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Day 16 started slow in the best way possible. After a long day and a night out, we finally let ourselves sleep and take the morning at our own pace. As one could call it, a self-care Saturday. No alarms and no rushing. Everyone had the opportunity to choose how they would like to spend the day. Eventually, some of us made our way to the pool, where the day came to life.
The highlight of the pool was watching Carol learn to swim with the help of a stranger. He demonstrated how to move her arms when swimming and made her try the motion before actually swimming. Suddenly she was swimming! Once her head popped out of the water, she cheered and everyone followed suit with shouting and clapping.
The only downside to the pool was the soundtrack! This playlist was on repeat with the same few songs playing over and over again. “Umbrella” by Rihanna made multiple appearances.
After our morning free time, we came together for a group meeting to reflect on our time abroad and to close out our journey. We talked about how much we had enjoyed the experience and the connections we made along the way, as well as the experiences we hope to have in the future, such as welcoming Kenyatta students at Hollins. We were each given certificates for completing the study abroad program which made everything feel a little more real and a little more final. Both the Kenyatta and Hollins teams shared heartfelt thanks, expressing appreciation for one another and the time we spent together. As Irene said, it was a moment that we all shared together, a beautiful moment, and this felt like the perfect way to pause and recognize everything that this experience had meant to us.
We then settled down for a much needed lunch, as many of us skipped out on breakfast to get some extra sleep in. We made sure to fuel our bodies and get some liquids in us to cool us down.
After lunch, many students met on the beach for a marine walk. It was low tide, revealing a coral reef for exploring. Local guides took us in small groups down the shoreline and out to where the waves break for a two hour long adventure. Along the way, our guides pointed out various sea life. Many of the creatures were able to be handled by ourselves or the guides. Our excursion started with some starfish and sea slugs. The bright coloring on the starfish led many of us to ask if they were real and alive. The sea slugs felt about the same as you would think— a soft, slimy lump.
This is what many people think of when they think of starfish.
We quickly encountered a very different type of starfish, which moves around significantly more.
As we walked, our guides noted three different types of sea urchins. The first kind we saw was the small sea urchin, one that some of us had seen before.
The next type of sea urchin looks similar, but has much longer spines.
The final common kind of sea urchin we discovered was the edible one. We were told that many people in China and France eat this type of urchin. It does not require cooking and can be eaten raw.
Later into our walk, our guides pointed out the Red Sea urchin, which has a beautiful, deep red color. This is considered a dangerous type of sea urchin, so we were not able to hold it, but we observed its beauty nonetheless.
As we got farther out, we noticed an interesting pattern in the sand, made from the waves. After many shells collected, much time in the sun, and numerous sea creatures disturbed, we returned to the hotel for some more free time.
But during the marine walk, some had a more treacherous journey than others. Madison fell and cut her leg on some coral, but she toughed it out through the rest of the tour. Afterwards, she was walking and felt something in the bottom of her foot. Turns out when she fell, she also stepped on a sea urchin! Ouch!! So, she summoned Bagby to dig it out of her foot (which she greatly appreciated). Bagby and also Sylvia worked tirelessly to dig the urchin spine out while Madison watched TikTok clips. After about 30 minutes of no luck, the spine remained really deep in her foot.
Luckily, a local Kenyan woman named Mora was nearby and saw what they were trying to do, so she stepped in and asked if anyone had a needle instead of tweezers. Ameena had one from her hijab and handed the needle over so Mora could precisely dig the spine out. After about 10 minutes, she finally got it out! Madison was relieved and appreciative. After the “surgery,” Bagby, Madison, Melanie, Ameena and Faith all played mermaids in the pool to celebrate! Hurray! They eventually went to the ocean which was very warm, but had so much seaweed around they only stayed for a short time before heading up to their rooms for showers and dinner. Another successful day!
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