Snake vs. John

See snake.

See snake run.

See John pursue with mop.

See John win.

(And we've officially decided it was not a green mamba, so sleep well.)

The Organ

Meet Mr. Dickson.  He kindly took his Friday afternoon to meet my Class 5 students and introduce them to the organ at All Saints Cathedral in downtown Nairobi.

Meet the organ.

Mr. Dickson told us the history of the organ, put on his organ shoes, and climbed on up onto the bench, inviting the students to come as close as possible.

He played several of the different sounds and showed the students how the stops work.

While we crowded in, Mr. Dickson played for us.

Finally, we got a really great look at the pipes and how they work

from behind!

This supplies the air to the pipes so you don't have to pay someone to work the bellows like olden times.

The organ truly fills up the whole church with a beauty and grandeur that I am so grateful my students could experience in person.

Kirk

Field Trip: Part Mbili

After visiting the museum on Friday, we went to the Snake Park at the same location. Inside were several aquariums and several glass cages for various dangerous snakes.  The students were checking out the largest pythons I have ever seen.

I thought we were going to watch these three chicks get eaten right then and there in a different cage, but apparently Mr. Snake had already had nine the day before.

I think the two Mommas who came as chaperones were a little grossed out.

More interesting than the glassed in snakes however, were the snakes in the central courtyard.  We were looking over a high wall into a grassy courtyard with well-trimmed trees.

There were snakes everywhere.  They were sticking their heads up out of the trees, crawling on the ground, trying to climb the wall, jumping from the trees, and climbing over the peaceful turtles.  There were buckets of snakes.

Sometimes, when there are buckets of snakes around, you need a friend to hold on to.

For lunch, we headed to Uhuru Park right off the City Center of Nairobi.

We spread Masai blankets on the ground, and ate PB&J's, bananas, and biscuits (which we call cookies).  There were a lot of other people around.  Some were selling things, others were sleeping on the ground, families were enjoying time together, and lots of people seemed to be just walking through.

I think for Kennedy, the sights were definitely more interesting than the lunch!

Picture of the Day

From where does pork come?

It's grown in a garden, of course!  Bouquet of bacon, anyone?

Zebra Studies

On our safari yesterday, we encountered quite a few zebras doing quite a few zebra-ish things.

In all of this study, the age-old question has been answered: zebras are definitely white with black stripes.  Or brownish stripes if said zebra is a baby.

Nairobi National Park

 About 45 minutes away with good traffic, there is a game reserve called Nairobi National Park.  You can drive yourself all over it, as long as you stay on the roads. Richard and I went early this morning, to celebrate our seventh wedding anniversary tomorrow. Time flies when you're having fun! Here are are few snaps of our lovely drive, with some special ones to follow.

This giraffe seemed to say, "Are you coming?"

"Because here I go."

I was surprised by the many birds throughout the day and this giant bird nest.

Guinea fowl were not surprised by us however, and were not overly concerned about being in the middle of the road.

These two birds were like something out of a fairy tale.  I've never seen anything like them before. (And yes, that's Nairobi you see in the background.  Crazy, huh?)

Ostriches were everywhere,

as were various antelope.

We came to a parking lot and took a walking trail beside a river to look for hippos.

No hippos in sight, but the river was beautiful.

Next, we passed a forest beside the river where maribu storks were perched in the trees.

Herds of gazelle were grazing underneath.

Back on the main road, we came across this sweetness.  I think I'd like a baby zebra for Christmas, please.

Field Trip

Hey, look!

We made it to the Nairobi National Musuem!

We were shocked and amazed at what was inside. (This is a chief's coat made from monkey fur and tails, with a stuffed monkey for reference.)

And pretty excited, too. (I was pretty excited about this horn made from ivory in 1688.)

Our guide had a captive audience in our Class 5 students who behaved themselves excellently.  As a teacher, you always wonder how the behavior part is going to turn out.

Mrs. Mutuku, the class teacher, passed out paper for note taking.

What kind of notes do you take on a angry stuffed zebra?

The "Humonoid Skull Room" was a bit freaky.

The bird room, however, was the best, even according to the students.

There were hundreds of beautiful, stuffed birds found in East Africa.  These are the largest eagles and hawks.  Word on the street is if you leave your baby under a tree, one of these might eat it for lunch.  They are so strong, they can make off with a baby antelope.  Yikes!

We were finally ready to head outside.

This beautiful gourd sculpture showed us out.

More art met us outside.  This is a mural by Kenyan glass artist Anselm of Kitengela Glass.  It's pretty incredible.

Mrs. Mutuku wanted me to take this picture to prove we were really there.  I think we will have many memories to prove that for a long time!