Funding +100 USD Sakesh and his brother, +100 USD Round Table Nairobi
Donations made today thanks to Tina Nilsson, Maurizio Bazzi, and Anna Fredriksson.
We woke up in a gated community and went out to help people on our first charity mission.
On Friday, we also got a lot of help from Vikash and Punit Jani in Round Table, Nairobi. Vikash driver Hilary drove us around town on errands, and we also got help with a bunch of passport photos from his shop, to have when we apply for visas further on.
Today we woke up early, unplugged our computers and cellphones and packed quickly. Silently we tiptoed out to the house security gate, which encloses half of Vikash home and makes the family feel safe. We waited for Vikash to open the bars to the rest of the house, also that part has alarm, bars for all the window and all doors. Outside is the garden, enclosed with 3 m high walls, cameras, and a big electronic gate with a constant guard on watch, letting cars in or out of the small gated community of about ten houses. This gated community is a contrast from what we have in Sweden, but we think we may see more of it in the future.
A safari style Land Rover Defender came to pick us up at 5.30 in the morning. We got help from the driver to pack our stuff in, including the two boxes, still containing the bicycles. Good thing the car could open the whole roof so we could fit them both inside. The Land Rover easily took us through Nairobis broken and patched streets, big potholes and enormous speed bumps making every car ride feel liken riding bumper cars in a theme park. We reached the outskirts of Nairobi and stopped in a beautiful tea plantation area. Around 40 4x4 vehicles were gathered for the charity event, www.thegreatrun.org where people donate a good sum of money or buy school suplies or food for a chosen cause and go ride together for nearly two days. The charity also has sponsors who support the cause.
The convoy set of and it was the whole spectrum from great views of lush sceneries, to poor areas where people sell branches or all kinds of things in colorful sheds by the road.
After a few hours on good roads, we arrived at Masai Mara, the land of the Masai people and a park with great animals. When the last of the jeeps in our caravan arrived, we found out one had broken down on the cruel road and another had lost its lower part of the front (the Roo bar). But everybody had got help somehow. Next to the entrance we stopped and stepped out, waited for the others and while doing so we met the beautiful and colorful Masai people. They warmly welcomed us and sold us beautiful pearl bracelets, too difficult to resist, so we gave in and decorated ourselves.
The chosen home for the event, the Olmalaika Home, a home and school for about 40 young girls who ran from their home, some taken from there family to protect them from the horrendous tradition of FGM (female genital mutilation) or to save them from underage marriage. It was a nice place, simple but very well maintained.
The convoy left boxes of food, and we left 4 boxes of school material and medicine, from Maurizio, Tina and Anna. We also left 100 $ in cash for their weekly car deliveries and paying their staff (teachers, cooks and security). The goods were delivered and then the girls sang for us. This was a great day, it was a proud moment to deliver the goods from our friends back in Sweden. And we feel like doing more, we would highly recommend taking part of this wonderful charity event that is The Great Run and takes place twice every year. It is a car race (to be honest, mor of a car caravan) to a specific place that is also a charity event. The organizers decide a place near the goal of the run (usually a school) to support with what the participants and sponsors gather before the
The convoy left boxes of food, and we left 4 boxes of school material and medicine, from Maurizio, Tina and Anna. We also left 100 $ in cash for their weekly car deliveries and paying their staff (teachers, cooks and security). The goods were delivered and then the girls sang for us.
This was a great day, it was a proud moment to deliver the goods from our friends back in Sweden. And we feel like doing more, we would highly recommend taking part of this wonderful charity event that is The Great Run and takes place twice every year. It is a car race (to be honest, mor of a car caravan) to a specific place that is also a charity event. The organizers decide a place near the goal of the run (usually a school) to support with what the participants and sponsors gather before the race. After saying goodbye to the people at the Olmalaika Home, we went on a tremendous safari, showing some of Africas coolest and greatest wildlife, which we will tell more about tomorrow.
