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Published: August 22nd 2008
Sunday, May 11, 2008 The trip was almost over. I wandered around the grounds of the hotel, getting lots of photos, including ones of the Marabou storks that feed on scraps from the hotel. They normally are quite tall, with long legs. When they sit, however, their knee joints are "backward,' and it looks as though they have big feet. I found them fascinating, so watched them for a while.
After eating breakfast, I talked to Dan and Bill, then walked outside the grounds. I wandered down the road and met interesting people. One was a well-dressed young man with a book under his arm. We walked together, and he told me he was a pharmacist who wanted to further his education.
The book was on medicinal herbs. When I was still in Houston, Andrew Young spoke at a luncheon for Houston's International Festival (iFest) whose theme was “Out of Africa.” He talked about his upcoming trip to Tanzania for the Leon Sullivan Conference on “Tourism and Infrastructure.” He mentioned how herbs found in Africa are being accepted by Western doctors as a cure for some diseases. My “cousin” Israel had told me about the herbs that are
used to cure malaria, so I was quite interested in talking more to the man named John Mkalagalleh.
He was a Seventh Day Adventist and said many of his co-religionists were in the area. I told him about Texas Southern University's Pharmacy School and how to find out more about the graduate program. It would be ironic if that short conversation led to his coming to Houston.
We soon parted, and I continued my walk, meeting interesting people all along the way, including a worker on a nearby farm that grew vegetables and, ironically, the herbs used for curing malaria.
Before long I returned to the lodge and took my luggage to the reception building. Since there were several of us going to the airport, we called for two cars. I said good bye to Dan, Bill and the others and shared a ride with Marc. The vehicle had license plates that said “Cowboy!” The driver and I have kept in touch, and I sent him a great Texas postcard showing long horn steers, armadillos and, yep—cowboys.
As the plane took off, I reflected on the amazing country I had just experienced. The scenery, animals and
history were truly unique. But it was the people who made the biggest impression. I'm grateful to Dan for inviting me to be part of his crew and to Ed de Mulder, Larry Woodfork and the IYPE group for their kindness before, during and after the trip. I learned so much from all of them and from Bill who is not only an excellent cinematographer, but a great traveling companion.
Thank you for letting me share my story and photos with you. I hope you enjoyed seeing them as much as I did living the adventures.
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chinu
non-member comment
stunning
a sight to never to forget