Hey Bloggers,

Today is day one. So much already has happened.

I flew from Toronto to London and ten minutes before leaving for the airport my iPod gave out on me. So I am in Africa 'sans' iPod. At first I was freaking out, but soon enough after I realized that everything happens for a reason and I am taking in way more of this trip without ear phones in my ears.

At the London airport waiting for my connecting flight to Cairo I thought I lost my passport. I started to question the sketchy guy beside me, almost flat out calling him a thief, to later find out that it was stowed in a not so often used backpack pocket of mine. Embarrassing. Needless to say, I felt like an idiot and apologized to the man I had suspected.

London to Cairo was a great flight, food was ok and I met a fellow Canadian from Edmonton who was on my flight from Cairo to Nairobi. Her and I had to do the famous dash from one terminal of the Cairo airport to the other terminal for the third and final flight. We made it with a few minutes to spare.

When I landed in Nairobi, I waited for an hour and a half for my driver before freaking out and calling the co-ordinators cell phone at 5am. She was not pleased but neither was I waiting with no other information then her number. The driver showed up 14 minutes later. His name was James and a very sweet Kenyan man. He drove me to my volunteer dormitory at 5am, thus it was still very dark out. He tried to give me a driving tour in the dark of all the places we were passing.

I was a little nervous as we were driving for quite a bit of time, and I really had no idea of where he was taking me. He said I was going to my accommodation at the Frontier house on Mugumo Lane in Springvalley. When we got there, he opened the gate to a really dark dirt road. I instantly felt like I was in one of those horror movies, where backpackers get slaughtered (sorry Mom for the details). When he pulled up to the small little house it was pitch black. He helped my unload my bag and opened the front door which was unlocked.

We entered into the dormitory which was also pitch black and James said he didn't know how to turn on the lights but I should follow him inside (yes I was freaking out). He went in with me close behind. I pulled out the flash light the von Beckman twins had sent me, equally proud to have light but also embarrassed because it is the shape of a hippo. LOL.

We ended up waking up the other seven volunteers at 6am. What a great first impression. The only other guy volunteer, Raph, stayed awake with me and gave me the low down of the dormitory and Nairobi thus far for him. He is coincidentally a fellow Torontonian, and super friendly.

I didn't sleep at all, and they invited me to go to a Seventh Day Adventist church with them, with accompanied Charity, who is our caretaker at the dormitory. After the THREE HOUR gospel church experience we got a guided tour through Kibera. OMG. Goggle image it. I don't have any more time but I have so much more to write and tones of videos and pictures to get on here.

lots of love

Jake