my first blog post that isn't directly transcribed from my journal...

i got an A on my first writing assignment for my african history class! maybe that will make up for the B+ i got on my swahili exam... but i will continue to try to improve. ninajaribu sana!

i am getting to know lydia, my family's house help, better and better. she told me about how her mother is from uganda, how she's actually 25 ( i thought she was 16...) and has two children who live with her mother on the border between kenya and uganda. she earns about $1.75 per day, most of which goes to buying her children clothes and food. she works so hard, i've never seen this kind of work ethic. on saturday she taught me how to make chapatis outside on a pan over charcoals. she also showed me how to make ugali. i prefer chapati... ugali is like mashed potatoes, but with the grain being rice-like, not like potatoes. chapatis are delicious fried flat breads, like tortillas but ten times better. on sunday afternoon i cooked macaroni and cheese for my host family. i know lydia really liked it, and my host parents seemed to like it pretty well. it was hard! there is no wondra flour here, so i had to make a roux for the first time, and the cheese is interesting. and i had to make stewed tomatoes from scratch. but it worked alright. and it was definitely a comfort. after that, lydia took me to the market nearby-- there were SO MANY things there-- dried fish, jewelry, beads, clothing, shoes, and so many random things. she helped me bargain. i bought her a shirt as a thank-you. then we visited her brother for a couple hours. she keeps all her clothes there, except for a few, in case my host mother fires her (happened once, so now she's prepared).

tomorrow we visit the university of nairobi and a museum. on sunday we leave for mombasa. it will be a nine hour drive. after this week, i will not have much internet access.

hope you are all well.