Krista Photography Blog » travel

CASH for Comments!

Krista Guenin — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 02:00:00 +0000

So there’s been a bunch of blogging going on around the photography world in the last couple weeks about Cans for Comments. People have been offering to give one can of food to a local food pantry for every blog comment they received. I think that’s a great idea! And while I LOVE the local approach, my heart this Christmas is a bit further away…

I went to Zimbabwe last November (2007) to document the work of Forgotten Voices International. And I have truly not been the same since. My eyes see things differently now. It’s as if everything is filtered through a different lens – one that makes me see people, food, money, hunger, waste, AIDS, giving, joy, love, and God in a new way.

Last Christmas was incredibly difficult for me. Watching my niece & nephews plow through a MOUNTAIN of presents, having just met and fallen in love with kids who had barely enough to survive… Well, it was painful.

I recently spent some time teaching my sister’s kids about my friends in Zimbabwe – Shelton, Margaret & Concilia. These kids are orphans living on their own, with little more than weeds for food. Try explaining that to a 5, 4, and 2-year-old from America – it’s hard for them to wrap their cute little minds around. But my niece, Reilly, said to me – “Kiki, I know, why don’t we give them some of OUR food?!” It was so sweet and so sincere, it almost made me cry. I wish it was that easy. I wish it was as easy as dropping off some food at a food pantry. But, it’s not.

So, instead of Cans for Comments – I’m going to be giving CASH for Comments. For every blog comment you leave (on any post) between now and midnight on Christmas Eve, I will give $1.00 to an organization that is dedicated to empowering AIDS orphans in Zimbabwe – Forgotten Voices International. As little as $15 can send a child to school in Zimbabwe for a whole year! $65 can provide a person with HIV with a home care kit to help prevent the spread of the disease. A few dollars can make a big difference in a lot of lives!

So, I challenge YOU to help me make a difference in the life of a child in Zimbabwe! Leave a comment! And then leave another. And then ask your friends to do the same. And then go to Forgotten Voices International to find out what FVI is doing to partner with local churches in Southern Africa to provide care for vicitims and orphans of AIDS. And maybe this year, instead of spending a ton of money on presents that no one needs – give a gift on behalf of the ones you love to make a real difference in the life of a child in Zimbabwe!

Out of the country!

Krista Guenin — Wed, 28 May 2008 03:29:00 +0000

Well, it’s about 4 hours before I have to leave for the airport, and I still haven’t packed for my trip to Haiti! But, such is life :) It’ll all get done somehow, even if it means I don’t sleep – at least I’ll sleep on the plane that way. haha!

I’ll be in Haiti until late Monday night, June 2nd. Please pray for a good safe trip. Pray that I would stay healthy, and that this picky eater would be able to eat whatever is put in front of her ;), and pray for some awesome photographs that HFCH will be able to use to increase their ministry in Port-au-Prince!! Thanks for taking this journey with me. I can’t wait to come home and share some photos with all of you!

I will be without email & internet access until Monday (eek!), so if you don’t hear back from me, that’s why :) I’ll do my best to respond to all emails when I get back to work next Tuesday.

and because posts without photos are lame… here’s a shot from my very first missions trip to Mexico back in 2002…

Have a great week!!

I’m home!

Krista Guenin — Sat, 10 Nov 2007 14:51:00 +0000

I’m home! In fact, I got home a couple days ago. I’ve been meaning to blog some more about the trip, but just haven’t felt ready yet. It’s pretty overwhelming being back in the States. I walked into my niece & nephews’ play room the other day and started crying (they just have so much stuff!). We cleaned off the plates after dinner and I started crying just looking at all of the food going into the trash. I can’t even bring myself to go to the grocery store yet. I’m just having a hard time wrapping my head around all that I’ve seen and heard, and reconciling that with what life is like here. And to be honest, I don’t want to get used to it. I don’t want to become complacent. I don’t want to return to a life of waste and greed and taking things for granted. But I do need to figure out a way to keep from crying every 10 minutes :)

So, bear with me for a few days, and I promise I’ll share some more about the trip soon!

Back in Bulawayo!

Krista Guenin — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 09:38:00 +0000

Wow! No internet access for over a week! I’m going through withdrawl – this is a great quick fix :)

We’re back in Bulawayo today. We left here last Monday and went to the Matopos and stayed at a place called Shumba Shaba. It was BEAUTIFUL! I can’t wait to show you the pictures! We stayed there for a couple of days with some of the pastors that work with Forgotten Voices (or the other way around, really). It was great getting to know them and enjoying the scenery.

We left Shumba Shaba on Wednesday and went to the Mtshabezi Mission/Hospital. This is one of FVI’s biggest partners. It was an amazing week with them. They were so gracious and took such good care of us there. It was overwhelming. We visited the Primary School there, and interviewed some of the children who’s school fees are paid by the Mtshabezi AIDS Project. It was so encouraging to see how much hope these kids have for their future now that they are able to go to school. We also visited some of the kids in their homes out in the villages over a couple of days. That was incredibly humbling. To see these kids surviving on next to nothing – literally eating weeds for meals – and then to go back to the Mission where they prepared such great meals for us. It was just hard.

On Thursday we were supposed to visit a woman who is cared for by the AIDS Project, but she died during the night and so we ended up going to her funeral instead. Her name was Setty, she was 28 years old. Her only child had already died of AIDS, and we aren’t sure what happened to her husband. Her family was so welcoming, and allowed us to film and photograph the funeral. These are some of the most powerful photos I’ve shot – I hope to post them soon after I get home.

I’ve shot well over 5,000 images so far – so I’m going to be BUSY when I get home!! Wedding and Portrait clients will have to come first – so I hope you can be patient waiting for some images from the trip. It’ll be worth the wait, I promise!

I’ve got a great story to share without about an interesting run-in with the “police” but I think I’ll wait till I get home. I’m not that worried that the Zim police are checking my blog, but just in case… :) You’ll just have to wait!!!

I’ll be home on Thursday and will try to reply to emails then. If I get the chance, I’ll blog again tomorrow, but who knows? Please continue to pray for safety – especially getting through the airport on Thursday. I hope all is well back home! I can’t wait to get back and hug my niece & nephews and see my friends & family!!

all is well

Krista Guenin — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 10:39:00 +0000

just a quick note to say that all is well! we landed in bulawayo yesterday and made it through airport security with no problems. Praise the Lord! We’re touring around bulawayo, meeting lots of people and having a great time so far. I’m really looking forward to this afternoon because we’re going to go do some home visits. It should be a good day!

ok, gotta go get some pizza :)

please keep praying for us!

I’m in Africa!

Krista Guenin — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 17:36:00 +0000

After 24 hours of travelling, door to door – I’m finally in Africa!! My friend, Adam (videographer) & I are staying at the home of a lovely couple who live here with their 4 kids. The Lockwoods have fed us and are giving us warm beds and hot showers before our flight to Bulawayo tomorrow morning. They are such a blessing!!

The trip has been good so far – pretty uneventful (which is just the way I like it). I slept quite a bit and even got to watch Harry Potter 5 – so all in all it was a good flight :) We’re still praying for an easy time getting through customs tomorrow in Zim – so lift us up if you think of it.

Ok, off to be a nice social guest again! I couldn’t resist the internet access while it was available :)

I’m on my way to Zimbabwe!

Krista Guenin — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 18:00:00 +0000

Holy Cow! I’m actually sitting in the airport, getting ready to go! I can’t believe it’s finally here – I’m finally going to Zimbabwe! I’m so excited, can you tell? There’s been so much happening in preparation for this trip, I don’t even know where to begin…

First of all, I’ve got some amazing news! This trip now has a double purpose. First and foremost, I’m going to be documenting the work of Forgotten Voices International in Zimbabwe. We’re working on a documentary as well as taking photos for that FVI can use to share their story and raise support. I love what FVI is doing and I’m so thrilled to be a part of it. And if that’s not reason enough to be excited about this trip – there’s more!

Ryan of FVI met a woman a few weeks ago who has an amazing vision. Lisa‘s vision is a series of children’s books that would tell the stories of children from various countries. Each book would represent one child, one country, one theme (i.e. hope) and would hopefully be used by parents and teachers to encourage, inspire, and teach children about other cultures. Her vision is just amazing and even extends to eventually doing a book on every country in the world! Well, she has decided to do the first book with FVI about a child in Zimbabwe. And, she just happens to need a photographer to supply the art for the book. So, Ryan sent her to me and as it turns out, she loves my work! (*blushing*) So, my second purpose for this trip is to document the story of one child and create the art for the first book!! Lisa wants consistency throughout the series, so I also may have the opportunity to do more of these. That means, I’m really going to get to travel the world and photograph children with amazing stories! It just blows my mind that this is happening! I have been praying for an opportunity like this for FIVE YEARS and now God is providing the way! It’s just the most amazing thing EVER! Thank you Lord!!

Well, now I’m REALLY excited – I just got myself all pumped up for this trip! Too bad it’ll be another 40 or so hours before I get there :)

I’m going to try to update this blog as often as possible with news from Zimbabwe, so stay posted!!! Thanks so much for going on this journey with me – and for all of the incredible support you all have given me! You all are such a blessing!

The joy of business travel…

Krista Guenin — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 04:09:00 +0000

I LOVE to travel. It’s so amazing to me how we can fly all over the world in a matter of hours. It’s just so cool!

But, sometimes, it’s such a pain! Tonight, I flew from Boston Logan to Chicago O’Hare. First, I can barely get into the airport by myself because I’m carrying so much gear and stuff – 4 bags in all, 2 of them on wheels. Thank God that my brother-in-law, Michael, was able to give me a ride or I’m sure this story would’ve begun with some crazy cab anecdote. Anyway, so I make it into the airport and walk up to the kiosk to check a couple of bags. I checked-in online, thinking I’d save a little time, right? No. I stood at the kiosk for 10 minutes after I’d finished my part, waiting for someone to check my bags. When they finally came to ask if I needed help, it turns out my luggage tags didn’t print. So, they figured that out, and it looks like they’ve got my bags and I’m all set. Great. Security goes off without a hitch (I’ve heard that they’re sending dSLRs through the x-ray separately now, but not at Logan, yet). So, I head directly to the gate they told me to go to. There’s no one there. I think, maybe I’m early? So I sit down, plug in the laptop and surf some blogs. Finally, a lady comes and tells me that my gate has been changed. Ah-ha! I guess that’s what I get for not checking. By the time I get to my gate, they’re starting to board, I get on with no problems. Sleep through the whole flight :) Wake up, land at 5:30pm, struggle to get my wheeling carry-on into a bathroom stall, and out again, and head down to baggage claim. The bag with my clothes comes out right away – excellent! But, I continue to wait for my tripod bag. And, I wait, and I wait. Finally everyone else has left, the conveyor belt has stopped, and my tripod has still not arrived. So, I go to the United desk and ask a friendly customer service rep. He tells me to try the conveyor belt for oddly-shaped luggage. Ok. No luck, it’s not there. So, I go back to the desk. He tells me that I’m not supposed to talk to him, and takes me to a different desk. I fill out the paper work to have my tripod sent to me if it ever shows up (they tell me it’s been scanned coming off the plane in Chicago, so I don’t know if it’s been lost or stolen or what). And I head to the rental car agency. As I walk outside, I see that I just missed the Hertz bus, so I wait for another. In the time it takes Hertz to send another bus, every other company has had 2 – 6 buses pass me by. Deep breath. The Hertz bus finally comes, and gets filled to overflowing on the way to the pick-up. Somehow, I managed to get off the bus ahead of everyone else, and into the queue to get my car, find the car with no problem and head off into some good-ole Chicago traffic. By the time I get to Lincoln Park to my friend’s apartment and find a parking spot, it’s 8:30pm.

That’s a total of 7 1/2 hours door to door for a 2 1/2 hour flight. But, it’s still better than the 15 hours it would have taken to drive – and thanks to Tivo, I was still able to watch the whole premiere of The Office. All in all, that’s not bad :)

Mexico pics – yeah!

Krista Guenin — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 00:46:00 +0000

So, I know it took forever, but here are some pics from Mexico!

Here’s the view from my VIP suite at the resort. When I checked in, my parents were complaining about getting a room with 2 double beds instead of a king, as were my Aunt & Uncle. So, when I checked in, I was expecting the double beds. BUT, the lady said “Oh, I see here that you are a VIP!” (huh?!) I had a room on the top floor, in the center of the resort, with the best view, and a King-sized bed! All for little ole me! I felt pretty special :) I almost gave up the room for my parents, but then I remembered, that I’ll be sleeping on the couch when we have our family vacation in Wisconsin next month, and I figured, it was OK for me to be pampered a little bit…
These pics are from a sunset cruise we took in Cabo – so much fun!! Thanks Dad!!

This seal is sitting on the southern-most point of the Baha Penninsula – how cool is that? He was pretty amazing.

And, this would be me, chillin’ on the boat… :)

More pics from the wedding coming soon….

On my way to Cabo!

Krista Guenin — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 10:16:00 +0000

Woo hoo! I could not be more excited! I’m sitting in the airport right now, waiting for my flight. I’m heading to Cabo San Lucas for my cousin Celeste’s wedding. I was so bummed a few months ago when I heard she was getting married in Mexico because I didn’t think I’d be able to go. Money was tight and it just didn’t look like it would happen. Then, we were chatting online one day and I was asking her what she was going to do about photography… Long story short, she decided to fly me to the wedding so I could take the photos, and get to be there! I’m so excited! I love my Celestey and I’m so happy I get to be there to celebrate with her and Troy, and the rest of the family!!