The Holidays

There's something you should know about me; I'm one of those people who won't do something unless they can do it all the way. Therefore, I haven't been blogging because, quite frankly, I haven't had time to do justice to my adventures... Until now. So, for the long wait, I apologize. For the deeply meditated brilliance of the following blog, you're welcome.

Kenyan schools are on a year-round school year system: 3 months on, then 1 month off. April was my first "Summer Vacation" of the year and, let me tell you, my roommates and I certainly made the most of it. There wasn't a moment we weren't moving around the country, doing things most people only ever talk about.

(Above is some graffiti from Old Town Mombasa)

We began by driving off to Mombasa with fellow Short-Termers for our annual retreat. It's about a 7 hour drive from Nairobi to this beautiful coastal town, but well worth the effort, that is the effort of our drivers, not I, as I slept the whole way. Frequent stops at "squat pots" with no toilet paper and inadvertently waking up with my lethargic head too close to Alicia's face make up most of my memories of the drive. But upon arrival in Mombasa, I took it all in; palm trees, bathtub warm water in both the pool and ocean, food already prepared and ready to be served, humidity, monkeys, and yes, bathing suits! It's a funny thing coming from a place like Korr to a place like Mombasa, which is an absolute tropical paradise. What do you do with yourself in those first few hours?! Of course buy an aquamarine Speedo one-piece and go sit in the Indian Ocean for a good hour soaking in the sea breezes. The next few days alternated between buffet meals, devotions and presentations with the other Short Termers, shopping trips in Old Town, and hanging out on the beach-side lounge chairs.

(Below: Nope, I don't think I'll ask for a car wash here.)

(Alicia and I doing what we do.)

One afternoon some of the girls and I decided to take a walk along the beach over to a very fancy hotel that turned out to be some private apartments. Disappointed by the lack of cold Cokes for sale, we turned back towards our own hotel. However, instead of walking all the way back, we decided it might be nicer to swim in the shallows. 1 hour and 15 minutes later, exhausted from doggy paddling and trying not to step down into some ominous looking kelp beds, we arrived back at Milele beach.

(Me being happy underneath the glass of "Happy Times: the Glass Bottom Boat)

The following day all those on retreat went out for a snorkeling expedition on the "Happy Times" glass bottom boat, and a "happy time" it was. I was able to avoid touching/getting close to any fish, as they terrify me, but did see some interesting ones from afar and even a couple of sting rays. I am also proud to report that I did hold a giant sea urchin in my hand at one point. So we paddled around for a while, fed the fish, I made up a synchronized swim performance with Jamie, and we all got some fairly impressive equatorial sunburns.

Moving on from Mombasa, we spent some good times with our other missionary friends, Dana, Andrew, Kate, Ryan, and Meghan in Nairobi. I won't deceive you friends, family, and supporters; we got Java House coffee nearly every day. The life of a missionary has its perks. We also went to the movies to see "Blindside" with Sandra Bullock which was absolutely brilliant and we've been quoting lines ever since.

Jamie, Alicia, Ruth, and I then found ourselves leaving on the 6 AM jetplane for Kampala, Uganda. For two days we wondered around the capital city, enjoying the rain forest vistas, the precious angel Luke whose mother ran the guesthouse, and several trips to the craft fair downtown. Momma would have had a fit if she saw, but my favorite Ugandan cosmopolitan adventure was the boda boda rides, experienced on the back of a scooter with an extended backseat. They're a much more efficient way to avoid traffic as you're able to weave in and out of matatus, but they're also highly entertaining as every time the driver shifted gears, my face tended to hit the back of his helmet.

(Below is a picture of Victor Victoria: The Monster of Lake Victoria)

However, Kampala wasn't our ultimate destination, and we hopped on a party bus (literally with a chandelier hanging from the ceiling and hieroglyphic motifs on the floor boards) to Jinga where we had a rafting date with the River Nile.

Upon arrival we suited up in helmets and life jackets, ate some bananas (which led to our team name: "Team Banana") and met our crazy river guides: Paul the Ugandan Trainee and Lee the Attractive Scotsman. What follows is a series of events and impressions which have somewhat blurred in my mind...

(Above, near the headwaters of the River Nile.)

* On the first rapid, which, even to my untrained eye, was quite piddly, we were flipped out of the boat, and swept quite a distance down river. We were all surprised and slightly unnerved, but especially Ruth had "crazy eyes!" Upon looking at the pictures afterward, it was clear that Paul and Lee took nearly every opportunity to purposely overturn the raft.
* Someone assured me that the alligators don't live so near the headwaters of the Nile.
* Being underneath swirling, dark, noisy waters is not so scary if you keep reminding yourself, "I'll come up eventually. Besides, no one has ever died doing this... yet."
* At some point I tried so hard to pull myself back into the raft that I split my shorts from zipper to mid-seam. Good thing I wore my bathing suit underneath.
* I must admit that I not-so-humbly told Lee and Paul that I was a strong rower from 4 years of Varsity crew, so I could handle the front seat. Wow, was I tired by the end of the day. Especially considering how often I shifted into sprint mode with Lee screaming at us all to "Row girls!!!!"
* I can now say that I have experienced sunburned knees.
* There was one point where, inexplicably, with barely a ripple around us, Jamie's whole body flew up in the air and then landed right back in her seat. She must have hit a Jamie shaped Class 6 rapid.
* There is evidently a rapid called, please forgive the language, "Satan's Sphincter"
* Alicia saved my life that day. We both got tossed from the raft on the last, and most notorious rapid, and she pulled my water-logged self from the torrential current, with one hand.

(I'm front right, about to get tossed out.)

Exhausted we headed back to our Jinga base camp, ate a pizza, and passed out in our safari tent promptly at 9 pm. It was some of the most fun I've ever had, and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Then Mom and Dad arrived in Kenya for a week and some of safari-ing. First us girls and parents went off to the Masai Mara, one of the most famous game parks in Kenya. (Actually the Kenyan side of the Serengeti.) We saw everything from elephant babies to cheetahs, hippos and girrafes, Mufasas and little Simbas, and hundreds of the most ridiculous bird in existence; the guinea foul. I was pleasantly surprised by the resemblance between the rolling hills of the Mara and those of Northern California, and was stopped from taking a nostalgic walk only by the fact that lions sat not 100 yards outside of the gate of the lodge.

(Below: Jamie and I getting too close to the hippos)

Between sunrise and sunset game drives the girls and I took luxurious naps, did Jamie's water aerobics workouts in the pool, made friends with the staff, stole drink coasters, and played badminton with a Masai warrior (who promptly beat us twice in a row.)

From there Mom, Dad, and I took a family vacation out to Amboseli National Park at the base of Mt. Kilimanjaro, one of the most stunning mountains I've ever seen. It sits starkly contrasted with the wide open plains of the area, and creates a magnificent backdrop for the dozens of herds of elephants. Kili looks deceptively accessible from the ground; you can see the snow-capped peak easily, and the slopes seem to climb at a gradual 40 degree angle. It's tempting to just walk over the border into Tanzania and start hiking, until Mr. Jenga tells you it would takes about 5 days to climb up to the top. Maybe next time.

And so we took our twice-daily drives around the small park, spying literally hundreds of elephants, flamingos, a hideous baby warthog, zebras, and even a monitor lizard. Perhaps my favorite piece of Amboseli wildlife, however, were the monkeys, who look quite charming until they start stealing your candy off your lounge chair. Fascinating fact, actually, these monkeys know they have to take the plastic wrapper off candy... In between animal sightings, Mom and I did laps in the pool and I got Kenyatta the Masai guard to teach me how to use his slingshot which is usually for warding off pesky baboons.

(Becoming an ace with the sling-shot.)

We made friends with the staff at Ol Tukai as well; Rachel the manager, Kenyatta (Who gave me beads at the end of my stay and informed me he only had one wife. So is that some sort of new Facebook status?)), and Jemimah the grill lady... On our final night these wonderful people sang us my favorite Kenyan song, "Jambo Bwana" and presented our family with a delicious two-layer cake with the word "Kwaheri" ("Goodbye") written in chocolate frosting.

And so with our April Summer Vacation behind us, myself, Mom and Dad, Ruth, and Alicia had to say goodbye to Jamie as she headed back to the States and we all trekked back up north to the town and the people I missed dearly.