It’s the morning of our third day here in Nyeri and we’re getting ready to head out into the field again. But before we do we wanted to post an update from yesterday (as internet is a little hard to come by here). Yesterday we spent the entire day out in the field visiting more of Kiini’s programs and groups that did a large variety of different activities to support themselves.

We visited a women’s group who has learned to make milking jelly that they use for their skin and hands. They hope to be able to sell once they can make enough of it. We also got to hear stories from them on how the loans through Kiini have helped them improve their quality of living and be able to become self sufficient.

After that we visited a group of women who have been working on agri-business ventures. They were able to buy rabbits, goats and chickens through a micro-loan they received through Kiini. Now they have been able to buy and sell their livestock to increase their profits and grow their business.

We then visited the ‘Young Shakers’ group where the men have been baking cakes and have built a business selling them to local vendors to turn a profit.

Lastly we visited a man who has started a mushroom growing business and taught us the complicated farming methods involved in growing mushrooms in almost complete darkness.

It was a great day and we saw some really amazing stories and some really resourceful people, all of whom were touched by Kiini’s commitment to the community. I can’t wait to begin to put some videos together to show you guys!

As for today…it’s currently pouring down rain…should be interesting!

One of the staff for Kiini, Philip, as we wait to start the interviews of the women of the Mutirithia Ladies group.

The Mutirithia Ladies showing us the process of making milking jelly.

Melting the wax for the milking jelly.

They let Jessi try some, and then gave her a jar of her own to keep!

This is Sam, our wonderfully talented driver…

…It really wasn’t his fault that we got a flat tire. The roads are very bumpy and rocky here

This is Jane, one of the women who has become an entrepreneur in rabbit farming thanks to the help she received through Kiini.

These are some of the rabbits from Jane’s rabbit farm.

Some of the children who live near Jane.

These are Jane’s grandchildren.

Another group who has received help through Kiini.

One of the Young Shakers who has built his business selling cakes.

A Young Shaker making cakes.

Timothy Kamau, the mushroom farmer.

Our first day here in Nyeri with KIINI was a good one. We got into Nyeri around 10:00 and hit the ground running. After a few meetings here at the office, we loaded up the car and headed out to the first site, which was one of the squatter camps that KIINI works with.

We spent a while interviewing, shooting video and photographing a group of women who live in makeshift homes on land that they don’t own. There’s a law that says if you live on land that isn’t yours for 7 years it becomes yours, so the land owners, who charge the women rent to have their homes there, will force them to move every 5 or 6 years and destroy their homes to keep from having to give them the land.

KIINI has been working with these women through their microcredit loans to try and help them reach a place where they can afford to purchase some land of their own and begin to build more permanent lives.

After the day was done we went back to the Chairman of KIINI’s home and got some rest (although a combination of ‘The West Wing’ and jet lag kept us up pretty late!). It’s now the beginning of day two and we’re getting ready to head out into the field again! Stay tuned for more updates and enjoy some of our photos from day one!

Two of the women living in the squatters camp.

One of the grandchildren of one of the squatters living at the camp.

We were able to interview a woman named Priscilla who spoke of her challenges living as a squatter and how Kiini is empowering her to overcome these challenges.

The group walking to the next site.

Another squatter settlement.  They aren’t allowed to build their houses past a certain height so they dig down into the ground to make their roofs lower.

Women outside of their temporary homes at the squatters settlement.

The inside of this woman’s home is no bigger than a typical american walk-in closet.  She shares it with her family and her goats.

Another one of the women in the squatter’s camp.

This woman is watering seedlings that the government has given her to take care of in exchange for allowing her to live here.  Once the seedlings are grown she will be asked to leave.  This is called the ‘Shamba’ system.

This man is also living under the Shamba system.

Two grandchildren of one of the woman at the squatter’s camp.

Jessi and a cute puppy that she found outside of one of the squatter’s homes.

A man painting one of the buildings at a school where Kiini has helped to renovate the school by building latrines.

Some children that we passed on the way to a therapy group for people living with HIV.

One of the children of a woman who is HIV positive.

A group therapy session for people who are HIV positive.  These people come from all over the region to support each other.

So in honor of our story telling tonight I wanted to post an image from the body of work that I’ve been editing through lately. I’m really excited about wrapping this stuff up and getting it to TSC so that we can start sharing some of the stories with you guys, but until then, here are the pyramids. I hope to see you all out here tomorrow night!

To view it larger click HERE

This evening I left my team for the first time since departing from JFK to head across Cairo and rendezvous with the second team, the medical team.  The plans have shifted back and forth several times (as is typical of a mission trip) and resulted in our faithful travel guide, Yassir, taking me across town to a coffee shop where I was to meet Sandra (the medical team host) and find my way to the home I was to stay at.

The original plan was for me to take a taxi across town alone, and although I was a bit apprehensive about my inability to speak or understand Arabic, I have to admit I was a little excited about a few moments of solitude that a taxi ride through a foreign city who’s language I don’t speak was sure to bring.

But with the change of plans I ended up riding with Yassir, a welcomed companion to my traffic clogged journey.

We ended up talking the entire time about many things and I got to really hear his heart and learn a little more about him as a person and not just my driver.

Listening to him talk about what it’s like to be a Christian living in a Muslim world, hearing about how difficult that makes it for him to visit other countries and to travel at all…how hard he has to work and how his long and constantly changing hours don’t allow him the time that he’d like with his family…made me think…

I have it good.  We have it good.

Just wanted to get that out of my head.  Yassir spoke of times when Muslim extremists have killed christians, started riots and fights, and broken into churches to persecute them.  He wears the Christian mark, a small cross tattooed on his hand, that is typical of christians in Egypt.  A mark that he says has caused him much discrimination in his life.<

Just keep that in mind when you whine about something.  I whine a lot.

Here are some shots from today…much love as always.

-S

Some shots of our trip to the wadi out in the desert:

One of the conference rooms at a prayer school we visited:

The desert through the van window:

We stopped at a McDonald’s right out of the desert…I had a Kit-Kat mcflurry…so so good:

This is Yassir:

This is the traffic here:

Shot of our hotel from the street below:

And the street below:

Sleepy.  Loving Cairo.  TSC is doing some awesome work.  God is doing some Awesome work.  Here are some shots…more soon.

-S