October 18, 2009

“There is only one time when it is essential to awaken. That time is now.”
-Buddha, submitted by Ben

Waking up in a strange bed, in a new country, on a foreign continent, wasn’t as disorienting as I expected. I woke up feeling refreshed and ready.

The team ate a short breakfast and talked about our expectations, our hopes, and the reality of our present position. Pam’s stories offer some insight into what will come, but, at least for me, the village and what we will accomplish there remains a hazy future.

After eating we piled all of our luggage on top of the jeep and hopped in. It’s a long ride to Iringa. We spent it getting to know one another better and taking garbled attempts at speaking Kiswahili.

The highlight of the trip is Mikume Park. There we spotted zebra, gazelle, impala, elephant, and giraffe. Some of the animals are so calm and close to the road that it is our camera clicks that frighten them away.

When we got to Iringa it was already dark. We’ll have to wait till tomorrow to look around.