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Me...pretending to work. |
The first stage of house building....and black thumb nails!!! |
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Mud, mud, glorious mud. |
Lucy and Rick. Any excuse to act like a kid. |
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Construction work. |
This is where the fun starts, with lots and lots of mud. |
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Mudding. |
An almost finished house. The technique, which in the last stages involves throwing wet mud, is called...mudding!!! |
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The finished house. |
The house we built at Matilili, Kenya for a widow named Gladys, and her family. It might even still be standing. |
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Mmmm...Yummy. |
I love work...I could watch it all day. |
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Branton & Rick |
This is the little guy that I'm sponsoring. For all the horrors that he has been through, he is a remarkably well balanced and loving person. |
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Branton. |
This little guy is Branton, and I'm sponsoring him. he is five years old, but is the size of a three year old. When they first found him, he weighed 16lbs, and could not walk or talk. His life expectancy is low. |
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Branton & Family. |
Branton and his siblings live alone, their parents having died of AIDS. Steven, the oldest, looks after them all while attending school too. This is a huge responsibilty. |
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Mount Elgon. |
View of Kenya from Mount Elgon. |
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Crossing the river. |
This is a river that turns into an incredible waterfall on Mt.Elgon. |
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Me, showing my age. |
A long walk up Mt. Elgon, but well worth it. The view and the waterfall is superb. |
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Noah and Rick. |
Noah, Omwabini's choirmaster and music teacher. he writes pretty good songs too. The lady behind is from a village on the mountain. |
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Omwabini. |
Teachers and helpers at The Omwabini Rescue centre. James Bunyasi far left, and Noah, far right. |
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Cool, clear, water. |
One of the Omwabini water projects. It is the best water that I have ever tasted. |
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Village life. |
A typical scene in Matili village,with maize drying. A lot of people only eat two, or three times a week. |
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Lucy and James. |
Lucy Ironmonger and James surveying the site oif a new water project. This water, at the moment, is polluted and undrinkable. |
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Save the children. |
Village children at the site of a new water project. |
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Amaizing! |
Maize grown by OMWABINI for the local villages. They have 50 acres, and the local people must help to harvest it in order to obtain some. |
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OMWABINI. |
The Omwabini sign outside The Rescue Centre at Kimili. |
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Lucy and James. |
Lucy and James Bunyasi at the maize field. |
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The AIDS clinic. |
The AIDS clinic at the Webye Hospital. A very sad place. |
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The AIDS clinic. |
The wonderful kids at the AIDS clinic at Webye. |
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The Glory Centre. |
The Christian Glory Centre at Kimili, where we did a video with some of the choir. |
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Mount Elgon. |
The beauty of Kenya from mount Elgon. |
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Mount Elgon. |
Vines, creepers and incredible trees. |
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Coffee. |
Coffee plantation at the foot of Mount Elgon. |
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Noah & Rick. |
Noah is the music teacher and choir master at the Rescue Centre. He is also a pretty good songwriter. |
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The Rescue Centre. |
Skills, such as machining, and IT are taught here, so these ladies will be able to start their own businesses. They are also part of the fantastic choir. |
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Stuck in a ditch. |
This was a main road between villages!!! I as usual, am supervising, in Prince Philip pose. |
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Food, glorious food! |
Ugale, a staple dish, made from maize. Also on the menu were mashed bananas, rice and other veg. |
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Intrepid Explorers. |
Mount Elgon. Rick, Lucy, Noah, Saul, Mike, Lily and co.We spotted a Black Mamba here. Far to close, for my liking! |
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The Rescue Steps Centre Choir. |
Rick, Lucy, Noah & the Ladies of the choir. |
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Rick & Redempta. |
Hard working & long suffering. A lovely Lady. |
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Matili school. |
Orphan children and teacher, and who's that good looking bloke at the back? |
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Rick & Lilian. |
Standing on the equator. |
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Rick & Jim. |
James Bunyasi, is the cornerstone of Omwabini, and never seems to stop working. |
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Kisumu Airport. |
Sadly this wonderful little airport is to be turned into an international one!!! |
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The Motorway |
This is a main road between villages!!! |
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Wittgenstein or? |
A bit of intellectual reading to start the morning off is always good for a chap!!! |
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Mount Elgon |
An incredible place to watch the dawn. I could sit there forever. |
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All the kit you need. |
Beano, Swiss Army Knife, Maglight & Samosas. What more would a chap want? |
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Kimilili Market |
The Thursday market that stretches for miles. I spend many hours there. |
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Rick & Lilian |
She had a real tough time, and was wary of me for a long while. We are now good friends. |
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Orphans at The Centre |
The pullies that the kids are wearing were made by some lovely ladies in Seaford, east Sussex. UK |
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The market in Kimilili |
This palce fascinates me, and you can get all sorts of things here. The spices smell fantastic. |
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Critters |
That door jam is three inches wide, and these cockroaches are pretty prehistoric looking, can make hissing noises, and get all over you at night. Advisable to use your mozzie net. Mosquitos are also rife here, and positively adore me! |
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Washing the children's clothes |
These clothes were caked in mud, and worse. Always advisable to wear gloves when using the river water, as there are some pretty gruesome parasites and insects lurking. One hardy breed, with the name "Jiggers" are not friendly at all, and can do you a lot of damage, if you are not careful. Not advisable to walk barefoot in the streams and grass! |
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Lake Nakuru |
A sea of Flamingos. Absoutely stunning...and surreal. |
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Jackals |
Fast, deadly and ferocious. These two were only a few feet away, as they killed a flamingo. |
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Lake Nakuru. the pink bits roud the edge are over a million flamingos |
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Nakuru National Park |
Beautiful animals, but an extremely harsh environment. |
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Breakfast |
A vulure feasts in Nakuru national Park. |
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The Menengai Crater |
Near Nakuru, this is a vast volcanic crater the stretches many miles. |
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