Blogs from Africa - page 2739

Life in the village as the Ghanians say is 'sweeeeeeeeeeet'. My family is really great. My mum Mary is the funniest woman. She can't speak english very well but she laughs all the time with this deep shrill laugh. She finds us hilarious and is always saying 'my daughters i am your ghana mummy. I will cry when you leave. The 5 kids are all great too. They are so helpful and good most of the time. School starts at 8.00 and goes until 1.30pm. I am often escorted so school by a squealing mob consisting of the majority of the villages children. There are occasionally fights over who will carry my stuff and who will hold my hand. After school we arrive home to cooked lunch. Mary loves us to eat and gets very upset ... read more

Hey everyone!! Not much internet access here, so this will be short and sweet - the pics will speak for themselves. Left Hali June 3rd after writing our last final and moving apartments. Missed a flight to Qatar. Spend a day in London because of it. Got to Johannesburg June 5th with my travel buddies, Chris Nash and Erin Palmer. Went on safari to Kruger National Park. It was freezing (we slept in treehouses), but beautiful - saw lots of animals, ate delicious meals, hung out with the South Africans, good times. June 9th we had an intense day in Jo'burg - google apartheid if you want to understand why we visited these places. First went to top of Africa (tallest building in continent - apparently). Then went to Soweto (South Western Townships), largest township in ... read more

Not much to report so far, but just thought I'd let everyone know that I've arrived! After a smooth and uneventful flight I landed in Nairobi airport this morning at 6.30am local time. A taxi picked me and two other members from my group up, and took us back to the Heron Hotel, where I am spending my first night - the rooms are pretty basic, but absolutely fine for what I need - sleep! I am feeling very lucky at the moment because I was the only one out of the three of us picked up at the airport whose bags turned up! The bags belonging to the other two are still in London for some unknown reason, and they may not receive them in time for the start of the safari (8am tomorrow morning). ... read more

. Leaving Dahab. It wasn't easy, having spent more time then I allotted for, and especially after a failed attempt to extend it by a day, cutting off one day in Luxor. During the lazy days of Dahab I toyed with the idea of just skipping Luxor all together, avoiding the heat, and the crowds of packaged tourist. My logic was, the ruins have been there for a few thousands years, probably not going to go anywhere in my life time, unlike the Red Sea and it's coral and aquatic life. I had received mixed reviews on Luxor. Hot. Touristy. Hot. Tons of street hustlers, but figured to come all the way to Egypt and not pay it a couple of days visit wouldn't be wise. I figured I'd kick myself in the end. As far ... read more

One thing I have learned from our short time in Africa is not to take anything we have in America for granted--especially when it comes to worshipping!! Some things I took for granted are lights, sound systems, padded pews, classrooms, and a roof. Of course, none of these are necessary for worship, but certainly make sitting in a building a little more comforable. I thought I would take a few minutes and try to describe what the church buildings are like here and show some pictures. Most Sundays, we worship at the Arusha building, but have visited three other smaller congregations. Arusha has a nice, large building. The walls and floors are cement, no sound system, very few lights (lots of windows), and wooden pews---no cushions, but we do have backs on them. :). Most days ... read more