Girls Night, New Car, Conferences... oh my!

This week has been intensely busy. I have been attending the E Learn Africa Conference in Nairobi, at the swanky Safari Park Hotel. I presented, alongside my colleagues from the Open University UK on TESSA (Teacher Education for Sub Saharan Africa)- the main project I am working on. We had about 70 attendees and the feedback was very good! All in all a great success!


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Now for the fun stuff. Last weekend Dana and I hosted a Tapas Girl's Night! Tapas are fairly time consuming and I think we realized that halfway through the evening, but still it was a fun time- lots of laughs and stories. See pictures below:

Tia, Anne Marie, me, Sandra

Anne Marie, Tia, Kevina

Mel, Dana, Kevina

And lastly in other news! I bought a car! It is an old Pajero and I love it. Check it out :)


For more pictures go to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/amandainkenya/

Photos from the UK

Here are my pictures from the UK:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/amandainkenya/sets/72157600263653424/

Where in the world?

My friend, Glenn, had a post recently on his blog that highlighted the geography of where people were accessing his blog. I thought that was pretty cool so I decided to check it out on my own blog, here are the results:

Americas: 441

Africa: 17

Asia: 5


Europe: 97

Oceania: 9

Back to life... back to reality... yah!

Since returning to Nairobi, all cultural events have been on hold with my flat mates and I. We have been watching the DVDs I bought in the UK constantly- Sunday afternoon, Monday evening, and take 3 tonight :) Guess we were in need of some Will Ferrell remedy!

It is great to be back home and to know that in just 4 weeks I get to see everyone in PEI!

This week is full of reconnecting with friends in Nairobi. Friday night Dana and I are hosting a "girls night". She has a friend coming from Canada to visit so it will be a nice introduction for her friend, who is here for 2 weeks.

One of the things I missed most about Nairobi was my work lunch! We have a lunch buffet behind our office, which is nicely located by a pool. For less an $1 USD I can get a full meal, and great Kenyan food! My mouth is already watering for today's lunch!

Pictures from my UK trip will be up later this week- they didn't turn out as well as I had hoped, probably because I was always juggling an umbrella, my purse, and my camera...

Roundabout... Roundavomit

Milton Keynes, where I am currently, has over 300 roundabouts. So far I think I have encountered about 200 of them and each time I am in the car I feel nauseous....

London

London is great!! I love the bustling city, the people... and yes even the rain. I arrived yesterday morning and after settling into my hotel went out to see the town. I decided to take a long walk through Hyde Park since I had been sitting on the plane for 8 hours and it was beautiful- lots of people out and about, strolling through the park. I love parks in cities- such a nice "break" for people that live in the city to enjoy some greenery. I then decided to hit Oxford Street, which is right near my hotel and just happens to be a great street for shopping! Compared to Spain, the prices seemed to be reasonable and comparable to what I would pay for things in Canada. One of my first stops was to buy some DVD's for our house in Kenya. There was a GREAT deal on DVD's so I walked away with: "Little Miss Sunshine", "Stranger than Fiction", "Sideways", "Anchorman", and "Old School". I think my flat mates will be pleased with my purchases :)

I then decided to go for lunch at Marks and Spencer. Had a little "run- in" at Marks and Spencer though. I was in line- next to pay, and I noticed that the 2nd cashier was free, so I walked over to him to pay. He said that I cut in line from the back and that I had to go back to the end of the line (about 30 people long) to wait my turn. I said "No- I was the next in line". He then said "but I saw you cut in line"... and I said "No- ask her!" So I pointed to the old woman who was behind me- she was probably in her 70's... at first she just looked blank- no help at all, and I said "You saw me... I was in front of you." Thankfully she finally decided to speak and said "Yes, she was in front of me." Ugh... the whole thing was embarrassing and now Marks and Spencer cafeteria is on my s*&t list.

After that episode I walked some more, stopped for a pint in a pub, and spent the rest of the afternoon strolling through Oxford and Soho- it was great. In the evening I went to see the musical "Fame"- only to discover that they sing the famous song once and for about 5 minutes- slightly disappointed. Overall it was alright, but I think I should have stuck to the classics- like "Les Mis"...ah well- live and learn.

This morning I am off to a couple of museums and then catching the train to Milton Keynes.

Happy Mother's Day to all the great moms out there!!

A plug for lastminute.com

So I have a weekend in London coming up before I head to meetings in Milton, Keynes at the Open University, UK.

Staying in London for a weekend is NOT cheap, especially when you want easy access to the tube, museums, theatre, restaurants, etc. However thanks to lastminute.com I will be staying at the BEAUTIFUL 4 STAR RADISSON HOTEL near Hyde Park :) ... for 66 pounds! I am more than thrilled about this!! Check it out!

Back in Nairobi!

The best part of going away is returning to Nairobi. I always find myself excited about returning to Nairobi after being away. I think it is the combination of my home, friends, and the general environment that I miss when I am away. At times I feel more comfortable in the chaos of Africa.

Santander is a coastal city, beach resort town which has great hotels lined along the coast line and excellent tapas. The sun does not set until 10:00 pm which fits right in with the Spanish culture of eating supper at 9:30 pm. Culturally, I think cities like Barcelona, Madrid and Bilbao offer a bit more than Santander, but I am sure that Santander beats all other cities in the heat of the summer.

I returned Saturday night and met up with a friend, then lazed around Sunday enjoying catching up with other friends via text, phone calls and emails. I head to London on Friday night for one week and although I was originally looking forward to another European trip I must say that I wouldn’t mind staying at home a bit longer before heading out on the road… but I shouldn’t complain- isn’t this what I wanted? Travel, work, time alone to experience parts of the world?

I have posted some pictures of my trip to Spain… you can check them out here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/amandainkenya

Last day in Spain

The meetings are officially over in Spain and I have one full day left to enjoy the tapas, vino, architecture, art, etc... however it is POURING rain!! Chilly and wet... not a great combination.

The purpose behind my coming to Spain was to attend the Open Course Ware Consortium meeting. I thoroughly enjoyed the meetings and found them extremely relevant to what I am working on in Kenya. I caught myself at one point realizing that I was talking about my project and the principles and values of Open Course Ware well into the night. When I told this to someone at the conference she said ¨"Well it looks like you have found your calling". Hmmm... I think I always wanted to my calling to something exotic and adventurous-like kayaking, or writing a book... not exactly educational technology. But in a way she was right- I was completely engaged for the 2 full days of meetings and perhaps this is what I am meant to do... hopefully in other capacities throughout my career but definitely something to think about.

Well I think I will go off in the rain and attempt to find indoor refuge!

Espana hace frio!!

I am in Spain and my first reaction is that it is FREEZING! Yesterday it was 12 C , cold, and rainy. I have come to realize that just because I live close to the equator does not mean that the rest of the world does. I have definitely become spoiled to Kenyan weather, but today I am layering it up and heading out with a new outlook on the weather!

Aside from the weather, Santander is great! The city is small and very much a beach resort town where surf shops line the streets and surfers are out in the water even at 12 C! I am sure this place is hopping during the summer months. I have mastered the bus route throughout the city- basically I jump on any bus that seems to go in my direction since I find it too cold to stand outside waiting for the bus... hehe... thankfully it has worked to my benefit!

I walked around the city center yesterday, looking in shops- appalled at the cost of clothes- and enjoyed cafe con leche in small cafes while reading my book. It was an ideal way to spend my free day before the conference activities begin. Last night I went out for tapas and vino with a great view of the sea from my table. Ahh... bliss.

Today I have a free morning before I meet with the conference planning committee at 2 pm. Tomorrow the meetings begin and I am looking forward to the schmoozing ahead!