I am a muzungu. A white chic. No doubt about it. But with five hours and fifty bucks, even a muzungu can become an African Queen. I took the plunge in Mombasa, on the Kenyan coast, just a day before leaving the continent. It took me until the 11th hour in Africa to get up the guts, so now I’m a Muzungu African Queen in China. Not a regular scene on the streets of Beijing, that’s for sure. But man, does it make you famous. I make just a moment’s stop to consult the map, buy a drink, or take in a sight, and in no time I feel the telling gentle tug. It is usually the women who actually touch them and call over their friends to have a tug. But even the guys give ... read more

Lake Kivu sits on the border between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (the DRC). It is surrounded by deliciously green hills, every last inch of which is cultivated with sorghum, maize, beans, potatoes, tea, bananas, bananas, and more bananas. The soaring mountains of Volcanoes National Park, and their famous inhabitants, the mountain gorillas, watch over the lake from the north. Countless little villages dot the Rwandan shore, perched beside a hellacious dirt road running north to south (and zig zagging along the shore in every other direction imaginable). We had an incredible week along the lake - relaxing along the picturesque, island-studded shores of Kibuye; learning about village life from our friends Lodz (doing research at a district hospital) and Victor (running an orphanage for 50 kids); and gasping at views from atop the ... read more

Children have a space of their own here. The winding trio of rooms feels empty except for the ten floor-to-ceiling photos of individual children. Each photo is accompanied by a simple plaque with the child’s name, age, and a few details like favorite foods, best friend, character traits, last words, and cause of death - hacked with machete, smashed against the wall, clubbed with rifle butt, shot. The final room offers just one wall to look at. A wall on which are displayed -- quite simply, as if hung on the fridge or living room wall at home -- snapshots of so many more children. They are riding bikes, celebrating first communion, enjoying a picnic, laughing with friends, watching TV. And now every single one of them is gone. How is one to understand this? There ... read more

My mom defied her every instinct and flew a million miles around the world to see us in Africa. That’s not exactly fair, of course, because her instincts told her very strongly that she wanted to see us (preferably back in the US, but short of that, she’d settle for Africa). What made her hesitate were her instincts about endless hours of air travel, not to mention the backdrop of harrowing famine and stubborn poverty in East Africa. One thing you must know about my mom is that her heart is so good, and so real, and so connected to others around the world, that she just didn’t think she could take a relatively lavish tour around Tanzania in the context of so many hungry and needy people. But we convinced her in the end, partly ... read more

So, many of you have asked about the work we are doing on our travels. Well here goes. (Hint: if you are not dazzled with aid policy banter, you might want to skip this entry...or just read the Jonathon's Summary.) Jonathon's Summary: A lot of rich countries are giving big money to these poor countries we're visiting. Managing all this money is creating some big problems as well as some big help. We're trying to learn more about it from the foreign aid workers, local government folks, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) who are trying to make it all work. We talk to folks, we brainstorm, Sarah writes reports, we edit, we get extra money. Sarah's "Summary" We have fallen into an incredible and fortunate mix of play and work. We are mainly traveling and exploring and ... read more