So just to warn those of you that have been following the blog to see what your friends and family are up to while in Kenya, I’m taking my blog back. Feel free to check in if you want to track my travels, as this month will be around the southern US states, but just a warning that it no longer is the official MCOH blog. The tone may become more sarcastic and random. There… you’ve been notified.
(If you are leaving….thanks for reading the blog! I’m sure it means a lot to your people that they know some of your stories already!)
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| Stalling before getting on combis |
So on the drive back to the airport, it was long. Really long! We were hoping to lounge by the pool at the safari until 2 in the afternoon, since it’s a 4 hour drive and our flight isn’t until midnight, but our drivers were worried we were not leaving enough time, so they changed it to eleven. Well poo. That’s barely any pool time! Oh well, we made the best of it and the combi I ended up in had so many fun people in it, that we had a blast on the drive. I had my music playing on the laptop for the first two hours, then when the computer died, we took to singing ourselves. We sang every song anyone knew at least three of the lines to, from country to the beatles, p!nk and even lion king. I feel bad for Greg and Charlie, our male companions, and Heather who were very good sports, and even helped out with a line or two. Adrian, Courtney, Jenn, Shawna and I had the best time belting out songs that made the long, hot, dry drive go much faster than I ever thought it could.
I loved everyone in our combi and could have spent another month with them without any qualms. That was one of the best things about being on this trip: you’re surrounded by kind, loving people with the same desire as you, simply to help people, for a whole month! It’s so great to be around so many nice genuine people for such a long period of time, that it seems odd to join the real world again and get shoved in the airport line or to say hello and not have someone even acknowledge you said something. It’s also really nice to have such a single-minded focus and purpose. To know exactly what it is you’re doing – anything this poor town needs to improve: schooling, food, health concerns, etc. It’s such a selfish thing to go on these missions, because while you’re there, life is so easy. Sure you’re busy, barely sleeping, eating weird food, totally thrown out of your comfort zone, and working 24/7 in some capacity, but there are so many benefits that you reap, it no longer seems like altruism, the only word to describe it is selfish. Odd, huh?
There was some virus that hit almost everyone during the three weeks. There were a few of us who avoided it though, and oddly enough, it was the people who drank the most that were immune. Karen attributed this to the alcohol itself, but I disagree. I think it’s because we all took a few hours of each day to gather, giggle, relax, and unwind from a hard day. Laughing is a great thing, and I think it is what protected us from the explosive bug that rendered the unlucky patients to stay within 10 feet of their longdrop for a day or two at a time. Ick! I bring this up because some people were unfortunate enough to be experiencing this on the long drive. I don’t envy them at all and vow to laugh more to keep my immune system up! I may go back to my normal drinking habits of once a week or so, as my liver can’t take the Mikinduri routine for a long period.
We went shopping once we arrived 3 hours early in Nairobi. I’m not complaining that nothing went wrong, but frankly I would have preferred 3 hours at the pool watching animals. We had a great Brazilian steakhouse dinner, which if you’ve never been, is an endless array of different meats on spits. The Kenyan version of this was camel, goat, lamb, beef, chicken, and sausages. You have a little card on your table that when the green side is showing, they keep bringing you meat until you flip it to red. Basically it’s a buffet you don’t even have to stand up for. How gluttonous and delicious! I was especially fortunate to sit with more of my favorite people at dinner, and just savored the last few moments of friendship on this trip, before I went my separate way. At the airport, everyone else flew together to Montreal (with a few exceptions) so they still have a long day together, but I left an hour before they did, so I had to say goodbye early. This year there were no tears as I was actually able to say goodbye. Last year, I had planned to meet up with them after security, but since that never happened, I was suddenly in a solitary state after being one of 30 for a month. It was such a shock in London when I arrived, I could do nothing but cry at my sudden seclusion. This year though, was great to give everyone a hug, get closure, and plan to see them soon. A month from now I’ll be back on PEI so will get to see many of them again, whereas last year I just had a tentative plan to move to the Island, which even my mother thought was just a retreat high and would eventually dissipate. Some things just stick.
In London airport, I was treated to wait my 7 hour layover in the lounge. I arrived a 5am London time after 9 hours on a plane, and wasn’t scheduled to leave until noon. The first plane ride wasn’t too bad, despite being squeezed in between two tall men, one of them being both wide and tall and needing to use the bathroom every two hours, forcing me to wake the poor sleeping tall man next me on many occasions. That was a long 9 hours; not going to lie. Luckily the lounge was peaceful with no announcements and even fantastic free food. I got up to go to the bathroom at one point and stumbled across some showers. Oh my! I had the hottest, most rejuvenating shower, and it couldn’t have come at a more perfect time! It was the start of a new day and this evening I would see my sister and mom! I was even able to brush my teeth, dry my hair, put on make-up, and put a new shirt on that I had bought just to feel clean! This was the start of a great day, even if it was only separated by a catnap to the last day.
It’s funny the things you appreciate away from Kenya (and thus back in civilization). I had a toilet in the bathroom. I know! It wasn’t just a hole in the floor. I still get excited when I see that pristine porcelain luxury. I hope that takes a while to wear off as it’s great to be excited that many times a day. Plus…I was in London! That means candy, chocolate, and gummies! The three years I lived in England in high school, I learned more about the sweets than anything else, and it’s what I remember most! I filled up a nice big bag of snacks, and hopefully there’s even one or two left by the time I get to Phoenix to share with Ma and Linds.
So random story. (Just for Jamie…she likes random stories). All my gadgets are breaking. My headphones don’t even work. How is that even possible? Within the last 10 hours, my crappy backup headphones broke, my fancy noise reduction ones don’t work, my ipod has called it quits, and the light in plane over my seat went out halfway through the flight. What is up? I am fearful to use my computer or kindle for too long as they might succumb to the virus. Hey –maybe I successfully avoided the flu everyone had but my gadgets caught it. Oh no!
The flight to Philadelphia has been less eventful, though equally long as the first flight, and my computer is telling me I would be going to bed now in Nairobi instead of landing in Phili with 9 hours left in the day. Huh.
Plan for the next month: Phoenix for a few days, San Antonio for a few days, Alabama girls trip for a few days, Washignton DC spring break with the other girls, then back to PEI for end of March. Oh yeah, my birthday is somewhere in there too! This is an exciting month! Oh and did I mention I’m driving for all of that. The idea of sitting in a car after all the combi and plane time does not sound appealing, but since twitching my nose doesn’t have the same effect that it does for Elizabeth Smart, I suppose I’ll drive. Oh – coming back to civilization also means returning to my cell phone. Bummer. I didn’t miss it. I love this blog as I feel like this is communication. Why do I need the phone too? If everyone just kept a blog, I wouldn’t have to call anyone at all. Get on it people.
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