Sofia’s Birthday and Jericho Orphanage

Friday was Sofia’s birthday, and I was lucky enough to be invited to the orphanage that she volunteers at in Usa River, Jericho Orphanage, for the birthday celebration!  Usa River is also where Cradle of Love is located, so I am quite experienced at navigating the dala dala system there, and Sofie picked me up at the bus stop to guide me on the fairly adventurous hike to Jericho Orphanage.  As I was carrying a cake, jumping across huge ditches and skipping across rocks through a stream seemed particularly hazardous! 

The birthday party with the orphans at Jericho was a blast!  Sofia had lots of fun games planned, including bobbing for marshmallows, decorations and balloons, and treats for the kids, including ice cream!  There are around 50 orphans at Jericho, and this was probably the first party they had ever had!

The "Kitchen" at Jericho

Honestly, Jericho Orphanage makes Good Hope look like a palace.  The orphanage consists of only 5 rooms, two small bedrooms, an office, one classroom, and a semi-bathroom since there is no running water!  The “kitchen” is outside.  I would try to describe it, but it is better to just see the picture.  Since it is so small, only 12 of the kids sleep at the orphanage; the others sleep with host families in the neighborhood, but they take their meals and spend the day at Jericho.  In addition to no running water, there is also no electricity, but I know that Sofie is working on that and is looking for donations!!  (Feel free to donate through me if you are interested, and I will make sure that she gets the money.)  I know she has already exhausted a few of her resources at home since a few weeks ago, Jericho had no food for the kids or money to buy food so she did a bit of fundraising then.

The TreeHouse

Anyway, after the party with the kids, we ventured out to a place called the TreeHouse, which is on the road between Arusha and Usa River, and we have seen it on the bus many times and wanted to stop there.  We enjoyed dinner and birthday cake (complete with candles) at the best table in the house (the one in the tree, of course!), and after, we headed back to Arusha for a night of dancing and fun.





Birthday Cake!

Delicious!