Thank you readers!

I discovered this morning a pleasant surprise.  I have passed 3,400 page views for the blog.  Here's how it breaks down by country:

Entry	Pageviews
United States	2598
Australia	213
France	120
Russia	66
Kenya	63
Germany	54
Uganda	39
Japan	38
United Arab Emirates	19
Switzerland	19

Thank you Switzerland.  I have no idea who you are, but thank you for putting me over the top.

Closing thoughts: Learning to Fly

This is what I learned from my trip to Africa.  There was great, there was good and there was the heartbreaking.  But I'm learning to fly.  I'm earning my wings. 

Thanks for taking the ride with me.  LG 

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers live from Bonnaroo 2006

Learning to Fly

Well I started out down a dirty road
Started out all alone
And the sun went down as I crossed the hill
And the town lit up, the world got still

I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings
Coming down is the hardest thing

Well the good ol' days may not return
And the rocks might melt and the sea may burn

I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings
Coming down is the hardest thing

Well some say life will beat you down
Break your heart, steal your crown
So I've started out for God knows where
I guess I'll know when I get there

I'm learning to fly, around the clouds
But what goes up must come down

I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings
Coming down is the hardest thing

My Nose! My Nose!

I am leaving Nairobi on May 20th.  Nine days from today.  The reality is beginning to sink in and I realize I don't know where this last year has gone or why it is gone so fast.  I have been blessed beyond belief with so many new friends and new experiences.  In the coming weeks I will introduce you to my new friends.  I've decided to keep this blog alive because I may go on other adventures, but for the time being, it will focus on trying to more adequately discuss this adventure.

I am sad about leaving Nairobi because it is a truly fun town.  It has a rhythm, a beat much like that of Atlanta.  You hear music everywhere, mostly Bob Marley.  I like that there is music everywhere.  The people are very helpful.  If they see you looking lost, they offer to help you.  And the vast majority of them do not expect money for helping you.  Love, love, love the nightlife!  I have been to some of the most fun clubs and bars.  When I get back home, I will tell you more about the bars.  Incredible, incredible night life.

I will not, however, miss the smell of Nairobi.  For reasons that I cannot fathom, people keep livestock in the city.  I'm not talking a rooster or chicken or two.  I'm talking herds of cattle and passels of pigs.  At the end of the day I scrub my feet like Lady MacBeth before going to bed.  I want to bleach them everyday not only because of the incredible amount of feces everywhere, but also there is a large amount of rotting garbage everywhere.  The stench of all of this, plus an inadequate sewer system makes for a smell that has a life of its own.

Nairobi is a city that grew much, much faster than its infrastructure did.  Consequently, there are problems with garbage and sewer handling and traffic.  The traffic is always horrible, but not because the drivers are insane like they were in Uganda, but because there are so many cars and matatus to be served.  I live about 6 miles from town.  On a good day with light traffic it takes over an hour to travel those 6 miles.  During rush hour, it takes 3 to 4 hours.  And there are many people who spend 6-8 hours 6 days a week going to a job there.  And the standard work day here is 10+ hours per day.  So much for family life.  I don't know how they do it.

But despite the smell, the traffic and the poverty, I love this city.  I discover something new almost everyday.  Yesterday, I discovered a blooming rose bush at a clinic near where I live.  Imagine that!  One of the sweetest smelling roses I ever smelled blooming in the middle of Africa.  And I had no idea you could grow roses in Africa.  While the Masters was going on back home an hour away from my house, an azalea-like bush that grows everywhere here was at its peak of blossoming.  It's just another of the many serendipities of Africa, like the pergola that I discovered a few weeks ago.

It goes to show me that even in the most unappealing of circumstances that if I keep my eyes opened and my heart ready for the unexpected and beautiful, it is there.  I learn and relearn this lesson every day of my life.  Thank you Africa for teaching me this lesson.

Packing for East Africa (Part 1 of several)

1Here's my list of things you should bring with you on your trip to Africa, in no particular order:

  Frye Artisan Fold Over Cross Body Bag:

Without a doubt, the best decision I ever made when packing for Africa.  Okay so maybe there is some order to this list.  This is very, very good if you will be spending any time in a large city.  The style is understated and the leather is luxurious and durable.  My Jenny cross body will make many more trips around Africa and the globe with me.  Worth.Every.Penny.

Available at:  Amazon.com or The Frye Company

L’Occitane Almond Supple Skin Oil & L'Occitane Shea Butter Ultra Rich Body Lotion

Almond Supple Skin Oil

Fabulous for the skin.  Smells soft and sweet, but not "loud".  In a pinch I have also used this light lubricant on a few sticky locks since I can't find a can of WD-40. Expensive, yes, but multipurpose.  Works well with Shea Butter Ultra Rich Body Lotion.

Available from: Sephora.com

Shea Butter Ultra Rich Body Lotion

Simply the best after bath lotion that stands up to African dry heat.  I've tried cheaper, but none works better than this at keeping dry skin away.  L'Occitane also makes very good hand and foot creams as well.  Again, expensive, but darned well worth it.

Available from:  Sephora.com

  Austrailian Sun Block

  

During my time in Uganda, my friends Carolyn and Phillip from Sydney visited.  At that time, I was burned to a crisp by the sun, so I asked her to bring me sunblock.  This sunblock is the best I have ever used.  I know, I know -- I'm saying that about everything in this post, but, hey, when the stuff works like it advertises, you can't help bug brag about it.

Available from:  Carolyn and Phillip, Sydney, Austrailia

   LL Bean backpack

    

     

   A truly wonderful backpack at a good price.  Rugged as hell.  Ergonomic too.

     Available from:  L.L. Bean

     More posts later about great stuff to pack for your trip to Africa.

     L.G.

6

Look for the Bright Side

Look for the Bright Side.

This is my favorite blog by my college friend, and Unit 6 Basement alumni, Julie Loewus Rich.  It is about her family's experiences as her husband is deployed to Japan for umpteen years.  She vowed in the beginning of the blog to start looking for the bright side in any situations she encounters, the good, the bad and the ugly.  The result is her cheerful blog about surviving culture shock in Japan, having the military move you ⅔'s of the globe away from home, educating her two young children and her marriage to a fantastic, but too frequently deployed Navy man.

You should also know that Julie despises social media, so don't even bother looking for her on Facebook.  Although, I think she should get a Twitter account to share her thoughts on life with the world in just a few characters.

Love you Julie!

Top ten things your tour guide won't tell you about Nairobi

10.  There are approximately 4 million residents of Nairobi.  There is a speed bump for every single one of them.

9.  Nairobi is the host for the annual 124 mile Rhino Run.  This makes child's play of getting gored by a bull in Pamplona.

8.  The Solar Ice Rink boasts 15,000 square meters (area of the total sports complex that houses it).  It is the largest ice rink in Africa and the first ice rink in East Africa.

7.  Malaria is very rare in Nairobi according to medical experts in Nairobi and there are surprisingly few mosquitos here.  But I wouldn't chuck the malaria prophylaxis yet.    

6.  Odd dining options: The Iguana Bar and Grill serves Mexican and Indian food and Tanager Bar and Restaurant serves Chinese and African food.

5.  Narcissism in Nairobi:  A local bride had her wedding cake made to look like herself.

4.  Nairobi is home to the Male Girls Secondary School.  No commentary necessary.

3.  Nairobi hosts the Slum Film Festival, an annual festival celebrating films about slums.  I hope it has a category for films by slum residents.  I wonder if Slumdog Millionaire made the cut?

2.  According to Transparency International's 2013 study of corruption in Kenya, 58% of individuals that had legal issues reported paying bribes to the Judiciary.  77% of individuals having business with the police paid bribes.  I guess the police assumed these two riders on the back of a truck couldn't afford to pay the bribe for the ticket.

1.  A local pastor has banned women from wearing underwear during services underwear during services so that "God can enter their bodies more easily".  He did not ban men from wearing their knickers.  I suppose this pastor of the Lord's Propeller Redemption Church did not want male congregants to have God enter their bodies through their orifice.

Tanzanian Excursion to Zanzibar

In late March, I am planning a trip to the Tanzanian spice island of Zanzibar.  It is a UNESCO (think United Nations project) World Heritage Site.  Check out the photos of Stone Town.  I did not know this until I started searching the internet for information, but Stone Town, Zanzibar is the birthplace of  Queen's Freddie Mercury.  Mercury House is his birthplace.  Although his family eventually moved to the UK to avoid the revolution, Mercury House is one of Zanzibar's most famous residents.

As for my trip, I plan to see the old Anglican Cathedral, the mosques and tour the Hamammni (Turkish Bath Houses).

This is a picture gallery of where I will be staying Mizingani Seafront.

Bon voyage to me!

Looks like a great place to retire!

More beautiful water than the Caribbean.

View of Stone Town from the Indian Ocean

Mother's Little Helper

The Rolling Stones sang in Mother’s Little Helper the following words “What a drag it is getting old” and nothing could be truer for me this morning.  There is not enough caffeine in this world to get me going, but I go on.

I am now in Nairobi, Kenya working for Arrow Web Hospital as a volunteer for the hospital that is in the Kayole-Soweto slum.  I don't live in the slum, but in a nice townhouse in Donholm with a couple of co-workers.  Nairobi is a far cry in many, many ways from rural Uganda.

My job is to develop a set of spreadsheets that will compile the information that all 14 of the reports that the Ministry of Health (MOH) requires the hospital to report, some are daily, some are weekly, some are monthly, or quarterly or annually.  Much of it is repetitive and the hospital needs something to save time filling out reports.  Hence, I have work to do.  And not enough time in the day to get this done by the time I go home in May, but I will be an Excel wizard when I do go home. 

It is said that time flies when you are having fun, but I say time flies when you hit middle age.  So back to my nested^infinity IF statements and linking cells and endless compiling the same information repeatedly as my need for more caffeine grows.

In case you were wondering . . .

I'm doing well physically, mentally and spiritually.

On the physical side of things, I have lost about 45 lbsf.  This was a much needed weight loss and I hope to lose another 30 lbsf. before I come home.  Now understand this, I am not losing weight because there is no food.  Quite the contrary, I am eating very well.  Ugandan cooking is very good and they eat well.  At least this year they eat well.  The rains have been very good this rainy season and therefore the crops have done well.  I have lost so much weight because of all the activity in a day.  My primary means of transportation is "footing it" as they say here.  The second way is by motorcycle, but more on that in another post.

Mentally, I feel very peaceful and centered (whatever that really means).  Without all the distractions of TV, radio, regular and reliable Internet service, and everything else, it's easier to relax even if there is so much to do that you can't really slow down.  There is plenty of work to be done and I am somewhat disappointed that it is almost time to come home.  The people here are so wonderful and warm and friendly.

Spiritually, well that was an area that I expected to continue to lie dormant as it has for the past 25 years.  But in Uganda, religion is the culture.  People are very sincere in their faith and I have been "taken" to church about 5 times.  The last time, this past Sunday, my namesake was baptized.  I was thrilled when her mother Christine handed little Lisa to me to hold while the pastor baptized her.  What an honor!

Do understand that now that I have a namesake, you will hear about her every movement until she reaches the terrible teens, but probably even then too.

Cheers:)

Lisa

Happy 1 month Birthday Lisa Ellen Grose

Every time I see my namesake, I cannot help but sing this Furman lullaby to her.  In my heart, this song is for for little Lisa and her mother Christine Acham.