Kenyan Food

Realized I never posted this from last year....Here's a little insight into Kenyan cuisine:

Food. It's a pretty big deal. A couple weeks ago my students experienced cooking and eating some Kenyan foods. Here's what went down:

So, the room was divided up into stations for the kids to visit. They were armed with a plate, fork, and a cup of chai. Chai is a very popular Kenyan drink since it's grown right here. It's tea, milk, and sugar. Then, off they went from station to station learning about some popular Kenyan foods.

One of the stations had the 4th graders make mukimo. It's a dish with mashed potatoes, corn kernals, and peas. You can check out the pictures and can tell there are other ingredients in it as well.

Students worked hard to remove the kernels from the corn. Coincidentally corn tastes very different than what I'm accustomed to; it's definitely not as sweet.

Githiri is another dish that involves corn and beans. You simply put these things together, along with whatever other vegetables you like and boil them up. 

One of the basic staples is ugali. It's a cornmeal + water dish and doesn't have much taste on its own. Although it looks like mashed potatoes, you can cut it with a knife. It's very filling, but you wouldn't want to eat it by itself. Cover it with some kind of sauce or here, sukuma wiki (think greens). 

At another station kids got to make rice, or pilau. Most were a fan of mashing up the garlic.

 All these ingredients were added to the rice, along with other spices, to make it nice and tasty. Also, meat was added in.

You can see the rice on the plates- its light brown. Students also enjoyed watermelon! 

Another Kenyan staple is chapati. It's round and flat; for those back in Florida, think tortillas. Chapati is good for soaking up juices and a vehicle for all the other foods to get to your mouth. 

Students got to roll out the dough and form the chapati.

Um.....bless their hearts.

 In Uganda we ate a delicious breakfast meal: Rolex. Basically you take a chapati, then accompany it with a thick layer of scrambled egg. Rolled Eggs turns into Rolex. It's a great on-the-go meal and we even had the fortune of stopping by Uganda's No. 1 Chapati Company. Since we had no time to spare, we missed the cooking lessons. Next time.

I was quite delighted with my Nutella and banana chapati. Delicious!

For those of you wondering if this is what I eat all the time- it's not. I'm a fan of stir fry, fajitas, sandwiches, and other easy to make wonders along with all the fresh fruits and veggies found here.

Since I originally wrote this, a Subway has opened up just a few minutes away. We also enjoy ordering pizza for delivery and going to Ethiopian restaurants.

Taking my New Wheels to the Tea Fields

I'm now officially the owner of a '99 Rav4! This is so exciting, because it means more independence and opportunities to get out of the city and explore more of this beautiful country. When your classroom is literally a 2 minute walk from your house and you live and work on the same campus, sometimes you just need to be able to get away for a little bit.

Enjoying the full service at the gas station.

So far I've mostly taken little trips to the mall near us to get groceries or to go out and get coffee. This weekend though, as part of our efforts to get out of town more, a group of friends traveled out to enjoy lunch in the tea fields.

Seriously, Crayola should make a box of green shades inspired by tea fields.

This particular farm has a gorgeous flower garden that attracts all kinds of birds. The food was delicious- I particularly love the pumpkin casserole that is creamy with some kind of cereal on top.

Although I'm a little nervous about driving out on the Kenyan roads sprinkled with potholes and crammed with animals, carts, pedestrians, and crazy matatus (buses), I'm so excited about the opportunities having a car will bring.

New School Year!

Well, I've been back in Kenya for about a month now. We've made it through four weeks of school already, and I am very much enjoying second grade. I've got a class full of sweet, rambunctious, bright learners. It amazing to think of all the places these kids have lived and the experiences some of them have had at the age of 7 or 8. I am blessed to be their teacher.

Here's a little peak into my AMAZING camping classroom, complete with a LOFT (YAY!):

Ready for S'more learning!

Classroom library in the corner over there.

Everyone loves the loft- perfect for curling up with a good book!

View from the loft

Another view from the loft

My desk and the Smart Board.

View from the back of the room.

So that's where I spend a lot of time! All these pics were before school started, so it looks even more lived-in and cozy.

You can be praying for my students to feel safe, loved, and excited to be at school and in our classroom. Lift up their families and the work that they do here- it's incredible to hear how God is using these ministries in Kenya and East Africa. Also, pray for those students and families who are not yet believers, that they may come to know Christ. You can ask God to fill me with patience and love for these kiddos, to build great relationships with them and their families, and to have lots of energy in the next couple weeks as I take on some more responsibilities. I love my job and I'm so thankful to teach here.

Thanks so much for all the well wishes, support, and encouragement. It's great to know you have friends and family in your corner, rootin' for you.

-Sarah