Oloosiyoi

An adventure.. My first youth trip is over.. after many good days and many challenges. The trip obviously started out smooth sailing as we all travelled to Oloosiyoi, a Maasai community where FTC has been working since 2008. As soon as we got there we had a warm welcome from the amazing staff! The first week and a half we stayed around Oloosiyoi, building, interacting with the kids, and seeing the community. The community was amazing everyone we met was kind and gentle. The people were unbelievable.

"My co-facilitator and Felix"

After spending almost a week there I realized how different these people were from those back home. The main difference is a smile. I wonder how many people I pass on the streets in Canada and don’t smile or say hi to? At Oloosiyoi and the majority of FTC’s community’s this is not the case. Smiling is contagious here.Soon it was Safari day, and the rains had come. The roads were muddy and the vehicles were struggling. We finally made it into the conservancy, saw a Cheetah lounging and here we remained for 10 hrs. Our Lorry was stuck in the mud, really stuck. The back-ups tried to come and they got stuck. Our final rescue was out of the movie which involved lights coming in from all angles of the four landcruisers, and our lorry simultaneously being pulled out by the long awaited tractor. It was a day that I will never forget, a true safari adventure. The rest of the trip involved mud, rain and positive attitudes. We made it through the grit and finished on a high note. With the help of the amazing staff, this includes Stanley and our Maasai guide Felix. Big shout outs! You are good men.

Lil Rascals..

My great housemates threw me an early birthday party. The lil rascals had me fooled up until an hour before departure. We went to get some excellent sushi at Onami, and then we proceeded the night festivities at Black Diamond, where we dominated the dance floor. It was extremely nice and unexpected. Great friends!

The last week in Nairobi has been a great break but there is no rest for the wicked.

After some fun and games its back to work, my trip comes in tonight and we head to the Mara tomorrow. My fly in facilitator arrived last night and he is awesome. We are going to make a great team. Everybody keep your fingers crossed from me as I embark on my first lead trip. See ya when I see ya.

P.s Later Dread head!

Kilifi

Aqua colored water, white sand beaches and palm trees that stretch across the blue sky in Toriana, Kilifi, a Me to We property where we just spend the last 5 days. Kilifi is off the Indian Ocean about an hour and a half from Mombasa a coastal town in Kenya.

We were lucky enough to have great weather and activities every day that really allowed all of us to spend quality time with each other. Beach football to swimming in the ocean and beautiful pool it was a much needed break after a month in the Maasai Mara.

A few highlights include the Gede ruins and snorkeling. The Gede Ruins are the remains of a Swahili town from the 13^th or 14^th to the 17^th century. The town consists of a mosque and several stone houses, excavations revealed the town in 1948 and 1949. The ruins were incredible with wells that dropped down hundreds of feet and a smaller filtration system built into the structures walls were breathtaking.

Sadly the break had to end and we flew back to Nairobi to answer e-mails and prep for the chaos of March trips.