Wild Eyes, Wild Animals

There's no picture that I felt was good enough to deserve the top space. So I haven't chosen one yet.

Okay, let's face it, going to Africa is about taking pictures. I've seen plenty of fancy cameras and huge zoom lens and know how people approach these trips. A safari used to be with a gun. Now it's with a camera. I can't say I'm any different. Unfortunately, I didn't quite realize just how many pictures I was going to want to share. I've had a little cold and been a little delirious and thought I could fit them all up here. I also knew I wouldn't have enough space on my free Flickr account. So I tried. I didn't realize there was a space limit on the blog though. Without the use of the program I use to make the files smaller (does not work on macs), I reached it. So you will reach the end of pictures here and it will not coincide with the story that's being told. For the rest, you will have the go to Flickr. The link to my account is on the right column of the blog's main page. These images are a fairly extensive sampling of our experience of Africa, but by no means all-inclusive. Hope they're fun.

It's after 2am outside of Roscoff, France and it's time to finish this because in five hours we leave Stephane's after two wonderful weeks on gorging on French food, cheese, and wine for a couple last days in Paris. Most of Africa, I wrote as a diary. Some of it required filling in the blanks tonight. Thus the lateness. Let's get to it.

The sum up, post-evacuation:

• Cyprus' Red Cross angels and less than helpful embassy
• Thirty hours to visit Athens
• Tired start in Nairobi and meeting the new group
• Orphanage in Kenya
• Lake Nakuru and first camping/game drives experience
• Queen Elizabeth II National Park and boating safari
• Rwandan Genocide Museum
• Gorilla trekking!!!!
• Lake Mburo and a game walk
• Jinja, elections and the so-called adrenaline junkies
• Eldoret stop and farewell
• Nairobi and group switch
• Mto Wa Mbu village visit
• Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater - safari at last
• Marangu and viewing Kilimanjaro
• Walking in the Usambara Mountains and the Irente viewpoint
• Dar Es Salaam and its beaches, saying goodbye to two of our guides
• Zanzibar arrival and the heat of Stone Town
• Spice tour and the slave market
• Island beaches, snorkeling, burns, and shade
• Return to Dar, more farewells and a soccer game
• National Museum artifacts and leaving Africa (insert any of my stepdad's "Out of Africa" jokes here)

As has already been described elsewhere, we were evacuated on the US flights out of Cairo to Larnaca, Cyprus. Once through customs, the first people to greet us were the Associated Press. Our plane was the first evacuation flight that had landed. Poor Chris had made the mistake on giving better eye contact than I and so after we agreed to be interviewed, the camera was pointed at him. A picture of him with his big bag on appears in the news online (google Christopher Upton Cairo). After the hounding and changing what we could of our newly useless Egyptian currency to the well overpriced Euro, we were greeted by the Red Cross of Cyprus with warm food (flaky cheese filled pastries from heaven), sandwiches, and water. Our embassy representatives began the broken record of "You're on your own" to which the Red Cross responded, no they're not. For those of us who couldn't afford the hundred euro a night hotels listed on the embassy's info sheet (an older woman, a woman with three kids, and three guys around my age), they arranged transport to a cheaper hotel in town. They were extremely kind and generous to us.

The whole thing was just an inconvenience for us (especially financially) but we could take care of ourselves. But it was a much bigger problem for Melanie and her three kids. Melanie had been living in Cairo and teaching at a Canadian run school. Her husband was in the states and all her money was locked up in Egyptian banks. She was in no shape to find the two thousand dollars each to get herself and her three kids from Cyprus to California. I don't know what would've happened to her if it hadn't been for the Red Cross. They fed her family, took care of the hotel bill, and were there for anything they needed. They were simply angels. In fact, her oldest daughter drew a storybook about the whole experience and they did appear as angels.

Our time in Cyprus was most spent dealing with bureaucracy. The first day was just getting our bearings and trying to settle down. We both found we were a lot more jumpy than we would have expected after the ordeal (acute stress reaction?) and the normal sounds of the city would stir a reaction like explosions or gunfire. The Red Cross took us out to a lovely lunch and I had my first huge salad in quite some time. It was exquisite. The days were cold and we explored the beach a bit and also happened upon a beautiful statue commemorating the arrival of the refugees of the Armenian genocide.

Melanie and her kids with an angel from the Cyprus Red Cross

We spent most of our second day traveling to the capital of Nicosia (Lefkosia) to go to the US Embassy to buy more pages for our passport (not cheap - and we didn't really end up needing them anyway).  We also asked if there was anything we could do to help Melanie while we were there. The embassy told us it was none of our business. It was the first embassy visit for both of us and hopefully the last as well. It felt like running under enemy fire between buildings and security was just ridiculous. 

We would have liked to explore the island a little more but found the public transport system to be somewhat sub-par and it was necessary to rent a car, which could be no less than two days and wasn't cheap (especially when you start talking prices in euros). There wasn't a whole lot we could do. The first morning Chris went to get coffee and the woman at the counter (most people spoke English in addition to Greek) upon hearing our story asked, But why did your government send you here? It's the most expensive island in the whole Mediterranean. And it was. So we mainly tried to enjoy some of the food.

We walked around and tried to unwind (neither of us were sleeping well yet) and finally got a flight booked out of Cyprus. It was going to be equally expensive to stay the full length of time we had before starting our safari (the reason we elected to leave Egypt when we did) but it was expensive to stay and there was nothing to do. So instead we booked a flight to Athens on our fourth morning, which gave us just about thirty hours to explore Athens before catching our flight to Nairobi through Dubai.

Church in Larnaca at sunset

I can't say it was colder when we arrived in Athens (though it certainly felt that way) but it was certainly wetter. It was rainy and cold - the most of winter we'd seen in a long time. The subway into the city was hard to decipher and we ended up getting on the wrong one. By the time we trudged into our hostel, we were soaked and freezing. But we only had thirty hours so we immediately head back out into the drizzling mess. We stayed a piece away and took the metro to the historic sections of town. It was late and dark enough that we wouldn't be able to see the sites (though our first views of the Acropolis were still fantastic). So we went to the Acropolis Museum instead. We only had two or three hours there (made easy by a nice student discount), but it was incredible. We saw almost everything and got to take our time. I am such an enormous fan of Ancient Greek sculptures and especially Grecian urns. Fantastic. I was a happy camper and it was a great start to our short time.

We went for a bite to eat at God's Restaurant (but which god? There are so many Olympians to choose from...). It was okay. The waiters seemed mostly ticked we weren't ordering more. It was certainly off season and business was obviously slow. We were both pleased when an American family showed up and took some of the heat off of us.

Afterward we went back to our hostel and fell asleep. It was a warm and comfy room. No complaints.

My first puppy encounter on the steps of the Acropolis - taken from Chris' camera

We woke up early and had a nice little breakfast included in our hostel stay. We left our packed bags with the owner and set out for a full day in Athens.

We bought the ticket to all the big sites (at the student price) and set out into the cold with our mostly dry clothes. Starting at the Acropolis, we were pleasantly surprised by how few people were around. It was quite crisp out but clear and still a great day for viewing.

I'd downloaded the Wikitravel articles on Athens while we were in Cyprus (always useful when you don't have a guide) and we'd read on the stray dog population in Athens. It warned there are a large number but that restaurant and shop owners commonly feed them so they are very friendly. I read but I guess didn't believe. It was wonderful. There were dogs everywhere. At every ancient ruin, there was a puppy. There were big dogs. And they were fat dogs. And they loved attention. It made me so unbelievably happy. The Acropolis is great and all but petting Athens' stray dogs, now there's the perfect Greek experience. I think Chris has pictures of me petting a different dog at every major site. People were so good to them and they were so sweet and fat. It made me ridiculously happy.

Yay, we're in Athens!

Chris had heard tell of amazing stairs coming up to the Acropolis. After Machu Picchu and everywhere else we've seen, we weren't exactly impressed by quantity. But quality was great! And there was an abundance of puppies. That was okay too.

Sculpture on a temple on the Acropolis

The Acropolis is one area I would more than willingly head back to with a guide. There's too much history there we weren't getting on our own. Every once and a while you'd overhead a good tidbit though. For instance, did you know that all arches are Roman? The Greeks didn't build any.

It was cold

After visiting the Acropolis, we headed down to the Ancient Agora and the surrounding area. After which, we walked through the winding streets toward Syntagma Square, finding our first snack of gyro. The street version is better than anything you could ever find in the states.

These ladies were apparently the inspiration for the Statue of Liberty

Statue of Zeus

We walked all over the city. After seeing Hadrian's Arch and the Temple of the Olympian Zeus (where there were again many adorable dogs), we went to the Panathinaiko Stadium (site of the first modern Olympics in 1896). We actually paid to do the audioguide there. It was worth it. Very interesting and a great place to visit.

Puppies at Hadrian's Library

Street-side gyro, yum

We ate lunch/dinner at a taverna. They were hurting for business and offered us a complimentary glass of house wine because we were such a young couple (??). The food was great and they at least had a little fire going. We needed to rest our legs a bit and get warm.

Ruins of the Temple of Olympian Zeus

We headed back to the metro to go to a big museum further north in the city. Every metro is like its own little museum. In excavating, they invariably found ruins and set up exhibits. Similar exhibits could be found around the city walking around too. It was like all of Athens was one big museum. It was wonderful.

The original Olympic stadium, he's a champion!

We went into the more industrialized part of town. The huge museum was closed, despite being within its open hours. We walked around the perimeter and saw more of the less touristy side of Athens. There were people milling about burning garbage and behind some bushes we're both certain we saw hypodermic needles in use, arms dangling below bushes. There was a statue which was covered in graffiti. It was colorful and in its own way quite beautiful. I found it to be symbolic but couldn't take a picture of it because of the people burning something behind it who might have taken offense to my taking a picture of them. Not worth the risk.

We headed back to the Acropolis area and walked around before settling in at a street-side cafe for a dessert (fruit with honey for me, baklava? for Chris) and tea/coffee to watch the Parthenon light up as the sun set.

Night lit Acropolis

It got late quickly and before we knew it, it was time for our flight. We picked up our bags from the very helpful Neo Olympos hostel and jumped on the train back to the airport. And off we went to Dubai for an overnight in the mall like atmosphere of the Emirates terminal and some shut eye in the lounge chairs. Not quite where we thought we would be but an interesting experience nonetheless. Hopefully we'll go back to Cyprus when we can afford to be there. But our thirty hours in Athens was tremendous. An add-on we weren't expecting and were happy to take full advantage of.

Africa

Day 1


We arrived in Nairobi after our flight from Dubai at around 3pm. Within ninety seconds of our plane touching the ground, Chris spotted a herd of zebras grazing just over the airport fence. A good omen. Getting through customs and getting our visas took a little longer than expected - the lady really scrutinized Chris' picture and didn't seem to believe it was him and then the customs officer seemed to insinuate he would keep our things because we didn't fill out our declaration forms correctly. Turned out he was half joking but it wasn't funny at the time. We were tired. We knew we would need to take a taxi into the city and had the option of using the airport taxi service or going outside and haggling. We were warned numerous times that everything in Africa is negotiable and requires significant haggling. We're sick of haggling. Using the service worked out nicely and wasn't too expensive. We loaded up our things and left the airport moving around the two cars we'd seen back into each other.

Still in our long sleeves from the cold of Greece, Kenya was bright and foreign. I watchd the people along the roads as we weaved in and out of traffic the way taxis always do. There were cattle all along the road and advertisements everywhere - in English! That wouldn't change until we were much further from the city. I was struck by how similar the outskirts were, the sparcity of buildings, the traffic, the goods people carried to other places we'd been. But it still felt terribly different. The first time you set foot on completely new, unexperienced soil it can be very intimidating. I've talked to Chris and thought over and over how intuitively comfortable I feel with African women because of the warm African and African American women I've been lucky enough to have in my life. But African men are a new category for me and, without trying to sound racist, made me feel a little on edge. I can theorize on the element of power in the unknown or the effects of media emphasis of the criminal role of black men in American but I'd rather avoid generalizing about a population I still won't know much about when we leave here. I'll just leave it at the truth - I have felt intimidated by newness.

We arrived at the hotel and passed through the security gate to the large white buildings and pool, which of course we wouldn't have time to utilize. After sorting through some frustrating confusion in which reception tried to place me in a room with the single woman on our trip, we checked in and took a much needed shower.

A short time later, we went downstairs to have our introductory group meeting with our Kenyan guide, Ingwe. Ingwe is a young man with a very nice smile but a great deal of seriousness about him. He speaks in that beautiful Kenyan accented English I so enjoy though it is his third language after his tribal dialect and Swahili and before Japanese. He has been guiding trips for six or seven years. He talked with the group of thirteen (of fifteen) participants about what to expect, what we would be doing, and the Intrepid company rules on responsible travel.

Chris and I were fading fast. We had dinner at the hotel restaurant with a small contingent of the group. Chris went upstairs and I used the ridiculously expensive computers to post the Egypt entry and meet the two late-comers, an American couple. It had been an exhausting day.




Day 2

Today, we woke up early after a truly unrestful night. We both really needed the sleep but I woke up multiple times with my arms on fire and itching madly. I didn't know why until Chris woke up too and we realized we were being eaten. We tried the bug spray but were still buzzed over for the rest of the night.

Gathering our things downstairs, we were among the first to come in for the hotel breakfast, including pancakes and a mini omelette bar. It took a while to get everything into our group truck. We're not allowed to call it a bus but it really is a big bus with more comfy seats being pulled by a semi truck type engine and big lockers in the back for all our bags, as well as a little overhead space. It's actually ample space for all fifteen of us. While settling in, we got to meet the cook, a young man named Daniel (whose native name means born in the rain), and our driver, Walter, who is more like in his early 40s with a tremendous laugh and a little mustache.

The Great Rift Valley in Kenya

We took off and moved out of the city, all chattering and getting to know each other. We stopped briefly a half an hour or so out of town for a viwpoint of the Great Rift Valley and a little talk from Ingwe on how it was formed. There were lots of kitch sales stalls there. It was also the first time I've seen a sign on a bathroom for "short" or local call. Ingwe says it's local or long distance. 

Our destination was the game park of Lake Nakuru but our first big stop was an orphanage at a small town. The orphanage was named Help (Siaidi?), which one of the women who established it told us was meant to describe the help we must give to each other, the help these children need, as well as the help the people must give themselves to pull themselves out of poverty. This was our first community project stop. It was part of the appeal of Intrepid programs but I still didn't know what to expect.

Liz and Tim play with kids at the orphanage near Eldoret

Upon stepping into the front hallway of the two story building, we were greeted by numerous children who took us all by the hands. I was immediately attached to the tallest girl, Beatrice, who was thirteen or fourteen years old and led me into the backyard/courtyard to see their rabbits and chickens. She held my hand the whole time and whispered, "This is so exciting." She'd only been there about a month and I never thought it appropriate to ask why.

Chris and Beatrice at the orphanage - she loved my camera

Then all the kids led us into the little dining room and we sat down together to listen to the woman who'd been one of the founders. She told us about the children needing a home like this who were orphaned by HIV or given up by tribal teenagers too young to keep them or that some of them only came during the day from poor families to make sure they got at least one meal or from their grannies who had to adopt their grandchildren but couldn't take care of all of them. She said what they needed most was hope and that our love and attention would help them see that. Beatrice and I held hands or made finger games the whole time and I was immediately happy to be there.

The kids showed us around their rooms upstairs, which were not elaborate but decently comfortable bunk beds with about twelve girls or boys per room. I came into one room in the midst of conversation and was immediately brought in on medical terms. The groundskeeper who was always there to take care of the children told me about the one year old in front of me in the arms of an older boy. She was born with spina bifida and hydrocephalus. I could easily see the shunt on the side of her head but she was unable to move her legs. There was one more baby in the next room with two preteen girls who seemed to look after him but couldn't tell me anything about him.

Finally, the kids took us outside to play. Beatrice kept me with her the whole time and I let her play with my camera. She liked taking pictures of people for a while, walking up instead of zooming in, until she and another boy sat down in the shade to look through my pictures from the elephant park. So I joined Chris and passed the soccer ball around with some of the smaller kids. Then Beatrice demonstrated the slides coming down from the second floor. Wish I'd had one of those. We walked around arms around each others' shoulders or linked. Most all the kids were excited to have us there and it was sad to leave. I worried very much about such a lovely, smart young girl and what would happen to her in the future.

Vervet monkeys at our campsite at Lake Nakuru

We arrived at Lake Nakuru and began about setting up camp. It was our first time setting up the big tent but it wasn't problematic at all. We worked on getting settled in while Daniel fixed up lunch, which would be a big veggie sandwich for me, and eventually wandered to photo the monkeys in all the trees around camp. They were very much unafraid of us and most were females carrying around little babies. When the alpha male did show up, I was of course the first to point out his large blue testes. But some of the guys obsessed about them for the rest of the afternoon. Ingwe told me three names for the breed but the only one that stuck was blue balls (they're actually Vervets, I think).

Baby playtime

Grooming is so soothing

In the early afternoon, we set off for our first game drive. The truck was actual great to stand up in and look out the windows, move around, or sit down. The lake was beautiful with loads of birds, flamingoes, pelicans, and maybe condors too.

We saw rhinos, a lone giraffe, baboons up at the look-out point (one huge one climbing out of an open truck as we pulled up), loads of buffalo, and of course zebras and warthogs (pumba!).

White Rhino, Lake Nakuru, Kenya

Bare-assed baboon

The shoreline of Lake Nakuru

Rothschild giraffe

Can't remember his name but isn't he pretty?

At night, we ate around the campfire and Ingwe told us stories about his tribe in the east of Kenya. He told us about boys being ritually circumcised at age 12 in front of the whole tribe (women too) with the same knife that has been used for generations. Female circumcision still goes on a lot too he says. But more and more the government and NGOs are trying to put a stop to it. However, they send people to talk to the tribes and the leaders see a woman or an outsider interpreting and hear the message and think it is only coming from them, that they must have some ulterior motive for personal gain. They don't always listen. It was all very interesting, but we were incredibly tired. We turned in early.

We went over rules for going to the bathroom during the night earlier. Our camp was wide open and buffaloes we roaming practically through it during dinner. We were told to use a flashlight, look then move, come out of the bathroom and look first again. A ranger woman forgot to look first coming out of the bathroom. She was eaten by lions. There aren't many lions around anymore. The town made sure it wouldn't happen again. Still, after hearing that story, I don't think many people got up to pee in the night.

Lake Nakuru landscape

Goofy tourists

Day 3

Sunrise at Lake Nakuru, much prettier to look at when you aren't up before six

I didn't actually write for this one, so I'll be brief. We woke up early and made a morning game drive. We saw black rhinos from a distance, a jackal eating a rodent, the white rhinos again, and we followed two young male lions in the distance. We didn't get too close but it was still exhilarating to see them.

We had some cereals before leaving and so were starving for Dan's brunch when we got back. So were the monkeys though. We ate in our little circle with zebras passing through the camp and then I saw a monkey coming up behind Debi. I started to vocalize Ooooh ooooh, but couldn't quite get the words out. It ran up and grabbed the sausage-crepe from her plate. Oops. One happy little monkey though.

We spent most of the afternoon in the truck as we headed to our campsite at Eldoret. It was a lovely place with a swimming pool and a nice indoor bar. Many of us were at the bar until late that night - the Americans, Eric and Pamela, insistently bought me more and more drinks (I couldn't complain too much though). And the owner had ducks (one bit Chris in the butt as we set up tents) and lots of big dogs who loved a good scratch behind the ear. It was a nice place.

Early morning road

Jackal with a good mouthfull

Flamingoes and pelicans on the lake

Our truck, names deezee (banana), and Chris

Our first glimpse of a lion

White rhino

Nap time

Oops, startled them

Day 4

Spent mostly in the car. Crossed the border into Uganda. Passed the line of trucks who'd been waiting in line. If the system's down it can take a couple weeks to get through. Some of the guys yelled out the window to a trucker who told them he'd been waiting four days. It was very smooth sailing for us though. Stamp and go.
We travelled to the capital of Kampala and had a campsite with security on the outskirts. Some of us went walking outside. There wasn't much to see. Lots of traffic. Lots of stares. But also lots of waving kids. Chris and I were still tired. We went back to help with dinner instead. We all flap the plates dry after eating. That's for everyone. Otherwise, there's a chores roster - clean the truck, dinner prep, wash pots, wash dishes. It was loud at night but we fell asleep quickly.

Mac, Debi, and zebras in our camp

Thieving monkey with a sausage wrapped crepe in its mouth

He just wanted to make sure you saw the sign

Day 5
I am laying in our tent in the Kibale forest tonight where tomorrow we will be going to trek for chimpanzees. It was a relatively long day but only because we had to spend so much time in the car again. We woke up an hour later than usual - just before seven - and did the usual breaking camp and packing up before breakfast, which was french toast and chicken sausage. Daniel's so nice to me. We got stuck in traffic going to the city center of Kampala so we only had a short time to hit a strip mall. ATM, grocery store (Chris' Ugandan banana gin), pharmacy (cold meds), Ugandan coffee (at a starbucks like chain that was the hang out for all the loca white people), and an actual fair trade shop, where we each found something nice but didn't have near enough time at. Then we hit the road again.

We stopped for lunch amid some random trees along the side of the road. We took bathroom turns behind some bushes a ways off where some poor local guy on a passing bike probably saw my very white ass. We ate veggie (or meat depending on the person) sandwiches with apples. It was a pleasant stop until a truck full of enormous horned cattle with a lot of very loud men stopped to graze as we were leaving. The weren't exactly threatening but we all had the feeling that we were glad to be leaving just then. Chris had to wait outside with Ingwe while Walter turned the truck which resulted in the second or third instance of Jesus commentary on this trip. The group thinks it is simply hilarious.

Yay clean clothes

The rest of the day's ride was a combination reading, talking, napping and watching out the window. Chris calls it waving duty because we pass so many little kids who are excited and frantically waving while they yell How are you? How are you? Chris loves waving back. The kids do look sincerely excited, even though at least one group passes by every week, but the adults look very severe or even upset to see us. I asked Ingwe who reassured me that this is not the case.

Chris and I had discussed the contrast of poverty we had seen elsewhere like South America and here before. Talking about it with other people made me realize today though that the difference probably isn't rurally though, since at this point it has all seemed quite similar, but in the periurban areas. And I don't think we'll be seeing a lot of that. I feel lucky for it actually.

I love our group. They are such incredible, like-minded people and there's always something to talk about. The only other person, Mac, who's doing the entire 29 days and not just the first half has done some stand up comedy and worked on a comedic travel video podcast. He's an absolute riot and always keeps us entertained.

With all the talk I was enjoying, I found myself thinking in the midst of this blogging about whether I should bother with the blogging for this part of the trip or if we will be too much of a distractor. I'll try and keep up and be a little more brief and see what I can do.

We were all ready to get off the bus by the time we arrived and the site was again absolutely beautiful. After setting up, we walked around and took some pictures and relaxed on big comfy couches on the first mostly enclosed room we've had access to. Dinner was cream of potato soup followed by beef and veggies with rice and slaw. But of course a whole separate pot with beans and mushrooms for me. They treat me so damned well! I enjoyed the last of my wine from the flights and Chris his new gin (no banana taste)while everyone else drank beer. After evening chores (which take maybe five minutes - it doesn't quite feel like participation camping since we don't do too too much), everyone settled in to chat. Eric gave me hell again for going to bed early (after ten and well after Chris - followed shortly thereafter by half the grou) but even with such great people, I just can't be constantly social 24 hours a day. Perhaps this and a little reading is good enough alone time. I do love my sleep but need to take advantage of people who like to be up late and social with a couple beers. It's so nice to be around since I haven't in so longg and Chris isn't big on night life, but I never thought I could saturate. I also think we're still jut a little tired. But despite very early hours on this trip, I think this will be very good time to just relax and pay to be taken care of. What luxury. Time to let my body relax and just try to enjoy it. Starting... now. No wait... now.

Well at least I'm trying...

Tents in Kibale Forest

Day 6


Today was rather extraordinary. We all woke up early - though still slightly later than usual since we didn't have to break camp - and had breakfast after washing our hands using the standard three bowl system we do three times a day. Breakfast included baked beans and bacon (yucko) and the discovery that both Chris and I really like wheatabix. There was a heavy scramble to get off in time and then we all boarded the truck. After three were dropped off at the chimp trekking, the other twelve of us were taken to the nearby village for a community tour/walk (optional activity).

Medicine man's implements

We started walking along the dirt roads with our guide, Julius, and were followed with great curiosity by the kids on their way to school. We passed by fields and people working as we walked to the traditional healer's home. Julius translated in a slow, low pitched voice that was hard to pay attention to as the old man described his multiple medical liquids and treatments. He explicitly said he does not treat AIDS because he cannot cure it. His thirteen year old son posed strangely in the background seeking attention while people shot pictures (with permission) of the medicine man using the flash in his face.

The medicine man of Kibale

Medicine man's baby with a cell phone

We next walkd to the school where the grounds were covered with trees bearing signs like Health is Life and Say No to Bad Touches and HIV/AIDS has no cure. We were taken into a classroom of  nearly 80 students with one teacher where they sang a welcome song, an environmental conservation song, and the a native song with dancing in the already small space. It was unimaginably exciting. Then we had a two way Q&A in which Mac got th most cheering for proclaiming himself an arsenal fan.

Julius ushered us along and we visited a family man with two small children in the background in slightly tattered clothes to tell us about his family structure and moving to the area. It was only a few lines told in the heat of day beneath the shade of a large jackfruit tree.

Kingfisher

Next we waited in a small hut with a singly room with benches for an old man to tell us about child birth through translation. He was just any old man as far as we could tell so it was odd that it required translation instead of the local guide just telling us. The most interesting points came from talking about the effects of HIV on pregnancy and childbirth - most women go to the hospital now to reduce transmission to baby as well as to protect nurse midwives. The incidence here is much lower than it used to be (quoted to us as now around 6-7% vs 15-20 previously). Chris stayed behind a moment and asked to take a pictue of the old man which turned out beautifully.

Signs up at the elementary school

After walking back, we all purchased a few handicrafts from the community store which greatly benefits the people themselves and then headed back for us. Daniel had prepared our first really local food - a vegetable stew, cooked bananas with tomatoes, boiled taro and sweet potato, served with a thick slice of avocado and o course watermelon and pineapple for dessert. This was what I'd been craving - a local, veggie dream come true. It was delicious.

One classroom, one teacher

Then the big group took off for chimp trekking, dividing into groups of six. Our guide was very nice but seemed to lead us astray a lot and wait behind for no reason (echoed by other group members and observed by the other group). Also, we were expecting a more leisurely walk through the forest to observe the other animals, including nine other species of daytime primates (though it was later pointed out that the chimps eat the monkeys so it made sense that they weren't around). Instead this was a pointed, rapid hike in which we were dropped off close to where the chimps were known to be (followed by guides with walkie talkies) and then ran and stumbled through the forest to find or keep up with them. That said, our group had incredible luck and it was absolutely amazing. First we went to see a lone chimp who let us snap a couple pictures before treeing himself, forcing us to go find the other group who'd found three close together. We watched until one, a little shy (most of them have names and the guides know their personalities), ran away. When another came down right next to us, we followed, essentially took chase. This lasted around half an hour til he ran up a tree. Then we continued on and found two more who sped off. Following after yielded incredible results. They would hoot and beat on hollow trees (sounded very much like donkey kong actually) while they ran and then met up with two more. They would slow down and tease and then run on. Eventually they met a large group - maybe six or eight on the ground at once - and everyone spread out to try to take pictures through the thick foliage and shade. There were rules (for numerous rational reasons) about how close you can be to them on the ground, which our group did a crap job of obeying. Chris and the young Austrian med student Manuil got very close to one who sat and let them watch with an unobstructed view. I got near as well but then a guide came up yelling on his cell phone and scared him away.

It started to rain and we took off. You are only allowed to have max an hour around the chimps anyway. It was thrilling to see them, running, yelling, putting on displays of strength. Really incredible, even if it wasn't quite what we'd expected.

Returning to our extravagantly nice campsite, it had poured. Daniel had been kind enough to run out and close our tents as well as gather our drying clothes off the line. Everyone was dirty from running through the jungle (though luckily only one safari ant incident) and took turns with the two showers heated by solar power.

Chris and Daniel had their boy time prepping for dinner and didn't need my help so I went inside to chat. It then started pouring again, and hailing. It was short lived but the American couple had accidentally left a flap open and their tent was soaked.

Our first local food meal from Dan for lunch, indescribably delicious

Mac and I demonstrating my Simpsons socks tucked in to prevent Safari ant attack in the forest

After we started our pre-entree soup, the prearranged evening entertainment showed up. I'd said I hoped they wouldn't come because they might get poured on, but there they were. Around 15-20 kids from the local orphanage and relatively dry looking. All in red patterned long shorts but a variety of shirts - from Puerto Vallarta to cK to Colombia. We arranged chairs outside and watched them sing and dance in English and Uganda. It was tremendous. The kids were so talented and their voices so beautiful. The woman who runs the orphanage led them. She was tall, thin, and beautiful with a lovely voice. I watched her like an angel the entire performance. It's not often you meet someone who so entirely devotes their life to the good of others. I was in awe.

Toward the end, they pulled us up to dance with them. Chris and a few other guys had chains of bells strapped to their legs and I with a few other ladies were given half grass skirts, which being child sized, we had to tie into our belt straps. I was so impressed by how these young girls moved their hips and was determined to make a good name for white girls as well. According to Walter the driver, who was as Chris put it, "a dirty old man" watching the girls dance, I did just fine. It was a ton of fun and we were all huffing from effort and altitude when we were done.

They sang a final farewell song at which point a woven jar was put out for donations. We all got up through the song to give and applauded loudly. At the end we were encouraged to go interact with the kids, which was cute but a little awkward. Not all spoke English and some were obviously shy. I couldn't get myself to take pictures of or with them even though most everyone else did. I don't know why but it just felt like something of a violation.

Ingwe told us this was relatively new for the orphanage, as was the community walk in the village, and that their performance has gotten a lot better very quickly. But also that the small donations have been tremendously helpful for them.

We ate chicken with slaw and potatoes for dinner and then moved on to chores: clean out the truck by mop and broom, clean the pots, or wash the dishes using the three bowl sanitation system. There's also cooking prep but that's obviously done before. And then to dry the plates, we all participate in flapping.

Peopl fizzled out a little early tonight. Chris points out that from all the bumps and rocking, we actually get a better work out than you'd expect from riding the bus, but racing through the forest was still more exercise than we'd had in a while. Everyone was tired.

Our leaders talk a lot about the culture of overlanding and call our group a family. I know a lot of it is meant to be inclusive for us but I can't help but feel that for them, depending on their background, it must be helpful as well. For someone like Ingwe, who has 25 living brothers and sisters (of an original 30), tribal identity must be incredibly important and having no family around must feel like a great loss. He tells us how if he goes back, he is not afforded respect because he went to the city and has no wife and children. He is seen as a child. But here, for us, he is a father and a big brother and is able to have a family, even if it is everchanging. For the hours these guys work and what they go through, I just hope that they are able to gain just a little bit of happiness or that they are at least somewhat satisfied with their work. They deserve at least that much.

Lone chimp, first sighting

A pretty accident

Chris' - he must have really done something to tick this guy off

Chris' - from his quiet moment of one-on-one

Kids from the local orphanage singing and dancing, shyly and cutely

Day 7

There are plenty of bats outside my tent and our guides are laughing and talking in Swahili in the cooking shelter. As long as no hippos show up here in our little piece of Queen Elizabeth National Park tonigh, it will have been a good night.

We woke up very very early to leave Kibale Forest but everyone was on time so Ingwe was happy. And Daniel made mini omelettes and crepes for breakfast, so we were happy. We made a first stop in town for errands - bank, food, beer, internet, dirty bathroom - before continuing on.

Village market

There was a semi unexpected stop at a local market for Daniel to pick up fresh provisions. We ere given the opportunity to go out for fifteen minutes to look around. It was overwhelming. As soon as we stepped out of the truck everyone was staring. But almost entirely smiling and laughing at us, which was certainly okay. We were probably a very strange sight. The first section was piles, very literally, of fresh produce - bananas, tomatoes, watermelon, pineapples, and a toddler putting a very nice spit shine on bunches of red onions as he tried to fit them all in his mouth. The next section was live meat, along with perhaps the dead variety as well but we didn't move through to see. Further back were various colorful fabrics the women use for sarongs and head wraps. People are always so bright and beautiful in what they wear here. If I knew how to wear the style, I'm certain I would have bought something.

Upsetting contrast

There were so many interesting new sights. The place was rife with photo opportunities but it didn't feel appropriate. We're always told we may ask people for permission to take their picture but there is always the chance they don't speak English. And if they do, for reasons I am not totally able to verbalize, I feel ashamed. Yet I saw my fellow travelers just a foot or two away from a baby's face with a camera. Mom didn't see but everyone around did. It was a beautiful moment in which the baby was curiously gazing at a blond british woman, Maggie, and I would have loved to take the picture, but it didn't morally feel right. So watching someone else take it made me feel both jealous and guilty. In the end, it is on the other person's conscience so I suppose not my problem. But it does affect the way other cultures view entitled Westerner tourists... and maybe violates social respect... Okay, maybe I'm having a hard time just letting that one go but it really tears at me for some reason. Nevertheless, I got a few very nice shots from the truck when people couldn't see me and so no one could get hurt.

Had to be done

The penultimate stop was crossing over the equator into the southern hemisphere. Apparently we'd already done this in Kenya but there was an actual sign this time. Nothing as ornate as Ecuador but still fun and we took a coupl group photos I'll probably never see.

Shortly after that, we entered Queen Elizabeth National Park. The terrain had changed quickly and we were no longer in thick green forest but rolling hills covered in tree like cacti and the tall grasses you think of for every crouching lion you've ever seen in a nature special. There are two larger lakes, Edward and George, along with smaller crater lakes. We cruised on into our campsite, Hippo Hill, and commensed unpacking and setting up in the stifling heat.

Chris going to say hi to the little boy watching us set up tents at Queen Elizabeth NP

I suddenly found myself overly irritable. With the heat and the swarm of bees I'd found waiting for me just outside the bathroom (I have never been stung and am afraid I will be allergic), people started to get to me. It's an understandably small space to share but people stopped saying excuse me. That with some cultural sensitivity problems from the previous day and picture taking just had me irked. I don't know where this intense sensitivity to being considerate comes from but I find it's not something many people share. Granted I have my moments like anyone else but in general, I try damn hard and take offense when it's apparent other people don't. I chilled in the tent a little til lunch and after having a big veggie sandwich I felt a little better. I think my blood sugar is getting a little low with three decently nig meals instead of just snacking and low sugar is always a sure way to get cranky.

On the shores of the channel in Queen Elizabeth

After the typical clean up scramble, we boarded the truck to drive slowly to the start of our river cruise, doing a little mini game drive along the way. We saw the Ugandan kops, pronounced copes, of the antelope family, which is only found here, along with some wart hogs, water bucks, and the like. The dropped us off to walk down to the riverside where we boarded a small boat to cruise along the canal connecting the George and Edward lakes.

As soon as we'd started moving, half of us went up top. We'd already been able to see from across the river a whole group of elephants on the other side. We started there and took loads of pictures. It was beautiful to see them down by the water. I noticed they had much smaller eyes than Thai elephants. Otherwise, the only truly new thing I saw was a little bit of elephant humping. That one never went on at the elephant park.

Elephant lovin'... or just a dominance display

There were loads of hippos in the water and all kins of birds in the air, including some eagles who kept our cameras busy while fishing. We had the opportunity to see a Nile crocodile (rare here) trying to catch a bird - no such luck but we were all rooting for him. There were plenty of hippos, elephants, water buffalo, and birds. We got so close to one hippo that we scared him out of the water and he gave a boat a good shake. It was overly exciting and probably overly stimulating for the poor thing. The whole thing lasted about two hours and was a fantastic time. The clouds had come in which meant lighting wasn't the best, but we also didn't get burned. I think the most accurate qualifier of how giddy we were came from everyone wanting to share and show off there photos. I've got a lot of jealousy in this arena. Chris has quality and color while I've got zoom, but there are some fancy cameras here that have them both in spades. I hope people will be generous about sharing in the end.

We had a slow viewing drive back, in which we saw no lions to many a boy's dismay. I also got my first tsetse fly bite, which as a med student didn't make me happy. Those things sting and it drew some blood too. It is worth commenting though that unless the thing is right in front of you, you forget about all the parasites, diseases, snakes, and miscellaneous what have you dangerousness that you might worry about while planning a trip like this. Not to say that there isn't some element of caution, but it feels quite safe here.

Fish eagle

Fish eagle

After that, I hung out in the tent to give myself some space and take an opportunity to delete some files. You find you end up taking lots of photos of say a hippo's head in the water because you don't realize you're going to see one get out of the water a few meters away from you later. You don't know what opportunities you'll get so you have to take advantage of the ones you have. I have to do a good job of keeping up with this so I don't run out of memory before we finish. Thank goodness Mom bought me that extra 16gb card.

Dinner was a local dish which we were told needed to be eaten with hands only. We happily obliged. The main attraction was called ugali which was a type of white maize cake with the consistency of mashed potatoes. It reminded me of eating a big handful of gnocchi (my favorite food in the world). This came with spicy beef stew for most and a delicious veg stew for myself. Plus chapati and slaw. It was a terrific meal. Easily in the top ten for our trip.

Scared an elephant family into hiding behind a tree - they're a little bit bigger than the tree

After chores and cleaning, Chris and I pulled out our alcohol purchases from the morning and were ready to socialize. Seems most of the crowd had overdone it and was ready for a break. But the guides, Austrian students, and Canadian couple joined us for a while. Chris shared out his gin and I gave of the banana/honey wine I'd found, which turned out to have been what Chris was looking for when he thought there was such a thing as banana gin. Walter loved it. Said it was the traditional stuff. It had a strong sweet but vinegary taste. Chris said it tasted like it was made in a bathtub, which later led to a lot of explanation on moonshine and that it was a compliment. Poor Chris was so worried he'd offended but the guys just love him. They call him Mandevu, which means beard. That or Jesus. They have a lot of fun with that one and have plans for making Chris pull some spectacles that would create international headlines, though not the ones they're looking for. People in towns all call Chris Jesus too (Yesui) but he's been a really good sport about it. Me, I just sat back and drank my banana wine out of my water bottle cap. It was nice.

Now, it's dark and hot in our little camp and I'm waiting to hear the hippos pass by in the night. In the meantime, I might read a little. We're waking up at 5:30 again tomorrow. 

Saddle-nosed stork

Hippos!

Baby hippo!

Ugandan kob

Hippo our boat scared out of the water

Day 8

Sometimes things seem to blur together when I come to the end of the day and try to remember what we've done or where we came from. This morning started dark and early. We packed tents, had a simple breakfast and flapped the plates dry with the sun rising over the park. We took a short game drive on the way out. The highlights were probably a couple hippos crossing in the road in front of us, a mom and baby water buck, and a dead snake in the road of the dangerous variety. Otherwise just the miscellaneous water buffalos and warthogs, or pumbas if you prefer. Speaking of which, I love that the Lion King used the actual Swahili words to name animals but it means it's a constant reference. Especially since Ingwe says Akuna Matata all the time and the rafiki's song is the easiest way I remember Asante Sana (thank you). But some of that is irrelevant anyway since Swahili isn't spoken here. Ingwe tells us the saying is Swahili was born in Tanzania, died in Kenya, and is buried in Uganda. Another tidbit, Swahili was apparently born of the mix of Bantu and Arabic languages when Arabs landed on the east coast.

I want a sign that says hippo crossing

After heading out, we stopped briefly at a tea plantation to look and take pictures. The hills here are covered with the low lush green of tea.

We had a full day drive after that. Chris and I are good and doing some medical review questions I found for free for the kindle and I finished another book. We stopped on the side of the road for lunch where there was little privacy for a bathroom and we had constant watchers again (though they seemed curious at the spectacle and not waiting for food). After that, we stopped in the town of Kabale so Daniel could replenish supplies. We walked around a bit and bought some beer since we've been warned things are more expensive in Rwanda.

Driving on, Walter had to drive on a rather bumpy back road. There we say peopl working in the cliff like rock face to bring down large rocks which they could then break down and sell for construction. Ingwe said it was often the only way people could make a living.

Shortly thereafter we arrived at Lake Bunyoni. The view entering over top of it was stupendous and bright but it clouded over by the time we'd finished putting up our tents. Still, it was a beautifully peaceful place and we had tent space on the grass by the water. Our tent opening happens to be facing the rear end of a hippo statue next to the water.

After a shower, my four person group was on cooking duty but a few other people came to help as well under the tarp slung up on the side of the truck. Lots of prep work, cutting and washing veggies. But after that Daniel took me under his wing and let me help with a lot of the rest of the work. We made pumpkin soup followed by veg stew with mashed potatoes. I got my mash on. Everyone sat around the tarp near the stove fires while it rained and the older British couple, Maggie and Martin, were kind enough to share out their gin and tonic. That along with the local music on Ingwe's computer made a great atmosphere.

After cleaning up everyone headed to the site's bar, which is always referred to as the human watering hole in overlanding culture. Chris and I encountered the friendly campsite dog and brought out our banana wine and gin to sharewith the guys. Walter loves the banana wine and yelps and wails with every drink. When it became apparent that the guys were still trying to be on for us, we decided to head down to the bar to give them a break.

Chris lasted a tiny bit with the rugby game on everyone was watching and I talked with Tim and Mac while they played pool. I got a good little geography lesson on UK vs Great Britain (embarassing that I had to ask) and Mac extolled the virtues of Tokyo where he's lived nearly five years. I walked back to the sound of insects buzzing and frogs that sound like sonar. Now people are slowing trickling into their tents, there is still music and a party across the lake, and the first dog has apparently found a friend to play and snarl with. But it suddenly smells like dog poo, so that's no good. Hope I don't step in any in the morning.

It's a beautiful place and a shame we really only got a couple hours here and will wake up before dawn again to head to the Rwandan border. Fortunately, we'll now be staying three nights in the same place. I still don't think there'll be much sleeping in though... 

Hamerkop and its nest

Day 9-10

Well I didn't get to do my typing last night since we're staying in a dorm room with ten other people (the other five paid a premium to upgrade to private rooms) and I didn't want to keep them awake the night before they were to go gorilla trekking. Chris and I are in the smaller group that is going tomorrow. So here I am in Musanze at he parish/ministry center we're staying at outside under the clouds to charge the kindle and get a few moments of privacy. Actually, Chris just dropped in after having had to wait an hour and a half to change money at the bank where he as hassled because it was too old (no one likes anything earlier than 2003 for US bills in Africa), despite the fact that our friends did the same without trouble. There've been a few disappointments recently and he's unhappy. He's gone to walk it off and I'm alone again.

Yesterday we left the lake campsite early as usual. Chris has been too good at taking care of me. He wakes up earlier and more quickly so he and Ingwe typically have the tent almost fully taken down before I get done putting my things on the truck. We had breakfast and packed a sack lunch. The colorsof sunrise were lovely on the lake and it was sad we couldn't stay longer. I did get to see both dogs who'd apparently kept everyone up making a ruckus the night before though. We walked up the camp hill to meet the truck since it couldn't make it up with our extra weight and then we headed out.
The Uganda-Rwanda border was quick and easy. We made a couple quick stops fo scenic photos and "bush toilet" on the other side. I hadn't slept much the night before and was probably asleep when we arrived in the Rwanda capital of Kigali.

There we went to the Genocide Memorial and Museum. Admission is actually free but we paid (as part of our program) to get the audio guide. It started taking us around the gardens outside as well as the mass graves, which were large concrete slabs over the sites of where some 250,000 of the two million who'd died had been reburied. It was a bright day, the gardens were beautiful, and the sight of the graves against the backgroun of the city in the distance was interesting, but I felt I needed the context first to better appreciate what I was looking at. I wasn't quite yet nine years old when the months long genocide began in 1994. Plus, we took our time outside which ended up being too long. We were give two and a half hours for the whole site and once we got inside, it ended up not being enough.

The exhibit on the basement floor started with a lot of history. The most salient points I found to be the commetary on the effects of German and especially Dutch colonialism. The people of Rwanda had co-existed peacefully until their lad was colonized. The colonialists applied previously used identifiers of Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa in a racially defind way that had never been done before. Previous terms of class and status within a clan now distinguished what seemed to be separate races and ID cards were issued to stae this and further define the new gap. The minority Tutsi were given a majority of power and important positions during the colonial period (estimated ethnic make up - 85% Hutu, 14% Tutsi, 1-2% Twa). After independence was declared, Hutu were give power and governmental rule. Tensions rose and the gap between the people expanded. Killings began and rulers were said to have begun training troops especially prepared to carry out the final solution. This happened after the president's plane was shot down in April 1994.

The museum detailed the massacre. The roadblocks set up on the street to kill people. The soldiers of the special military force sent with lists of names to kill people in their homes. Entire families were wiped out. They've started to set up a wall much like the Vietnam memorial but it is terribly incomplete because in so many cases there is or was no one left to account for the loss. Moderate Hutus were killed as well, especially those who'd intermarried. Women were raped by men known to be HIV+ or killed in front of their families. Children were slaughtered.

The international community knew and did nothing. The UN military leader in Rwanda begged for more troops, just a small amount would have been enough to end things, but he was refused. Later aid was a total fuck up too. Evacuation forces ended up helping fleeing forces from the genocidaires as the Rwanda Patriotic Front invaded and brought the massacre to an end. One display said that aid came to refugee camps but that the international community remained completely unaware of all the people inside the country who still needed help.

The Rwanda Genocide Exhibit on all levels had the one facet that our visit in Cambodia was missing: the people side of things. There were certainty pictures at Tuol Sleng but this museum held so many visuals that it became overwhelming. There were pictures of the violence and aftermath and multiple stations to watch interviews with survivors. It was still too easy to disconnect and dissociate until you came upon the video display. The opening of the video shows someone bludgeoning a man on the street at a distance. Then it moves fluidly through multiple horrendous scenes, a small boy crying out for his mom, someone who's lost their hand, children with terrible wounds and infections, one with a wound from a bullet obviously grazing the side of his head just over the ear in a long black blood encrusted surface with flies swarming around it. You suddenly have the feeling you might not be able to hold it together. The rest of the information sinks in slowly. Words and phrases like aftermath, orphans, AIDS without access to treatment, entire families wiped out.

Then you reach the section at the end consisting of three rooms. You might call this the climax.
The room to the right is filled with alcoves of hanging pictures, rows and rows of pictures of the people who died. In each alcove there is a small seat where you can sit to look or simply absorb. Maybe after passing two, you would take the opportunity to sit at the third. Watching the pictures and feeling their eyes, so happy in the moment in which they were captured, staring back at you. Looking through parties, weddings, and a myriad of other special occasions, you would be overwhelmed not only by the sadness and utter senselessness of it all but by the number of happy moments that have been lost. The joy that will never be. Eventually the magnitude of what's in front of you becomes numbing. Maybe you will just sit there and stare, staring past the faces in front of you unable to feel any more sad that what you already have. Maybe like me, it will hit you again in a wave, a vast overwhelming sea of voices, mothers, daughters, sons, sisters, brother, grandparents, fathers and no matter what your tears are meaningless, maybe no matter what you could have done. And maybe you ought to feel ashamed for crying because you could have done something more. Being eight or nine years old feels somehow like a sorry excuse in front of this wall of people whose children didn't even make it that far.

How do you deal with something like that? Do you zone out completely? Do you study the individual features of the faces that have been lost forever? Or do you just sit there and cry? Or do you maybe fee you simply can't take it and rush out? I write this. I narrate in my head. The words come fluidly and freely (even though they appear much more different here because there is a pause in hesitation or in pain trying to finally put them down) because it helps me bring order to what I am seeing. If I can write this, perhaps I can educate. Maybe I will be lucky enough that someone will be able to draw something out of my experience. The words I will give to the world keep me from sinking too deeply into the other words in my own head. Either way, I think these words and occasionally I cry.

The center of the room yields more seats and a video projectory displays more of the documentary in which survivors tell of their favorite memories of loved ones lost. In which I woman tells of her mother being taken away and giving her and her siblings instructions on what to do "if they survive." Someone says a key word or describes something in such detail that you have no choice but to picture it happening to someone you love. You sniffle. The person next to you sniffles. No one says a word. And the documentary is on mute with English subtitles on. The room is utterly silent which makes you terribly aware of all the eyes on the walls behind you and you feel the heavy weight of their watching. As though they were waiting.

The next room bears bones of the victims. Skulls with obvious blunt trauma. The last room is clothes. The ones people died in. A child's shirt. A Cornell sweater.

I finally went upstairs to see the exhibit on other genocides in the world - Cambodia, The Holocaust, Armenians, The Balkans (Bosnia), and Namibia (which Chris and I had never heard about). I heard Martin telling Maggie there were only five minutes left and had to rush through without finishing. The final room was the children's room where hung pictures of the children who died. Underneath where placards giving their name, age at death, favorite color, favorite food, description of personality, maybe last memory (seeing mom die), and how they died. I was glad to only have a few minutes to spend here. It was terrible.

Chris and I hugged outside and walked back to the truck where we pulled out our sandwiches and ate in silence while we waited for the few who hadn't come out yet. There were people talking, just chatting randomly and I really wanted them to be quiet. It didn't feel right having anything to say after that.
I thought a lot about my own guilt in what little I'd "been through" or even seen from the perspective of our culture or our country compared to the things we've now seen in places like here and Cambodia. And then I thought about the children who died here and the little girl who was shot and killed in the Tucson tragedy. She was born on 9/11 and my mother told me was featured in a new book on the hopes for the futue of children born on 9/11. She was my only point of comparison it seemed and it made me feel guilty for how good we have it and then it made me feel guilty for belittling her death.

I thought a lot on the lack of awareness throughout the world. Again, my age came in to play I'm sure but I remember a year later when we read the diary of a little girl in Sarajevo. And maybe it was that same year when a teacher first introduced me to the diary of Anne Frank. Maybe I was too young to understand or digest any of this but I remember it. This is a comment on our society and not my parents or teachers but I can't help but wonder how much the location of Rwanda came into play in my lack of knowledge. Then I wonder what I would want my nine year old to know of a genocide going on. What would I tell them? How would I tell them?

It was an incredibly powerful experience and I'm very grateful to have had the opportunity to learn and to feel. I stepped out of the museum into the light of day where you cannot help but see the people of any country that have undergone such terrors differently. If I asked anyone my age, they would have a story to tell. They would know someone who died, someone who killed, someone who was involved. And they have had to learn to integrate the weight of that into their daily lives.

We stopped at the hotel that was featured in Hotel Rwanda - a movie I still have to see - and people went to use the ATMs. Despite only really being in the center, I was struck by how clean and affluent Kigali was as a capital. They even had trash bins on the street. You never see that.

We stopped briefly outside of the city for a scenic view. Our presence with cameras of course attracted kids. There was a huge storm in the near distance but somehow we appeared to miss most of it driving on (which by the way was now on the right side of the road after having been on the left in Uganda and Kenya).

Sculpture in the garden outside the Rwandan Genocide Memorial Museum

We arrived in Ruhrengeri/Musanze and came to our resting place, Fatima. A kind of ministry mission which is also something of a hotel with a bar as well and gates and a couple night guards. We all settled into our dorm room or private rooms and split up for internet, drinks or the like. Chris and I did some laundry but it started raining shortly after we put our clothes on the line. 

After that, we decided to walk into town. There were lots of people out on the road and they all enjoyed staring, smiling, or laughing at us. Once we got to the center area, there were a surprising number of heavily armd guards and lots of taxi motorcycles. We were followed a ways by a little boy named Isaac who apparently follows lots of tourists and doesn't go to school because he's learned he can live well enough doing that, a message I'm sad to say some people in our group accidentally reinforced. We found Mac and Tim at a bar and had a drink together- our first local Rwandan beer. It was enough to loosen our lips a little and we talked about the museum and similar subjects. 

Mac and Tim were doing the bar rouns in town but Chris and I decided to head back before dark. We ate dinner and heard the details of the gorilla trekking reviewed. Nine were going the first day and Chris and I were among the six to go the second. We'd decided to do the golden monkey trek that was an optional activity on our free day. Then came the catch. We already knew it was 100 USD each but our trip notes didn't say it would be 100 for the jeep to get there. Suddenly the price became truly out of our range. Chris was quiet for most of the rest of the evening which told you just how upset he was.

We all enjoyed the hotel bar that night and Chris and I had our first African dark beer- Turbo King (which I kept calling Turbo Kill). Mac was in true form that evening and Tim was drunk so there were a lot of laughs.

We went to bed knowing everyone in the room but Chris and I had to get up at 530 for breakfast and leaving. I gave the very empty threat of slashing anyone's bag who failed to use an inside voice when getting up in the morning. Ironically, the most noise in the middle of the night, other than a couple of snorers, was me getting up to pee and not being able to unlock the door.

I woke up at nine this morning. I hadn't actually slet perfectly but did one of those refusing to get out of bed on principle. The six of us left behind had breakfast then Martin and Maggie were kind enough to lt me use their private room shower since it had hot water.

The four of us went out to town with our three crewman for lunch. They chose an African food buffet. It was actually our first time eating outside of the group or a hotel in Africa. It was quite good but Dan, Walter, and Ingwe complained a lot about how small the plates were. There were more stories, Jesus talk, Walter's constant "I am telling you" (which acts as a replacement for something like - tell me about it!), and a Valentine's Day toast. The four of us split the bill and Ingwe and Dan headed back to meet the returning trekkers. Walter stayed to finish his beer and we took a stroll to the bank (where they wouldn't take Ugana shillings which is why Chris went back later) and then the market where there was a lot of beard and Jesus laughing, staring, and even occasionally grabbing.

Chris and I ended up having to jog back to pull our clothes down when it started raining again. It's a terribly nice and safe place. I just wish I knew the language so I could disarm or communicate.

The afternoon, when I started this, was lazy. We hd a huge local food dinner, in which Dan of course made a veggie stew to replace the beef dish for me. We heard about everyone having a great time on their treks (Mac had already shown me most of his pictures - averaging more than one per second). Chris maintained a stance of quiet optimism. Dinner was delicious. Chores went quickly and then Chris and I decided to come back to the room and rest. Everyone else wet to the bar but it seems both our stomaches are a little off. I hope very much the samosas I got us in Kabale don't come back to haunt us, especially not tomorrow. I've already packed some pepto and took a half preemptively. Let's keep our fingers crossed...

Day 11

On the walk to Volcanoes National Park to see gorillas

So yesterday was our gorilla trek. We went out for a big celebratory dinner and some drinks last night, which left me in no shape or mood for writing this. Truth be told, most of us were just exhausted.

There were six of us left who hadn't gone trekking yet (though a few like me who had already seen nearly all the other group's photo and thus had some expectations/preconceived notions) and four from the other group who'd decided to go trek for golden monkeys - the optional activity Chris and I had been so interested in. We all woke up quite early and had a hearty breakfast before we hopped in separate hired jeeps to end up at the same departure point.

Charles is the largest silverback around - 200kg

I happened to get the front seat with our driver Kevin. He's an incredibly nice guy but we had some communication difficulties and I felt a little awkward. Otherwise, the drive up was just incredible. The town was small to begin with but now we were moving into the truly rural area under Volcano National Park with some four volcanoes in view and shrouded in mist sitting within Rwanda, Uganda, and the DRC. The road was full of people in the lifting light of morning. Children heading to school, men walking, women carrying baskets, bags, bamboo stalks, anything you can imagine balanced perfectly on their heads. Then there were those off the roads, already hard at work in the fields.The sight was immense. 

Someone asked whether Africa was what we expected and I had to say no, it isn't. Because I think we were expecting the worst of the worst poverty and we haven't seen quite that. Granted our perspective is terribly skewed because we only have access to more industrialized tourist areas and could never see parts equivalent to some of the truly rural places we saw in Bolivia. That said, far enough out of town like that morning, the houses become poorer and there are more children wearing rags. There is absolutely poverty but there is something so beautiful in the way that we are able to see (just a little) of how these people shoulder the burden, like the woman with the enormous sack of potatoes balanced on her head with only one hand up to steady. I saw an older man in a tattered suit with a machete in his hand. Just walking along. Normal. Makes me wonder what interesting sights we take for granted in our own world.

We arrived the park headquarters and milled around, sipping tea or coffee as groups were arranged. When Kevin came back, we were taken to Patience, our guide, and introduced to an older (very fit 67 and 71) Canadian couple who made up the rest of our group of eight. Patience gave us an introduction to the family we'd go to see - Umubano, belonging to the largest silverback in the park, Charles - and rules for our visit.

So the way everything is set up may be pertinent here. There are eighteen mountain gorilla families in the park. Ten are for research and eight have been habituated to human presence and are each seen by a group of eight tourists once a day for one hour. That one hour in view of the gorillas plus the trek up the volcano (informed by rangers who stay with the gorillas night and day, both for protection from poachers and having the walkie talkie to tell the guides their location) with a guide and a ranger with a gun (in case of run ins with other animals in the park) runs $500. Steep, to say the least. But here they are, in the wild and still in small numbers and the money from the visit has to help. Patience told us the census in 2003 showed around 360 gorillas in the park and they've had a 26% increase according to last year's census. They only exist in this park and one other in Uganda. Thus why that figure is so important.

We got back in the jeep (or land cruiser I guess) and had what has been called multiple times an africa massage - driving on a really bad road. The way up was so rough that little kids running alongside the car were able to keep pace. The kids waved and smiled and we waved back. Then we realized they were trying to sell us flowers instead of going to school, which Kevin told us is free. So tourists are innocently buying these flowers from cute little kids without imagining there could be long term consequences. And yet here they are, the same kids by the road every day waiting for cars full of tourists to show up instead of going to school. That's a cycle that can only be incredibly hard to break.

Just chillin

We reached the parking lot at the bottom of the fields leading up to the park and one of the volcanoes and unloaded. Walking sticks were passed out to those that wanted them and we began hiking through the fields, again past more people at work and women carrying large objects on their heads. We reached the stone wall that makes the beginning of the park, meant to keep local agriculture out and animals in, after twenty minutes or so. It had been a beautiful walk. We then began the real ascent through fairly thick foliage, though still on an actual path where Patience would stop to show us gorilla droppings.

Martin kept time from the moment we left the jeep and our first sighting came at two hours and ten minutes. We saw the rangers first and then after a lot of pointing, we saw the gorillas - across the ravine. For a moment there was a lot of excitement, then there was the realization and feeling Chris and I had had from the start - oh shit, is this as close as we're going to get? No, we were reassured but we couldn't go straight down either. This left going up further our current extension off the mountain to turn onto the extension the gorillas were on. 

At this point it feels appropriate to mention that there have been a lot of first time experiences for both Chris and I on our trip but that as a relatively woman from Arizona, I always seem to have more new experiences than Chris. For example, having ticks, eating frog legs, or padding a canoe. This time, it was my first experience of stinging nettle. The way we took was steep, slick, pathless, overgrown, and full of the ridiculous nettles. It felt like the whole forest was out to get us. It took nearly another hour to reach the gorillas.

Our first encounter was with the second silverback, Charles' brother. He was only a few yards away and sat eating, oblivious or unconcerned as we all stared and snapped pictues. It was amazing.

Beautiful eyes

After dropping our things further on with the rangers, the avoid taunting, threatening, or agitating the gorillas, we continued down the slope to where we first encountered Charles, the huge silverback. He was magnificent. Our general experience was very different from the previous day's group. Generally, we were all slipping and falling, getting in each other's way and jockeying for position. People were generally on good behavior but the circumstances were not ideal. There was little room to move about in and I spent a large amount of time staring at the back of a primate's head (take your pick which). But it was usually unavoidable and in retrospect, at least it was still a gorilla face.

Chris and I witness one of the younger ones eating and suddenly lean back, apparently expecting something behind him, and topple down hill. It was adorable and we both cracked up. A lot of the rest of the group got a little too close to Charles and got charged in a display of dominance. Not as scary as it sounds but still impressive. I had a private moment to watch one in profile eating over the grass. And then Chris and I were the first to witness when a mom and older baby stopped and started feeding in front of us. Mom was habituated enough that she seemed completely uninterested in us, but baby was curious and stared at us with bright glistening eyes the whole time he breastfed. It was beautiful.

The group moved further down and we were obliged to follow down into a small, tight space where one moved through us and, I later learned, grabbed Chris' calf before climbing a tree next to us (the highlight of Chris' experience). The guides panicked a bit more than was helpful and it was difficult getting us all up and out but the humans were much more agitated in the circumstances than other primates. 

The group ended up settling down in a hard to reach or see area under some trees. We stood there and watched for the rest of our time (which appeared about ten minutes shorter than expected because they started the time with our very first sighting, whom we wouldn't see again). Then we walked down the hill further away an waited for the rangers to bring our bags down. We attempted eating but the smell of sandwiches and bananas brought the gorillas down. 

The way down was an actual path, though still full of nettles. It took us nearly an hour with a finally walk through the fields of white flowers beforewe reached the parking lot. Once there, tables had been set out with shirts and gorillas carvings. We bought a couple little gorillas and I got Chris a gorilla mask to remind him of his time with his furry kin.

We'd had great luck on weather as it only startd to cloud over at the end. The previous day it'd raind but if it'd rained on us, we probably couldn't have made it across. Kevin drove us back to the headquarters and Chris and I attempted to eat during our second African massage for the day. Back at the site, we tipped, received our trekking certificates, said thanks and goodbye to the rest of our group and guide (the older Canadian couple was impressive and never had a problem keeping up - a great example of how Chris and I hope to be traveling someday), and returned to the hostel. 

By that time it was raining and, for multiple reasons, I was feeling rather glum and frustrated with our situation. After a rest and warm shower, I met Chris and several of the other people from the day before's trek at the bar. When someone repeated something Chris'd said, I remembered that technically this had been Chris' major experience or highlight. And he was very happy with it. It's not that it wasn't important to me too but it made me stop and remember I'd been the one really looking forward to the Serengeti, Ngorogoro, and Zanzibar, which are all still to come. So that just took a little pressure off the experience and how much we'd spent on it (though I wish it wasn't a consideration at all, it has to be). In the end, I relaxed in thinking that we had seen some incredible animals, had a wonderfully strenuous hike, contributed money to conservation efforts, and our friends are offering to share their great videos and pictures. Plus, Chris had a wonderful experience. It may not have been ideal at all points but it was certainly once in a lifetime and I would have to recommend it to anyone who's remotely interested.

After having a drink, the whole group gathered to walk into town to go to a local food buffet to celebrate. We met Tim and Mac there who, after having gone to the golden monkeys (which were cute but with the largest tourist group they had ever had), hopped on a bus to try to go to the DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo). Mac keeps a list of countries he's been to, as well as KFC countries ("God bless the colonel"), and had to try to add one more. They regaled us with stories of trying to barter the 285$ visa down since they would only be there two hours. They didn't make it across but technically they were standing across the border for a minute. Coming across, the immigration official for Rwanda recognized them and just crossed out their exit stamp in pen and wrote Canceled. Not a terribly common thing to hear of.

Almost doesn't look real

Everyone seemed quite tired at dinner. I sat down on the far end to hear the stories and Chris sat with our crew at the other end (as well as Kevin). He bought them all beers too.

After dinner, the three oldest people in the group plus an old-feeling Chris went back to the hotel and the rest of us went to a bar for drinks and dancing. It ended up being the same Texas bar where we'd had a drink the first night. I had a beer and talked with the girls, then sat down to talk to one of the guys and watch our crew loving dancing, along with a little bit of the white boy shuffle from some of our counterparts. It was amusing. The guys were good dancers but I just wasn't feeling up to it, not comfortable or energetic enough. One of the few times I'll have passed up on dancing. One of the girls gave me the eye and several of us headed back to the hostel on the empty but safe streets with the occasional roaming armed guard.

Chris was fast asleep when we got there and we all joined him quickly. I only woke briefly when the rest of the group came home.

Charles

Hail the conquerers! Martin and Chris

Day 12
We woke up early and left the dorm rooms without needing to pack up a tent. I changed things around a bit at breakfast too so that was nice. All the rest of the group had come back from the bar after midnight so they were a little weary looking in the morning but still smiling. The poor crew only got a few hours sleep but of course were still "very strong."

We took off for the border, which took nearly an hour or so - mostly of just standing around and waiting for the truck to be cleared. After that, we took off for Kabale through amazing, lush rolling hills in Uganda. It was gorgeous, despite the slightly narrow and precarious road we used as it was being worked on.

Ingwe had called in our lunch orders to an Indian/Western food cafe before we got there since it would be "very awkward" to set up to make sandwiches in the middle of the town. They didn't receive the whole text so it took a very long time and we got behind schedule. My chicken burger was of course the last to come out.

The rest of the ride was reading, resting, occasionally looking out the window and being on waving duty. I love watching how excited the kids get. I don't want to examine too deeply what that excitement means but just enjoy those amazng innocent smiles everywhere we go. You can't help but smile back. Chris slept through most of the ride. I made the mistake of putting the audio of Guns, Germs, and Steel on and it put me to slee right away. I've been working on listening to ths for nearly three years and I just slept through the last hour. Anthropology theses aren't meant to be read aloud.

Arriving at the entrance to the park around Lake Mboro, we all pulled out our cameras for the little drive we still had to get to the camp site. We had a zebra crossingin front of the truck, a couple monkeys Pamela and I spotted, some beautiful birds, and loads of pumbas. Ingwe waved the last off and said wait til we get to the site. When we arrived, there were warthogs everywhere. All over the ground we would use to pitch our tents on, just a short ways from the lake shore. It is pretty spectacular.

After setting up our tents (still wet and rather musty after having been packed away a couple days), a few of us helped with chopping veg for dinner (Dan was kind enough to lt me throw out a zucchini I found a huge worm in). Chris and I went to join some of the boys at the shore where a mama and her two baby piglets were feeding and came very close to us. We also got to see hippos fighting in the lake at a distance. The pictures are very blurry but you can definitely see that their mouthes are open.

We settled around the campfire for tomato soup and spaghetti. While talking, Mac and Chris had the pleasure of hearing a lion roar in the distance. After cleaning up, some of us settled in around the fire to hear so-called horror stories from Ingwe, some about terror clients and some involving animals (mostly at Serengeti actually). When everyone started heading to bed, Mac and I went down to the bar to find Chris, Martin, and Maggie. We had a quick drink and enjoyed the frogs chirping and the sound of the warthogs grazing a short distance away. In general, they really are ugly as sin (I said their different spikes and protusions look like something out of the Dark Crystal) but the little guys really are cute.

One of our companions has apparently fallen quite sick. We all donated the necessary pills but he's still going at this point and the pit latrines here are probably the most disgusting bathrooms we've had. We're going for a game walk tomorrow (with a man carrying a very big gun) so I hope he's okay by then.

So now I'm just listening to the sounds, frogs and insects and the occasional moving person, and waiting to hear a hippo or random warthog roaming through. Who knows, maybe tonight there'll even be a lion. We're all again slightly on guard, especially about going to the bathroom in the middle of the night but I'm sure for most of us it will be a quiet night.



Day 13

Well it's again the next morning I'm writing this due to a late night but it's still better than weeks later. Yesterday was a ridiculous amount of driving but before that we had a great night in the Lake Mburo park. After the obligatory final bathroom use to avoid any wildlife encounters in the middle of the night, we went to sleep. Chris woke me up moving around in the middle of the night. There were footsteps real close to the tent. The hippos had come out of the water and were slowly grazing and moving into the land behind us. We sat up and listened. We couldn't see anything through our three open flaps. The fourth flap we'd put down in case of rain to keep our heads and valuables dry. But it was the direction the sound was coming from. I don't think we would have been able to see much if it had been open anyway.

A questioning glance - are you friend or foe?

I drifted in and out of sleep until I had one of those moments in which dream and real sound blend and I sat up confused by the sound in the context of my dream. Chris was already awake listening at 4am and we were both hearing a lion roaring in the distance. We were excited, in a half awake sort of way, and not scared at all.

Sunrise on our game walk at Lake Mburo

The only unfortunate event of the middle of the night was waking to the realization that half by forehead was swollen to neanderthal size. My ear and nose on the same side were also full of fluid. My forehead was like pitting edema, full of fluid I could push around. It was uncomfortable to raise my eyebrows but it wasn't red. It slowly went down throughout the day so that I could finally see the bite (a spider?). It's still a little swollen but much better. Poor Chris was probably more worried than I was.
Everyone woke early for breakfast around the fire before going on a game walk (I generally dislike the term game since we aren't hunting them but the point could be made that it's still relevant with cameras like Mac's clicking off like an automatic weapon). Ingwe alerted me and a few others to a hippo a bit behind the truck while we were flapping and cleaning up. We watched the large shadow move slowly away and back into the water.

Topi

They took us on the truck to a designated meeting point where we split into two groups each with a local ranger with a large gun, which we were told could be used to scare away any large animals if necessary. Our guide was Jameson. His English was excellent and he was inredibly knowledgeable. I'd been excited for this but Chris was hesitant. As soon as we started walking and the morning sounds of the park enveloped us, everyone became excited and happy. We moved past herds of impalas and many warthogs. We came nearly zebras several times, who would watch us carefully, let us watch while they nuzzled and played, or simply ran off (depending on how bad a night they'd had). Seeing baby zebras was incredible though. 

We also came upon the nearly three month old carcass of a zebra with form and hide still intact. I gasped when I realized what we were walking up to. But the more I looked, the less I was bothered. It was just natural. Even the teeth marks the lion left in its neck. It was picked completely clean. But it wasn't something you could let bother you (especially with an estimated 4k zebras in the park and only five lions).

We also finally got to see the elusive topi of the antelope family. There were a few random baboons and other primates as well as a single water buffalo. Even if we'd only seen a few zebras, I think I still would have been happy. It was the experience of being down on the ground, on the same level as the animals with your senses on high alert. Hearing every small sound like the other prey in the park while dodging big and small termite hills and every size of scat conceivable (minus ele poo of course). Just being there was wonderful. It was just unfortunate it was so short. We ended walking up a large hill to view the scenery of the park on either side, quite green for the dry season, before heading back.

Hopping back on the bus meant we were committed to the long ride to Jinja. Our seat was in the sun so I leaned on Chris to avoid burning. He set me up with a pillow and gently lowered my head to his lap when I fell asleep. I woke up before lunch and limped to the bathroom stop as my leg woke up.

We were running behind schedule by lunch. We ate sandwiches at a different equator stop. There wasn't any time for pictures or stopping at the shops (including one whose profits go to orphans with AIDS). At this point, we're pretty sick of constant driving but it's a known and necessary evil. The thing is that we've been kind of skimped on stops we are supposed to have like this or a tea plantation we're supposed to visit. Or when our trip notes has listed an entire day in a spot - Rent a canoe for a whole day at the lake - but we drive the whole day and only have a couple hours at the site before dark, if that. We only have so many days and it's a set schedule but I know some of us would rather use these days differently.

We drove the rest of the afternoon. Part of the time I stood, watching out the window as we passed on the outskirts of the capital, Kampala. At first glance, the buildings seemed to form a true suburb but on second look the homes were small, close together, often made with corrugated metal sheets for roofs and crumbling bricks. I saw naked toddlers being bathed in front of homes and a young girl in a tattered bag like shirt laying clothes out to dry in the brush. These are the moments that make such an incredible impression and maybe you want most to share but it would be a violation of the moment and for the people you see to try to take a targeted picture. Instead I just have to feel honored to have witnessed these little glimpses of normal life and hope others will be able to see some of the same someday. 

Traffic was miserable. Because of the election (today actually), people were living the city to go to their villages to vote. We saw multiple political rallies with people with yellow shirts supporting the incumbent along with trucks full of supporters, sometimes with vuvuzelas. It was interesting to see. We were all a little nervous about the election though and what it might mean for any possible violence and (selfishly) how it would affect us. With current events and the political tide in the area, you have to thing a president in power 25 years being reelected might be a problem.

Tim's view of the park

We got into our camp in Jinja looking over the source of the white Nile late. The view is really only possible from the human watering hole and you aren't allowed to have your own beer. But because of the view it's not so bad to take advantage of. We set up tents and noticed red-tailed and vervet monkeys. Chris and I enjoyed just watching them a while. Then, there were warm showers and sanitary toilets. Everything was nice and relaxed.

After starting drinking, Ingwe came to get us all for dinner. We had our pumpkin soup and then were interrupted by the owners giving us a long salespitch on jet skiing, bungee jumping, and white water rafting. It was sprinkled with a random "Happy days" every couple sentences and lots of high prices. Plus the woman was rude to Martin when she didn't understand that someone who has to wear glasses might want to see more than the back of the head in front of them. Martin's response left Chris and I giggling though. We just wanted them to shut up so we could eat. They were very pushy.

Dinner was otherwise nice, followed by chores/clean up. We all settled into the bar and chatted in comfy chairs til near midnight knowing we didn't have to be at breakfast til 8am, a lovely sleep in.

The stragglers

Day 14


This morning we had the chance to sleep in but woke up with the rain on the tent anyway. It was relaxing to be able to lay here without having to rush to get up, like we'll be doing tomorrow morning. We had breakfast and seven of our group elected to go off white water rafting. The rest of us lounged about for an hour or so (Chris and I watched the monkey jumping about in the trees outside our tent).

Then, our group hopped on the truck and drove to the Bujagali Falls. This is a part of the river where Idi Amin (sp - i.e. The Last King of Scotland) lured handicapped people with offers of aid and assistance only to have them pushed into the rapids to drown. We arrived at the same time our group was coming down on their rafts and all took plenty of great pictures and vides for them as they ran through a grade five. It was a strange contrast between the two reasons we'd come - to wave to our friends as they took a joyride down the rapids and to acknowledge a spot where people were killed under a political dictatorship. There were no commemorative plaques but there were local dare devils asking to be paid to jump into the rapids with a jerry can. Supporting that would certainly be irresponsible traveling (plus why would we pay for that when the reason all of us were there instead of on the raft was because we didn't have money?). But despite our lack of support, he jumped in anyway and then someone came around asking for tips for him.

Chris loved the view and really wished he could kayak it. I think soon it'll be time for he and his dad to drive out his kayaks from PA. Yet another thing I've never done (that is a fib - we kayaked in Cambodia a bit).

Some of our group going over the  Bujagali  falls at Jinja

We went up to a little restaurant with a nice view and had some drinks (non-alcoholic - way too early) with the TV tuned to election news in the background. The news scroll at the bottom showed something about an accidental deadly ammunitions blast in Dar Es Salaam where we end our trip in a couple weeks. Obviously terrible news but also unsettling that trouble seems to be following us everywhere.

We drove into town through a rural area and past a couple of polling places (I'd learned from the news that this was only Uganda's second multiparty election). Dan needed to pick up supplies and we were to go do our own thing. More than half the city, including all grocery stores, were closed down for elections and there wasn't much else besides. We walked nearly the whole way down the main drag and then back. The atmosphere wasn't terribly hospitable and I had a lot of guys whispering inappropriately at me, or more overtly, in a way that had Chris a little uncomfortable too.

We found the English sisters Liz and Caroline and popped into an Indian restaurant (about the only thing open) for a bite. But the food took too long and when it came out we only had several minutes to scarf it all down. It was really good but not highly satisfying due to time restraints. When we did make it out the bus wasn't ready to go yet anyway. Poor Dan had had a hell of a time finding anywhere open.

Back at the hostel we all set up on the hostel bar/restaurant balcony. The people who hadn't eaten ordered lunch and me a salad. Luckily we had nothing to do because it took nearly an hour and a half. We talked, enjoyed the view, watched eagles playing in midair and monkeys leaping from tree to tree across a small ravine. Not much to complain about.

After eating, we moved onto the sofas in the other area to read (or in cases such as Chris, fall asleep) with the overhead TV set to election news - in English again. There were already concerns and accusation over ballot box tampering, arrests from votery bribery, problems with polling place hours, and some violence (including shooting in one instance- though nothing near us). We saw a lot through the day and in the end I think we were all grateful to hear that results would take about 48 hours.

The rafting crew got back late and were eager to regale us with their stories over dinner. A successful trip. Dinner ended up being the last Dan will make for us (bought from our hotel in Eldoret and then in Nairobi the next night). There was ugali again (the mashed potato like corn starch mixture), chapati, lentils, stewed kale, and well seasoned goat (or a veggie mixture for me). It was amazing. I'm still stuffed. Dan has been a wonderful cook and I'm very grateful tha he always made sure there was food I could eat.

After clean up, the rafting group and a few others (including Dan and Ingwe) went into town for a casino and dancing. I was ready to be social but hesitant to go into town, especially this time when the distance was not walkable and required a motor bike. So I'd have to stay until other people were ready to leave. Talking to Chris, he was uninterested for two main reasons: riding motorbikes in the dark and the behavior of the men earlier today and how that would translate once we were in a club. Good points. I was no longer interested in going. But Mac's long sleeve button up dice shirt with the cards printed under the sleeves was amazing.

We settled in at the bar with Martin, Maggie, Liz, and Caroline for a few beers with the news still on the TV in the background. Eventually Debi joined us as well. I think because of her age, 69, I always assumed she was retired. But I asked and she's not. She's a private care one on one nursing aide. She told us quite a few stories about her patients. Debi is a rather loud woman who has a lot to say but somehow we'd never gotten on the subject before. It made me sad that perhaps I'd taken for granted she had stories to share or something to contribute maybe based on how much she already talked. In any case, it was great to listen to this really incredible older woman who's still working and traveling on her own without her husband. It's just so damned admirable. We hung out and talked for a while (also listened when Debi sang us a cute little song about a chimp and monkey in love). Eventually we all tuckered out and turned into our tents.

I walked away feeling so content and satisfied after great conversation with wonderful people. It may sound odd but it just makes me feel so adult being able to engage with these people. You never know who you'll meet travelling and I think in this case we've been exceptionally lucky. Chris and Mac have already resigned themselves to the next group being a bunch of "tossers" as Mac puts it. But Mac and I have come up with a plan involving meat picked up in Nairobi placed strategically in front of certain tents in the Serengeti resulting in entertainment as well as scaring off any tossers. Hopefully it won't come to that. It's any early morning tomorrow and I hope it doesn't rain when we have to pack up the tents.

Day 15 - 16

We're on the road with our new group heading to the border with Tanzania and I finally have a moment to reflect on the last couple days. I'll just say this about the group so far - When Ingwe was talking about having to be strong here (pointing to his chest) to drive in Nairobi, the big Australian guy asked, What about strong here (pointing to his crouch)? It's going to be an interesting group.

Friday after the election, we packed up our tents (without rain) and left Jinja early. It was a long drive but crossing the border to Kenya was easy. Otherwise it was just sleeping and reading really.

We arrived in the town of Eldoret (7k elevation, where Kenyan runners train) where we'd stayed coming through the first time around noon. We parked in a supermarket parking lot without shade to make pasta salad for lunch. The plan was to go visit an Eldoret cheese factory (something the area is known for) but they couldn't get us in. We were a little irritated that we hadn't called before to arrange since we couldn't do the Nile Brewery tour because of the elections and we also missed going to a tea plantation. In the end, it was okay because we were all ready to go to the same campsite to enjoy the pool and human watering hole.

We arrived at the same campsite we'd been to before (also where Bill Gates stayed when he came through a couple years ago) and set up our tents. Unfortunately, it was a Saturday and it was crowded. Even some of the locals had paid to come in and use the small pools for the days (or apparently to just sit there and gawk at the whiteness of all the tourists). Still, we eventually migrated over. The boys were sitting dangling their legs in but I was the first to actually get in. It was freezing. We milled about and tried out the little slide a couple of times before retiring to a table next to the pool where the alcohol began to flow.

Before I was too heavily bogged down by the last day festivities, I broke off to go try to use Skype on Chris and Ally's computer. It was my grandma's 90th birthday. The internet was modem only, no their machine didn't have Skype and no I couldn't use my phone card with their landline. I was in tears I was so upset. Here I was the jerk of the family who wouldn't be there and I couldn't even give her a call. I went to take a shower and when I'd gotten out, Chris had asked Ingwe for advice and he said he would be insulted if I didn't use his cell phone.

A group including Ingwe, Ally and Chris (engineers), and Mac (finance and banking guy) audited the kitty (we ended up getting 8 USD back each). When they were done, we headed down to the bar/restaurant to have a local food buffet. Oh man was it delicious. I overly stuffed of course but since I'm slow too I was the last one eating when the speeches started. Ingwe spoke first thanking us and talking about what an enjoyable trip it was and what a functional group we'd been. Then Martin talked and thanked the guys and handed off the tips he'd been good enough to collect (it really was a good chunk of change on top of what we're already paying but te guys really did deserve it, they did such a fantastic job). A couple other people spoke and said thanks. Walter talked and laughed that amazing laugh of his. Dan shyly said a couple words, ending with his usual "Thank you for eating." The guys seemed to want Chris to speak, they loved him so much, but Chris thanked them individually later. I will always remember Ingwe telling us we are "most welcome" in every possible situation, Dan thanking us for eating, and Walter laughing that amazing laugh of his and saying "I am telling you." We really were incredible lucky. It was a great group of people and we had wonderful leaders.

I slid off and made a quick call to Mom and Grandma. It was brief and rushed but I did feel so much better getting to talk to her for just a minute. We'll have our own 90th birthday party when we get back. I can't wait to see the cake Mom made for the occasion though.

The rest of the night was drinking and talking near the fire at the bar. I also got some dog petting in with the same enormous animals we met the first time. We all tired out and turned in pretty early the next morning, the truck next to us was leaving really just as we were getting up, before 6am. It was the company our travel agency works through for safaris. I was suddenly very happy to be waking up "late" with intrepid.

The drive to Nairobi was quicker than expected. The only development was learning that Ingwe and Dan would be with us on our next trip. Actually maybe that was the day before. I'm not surea this point but either way it was excellent news. We got in a little after noon. Mac, Chris, and I transferred some of our other bags to the new truck, which had just pulled in. Mac and Chris met the new driver Charles. I didn't. People separated to head off to their rooms or other hostels with plans to meet for drinks later in the evening.

We checked in (and of course dealing with them trying to put Chris and I in separate rooms again) and started dispersing our things all about the room. We spent some time examinig the number and type of coins we still had from each country. After, we walked to town with a big group including Ingwe.
We walked by the Uhuru (freedom for you Star Trek fans) monument in the central park and into the meat of the city. We all separated off and Chris and I were with Tim, Chris, and Mac to explore. We found pizza for lunch (in a hurry but Chris' was chicken tikka pizza) before heading to the Kenyan National Archives where there is a collection of art and artifacts from all over Africa. We saw shields made from hippo hide from Ingwe's tribe and beautiful beads and drawings, Maasai spears and an African stamp collection. It was a quick cheap visit but it was great culturally and historically. I do have to share my favorite posted description though:

On display at the National Archives in Nairobi

The hilarious caption for the above picture

After the archives, we walked by the Nairobi Library, largest mosque in Kenya (beautiful), memorial for the first president, parliament, and finally through the amusement park (where Mac wanted very badly to crawl in the kids plastic bubbles and roll around in water) and the central park.

We saw kids begging in the street (though not to many) who really tugged at the heart strings. It was really hard but so often, not to be crass or cnical, you see evidence that it's a put on act. And it's important to stand firm and make sure you don't reinforce that these kids can drop out of school and make a living this way.

Uhuru park on a Saturday on Nairobi

Camel ride in Uhuru park

There was a random man on the street who stared long and hard at Chris before turning to me and saying, "This one looks like Jesus." Chris felt like livestock and compared the statement to, "This cow has spots."

The park, outside of the amusement park, was lovely. People lay on grass under bushes that hardly gave any shade. Kids with their faces painted pointed and called out "Muzungu" as we passed (think gringo or pharang). Other kids rode camels in the park.

We walked back to the hotel to take a quick shower and start washing clothes before the meeting for the next leg of the trip. Other people from our old group had seen the roster and told us there were birthdates in the 30s and 40s. Mac, Chris and I spent a lot of time talking about what we expected. And how to cope.

We got to the meeting last, though still before Mac. Ingwe was in good spirits. He welcomed the group and we did introductions. Two Australians in their late twenties, a French Canadian couple in their maybe late fifties, another Australian couple in their late thirties, us, a single Swedish lady, a single British lady, and another older French Canadian couple (late 60s?). Seemed like a decent group of people. No tossers, that we could see from first glance. Ingwe went through the itinerary and then excused the three of us from the rest of the meeting. Very kind of him.

We met the rest of the group in the lobby. Martin had been to Nairobi on his original Africa trip 37 years ago and suggested we go to the New Stanley Hotel for drinks. Chris and I walked in the still daylight and everyone else went in cabs. The drinks (flat beer) and food (delicious) were really expensive but it was an important splurge for our last night with some amazing people. People began to trickle away, whether for flights or other engagements. Walter showed up a little later for a drink, which was a great surprise. Some people went on for another drink but Chris and I had to head back for finishing laundry. Mac cannot be deterred. We said our bittersweet goodbyes and plan to see many of these people in the futue. What an amazing group.

Saying goodbye to Sir Walter - maybe the only time he wasn't smiling - Nairobi

Day 17

We're all set up in our camp outside of Arusha and the atmosphere is tired (though all we did was sit today) and the place is crowded.

This morning we woke up early and went to the breakfast buffet. Huge and filling but late opening which probably contributed to our being a little late going or on African time as Ingwe puts it.
We settled our bags and things in the truck. Because there are 13 people (Ingwe never sits and Charles and Dan are up front) and 12 benches, Chris and I each have our own and Mac has one just behind us. There's no extra space in the back we means we have a lot more leg room too. It's quite comfortable.
We talked a lot for the first while but everyone else was pretty quiet other than Ingwe giving us some cultural/historical background as we were stuck in traffic leaving Nairobi. Poor Ingwe only got a couple hours last night and he was still a great guide.

We saw the aftermath of an accident on the side of the road leaving Nairobi. I was frantically looking to see if someone was hurt and if they needed help. Yet somehow I missed the schoolboy's body and the pool of blood that others saw. They told me it looked like it was already too late and there wouldn't have been anything we could do. It was sad and I'm honestly grateful I didn't see it. Because, not to be non chalant or disrespectful, there wasn't anything to be done and we just moved on. It's selfish but I'm trying not to think about it too much.

Maasai on a bicycle passing as we had our lunch, Tanzania

We got to the border with Tanzania and didn't have any difficulties crossing, though we think we got ripped off. They charged us 100 for Americans instead of the 75 quoted on their website. The truck had problems being cleared. I don't know why. But we waited around outside for a while. Always nice to stretch your legs. There were also Maasai women selling jewelry and things when we were on the truck. It was fabulous to see their ear piercings close up for the first time. The best part of the border though was probably Walter calling to say hi to all of us.

We travelled further into Tanzania with the land turning into flat savannah with sudden mountains off in the distance, like the slow incline of Kilimanjaro (also the big beer here: "If you can't climb it, drink it"). We stopped for lunch and a group of Maasai men with spears passed us and stopped to stare. It seems funny that we might be as interesting to them as they are to us. Chris really wants a spear. There was also a young Maasai boy with the traditional red blanket who showed up at the end when we were packing up and wanted to shake hands. Ingwe came to say hi and it was a beautiful moment watching them both talk.

I asked Ingwe about the results of the Ugandan election and he told me and passed me the day's newspaper. Other notables were where you shouldn't fart and the logistics on sex in space from NASA (no joke). But the most interesting serious article was on the 30,000 people still homeless after the post-election violence  in Kenya in 2007. Ingwe told me a lot about it and the gist was that these poor people are stuck in limbo, afraid to return to where they were violently forced out and no one else providing an opportunity for anywhere else to stay. I again felt guilty for not knowing enough about the events when they happened. I'm sure I have no excuses there.

We drove into Arusha, something of a starting point for many safaris and also apparently the midpoint between Cairo and Capetown. We avoided the city center but went to an area with ATMs, a grocery store, internet, and a local market across the street. The market was intense. Loads of meat and produce. Lots of people were saying Mambo Yesui (How is it going Jesus?) or just staring (though I've come to realize that people stare much more at Chris and it's probably more the Jesus thing than his being a white guy). We found people to be very friendly though. 

Birds in the Snake Park campground

I also noticed there are a lot more ornate and beautiful women's braids here. I first noted women commonly having short hair at the orphanage with Beatrice. I thought perhaps it was for sanitarry reasons but Ingwe said it's just too hard to manage. Understandable. But I now feel we're seeing a steady increase in the number of women with long and intricately well managed hair. It's beautiful. 

We drove on to our campsite outside of town a ways. After setting up (Mac gets his own tent this time though I'm sure he misses Tim), the three of us head over to the Maasai market down the road. This was a real Maasai market, not a tourist souvenir stop. This was where people came for cattle. I read the belief is held by the Maasai that the Maasai people (or maybe just men) came down from heaven with cattle and so all cattle belong to the Maasai. This led to a lot of tribal warfare in the past when they attacked peopls who also had cows. I also read that they now accept other tribes may have cows and it isn't stealing. In any case, cattle are pivotal to Maasai life. Traditionally, they eat beef but also drink largely cow milk and cow blood. And here was there market. 

We all had our cameras but definitely kept them holstered. This was definitely not an appropriate place to snap pictures though I know we all wanted to. We dodged cattle and watched carefully where we walked. We tried not to bother the people at all and in turn they left us alone as well to just watch. On the way out a man stopped to chat a little with us but we found it was the end of the day and we were in the line of fire as cattle were being aggressively herded out the front gate. Mac grabbed my shoulders and jumped behind me (some protection) but I was no less antsy. Chris, Mr. PA farm boy, kept entirely cool and laughed at us.

Our campground is also a snake park. Why, I don't know but we went to see the big caged snakes. Loads of them and pictures of some of them eating things I didn't know were of a suitable size for snakes to eat. Luckily they also had birds, turtles and crocodiles to see, which took my mind of all the scary snakes.

We went back to camp. I finished my book. We helped with dinner prep and danced to African rumba a little with Ingwe.

Baby crocodiles at the Snake Park 

Dinner was delicious but it's a whole new crowd of people I have to try to make understand not to eat my veggie plate before I get some. Dan is just such a sweet guy and I'm so damned grateful he goes out of his way to make good food that I can eat as well. BUT yesterday Chris and I both realized we gained a few pounds on that first part of the trip. Not hard to do when all you do is sit all day, even if it is healthy food. This next part is even more sitting so I don't know how we'll avoid the same problem.

We cleaned up and stood to look up at the sky. It's so incredibly clear and beautiful. You knew it was something special because all the fancy cameras were placed face up on chairs to try to take a still shot. I know it's low season but we're on the most frequented trail now I think. And there are loads more people here than at previous sites (six trucks). If we were here in high season I don't think there'd be room to breathe.

There's another truck for the other company we almost used. The seats look comfy and reclinable and the front seats have tables to play cards. But they play loud crap Western music and the group leader's a white guy. I don't feel good about that and I'm very happy where we are with great guys and fabulous African music.

People seem nice but generally quiet. I was a little impatient tonght and can't decide whether that's from a little sore throat or a little resentment that these people aren't who I want them to be. I know this group could (will) be great too but everyone says it over and over - that was just such an amazing damn group. It'll just take some readjusting. We're all very happy to still have each other though.

Ok. Chris is snoring. Bar is hopping and crickets are chirping. Bedtime.

Day 18


What an amazing day. The last hour of it was particularly fantastic. Despite there not being too much on the itinerary, we seem to continue to have more than enough to do. It may seem mean but it's especially nice since our group is a little more dull and so there are other things to maintain our interest/attention.
In the fairly full camp outside Arusha, our group was the first up, which was nice because it meant us waking the rest up and not the other way around. As is customary, we hit the road by seven. The land outside was gorgeous, green, and rolling ahead in front of us over the tops of brush and trees into eternity. Charles pulled over quickly for a giraffe on the left side of the road (Tanzania is yet another country which drives on the other side of the road). Cameras were out and snapping quickly. Because of the length of his legs, there was something about the way he moved as he ran away from us that made it look as though he was moving in slow motion. Just incredible. Once he was across, he began to graze with four or five others and we sat to watch and take pictures as Ingwe told us all about them. For instance, there are three types of giraffes with slightly different appearances. These were Maasai giraffes and the one we saw at Nakuru was a Rothschild. And if you see a giraffe raising its neck completely straight/vertical to eat, it's a male; females can't do that. Last one: giraffes have the largest heart of any mammal and regulate blood flow to the head with valves to prevent a rush of blood when they bend forward. Cool.

Maasai giraffe on the run as our truck scares the crud out of it

We arrived in Mto Wa Mbu and had a local tour where we were taken on a guided walk. We were also invited to take pictures, which was wonderful to finally have the opportunity to take people photos. We saw people working in the rice fields, a little girl with a machete working in the fields, the makings (and tastings) of local banana beer, wood workers making intricate sculpture called ujaama (harmony), a kindergarten class, and an art workshop where they make the famous Tanzanian tingatinga paintings.

Rice tending in Mto Wa Mbu, Tanzania

We had a local lunch at the top of a hill. The food was amazing and the scenery was lovely.

A little follower

This is how you use a machete

The makings of banana beer

It comes out in buckets - not as dangerous as you might think though at 2-3%

When we came down, we had the opportunity to look in the Maasai market. Mac came with us. His haggling skills are simply beyond compare. He is a business man first class. We still didn't find anything we wanted that much. But that didn't keep one of the shop keepers from following me back to the truck with items I wasn't even looking at.

Balancing and texting - better than texting and driving

The making of a tingatinga painting

We drove further on to Karatu for a campsite. We'd talked a lot during the day and I decided that the three of us (Mac, Chris and I), though not initially together, were now like friends traveling together by choice. He's great company and it was a very pleasant realization.

The camp we stayed in was overpriced for beer and internet (the necessities) and we got rained on at dinner.

But afterward there was a free (big tip requested - and eagerly given) local dance performance. At first, it was just the three of us there. A few more people trickled in. There were eight performers - dancers and instruments. Their legs were like rubber and they came close and wiggled their crotches in your faces. Male to male and female to female. They locked eye contact too. When the young woman came to me (really only me, they just chose one person), I half laughed and maintained a very awkward smile. Then of course she forced me to get up and dance at the end.

They also did acrobatics. Impressive feats. But really it was the dancing and singing that was most impressive and beautiful. The rhythm, their voices and movement - just amazing. Unfortunately, it ended (after tip giving), with a rush of bodies pushing at you to try to sell decorative drums. Otherwise, it was a really amazing event to be present for.

Chris observing and quizzing while lunch is made - she loved him, as all old ladies do

Day 19-20 Serengeti
Day 21 Ngorongoro Crater

I didn't write these days and I'm pleased that I didn't. It was incredible. Chris was here for the gorillas more than anything. And me, I wanted to see the Serengeti. It's a unique experience I probably can't quite put into words. Mostly, I will let some of the pictures stand for themselves. But since I'm a wordy person, let's give a brief sum up.

First view of Ngorongoro crater from the rim

We left from Karatu in three small jeeps with pop up or convertible roofs. Mac, the two of us, and one of the Australian couples, Ben and Pip, were with us. Chris wasn't well of stomach - poor timing but it actually happened nearly every time we had "local meals" on the second half of the trip. One of the jeeps broke down on the road. We had a lot of problems with the cars and ended up losing several hours because of problems with their permits. But we made it eventually. We did a short game drive the first afternoon. Elephants roamed past the camp at dusk. We camped in the park of course and heard lions and elephants overnight. There were hyenas around in the morning.

Mac and Pip were among the three to go for a ridiculously expensive balloon ride at sunrise the next morning. So they were replaced in our jeep by Ingwe and Anna Maria. We found cheetahs that morning that got closer than I could have ever imagined. We saw two lion couples and plenty of copulation (mating season). A leopard close up in a tree. It was amazing. Another afternoon game drive in which we were surrounded and fully attacked by hundreds (literally!) of tse-tse flies. One of the most miserable experiences of our whole time traveling. I was literally between laughing and crying the situation was just so ridiculous - and painful!

On the way back there were hippos out of the water in the sunset and a brief cheetah encounter (at least Pip and Mac got to see them from a distance).

Dan made amazing food and we'd brought our own beers. Poor Mac had accidentally left his bag of clothes with Charles at the main camp. Pip and Ben donated a sleeping bag. He did okay otherwise. No more smelly than the rest of us.

The next morning we game drove on the way out of Serengeti. We saw a lioness in a tree, lounging. Simply beautiful. Another fornicating couple of lions and then a couple that was just lounging in the middle of the road.

We spent a full afternoon in Ngorongoro crater. We watched the magnificence of life as we saw tremendous life and hundreds of animals but also the terrible struggle of a newborn water buffalo that had been attacked by hyenas and the bull trying to defend it. We saw a black rhino at a far distance as well as a cheetah and a few lions similarly far out. There was another lion couple in the distance. They looked ready to attack zebras but instead walked right up to us. And then through us. And the male, biggest we saw, stopped and lazily drank from a puddle right next to the jeeps (nine or ten that had stopped). It was magnificent. We all left tired, giddy, and tremendously impressed with the splendor of nature.

We camped in Mto Wu Mbu.

Enjoy the few pictures (other entries are interspersed but all the remaining pictures here are from the game drives).

Ngorongoro Conservation Area

Clouds reflected on the lake (not mist) and Maasai people selling trinkets to tourists

Over the plains of the Serengeti

Day 22

Well, it's late, there's a light several feet outside my tent window, a guard wrapped in a few Maasai blankets with a beanie on, a gentle breeze blowing on our lush campsites on the slopes of Kilimanjaro, and after a couple drinks, I'm ready for bed.

We had a decent little sleep in at our camp in Mto Wa Mbu this morning. Despite having turned in comparatively early the night before, I woke up quite groggy and incredibly sleepy looking. I was somewhat "bleh" as I prefer to call it for the first half of the day and mainly attribute it to your typical post adventure let down. The adrenaline is gone and you are back to normal life or in our case, a few days from the rest of the trip I care most about (Zanzibar).

I slept a while on the bus. Woke up when Chris pulled out a blanket to cover me up as I huddled on the seat. The sun came and went but I think I was lucky enough to not get a nap burn. We stopped at the same plaza in Arusha. Chris and I went to the internet to find frustrating difficulties with scheduling our fourth year classes and then stocked up on beer and snacks at the supermarket (never a good idea). Leaving, we drove through the center of town by the clock tower that marks the midpoint between Capetown and Cairo. The midpoint of Africa is, by the way, sponsored by Coca-Cola. We all got a kick out of the logo on the clockface.

We stopped for lunch at a different area than expected when the truck broke down. A hose had melted on the radiator. We sat there for two hours or so with kids outside waiting and watching (one of the older ladies gave them pencils and cookies, which may sound harmless but is a bad thing to do) while the guys worked on the car. In the end, they called for a shuttle to drive us to our camp and drop Charles off at a mechanic to get the necessary part when using Chris, duct tape didn't exactly work and we left Dan alone with the truck while the kids closed in (Poor Dan!). The original plan was to visit the Amani Children's Home on the way in at Moshi but we won't get to do that. But we will still make the same donation from the kitty. These things happen.

Watering hole

Zebra hissy fit

It was a fairly cramped ride in the Impala Shuttle even with big bags on top (where the water leaked on half of them) and the driver was very vocal about his displeasure with the steep and poorly kept road to the campsite in Marangu on the slopes of Kilimanjaro. At one point, it looked as though he might make us get out and walk. It was a point where we could see every local person with a small bucket of banana beer. It would've been all right.

We made it up the difficult road and were met by a few women who helped to carry our tents to the campsite a few minutes away on their heads. Some of us still had to make a couple trips but Ingwe wouldn't let me carry anymore bags (just bed rolls which I would then drag on the ground). He was very stubborn.

After getting set up, Mark found an upstairs deck at our multi-level, very green, fairly bug ridden campsite where we all set up to enjoy the sunset and some beer. There was some talk of upset, discomfort (especially with how pissed our guide had been over our tip), and eventual understanding. But it was clear that things had been uncomfortable enough at times that people considered breaking off from the group. We were very sad the rest of the group hadn't gotten to experience Ingwe under better circumstances.

Zebra hissy fit part 2? - I want it, I want it, I want it!

The owner Dili came up and gave us a brief discourse on the local manufacture of banana beer, its use in marriage (you have to apparently get your future bride's parents drunk first before you can ask for her hand), and then offered us a little sample. It was nice and his English was great. Mac and Chris finished the pitcher off.

Dinner was served by the hotel. I ate mainly tubers, beans, spinach, and banana stew. There was some beef stuff in there everyone loved. In the midst, Ingwe got the call that Dan and Charles, with the truck, were nearly here but will sleep in town rather than brave the road at night.

We stayed up talking a while, including hearing of Kat's gay, former model Slovakian secretary who informed her they wouldn't be sleeping together when he saw the tatoo on her ankle and also created an effigy of her from biscuits. Interesting law office.

I feel bad thinking the kids we were to see today might have been excited and then let down but hopefully our donation at least will go to some good use. Waking up early tomorrow to try to get a glimpse of Kili.

First view of a lion's face as the rest of his pride sleeps in the bushes

Big lazy kitty

Why did you wake me up? And it better be important.

Day 23

It's been quite a few days since I've done this and so needless to say it will be quite a few more until I catch up. Here we are in our Sunset Bungalow on the northern shores of Zanzibar and I think we've gone to feeling ready to move on to feeling actually trapped by our vacation. Things are moving constantly but somehow manage to remain incredibly sedentary - though it's not the notion you'd get if you heard the noises from the older people in the group when they have to walk a few blocks with their bags. We're both just ready for some action and maybe more importantly self-determination. This truly has been a wonderful segment of our overall journey but also a useful experience in learning that we really aren't people who travel by somebody else's itinerary. For my part, I'm hoping that Paris and France overall will be refreshing and rejuvenating enough to keep me going for a little longer but I've begun to daydream about baking in my own kitchen with Southpark in the background, running in the Denver afternoons in our park, and adopting dogs who will require walking every day come rain or shine. My own little piece of heaven. But we are still here and making everything we can of the moment. And consistently reminded how amazing this is - how lucky we really are.

Well, we left off at Marangu. The group was feeling off and belligerent but better after a good meal and some sleep. We woke up for a short 630 hike to view Kilimanjaro. It was beautiful. I am not truly inclined to see it too much closer from the stories I've heard though.

Where's Waldo? But yes, there is a leopard in there. Good luck finding it.

Dik dik!! (and guinea fowl)

We had a guided walk through the town to see some of the Intrepid Foundation Projects and small waterfall. The town drunk accosted us singing a song about Kilimanjaro that still remains stuck in our heads. The locally provided lunch was delicious as usual.

After that, we left and drove 10-11 hours to the small town Lushoto in the Usambara Mountains. The place was nice. Most of the group upgraded to hotel rooms. There were five very friendly dogs. Unfortunately, they were also cover in some of the biggest ticks I've ever seen.

It was a long day but a restful night.

Bird with a great vantage point

Day 24

We took a guided walk through the Usambara Mountains area. It was a relatively long walk. The older folks didn't enjoy it. The vegetation was amazing. These people grow absolutely everything.

We ended up at the Irente viewpoint where you can look out from the mountains across the great valley floor. Chris and I were the only ones interested in hopping out onto the outcropping boulder for a better look (actually I think Mac did briefly too). It was incredible.

We had a local, very simple lunch with locally made cheese (pretty basic), veg and bread. And delicious juice.

The afternoon was free until we had our normal dinner together.

Sunset by our campsite with the outline of a herd of elephants trampling through

Yum

Day 25

We traveled to Dar Es Salaam. Another long trip. We had an hour to explore the city and then took a ferry across the bay as the truck went through gridlock. Unfortunately, it had already passed us on the other side and we took a small normal route van to our campsite.

The campsite was on the beach. Most of us immediately set up our tents and went for a dip. The water was incredibly warm. Our first dip in the Indian Ocean. It was still beautiful.

Dinner was our last group meal before Dan and Charles turned back with the truck. It was catered by the hotel and I was given my own special veg plate. Yum. Speeches and tips were given. It was a nice night.

We had vowed to go out but most people pooped out. It was difficult to arrange rides and by then late but a few of us and the guys (not Chris) still went to a neighboring bar. We got to dance a tiny bit too (the guys were total gentlemen - Dan kept such a close eye on me and pulled me away whenever any guys got too close). But the place closed early and we had to start walking back until our taxi came and found us. It was another late night.

The other car

Baby in the early morning light

Day 26

Dan and Charles left us to cross the ferry in the morning. It was really sad to leave Dan. We never really got to know Charles very well though. I'll always remember how nice and shy he was, what wonderful food he made, and what great care he took for my special needs.

We crossed one ferry and then another, hopping on the boat to Zanzibar. The AC was broke in our foreigner class cabin and I got a little seasick. So I slept while Chris went outside and ended up spotting dolphins without me. Again. This always seems to happen.

We set up shop in our hotel in Zanzibar and set out to explore. It was scorching. I mean blisteringly hot. I can think of the last time I've been in more ridiculous weather. Disgustingly hot.

The group split up for the afternoon. Pip and Ben left us for good to go on their own to the other side of the island (we've since heard that they got engaged while there - yay!).

We are at a small restaurant under an umbrella that acted like a convention oven. We walked the small streets, visited a museum, met up with some of the group for drinks and a sunset view and then head out to eat fresh seafood from the hustling market vendors. An intense spectacle. It was always hot. We went to sleep hot.

Big freakin bull - giving himself a dust bath

Lazy trunk or just a good resting place

Hart beast

Day 27

We woke up and were taken by a new tour guide (Ingwe still in tow) to visit the island on the way to the north end. We visited the former slave market and took a separate tour of the facilities and church. It was interesting and the guide with the Morgan Freeman-like laugh had a lot of interesting stories to tell.

We went on a spice tour - something I'd REALLY been looking forward to. We got to see all the spices I love, use, and bake with as they are before processing. Trying everything was great. Being in the shade a bit was nice too. We sat under a veranda and eat fruit and tried different spice teas. Then of course we bought spices. One of the guides climbed a coconut tree and tossed down coconuts to whack open and try. And they had palm frond necklaces/ties and crowns/tiaras for us. Cute and goofy.

We ate lunch at a village in someone's living room. The main course was seasoned octopus. I ate. Not bad.

We got into the north of the island (I can say I don't love the guided bit because I don't even know the name of the town) and settled in our bungalows. We went out to the beach and enjoyed the water and some down time.

A group of us ate dinner at a cheaper place up the shore a ways. It took forever but was delicious.

Music from the beach was loud and it was difficult to sleep. The place was very crowded.

The beach itself was beautiful with amazing cool, clear waters. The sand was vast and white. You just had to ignore all the other tourists and the guys who kept trying to sell you drugs. A very touristy area.

Lions at a distance - it's mating season, 20x/day x 7days
Way to go buddy

First view of the cheetahs - and this is after they sat up
How did someone spot them when their heads were lower?

Get excited. They're on the move!

Cheetahs were my favorite animal growing up.

Day 28

Kat, Anna Maria, Vic, Mark, Chris and I went for a half day snorkel. It was beautiful and even better, the ride out didn't make me too terribly ill. The fish and little bit of coral reef were incredible. It was a lovely time. But I was terribly burnt on my bum and Chris' nose was scorched from the whole time in Zanzibar - one of the worst burns he's ever had. We spent the rest of the day in the shade.

We ate a last group dinner together on the beach.

Getting closer.

Feeling a little lazy...

... so I think I'll just take a shortcut through all these cars.
(SWEEEEEEET!!!!!)

More lazy kitties
(actually we saw them mate once already while we were watching the cheetahs too)

Feelin the call of the wild

Just like on the Discovery Channel

What an awesome morning

Leopard - only see 'em in sausage trees
(is that wishful thinking on their part?)

Day 29

We transferred early back to Stone Town in the southern part of the island. We spent a couple hours there and then got back on the ferry to Dar Es Salaam. This boat was bigger and I did better.

We said goodbye to most everyone (some stayed in Stone Town, some left immediately off the ferry).

This was the end of our trip. Ingwe arranged a cab for Mac, Anna Maria, Chris and I who were to stay in Dar because he didn't want us walking with all our things in the city. It was a quick goodbye. He was a great guide.

Just after she scared herself by scaring a rabbit out of the brush

A Grant's gazelle for good measure

We found a hotel close by. Ridiculously expensive but Mac bargained them down. We showered and relaxed a moment. We were getting ready to go out to the National Museum but saw the two Dar soccer teams were playing - in town! We hopped in a taxi and made it for the second half.

The area was sleazy. We had to buy tickets outside and I caught a guy trying to reach in my pocket. I didn't have anything of value to take there but it was still unnerving. Mac unfortunately had his camera polarizer stolen without seeing it happen. We were all on high alert. Finding seats once inside was difficult and we ended up only finding three (not consecutive) and Chris sat next to me in the aisle.

Uncomfortable enough, my adrenaline shot through the roof when people started yelling at Mac. We were in the red team's seating section and he was wearing yellow. He took off his shirt immediately and kept it off for the rest of the game. It was hot out anyway.

People stared a lot and occasionally patted or would touch my head. I was uncomfortable for a while but after finally settling (everyone around was incredibly nice), it was easy to enjoy the game. It was a tied game but it was still really exciting.

We waited a bit before leaving but were thrilled when we came outside and found our driver had waited for us. What a relief. I don't know how we would have gotten out otherwise.

Hippos out of the water

Baby you huge!

Sunset on the Serengeti and the Acacias (we all copied Chris on this one)

That night we went to an Ethiopian restaurant in town - something Mac and I had planned for a while. It was incredibly delicious. It was nice for the four of us to sit around and just talk. Afterward, we went to what was supposed to be an Irish Pub in Dar for a Guinness but they were having problems with their distributor. So we had a regular beer instead.

Wow

The next day we went to the National Museum and saw the skull of the hominid ancestor dating 2-3 million years old (it's more exact than that but I can't remember right now). It was amazing that it was just in a glass display case. Made me very nervous for its preservation.

We did a little walking tour around the city, which was mostly dead on a Sunday. We said goodbye to Anna Maria and the three of us met our prearranged cab for the airport.

Prelude to mating sighting number three
(took a little video instead this time)

Just hanging out, waiting for us to take his perfect picture

Mac got through first and we thought we heard he name called for his much earlier flight. We thought we'd missed him but he hadn't left, was still in his executive lounge, and came out with a few beers for us. We toasted our adventure before saying goodbye and he disappeared into the small gate area. I'm sure we'll see him again.

We had the older Canadian couple, Maurice and Estralia, on our flight to Dubai also. But they got a room for four hours with their layover when we got there and we slept in the chairs again. Then, on to Paris.

Distance and perspective on a huge kitty

So there it is. Like I said, pictures are really more important. And obviously I did a lot more picture taking and a lot less writing in the second half.

It was an incredible trip. I'm really happy with our experience and now we're ready to go back and do Africa again on our own - only one country this time though. Really it was a little too rushed with all the constant moving. Africa is an interesting place full of interesting opposites, hard to reconcile sights, amazing food, and fascinating culture. It's also ridiculously expensive for tourists, which was a huge surprise to us compared to other places we've been but I guess that's the price you pay for such beauty.

In each of his two farewell speeches (for each leg of the trip), Ingwe told us how we are now ambassadors, emissaries for Africa. That although we may show our friends and family pictures of extreme poverty and poorly clothed children, Africa is a beautiful and diverse place where we also saw plenty of wealth and visited shopping malls. He asked that we try to tell both sides of the story. I'm not really well versed enough in either side of the story but I can certainly tell you from our small experience that Africa is a richly diverse place and well worth exploring. Just make sure you do it on your own terms.

So there it is. We're about done with our time in France and leave in two days for a weekend in the states for a wedding. Then, we're off to (probably) Nepal for a month and finally home. I don't expect there'll be much posting going on. So until then, eat well, rest, relax, and we'll see you at home before you know it.

Wishing you amazing adventures, beautiful savannas, baby elephants, and full-bellied, yawning lions,
With much love,
Sara and Chris



P.S. An enormous thanks to Stephane for keeping us ridiculously well fed, comfortable, and allowing me the use of his computer so many nights to get this done. An incredibly generous friend. Thank you!!!