Travels, Chasing Rats, and Friends visiting

So sorry to those who actually read my blog, I have been horrible with keeping it updated. Which means I have a lot to say.

So the last time you heard, I was planning on traveling to the coast and then to Uganda and also Nairobi during my break in April.  It was great. The coast = HOT! And apparently I wasn’t even there when it was “really” hot…. It’s so hot there its hard to sleep at night. I got to go snorkeling in the Indian Ocean! I wasn’t able to wear my glasses, so I couldn’t see details, but it was still really cool! Also went to a really nice hotel for one day that has a pool and Indian buffet. Entering into the hotel was like entering into another world… a Mzungu world.  Very surreal.  I was able to see 3 other volunteers sites and houses which was nice to see how they are living. They are very lucky to have the beach so close, but I must say I do enjoy my weather a bit better : )
After about 6 days, 3 of us headed back to the Western Province. We took the train over night into to Nairobi, had lunch in Nairobi then continued on to another volunteers site for the night. The town we were in is called Bomet, and could not be more opposite from where we just came from. We needed 3 blankets at night to say warm, slippers for the feet and in the morning you could actually see your breath! I never would’ve thought that weather like that existed in Africa. The next morning we moved onto Kisumu to meet with everyone else who planned to go to Uganda. I was able to enjoy some ice cream and a brownie in Kisumu, very nice. Also I got to take a shower in Kisumu which had not happened for about 3 days, so that was nice too…  The bus ride to Uganda was not too bad. It was interesting to see the roads in Kenya compared to the roads in Uganda (which are actually painted and not filled with potholes, imagine!) The place we stayed at in Uganda was right on the Nile. And the Nile is huge, much bigger than I thought. 
Rafting down the Nile… oh man, it was filled with awesomess. There were a total of 3 rafts for our group since there were 26 of us. We asked to have a wild ride and that we did. We went down 4 class fives and 2 other rapids which means I flew out of the boat a couple times. And a couple times, I gulped the Nile water in an attempt to breath, but it was a lot of fun.  I also got to go bungee jumping! Whew, talk about an adrenaline rush. When I was standing at the edge about to jump off, my legs, hands, arms, pretty much my entire body was shaking.
 After the adventures on the Nile, the group headed into Kampala where we met with some Peace Corps Uganda volunteers. It was interesting to be able to hear their experiences and how things happen there. Ended up having one of the best nights ever in a bar just dancing the night away the everyone. My time in Uganda also included getting lost on a matatu, walking about town, going to a Mosque and refusing to pay for a requested 30,000 Ugandan shillling donation.
Once my adventures in uganda were finished, I headed back to Nairobi fot IST (in service training) where I got to see all of my PC friends and catch up on things and also eat lots of goooood food.
I finally arrived back to my site at the end of April. I had the weekend to recover and then I had to start teaching again the next Monday! But it was nice to be back at school. I am slowly becoming used to teaching, though there are many times its still a struggle.
I have had some fun episodes with some rats that are living in my ceiling. They decided to venture out into the house and start to eat my bars of soap (a total of 4) along with other food in the house. So now I have a little kitten, which is about the same size as the rats at the moment,… but not for long :D Its really nice to have the extra little company in the house, I must say. And she does provide a lot of entertainment.
I traveled to Kisumu this last weekend to work on a project and also to meet up with some other volunteers. Great time as always, but the biggest thing that stands out in mind honestly is going to a little hole in the wall hoteli (restaurant). A group of 3 of us were sitting there eating our cabbage and chapti when a little girl walked in… looked at us and literally gasped out loud! Haha apparently she wasn’t expecting to find 3 mzungu in there.
I convinced a friend of mine from PC that I met up with in Kisumu to travel back to my site since we had no school on tuesday (National holiday here). It was so great to be able to have her visit and see my site. The majority of our time was spent just sitting around, watching a movie, playing with Panzi (the kitty) or sitting at the school. Doesnt sound exciting, but that is a typical day : )
I can’t believe that I am already nearly half way through the second term here and nearly 1/4th finished with my time in PC. Time is just flying by….  Thanks to everyone sending letters and packages, they certainly do help me out and pick me up on my hard days here.
Much love to everyone and try to stay in touch!