Teacup Café XXXVII

[Mari]

Originally Posted by The last sane person

...Bloody Norsemen.

I didn't want to say it, but...

[Varnafindë]

Originally Posted by Coffeehouse

Incidentally tommorrow is the 1 year anniversary for Varnafindë who, in a rare coincidence became the second Norwegian to join Entmoot in less than 24 hours. I say.. the 16th and 17th of April are truly the days of the Norman invasion!

Is it? I had forgotten. I'd better look at my date of joining when I've posted this.
I believe we increased the percentage of Norwegian population at the Moot considerably those days

Originally Posted by The last sane person

...Bloody Norsemen.

Originally Posted by Mari

I didn't want to say it, but...

I'll celebrate tomorrow.

[Varnafindë]

*looks around at the empty cafe*
*celebrates*

[Mari]

*toasts*
Congrats!

[Earniel]

Is this a private party, or may we all join in?

Congrats on surviving your first year!

[Aikanáro]

Congratulations, Varna!

Ah Kenya... *sigh* memories... most coolest place in all of Africa. Kimuka? I'm guessing volunteers work in some way or another?

Indeed! I'll be teaching a primary school class - the equivalent to year 1 in the UK. It doesn't actually open until May, so at the moment I'm attempting to help with English teaching in the secondary school here.

Now I do expect some pics at some point of course...

Sure, but you'll have to wait until I get home, I don't have any way to upload! I do have a nice closeup of a giraffe we spotted on the way home from school and just had to make a detour to see.

Hey Aika, if you still got a spare moment in Nairobi, go to David Sheldrick Foundation elephant orphanage and see the big-eared cuties play in the mudbaths. It's quite a sight!

And if you do, tell them hi from me and that I'll be there one day myself.

That sounds fantastic! I'll probably be back in Nairobi for a day or two before I fly home, so I'll try to get there.

Getting to my placement was a bit crazy. Our matatu (mini-bus type thing) kept overheating, so we had to stop by the side of the road several times. Then it started raining. Really heavily - and we slipped off the road and into the muddy ditch at the side. So we had to try to get passing cars to stop and help us. It was about an hour later that we managed to push it back onto the road. We were *very* late! But it was quite an experience, all the same!

Everyone's really nice over here, and my host family are brilliant. Oh, and Maasai tea is in fact even better than English tea. I'm happy.

[Mari]

That sounds wonderful! And quite the experience. Makes you appreciate good cars and roads.

Does your host family speak English somewhat, or is it working with your hands and feet?

[Noble Elf Lord]

The party is happily over. No bad incidents, no damages to items and most importantly, no corpses. Except that I propably look like a corpse, but that's nothing new.

Yay! I found Nightwish's old cd:s in a store (12,90 €/cd), bought two, and today I'll be buying two more! ( Which results in my wallet being empty )

Well. How iz everyone? O.o

[Mari]

Weeeell... I'm recovering from last week But doing pretty good actually. I'm working some ideas out I had for teaching. The last week of my internship I have to teach a whole week and full-time too, so I was thinking of doing a theme week and do all sorts of classes revolving around that theme: foreign languages, exercising games, math, art, geography.
I think they will make some lovely things. I just have to make sure everyone can participate even at their different levels.
At the moment I am doubting between dividing the class in groups according to their ability and giving each level a different assignment or mixing the levels and making it into a group exercise so they all have to help eachother.

Sorry, I'm rambling again.
Anyways, I need to get to the library and hand in my books or pay a fine.

[Coffeehouse]

Originally Posted by Aikanáro

Indeed! I'll be teaching a primary school class - the equivalent to year 1 in the UK. It doesn't actually open until May, so at the moment I'm attempting to help with English teaching in the secondary school here.

Good on you! I have a friend who did the same just south of the border in Tanzania. She spent 6 months there and had a blast!

Originally Posted by Aikanáro

Getting to my placement was a bit crazy. Our matatu (mini-bus type thing) kept overheating, so we had to stop by the side of the road several times. Then it started raining. Really heavily - and we slipped off the road and into the muddy ditch at the side. So we had to try to get passing cars to stop and help us. It was about an hour later that we managed to push it back onto the road. We were *very* late! But it was quite an experience, all the same!

Ah hehe.. matatus. I think you'll see that it won't be the last time this happens to you. And don't worry, time is a highly relative term in Kenya

Originally Posted by Mari

Does your host family speak English somewhat, or is it working with your hands and feet?

Most Kenyans speak excellent English being that it is a former English colony...

[Aikanáro]

Ah hehe.. matatus. I think you'll see that it won't be the last time this happens to you. And don't worry, time is a highly relative term in Kenya

I'm beginning to get that impression. I asked when the matatu I need to catch to get home leaves and got the answer 'sometime between 3 and 5'

And you're right, most people speak incredibly good English. Which is good for me, because my knowledge of Swahili is pretty limited so far, and my host family have Kimaasai as a first language, and that seems *very* irregular and difficult to learn. I'm trying though!

Also - Nightwish rock.

[Coffeehouse]

Originally Posted by Aikanáro

I'm beginning to get that impression. I asked when the matatu I need to catch to get home leaves and got the answer 'sometime between 3 and 5'

Sawa sawa!

Originally Posted by Aikanáro

And you're right, most people speak incredibly good English. Which is good for me, because my knowledge of Swahili is pretty limited so far, and my host family have Kimaasai as a first language, and that seems *very* irregular and difficult to learn. I'm trying though!

You'll learn Swahili in a flash I guarantee it! It's one of the easiest languages in the world to learn, though I may have had an advantage as its way of pronounciation is quite similar to Norwegian..

If you need any advice as to good places to go out on weekends, places to eat or the best coffee (Dormans!) then fire away or pm me I'll be mooooooooore than happy to help Go Kenya!

[Varnafindë]

Originally Posted by Eärniel

Is this a private party, or may we all join in?

Congrats on surviving your first year!

It wasn't meant to be a private party

Thanks for coming, all of you - eventually

Aika, it seems you're about to have a great time - I'm happy for you

[Acalewia]

I'll be hitting four years soon. I'll have to check the date though.

How's everyone

[Pip]

Apparently I've been here for 7 years.
Ugg, I'm getting sick again *pours a cup of Early grey* Other than that things are ok. It snowed and rained for the past three days I love it.

[Acalewia]

It rained here all day. I think my calla lily drowned, but we'll have to wait and see.

[Pip]

My sympathies. I really hope it didn't. I think my cilantro froze. The one thing I don't like about the snow at this time of year is it makes it really hard when to know when to plant stuff.

[Tessar]

Originally Posted by Pip

Apparently I've been here for 7 years.
Ugg, I'm getting sick again *pours a cup of Early grey* Other than that things are ok. It snowed and rained for the past three days I love it.

Isn't it weird to think we've been around here that long? O_o

[Earniel]

It's like Hotel Calinfornia for us, you can check out any time you like but you can never leave!

[Rían]

hmm, how long have I been here?

*posts*

edit- ah, almost 7 years!