MEAT:
well, i must say that if i had to spend thanksgiving apart from y'all, then the next best thing was the way i spent last night. victor, jane, and i went to eat at carnivore. we didn't tell jane where we were taking her, so i think it was a pretty fun suprise for her. carnivore is known to be one of the 50 best restaurants in the world (at least that's what i read somewhere), and i'd say it lives up to the hype. i didn't know much of what to expect so that made it even better. i think if we tried to live without expectations we'd be happier people and get much more excited about things.
anyway, the place is very african safari looking, with all the waiters wearing african print tops in brown colors. the light fixtures are all made of guords that have holes drilled in them to let out the light (super artsy, i loved it). there is a set menu; so you eat what they bring you. first was some sort of fried cornbreadish something with guacamole. then bread and soup. then they bring out this pyramid thing of different sauces for you to eat with each kind of meat. then a baked potato (very exciting, as this is NOT something kenyans eat) with SOUR CREAM...i don't even eat sour cream on my potato, but i did last night b/c i haven't had it for 5 months. then comes the meat. there are lots of waiters who just walk around cutting off various types of meat for you to try...chicken, ostrich, lamb, crocodile, beef, turkey (victor's favorite and first time to try it; very appropriate as it was thanksgiving), and pork. i really liked the ostrich, both the plain kind and the ostrich meatball. and whatever kind of sausage we had was amazing. when you've had your fill of meat, you put the little carnivore flag from the pyramid down. then they bring dessert, which you get to choose. i had cheesecake, which tasted more like custard but was still very good. victor had pineapple pie (he was a bit confused as to why it was served warm) and jane had the blondie brownie with ice cream. there was live music and african dancing towards the end of the meal, and this was the first time i've seen more than 10 mzungus in one day (the restaurant was packed with them). victor spotted some important parliament government person leaving with a group of chinese people. so yeah it was pretty sweet and i'm so glad that victor and jane got to come along. victor had said something to me a while back about how he'd given directions for lots of MSTs to get to carnivore but had never been there himself. it was definitely a day to thank God for ....for the food, the people, and for a phone call from people from home. and we took a taxi home (much safer at that hour) and whenever i'm in a car i'm always thankful that i get to wear a seatbelt...seriously, i mean i never wear one in a matatu, so little things get me excited.
Policemen:
our matatu got pulled over on the way to town today. the cop took away the keys, so pretty much we were stranded. the conductor tells everyone something in swahili and people start getting out. i assumed i'd have to walk the rest of the way into town. that would have been a long walk and i was only about 75% sure of where to go. i followed everyone else that got out (a favorite strategy of mine). and fortunately the conductor found us a new matatu, paid the driver for the rest of our ride, and we made it safely to town. that was really nice of him b/c usually they just leave you on the side of the road to fend for yourself.
Peanut butter:
today i was at BOLM. it was one of the best days there. popo, alex, rodgers, and eric did the mandazi skit...have i mentioned this before? it was hilarious as always. we talked to them about thanksgiving and thanking God for our blessings. then we played that silly turkey game again. afterwards i taught the kids to make no bake cookies. they got to have them with milk later, which was quite a treat. most of them have never tasted peanut butter. so i went around and put a spoonful on each of their fingers (we didn't have any bread). they all got to try it and loved it. i'm thinking we'll have to make pb&j one of these days. then i brought beads for them to make jewelry with. they are amazing and know how to make all kinds of cool bracelets and rings. they taught me to make this braclet with all these loopy circle looking things. seriously, you could sell this stuff in the u.s. at the end they burn the ends of the string so the bracelet won't fall apart. only i was wearing the bracelet and it wouldn't go over my wrist. so steven, one of the boys, brings this burning coal and holds it close to my wrist to burn the ends. it was so hot, so naturally i started yelling. quite funny. rodgers and i stayed and ate githeri with them. they seemed quite happy to see me eating mwafrika (african) food. i kept teasing zekayo (my favorite little boy) b/c he is always smiling. i asked him if he could make a sad face. but he couldn't and just kept laughing and i thought maybe he would choke on his maize. part of me wonders how i'll ever be able to leave these kids. they are so precious and appreciative. i feel so fulfilled going there and just loving them as christ would. can i please stuff a few into my suitcase?
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