Embu

In total I went to went to five different centers. We went to the one in Isiolo, but also Maua, Chuka, Embu and Kerugoya. One that really stood out to me and I really enjoyed was Embu. We stayed two nights in Embu and the hotel was on one hand the nicest place we stayed all week and on the other the worst. It had the nicest garden, they were green with nice tables and servers that would come out and take your order. But the rooms were horrible, when we arrived our rooms weren't clean so we just went out to dinner. When we came back the floors were still dirty and the bathroom smelled moldy and the toilets leaked. I even had to take a cold shower in the morning because I couldn't get the shower to work. I later found out its the blue not red handle you need to turn to make it hot. So I ended up reading East of Eden in the gardens till the deafening sounds of crickets and bugs drove me in.

In Embu the school has to deal with more than one major issue. One thing that none of the other schools I visited had to deal with was people kept on breaking into their school and tearing the posters and breaking there things. When the would come back in the morning they would have to start again at square one. Also because the school was in a slum the level of poverty and cases of abuse were very high. The majority of the kids meals come from the lunch they are served at school. The teachers are having to deal with cases of abuse, getting the children to the hospital and contacting the authorities and would even chip in there own money to help. I couldn't believe the stories I was hearing it really is amazing to meet and be surrounded by people who care so much and are willing to do whatever they can for the well being of the children. After the teachers meeting I was talking to Ann one of the people who work with the CBO (Community Bases Organization) that supports the school when the children started to slowly come out of there rooms to say hello. As soon as I started saying hi to some of the kids they all started sticking out their hands for a handshake. They were calling me teacher and with so many children saying teacher, teacher it almost became a chant and it was so overwhelming and I dont know SUPER! Then they all started singing the ABC's and they had a little dance to go along with it. Rebecca said that when we get back to the office that I would be able to pick a school from one of the schools we visited and get to go back for a week or two. I thought before that now that I am in the office that I wouldn't get to have that experience and I think Embu is definetly on the top of that list.