Travel Stories | Expat Life
My Kiva loan for November/December went to Leny in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. This is her first loan and she plans to buy more wholesale goods for her foodstall, such as potatoes, rice, and pasta. One day she hopes to open a restaurant that would be more comfortable for her customers. Sounds like a good plan to me!
Don’t forget! Kiva gift cards make great Christmas gifts. We all have enough “stuff”, don’t we?
xo, jill
My Kiva loan for September/October went to Otila in Samoa. Otila is requesting money to buy… bingo supplies! She runs a small bingo business and is hoping to expand. But, before she can do that, she needs to buy more equipment. She plans to put the money she earns from her expanded business towards her family’s needs.
I think Otila’s listing is the first I’ve ever seen to include the word, “bingo.” It made me chuckle. I wonder if running a bingo business is as fun as it sounds?
There’s another free trial period on now. Click here to try lending for FREE!
xo, jill
My Kiva loan for July and August went to Ayad in Yemen. Ayad is requesting a loan to pay for construction supplies like wood and cement to improve her home and business.
I really wish that I could have visited Yemen while I lived so nearby. My favorite colleague at school was Yemeni and she enthusiastically invited me to join her and her family there for a month. I think we both knew that was never going to happen. The first issue would be the visa, the second issue my mother, and the third Al Qaeda. Not a good idea. I’ll have to settle for micro-lending.
Also, Kiva is offering free trials again! If you’ve ever been curious about micro-lending, now is the time to try it out FOR FREE!
Right now about half of all my loans have been repaid, and a few more are getting close. I’m very impressed!
xo, jill
My Kiva loan for May and June went to Claudia in Peru. Claudia is in the cheese business. She sells it at the market, to stores, and to neighbors. There was no way I was going to pass up this loan. I’m pretty sure my mom referred to me as a “cheese-aholic” growing up. I try not to, but I kind of love it.
Also, Kiva is giving out free trials…RIGHT NOW! You can lend $25 to an enterpreneur in need at no cost to you. Click here before it’s too late. Free trials always go quickly.
Special thanks to Matt, Dana, Shauna, Annie, Alison, Sarah, Elizabeth, Mike, Nikki, and my mom who have all accepted my Kiva invitations in the past. Together you’ve made a total of 33 loans!
xo, jill
2 down, 4 to go!
For my March and April Kiva Loan I decided to lend to Alice in Kenya. Alice has been selling carrots for the past 7 years. She plans to use her loan to buy more carrots to grow her business. She also hopes to supply carrots to other parts of her city.
I like how Alice specializes in one simple product. You don’t see that too much these days. I also like carrots!
xo, jill
2 bonus loans!
For my birthday I received two Kiva loans in the form of gift cards. I think Jenny and Mike both know me very well!
Yesterday I sat down to redeem the cards and choose loan recipients. It’s always so hard to choose when there are so many good projects to fund. This time I selected borrowers from El Salvador and the Philippines.
Carmen de Jesus (El Salvador) requested a loan to buy fresh produce for her produce stand. She believes this will help her keep up with the competition and says that her previous Kiva loan has made her life more stable.
Erlinda Cabbab (Philippines) requested a loan for farming equipment to improve the quality of her rice crop. She hopes to provide all of her children with an education. I also love this photo. You can tell she’s a busy woman with plenty of things to do.
Has anyone else received a Kiva gift card? Or given one?
xo, jill
