Hello Everyone!

I'm sorry it's been FOREVER since my last post. Here are my excuses why:
1. finals
2. i left for the coast
3. and then i forgot.

not the best excuses, but lets move forward friends!

So lets backtrack a little bit.

My Graffiti presentation was a HUGE success. A ton of people came to watch, and well I was awesome (i know, i know i'm being cocky, but hell after working so hard on it and then OWNING my presentation, it's hard not to be).

And my paper, i think it was pretty good too. Thank you papa kerns and Randi for helping me edit it last minute! If anyone wants to read it, let me know I can send it to you! (it isn't horribly boring i promise)

So after finals our program left for Kenya's Coast. We stayed in a beautiful house in Kilifi, and did touristy things, swimming, snorkeling (well no, i didn't snorkel, fish are terrifying- but everyone else had fun), toured some successful organizations, and ate delicious Swahili food (which usually involves a ton of rice, which is excellent).

Here are a few fun photos from the trip:

BK and I attempting to take a cool handstand photo- and failing, also this was the view from the beautiful house we stayed in!

 some graffiti writings in Old Town, Mombasa (Photo Leah Fantle)

 The group planting Mangrove tress on Kenyan Coast, Turtle Bay (Photo Leah Fantle)

hanging out at the house, we found a chameleon !

our last dinner on the coast we got all dressed up!

at Fort Jesus in Old Town Mombasa (photo: Brianna Kelley)

hanging out in the house (yes the stairs to the pool enter our 'living room' - it was awesome

OK so, see the big cement platform thing holding up the bridge? to the right- we swam all the way out there climbed up a rope(which was absurdly hard) and jumped off the platform into the water with a bunch of local kids, it was a ton of fun, until i spotted fish, then i was out of there faster than well, just very fast.

me & BK in Old Town, Mombasa

So after the coast almost everyone left for the States (which was sad), but it was also the week of my 21st birthdayyy! ahhh 21!

here are some fun photos from that week:

my birthday party with some great friends!

me, BK, Eliza, and Ian went to Carnivore (http://www.tamarind.co.ke/carnivore/) for my birthday dinner! and those were our party hats... er i mean napkins.

doing some acro-yoga with James

more acro-yoga with James

again being silly on my birthdayy! lots of great times to celebrate!

And after my birthday all of my American friends did leave :(

and I moved to Olympic Estate, in Kibera (still in Nairobi) i don't have any photos yet because i've been lazy and haven't charged my camera. but i will soon i promise!

Also I've been working with Nafsi, and I started teaching gymnastics at an orphanage in Kibera Slum on tuesdays.

Here are some photos from a feeding program (we got funds to buy food to be made for street children)

Reason why: Nafsi focuses it's work on Street Kids, we go to rehab centers and informal school that work with street children in the slums to try and get them on a track in school and with our programs, show casing their talents!

The problem is street children are usually horribly addicted to all types of drugs, especially huffing glue, i can say i was even a little dizzy after the feeding program because every single kid, teen, and adult was walking around with a bottle of glue. it was quite the experience for me seeing what i did, and knowing that it happens all around the world, even in our own backyards in Newark, NYC, etc.

Some Nafsi guys & the kids!

Ann, Sylvia and I being silly (they are the yogi's not me)

And here's a photo of James and I in Kibera (the slum i live in/outskirts of), it's the largest slum in East Africa, and it is horribly sad in some parts but also insanely lively with shops, businesses, schools, and families.

And that's all for now, Hope everyone enjoyed!

and of course...

Don't forget to smile today!

TO DO

before i get into that, last night we went to a brazilian steak house for my friends 21st birthday. and I ATE CROCODILE. so that's the fun fact for this week.




1. 15 min presentation in Kiswahili
2. Grant Proposal for Nafsi
3. 45 minute presentation on my graffiti research
4. my 30-50 page paper for my graffiti research
5. Gender and IR final & 6. Kiswahili final (got them schedule for the same day, thank goodness)7. work for Nafsi because two of the management team members are traveling for 3 months (so i'm taking over a lot of their responsibilities) 
8. my final paper for my internship 
9. plus class 

and....
then finally i get to go relax on the coast.

don't forget to smile today!

What I've completed, and what I have ahead of me:

1. 15 min presentation in Kiswahili
2. Grant Proposal for Nafsi
3. 45 minute presentation on my graffiti research
4. my 30-50 page paper for my graffiti research
5. Gender and IR final & 6. Kiswahili final (got them schedule for the same day, thank goodness)
7. work for Nafsi because two of the management team members are traveling for 3 months (so i'm taking over a lot of their responsibilities)  actually just taking the week off to do my work.
8. my final paper for my internship 
9. plus class  FINISHED HELL YEAH!
10. and Mandela leaves in a week for on Sunday for Norway (6 weeks)

and....
then finally i get to go relax on the coast.

don't forget to smile today!

A MUST READ

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jonathan-kalan/saying-goodbye-to-hipster_b_1394729.html

I implore you to read this. Especially my generation, trust me it's spot on. #nerdingitoutIRstyle


don't forget to smile today!

i'm going to be MIA for the next few weeks

Because I have these things to do

1. 15 min presentation in Kiswahili
2. Grant Proposal for Nafsi
3. 45 minute presentation on my graffiti research
4. my 30-50 page paper for my graffiti research
5. Gender and IR final
6. Kiswahili final
7. work for Nafsi because two of the management team members are traveling for 3 months (so i'm taking over a lot of their responsibilities)
8. luckily i just finished my final paper for my internship (2 weeks early- GASP)
9. plus class and work days
10. and Mandela leaves in a week for Norway (6 weeks)

then finally i get to go relax on the coast.

ok, lets go!

don't forget to smile today

i see a pattern here.

Rural week happens, and i forget to update. pole sana.

things are crazy around here (shocking i know)

i'm actually not going to go all through rural week, because honestly, i don't want to type all of that. and it's pretty much the same as last time. bugs, farm, farm animals, cute children, much better food this time actually, awkward moments when no one understands what you are saying.... more farm life.... and BOOM it's over!

Our last night of rural week after we all got back together we stayed at a hotel, took a hot shower, and realized how badly we smelled. whoops.

then we had some good ol' group bonding time, played some mafia (an excellent camp game), and had a good nights sleep.

SINCE RURAL WEEK:
my research has been on overdrive i've been doing 2 interviews a day when i don't have class, in between class i am either writing research. reading. or only holding 1 interview. it's absurd. plus Nafsi work (PS LIKE US ON FACEBOOK AND FOLLOW US ON TWITTER and check out our site- WE DID THEM ALL THIS WEEK: facebok.com/NafsiAfrica     twitter.com/NafsiAfrica    nafsiafrica.webs.com ) - shameless plug right there.

andddddd just some absurd things flying around Kenya there was another grenade attack at a bus station in town, but nothing's happened since then, i'm not really worried about it i just keep moving when going places, try not to linger in crowded areas, otherwise my schedule hasn't been changed too much. I'm pretty much exhausted all of the time. but hell rather that then be bored (i mean COME ON i'm still in nairobi- and i keep finding new places and things to do everyday).


so i can comfortably say now i could be anyone's tour guide to Nairobi: the non profit sector and local livings. However, ask me to find the UN or US Embassy...uh zero clue. unless i got directions i could figure it out.


oh also. my english is SO HORRIBLE. it's embarrassing. i can't even speak to my american friends without them asking me to speak words. the problem with this is that although my kiswahili is improving, it is not enough to be losing english. just the way you speak english here is much different i've learned how to explain things and generally how my friends talk so i pick up on it too.


So today i went with some of the Sarkasi dancers and James to the International School of Kenya where i was a "guest PE teacher" i think i'm going to keep going too- they had a balance beam, AND mats! so i was beyond excited. i got to teach beam and helped middle school aged kids choreograph their routines! it was almost like home, in this surreal fancy schmancy school plopped in Nairobi. What was even weirder was that I took the Staff Bus to go teach- well that was weird.

Ok here are some fun photos from the past few weeks:

some of the group being silly before we went out for st. patty's day!

 skyping with mom on st pattys!

 me and eliza's host brother during rural week

 the walk back from the secondary school during rural week

 Nafsi, Holistic Community Yoga, and Africa Yoga Project teachers doing a yoga session together

 Victor and Yuli helping with my hair

 sitting on a huge rock we climbed too many scary stairs to get to

 skype chat with mom and maura!

 those are my bosses at work: throwing me in the pool during a workshop we had with two other organizations (afterwards we played in the pool)

 yoga workshop Nafsi peeps playin around.

 the ladies of abroad kenya spring 2012

 "the out cast" - since i was here last semester :)

 me and my boss doing the "kuku dance" aka chicken dance

 gymnastics on nyumbani rock!

 more gymnastics on nyumbani rock!

 those are ALL of the bags - rural week

don't forget to smile today!

So this whole KONY2012 situation.

As many of you know this video has recently gone viral, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5Sqc

Many people are in support and there are also many critics. Some people are more aware than others, some people are just interested in a potentially good cause. 

I am not asserting any opinion here, but all this information I found is worth reading to form your own opinion.

first, i suggest watching the KONY 2012 video made by Invisible Children

then, read some of the arguments against it- also note the sources, blog or newspaper, or media, or organization 

http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/03/07/guest_post_joseph_kony_is_not_in_uganda_and_other_complicated_things

http://www.thedisabledcubicle.com/kony-2012-the-banned-critique

http://visiblechildren.tumblr.com/

(feel free to look up more i know there's a lot out there)

finally, read their response-

http://www.invisiblechildren.com.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/critiques.html

and check out the website

http://www.kony2012.com/

and of course apply your own knowledge and opinion. 

get the facts/arguments it's actually quite interesting. 




don't forget to smile today!