DAY IN NAIROBI

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It is Monday evening here in Nairobi and we have been having a wonderful time already. We had good flights on the trip. The taxi driver did have a van that picked us up, but he had never had an amazing amount of luggage to deal with. He was pretty game though and we arrived at the Mennonite Guest House in great shape. The weather was refreshingly cool and downright cold today. You can google the guest house and see pictures of it. The grounds are fantastic and the rooms old fashioned and very clean.
It was so good to have Pastor Jon and Rob Howell waiting for us in the parking lot even though they still had their climbing beards on. They did so well on their climb and will tell that story themselves.
Today was pretty cool and drizzly most of the day which really surprised us. However, it is winter and we are below the equator, so you get cool. We went first this morning to the Giraffe Park and that was a great hit with everybody. Rob actually let one of the giraffes take the food from his mouth like getting a giraffe kiss. The rest of us seemed okay with just feeding them from our hands. They are such gentle creatures and it was so fun to see them. Then, we went to a baby elephant orphanage in the Nairobi State Park where they rescue abandoned and motherless elephants. This was so interesting with elephants from 6 months to a couple of years old. They actually had blankets on the tiniest ones to keep them from getting pneumonia.
The food here in Nairobi is so good and the eating places are clean and inviting. We went to one of the best Italian restaurants that we have ever eaten in. It reminded us of our son & daughter-in-law's favorite Italian spot in Chicago (Francesca's). We had a lovely lunch at a new mall in the food court and had a great dinner at a gourmet coffee place tonight. Paul Howell, Rob's brother, and Paul Weaver, Kris Morton's cousin, joined us for dinner as Paul Howell was leaving for the airport tonight.
The internet just disconnected last night so I am posting this today at Rob & Kara's. Jim is taking a power nap and Chrissy is playing with the four children. I will try to send another post tonight with pictures here.
Shirley

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