The rooftop retirement party and the revelation of my Spirit Animal
It’s been a hectic week volunteering on a literacy programme in Kenya for Kenya Connect. I’ve had little time to process all …
Muthoki Country Lodge and a Grey-Headed Kingfisher
Muthoki Country Lodge has been our home in Wamunyu for the week, with luxurious tents and fabulous food. We have four-poster beds …
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, the National Bank of Kenya, and the Reading Road Rally
We’re out in Kenya Connect‘s Institution Bus on a road trip for the Reading Road Rally. It’s part of my volunteering in …
The boy who would only play with sand
Before I came to Kenya, my colleague Liz told me she had been to a special school on her last trip. She …
The water carriers
To many of the children here, being a superhero means carrying heavy jerrycans of water back to their home to help their …
Birds in the garden of Kenya Connect
While we are volunteering in rural Kenyan schools we return to the headquarters of Kenya Connect each day for lunch. It’s meat …
An early bus ride into rural Kenya
The morning starts with an early Institution Bus ride to Kenya Connect‘s headquarters and we transfer to a four-wheel drive vehicle. Eventually …
Common Bulbul calling “doctor-quick doctor-quick be-quick be-quick”
There’s just time before sundown to visit the lake a few hundred metres from my tent. One of the most common birds …
Fifty people under a tree
Our volunteer literacy programme with Kenya Connect today is for a group of parents with children from 0 to 5 years old, …
The goat-sellers of Wamunyu market
We’re heading to Wamunyu Market on our way back to Kenya Connect’s headquarters building. It’s clearly an experience our Kenyan partners want …
African Woolly-Necked Storks at the lake
It’s the evening after a busy day volunteering in Kenyan schools for Kenya Connect. We have dinner together at Muthoki Country Lodge …
‘I Love Trucks’ on a school visit in Kenya
My colleague Liz suggests I might like to read to the literacy class today. I’d love to. If only I’d had chance …
Birding back at camp
There’s very little daylight left after a full day volunteering in Kenyan schools, but I intend to make the most of it. …
My Kamba name is…
My English name is David, but everyone here needs to have a Kamba name. We’re amongst the Kamba tribe here in one …
Our first Kenyan school visit
We’re at Kenya Connect‘s Headquarters in Wamunyu. We’re preparing for our first school visit. I’m cutting out 60 Elmer the Elephants in …
Kenyan faces
There are many things to love about Kenya. The sincerity of the people. The lack of cynicism. The beautiful faces. Kithoto Women …
Basket weaving with Kithoto Women Group, Kyeengai
We are on the Institution Bus again, in rural Kenya, headed out from Wamunyu along dirt roads to Kithoto Women Group in …
Mr Bonface’s Curio Shop
We’re having a visit to Mr Bonface’s curio shop. It’s a gloriously arranged tin shack with a beautiful Zebra painting on the …
A visit to the Wamunyu Handicraft Cooperative Society
Our volunteering in Kenyan schools doesn’t start until tomorrow, yet we have a full programme of activities planned. One of our first …
Welcome to my tent for the week
We’ve arrived in Machakos county in Kenya after our journey from Nairobi. We’ve passed one of the largest shanty towns and seen …
Mango and matcha with a Black Kite display
It’s lunchtime on our trip to Wamunyu in Kenya and the out-of-town shopping centre is modern and wholesome. There are security checks …
Bushbuck
There’s what looks like an East African Bushbuck on the forest edge. They’re elusive and solitary and brilliantly camouflaged. It’s unusual to …
The fascination of Anubis Baboons
Being a Baboon seems like quite a fun lifestyle. At least if you’re a male. There’s a nursing female carrying an infant …
Elephant bath time
It’s Elephant bath time at the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Nairobi. There’s excitement in the small, quiet crowd as a herd of …
Notty the Zebra
We’re at the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Nairobi for a brief visit. We’ve stopped off on our way to our volunteering assignment …
Tytan the baby Black Rhino
I’m in Kenya volunteering on a literacy programme with a charity called Kenya Connect. We’re on our way from Nairobi, heading east …
My first day in Kenya
I’m off to Kenya volunteering on a literacy programme based in Wamunyu, two-hours east of Nairobi. I’m going to be with colleagues …
Tree Sparrow
I’ve seen Tree Sparrows before. I visited Tree Sparrow farm to see them. That’s how sadly depleted their population is.
Swallow on a mission
It’s mud-hut-building time for the Swallows of Westray. Whether it’s a new nest or urgent repairs to an old one, the Swallows …
Polenta
Polenta is a quartet of three fiddles and a guitar and I was delighted to be asked to photograph them at the …