I’m in Nairobi, Kenya, waiting for the sun to rise. Apologies for the lack of advance notice on this change in scenery. I booked the ticket about a month ago and kept intending to write, but never actually got around to it. So here I am, at the start of a three-week trip through Kenya and Tanzania, listening to the symphony of birds chirping, watching the sky turn from dark blue to light purple to almost white, and finally updating my blog.
So why Africa, why now? This is a trip I’ve been dreaming about for years in various forms—a climb up Kilimanjaro, a safari with that future husband of mind—but finally an opportunity came I just couldn’t turn down. A childhood friend of mine—actually my next-door neighbor from Junior High—was working at an orphanage and school in Tanzania when we got back in touch 6 or 7 years ago. Since then Andy has returned to the states, gotten his master’s in public health, and taken a job on the other side of NGOs—with a foundation that awards grants to projects they would like to help. He travels to various parts of Africa several times a year checking on these projects and others they are considering supporting. For this trip we’ll be visiting a handful of these organizations, meeting people who are trying to improve their communities in a variety of ways. I’ll also be sneaking away for a few days of safari and possibly beach time, too.
As I type the sky is getting lighter and the birds are getting louder. This is always my favorite part of waking up in a new place. The time change is often so great—in this case there’s an 11 hour difference (meaning it’s 7PM back in Portland and 6AM here in Nairobi)—that you often arrive someplace new under the cover of darkness and the true nature of where you are is only revealed to you in the morning.
According to Andy, who just returned for a sunrise run, the place we’re staying is an anomaly in Kenya. Called Wildebeest Camp, the setup is a small walled property with a few rooms and camping tents as well as the deluxe wood-floored pavilion tents you might find on safari. Whereas Andy joked that he inhaled two packs of cigarettes on his run—the pollution is that bad in Nairobi—this hotel borders a golf course on one side which makes it a bit of an oasis in the city. To the other side of the golf course is Kibera, one of the biggest slums in the world.
In preparation for the trip I received 6 immunizations including shots to protect me against hepatitis A, typhoid, polio, yellow fever, and a few other standard illnesses. (Yes, my arms were quite sore.) I’m taking anti-malaria pills during this trip—my doctor warned me that they may inspire wacky dreams. Visas for both countries are available to Americans at the airports so that was one less stress. No telling how much I’ll be able to update while I’m here, although I suspect access to internet will be quite good with the exception of during safari. But at any rate, here’s an update on where I am. I hope this post finds you all well!
