Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Rolling with the waves

Another eventful day in Hong Kong. After a dim sum experience that was met with mixed success, we went over to Hoi Ha for kayaking and swimming. Leboy took to both like a fish in the water - no challenge is too big! Wrapped up the day by celebrating the Mid-Autumn festival with Chinese lanterns and moon cake.
Dim Sum - at least the spring rolls scored high

The international gang...

It's a sea life for me

 What a natural!

Fierce pirate!

Kayaking is fun, but the real laughs come from being in the water, not on it.



Learning about crabs from Jason...

while Shishi imparts a lesson on clams.

Happy mid-Autumn festival!

Paper lanterns~

Monday, September 28, 2015

(Sea) Lions, Sharks, and Bears, Oh My!

Two full days in Hong Kong and oh my the things we have covered already! By far the biggest hit has been the beach, matched only by the pizza we ate upon Leboy's arrival. Today we spent the day in Ocean Park, discovering new animals from sharks to pandas, from koalas to sea lions. Today's favorite, though, was the Mine Train rollercoaster!
Taking the ding-ding
The favorite activity thus far
Rockin' some Hong Kong threads!
Mastering the art of using chopsticks in a snap
Breakfast time!
Breakfast with friends from all over the world!
At the aquarium
Learning about different sea creatures
Watch out for sharks!
Getting ready for Halloween in Ocean Park
Bam-boo!

Leboy meets the panda
Red Panda
The old Hong Kong taxi...
And the very modern cable car!





At the fair in Ocean Park. You win some, you lose thirty or fifty :(


Arrival

He made it!

Leboy, who these days likes to go by Edward, is extremely happy to be here and has already had a whole bunch of first experiences (first time on a train, elevator, first time eating cherries, melon, blueberries, and fish!). It's going to be a very exciting adventure!!
He hasn't changed a bit!

First time on an elevator - "but I've read about them!"

Calling home to let them know all is good.

Saturday, September 26, 2015

Leboy in Hong Kong

It had been years since I had last seen Leboy in person. For a long time I had been thinking of the best way to see him again and from an early stage it seemed clear that Leboy should be the one traveling. If done well, it would be a good learning experience for him that could help shape his future. Earlier this year I received donations from folks all over the world, which was almost enough to buy a round trip ticket to visit me in Hong Kong at the end of September, right after his Standard 7 examinations. A 2 week-long graduation trip.
The three or four days before his arrival were really tough. Suffice it to say that a lot of the things that could go wrong, did. To give you a hair-rising example: The Kenya Airways person who was supposed to help Leboy make the transfer in Nairobi never showed up, so the 14 year-old Masai, who had never been on a plane before, took it upon himself to find his next flight. For all the other adversities that threatened the success of this operation, a very large number of people contributed their resources, time, and money, in order to overcome them. Some of these people I don't know personally. Some of these people I probably don't even know about. But, from the bottom of my heart, I thank you for what you have done for Leboy. I hope you especially will enjoy the following series of posts of Leboy's first big adventure.

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Standard 7, Term 2 Down - One more to go!

We are now reaching a critical time in Leboy's education. With his primary years now coming to an end, he will face the regional exams at the end of standard seven. There are reasons to be optimistic about his results! First of all, he did very well in his term 2 report, as can be seen below, in which he made it back into the top 3 in his class.

But wait! There's more. In the mock examinations that he took with a few other schools he ended up getting 7th position overall!* A very encouraging result. Who knows! Maybe he will be able to climb even higher! Best of luck, Leboy. See you in September!

*(list not published here to protect privacy of other students)

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Bagamoyo Trip Pictures

Here are some pictures from St Thomas' recent trip to Tanga & Bagamoyo. Where will his next trip take him?






Friday, January 2, 2015

Strong finish to Standard 6

We close 2014 with excellent news from St Thomas, where Leboy has finished the third and last term of Standard 6 with As in Mathematics, English, Science, and History, and Bs in Kiswahili, Geography, and Civics. Congratulations Leboy!
New challenges ahead for Leboy in 2015. First, he needs to complete Standard 7, thereby finishing the last year of his primary education. He will also be expected to perform well in the national examinations. Following that, a conversation about his educational future will be in order. As always, any input is appreciated on this matter. Happy new year everyone!