DAY 4

Up, up and away!

Today started bright and early as we were needed as ballast on a hot air balloon … not just for our weight (no rude comments please) but to help the group going up to be sociable…you can always rely on us for a bit of banter…even at half 5! We are so blessed as this would normal cost $500 each and we went for free. The Sarova management are so generous to the Etc teacher scheme. So today I can add getting up at 5am and going in a hot air balloon to the list of things I thought I would never do.

It proved to be one of the best experiences ever as we watched the sunrise from the air and came very close to lots of wonderful creatures. Photos will follow …. I will bore you all later. After a near miss crash landing, our captain Chelle (who seemed completely unmoved and unapologetic) brought us down safely after being in the air for about an hour and a half. We saw many amazing sights, including giraffe with babies, lion, buffalo, wildebeest, zebra and hyena and yes, my first ever Elephant, hiding in the trees, unfortunately a little camera shy! A stunning experience. We were then taken for breakfast, still in the reserve…all a little posh…champagne etc. Nice!

We then safaried by 4x4 back to the camp, but Martin our driver really made the most of the opportunity and we saw lion, hyena and amazingly a cheetah with three cubs at very close range…simply unbelievable.

Back in the real world…  a very productive meeting with a guy called Dixon, a Maasai man introduced to us by Agnes from Sekanani. His responsibility at the moment is to carry out the government instructions to partition the land, dishing it out to different people and setting some aside for community projects. This is a hard imposition on the Maasai who have, for generations, held all the land in common, with their pastoral existence and community way of life. Anyway, he has set aside 3 plots of land in different areas of this district of the Mara for community development, all of which could be used for the school. He was full of very sound advice on community partnership with Agnes and Etc…fab!

The business plan is coming together and everyone we speak to here at the resort, local staff and managers all think the secondary school for girls is a real must. Praise God for this encouragement and support. Gerry and Sonal then spoke to the District Education Officer and the head teacher of Sekanani, who also seemed to be fully supportive. The amazing news is that one of the plots of land available is right next to Sekanani Primary school, with access rights to the river, which would ensure water supply for both schools. It would also make collaboration between Etc, the schools and the resort where teachers are accommodated much easier. The main concern is some of the ‘activity’ that occurs at Sekanani particularly during the great migration, when prostitution and alcoholism are more prevalent than is healthy. This is the sort of thing that we are trying to protect the children from so we need wisdom in making this crucial decision about location of the school.

Gerry and Sonal are working so hard and asking all the right questions as they attempt to forge a way forward and prepare a credible business plan for potential donors to read.

I’m boring you now!

This afternoon Gerry and I visited her old school at Sekanani where we received a wonderful welcome from staff and pupils. Gerry was greeted like a long lost friend and we had great fun giving out the dolls and bags. I have so many photos and messages to show you!

My main task today was to interview some of the older girls about their future wishes and the difference a local Girls Secondary school would make to them. One girl spoke of her difficult experiences and the way the boarding school provides protection for her. The reality of her plight, to hear it from her stammering lips, was moving and motivating. These wonderful, beautiful, gifted young women just need the opportunity to learn in safety, within their community, in culturally appropriate ways. They long to be safe, productive and catalysts for change in their communities…I have met potential lawyers, surgeons, pilots, managers and airhostesses today, all of whom want to come back to the Mara to work... except the air hostess, who has good reason to want to get away! Could the new school be the first step towards that being accomplished?