Kiara's Amazing Travels

EUROPE - ONE BIG PARTY!!!

kiara19 — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 04:44:00 GMT

Europe was in a few words – crazy, hectic, diverse and so so so so so much fun!!!

I'm going to write about what we did in point form because we did so much, hopefully it's a bit easier to read that way, and prepare yourselves cos it's a long one :)

I'll just quickly mention that I was on a topdeck tour for 21 days around Europe and initially booked with Ciara, Elice and Dani (good friends from home for those of you who don't know). We had 31 people in our group – each one awesome in their own way and this trip was party, explore a city, party, explore another city. This became a bit of a routine and at the end I had not only lost my voice a few times but was totally exhausted. It was so worth it though.......

-Met up with Ciara in London which was so surreal!! We made a racket and wouldn't let go of each other for a while at first, then chatted about everything we've been doing for a few hours. Arriving in London was so strange because everyone was speaking English and it felt like I was back home. I'd been away in non-english speaking countries for almost 4 months so it actually felt really nice being there. Didn't get to see a lot of London because we started our tour the next day and went straight off the France.

-Paris is one of my favourite cities that we visited and one day there was definitely not enough. I fell in love with the Lourve and believe I could spend days there exploring. Also Notre Dame is now one of my favourite churches. The gothic style is so unique and different to anything I've ever seen. I must say it was a very expensive city, AU$9 for a bottle of water is pretty steep I think!! We climbed the Eiffel towel, well actually we didn't climb as I hoped we would, but we caught the lift. Dani was entertaining us in the line by doing cousin IT impersonations and being her bouncy self. Thanks Dani!!

-Lauterbrunnen in Switzerland was next and has the most gorgeous, stunning scenery. The houses are all so quaint and have their own individual style. Dani and Elice went sky diving while those of us on the ground watching wished we were the ones jumping out of a plane!! Explored the local town and saw waterfalls and caves nearby. We spent our nights there drinking and dancing at the campsite bar and our lovely and ever inventive Ciara initiated a dance routine for the group that lasted until the very end of the tour (I'm sure she'll show you when she gets home if Elice hasn't already).

-Back to France and this time to Nice which I didn't really think was a great place. Very commercialized and touristy but good for shopping. We all went out to a local pub and had some fun dancing on tables and showing off our new group routine lol. I thoroughly enjoyed drunk Ciara that night, who stole a bike, cartwheeled 4 times before stacking it in a puddle and told the guy that made her hamburger “she wasn't happy that it didn't taste like McDonalds”!! We also visited Monaco which was a nice place but not the friendliest.

-ITALIA!!! Florence, Rome and Venice in 6 days!!! My favourite was Venice with its quaint streets, cobblestone alleyways, the bridges and gondolas on the canals. Rome was fantastic as well with so many historical things to see – the colosseum was gorgeous and we had a lot of fun trying to build a human pyramid (got to 4 levels before collapsing)!! One of the best experiences I had while in Italy was a guided tour through the Vatican. Our guide was full of interesting information and some of the paintings just took my breath away. Oh and how could I forget our TOGA PARTY!!! lol I didn't forget I just saved it for last because it was one of the best nights! Who would have thought you could have so much fun dressing up in bed sheets....well it is and we might just have to have one at home so you all understand.

-Back on the bus and off to Austria!! We only had a half a day there so a group of us hired bikes and rode through to the nearest town. Was great to do some exercise so we rewarded ourselves with chocolate milkshakes and then went back and mucked around with the soccer ball for a while. We had a group photo straight afterwards so please don't judge – I don't normally look that gross lol!!

-Prague was one of the places I was looking forward to the most and I have to say I wasn't as impressed as I thought I would be. Not to say it wasn't a cool place because it definitely was, especially the five storey nightclub we went to that night!! I think I just built it up in my mind which Im learning not to do. I find it's better to go somewhere without expectations, sounds silly but sometimes you just expect too much.

-Berlin was one of my top places and not because it's a good looking city, because I definitely don't think it is, but because of all the history. We did a tour that focused on WW2 and Nazi history and it was pretty full on seeing where the political leaders ran the country from and where Hitler killed himself. There are memorials scattered throughout the city and I think it's a good thing that they accept their history and don't try to hide from it. On the way to Berlin we stopped at Mathausen concentration camp in Austria which was a really intense experience. I thought I would be more prepared because of some of the things I had seen in Rwanda but not at all. It hit me harder than I could have imagined and more so because the camp was pretty empty – just rooms and bunks the way they would have been in the 1940's during WW2. Walking in I couldn't help but imagine everything that had happened there and it honestly just made me feel sick......but I won't talk anymore about that because you know I could start get pretty heated and write for hours about it.

- AMSTERDAM!!! woo hooo!!!! Red light district – crazy and this probably isnt the most appropriate place to explain in detail the things we saw lol. Other than that though we visited Anne Frank's house which was a highlight. Anne Frank was a young Jewish girl who went into hiding during WW2 with her family. During that time she kept a diary which was later published by her dad after she died in a concentration camp. I can't wait to read the book because the house and story were so interesting. Amsterdam was also our last stop for the tour, so of course we went out, partied and danced to our hearts content. We spent an hour or so on a boat cruise with free alcohol which began the night quite well with me thinking it would be a good idea to jump in the fountain!!!

After Amsterdam we had a massive days driving back to London and where I got to catch up again with my gorgeous Ivana, Kamila and of course the lovely James lol. Ciara, Kama, James, Elice and I then traveled over to Ireland for a week which was supposed to be my time for relaxing but turned into a stressful and sad time because of my Uncle Joe passing. I was almost going to come back home but couldn’t get any available flights and wouldn’t have made it back in time. So the trip ended on a sad note especially because I was so far away from my family while this was happening. My travel plans were also all over the place because I couldn’t get into India but I honestly think this blog is turning into a vertical novel, so Ill stop there and leave that for next time.

Love you all xoxox

I LOVE TURKEY!!!

kiara19 — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 04:42:00 GMT

tArriving in Turkey I donated my long sleeve, appropriate middle eastern attire to an orphanage and decided to wear less clothing!! Sounds bad but Turkey is much more contemporary and I was truly sick of wearing the 'camel top' as it became called because of all the lovely pictures of camels on it (its the ugly orange one in some of my photos lol). We started exploring this diverse country down south at Cappodocia which has to be the most enchanting place I've ever come across. The landscape is full of 'fairy chimneys' which are huge cone shaped rock formations that the locals have used as caves and homes. Some are still inhabited today! I won't go on for too long about it because we did so much in Turkey, but it really looks like something out of a fairytale so have a look at my pics which I should be putting up soon hopefully. We then went to Olympos which is on the coast and has the most beautiful water to swim in. This fact is ruined slightly because the beach consists of big rocks and pebbles – not the comfiest thing to lie on, but we made it work. We just chilled out here for a few days which was really nice and relaxing. I should mention that I was traveling with 3 other girls – Jana, Francesa and Anneke as well as our tour leaders Kevin and Hayley. It was a small group but despite that we had a lot of fun together and became a really close little family. So after Olympos came Aludinez which was a bit farther up the coast. We indulged in a boat cruise here which was awesome sailing between the different islands and jumping on and off the boat to cool down in the water. I talked Francesca into coming with me on a jet ski which was a good thrill especially because I almost threw her off a few times lol!!! Celcuk was next and we had a lot of fun partying at the hotel bar. I decided I'd had enough of seeing ruins so I talked a few people into spending the day with me at the water park!! Word of advice to ladies – don't wear a bikini to these places and go down the really fast slides!!! I also visited Troy and although there isn't much of the city left, you can imagine how it must have been in its day. Galipoli was an awesome experience as well. We spent some time going to see all the memorials from WW1 and the museum which interesting. Our last stop was Istanbul which is definitely one of my favourite cities. The atmosphere and vibe are so cool and it is just a really relaxed place. I absolutely loved the Aya Sophia which was a mosque, then a Catholic church and is now a museum. It is so interesting because you can see the Islamic and Christian influence together in the same place. Across from the Aya Sophia is the Blue Mosque which is just as stunning and impressive. Ok so I went through the itinerary very quickly just to give you a basic idea of what we did. Reading back over it, I should have written it in point form but I'm sure you'll get the idea. Turkey overall was my favourite country in the Middle East because the government is secular and I found that makes the whole culture more accepting and open minded. There is so much history and each place we visited was different and interesting. This is definitely a place I would like to visit again. Oh yeah and a couple of funny things that happened that definitely were not funny at the time!! Sitting around the camp fire one night having a pretty in depth conversation about world politics, I decided to do a little fire dance and scream to get rid of the HUGE, HAIRY spider that thought it was a good idea to climb up my leg!! Gross and, well just gross but it's funny now and I'm sure you'll all find it at least a bit amusing to imagine. Another stupid thing that happened was me falling down the truck stairs, with my huge bag on, and doing a really good job of spraining my ankle!! As if that wasn't enough, I later found out I had knocked my bag and my beloved laptop didn't want to work!! But everything in life is a test and I came out a little bit hurt but better for experiencing it. Hope you actually understood this blog as it's full of so many places and things we did. There were so many things we did but these are the highlights I wanted to share with you all. So now I need to write my Europe blog............ so many memories. Love you muchly xxoo ki

SYRIA.....WOW!!!!

kiara19 — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 04:39:00 GMT

Ok so I have been majorly slacking off on the journal and blog front which I mean to rectify so you all know what I've been up to in the past few months. After Jordan we jumped back on our big yellow truck and set off for Damascus, Syria. I absolutely loved Syria and plan to travel there again on my own one day. I should add that it was so safe and the people relatively friendly and accommodating. We were camping out of the city so just caught cabs in to explore. There are two parts of Damascus, the old and new city. This is one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world and the old city is gorgeous. Walking through the souk (marketplace) was an experience and was probably one of the best places to shop so far on the trip. I'll just describe walking through for you guys. Its a huge space undercover with bullet holes riddled in the roof allowing rays of light to hit the stone floor. You walk past shops with gorgeous lamps, middle eastern souvenirs and local perfumes.. People eating huge ice creams covered with pistachio flakes, mmmmmmmm!!! Lots of local wares, korans and clothes for sale from little stalls. The highlight for me was the huge mosque in the centre square. I've discovered I love visiting churches and mosques! Watching the local people and just experiencing the tranquility and culture. Traveling through Syria we also visited the ancient ruins of Palmyra and Crac De Chavalier (which incited many stupid jokes lol). The 'Crac' is a huge castle from the time of the Crusaders and is still in pretty good nick. During one of our random bush camps under the stars, I saw a nice, big, juicy looking scorpion crawling around lol!!! Needless to say I still slept outside for the experience and lived to tell the tale. We slept on rooftop dorms again and smoked copious amounts of sheesha pipes :) In Aleppo, another of the main cities, we visited more souks and just chilled out in some of the parks and local restaurants. Overall Syria was an awesome but very short experience as we were only there for about 5-6 days. A truly cultural experience chatting over tea and sheeshas with some of the local guys. I found it more relaxed and a bit more chilled out in comparison to Jordan and Egypt. Then off to Turkey........

JORDAN

kiara19 — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 13:51:00 GMT

Hey guys,

So Jordan in one word – AMAZING!!! I had the best time there and truly loved every moment. I could attribute this to the fact that it was considerably more relaxed, friendly and had an overall better atmosphere than Egypt. I think I should also mention that while I was in Egypt I was suffering from a huge amount of guilt and maybe 'reverse culture shock' could be an appropriate way to describe it. After spending 2 months in Kenya working in slums and with so much poverty, I felt so unbelievably guilty. I'm on a 'holiday' and in no way helping or making any sort of contribution except to my own happiness and it made the whole experience a lot harder to properly enjoy. I think after being on tour for a couple of weeks I eventually came to terms with it and once I got to Jordan I was in a more selfish mindset and focusing on traveling again – doesn't take long to fall into old habits!! But I think I've decided to volunteer again once I get to India, living and working in the community for me, is a much more enjoyable way to fully appreciate and experience a culture.

So anyway, lets move on from my little self crisis and onto Jordan..... :)

Aqaba was our first stop and we spent the night sleeping on a rooftop of a hotel from which we could see Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Israel and obviously Jordan! Not a bad place to be when the sun sets and throws different colours over a town that comes to life in the evening. Our next stop was Wadi Rum desert (where Lawrence of Arabia lived). We literally camped under the stars in the middle of nowhere, with nothing but the mountains, sand and stars to keep us company – not to mention a nice bottle of vodka and several apple sheeshas to top it off haha!! I have never seen so many stars, or such an amazing sight when the moon came up over the mountains to light up the sky. You really had to be there to fully appreciate being so far away from civilization but it was definitely one of the highlights of the trip for me. Petra was on the itinerary next...oh, Petra, Petra, Petra, how I enjoyed that experience. We walked and trekked through the ancient city for about 8 hours, up and down mountains but it was well worth the effort. I was astounded by the size and intricate detail carved into the rocks. Needless to say after a day of exploring I was exhausted but still managed to go out for a few drinks in a bar that is actually a cave near petra...only 2000 yrs old so not really that cool :)

Ummm what else did we do in Jordan...it's hard to remember everything and you can probably tell how jam packed this holiday is because we were only in the country for 5 days all up. Oh the dead sea, how could I forget swimming in the dead sea!! It was the most insane and crazy feeling ever and I can only describe it as how I would picture being in space with no gravity. You feet shoot up from under you and its impossible to push yourself down so you just float, roll around and let the child in you come out to play. If anyone ever goes there – beware of getting any of that salty water in your mouth – its like receiving an electric shock on your tongue with a gruesome after taste!! After rinsing off we continued down to Wadi Mujib which is essentially in the desert but is a huge canyon with water running through. We put on our life jackets thinking 'why the hell do we need these when the water in knee deep'?? Little did we know what we were in for! Scrambling up rocks, being swept away by the current, slipping and tumbling in dangerous conditions to finally reach the waterfall at the top. I would pass on feedback that not only are life jackets essential but helmets should also be!!

Jordan in 5 days...pretty intense and full of so many unreal experiences that it's hard to remember them all clearly. I'm currently in Syria now, exploring Damascus which is gorgeous but I'll save for my next blog.

I'll say it again and again and continue to remind you all that I miss you, and want to hear your voices and see your beautiful smiles! I hope you enjoy reading these and that they entertain you on some level. But don't worry I have so many more stories to annoy you with when I get home you'll be wishing I would jet off overseas again and leave you alone lol!!

Always loving and missing you

Ki xoxox

EGYPT

kiara19 — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 13:44:00 GMT

Sending you all hugs and kisses from Egypt!!!

Hey everyone,

Thought I should catch you all up on the amazing things I've been doing in Egypt for the past few weeks. It's been amazing, insanely hot and a really hectic holiday!!! My first stop was Cairo where I joined the tour group, which by the way is only 8 people all together!! I enjoyed my first sheesha in 2 months and man it was good. Spent a day exploring the Egyptian museum and seeing the pyramids. I actually decided to go into one of the pyramids – great experience except for the fact that it was like a sauna inside. For everyone who knows I say I always love the hot weather... I retract that love and pass it on to more pleasant, warmer climates! I am constantly hot here, like 42 degrees hot and being drenched everyday doesn't make you feel like the most attractive person on the planet lol. But in saying that the nights are beautiful, we always have sun and its been fantastic to jump into the Nile or the Red sea to cool off. So anyways after Cairo we caught an overnight train down to Aswan (south of egypt) and spent a few days exploring the local souk / markets and surrounding areas. We also visited Abu Simbel - Rameses II temple – very impressive indeed. Following that were a few days on a felucca sailboat which we definitely all needed because our schedule had been so jam packed. Relaxing, drinking, eating (awesome food here by the way), reading and swimming in the Nile were our priorities for a couple of days. On the last night we had a few drinks and of course I could be found on the riverbank with some other tourists dancing around a camp fire while the locals belted out tunes for us on their drums!!! We had to jump off the felucca in Luxor :( , saw a few more temples to Horus and then the next day went to visit the Valley of the Kings. This was definitely one of the more amazing monuments, it's literally a valley where approx 60 kings had their tombs carved into the rock. We went into a few of the tombs and it boggles my mind how these people did this. It took thousands of workers and about 30 yrs to complete one!! The paintings on the walls inside are still so vibrant – they look basically untouched – these egyptians are one intelligent group of people I can tell you that!!

Probably the most enjoyable experience in Egypt was spending 4 days in Dahab, on the coast of the Red Sea. Diving among such diverse and vibrant coral and marine life was amazing. I must admit I was a bit nervous at first to go diving, but once under the water and after I'd gotten used to the strange sense of breathing so deep down I was fine. Spent a few days chilling out on the beach, going snorkeling, eating good food, smoking awesome sheeshas and just enjoying life. Quad biking through the desert was awesome, and of course I got in trouble a few times from our guide when I overtook him because in my opinion he was driving like a grandmother lol!!

That's a really quick run down on egypt, I definitely enjoyed the whole experience despite all the hassling and comments we received. Apparently I look egyptian because everyone talks to me in arabic and is really confused when I say I only speak english. Oh and I have been asked how many camels for my hand in marriage – which I politely declined with the answer that my fiance wouldnt be impressed. When I was offered a ferrari that was an entirely different story lol. Who knows I might marry an egyptian for a few camels and a ferrari, at least I'll have a very diverse range of transportation!! I think I had a preconceived idea about Egypt, and was surprised at how different it was to what I expected. There is a lot of hassling, haggling and overall people trying to rip you off. But that's all part of the experience I guess.

Off to Jordan now.....more exciting things to do, wow it's a hard life!!!! xoxox

RWANDA

kiara19 — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:45:00 GMT

Ok so Rwanda basically deserves its own blog because it was so unreal. After my b'day weekend in Kisumu with a group of friends, I decided to go with Scott to Rwanda for a week. He speaks French (one of the local languages) and had contacts with a local family there, so it seemed like a really good opportunity to tag along with him. Getting there was a pain in the butt!! We ended up in four different matatus (mini vans) and then finally on the bus after a 4 hour wait at the bus station!!! Arriving in Rwanda we were met by one of Scott's friends and taken to his house in Kigali, the capital, where we stayed.

Some of you might know about Rwanda's history and the genocide that happened there in 1994 but I'll give you a quick overview anyways. Over 800,000 people were massacred in an attempt by the Hutu's (majority tribe) to wipe out the Tutsis (minority tribe). Over two thirds of the population were displaced and men, women and children massacred mercilessly with machetes and clubs. There were other smaller genocides and events leading up to this, but in 1994 this all happened within the space of a few months. So here we are in Rwanda now in 2009 and you really wouldn't know that they had suffered such a horrific and devastating tragedy. In comparison to Kenya, Rwanda is so much more organised and clean. They have a much more honest and more effective government that has helped to pick them back up and build a peaceful and cooperative city again. It really is a beautiful place and is also known as the 'country of a thousand hills'.

What we got up to....

We did a tour of Kigali city and saw the actual Hotel Rwanda (you might have seen the movie) where a hotel manager sheltered people during the genocide. We visited a few other city attractions but the best by far was the memorial centre. It was very educational and at the same time disturbingly honest and brutal. We saw thousands of photos of people who had been murdered, childrens clothing taken from some of the victims and even skulls and bones, some you could see where the skulls had been beaten in. We also spent another day traveling for a few hours to see another memorial in the South West of Rwanda, near Butare. This one was something that you would never ever see at home, I don't think people would allow it. During the genocide, people in the surrounding areas were advised to seek refuge at a local school where they would be safe. They were advised by church leaders and government officials who were trying to gather as many Tutsis together as possible. When approximately 50,000 men, women and children were in the school, rebels came with machetes and clubs and massacred them all. The memorial is actually at that school and is basically 25 rooms of dead bodies on tables, stacked on top of each other. The bodies were buried and then removed a year later to be put on display in remembrance of what happened. The bodies are preserved with lime powder so it was very confronting, especially because some of them still have hair on their heads after 15 years. I have to say it was a good experience but I don't know if I would recommend it to anyone. It was very intense, heartbreaking and eye opening all at the same time.

So onto more fun and enjoyable experiences. In my opinion the best thing we did while in Rwanda was climb Mt. Bisoke which is a dormant volcano in the north of the country. We were interested in doing the gorilla trek but unfortunately it was too late to get a permit (probably a good thing anyway because it was so expensive). So here I am before the trek thinking 'this probably won't be too hard'....how wrong I was. After 4 hours of climbing, and I stress the word climbing because it was so damn steep, we finally reached the top to pass out and have a break!! Needless to say I was very proud of myself because I was the first girl, and the third person to reach the top - GO ME!!! On the summit it was extremely misty and cold, we couldn't see off the mountain, but we could see inside the volcano which is basically a big lake now. After having some snacks we climbed down, well I tried to climb but ended up slipping and sliding down because of my inadequate shoes. Scott helped me majority of the way down, thank god for him otherwise I would have been in much worse shape. I also have to mention especially for Mamo's sake that I split my pants on the way up because it was so steep!! Lol now we've both experienced it haha!!

That's a really quick overview of our time in Rwanda, but I'm really glad that I went. It was an amazing and changing experience, especially seeing all the memorials and learning about the history. I'm writing this blog now while chilling out at the homestay in Nairobi. I have two more nights here until I'm on my way to EGYPT!!!!! Can't wait to go there but at the same time I'm a bit sad to leave Kenya. I can't believe I've been away from home for 2 months now...thats crazy its gone sooooooo fast. I've definitely enjoyed every moment here and haven't had any problems, although my friends the other day were on a bus that got hijacked!!! Guys with guns etc... so it just goes to show that it can be quite dangerous, thankfully I've been lucky. But despite that I've loved every minute and so far it's been the best experience of my life....... Missing you all more and more xoxoxo

HIV / AIDS volunteer work

kiara19 — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:40:00 GMT

Hey everyone,

Long long time since I've spoken to most of you and really missing you all!! I've been a very busy girl the past few weeks and haven't really had access to the internet so it's been hard to keep in contact. I moved from my old placement at the orphanage to a new placement working in a medical clinic. It was originally supposed to be working specifically with HIV and AIDS victims but we have been doing a lot of different things as well. I am living with another local family – Rachael and her two children Eddie and Talia, who are all lovely and very welcoming. I'm also living with 5 other volunteers – 2 girls and 3 guys who are all really cool and I've been having a great time with.

So for the past few weekends and my traveling experiences.....

We went down to the coast for a weekend with a group of 11 people, ended up turning into a week of drinking, swimming, lounging and eating lol. I've been learning some good new drinking games, with disastrous and hilarious consequences, hopefully I can teach you all when I get back!!! Also went on a day trip down to 14 falls – literally 14 waterfalls in a semi circle, was beautiful. I ended up diving off one of the cliffs into the swimming area below – mind you I had to get one of the local guys to hold my hand and jump with me lol. My birthday weekend was spent in Kisumu which is in Western Africa. Highlight was fishing on Victoria Lake with some local guides while we watched hippos coming up for air around us!!! Spent that night playing drinking games and getting drunk for my b'day celebration which was too much fun. Ended up in the pool very early in the morning - just see photos for all the chaos and craziness. For my b'day we spent some time in one of the virgin rainforests in the area and then doing a repeat of the night before lol. I just got back from an amazing week in Rwanda with one of the guys Scott. I'll do a separate blog for that as we experienced a lot in that time.

So more about the WEMA medical and maternity clinic that I'm volunteering at now. On my first day I started mixing medications and making injections for the doctors and nurses. I saw a 5 year old girl have stitches in her forehead – and for all of you who know how much I hate needles you would have been very proud of me. I've been down and visited some local people who are suffering from HIV, to give encouragement and support and in return we have heard some heartbreaking and eye opening stories. I also gave my first intravenous injection to a patient with malaria (I didnt inject the needle just the medication which is very painful and was pretty hard for me to do.) There is another patient who originally had a cut on his ankle and instead of going to a doctor decided to try herbal medicine. I don't know who told him to do this, but for some reason he thought it would be a good idea to cover the wound in cow dung. He then proceeded to sit at home for 3 months while it got infected and he basically now has half his ankle missing. We have to help dress and clean the wound everyday– while looking at the bones and where the tendon should have been. I'm happy to say he is doing a lot better now, it's starting to heal quite well and he really appreciates our help (especially when I go around with fruits and veggies for him to eat!!!!)

Now for the most exciting bit. I helped in the delivery of a baby boy!!! WOW – the most intense experience of my life. I have to set the scene for you first. This is not a rich medical clinic, it's in the heart of a slum, is very basic and not always hygienic. The mother was only 18 and in labour with her first child. Along with her moaning and cries of pain, we could hear the bleating goats outside the open door!!! She was on her own, her husband had dropped her off and gone to work so we were the only comfort she had...THIS IS AFRICA RIGHT!! The only way I could help during the labour was to massage her lower back and buttocks to help relieve the pain. The poor girl wasn't able to have any pain killers so it got pretty intense towards the end. I have to say when the head came out – it was seriously the freakiest thing I've ever seen, then the baby just slipped out!! I cut the umbilical cord and we helped wrap the baby up and clean up everything else afterwards as well. I learnt a lot from this experience – especially that an epidural will definitely be on my list if I ever have children and my husband better be there to hold my hand!!!

There have been a lot of other things we've been doing but it would take too long to go through everything for you. I've been helping out by donating some money for food and some medication for children, majority of people can't afford pain killers so it can be really hard to watch procedures sometimes. Like people having teeth removed, or corns cut from their feet with a blade!! Yeah I know, gross right, we do see some very gross stuff at WEMA, but I must say I absolutely love this placement. Something different is happening everyday, we help a lot of people and I always learn something new, which is exactly what I came here for.

HELL'S GATE

kiara19 — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:17:00 GMT

Hi all,

Well I've had an exciting weekend and a great week in total. Sara and I had our last day at the orphanage on Friday. Sara is leaving to go back to NY and I'm transferring to another home stay so I can volunteer with HIV/ AIDS victims. It actually worked out really well in regards to leaving the orphanage because just this week they have a teacher coming to live with them. It means that the older children will have the structure and classes that they need and won't require our help as much.

Friday afternoon we went with a group down to Naivarsha to buy and pack the food for the IDP camp. Was definitely a combined effort to bag rice, potatoes, sugar and fat with barely any light lol!! Had dinner and stayed overnight for about $5!!– OH MY GOD – I can't believe Michael Jackson died!!! I seriously stood with my mouth gaping open for a good minute before I really believed it. (I know that was a bit of a random change of topic but we were watching his tribute that night so it made me think of him!!) In the morning we woke up at about 6am, had breakfast and headed off to Hells Gate, which is like a national park with lots of wildlife and gorges. We all hired bikes and I swear it still hurts to sit down because those seats were so damn uncomfortable. We rode for about an hour through some amazing scenery. Zebras, gazelles, wart hogs and ostriches were just roaming about freely all around us - it was really cool to see – like something from a postcard. After that we went on a trek for a few hours into the actual gorge. Saw and climbed some awesome rock formations but the definite highlight were the hot springs. We were all picturing something like a jacuzzi lol but it was more like a hot waterfall. So half of us ended up getting soaked and mucking around. Was a good way to get to the know some of the new guys I will be staying with soon lol – real bonding session showering together under a waterfall haha!! Other than that it was more walking uphill and then another pain in the butt ride back to the beginning – 'Hells Gate' is definitely an appropriate name!! It really was a lot of hard work but definitely worth it and I would love to go back and do some of the other treks.

After drying off we went down to the IDP camp and distributed all the food. It went a lot more smoothly this time simply because we had everything pre-packaged from the previous night, and also because the crowd wasn't so rowdy. HUGE DAY - and we didn't end up getting home until about 11pm but... because we are such party animals we decided to go clubbing and didn't crawl into bed until 6am!!! I had to take advantage of the one weekend that I was in Nairobi and it really was a fun night, except for one thing...... My phone and camera were stolen on the dance floor...ARGGHHHH how freaking annoying. Material things can be replaced though and thank god for insurance. But it got worse when one friend had her camera and phone stolen, another had his camera stolen and ANOTHER had his phone stolen while he was trying to make me feel better by dancing. omg it totally sucks but was kinda, almost funny. It was like spot the white person in the club and we obviously are prime targets. So now I get to buy a new phone and camera. Lucky I have my laptop and all my photos have been saved otherwise I would not be happy Jan. As it happens I've been called a real trooper for being so calm and fine with the situation. There's nothing to do so why dwell on it and waste energy. Plus I just can't get upset over here!!! I'm so happy and content, I truly feel like I was born to travel and I feel so at home – even though I'm so far away from home!!! And you will all be happy to know that after arriving home at 6am after a massive, MASSIVE day, I woke up at 8am to take the kids from the orphanage to church!!!

Now for a bit more bad news, not sure how bad yet though. I'm writing this blog while sitting in the hospital. Sara has gotten really sick, her immune system is so weak at the moment. She's gone off to get tests and I'm praying she doesn't have malaria or something just as bad because she is supposed to fly home tomorrow. What a crappy way to spend your last day in Kenya. But hopefully it's all good and she just has a bad flu or something.

I'll keep you updated on my placement change. I'm moving back in with Rachael tonight and will start the HIV program in the next few days. I'm gonna be living with a couple of guys I met on the weekend so should be a change to living with so many girls but will definitely be fun.

Love you all and still loving Africa despite being pick pocketed. (It was definitely a situation that can only be described as T.I.A – This Is Africa, or even more appropriately in this case T.I.F.A or T.I.M.F.A!!!!!)\

Ki xoxox

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM!!!!

kiara19 — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 14:09:00 GMT

Hey mum,

This video was made especially for you by the kids from the orphanage – trust me it took some persistence and patience to capture this lol. Hope, Brian, Joyce, Allan, Njoki, Diana and I all wish Mama Georgie a happy birthday!!

Love you and miss you more than you know

ki xoxo

SAFARI!!!

kiara19 — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 13:25:00 GMT

Hey everyone,

Sorry I haven't been in touch much lately, have been really busy exploring Africa and working with our beautiful kids at the orphanage. Got back this morning from our three day safari in Masai Mara which is a national game park and where you find all the Masai tribal villages.

Our first day wasn't amazingly exciting as we had to drive approx 7 hours to get to the Mara. We did stop off at the Rift Valley lookout which is huge and absolutely gorgeous, hard to capture properly on camera. The valley apparently stretches from Jordan to Mozambique which is pretty mind boggling!!!! On arrival in the Mara we settled into our accommodation which was like luxury camping. We were in safari tents with actual beds and even a little front porch to relax on ahhh how nice!! Hot showers, flushing toilets and meals that included meat were definitely added bonuses – lol see the things I appreciate now!!!. I don't think you understand how we are living here in Kenya. The water and electricity cut off randomly and for periods of time which can be a massive pain in the butt. Also Sara and I spent about 45 mins today scrubbing our clothes, rinsing and wringing them out because I don't think anyone in Kenya owns a washing machine. A laundromat here could be a business idea for all the mzungus like us who aren't really partial to raw knuckles!!!

Anyways back to the safari.... So the first night I drank my first ever beer (Dwayne you are officially allowed to call me a bogan once for this lol and jess you should be proud of me). We sat around a camp fire talking and swapping stories with the local Masai tribesmen. I can't explain to you how surreal and fascinating this was. It was like stepping into another world, the way they live is so primitive compared to what we are accustomed to. Mind you this wasn't part of our safari, I just started asking them questions and they asked us some in return. I doubt that many other people get to experience something so different so I count myself very lucky for that. They pity us for the amount and regularity of divorce in our countries, they were shocked men only have one wife and that it is illegal for us to keep sheep in our houses!! One guy asked about travel to the stars and when we briefly explained travel to the moon he was pretty confused – asking how we get there and how we know when we arrive. One of the girls in our group is originally from Sierra Leone and they questioned how Africans got to other countries, to which she replied “Um we fly” !!!!

Now a bit about the Masai people and how they live. Initiation processes into manhood involve traveling in the wilderness for 5 years, hunting and killing a lion, circumcision and marriage. Female circumcision is now illegal in Kenya but some families still travel over the border into Tanzania to be able to carry out the ritual. The going price for a wife these days is 10 cows, unless the man can 'jump' really high, then he can lower the dowry to about 6 cows. Men are expected to have an even number of wives and usually minimum 4 who all live in different villages. The women build the houses by the way – power to the women woo hoo!!! But on the other hand it is very common and socially accepted to beat women to ensure that they are obedient. The tribes literally use everything from nature and don't waste anything. They drink blood, sometimes boiling it and mixing it with milk. For anyone who's interested, I've been told it's quite tasty but took their word for it!! When we were shown through their village we were welcomed into some of the mud huts. Literally made of mud, grass, wood and cow dung!!! After they eat meat, they like to smear some of the fat and grease into their skin so you can imagine the flies they attract. We saw kids and adults just covered with them, pretty disgusting in all honesty but they seem quite immune to it. The women also are renowned for their bead making which is so vibrant and rich in colour. That's something else I find fascinating. That they live in mud huts with the most simple tools and way of life, yet their clothes, jewellery and body decorations are insanely intense. It's a huge contrast but just have a look at the photos and videos. I could write about this for ages because I think it was such an amazing experience but I migrht be boring you all so I'll move on plus I'm starting to feel like I'm writing an essay haha

So the actual safari was cool but a lot of driving. First day we saw giraffes, wilderbeest, zebra, gazelle, lions, crocodiles, hippos and elephants. Probably the most exciting and scary thing to happen was when I was kinda leaning out of the top of the van to take a photo of a huge male lion and it woke up and gave me the death stare! Needless to say I was back in the van quick smart but with some good shots on my camera lol. The scenery was divine thats the only way to describe it. It's exactly as I pictured Africa in my mind but even more stunning. On the second day of safari we woke up really early so we could see the sunrise. Got some awesome pictures and we were very lucky to see three cheetahs which are pretty rare and hard to find. I must say I think they were my favourite animal and we all got a bit excited when they started stalking a group of gazelles. Sadly we didn't see any hunting in action though :(

So another adventurous weekend that I thoroughly enjoyed and would highly recommend to anyone. Learning first hand about the Masai way of life was my highlight, I don't think there is any better way to experience a culture that has held onto its traditions for such a long time.

So until my next entry – I love you all and advise you to appreciate washing machines, beds that don't squeak, meat, constantly running water and electricity!!!

enjoy every moment, I definitely am

ki xoxo

IDP (Internally Displaced Person) Camp

kiara19 — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 13:11:00 GMT

Hello all,

So just wanted to share with you a little bit about my experience at the IDP (Internally Displaced Person) camp. I went there with a group of volunteers to help distribute food and clothing.

Arriving into the IDP camps we were surrounded by stunning scenery. Its located in a valley almost so the surrounding hills are vegetation are just gorgeous. When you see the tents and conditions these people live in though, the scenery is totally forgotten. The whole camp is dusty and filthy and the people have been carrying water in containers that used to hold sulphuric acid. They have to walk about 2km to get water and carry it back to the camp. Children covered in dirt and mucus, coughing and spluttering but still smiling and trying to play. Mothers welcoming us into their tents and showing us how they live. Pregnant women – imagine bringing in a child to such a desperate situation! Majority of these people used to work and be middle class or at least have enough to feed their families. After the elections last year they lost family members, homes, land – everything. Everything they have is donated.

We were taken through the camp and welcomed into some of the homes by the women. Izzo ( one of the guys who helps organize the trip) translated some of the stories and hardships from these women. Literally rags, wires, plastic bags and wood were all put together to help create these homes. The tents were originally donated by the UN but that was as far as they extended their support. I broke down in the last house we visited when a mother was holding her severely malnourished child while crying and sharing her story. He was so young and shy and you could see his bloated little tummy through his shirt as a result of not getting enough nutrition and food. I wanted nothing more than to pick him up and just hold him.

I can't explain how it felt to see it first hand. It really is an eye opener and made me appreciate what I have so much more. I am so lucky to have my family and friends, who are all healthy and have options in their lives. But this experience, as heartbreaking as it was, was exactly what I pictured when I first decided to come to Africa to help. I felt like we really did help and make a slight difference at least. It obviously wasn't life changing but everything helps their situation. Before we got to the camp we all put our money together and bought food to distribute to the 100 families that live there. We rationed out rice, sugar, potatoes, lard and clothes. At some points the crowd became a bit rowdy and aggressive, fighting amongst each other which got pretty intense.

This will definitely be an experience that affects how I think and something I won't forget. Hopefully I get the chance to do it again before I leave.

Love you all

Ki xoxo

Relaxing in Mombasa!!

kiara19 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 18:07:00 GMT

To all my beautiful Melbournians,

So to catch you all up on my weekend in Mombasa which is on the coast of Kenya – absolutely gorgeous beaches. Weather was slightly disappointing because it was raining a bit but was still nice and humid and hot. The first day we arrived we explored the city of Mombasa which was very interesting and a lot of fun. We visited Fort Jesus which are ruins of a fort built by the Portuguese to defend the city. Also walked through old town, a Hindu temple and saw the famous 'elephant tusks'(see photos).

Our accommodation was great, short walk from the beach, pool, our own kitchen and balcony which was handy. For the rest of the holiday we relaxed on the soft white sand, occasionally getting up to splash around the clear blue water of the Indian ocean...ahhhhhh bliss!!!! I must say it was kinda random to see camels strolling along the beach with their owners but we soon got used to it. We ate, we drank, we chased sand crabs along the beach and we went snorkeling off a sand bar. I met several 'Rastafarian' and local people along the beach who were friendly enough. I was a bit taken aback and regretfully declined when I was asked if I would like to have “chocolate babies” with one of the Rastafarian men!!!! Sara and I laughed a lot when we were asked to join them for bob marley cigarettes which would apparently make our stay on Diani beach so much more enjoyable!!!

So overall a short break that was definitely much too short but relaxing and beautiful. I was thinking of you all while I was lying in the sun reading my book and chilling with my ipod... Hope you enjoy my photos

Love you all and missing your smiles Ki xoxox

Video No.#2 of Ki bungee jumping

kiara19 — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 05:37:00 GMT

This is a video of me bungee jumping taken from the bar where we stayed, lol i decided im not very graceful when falling from a very high platform haha

bungee jumping over the nile

kiara19 — Tue, 9 Jun 2009 18:53:00 GMT

This is the view of me bungee jumping taken from the platform

Stunning Uganda

kiara19 — Mon, 8 Jun 2009 10:10:00 GMT

Dear all,

Had an amazing, exciting, scary and totally awesome weekend. Caught a bus over to Uganda on Thursday night with 7 other people so there was a decent sized group of us. Would have been fine except I had severe food poisoning or something so the traveling was probably one of the worst experiences of my life!!! That combined with bumpy roads made for a very uncomfortable 12 hour bus ride...but my weekend was definitely still worth it. We arrived in Uganga about 7am and caught 'boda bodas' (motorcycles) to our accommodation which was right on the Nile. Riding on the back of a motorbike through the most amazing countryside as the sun rises I can tell you is pretty amazing. Seeing the Nile for the first time was definitely a highlight.

The accommodation we stayed at was really nice. The bar actually looked out over the river, I've put photos up but you really had to be there to fully appreciate it. We all shared a big bunkhouse which was fun, especially the monkeys waking us up in the morning by running over the roof!!! The first day we went to a resort and lounged around by the pool all day, nice relaxing day, definitely needed after traveling for so long.

The second day started out with bunji jumping!!! Ciara : I've decided that sky diving is much more enjoyable this was literally the scariest thing I've ever had to do. I thought I would be ok but freaked out at the end a little bit. When you have your feet hanging off the edge of a platform and only your ankles are strapped up its pretty intense. The bunji guy pushed me off cos he could see I was hesitating a bit lol. White water rafting down class 5 rapids was next. There was a massive group of us just jumping off the boat and swimming in the river, tipping the raft over and being carried by the current. Going down the rapids was awesome, I would definitely do it again, hopefully next time I won't be as nauseas from being sick though!!!

I wish I had my camera with me to show you how gorgeous it was to drift down the Nile with the mountains and stunning scenery surrounding us. There are people on the riverbanks washing clothes or bathing, little kids running and waving to us and guys in boats with fishing nets. The mountains are so lush and green, everything is so colourful and vibrant, even the soil is red – my feet were stained for a few days!! The drive back from the rafting was an experience in itself. Being able to witness how these people actually live in mud huts with cows and goats running around on the streets. Women with babies tied to their backs or carrying massive loads on their heads. Naked children running barefoot with excitement all over their beautiful faces when they see us drive by. This is what you expect the countryside in Africa to look like and it is stunning. Even though the way they live is so primitive to what we are used to, they seem happy and content enough. They have food, clothing, shelter and each other and they seem satisfied with that – we could definitely learn a lot from them!!!

So that was a massive day which ended with a drunken night down at the bar. They have a canoe strapped to the ceiling that we all managed to get into which was fun (see photos). Partying with a bunch of Americans and New Zealands was definitely fun.

So now I'm back at the home stay writing this for you guys and putting up photos. Was an awesome weekend and we've already booked our next trip this coming weekend down to Mombassa which is on the coast. Looks absolutely amazing, can't wait. Missing you guys so much, starting to get a little bit homesick so you all need to keep me updated on whats going on in Australia.

Miss you guys – hope your all taking care, love you all to little piecesxoxoxoxoxoxxoxoxxoxox - ki

First few days in Nairobi

kiara19 — Tue, 2 Jun 2009 15:14:00 GMT

Hey guys,

This is the first real chance I've had now to really sit down and write about all the things ive been doing. The experience so far has been absolutely amazing, I can't explain how much I love it here and how much fun I'm having.

So after my 30 hour flight I arrived at Nairobi airport and had to wait another 3 or so hours before we arrived at the place we were staying at. It was just a local home stay with a young family but comfortable enough despite the fact we didn't have running water and had to use a bucket to shower, thank god they had a toilet though!! All part of the experience I guess. So I was absolutely exhausted when I arrived, slept a bit on the plane but definitely not enough. But being the party animal I am, I ended up going out with a group of other volunteers to a club in the city until 3am!! Saturday we just checked out the surrounding area, learnt how to catch local transport and figured out where a few things like supermarkets etc are. So that night went out to an African club with more traditional African music – was unreal, we had the best time learing some new dance moves!! Sunday I received my first kiss in Kenya – from a giraffe, went to a restaurant called carnivore and tried crocodile and ostrich and then went to the local arts and craft markets which was fun. Then proceeded to go out again to a few bars haha so much for not drinking but dont worry ive only had a few so don't stress. And so much for 'not coming to Kenya to party' my first 3 nights I went out, not a bad effort. The family I was staying with before orientation was fantastic, they took us out everywhere. Eddie, our hosts son was heaps of fun, I've got lots of photos and we're planning to stay in touch with them all and go out a bit.

So to tell you a bit about Kenya. I loved it from the minute I arrived. The weather is perfect, warm - hot but not humid so you can wear whatever you want. I have felt comfortable and totally at ease since the beginning which was unexpected, I thought I might have some culture shock but it was all good. The place is hectic and totally chaotic!!! Pot holes everywhere, the driving is crazy (very similar to sri lanka) and there are just people everywhere. They have vans they have converted into taxis known as 'matatus' and they squish up to maybe 20 ppl in. Its crazy lol!! We went for a drive up to the country on Saturday to visit one of the orphanages up there, the countryside is so gorgeous. It is lush and green, rolling hills and you really have to see it to appreciate it. The kids at that orphanage were so happy to see us they all call us 'mazungus' which translates to white person lol!! I guess that quiz about me was right, I am just white lol!

I've made a really good friend – Sara – shes from NY and were planning to do a lot of weekend trips etc together. We are placed together and having heaps of fun because we're so similar. We arrived at our placement last night, we're just outside of Nairobi in one of the better off areas actually. There are a couple of other Americans staying with us and also one Aussie guy which is cool. I'm planning a trip with them this weekend to Uganda which should be interesting. This home stay is great, hot showers and internet so this is more comfortable. Our host mother is known as “MAMA LYDIA”!!

I'm working at the local orphanage with children from 6 months to 5 years old, they are so beautiful but their stories are heartbreaking. Some of the kids parents have died from AIDS, some kids were found in ditches or abandoned after birth and one child was removed from his mother after it was found she was drugging him at 4 months old to keep him sleeping!! It's so horrible but these kids are an inspiration. They are so happy and full of life despite all they've been through. Sara and I are going to be there helping out and taking care of the kids. We are organising some classes and more structured routines for the older kids because they don't have the chance to go to school at this stage. We are trying to teach them basic English and maths so hopefully we can make a bit of a difference in their lives. We are trying to make the most of our time and do the best that we can with what we've been given.

Thats a really really quick run down of what I've been doing. I have been so busy it feels like I've been here for a few weeks at least. I've got a lot planned in the next few weeks so I'll keep you updated. Missing you all so much, wish you could see everything I'm seeing. I'm trying to put up photos as I write this so you can see a bit.

Love you all xoxoxx

Kiara aka the “mazungu”

Waiting in Singapore airport!!!!

kiara19 — Tue, 2 Jun 2009 14:41:00 GMT

Hey everyone,

So I'm definitely on the way for an amazing experience. Was so hard saying goodbye to you all, when I went through to customs in Melbourne it really hit me that I'm actually doing this!!!

I'm currently sitting in the airport in Doha, Quatar which is near Dubai. We arrived here at around 4am and it was 36 degrees outside wooo hooo, I love it!! Flying over Doha with the sun rising was awesome, the whole place looks the one colour – beige! The sand ,buildings, airport but the architechture and overall look is what you imagine the middle east to look like. Very hot, very dusty and monotone lol. I actually managed to get some sleep on the 8 hour flight, feeling probably as refreshed as I could hope for considering I'm so excited every time I try to rest my brain is going at 100 miles an hour.

I'm just excited to get there. I thought I would be nervous, scared, anxious but I'm just pumped which is a really good thing. Met a couple of guys in Singapore who are also traveling through to africa and they've been looking after me – waiting for me and making sure I'm ok. I've got another few hours to wait here and then 5 hour flight to Nairobi...can't imagine what its going to be like. One of the guys I've been talking to is originally from Nairobi and he's been telling me about a few clubs that sound promising :)

haha experiencing some african clubs could be fun, Munjahbe here I come!!

Alrighty then, thats it for now I guess, haven't done that much yet except sit around, hopefully my next blog will be far more interesting and I'll have a few more stories to tell you all.

Love you muchly – ki xoxoxoxoxox