Day 1 in Kenya

Hi everyone- its Alyssa (hi Maya).

Yesterday we had the most amazing day! Like Ms. Wyatt said earlier, we were greeted to an amazing breakfast which was much needed since most of us slept through all the meals on the plane! After that, we met with our WLS leaders- David and Ray and learned a little bit about what was coming in the upcoming days. After that, we had time to explore. The lodge is beautiful. Behind the main "lobby" (where all meals are) there is a ravine with a river running through. Everywhere you turn, there are gorgeous plants, ranging from cacti to flowers to palm trees- I had no idea Kenya was this green! After exploring a bit, we met for lunch which consisted of french fries, pasta, hotdogs, green beans, and carrots- the perfect meal for Americans! After lunch we set out for our first adventure- the glass factory. On our 10 minute walk to the bridge, we passed gazelles (I think) and saw camels...pretty sweet considering our safari doesn't start for another week. Low and behold, the only way to get to the factory was to cross a 2 foot cable bridge over a massive ravine (I have no earthly idea how deep it was, but as Creed put it, it was too deep to survive should you fall). Despite everyone's fears, we all made it across, though some of us continued to sport shaky legs 20 minutes after getting off of it...

The factory was incredible. The people who lived/worked there were so proud of what they did and the handmade bowls, plates, figurines...etc were gorgeous. The furnace they used to make the articles has been burning every single day for 15 years. Also, we saw some giant tortoises in a pen and the world's largest pig- it could have easily broke the Guinness book of world records in my opinion. After leaving the factory, we came back to the lodge. Before dinner, we did a few more WLS activities and then had some down time. Most of us attempted to journal or read before enjoying a nice pre-dinner nap overlooking the Kenyan sunset and landscape- picturesque to say the least!

Dinner was, in my opinion, the coolest thing I have ever seen in life. The Maasai Moran came and danced/welcomed us to their home! Bearing spears, staffs, and other tradtional objects and clothing, we danced and sang with them. One of the elders presented us with goat's milk- a traditional symbol of friendship and welcome. We all got tons of pictures with them and tried are hardest to converse in Kiswahili. After the dancing, we were lead to a feast prepared in our honor- goat's meat, chicken, fish, beef, rice, carrotts, potatoes, karro root, spinach, peas, soup, bananas and tons more. To say we all left full is an understatment. After dinner, we all huddled in the conference room with the lodge employees to watch the World Cup game. It was weird watching it on "real" time here, considering it was dark out during the game and outside our windows. Shortly after, and extremely exhausted, we all fell asleep. Everyone here has been so kind and welcoming- they love sharing their home, culture, and lifestyle with us and we have all had a blast! Everyone is healthy and having a great time. Today we are heading over to Shompole and the real adventure is about to begin...Land Cruisers here we come!

Everyone sends love, hugs and kisses and Ms. Crenshaw- Keenan says his camera broke...

We miss everyone and our next post will either be tonight or tomorrow from Shompole!!
- Alyssa