reflection and wrap up

This was an amazing trip all around. Jackie and I got along so well. I have never been around someone 24-7 for six weeks straight. I can not believe we didn't come to a point where we wanted to pull each-others hair out. We always had so much going on that we did not even have a moment to tire of each others company! It was almost strange having a day to myself today and relax and have some alone time, and a long hot shower, and a fridge full of food, and a clean shirt to wear!

Thank you all for following this journey!

I just did a little bit of calculating distances, the total distance we traveled across Africa comes out to about 3,760 miles. Whew...I need a vacation

Amsterdam

Amsterdam is a lovely city. Boats through the canals, and bicycles weaving through the narrow streets are the main ways to travel around the city. It was like being in Venice, except much more clean, beautiful, and friendlier people (from what everyone else said anyway). When we first got there, we found our way to the hostel, then walked around the city and did the "normal Amsterdam stuff". The architecture of the city is amazing. The little apartments, buildings, shops, and house boats are adorable, and most have fresh flowers flowing out of the windows and in pots. The next day we got tickets for the canal bus that we could hop on and off to get around the city and see more of the sites. We started the day taking the boat to the Van Gough Museum. Again, located in a very green and beautiful area of the city. The museum was very interesting, and I really enjoyed learning about the art on display. After a cheap hot dog lunch, we went to the Heineken Breweries. SO MUCH FUN! This place was like Willie Wanka for grown-ups. The tour was so well put together, it was more like a production and amusement park than a brewery. Our last day we went to the Flower Markets where I purchased some tulip bulbs and wooden shoes to take home as souvenirs! The Flower Market stretched for what looked like a mile all along one of the canals. I wish I could have brought home some of the flowers.

canals

Red Light District

Flower Market

On the plane home we got to experience the high life by flying in the Club World. Somehow, we got bumped up (I think it was because they were feeling sorry for the smelly/dirty girls again). We had chairs that laid flat into beds, a 5 course dinner on nice china, so many forks and spoons I didn't know what to do with them, box of chocolate, always full glass of wine, and many other luxuries of the rich and famous. We felt like we definitely deserved this after those bus rides from Satan. We arrived in Chicago late last night...I got home around 1:00 am, and still have not had a wink of sleep.

Kenya

We got to the farm last night for dinner. We were unable to contact them before we got there because Stallone dropped his phone in the long drop. When we walked in the house I thought Momma Betty was going to faint! She was so excited...she kept saying "I think I am dreaming! Can this be true?!". Stallone, my brother, was not around when we got to the farm. I was sitting in the gazebo last night when he finally arrived. He got close, st oped, starred, then ran to me and hugged me for at least 5 minuted. It was one of the greatest reunions ever! We stayed up and talked for a long time into the night. I have missed my brother so much. It will be hard to leave again.

Today, I just went back to Namachanga High School where I taught last time I was here. The students and teachers were so excited to see me. They remembered my first and last name and never stopped smiling or hugging me. They are so grown up now! Another kid I ran into was Herbert (his picture is framed on my night stand at home). He is now about 8 years old. When he saw me today he ran across the play ground and gave me a big hug. I just think it so crazy how much they remember. I figured since they have had so many volunteers on the farm they wouldn't remember me as well as they do. They have all touched my life so greatly that I will never forget them. I didn't realize I have had the same effect on them until now. It will be so much harder to leave the farm this time than it was before.

former students

with brother Stallone

Everyone we meet keeps telling us we are crazy and out of our minds. However, we think we are great and really enjoying ourselves. As I was just thinking about what I was going to tell you about in this entry, I realized we are a bit crazy!...

The last night we were on the farm we decided to have a huge cookout with everyone there. This cookout consisted of a goat and 5 chickens. All were purchased in town and breathing. We tied the goat, named Gordon, to a tree on the farm until his time for his last breath had come. I was one of 5 who participated in the slaughtering of Gordon. The other 4 guys were all med students, so during the slaughter it was like anatomy 101...we were having too much fun with this gory task. I may or may not have a picture of me holding Gordons decapitated head. We then made a huge bonfire, cooked Gordon and the chickens, had a few Tuskers, and had a great night! One of the guys who participated in the slaughter is now going to have Gordon's skin made into a drum, haha!

The next morning when we left the farm :( we managed to get a ride with Ethiopian truck drivers on our way to Lake Naivasha. These guys did not speak much English or Swahili so it was pretty difficult to understand each other. They did however buy us ears of corn, coke, and cookies. How do we manage to get a free ride and free lunch?!?! We got to our camp at Hell's Gate late that night, had a couple burgers, then went to bed.

We got up early and took off on our bicycles for Hell's Gate. This was one of my favorite places from the last time I was in Kenya and wanted to take Jackie there. It is the only park you can bike through unguided. However, we never saw anyone else on bikes, they were all protected from the wild animals in the safety of cars. This park is all set in a volcanically active area. You can see steam rising from hot springs, and I climbed part of a volcanic plug! When we got further into the park we were riding through herds of zebra, warthogs, antelope, and gazelle. All of which seem pretty harmless and beautiful. We soon came upon a family a giraffe that was amazing. We put our bikes down and walked right up along side the 5 giraffe! The scariest part was encountering the herd of buffalo!!! They were right along the path we were cycling on. These are huge scary animals...but we just kept peddling and praying through them! We hiked to the obsidian caves to see some great rock formation from the cooled lava (I might have enjoyed this more than Jackie). This was followed by a brief encounter with a carcass where we took a much needed photo op! After 24 kilometer of biking and 12 kilometers of hiking we went back to the camp, took a few Tuskers, and passed out!

giraffe and Hell's Gate NP

zebra at Hell's Gate NP

photo op

This morning we got a ride to Nairobi from a Kenyan couple on their way. They were so nice and the ride was beautiful. I love the drive along the Great Rift Valley!

carving meat and Carnivore

Our last few days of the journey were fantastic. The last night that we were in Nairobi we went to the restaurant Carnivore. Carnivore is rated among the top 50 restaurants in the world. Waiters continuously come by the table with swords of random meat and shave it off onto your plate...it was delicious! We got some shopping done during the last day, then took off for Amsterdam!

Uganda

Kilimanjaro

We were told that the bus leaving Dar at 6:30 am would arrive in Nairobi at 6pm that same day...oh Africa. Of course this was another unexpected extended bus ride. Amazingly the rickety bus only broke down once! We were a bit concerned when the break down happened only one hour into the trip. Between the 2 of us we only had about 3 US dollars...we managed to survive the entire day on this! We were also graced by the beauty of Kilimanjaro rising above the Serengeti. We were able to snap some great photos of Mt. Kilimanjaro, making the bus ride a little more enjoyable. The bus finally arrived in Nairobi at 1:30 am where we got a taxi and headed for the hostel. The taxi driver had no idea where he was going, so what should have been a 20 minute taxi ride turned into an hour and a half....ahhh!!! When we got the hostel, no one was there, so we found empty bunk beds and stole a pillow from the couch and just crashed. That next morning was a morning of firsts: our first hot shower, first meal, and first matatu ride!!!

packed bus

From Nairobi we flew to Uganda where we met Autumn in Kampala! We stayed the night there and met some of her friends in the Peace Corps. The next day we took off to her village. On the boda (motor bike) in Kampla my driver was a bit out of control. Let me first start by explaining traffic in Kampla...bumper to bumper cars moving in all directions and no lines on the road, or traffic restrictions. Therefore, taking a boda allows you to weave through traffic , or just drive up on the sidewalk like mine did. He was weaving in and out of concrete poles full speed when he ran my leg into one of the poles. My knee and calf got all bruised and still hurts! Then he wanted me to pay him more money...I yelled at him and got very angry as I limped away.

boda-boda

Autumn's village...back to bucket bathing, pooping in a hole, and being covered in red dust. She is the first white person they have ever seen in this village. So, to add two more white girls is overwhelming them. Jackie and I feel like a huge freak show. There are always people watching everything we do. We have started an English club with the 6th and 7th graders at the school in the village. While Jackie and Autumn love playing with the younger kids and babies...most of you know that is not exactly my thing. I have really enjoyed working with the older kids. They found out I am a science teacher and have been asking me all sorts of questions. While I help them with science and English, they are teaching me Luganda. I have become quite attached to a couple of the students, Palo and Bonny. They remind me of my 8th grade students back home. (Yes I miss you guys). I wish I could bring them home with me...

Autumn, Jackie, Me

we fail as locals

Our last two days in Autumn's village were heartbreaking. I can't believe how attached I became to a few of the students there. Paulo, who I mentioned in the last entry, told us about him mom who is dying. He started by asking questions about AIDS. Then he said that his mom is in the hospital and is dying. She has not eaten, or said a word in a week. Paulo began his sentences with "when my mother dies...". I of course cried after this. Paulo is such a great kid, very smart, energetic, and just an all around nice 15 year old boy. Then when we had to leave the village, Paulo, Bonny, and Martin held back tears as we said our good-byes. I was also almost crying. I can imagine these boys getting along so well with some of my 8th graders from last year.

That same evening we went to an orphanage that Autumn's friend works at. This orphanage had some of the worst conditions I have ever seen. The children were all very small, and sick. If they had pants on, they were soaked in urine. Most of the babies did not have pants on, but were sitting on the dirty concrete bare...I can only imagine the infections. They all latched on to us and climbed on us. I have never been squeezed to tightly by babies. We had to pry them off of us to leave. Again...almost crying...

Autumn is truly becoming African...haha! Funny quotes by Autumn:
"I eat a kilo of sugar a week"
"egh...if we go this way we will have to climb over a goat"
"I look better dirty, makes me look tan!"

Patu

with some students

Jackie and I survived Jinja again! We had a great time, tons of fun, and that's really all I can say about it because I promised my mom I would keep my blog censored! ;)

We have been successful in hitching rides ever since we left Autumn's village. From Jinja we rode in a semi-truck for an hour and a half. When they dropped us off, we hopped on the back of a couple motorcycles and rode for an hour to the Kenya border! Probably wasn't the safest option(sorry mom), but the weather was beautiful and the ride was great. I think we have almost covered every kind of transportation except a train. Perhaps I will ride a Zebra when we go to Hell's Gate this weekend!

Tanzania

When we got to Dar we got the first ferry out to Zanzibar!!! I think the crew on the ferry could tell Jackie and I had just been through hell. Granted, we hadn't showered, eaten a good meal, brushed our teeth, slept, etc for 2 days. They told us we could go up and sit in the front of the ferry outside! It was so gorgeous, everyone else was stuck in the boat watching Indian music videos. Then they got us tea, chips, and called for a taxi to pick us up when we got to Zanzibar! I think they were embarrassed for us by how disgusting we looked.

We got the beach and laid out with our feet propped up on a bench to try and reduce the ridiculous swelling in our feet and ankles. 24 hours later, they are finally getting better! Zanzibar is a beautiful beach, its a bit more "resorty" than we expected. We feel a little out of place because of all the families and couples here. Today we went snorkeling and sailing in a dhow. The reef was gorgeous. We saw some great fish, snakes, starfish, and dolphin. Speaking of snakes, we have a snake friend on the porch of our banda. He's just a baby, so we let him stay. I'm sure his mom is around somewhere....

Snorkeling

new Masai friends

Stone Town

Our last day in Zanzibar we spent in Stone Town. It was very interesting to see the history of Zanzibar. The streets were more like sidewalks and all the carved wooden doors were beautiful. After we took the ferry back to Dar es Salam we ended up having to stay the night in Dar and catch an early bus to Nairobi.

Malawi

Malawi...best country ever!!! Seriously this time! This place is like Africa's "hole in the wall". The best people, food, music, everything!!! The country is basically one huge lake, lake Malawi, with a strip of the beautiful countryside on its west side. The land is all big rolling hills, forest like green everywhere, and the reddest dirt we have seen in Africa yet. And the lake....wow! I keep forge ting it's a lake and not an ocean! It is really the color of Caribbean water. This country has a south pacific island feel with the stilted huts over the water (where Jackie and I are staying), with a lot of Rastafarian character of the Caribbean, and the most friendly African people ever! I don't know how we will be able to leave this place. Where we are staying could be the biggest international hippie hang out ever...haha we love it! That is one of the best things about this kind of trip. Almost every night we are hanging out with different people from different countries around the world, and getting to hear all kinds of different languages. For example, last night we hung out with a group of Israelis...kind of crazy!

Getting to Malawi took more time than expected. We left Zambia at 6 am Monday morning on a bus. We ended up getting to the border at 1 am, but the border didn't open till 6. So...we slept on the bus at the bus station while we waited, just a little sketchy...but we are alive. The cab drivers kept coming on the bus and bothering us, so we left for the border at 4 am just to get away from them. There we were at the Zambia/Malawi border at 4 am, freezing, and thinking we were going to be stranded for a few hours. Luckily, a couple South African women came through and asked us if we needed a ride! Then we had to take another 10 hour bus to get to where we are...holy cow! We finally got to Nkata Bay at 9pm Tuesday night.

More about the people in Malawi...I have always said that African people are the most friendly people ever. The people aren't just friendly here, they can actually have real conversation and are so down to earth and cool. We are very used to African men asking to marry us because they want to move to America or think they will become rich. The other night we were hanging out with a few of the local guys, just talking, and one of the guys said "I've always known I wanted to marry a white girl"...haha we asked him why and he said, "because those mixed babies are so cute!"...haha! Have I mentioned how cool the people are here?!?!?!

One day a group of five of us tried to take a canoe out in the lake to go to a beach. We got the canoe, and when we asked for paddles I'm pretty sure they gave us what were once shovels, but now eroded into canoe padles...that's Africa! The canoe was a bit rickety and we spent most of the time trying not to tip...we succeeded! People in Malawi are the most resourceful I have met yet. They make everything themselves, including the canoe and "paddles", and eat only what they grow. I think this another reason why I love the country so much. Everything was so natural.

The next day we went out on a larger boat to go feed the eagles, cliff jump, and play volleyball. I offered to help prepare the food for the eagles. A couple of the local guys and I scewered bamboo through fish to make them float on the water. When we got out on the water and spotted the eagels in the tree, the guys would call to them then toss the fish into the water so the eagle would swoop down and grab it right in front of us. We went to some big cliffs where we could climb and jump. Jackie and I were the only girls to go! Really, only a couple guys went also. It was a pretty high cliff and difficult to climb. I ended up scraping my legs up, bleeding, and got a couple nasty bruises...but it was so much fun. There are some great pictures of this, apparently I make some crazy moves falling through the air...I was awarded jumper of the day because of my wicked jumps. Then we went to the beach for some volleyball. My team of 3 dominated! I played with a couple of the local guys who were amazing! I could go on forever about Malawi.....more stories and pictures when I get home!

cliff jumping

From Malawi to USA

cheers Obama!

We left Malawi Sunday night at 10 pm to catch a bus to Dar es Salam, Tanzania. We were SUPPOSED to arrive in Dar Monday night around 8pm....hahaha...nothing ever goes the way it is supposed to in Africa. Our bus broke down twice, then the cops stopped us for 4-5 hours in the middle of the night. We ended up getting to Dar at 9am Tuesday morning. Over 30 hours crammed into a bus was not fun at all. Seriously, crammed into this bus. There were some people that didn't even have seats and were sitting on the floor. The guy in front me had his chair leaned all the way back, so I couldn't move my legs, or get out of the seat. We were in the same position basically the entire time. And we thought we had kankels before.....

Zambia

On Thursday we flew out of the freezing weather in Jo'burg to beautiful Zambia. As soon as we arrived in Zambia and got off the airplane we started singing African songs and were so happy!!! Just a short while later we got to the hostel, Jollyboys, and found our swim suits to lay by the pool and relax for my birthday. We just met some cool people and hung out by the pool all day and enjoyed the beauty of everything.

The next morning we went to go see Victoria Falls!!! It was absolutely breathtaking. It was a huge waterfall as far as you could see. We would just keep walking and it wouldn't stop. We never stopped saying how beautiful it was. Just the sound it made was amazing...it was roaring thunder you we could hardly hear each other speak. We also got soaking wet, so I got as many pictures as possible without ruining my camera!

Victoria Falls

the thunder that roars

Then we made our way over to Zimbabwe to jump off a 111m bridge into the gorge!!! We decided to be crazy (not surprising) and bungee off the 3rd highest bridge to bungee in the world. It was a tad bit scary, they just wrapped some towels around your ankles and a couple straps then you jumped off head first! Jackie and I went tandem, which was a good thing. It was really cool to have the experience together. Plus, I basically just pulled her with me when we jumped. Then when we were just hanging there upside down we were screaming and laughing together about how crazy that was! The jump was so insane that Jackie burst a blood vessel in her eyelid! haha...that's only the beginning of our injuries.....

our brand marks

preparing to jump

That night we decided to have a fire and cook some food with a couple people we met at Jollyboys. We taught everyone how to make hobo packs over the fire, best meal ever! Everyone was impressed and will take the ideas back to their countries. While making hobo packs I went to flip the packs over and burned my fingers.

The next morning (yesterday) we went white water rafting on the Zambezi! Jackie and I were both pretty freaked out because we were expecting the insanity of the Nile. However, the rafting wasn't near as crazy and intense as the Nile...thank goodness! It was a lovely river cutting through the gorge between Zambia and Zimbabwe. The bad part was hiking down the gorge to enter the river. I don't know how far the hike actually was, it felt like 10 miles. It was straight down and we were carrying our life jackets, paddles, and helmet...we probably should have been wearing our helmets. There was a "ladder" made out of sticks nailed together. Not surprisingly, the sticks broke a lot and we all ended up falling and/or tripping. Also, we didn't know there was going to be all of this intense hiking so we did not have shoes. Jackie and were barefoot! I would say the hike was equivalent to doing an hours worth of lunges nonstop. Jackie basically fell out of bed this morning because her legs are so sore. We have spent all morning discovering new bruises, cuts, and sore muscles. We look and feel like we just got beat with a stick.

Last night we went on a sunset cruise on the Zambezi. It was also gorgeous! It was about 3 hours and we saw one of the most beautiful sunsets (all sunsets in Africa are beautiful), along with hippo in the water, snakes, crocs, and buffalo. There were drinks and dinner served on the boat as well.

booze cruise on the Zambezi

Again, we are having a fabulous time! Can't believe everything we have already done and seen in just one week! Today we are going to relax by the pool and rest our bodies...they are screaming at us today. Then tomorrow we are taking buses all day to go to Malawi. We will be staying on Lake Malawi. It wasn't in our original plans, but everyone keeps saying how amazing it is and that we have to go...so we are!

Thank you all for following, and the comments are great. I love hearing from you!