The week before spring break ended on a good note. It was VERY hectic and busy, but my class was fabulous and things ended nicely. I’m really excited to say that things worked out very well with Kenya and traveling over break! We didn’t get to go to the Masaai Mara region, but we spent time in Nairobi and Mombasa. Between the bus rides and the train we spent a total of 50 hours traveling from here to Nairobi, then to Mombasa, then back to Nairobi, and then finally back to Kampala.
It’s about a 12-13 hour bus ride from here to Nairobi, but we took a very nice bus, so the ride wasn’t bad at all. That was the nicest part of our travel though let me tell you! The overnight train from Nairobi to Mombasa ended up taking 17 hours. Not my idea of a good time. But we got there and we were safe. In Nairobi we were able to see one of the churches that WGM has helped start there and spend some time with our regional directors. I absolutely love them and it was a blessing to see them. They were great about hosting us in their city… took us to lunch and brought us to a Sunday market. When we got to Mombasa the beach was the first stop on my list. I love the beach and I was soooo excited to see the Indian Ocean. Once we got to the guest house and dropped our things we were in the water within 5 minutes!
The ocean was warm, I mean real warm, but I learned real quick that the only way to stay cool in Mombasa is to be in the water or in a cold shower. It was SO hot there! Yes, I am aware that I live on the equator, but still… wow!
The second day in Mombasa we took a taxi to south beach and we paid to use a resort’s pool and beach access. The water was clearer than any water I’ve ever been in. It was so beautiful against the white beach. I know you’re all dying to know if I got to ride a camel and the answer is heck yes I did! It was amazing! And kinda scary… camels are huge! They were really sweet though and surprisingly gentle. It was a fabulous experience! How many people can really say that they’ve ridden a camel, on the Indian Ocean, in Kenya?? ☺ I know, I know… not many people really care, but it was super exciting for me.
Once we reached back in Nairobi we got showered and ready to go out on safari for the day. Before we went into the game park we went to a baby elephant orphanage and then a giraffe center. It was so cool! They were so cute… all of them! Even the baby rhino that rammed me was so cute! I was kissed by a giraffe and then right after I was kissed, I was head butted by it. It was a love-hate relationship, I guess.
After that we headed into Nairobi’s big game park and were promptly greeted by hundreds of zebras just hanging out, grazing, trying not to get eaten by lions. A little bit farther in and the giraffes were relaxing, wandering around, hanging out. We saw plenty of great animals and I felt like I was in the Lion King or something. ☺ The vehicle we hired was awesome! It had two huge openings to stand up and take pictures from and stuff, instead I chose to sit on the roof of the cruiser. It was a really cool experience and even though we didn’t spot any lions, it was totally worth it. I’ll put a link at the end of this post so those of you without facebook can check out some of the pictures.
After safari we went to a place for some dinner and as we were in the parking lot I spotted someone that I met when I was up in Sudan. She was on holiday as well and she happened to be traveling to Kampala on the same bus as we were, so I was excited to invite her to stay with us once she was in Kampala (she was stopping off in Jinja for a day). The world became tiny as I realized how random it was for me to run into her in a huge city like Nairobi.
When we got back to Kampala late the night before Easter we were exhausted. I basically went straight to bed. Easter was strange and I say that because it was different to be out of the western world for yet another huge holiday, but it was good. The WGM Kampala field had a big dinner and an Easter egg hunt for the MK’s. It was fun to hide the eggs… something I love doing for my cousin’s kids normally. My friend from Sudan, Amy came in from Jinja and was able to have dinner with us too. A blessed time indeed.
We spent the next day showing Amy around Kampala (k-town as I like to call it). We went to markets and shops for her to gather as much as possible before getting back up to South Sudan where things are scarce. Tuesday was relaxing and spent getting ready for our WGM Uganda field retreat out in Fort Portal which is in the west along the Congo border, in the mountains. We arrived there after a 4 hour drive Wednesday. We were greeted by cool air (we were in the mountains) and the smiling faces of everyone on the field… and then some. I was in charge of worship for the week, so right away I found my drummer, Nick and we started getting ready for that. Needless to say when you’re on retreat but in charge of something, you don’t find much time to actually retreat. Alas, it was a good time with people I don’t get to see everyday and I was thankful to catch up with my friends. The night I got home from Fort Portal I went to sleep around 9pm and didn’t get out of bed until about 9am. That’s when my retreat happened. ☺
School has started back up and I’m actually enjoying it right now. Getting back into a routine is somehow nice. I’m actually very comfortable in the classroom and I love getting to school early before anyone else is here and just get myself prepared for the day. I’m finding it easier to come up with new and exciting things for the kids to do. It’s encouraging. There are less than 6 weeks left now. I can’t believe how quickly time has gone by this year. I’m still struggling with the idea of leaving this place, but the excitement of seeing people is starting to swell up in my heart. I can’t wait to share my adventures with you all face to face.
My goal is to be back here in Uganda by August. This will only be by the grace of God as funding is always difficult, especially with the economic status of America right now. I love these kids, I love these people, and I love this country. I think when I leave I’ll be leaving part of my heart here. I was talking to a good friend last night about how I’m a bit scared to come home and he smartly pointed out that I was really scared to come here in the first place and now I wouldn’t trade this experience with anything. It’s true, I’m nervous about my return. Partly because I’ve been gone for a year and people move on, but also partly because I’ve changed a lot and I’ve moved on. Also, I’m scared to leave here because there are people here that I truly love. It’s always difficult to leave people you love.
That’s all for now. I’ve put the links to a couple of photo albums at the bottom. Check them out to see what I’ve been up to. I love you all.
Kenya:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2051135&id=161500306&l=8cc1952faa
Worship night:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2049402&id=161500306&l=bf9ac465b2
Sudan:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2049401&id=161500306&l=b3eaade2fc
Random Ugandan pics:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2048572&id=161500306&l=7d3d4dfdb9
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