Lake Bogoria
Trip Start
Jan 15, 2002
1
4
Trip End
Mar 25, 2002
Where I stayed
Lake Bogoria Hotel
Kitale, Kenya
Tuesday, February 19, 2002
I don't remember where I left you off but I can start this email in Lake Bogoria. This was our luxurious break from deadly heat and plastic toilets. We were staying at the Lake Bogoria Hotel!! Well, not really at the hotel, but they were kind enough to let us pitch our tents on their grounds. However, we did get use of the swimming pool, hotsprings, bar, flush toilets, showers that are NOT made out of plastic bags, and even a TV so we could keep track of the Olympics. Go Team Canada!
Most of our time here was spent lounging by the pool or in the bar. Some of us did our swim tests for diving, and others made friends with members from a cell phone company in Nairobi. One girl even got flowers sent to the hotel for her when they left (it was Valentines day after all!!).
We took a visit to Lake Bogoria Wilderness Reserve which is home to three quarters of the world's flamingo population. They are the strangest looking birds I've ever seen. They eat algae and things from the shore of the lake, so you'll see these bright pink legs sticking out of the water, with a great big feathered ass! Some of the people in our group found a "tame" flamingo and were petting it. Turned out the flamingo died five minutes after we left. There was a rush to the soap after that let me tell you!! We also had a soccer match against the Lake Bogoria high school. We all drew Canadian flags on our arms and took on the Kenyans with pride. (Our girls against theirs and our guys against their guys). We all felt terrible because all the girls in the school played in skirts, most didn't wear shoes, and the ones who did kept flinging them into the air every time they tried to kick the ball. With all of these things you would think we would have the upper hand- Kenyans can run though! We were toast... and we were toast from the start!
The boys on the other hand, faired a little better, but only when our Kenyan staff members took pity on them and joined the battle.
Right now we are in Kitali. Last night in our Sustainable Development class we spent three hours sharing our thoughts and feelings on the trip so far. It was a very emotional event, lots of tears all around. It was so good to compare our experiences, emotions and veiws on the situations in the Africa. I've put my contribution up on our web site so you can check it out if you want.
