I was a university science student, spending my time in classrooms, computer labs and laboratories. I knew the hallways of the science department by heart, including the twisty corridors that lead to the obscure classroom 1008. I had never been abroad before. I wasn’t looking for an adventure, and was satisfied with the way my life was. But is that how we should live our lives, being satisfied? In school a satisfactory grade is a mid-range grade, I strived for excellence, I did my best. So why was I living a satisfactory life?
On the wall in the corridors that I walked through every day was a poster with a lion on it, “Study in Africa” it read. I was on my way to the computer lab, so I jotted down the web address and looked it up. I was intrigued by the possibilities of taking courses in the field and having them count towards my university degree. I mentally calculated the number of elective courses I could take, and figured that I could study in Africa, if I wanted to. After a year of considering it, months of emails, and pages of forms, I was on a plane with 38 other students, going to Kenya.
The program was a trip across the country. We were sleeping in tents, driving in huge 4X4 trucks through all kinds of terrain, and living out of a backpack. We took our courses in tents and studied from a library packed up in waterproof crates. We traveled with professors from Canada, wrote essays, took tests, made presentations, everything I would have done in a university institution, except I was in Africa.
While I’m not going to recount every experience I had there, I can tell you that every time I blinked I learned something new; about Africa, about myself, about nature, about humanity.
One of my favourite memories is standing in the bottom of the Great Rift Valley at the site of a Homo erectus discovery with the director of the Nairobi museum telling the class about it, when Richard Leakey walked past. We were encouraged to introduce ourselves to him and were even lucky enough to get some group photos.
There were countless game drives in which we all piled into the trucks and went out in search of the “Big Five”. I have to admit, I think that this term is overrated as I personally am just as excited to see a giraffe or hippo as I am to see a lion or elephant.
Scuba diving in the Indian Ocean and swimming next to a whale shark is something I can’t describe. The majesty of the animal, my beating heart, and the colours of the water combined in a surreal like quality. But I knew it wasn’t a dream, because it happened again the next day.
At Kakamega Rainforest we rose before dawn and hiked uphill in the pitch dark fighting vines that tried to strangle us, roots that tried to trip us, and branches that were determined to strike us. After what seemed like hours we settled on some cold rocks and proceeded to watch one of the most glorious sunrises I’ve ever witnessed.
What trip to Kenya would be complete without visiting a Masai Boma. The incredible graciousness that was shown to us and the generosity that was afforded us is astounding. I sat inside the hut of a woman and held her baby while she made me tea and told me about her life. That is something you could never experience as a tourist.
And how could I forget the four hour “Lawrence of Arabia” like camel ride across Socian Ranch! I could go on and on about the things we did there. I will never forget what I saw and what I experienced.
These and thousands more are memories that I will carry for life. This program gives you the chance of a lifetime to see and do things you never would have thought possible.
Shanna Nellis
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