saturday

I could not sleep last night and I do not know why. So, I was up and ready to start the day to leave and head to Rikki’s. I ate breakfast and cleaned up the house one more time before walking to the road. I caught a matatu and it was such a great ride into Kisumu. We did not stop many times and the matatu was new and had great seats. I arrived in Kisumu before 11 and rode a tuktuk to West End Mall so I could do some grocery shopping in Chandarana. From here, a tuktuk drove me to Peace Corps headquarters so I could drop off my items and then it dropped me off at United Mall. I did some shopping at Miniso and Carrefour then settled in at Java House. Laura, Savannah, and Sophie joined me for lunch. I split loaded fries and Biscoff cake with Laura and both were delicious. We then purchased a few snacks for the week and got on a matatu toward Rikki’s site which was about an hour and a half away. When we arrived, we chatted and made dinner. Dinner was spaghetti and garlic toast. It was so nice to catch up with my girls 😊 Rikki also has two kittens around her compound that are so cute and fluffy. It was a bucket bath and outdoor choo kind of stay 😊I journaled before getting comfy on my chair cushions and sleeping bag in the living room to go to sleep.

Sunday

We woke up and ate banana pancakes for breakfast. We then got dressed and walked to Kitito to get on a bus to a local school so we could play soccer with other Americans from the University of New England. They were environmental students working with a Kenyan environmental organization in the area for about a week. It was a long day, ending in us playing against a Kenyan soccer team 😊 On the way home, we stopped at a supermarket where I purchased apple juice and an ice cream cone for the walk home. Unfortunately for me, my ice cream melted too quickly and half of it fell out of my hand. This was a bit devastating. Back at Rikki’s, we made guacamole, tortillas, and rice for dinner before calling it a night.

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