By The Numbers

May 26th, 2010. I was on a plane headed for Kenya, with a lay-over in Switzerland. It has been exactly a year since I have left America. In honor of this one year anniversary, I would like to share some numbers and statistics of my experience so far. Here they are:

6 – The number of living chickens hanging upside down on bicycle handles (3 on each side), no doubt headed towards the market for selling.

7 – The record number of full grown people I have seen riding a motorcycle.

35 (2) – The record number of full grown people being carried by a 14-seater matatu (2 babies). The matatu broke down, and as we all got out of the vehicle (I was one of the 5 people standing on the outside door), I realized there were also 8 chickens inside.

Over a dozen – single exposed breasts I have seen from breast-feeding mothers.

6 – the total number of times I have swam in a year.

3 – the number of times I would sometimes swim in a single day.

47 – dead cockroaches I found in my room after two weeks absence.

Infinity – living cockroaches in and around my pit latrine.

60 – the most kilometers I have ever run in one week's time.

60 – the average kilometers I would swim each week for many consecutive weeks of my life.

3 – The number of items I can cross off my bucket list (1. swim in the indian ocean, 2. dream in another language, 3. be on both northern and southern hemispheres of the world at the same time)

1 – The number of strawberries I have eaten.

36 – letters and packages I have mailed, also the number of our starting group.

5 – The number of languages I am greeted in on a daily basis (Kiswahili, English, Taita, Duruma, Kamba)

1500 – liters of water I have used total in 10 months of being at my site. This doesn't include my water use when I travel to Nairobi or other cities, but it comes out to about 5.5 liters per day.

365 – The number of days I have been outside America.

426 – approximate number of days I have left until my service is through.

1 – times I have sincerely longed to be home.

0 – times I have regretted my decision to join the Peace Corps.