The Blake School Kenya Blog

Tubby drops by for a Chat

Head Gophers Basketball Hall of Fame Coach Tubby Smith drops in for a chat with fellow Minnesotans!

Tubby Smith and fellow Minnesotans in Nairobi

Trains, Snakes, and Automobiles

King Henry

During the afternoon hours on our first full day we visited the National Railroad Museum, the National Museum of Kenya, and the Snake Park. At the NRM we learned the history of the railway systems and Kenya and I found out several interesting facts about the construction of the railroads. I learned that the lions in Kenya caused a major delay in the building process because the Indian railroad workers were being eaten and were afraid of the lions and ran away to Mombasa, only to return much later after the railroad company hired hunters to take care of the lion problem. We got to see several old train cars including one that was used in the Hollywood film, Out of Africa, which was car 301. Our guide let us climb and explore all over the train yard and old trains, which was very fun…to be continued by Henry Vaughan

Python in Snake Park

Alex with friends John and Rachael

Alex with friends John and Rachael

Lukie and Nan at National Railroad Museum

Nan and Lukie at National Railroad Museum

June 18: Swahili Lessons

Mr. Bill and Martha, our swahili teachers

We began our first full day in Nairobi with a two-hour Swahili lesson at the Anglican Church language center. For the first half, our tutors, Mr. Bill and Martha, enlightened us with some general history of the Swahili Language, as well as the pronunciation and formulation of words. We then took a brief break, during which the church was generous to give us all a sample of sweet Kenyan tea. The second part of the lesson was dedicated to learning a “welcome” song, continuing basic grammar rules, and finally, Mr. Bill introduced some common vocabulary to us. Many of us attempted to incorporate this new knowledge into casual conversations with Nairobi natives (though practically all speak fluent English).

Love you mom, dad, Natalie, and Matthew.
Post by Abby Sill

Video from Swahili School

Singing the Welcome Song

Jambo, Jambo bwana. Habari gani, nzuri sana…

Swahili Class