Karmen Meyer 2/6/12 Karmen Meyer 2/6/12

Africa Journal {WE HAVE FAITH CARAVAN} Day 1-3 | Edmonton & International Photographer

Hello to the most patient followers EVER! Yes, it has been nearly two months since I came home from Africa and I have hardly shared anything here on the old blog. Many of you have been asking about my trip and I have been promising posts. Being really unsure about how to share this unbelievable experience, I have decided to share my day-to-day(ish) journal. To be honest something exciting didn't happen every day but it is the only way I have managed to break-down 6 weeks of amazing people, concerts, cities, countries. I honestly can't wait to get going; I haven't read these journal entries myself yet, so I am actually really looking forward to looking back and sharing this journey with you! So here we go... DAY 1- November 2GOOD MORNING KENYA!I have been awoken by the sounds of roosters, followed by the barking of dogs and then a plethora of sounds I have never heard before! Eeeek, I LOVE it. I cannot wait to get out there today and do a little exploring.We arrived at the Mennonite Guesthouse, in Kenya, late last night after way to many hours on planes and in airports. I kid you not, my butt is STILL sore! So far everyone we have met has been very kind, including the two superstar Kenyan drivers, Allan & Joseph, who we traded Canada/Kenya info with on the late night drive to the Guesthouse.And wow, the Guesthouse looks gorgeous, well at night anyway (the sun is up now but I haven’t ventured outside yet). It was so amazing to be able to walk around, shower and climb into a clean bed after more then 24 hours in transit. Although, I must admit that there was a small moment of panic as a teeny bit of water got in my mouth while showering, haha ya, I am a little paranoid. And since there was no one here to show us around the guesthouse at night, I haven’t had any water and am so thirsty. I guess it will have to wait until breakfast.Well, some guy in a blue shirt is ringing a bell, which I can only assume means breakfast and (hopefully) safe water. So I am outta here!Day 2- November 3Well our gorgeous, care-free Africa days ended about an hour after I wrote that last journal entry. We were picked up yesterday by Stephan, a wonderfully awesome guy from the CRWRC office here in Kenya, to go for our security briefing (due to the bombings that happened just before we arrived) and be dropped off at a university & hotel for the African Youth Conference for Climate Change.After an inspiring afternoon of listening to Stephan and Fred (another CRWRC member), we were feeling pumped about telling the story of the We Have Faith Caravan……. And then, the jet lag began to kick in and we were dropped of at a not-so-secure, not-so-clean, body-odour filled hotel & conference centre. Though we had moments of good spirits, things were suddenly not looking so bright. The bathroom was a breeding ground for mosquitoes, we had to Jerry-rig a pad-lock on the cupboard for a sense of security, and to top it off Ruth and I shared an uncomfortable night in a single bed since her mosquito net had holes in it. Needless to say not much sleep was had.Yes, our adventure has officially begun. And after talking to the very 'care-free' leader/organizers of the caravan we are thinking it is definitely not the end.Bring it on.Day#3- November 4I am happy to say that after a good nights rest, and meeting many people from the caravan I am again super excited. I am overwhelmed with all the information I have received, and by the stories and passion of both locals and foreigners participating in the caravan. I haven’t yet processed how to best tell these stories, but will just continue shooting in hopes that it will simply reveal itself.Outside of the ‘photography’ side of things, we have FINALLY found out more about the actual caravan! We will be traveling in 6 trucks (each seating 28 people) and camping along the way. Yup, camping. Although totally awesome, I am totally unprepared!The countries we will be traveling through are Kenya, Tanzania, Botswana, Malawi, Zambia & South Africa. There will be days we get up, take down our tents and jump on the truck before sunrise and get in to camp long after sunset. That is a looong time for this girl to plopped in a truck, but it will be totally worth it!Well I think I am going to leave it at that, since my mind is quite literally about to crash. Jet-lag is something else today, need a nap. Whew! Well that is a start. It is becoming clear to me that this is going to make me look like I was on some sort of emotional roller coaster ride, but I promise it was just the jet-lag talking! It gets better (I hope)...... Yikes, also I just want you to know that I am not really editing these posts, I really want to share what I was actually feeling and experiencing, the good and the bad, SORRY! And to help this along I must, of course, include some pictures!!! ENJOY!!Truly,Karmen

Ruth unpacking in our room and our super high security protecting thousands of dollars worth of camera and video equipment....

While this was certainly NOT the worst bathroom we encountered on our trip, the standing water on the floor and in the toilet which served as a mosquito breeding ground in our very own room was a bit of an inconvenience. Another fun tid-bit about this specific bathroom is that we were having to take those freezing cold, take you breath away kind of showers. We later found out that everyone else was taking steamy, hot showers; our room was the exception... sigh.

I promised my Mama I would try to take some photos of myself in Africa too! p.s. How can one person be so pasty??

Much needed TEA TIME, between sessions at the African Youth Conference on Climate Change.

Ruth and I found a little time for a nature walk on the university campus. Yup, on the campus alone we saw a variety of birds, bugs, warthogs, and monkeys!!!! Also, you can picture me making a total fool of myself chasing the monkeys all over campus... turns out they are a little camera shy.

And what would an African Youth Conference be without a good ol' dance off! So Fun!

Thanks so much for stopping by and definitely let me know if you have any questions!!! Hope you come back for more, this is just the beginning.

kmeyerphotography.com….. kmeyerphotography.com/blog….. Twitter.com/KarmenMeyer

*if you would like to know more about my products and packages feel free to send an email to karmen@kmeyerphotography.com

Karmen Meyer 2/5/12 Karmen Meyer 2/5/12

What's To Come {AFRICA} | Edmonton & International Photographer

I am working on a bunch of blog posts from my trip to Africa!! The first one should be up tomorrow, but in the meantime you should check out this fantastic video from the super talented, all-round rad guy and 1/3 of our little media team, Ryan Geleynse. It is so beautiful and brings back so many amazing memories.Consider it a preview of everything that I am going to tell you about over the next couple weeks!! Let me know what you think, and feel free to ask questions... I promise to answer anything you want to know about the trip. ENJOY!!Truly,KarmenCheck out Ryan's other videos too. Although, I assure you that this will not be the last time you see one of them on my blog!

Karmen Meyer 1/16/12 Karmen Meyer 1/16/12

Amathuba Housing Project {AFRICA} | Edmonton & International Photographers

A little refresher; we are visiting a housing project called Amathuba in Embo, South Africa.We have the fantastic Robert Zuma as our generous tour guide. Since Suzi, the founder of this housing project, passed, Robert has taken on most of the leadership. Although he has no 'actual' education, Robert is driven and knows how to work with his hands.He teaches others in the community to work with wood, metal and whatever materials are available. He works hard to find funding so that they can continue working on the communities homes, schools and buildings. He wants homes that are strong and reliable, so that his friends and family can be more healthy, both physically and mentally. He wishes that they will be able to go to work and not worry about coming home to find that the rainfall has seeped through the roof and walls to drench their beds and spoil their food.He really is a remarkable and passionate man. We are so thankful that he took the time to show us around.So... continuing from where we left Lillian. Robert took us to meet some more remarkable people and families.We had to climb down a very steep hill, NOT a good day to wear flip-flops and carry a camera! But, by some sort of miracle both my camera and I made it to the next 'level' of homes.O and I made a new friend! She never did tell me her name, in fact I am not sure if she new much English at all, but we got along just fine.The views were stunning. You look one way to see rolling hills and large rural homes, then turn to see a hillside covered in homes made out of random available materials, their roofs held on by stones and tires. Unfortunately, wealthy communities side by side with large slums is a common sight in South Africa.We met several other families. One, most memorably, welcomed us into their home with a song and dance. There was so much joy and positivity, some times it was hard remember that they were the very same people living in these unfortunate conditions.Sadly, after just a few more introductions and stories and it was time for goodbye.

kmeyerphotography.com….. kmeyerphotography.com/blog….. Twitter.com/KarmenMeyer

Karmen Meyer 1/2/12 Karmen Meyer 1/2/12

Lillian and Her Home {AFRICA} | Edmonton & International Photographers

So I have been pretty terrible at sharing photos from Africa. The truth is, there is just so many and I don't even know where to begin or what to do with them!!Right now the CRWRC is using them for a website and educational purposes within universities and churches in North America; but, I want to share my little story with you as well. So here we go.... My first little post about an amazing 6 weeks in the gorgeous continent of Africa.December 8, 2011 | Durban, South AfricaIt was a cool, damp day, the sky was grey and felt the need to occasionally let some rain on us. I had been in Africa for 37 days at this point, and let's just say I did NOT pack enough sweaters or pants. While the weather is so often hot and sunny (some would say to hot!), it just made the cool days that much harder to take. But anyways, the weather was somewhat fitting for our eye-opening trip to Amathuba, a housing project in Embo, South Africa.Since we have been traveling across East and South Africa (over 5,000 kms!), nearly all day has been spent in trucks or at concerts, we have hardly had time to visit with local Africans not participating in the caravan. So, when fellow caravaner and South African friend, Skhumbuzo Myeza, presented us with this fantastic opportunity there was no way we were saying no. O and by the way, 'we' was myself and two other awesome Canadians I met on the trip, Ryan and Leah!! You might have heard about Ryan already, since he is the video part of our little CRWRC media team.We caught a cab and traveled a small ways outside of Durban, arriving to see homes of all shapes, sizes and materials lacing the side of one of SA's rolling hills. Witnessing these types of things is always so overwhelming, it is horrifying and inspiring all at the same time. You suddenly feel very blessed, stupid for not having brought something to help, useless. My mind just cycled through a huge range of emotions, although I like to think I kept a calm and collected exterior. Something that was particularly easy to do when speaking to Lillian. The beautiful 80 something year-old woman below.When we knocked on her door during her devotions, we were welcomed with an enourmous smile and greetings. Leah, Ryan, Skhumbuzo and all crammed into her home; one room, one bed, one fridge, one dresser, one hot plate. It was a bit of a mess, she explained, since now that she is old and has outlived most of her children there are not many around to help her keep the place clean. Lillian told us stories of the past 78 years she has lived here.She told us about her work and her family. She told us about the important photos that hung above her bed, and even introduced us to her (I think, great)grandson!We asked Lillian what would help her, her family and her community. And what things have already happened. She told us of the fantastic women named Suzi from the UK who came here one time and for no particular reason decided to help them. She donated huge amounts of her own money to work with people in the community to help create better homes. She told us of how Suzi later died of a brain tumor, and although there is still a little bit of local funding coming in you can see that work has slowed, there is still so much left to be done.Lillian took us outside for a little tour. She could not take us to far, as the hill is very steep, but this is a little of what we saw.Unfortunately, this is where we had to say goodbye to Lillian and where I will have to leave you for today. But I have so much more to share with you about this remarkable place and the rest of my trip to Africa. Until then, here is one more photo of the lovely Lillian in front of her home.

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Karmen Meyer 10/21/11 Karmen Meyer 10/21/11

CRWRC ‘We Have Faith Caravan’ | Karmen Goes to AFRICA

Hello Everyone. For those of you who do not know me, I am Karmen Meyer. I am a photographer, a traveler, a wife, a daughter, a big sister and a Christian. I love adventure, laughing and the kindness of others. It is all these things that have brought me to where I am today. And, why I have been presented with such a fantastic opportunity, the opportunity to use my passions to help bring attention to a people and a planet that is truly suffering. A little more information on this:-“Over 13 million people are affected by the crisis in the Horn of Africa. That’s six times more than those affected by the Indonesian tsunami in 2004 and four times more than those affected by the Haiti earthquake. Despite this need, attention to this most recent humanitarian crisis has been woefully inadequate.” (CRWRC website, http://hornofafrica.ngoaidmap.org/p/highlights)-“Climate change has been described as one of the biggest threats to development and livelihoods in our time. Consensus has been built among climate scientists … that the current climate crises have been caused by human action, and that urgent action is required to save the planet. The impacts of climate change in Kenya and Africa cannot be underestimated, with the recent cases of devastating droughts and floods in many parts of Africa, as well as increased intensity of tropical diseases like Malaria.” (NewsFromAfrica.org)-The 17th Conference of the Parties (COP 17) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) will take place in December in Durban, South Africa.It is against this gloomy backdrop that African youth organizations join with faith communities, faith leaders and networks from all over the world to form the We Have Faith Caravan. “There hasn’t been a similar climate caravan before. It will be challenging, tiring, time-consuming, even strenuous but most significantly, it will be enlightening, impactful and world changing; and just maybe it’s the difference we’ve all been wanting to make...” (newsfromafrica.org) I cannot begin to describe how honored I am to be a part of something so important. To use the gifts God has given me to help His people, His Creation. It is more then I could have ever asked for.Joining me on this amazing mission is Ruth Terry (a journalist) and Ryan Geleynse (a videographer). Together we will represent the CRWRC. We will document the dancing, theatre and music used to teach, to encourage and to remind the world not to let these communities perish. We will document the African Youth meeting with leaders, as well as, signing and collecting petitions to be presented at the COP17. We will introduce you to the participants, tell their stories and share what their goals are for their countries. We will do all this in hopes that you might see it and be called to action.In order to do this we will need your prayers, encouragement, and financial support. If you feel called you can donate by sending a cheque made out to the CRWRC (with my name in the memo) to:Iona Stewart-BuismanGlobal Volunteer & MPP Program Coordinator, CRWRC3475 Mainway PO Box 5070 Stn LCD 1Burlington, ON L7R 3Y8Or donate online at http://www.crwrc.org/pages/crwrc_donate.cfm. Where it asks you to choose a Designee you will need to check the box ‘I would like to make a gift to a person not listed’, then type in my name, the amount you would like to donate, as well as, your information so that they can send you a receipt.Or cash can be donated directly to me. It will be used for the purchasing of visas, extra travel costs and incidentals; any money not used will be put back to the CRWRC.Thank-you and God Bless,Karmen Meyerkarmen@kmeyerphotography.comkmeyerphotography.com780.660.0807 P.S. Here is a downloadable version of this letter --> wehavefaithcaravan. If you could all share this post or e-mail this letter to just one person it would help immensely! THANKS!

Karmen Meyer 4/26/11 Karmen Meyer 4/26/11

NYC {in less words, and more pictures} | Edmonton, Red Deer & International Photographers

Hi! Here are some snapshots from NYC. An awesome place. If you have been, you know what I mean. If not, check out the pictures to see what I am talking about. I heart NYC, ENJOY!!!Truly,Karmenp.s. thanks to the female portion of the Meyer family for putting up with me =)

kmeyerphotography.com….. kmeyerphotography.com/blog….. Twitter.com/KarmenMeyer

*if you would like to know more about my products and packages feel free to send an email to karmen@kmeyerphotography.com