One of my favorite things about living on this side of the world is that you rarely go a day without something weird or amusing happening. You can always find someone being far too ambitious in what they have put on the back of their bicycle or you pass a shop with a creative name such as ‘Stress Reliever Café’ to make your day somewhat entertaining. However out here in the middle of the bush those moments occur less often. I find that I am more amazed by the wildlife than I am by anything else. At night we often hear lions, hyenas, elephant, owls, zebras and buffalo. When I get up to feed Corinne all the noises of the bush keep me alert and intrigued. Just a week ago we could hear buffalo munching on the grass directly around our house all night long and in the morning we opened our door to find five beautiful bulls watching us. We really didn’t bother them as they continued to eat their fill and slowly retreat further into the bush. I also keep my binoculars and bird book handy wherever I am so that I can continue to identify birds that I have never seen before. It may sound like a boring hobby to some of you but I challenge you to come and visit us and not get addicted to the bird life here.

Other than new bids and occasional animal visitors, our days at home are rather quiet. The camp that we are living in is still having the finishing touches done to it so there are a number of guys pounding and welding during the day which keeps us company. They are still working on the hot water and solar power but all the rest of the construction has been completed. I have been trying to use cloth diapers for Corinne as much as possible but it’s a little more difficult to keep up with when you don’t have a washer. So when we moved down here we brought a washer with us to set up in the camp. When we got it here we realized that it wouldn’t fit into the storeroom where it was supposed to be set up so we have had the guys make a small platform and covered area for it. The washer has not been a priority so right now we just have a washer sitting outside looking a little out of place. Last week the washer was set up enough to actually put a load in, however I didn’t realize that the drain hose wasn’t installed properly. So I started the machine and went back to the house to let it go through its cycles. About five minutes after it started, one of the workers came and told me that it wasn’t working. So I picked up Corinne who was only in her diaper and we went to see what was going wrong. It took everything in me not to laugh out loud as I realized that all work had stopped in the camp so that they could figure out what the problem was with this new machine. It didn’t even occur to me that most of these guys had never seen a washing machine before. So there I was trying to read the manual and inspect the machine that was surrounded by a crowd of bewildered construction workers. The whole time I was trying not to laugh at the image of this crazy white woman with a half dressed baby on her hip and her new fancy machine. Somehow collectively we figured it out and the machine is running beautifully. The only problem now is that the guys are so fascinated with it that it’s hard to stop them from pushing the buttons and resetting the cycles. Every night before they go, until there is a proper cover for it, they lovingly wrap the machine up in an old mattress and a piece of plastic to keep the dirt and sun off of it until I’m ready to use it again.

Well I think we are settled. Some of our boxes are unpacked and others have been unpacked and repacked into other boxes until we get some more furniture to hold everything. Our little house is fantastic and perfect for us. It will be home for a few months until other housing comes available. There are four small houses like ours in a small research camp that is being built to host researchers. We are the first to move in so we are working out the bugs – literally! The camp is about 12kms from the main office which means that we get a small game drive everyday to and from the office. I’m sure that will bring many adventures to our day. Not too many people have to watch out for elephants on their drive to work.

Corinne is settling in great. She has endured the cold temperatures at Bryan’s parents house (cold being 10-15 degrees)
and now coping with the heat of Tsavo (hot being 30-35 degrees). It’s hard to believe that she is 4 months old today. She is enjoying all the attention and often I have to go looking for her because someone has taken her to show her off. It’s great to see how well she makes friends and smiles at everyone. We made a grocery run into the nearest town this weekend and when we walked into the shop everyone stopped to see the adorable little white baby. I like to think that she is a show stopper because she is so cute but it’s probably because they are shocked at what a neglectful mother I am to not have her dressed in a hat, sweater and socks no matter how hot it is.

It is so great to be here on many levels and we are excited about the adventures that living and working here will bring. Now we just need some visitors …

Where in the World are We?!

Corinne Leona Adkins

She finally arrived! After threatened preterm labor at 33 weeks and days of false labor that would come and go little Corinne finally decided to make her appearance. She arrived at 6:23 pm on January 21, 2012. She is a perfect bundle weighing 7 pounds 9 ounces and 20 inches long. She couldn't be more perfect. Bryan and I are very proud and blessed parents.

After all the hassle of the last few months she made a quick entry into the world. I woke up on Saturday morning with some cramps - which was not out of the ordinary. My Mom, sister and I had a lunch date planned so we enjoyed a nice lunch out even though I was having some significant contractions the entire time. We have had weeks of ups and downs wondering if the contractions I was experiencing were the real deal or not so I wasn't too concerned with these ones. I got home from lunch and Bryan and I started timing the contractions to see if they were regular or not. Even though they were only coming seven minutes apart, they were getting stronger so we decided to head into the hospital. Once we got to the hospital and checking in they were coming about three minutes apart. So they took us into the triage area and it looked like this was still going to take a while. I was only 3-4 centimeters dilated and I guess I didn't look like I was in enough pain so they made the suggestion that we walk around for a couple of hours. Bryan kind of laughed and assured the nurse that this was going to happen sooner than she thought. So the nurse left and got caught up with the many other laboring women that sounded like they were in more pain than I was. This was a good thing because by the time they returned 15 minutes later to check on me I was making the appropriate pain sounds and I was already 6 centimeters. They quickly got me to a labor and delivery room and the rest proceeded just as quickly. We arrived at the hospital at just after 4pm and this sweet little girl was born just two hours after. I guess that makes up for the months of false labor that lead up to the actual delivery.

Corrine Leona Adkins was born with all her perfect fingers and toes and as healthy as can be. She has been a complete delight as we learn how to be parents and adjust to the around the clock schedule that a newborn demands. As we are learning these new skills we are also preparing to pack and travel back to the other side of the world on February 19th. Our first stop will be Kenya to see family and friends before we reach our final destination of Zambia. As much as Bryan and I try to be prepared for the future, life always seems to throw us curve balls. Just as we thought we were heading back to Kenya to work with the company Bryan worked for in the summer, an opportunity was presented that we couldn't ignore. So to make a long story short our plans have changed slightly as Bryan has accepted a position with a different conservation company as their Director of Development. We are so excited about the opportunity and are looking forward to discovering a new country together as a family of three.

So the next few weeks are going to be full of introductions and farewells as we prepare for this next adventure. We are as ready as we will ever be knowing full well that we just have to be prepared to be flexible and ready to learn all new life lessons that are yet to come our way.

A Very Merry Christmas

I can't believe that it is Christmas Eve. Bryan and I spent a fantastic day driving through the mountains and taking some time enjoying one of our favorite places in the world. Every time I get back to the mountains I wonder why I leave them. They are really stunning.

This last month has been very eventful. Between Bryan finishing up his Masters program, our little one trying to enter this world a little early, selling most of our possessions and packing up the rest to make the move to Calgary, we are enjoying the much needed rest during this Christmas season.

I was very sad to leave Halifax behind. It was a fantastic 15 months that gave us some much needed rest, healing and strength. I know that it will be a time of our life that we will look back on with fondness and wish that it didn't have to end. However there are new things in store for us and the call from Africa is too strong to ignore. In the process of packing and preparing to leave I found myself in preterm labor at 33 weeks. That was not in the plan! So off for a night in the hospital for some steroids to speed up baby's lung development and other drugs to stop the contractions to try and convince this little girl to stay a little longer. Thankfully they seemed to have worked and she is still hanging around and making me more uncomfortable each day. I have to remind myself that me being uncomfortable is the best thing for her and that I just need to suck it up and ask for another foot rub to somehow make me feel better. While this was all happening Bryan was finalizing his last few papers and presentations and somehow held it together and finished off his program very successfully. It's great to see all that he has accomplished and I am so proud of him for how hard he worked and stayed focused on getting the most out of this time. With Bryan trying to finish school and me trying not to go back into labor, my angel of a mother flew out to Halifax to finish our packing, clean the flat and help us get all our things on the plane to Calgary. We couldn't have done it without her. I like to think that I'm a strong independent person but I have to admit it was fantastic to be able to rely on her to get the work done. The move went strangely smooth with no complications or surprises. I kept waiting for something to fall apart but it didn't happen!

So now we are living out of trunks in my parents basement waiting for this little one to come - and this time we will let her. It has been hard to slow down and enjoy the last few weeks of quiet days and full nights of sleep. Bryan and I both want to get on with things and start life again. But I have to remind myself that this time also needs to be seen as a gift and to enjoy it for all it's worth. With just three weeks before my due date we are eager to meet this little girl and after all the hassle and worry of her trying to come so early she better not be late!

I hope that all of you are enjoying your Christmas with friends and family. I know some of you may be far away from your loved ones and are doing the best to make this season special. I hope that somehow you are able to create some memories that will make Christmas 2011 a fantastic one. Wishing you all the best!

My Pregnant Pause

Pregnant Pause - A pause that gives the impression that it will be followed by something significant.

I don't think I could explain this time of life any better than that. My job here in Halifax was a one year contract that ended on November 4 which worked out perfectly to give me a few weeks to relax and of course pack. Thankfully the weather has been beautiful so I have been able to get out and get some exercise with the luxury of returning home and

having a nap. Everyday the simplest things such as putting on my shoes or picking up a few groceries gets harder and more tiring. It's hard to believe that I still have eight weeks to go. It seems like a long time but when you consider how much is happening in those eight weeks I know they will go quickly. So I am anxious to see this time pass and nervous about all the changes however I realize that this may be the last few weeks of my life where my time is my own and I am trying to enjoy them.

Other than small errands and tasks that I assign myself each day I have been filling my time with a lot of knitting. It is a hobby that I picked up years ago and was sustained by my commitment to make each of my nieces a baby blanket. Little did I expect my sister to have four children so just making blankets has been my focus over the years. So now that it is my turn to have the baby I of course had to make a baby blanket for my little bundle of joy. However it didn't seem to stop there. Of course will all the left over yarn I have also completed a few hats, a sweater and a few pairs of booties. It has been fun to knit for this little one and I am eager so see her wear them. I love hand made stuff. In returning to Canada and battling the consumerism battle I have gained a new appreciation for things that can be made by hand rather than purchased. I think it makes you appreciate the value of items and the real cost of them. So I am trying to knit my little heart out to make sure that we have plenty of hand made items to choose from in our daughters wardrobe.

While I knit I have been watching the news and the story of the occupiers unfold all over North America. It is such an interesting situation and I really waffle on how I feel about the whole thing. The message of those that are protesting often seems unclear however I think I can agree with some aspects of their fight. I think that Canadians have to be careful that we are not complacent to how our government is operating and what interests they are protecting. We all find it very easy to sit back and enjoy a comfortable and safe lifestyle and question very little until we hit a bump in the road and then we start to wonder how we could have been so blind to what is really happening. This occupy movement is giving us all the opportunity to be more aware of what our government is representing and realizing that it is not always representing Canadian citizens. Sometimes I feel like we have become so focused on our economy and material wealth that we have become consumers rather than citizens. Is the health of our economy really to take priority over the holistic health of our community or family? Is a successful country really one that is wealthy no matter the cost to it's environment, it's future or it's friends? Sometimes thinking on such a large scale is hard to grasp however if you boil this down to an individual basis it's easier to really consider the direction Canada may be going. It is not uncommon to hear stories of people that had considerable wealth and were extremely successful in business however only a handful of people show up to their funeral when they die. Was their life really a success? That is kind of how I think about a country and the importance it puts on it's wealth. If we bow to the economy and run our country based on the desire to be wealthy and to have a strong economy what happens when all that wealth actually is the cause of our troubles? So when our drinking water is contaminated and our recent grads can't get jobs because we import all our goods but our economy stays strong is this really a country we would be proud of? As you can see I have more questions than answers but I do know that as Canadian citizens (not consumers) we need to be careful in the comfort that this country has provided for us so that future generations can also have access to these same comforts and freedoms and that we don't rob them of this due to our greed and short sightedness. As you can see I have more questions than answers and I realize I am not a great Canadian to be saying these things since I intend to live in another country but still, it has all made me ponder some of Canada's struggles.

So I am in the midst of my pause and realizing that many changes are upon us in the months to come. I am thankful for this time to enjoy the rolls and kicks of this little girl and to prepare for what is to come. I don't think I will ever be ready for this but it's going to all happen if I am or not. Calgary in 3 1/2 weeks!

So Thankful

There are so many things to be thankful for right now it made a perfect weekend to sit back and enjoy some of that wonderfulness and really appreciate the moment. One of my favorite things to be thankful for right now is this little person growing and developing inside me right now. It is so fun to feel how strong she is getting even if it is a little uncomfortable now and then. I can't wait to meet her and get to know her and learn all the things that create her character and personality. Oh and yes I am saying 'she' for a reason. We have learned that we are having a little girl! It was a bit of surprise to everyone as many were convinced that we were going to have a boy but we are super excited that we are having a sweet little girl. One thing I do know, is that she is going to be sweet if my cravings have any determining factor.

The other person I am so thankful for is my wonderful husband. The last three years have been such a roller coaster and sometimes a bit more adventurous than we had asked for but I have had a wonderful partner to keep me grounded and moving forward. We have taken risks together as we pursued our dreams and these risks seem to be paying off. Bryan was extremely tenacious in finding a job this summer that would continue to move us forward toward what we have felt would be our next step. It was a struggle to keep focused on what we thought was right and it didn't come without it's sacrifices. In the end a great opportunity came up for Bryan to take a three month position in Kenya with a company called Wildlife Works. The job and the company seemed like such a perfect fit and exactly the direction Bryan has been pursuing. With him taking this job it would mean that I had to stay here in Halifax while he went to Kenya. I'm not a fan of long distance marriage. I know we dated over skype but being married over skype brings a whole different set of challenges. But we decided that we could do the long distance and the three month separation may even make us stronger (which it did). The other sacrifice was finances. Due to the legalities of foreigners working in Kenya the company was unable to actually hire him and pay him a salary. So not only did we have to pay out of pocket all of his travel and living expenses but there would be no reimbursement cheque in the mail. The more we talked about it, the more more we felt like this was an opportunity that could not be passed up - no matter what the financial cost may be. So we took the leap and Bryan headed off to Tsavo, Kenya for 3 months. It was a fantastic experience for him as he learned about the carbon credit industry and more about Wildlife Works. The sacrifices paid off just in the last couple of weeks as we received a contract offer for us to move back to Kenya and for Bryan to take a full time position with Wildlife Works training to manage a large conservation area. So this means that we will be moving back to Kenya around the first of March! I am so thankful that my husband was determined to not take second best but to pursue his desires and stay focused on the dreams we have been building together.

As we drove through Nova Scotia this weekend from Halifax to Cape Breton to PEI and back to Halifax I have been reflecting on our time here in Canada. We have enjoyed living in Halifax and I feel that we have made the most of it. Even without having a vehicle we have been able to see much of the province and indulged in some of the best parts of it. We have learned how to enjoy the local produce and included in that has been canning and cooking classes for me and lots of fish filleting practice for Bryan. As the leaves change and I start to think about our temporary move to Calgary on December 14th, it's kind of sad to see the end of this phase of life. We have been able to actually set up a house and enjoy it to it's fullest. We have had many visitors (but never too many if you are thinking of heading our way before we leave) and a few great dinner parties where the house is alive with friends and great conversations. It's been great to see Halifax on foot and walk all over the city to the many pubs and restaurants that we have enjoyed over the last year. We have made some great friends and hopefully convinced a few of them to come and see us in Kenya. So as our time is quickly running out we are trying to squeeze as much time in with these wonderful people as possible.

One of the other things that I have been thankful for this weekend is for the time that we got to spend with Bryan's grandma. She is an amazing woman and she inspires me with her stories of how she overcame her many challenges of raising five children as a double amputee in countries like the Congo, Zambia, Tanzania and Kenya. Not only did she take care of her family in these environments but she also took the time to teach women and children how to read and write. She even

had the patience to teach Bryan how to read when he was young and I'm sure he was full of energy! She gives me the hope and strength that no matter what sort of challenges that we will face as we raise our children, that all these unseen mountains can be overcome. We had a wonderful day consisting of breakfast, a drive out to see Bryan's grandfather's grave and picking up some pumpkins on the way back. The sun was shining and the leaves literally started changing into brilliant colors overnight. It was a day I won't soon forget.

This thanksgiving has been a true time of thankfulness for me, there are so many things that I have been given and I am truly thankful for.

On the home stretch

After a long three months without Bryan, we had a fantastic reunion in Kenya and I'm really enjoying having him back home now that we are back in Halifax and heading into Bryan's last term of school. While in Kenya we had a great time catching up with friends. I miss having such great friends around. You know the kind, the ones that you catch up right where you left off even if it's been over a year since you've seen each other. I also got to make some new ones. We got to spend a few days where Bryan spent the summer so I got to meet all the great people that he has been working with and see the beautiful area that he got to enjoy for a few months. It was wonderful. It was so nice to be in the bush again and enjoy all the birds and wildlife that make the Kenyan bush so fantastic. I was amazed at how tall the elephants were in this area. They are massive! It was a whole new part of Kenya for me and I really enjoyed being introduced to it.

We also spent a few nights at a great resort on a small island called Chale Island. I couldn't have asked for more in a romantic getaway with my husband. They put us in our own little banda just steps away from the most beautiful beach with warm, clear ocean water to jump into to cool off a bit.

We had a few more days relaxing at Bryan's parent's cabin on the little piece of land that we own with them. Mom & Dad have been working hard and doing a fantastic job of building a small cabin on the land so we took full advantage of the place while we were there.

Our Little Traveller

Bryan and I are looking forward to our little traveller joining us and is expected to arrived January 16! Yes it is true, we are pregnant! So this is the real inspiration behind the blog revival. Our life is about to be completely rearranged and I know there are a few of you out there that are curious as to how we are going to handle it - so stay tuned.

The first few months of adjusting to the fact that we have a baby on the way has been exciting, emotional (ok mainly it's been me that has been emotional), dreamy, some anxiety and lots of unanswered questions. But of course preparing for this change in life can't be done the regular way. As per tradition we have to do it over skype. Bryan took a three month position in Kenya with Wildlife Works as part of his Master's program. He left Halifax May 1 and thought he was just having to leave his wife behind. But a few weeks later when I realized something was a little off with me, I did the test and yes it was positive! It took a while to set in that it was really positive. I had to put the test down and walk away and then come back to make sure that it was still telling me that a little one was on the way. But it didn't change and I finally realized that I had to tell my husband the fantastic news. So how do you even go about telling someone that they are going to be a father when they are on the opposite side of the world?

So I took a few pictures with my camera and finally got one that would tell the story. However as I went to put the picture on my computer so I could send it off in an email, I realized that our card reader to take the pictures off the camera was tucked safely in Bryan's camera case, which was in Kenya. Well I guess the next best thing is trusty photo booth on my mac. So it took a few tries with the best lighting possible and I thought I got a shot that would share my excitement.

All prepared to send my picture to tell my story, I woke up the next morning and logged into skype ready to type away and Bryan unexpectedly calls and turns on the video. Usually we video skype on the weekends when we don't have to sort out the time difference and work schedules but on weekdays it's usually the trusty chatting that keeps us communicating. For some reason Bryan had an off work day that freed him up to call and talk to me 'face to face'. Well as soon as he saw me and I said that I had something to tell him, that was enough for him to guess. So all my pictures and technology frustration was no longer necessary because my husband is just too smart.

Usually this is the time where expecting mom and dad get to dream and share the excitement between the two of them until things are far enough along to safely share the news. However with limited talk time it's hard to keep all that excitement to ourselves. So our families got to hear of our news much sooner than we had ever planned to tell them. It was just too exciting to keep in. It was very wise of Bryan to be on a different continent for the first few months. He got to miss the mood swings, the nausea and the sleepy grumpy wife trimester. At 14 weeks into our pregnancy, we are still two weeks away from being reunited and actually getting to share the excitement of this little traveller that is quickly growing inside of me.

The Blog Revival

So I was inspired to start writing again. I looked at this blog that I used to do a fairly good job of keeping up to date, and then suddenly it died. I'm not really sure why I stopped but I think after getting married and having someone around that will listen to my stories I guess I didn't feel the need to write them down anymore. Yes I know, it's a lame excuse but that's what I'm sticking to. So here is my attempt to revive it a bit. To go into any detail about the last three years is just too much for me to tackle to here is the bullet point version in pictures.

After almost a year in Kenya we headed back to Darfur.





We took a few vacations during our time in Darfur. They were all fantastic but I really loved Sri Lanka.




Then I got stuck waiting for a visa to get back into Sudan which means that I got to visit with some fantastic friends in Uganda,



and got to meet up with Bryan and our good friend in Oxford while he was doing a course.



Of course we had to fit in another safari in Kenya at a magical place called Sarara.




We made the most out of the limited resources we had in Sudan and somehow made a little home in the middle of the desert.




We even got to meet up with some friends in Northern Mozambique.




Then our final vacation to Turkey was fantastic. To keep it simple we spent our time in Istanbul and walked all the little streets to discover all that it had to offer.




Then our time in Sudan was over and we headed to Calgary to enjoy the summer with friends and family.




Then it was the big move to Halifax. We found a fantastic place to live and Bryan jumped into school with both feet. We have enjoyed our time here even though Africa keeps calling to ask where we are.

The Honeymoon Story - Part 1 - Meru

So I tried to write a nice entry updating life since Darfur. But so much has happened and major life changes have occurred (such as getting married and moving to Kenya) that I got a little overwhelmed by the update blog. So I am bypassing the update blog entry and getting to what I really wanted to write about - the honeymoon.

Bryan did a fabulous job at planning our honeymoon. It was all supposed to be a surprise but after wedding #1 I needed some encouragement to get through wedding #2 - so he told me the details before we left. The first stop on the honeymoon safari of our dreams was in Meru National Park. It's this fabulous park north east of Mt. Kenya. The park has 8 permanent rivers through it and there are only a few lodges that access it. That means that the game is fabulous and there are very few people around. We actually didn't see anyone else the whole time we were there. There is a rhino conservation on one end of the park that we didn't make it to but I hear is wonderful. We fit in as many game drives as possible - which means that we were on the road at 6:30 am and did two drives a day. Not much of a sleep in honeymoon but it was fabulous to wake up, bundle up, get into a landcruiser and watch the animals as the sun rises. We also got to do a little fishing. It was great fun! We were catching catfish rather easily. It was so much fun to stand on the banks of a Kenyan river with the snorts coming from the hippos upriver and the crashing elephants on the other side. I highly recommend that you fit fishing in when you come for your visit.

The lodge we were staying at is called Else's Kopje. It's a lodge that's built into a hill in the park. Our room was absolutely amazing! It was two floors plus a sun-deck off the top of the room. The first floor had a couple of day beds on it which you could relax on and with your binoculars watch the game go by at the base of the hill. The second floor was the bedroom and the bathroom. Because of the way the room is built no one can see into the massive open windows at the front of the room. That means that you can have a loo with a view! Yep, no more magazine reading on the toilet - there is lots to look at. And if you decide not to go on the early game drive you can watch the sunrise from the comfort of your bed.

One thing that I love about Kenya is the level of service and hospitality that you receive. It seemed like every time we would leave our room someone would be in there cleaning and making sure that our room was perfect. The food was fabulous and all the staff were so kind. Of course they all loved Bryan - a white guy that speaks Swahili is not all that common. The managers were so kind and we enjoyed our evening drinks with them chatting about life, Kenya and our future. Meru was my favorite park. There was something about it that made you feel like the only one in Kenya enjoying the beauty that surrounded us.

Next stop, Maasai Mara. We hopped back on the plane with a few stops between but we made it for our next location of the dream honeymoon safari ....

Leaving Darfur, Sudan Style

Well it looks like I have seen my last days in Darfur. With only two weeks remaining in my contract when Bryan left I was determined to throw myself into work and make sure all the loose ends were tied up and my handover was done well. In true Sudan style my plans are irrelevant when travel paperwork is involved.

To come to Darfur you must get a travel permit that allows you in the region for a certain period of time. I had one that was valid for one month after I returned to Sudan from my break in February. So once this month was up and with no new travel pass from Khartoum I was able to receive a five day extension with strict instructions that I had to leave at the end of these five days. We were still hoping that my travel permit would come through from Khartoum in time. So after I dropped Bryan off at the airport with our last difficult goodbye before we get married, I got a phone call with our Logistics Manager on the other side saying, ‘Angie, you’re hooped, you have to get out of Nyala tomorrow’. We are used to this feeling of being ready to jump and run at any moment but I was not prepared that this was how I would say my final goodbye to Darfur. Without knowing if I would get a travel pass to come back I had to pack up all I own and somehow get mentally prepared to say goodbye.

I don’t think I have processed it all yet and I think denial is rampant right now but as I sit in Khartoum I am pushed and pulled with various emotions and thoughts. The last month has been a stressful one that has pushed me to my limits on many occasions. Good things have happened in that I was able to get a large amount of funding for the education program for the next year that will make a huge impact on the communities that we work in. Just as successes bring a level of stress it is still Darfur and they are still a long way from peace. A community that we have worked in since we came to Darfur has seen a level of fighting this month that I don’t think it has ever seen before. It has always been rather calm and a consistent location that we have been able to work in even when we had to take a helicopter in because the roads were unsafe. But now due to some rather complicated tribal and political disputes everyone has fled the area and a village nearby has been burnt to the ground. It’s difficult to see this happen in an area that we know so well and have done so much work. As everyone seemed to go on R&R at the same time I had the responsibility to make the final calls on which staff to pull into Nyala and which ones can stay. It’s a responsibility that is not fun and I don’t envy our staff that have to do it on a regular basis.

So in the chaos of pulling staff from the field and saying goodbye to Bryan, I got the news that I have to leave Nyala in less than 24hrs. It’s a strange process to say goodbye to a place that has brought such strong emotions of success, frustration, love and hate for the last two years of my life. I’m not sure what the healthy and best way to do that is, however I can guarantee you that it’s not packing and leaving in 24 hrs. One thing that I can say has been consistent about Darfur is that it has pushed me to my limits and somehow I have been able to get through and learn lessons that would not have been learnt any other way. So I have said goodbye with amazing things ahead of me and am eager to try and walk away from Darfur into the new and wonderful things that are waiting for me.

Oh Sweet Change

It's been great to have Bryan around the last week or so. We have been able to get out to the field a bit so I could show off some of my schools. It's sad to think that this could be my last trip up to the mountains. But it was a great way to say good bye. The schools have done an amazing job constructing their classrooms. Below are a couple of pictures of what the classrooms were like before and what they are like now. I think that the pictures say a lot.


Here's a couple more pictures that I liked from our trip.





I only have a couple weeks left here - at least I think so. I'm still having some travel permit issues which means I may have to leave Darfur early but we'll see. Bryan heads back to Kenya on Sunday and I will join him on the 27th. Then real life begins ... right? It's feels so strange to leave this world of IDP's and classrooms and enter one where I get to think about flowers, food, my favorite people and my soon to be husband. But the change is a welcome one and I am so excited about it.

Bitter Sweet Success

I finally got to visit down to some schools that I have been working with after 6 months of not being able to travel on the road. It was so great to get out on the dusty Darfur roads again. We have had a strict vehicle travel ban for a long time so it was nice to bump along the roads to the Sudanese music that all sounds the same as we wave to everyone as we pass. It was also great to spend more time with some of my new staff and get to know them better.

I was able to see these schools before we brought in supplies and now I am seeing them after 6 months. I have been able to watch student numbers increase from my office in Nyala but it was great to actually see the success of our program with my own eyes. In this area which includes 17 schools, the total student numbers have increased from 6,200 to 6,800 in 6 months.


But as I was being all proud of my team and all the work that they have done our attention was brought to a school on the outskirts of the main town. This area has a group of IDP’s that fled their villages about three years ago and have permanently settled in the town. They are still a very poor population as they have to rent land to farm and find odd jobs in the town to supplement their income. Usually as people first flee an area they live in dome shelters that are covered with anything they can find that will protect them from the elements. Then as they are able to earn some money they build a hut or two for their family. Even after three years many people in this displaced community are still living in their dome shelters. They have a school where grades 1-3 are taught but the classrooms are simple shade shelters that hold up to 100 children in each small shelter. It broke my heart as we saw this community struggle to form some sort of existence and life with the very limited resources that they have. Often IDP’s are marginalized in the communities that host them. This is very evident in this town. All day I was discussing with teachers about their brick classrooms and how they need more permanent classrooms as students 5 minutes away were huddled under a small shelter to keep them out of the sun.

Now comes the best part of my job - I get to see these things and do something about it. We were able to leave some school supplies with one of the teachers and promised them that classrooms were on their way. His smile was the best that I have seen in a long time. It’s that smile of joy and relief that comes from surprises. So as I continue my final tour of my programs I will remember that no matter how far we have come in the last year, little schools like this have to keep pushing us forward.