Nairobi + Diesel = love

As soon as we walked thru customs in Nairobi and out of the airport, I noticed the smell of diesel. The air in the city is heavy with exhaust fumes. And there is a reason for all this smog...

 The Nairobi traffic is incredible! Sunday, we spent two hours in "the jam." I thought after battling traffic on 405 every day I knew what congestion was. I was wrong! Rush hour here is much longer than an hour. Cars clog every street, following no traffic laws that I can discern. It's survival of the aggressive! I've always considered myself a competent driver, but there is NO WAY I would drive in Nairobi!

The weather is warm, but rainy and so muggy. The warm rain feels tropical and the smell on the warm pavement is nice, but we're hoping it dries out a little before we leave. February is usually the dry season, people we have met here are thrilled we have brought this little piece of Seattle with us - sorry to those Seattlites whose rain we stole, which left a hole for the snow to fill!

Monday we met with the amazing Dr. Saldera, who OWNS two hospitals in Kenya. He is our connection to Kenyatta International Hospital, where we will be working. He is taking Monday and Tuesday off work to connect us with people at the hospital and make sure we get oriented. 

It is incredibly humbling that so many people here in Kenya are investing time and energy into our success! People are lining up to help us get where we need to go and do what we need to do to succeed in our experience. We have been told many times that since this is the first time Northwest University has come to Kenya, we are the guinea pigs. But beyond that, we are the ambassadors. I feel a lot of pressure to be worthy of the trust given to us and the time and treasure invested in us. Like I blogged before, I don't know that I really have that much to give the people of Kenya, but I want so badly to live up to the hopes of the Kenyans investing in us!