Today we went to the New Life Band School again to teach about the projector. The guys have figured out how to get power to the classroom so we should be set.
We get everything ready. The generator is ready, projector is set up in the teachers lounge, and everyone is watching. We start the generator but it won't start. After a few minutes they figured out it was out of gas. They fill it up, start it, and then the projector won't turn on. After 30 minutes we discovered the bulb had broken during the trip so we replaced it. Now we try again, but the generator won't work again. After about two hours of trying to get everything to work, the conclusion is the generator is broken and they need to take it to town for some adjustments. So we scratch the projector lesson and decide to hand out flip flops.
We brought enough flip flops for every student to receive a pair. We organized all the flip flops according to their size outside in the yard. The students came by classes to pick out their pair. They were really excited to get a new pair of sandals. We had so many different colors it took them a long time to choose which pair they wanted.
We had to leave after the passing out of shoes because we had a reservation at Shanga for lunch. Shanga is a place that employs 55 handicap people. They may be deaf, blind, mute, or have a physical disability. They figure out what skills they do have and they put them to use.
This was the neatest place we visited. You would never have even known it was there because it was hidden down a little road. When you arrive you are greeted by some employees and brought down to the area they serve lunch. It was such a cute outdoor restaurant. It was designed like a tiki hut. Inside the tiki hut there were tables and they had ours ready all decorated up with beaded placemats, folded napkins, and fancy glasses. At first glance, I thought, we can't be in Africa right now.
The lunch was wonderful! First, they served you some passion fruit juice in champagne glasses. Then we got pumpkin soup, which was delicious! After the soup, they brought out a vegetable samosa with a special white sauce. These were the best samosas ever! The main course was a buffet of salads with barbecue chicken and beef. Finally, they brought us a dessert which was really good because it was made with a chocolate topping. Everyone loved it.
After we ate we went on a tour of the facility. Next to the restaurant was as a yard with lots of couches to sit on and lounge. It was so peaceful. I would love to have just sat out there and read a book.
The main part reminded me of Old Wisconin or Silver Dollar City. There was one area where they were recycling glass bottles using hot kilns. They were making beads, glassware, and stain glass windows. It was really interesting watching them work. Then they had a section for working with fabrics. They had some wooden machines ran by the workers that made blankets, tablecloths, placemats, and scarfs. There were about 10 sewing machines used to make outfits, purses, and table napkins. There was an area of bead work. They were making necklaces, earrings, bracelets, and keychains. Finally they were making mosaic candles holders out of small pieces of glass.
This is a non-profit organization. So all their income comes from the restaurant and the gift shop. There were so many things that I would have liked to have boughten. I bought a beautiful bracelet!
This place started only five years ago and has grown every year. It is a beautiful place. It also won some awards for being one of the best places for visitors. You can tell they are very proud of what they are doing to help their community.
Sent from my iPad
Sent from my iPad
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