Humming Bird Tour Comes to an end!

Mr. Pedersen on tour arriving in Waikiki last month.

Obviously a gap in my blogging:  I promise myself and you, dear follower, proper updates on all things Liberia-and-in-between to my arrival here in Nairobi.

Gosh I owe so many updates! Follow-ups! Mamie! Andrew! And gosh Alaska and Kansas City - ooh Sacramento and Salt Lake City! 

View to the south from Provo, just outside Salt Lake City.

But today: Nairobi indeed…Mr. Pedersen is in Nairobi – how blessed am I? What a wonderful and cosmopolitan city – I feel a little out of place and hope to gather my urban wits and catch up as fast as I can to this vibrant city!

Only three nights and already I have learned so much, too much – I am adjusting, acclimating, energizing, and looking forward to engaging all things Nairobi – which is A LOT, maybe TOO much!

Lucky for me, our Zanzibar-decor-inspired home is a refuge from the bustling city – a quiet and lovely spot in an idyllic neighborhood: the best of both worlds!

More to follow, as experiences are happening at a rapid pace  –  and yes I have already been to the local produce market – and since Kenya is the “bread-basket” to Europe, again: the BEST of Both Worlds!

Breakfast today: red papaya and mini bananas drizzled with local honey – YES! Oh, you KNOW that the watermelon here actually TASTES like watermelon, juicy, sweet, and fragrant: MY FAVORITE!

And yet, we will be enjoying asparagus with dinner this evening! And the list goes on I tell you – ooh tree tomatoes! TREE TOMATOES! 

Flowers welcoming me !

Humming Bird Tour: Sacramento

Tower Bridge


You know - I have been a lot of places - not enough but a lot....And wherever I go: I LOVE BRIDGES! Seriously, all kinds and every kind - you may have read a previous post about students in Liberia who put together their own foot bridge to get to school during the rainy season! I mean bridges come in all shapes sizes and COLORS!

 

 

Here is the Tower Bridge of Sacramento - seriously, IT is yellow!

 

 

 



 Tell me a yellow Bridge is not FABULOUS! And it is a vertical lift bridge built in 1933. If you want to know more check out this wiki link, Tower Bridge Wiki Link. Seriously, this bridge goes on my Favorite List!

Anyway, let me tell you: who knew Sacramento, California was so adorable! Seriously, Northern Cali is everything, everyone says it is....

Just walking around the Capital Building was so LOVELY!

It is idyllic - yea, truly - just a lovely place to wander about - there are rose gardens, cactus gardens (yes cactus gardens), and a Magnolia ORCHARD - a whole orchard of GIANT Magnolia trees - how often do you get  to wander around Magnolia Trees - stunning.

There are fountains, monuments, and memorials - I mean just so darling - and plenty of eateries and so easy to walk about.

You might even run into one of your Oklahoma Cousins ; )

So there are plenty of things to do of course - and certainly I did not get a chance to take enough photos - but this place is FAMILY Friendly!! There is OLD TOWN Sacramento! HOW MUCH FUN! There are Riverboats and Saloons and all sorts of FUN! This is def a cute weekend place to hang out! I hope to get back!

Old Town Sacramento

Another Fab Thing about Sacramento (and USA): There is a sweet Amtrak Station that takes you down the ocean side to: San Francisco! How cool is that? And yup that's what I did! gosh knows I need oysters!



Jola House Update - Place Your Orders!

Small Patchwork Bag $20 US

So many folks showed interest in the Jola House Dream Believe Hope patchwork tote bag series - I have worked with Elfreyda and the women of Jola House to take more orders this week! Jola House will be sending our orders via a friend/courier next week.

If you are unfamiliar with Jola House here is their website: Jola House . Or you can look at some of my previous posts regarding Jola House. They are still hard at work and Elfreyda is working hard to assist the women and grow their business of locally designed and handmade items!

Below are a few more items available. You will see the large patchwork tote that was real popular on Facebook, and some other items I thought folks might like.

Go ahead and email at michael.robert.pedersen@gmail.com or facebook inbox me.

Thanks for your interest and support!

Original Large Tote $35 US (Modeled by Mamie)

Simple Hobo/Sack style Bag $15 US (variety of patterns)

To carry your Yoga Mat! $25 US
 (Modeled by Mamie's son Ossie)

Ipad Cozy with zipper and Flap $30 US

So that's all for now but if you see something on their website that you have to have, let me know and I will do my best!

Coconut Water at Coconut Plantation

Mamie Update: Reading, Writing, and Math

Mamie, of course, is excelling in class at a rapid rate. She is reading, writing, speaking, hearing, "conversating" on a level that I presumed would take a year - I am so impressed.

She is so excited and I am so happy for her. She brought her books to the house and we have been reviewing her lessons daily. Her pride and self worth have increased and truly I am humbled by her remarkable sense of self value. She relates reading and writing to her value and worth and will not stop until she has accomplished her goals. She has been busy while I was away: opening a bank account, signing her own name - planning for the future in hopes of moving her family out of the city into a safer, calmer town.

In class they have started math lessons - LOL. ...oh goodness she is eager, intentional, and focused. So very proud of her. Mamie and her classmates are instructed to use pencils so they can correct their errors - Mamie has a dozen pencils we gave her all with "used-up" erasers. LOL So I went to the expat market and bought her some chunky erasers...she was pleased as punch!

I was looking through Mamie's workbooks and found the above, "capable," written in a blank area. It brought me to tears - because it was truth, written in Mamie's handwriting - Capable indeed.

Mamie's math book and a pencil without an eraser due to overuse!

The RAIN!

Oh my goodness...Everything Everyone has said about Liberian Rain is true! The "Rainy Season" is insane!

So beautiful! And really I could post photos (but the internet has been prohibitive) and well it is RAIN! Constant RAIN!

And truly - May to November: HA! It is amazing there is anything left after the rain comes - CRAZY. Of course being indoors under tin roofing only adds to the sound - the sound from the pitter patter of light rain to the constant white noise beating of the roof when the torrents descend for hours on end.

So beautiful I can't express - and tenacious at the same time - constant CONSTANT: you think the rain is over, you even see that distant star they call the sun, and there is a mist on your face  - it is still RAINING!

The more I think I about it the more it sorta spooks me - what this land would be like if not populated and "industrialized." Even with 1.1 million folks in the "metro" area - the rain still takes away the soil and the land - it is constant - and it still washes everything away leaving debris in sand along the new rivers and streams it creates. I just wonder if this peninsula would even be here if not for the concrete and asphalt covering. OUt in the jungle you hear reports and see photos of the dirt roads turning into red mud rivers - I mean FEET OF MUD -- unbelievable and so magical and natural at the same time.

Ironically, I expected an increase in bugs - but the rain even deters BUGS - mosquitoes don't have a chance since it is constantly raining! Ants and other critters are kept at bay, and lucky me I have not seen a spider since my return. But for some reason flies FLIES are abundant and here in the house we all keep a fly swatter attached to our hip like police man carries a gun.

Though these snails appear and they are just so beautiful! And so large (and local food item).

Of course the dissonance between expats and locals becomes obvious when discussing rain. Expats will drone on and on about the grey days, and the bad roads, and being stuck in their homes, and how they need to "get out" or they are going to go crazy. The constant whining from people about the rain makes my head hurt - I tend to turn it off, I empathize for sure FOR SURE - but truly most of the time expats just need something to whine about. The best really is everything still works - for those of us in the city - so there are no major dilemmas - planes still land and take off and food is still available.

In fact even more food is available because it is a big season for produce pumpkin (squash) and cucumbers, and tomatoes, and eggplant are all in season! Even litche is in season - so much goodness!

Pumpkin (squash), Paw Paws (Papaya),
and Butter Pear (Avocado)

All these items came from the Jungle!
The cucumbers are huge and tasty, love it!

And of course the Liberians have lived through the rain for the past um ....HUNDREDS of YEARS - and at least 183rd since they have been a democracy and guess what it still rains - in fact these folks have been in war with themselves for 20 years including rainy seasons! So far be it from to judge those who whine on...

Even more so are the few foreign journalists who stop by Liberia snap a few photos and talk to some expats and then create opinionated articles about how the government is not doing enough - I am sure, proper roads benefit everyone...

Here is a post from the economist - and as much as I enjoy the economist I was discouraged by this post - truly I tell you spirits are higher here than this post portends...

economist blog post

And yes eggs may be 50 cents out in the countryside - but why is anyone delivering eggs (I believe the estimate is 80% of eggs are imported from India) along muddy roads for 14 hours anyway? There is plenty of food out in the jungle - in fact it is called the BREAD BASKET of Liberia. And yes , petrol is $9US, if I was a business owner I would raise prices and take advantage of all the expats traveling out there as well - let alone how many hours did it take the petrol truck to get to the jungle?

And yes, there are issues, rising flood waters, water born illnesses - yes, but again, the rain was here first.

So glad I got to witness the rainy season in full effect this year - luscious, tenacious, spirited  all the signs of life and that the earth and Africa are still ALIVE!

The Slow Down

All my life (even to this day) my Father will tell me to slow down. In fact, as he drove me to the airport to I asked him, "Dad, do you think I will ever slow down?"

His response was no response. That's my Dad.

Well, I do try to be conscious of things when in Liberia. Of the many things on my mind, I do think about how things can't be easily replaced, whether it be due to cost or availability. This includes medication, money, food, furniture, clothes, crystal stemware, and of course electronics.

I tend to keep my iphone in the house and my laptop well it is my only window to the outside world besides my little nokia mobile phone...

Funny how when in the States, I tend to sling my laptop around, hold it with two fingers, use it as a breakfast tray as I head to the balcony, oh I have dropped my laptop several times - shoved it in the overhead compartment - HA! Because I can easily replace it!

Oh but here in Liberia oh yes it takes a good ten minutes to get to the porch in the morning.
1. Unlock all the doors
2. Bug Check
3. Wipe away the water
4. Bug Check
5. Lock Door
6. Collect Coffee and Napkin
7. Unlock Door
8. Carry out coffee
9. Lock door
10. Collect laptop
11. Unlock Door
12. ahhhh Breakfast

Now back in Chicago that would have been a two step process with me balancing coffee, oatmeal, iphone, pad, pen, maybe a magazine and oh it is a usually a mess on the floor....!

So it's all about slowing down,...and I love it...I love slowing down - it feels so good!

There are other slowing down processes of course, there is the night time ritual slow down, doors locked, keys stowed, exterior lights on, windows locked, shades drawn, bird covered, bugs sprayed, interior doors locked, bugs sprayed, ac on, go-bag ready, shoes at door, electronics stowed, and of course ear plugs...yea that's a good twenty minutes for sure and then night time prayers and then sleep!

Slowing down my brain - LOVE IT!