My Normal Day

For me, a typical day here in Kenya starts when I wake up sometime between 6:15 and 6:30 am.  The first thing I do, is I take a bucket full of water out to the shower and take a "throw shower".  Breakfast normally consists of Mandazi (which are like the Kenyan version of doughnuts) and Chai.

At about 7:30, I leave for school.  School is about a 20 minute walk away.  Along the way, there is a primary school, and since school has not started yet, all the students are standing out in the yard.  Almost everyday, they all shout, "Mzungu, How are You?!" multiple times.  One would think that they would have gotten used to me after I have been here for almost a year, but apparently not.

At school, depending on the day, I will teach between two and four 40 minute math and physics classes.  I mostly just teach Form 1 and Form 2 students (equivalent of Grades 9 and 10 in the U.S.), but on occasion, I will help out in a Form 3 or 4 class.  Everyday, we have morning tea at 10 am, which is normally my 3rd or 4th cup of the day.  Then, lunch is at 1pm.  Other than classes and eating, my day at school is filled with preparing for my lessons the next day and if I have enough time, marking students assignments.

Note: this is my normal day, but it varies from this fairly frequently.  Sometimes, i may be sent with a couple other teachers to correct an exam that was done by multiple schools.  Students may be sent home for school fees.  Or, like this last week, they may have a sports competition, which means a number of students are absent.

Lately, after classes finish, I have been helping the Men's and Women's Soccer teams train.  I mostly focus on just getting them physically fit, by giving them some exercises at the beginning of practice.  Then, the head coaches take over to work with them on their soccer skills.  They just had their competition this last Thursday and Friday, so I doubt this will continue.  However, the Men's Volleyball team qualified to proceed to the next level, so if they ask me to, I may work with them a bit this next week.

I leave school between 4:30 and 6, and either I go straight home, or I will go to the gym to lift with a couple of other teachers.  If I go to the gym to lift, we lift for about an hour, and then I am back home by 7 pm, when it is starting to get dark.  Once I arrive home, if I have any more work to do to prepare for the next day, I will do that, but normally my host family and I just sit in the sitting and talk.  We eat sometime between 8 and 9, and then after eating, I soon go to bed, normally by 10 pm.