This summer was honestly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I got to do so many cool things, starting with a trip to the Pacific Crest Trail for a hikeathon—a wild mix of a hackathon and a hike. I pulled a wildcard and signed up about 10 days prior to the hike. We hiked about 58 kilometers (around 36 miles) over six days, and let me tell you, it was EPIC. Sure, I was jetlagged, and the summer sun decided to give me a little heat sickness, but it was totally worth it. Plus, I met lots of awesome people who I related to and resonated with a lot. The hackathon part was super cool as well. We created different gadgets prior to the hike and then put them to the test as we backpacked through the trails.
After all that hiking, I took a train to Santa Clara University for an engineering program. I was supposed to go last year, but life happened, and honestly, I am glad it did because the universe put in lots of awesome stuff for me this year. I learned so much about engineering and figured out that I am really interested in electrical engineering, specifically hardware engineering. Being at Santa Clara also gave me a sneak peek into what university life in the United States is like. Since I’m planning to study there, it was very nice to see how things work and imagine what my future will look like.
But hey, my trip wasn’t all about technology and school. I was hosted by CSL San Jose, and they made my trip unforgettable. I would love to give a shoutout to Rev. Jennifer and her family, and Auleena and her family for being the best hosts ever. Auleena was one of the teens there, and she accompanied me on most days to tour the Bay Area. My tour started when I left the university, where we visited the Apple Campus—most people there call it the spaceship—and Stanford University. And the cherry on top? Going to the UB40 concert. As someone who, prior to the concert, had barely listened to UB40, the energy was unmatched and unreal.
The next day, we took on San Francisco, and WOW, that city blew my mind. We started at the Golden Gate Bridge (so iconic), then went out to the Palace of Fine Arts, which was super gorgeous. I do have to say, it was VERY windy at Fort Point, right below the bridge. I even got to eat at a vegan-only restaurant for the first time, which was really awesome since I’ve been vegan since I was 12. We swung by Ghirardelli Square, where we saw so much chocolate, and then walked over to the beach, where I spotted a seal in the water and walked around Fisherman's Wharf. We went to Coit Tower, which was a super beautiful place to view the city from, and then we wrapped up the day in Chinatown and drove under the Oakland Bay Bridge, where we caught a glimpse of what gameday looks like outside Oracle Stadium. The burgers we had for dinner as we watched the Olympics were absolutely AMAZING and I can’t wait to try to make them soon (thanks Sean!).
One of the highlights was going to Santa Cruz in an S2000 convertible. Picture this: the wind in your face, the Californian sun on your skin, and just pure freedom. The view of the nature surrounding the road was scenic, and so was the view of the ocean from above the cliffs. I didn’t go to the beach itself since it was pretty cold and windy. That night, I went to a house concert, and even though it was a bit chilly, the music and the whole atmosphere were just perfect.
Sunday came too soon, and I had to say goodbye to Jennifer. We went for service at the Center, and I got to hear Rev. Michelle sing —her voice was absolutely stunning. It was very cool going to an in-person service too! I got to meet one of the teens there, but most were out of town. I also got to bring back with me a prayer shawl, which I absolutely love. I think prayer shawls would be a really cool idea to bring back here! I got to meet other members, talk to them, and take pictures with them. After that, I had lunch with Auleena's family and a couple of people from the center, like Rev. Rasherly, at a Mexican restaurant called Aqui, and the food was seriously next-level and Mexican food has definitely been something I’ve been craving since I got back. Rev. Rasherly gifted me a bag filled with all the lovely and thoughtful gifts from everyone at CSL San Jose. I'm super grateful for this, and I'll take care of them forever. I spent that afternoon with Auleena shopping at a massive mall, almost got lost, but the Nordstrom directions saved the day. Later, I played mini golf with Auleena's parents, which was a blast, though it was a little sad that Auleena couldn’t join us that evening.
It was time to head back to Nairobi, and of course, my flight back had to be a bit of an adventure. After a delay with my flight to Frankfurt, I missed my connection and had to reroute through Turkey. It was kind of stressful, but I weirdly liked that kind of challenge and Turkey was beautiful.
Looking back, I’ve gotta say, the energy on the West Coast matched mine a lot. I liked so much about it from the culture to the food to the nature —everything's kind of overwhelming at first, but in a good way. I am already envisioning going back next year for teen camp. I’ve come back home with a couple of take-aways, most importantly about how seeing what’s out there can change how you think; I came back home with so many plans and new ideas. Second of all, the world is a beautiful place and a lot of the time to see that beauty you need to go out there with no assumptions. Lastly, Crunchy Rollers and Vegan Ben and Jerry’s are AWESOME.
I’m just SO grateful to everyone who made all this possible, both in Kenya and California. You all made this summer unforgettable, and I can’t wait to be back with such an amazing community.
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