Rafting the Nile

By far, one of the coolest things I've ever done is rafting the Nile. It was awesome! The rafting company (Nile River Explorers-awesome people) starts out be feeding you breakfast and then trucking you down to the river. You have a full day of rafting that includes lunch in your boat, and then you head back up the river for a nice cookout. It was one of the funnest days ever! It was by far the biggest rapids I've ever seen too. There were mostly class 4 and 5. Our boat flipped twice and on the last rapids of the day, I had to be rescued by a kayak....it was amazing!!! They are getting ready to build a dam on the river so the rapids will be no more....so you need to go do this soon!!


I'm in the middle holding on as our boat was flipping...

Africa Tour 2010

So I started out on the scenic route home by getting into Uganda 2 hours early. Yeah that has never happened on a flight before but I guess there's a first time for everything. The next day we headed down to Murchison Falls Game Park. We had lots of fun and got to see plenty of animals. A Cape Buffalo would even come by the window to our room every night....we would see the tracks in the morning. The trip included a river boat ride where I saw too many hippos to count.


Of course I had to get lots of pictures of my favorite animal....


Ok, we found this lion at the end of the second day. It was awesome and obviously we were really close. As we were watching her, she locked in on some antelope in a field near by, starting walking over there, and got in a crouch. I was flipping out because I just knew I was gonna see my first kill. I was so pumped....and I realize that this makes me sound heartless...but when you're right there in the moment...you want to see it happen. And I immediately began humming The Circle of Life. Well, she sat there for a minute, toying with my emotions and then decided she wasn't hungry and walked away. Come on!!! Eat already!

Things to Look Forward To

1. Seeing friends and family...obviously yall are the number one. Get
ready for me to get emotional and jump up and down
2. Fast Food!! I know it's not very good for me but I'm going to have to
say hey to Taco Bell, Sonic, Chic-fila, Zaxby's, Dairy Queen, and so
many more when I get back...it's gonna be amazing.
3. Grocery Stores....I'm probably going to tear up on the cereal aisle.
4. Constant electricity and running water WITHOUT a generator.
5. Driving...anyone want a road trip?
6. Sleeping in my bed with a lot of covers and not sweating or waking up
to an alarm...oh my goodness, it will be glorious
7. The beach.....one of the best things about living in Eastern NC
8. My puppy....ok he's more of a huge dog but I still miss him
9. Concerts....I used to go to them all the time.....Matt and Dave--here
I come!
10. Microwaves....rapidly heating food really is a beautiful thing
11. High Speed Internet!!! No more reading books while I wait for a page
to load.
12. Being cold....my first winter back is going to be awesome
13. Bring on the pants....I'm not wearing skirts for a very long time.
14. The NC State Fair...all I'm saying is ears of corn and deep fried
snickers!
15. Cable TV...no more watching the same seasons of TV over and over on
my computer.
16. iTunes...I need some new music.

The list could go on and on but here are the first things that come to
mind. See you in 37 days!!!

Wisdom from Hope Floats

So I'm getting a little pensive about my time in Africa since I'm getting ready to leave. It's almost impossible to process everything I've experienced here. I feel like it's something I'll be processing for a really long time. I could try to inadequately describe the lessons I've learned, or the most significant moments, but I feel like it would just turn into rambling. And who knows, there could always be a book in the future that explains all that in more detail. Ha! For right now I'll just try to explain it by quoting one of my favorite movies.
Now I need to preface this with a few comments about my movie preferences. I know this might sway some people's opinion of me, but the more predictable a chic flick is...the more I like it. I like all kinds of movies, but there's just something about knowing that the movie is going to work out in the end that just brings me comfort. Call it what you will, but I am NOT ashamed of my movies choices. One of the classics is Hope Floats. I love Sandra Bullock honestly feel like if we hung out we would have a good time. Anyways, at the very end of the movie there is a great quote:
"Beginnings are scary, endings are usually sad, but it's the middle that counts."
So true! That's what the past 2 years has been like...as simple as that. It started out scary, but it's amazing what you can adapt to. I get really sad when I think about leaving and starting the whole "beginnings are scary" part somewhere else. But the middle has been what has counted. It's been where the lessons have come, where I have grown, and where I have changed.

Things I'm Starting to Realize I'll Miss

1. The People!! I have a stand in for pretty much every member of my family here. The dad/uncle who does literally everything for us. The grandmother who visits regularly and tells us the same stories over and over. The older brother who is always looking out for us. Tons of sisters who share inside jokes as well as earrings. Many little cousins who always look for the candy they know I brought them and are too cute for words.
2. Sleeping outside during hot season. So the hot season part isn't that fun, but an African sky is pretty much beyond an adequate description, and a shooting star is a nightly occurrence.
3. Throwing water on the floor. I know this one sounds weird but I've gotten used to throwing water on the floor while I'm inside. If something is in my cup or the last bit of water has gotten too hot to drink, we just dump the rest of the floor. It doesn't matter because everything will be dry in less than 2 minutes anyways.
4. Reading...a lot!! I've read more books in the past couple years than I can even remember. I know this is possible back in the states too, but I'm pretty sure the distractions that come with living there will keep me from reading like I do here.
5. Speaking Arabic. As much as I complain about it (and believe me....I complain a lot), it makes me feel cool to speak another language, and it feels really good when people tell you you're improving...that doesn't happen a lot, but when it does...fireworks.
6. Getting really excited over fruits and veggies. Seriously...it's a great day when I can eat a fresh salad, or we find mangos in the market.
I hope not, but I kinda think the joy will fade when I get around Moe's and Coldstone.
7. Having "Is this Really my Life" moments. Crazy things happen here almost daily. There are times when I think...am I really here living in Africa....and did I just help my guard kill a chicken...or did I really just see someone carrying their goat on a motorcycle?? This list can go on and on but you get the idea.
8. Being forced to continually evaluate the Reason I'm here. In an uncomfortable and frustrating place, you have to always keep in mind why you haven't bought a ticket home yet. It drives you to stand firm in the Truth though which is really cool.
9. Free movie rentals. The community here is like a blockbuster without the membership cards, deadlines, or the candy at checkout (the last one is pretty unfortunate)
10. Working with what you have. There have been so many times where I don't have what I need, but I have to figure out how to make it work without Target a few minutes away. It forces you to be really creative.

Just Another Day

This past week some of our teammates and friends were in town to pack up their house and move on to their next adventure. They left today which means we all went out to the airport (paved air strip) to see them off. This involves several trips back and forth to take people and stuff to the plane because we only have a couple of cars. My roommates and I hung out under the shadow of the plane's wing while everything got loaded.
The goodbyes were sad...no getting around that. After everyone was loaded on the plane I had to drive one of the cars back. This doesn't sound like a very big deal, but it's manual and I get a little stressed about it because I don't do it that often. Me and the roomies piled in the Land Cruiser and moved off the pavement so the plane could make it to the runway. I stalled out once during this process but made it safely to my spot to watch them take off.
We watched the plane go to one end of the air strip, turn around and go to the other end, and then turn around again and stop. This was really abnormal and we were trying to figure out what was going on. The plane was a pretty good distance away, but we see the pilot waving us on to the runway. Great....why in the world does he want me on the runway?
Well I pulled onto the pavement (after a local man jumped into our car too because he wanted to see what was going on) and in front of the plane and then I saw why. On the far end of the runway were 2 donkeys hanging out. I do my best to not grind the gears while I'm heading to the donkeys. As we were closer, the local guy instructs me to go behind them to get them to move. Thankfully the donkeys got the message and moved pretty quickly without much maneuvering on my part. I pulled off the runway with the donkeys. By this time the other car caught on as to what was happening and took over chasing the donkeys well into the bush. As the plane was taking off right behind us, and I was watching this car enthusiastically chase two donkeys through bushes and trees I had to laugh. This was just another day in the desert.

All Good Things Must Come to an End

I don't enough if I believe that title, but when it comes to my vacation in Jordan, it is definitely true. I've had an amazing time hanging out with friends, enjoying western food, and even seeing rain! I thank everyone who made me feel so welcome here. It was a great break. Here are some pictures of the fun.


I went to Petra one day. It is incredible that it was made so many years ago and stills stands today...truly amazing.



I floated in the Dead Sea. It is the saltiest body of water in the world...so salty that you automatically float. It's also the lowest point of the earth. It was so much for to get a day at the beach.




I got to see some great friends, including one of my favorite 2 year olds Micah. I also made some great friends and had great time experiencing community with the people here. Overall, an awesome vacay!!