Tonight was a real treat as we went to a legendary place for dinner in Arusha--Kahn's Barbeque. Kahn's is located on a little side street in downtown Arusha and is an auto parts store by day, outdoor restaurant by night. The owner is Indian, and greets everyone with a firm handshake and big smile. He knows the CMF missionaries well, so they always bring their guests here and always get a special price.

The street is dimly lit and there a few tables on the sidewalk in front of the store. Across the street there are a couple of picnic tables that can also be used. We had to sit across the street since the regular tables were filled. The chicken, beef and mutton are grilled right on the sidewalk. Beside the grill is a table filled with the salad and side choices. I'm not sure what they all were, but was assured that they were all safe. Of course, safe is a relative term, depending upon the amount of time you've been eating the food here.

We ordered mostly chicken, but got an order each of beef and mutton, a couple of orders of chips (french fries) and soft drinks in glass bottles. The chicken was great; I tried the beef and mutton, both of which I liked less than the chicken. But it was the atmosphere that was the most impressive. It really was like a scene out of a classic movie.

Today was planned to be at the CMF Arusha Training Center. This is where Scott and Annelle Price, the Tanzania team leaders live. Scott went through the history of the center, talking about how they bought the property and came up with the development plan. It really made me see how missions work takes time, usually years, to build relationships, trust and support for the plans.

Next, Annelle took us up into the foothills across the main road from the center to talk with one of the local CHE (Community Health Evangelism) leaders and how the CHE program has directly affected the people. This was up the usual very rough, dusty trail. You can only creep along in some places or you would be thrown all over the truck. The lady showed us how her water was purified, improvements in her

, farming improvements and other items. She was very excited about what CHE was doing for her.

When we returned, it was time for lunch at the center. It was basically a huge bowl of rice with chunks of roast beef. Way too much for me. I recalled all those years of hearing, “Clean your plate, there are kids starving in Africa”. It felt especially unnerving to leave so much uneaten

Africa.

When we finished, we went on an extensive tour of the grounds with Scott. He explained the need for flood control because when it rains in the mountains, that water rushes down the slopes and through the streams to their property. Because the rain tends to be heavy when it comes and the incline is so great, the water rushes down with great force. On this tour, Pat decided he wanted video and photos from the top of the water tower. We climbed it in stages so that we could pass equipment up each level. Only Pat had to go to the very top where there was no guard rail.

Our first full day in Tanzania, we were up early to make a three-hour journey to a very remote Maasai church in a village called Metale B. One of the main functions of CMF in Arusha is the training center they have built to train leaders to go back into their own communities to lead projects and spread the Gospel. We made this trip with Todd Carter, the CMF missionary, his son Wesley, and six Maasai men from the training center. One was the leader of the church at Metale B and lived there with his family. The truly moving part of the experience (sorry, no pun intended) was when these men started singing praise songs in Swahili with that distinctive African harmony. I could almost always make out four parts and I think five at times. I wish we would have recorded it.

On the way, we saw giraffe, a monkey and a baboon, along with the usual gazelles and impala. It is so cool to see animals like this at the side of the road with no fences.

The leaders were concerned that there may not be many in attendance at the service because they were experiencing a drought and many had gone to find water. Can you imagine Derek announcing this as the reason for low attendance at East 91st? As it turned out, there were still at least twenty there. The service was held under the main meeting tree in the town center. They sang out and listened to a couple of teachings, as the two speakers translated for each other, usually between Swahili and Maasai, but sometimes English, too. Once again, we were asked to introduce ourselves and say a little something.

After the service, the custom is to have lunch together. The Maasai food was going to be a while and we had brought our lunch, so we sat in the leader's home and ate. We couldn't stay too late, because we had a three-hour ride to get back before dark. That is a concern, because two hours of this journey was on a dirt lane, that was sometimes flat, sometimes steep, sometimes rocky and sometimes full of ruts. Frequently, there were new tracks around the old ones because the last rain had created ruts to rough to drive through. This was definitely 4x4 country. We had eleven people in the Land Cruiser to start on the way back. We dropped one off a little ways down the road, and a couple of others an hour or so later. But then we picked up three more a half an hour outside Arusha and dropped them off at various points along the way. The whole trip was extremely dusty, as they have such a fine, red dust and hadn't had rain for a long time. All our bags and clothes were covered in dust. When I took a shower afterwards, I used a light beige washcloth and it was a dark tan when I finished.

Tami had fixed a great Mexican dinner with three kinds of enchiladas. They were great and there wasn't much left over.

Due to all the activity this morning, we just barely had time to get downtown to the hotel where our bus departed from. It was 2:00 in the afternoon with the hot sun beating down on us, and traffic everywhere. (A quick side note: There are no pollution controls in Nairobi, and the black smoke billows out of most of the diesel trucks and busses on the roads. Since the terrain is hilly, these trucks are sometimes straining to make it up hills in a low gear and the engine revving, so the air quality is pretty bad in some areas. Add to that all the open fires at the side of the roads in the slums and industrial areas to get a feel for what the air was like.)

We saw two of the small busses from our company, but no one looked official and no one was directing people. One bus was about half full and one guy said to put our luggage beside it. Then a few minutes later, a man came up and made everyone get off that bus to go to the other one, saying that the first one was for a private party. We got on the second bus, and picked seats beside each other, with me at the window. It was cramped, nothing was happening, I was getting hot and feeling really hemmed in. I got Pat to let me out and I stood in the doorway and fanned myself a bit. It really helped, so Pat took the window seat and I was in the aisle seat. We sat there for another ten minutes, then finally started out, but the traffic through the roundabouts in downtown Nairobi moves very, very slowly. It took us about half an hour to get out of the downtown area with all that smoke, dust and exhaust. I just sat back, closed my eyes and prayed during that time. As soon as I started, I could feel the pressure lift, and this feeling of well-being come over me. Sometimes I am amazed by my unbelief; why should I be so surprised that God would relieve my condition when I turned the whole situation over to him and asked that he be glorified by it?

Once we got past the airport, the trip went pretty quickly. At the border, we got a big surprise when Tanzania said the visa fee had doubled for Americans, going from $50 two weeks before to $100 today. Our bus drive had told us on the bus to have $50 ready, then when he got in there and tried to facilitate things, he asked for $100. This sounded kind of fishy to us, so I asked him if that was $50 for Tanzania and $50 for him. He just laughed and said that was the new price. Fortunately, we had enough cash between us to cover it.

We had a loaner cell phone--everyone has a cell phone in Kenya, even in the slums and the Maasai in the bush--and were supposed to text Scott Price, the missionary who was picking us up when we got close. He replied with, “Where were we?”. Pat just laughed because neither of us had been here before and had no idea where we were. This was a narrow two lane road with lots of potholes and nothing around, so there weren't many landmarks. Scott asked if we had passed any gas stations yet. Pat had never used this phone before and it was taking a long time entering every letter of the message, so by the time he finished the message, I told him we had passed five gas stations. We finally got it cleared and they met us at the bus station.

We had a nice surprise as we entered the restaurant that Scott took us to when we found the whole Tanzania team there. There was Scott and Annelle Price, team leaders, their son Donnie, Todd and Tami Carter, Pam McKerrin (an East 91st member), and Kendra Woods, who is now the CMF Field Business Administrator in Arusha. It was an Indian restaurant, and both of us were a little apprehensive about what that might do to our digestive systems, so we opted for Chinese, which they also had on the menu.

After a great time, we found out we were staying with Todd, Tami and their three children. It turned out they have a guest house, but it worked out best for me to stay in the guest house and Pat to stay in the main house in their son Wesley's room. I had a mosquito net over the bed and my own shower, which was convenient even though it turned out the instant hot water heater didn't work, so I had to take cold showers.

We added to our schedule today. Originally, we were supposed to have a slow day and travel by bus to Tanzania in the afternoon, Keith Ham wanted us to video and photograph Doug Priest at Kibera, the largest slum in Nairobi, so we went there in the morning. Kibera has around a million people living there. An American church had donated $15,000 to CMF to build a church/school in this area, so that was our primary focus. The kids were prepared with a program that included singing, dancing and skits. Everyone was introduced and acknowledged.

We had to leave a bit early, because there was a political rally scheduled for Kibera that afternoon. This is a presidential election year in Kenya, so the campaigning has begun. By the time we walked the half mile back to our car, the gates were closed, there were hundreds, if not thousands of people trying to get in, and there were military guards with AK47s all over. I would have loved to get some photos, but it is illegal to photograph any government building or military operation, so I decided against it. And those AK47s were a little intimidating. They escorted us out of the area and we went on our way.

[Update: It turned out there was violence at this rally that afternoon. Tear gas was used, some fighting broke out, shots were fired, but apparently no one was killed. Violence is apparently expected as part of the election process in Kenya.]

We then drove to the lowest point in the Methare slums, which is where the poorest of the poor live. We were there to check on the progress of a public toilet and shower facility that another church was partnering with CMF to build. The area leaders put together an impromptu thankyou service and prayer meeting.

This morning we left early for the Methare slums area again, but this time the concentration was the primary school there. Our main goal was to meet Doug Priest, the CMF executive director, to film him touring the area. Doug used to be a missionary to the Maasai in the Nairobi area and also in Tanzania, so he is fluent in Swahili and the Maasai language. We got a tour of the school, were introduced in each class and they had to repeat our names. Most classes sang a song and recited a memory verse.

We also visited the home of a lady with AIDS and she told of how she has hope through Christ. We prayed with her and were moved by her story.

We got the rest of our footage and photos and then were served the “standard” lunch of rice, mystery (beef or goat) meat stew, mashed potatoes and a soft drink. Then we had some downtime while waiting for another guy to take us to the next stop, so we grabbed our cameras and looked for fun shots of the kids and school. We also had some cool discussions while sitting on desks in the shade of a large tent.

Afterwards, Keith Ham took us to the Java House to meet Dan and Connie Crum and a Maasai friend of theirs. Dan wanted Pat to tape the man saying a line for a video Dan was making. This only took a few minutes and then we were off to the Crum's for dinner and relaxation. Connie had just gotten her new MacBook that day, so Patrick helped her set it up and I introduced Dan to GarageBand. It was cool to see all four of us sitting around with a Mac notebook.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

The first thing on the agenda today was to video tape an interview with a local Maasai woman, which we did in our housing unit. Then we went to the manager's house to start a tour of the facility. Ewaso Ngiro (pronounced like “wausengaro”) is one of the most developed and capable CHE facilities of CMF. The medical facility is used by people from quite a distance but doesn't actually have a doctor on staff. They have clinicians, which are sort of like nurse practitioners in the US. It also is a training facility with student housing.

In the afternoon, we went a short ways from the facility to visit a Maasai man who has AIDS at his home. He was sitting on his couch inside his three-room house. The room was lit only by window light and the open front door. He obviously lacked much strength or energy, but was very nice and was very eager to talk about his condition. One of the clinicians from Ewaso Ngiro translated for us.

Dan started by making sure that the man knew that we were there to hear and share his story to help others, not to make money. He thanked us for that and really opened up about his condition. He spoke of how his wife was also infected and how she was always trying to get him to go to church. He was saying that he is now thinking that would be the right thing to do, as he thought there was nothing good in this world, so Jesus gave him hope for the next. He welcomed our offer to pray with him, so even though we don't think he has accepted Christ yet, he is very close. He insisted we stay for

, which of course attracted many of the flies common to a Maasai farm and home. It was a very touching and sobering visit.

Then we got to make that fun three hour trip home on the bumpy roads with lots of construction. We stopped in Narok to check out the Maasai knives and

(blankets). Funny how the blankets had gone up in price for the white foreigners. One of the missionaries had purchased eight the week before for 250 shillings each, but the clerk quoted 350 shillings to us. We objected and asked when the price increase happened. He got this weird look on his face and said, “last week”. It was priceless. After our best efforts, we ended up paying 340 shillings. This is still less than they would have been at the marketplace in Nairobi.

Next we visited a knife vendor on the street. I wish we could have filmed this as it was very much a movie scene. Dan went with us and spoke to him in Maasai, which helped tremendously. He started at around 900 shillings. Pat and I are standing aside in the intense sun watching this go on. Then a friend of Dan's that lived in Narok came by and said this guy is ripping you off, let me go buy them myself from another vendor. Our vendor got a bit upset over this and begged us to stay. He finally came down to 600 shillings, but took Pat and me around the corner to actually pay for them so that his friends wouldn't hear the price. It was still probably higher than what a Maasai might have paid.

After having breakfast of baked oatmeal with mango, at the Barron's, we took off on two barely discernible tracks to find our way across a plain to a one-lane road, then to a “normal” road. We passed many Maasai villages, many brightly-clothed Maasai walking between villages, gazelles, wildebeast and impalas along the way.

We arrived at the Talek Community Health Centre around mid-morning and were greeted by Juma, one of the center's doctors. He gave us very thorough tour and we got the video and photos that we needed. Since Dan knows of a church that is planning to spend a week or two here next year, he wanted to check out nearby lodging. We went to a very nice resort along the river and next to the boundary to Maasai Mara, which is the northern part of the Serengeti National Park. It had a bit of luxury to the rooms, complete with private outdoor showers and hammocks. We also checked out another one with lesser facilities at about 60% of the cost.

With our work for the day done, we headed to the Tarek gate to the Maasai Mara, to do a little safari of our own. After some negotiation at the gate, Dan got in free, while Patrick and I had to pay three thousand shillings each. In the mara (which is Maasai for park), people and animals roam pretty much wherever they want. It is a vast plain that extends for more than a hundred miles south into Tanzania, so you can see for what seems like forever in any direction, unless there is a huge hill in the way. Lots of tall grass, scrub, and a few very African-looking trees.

The first animals that we encountered were the ever-present zebras, gazelles and impalas. Then we saw the wildebeast and an animal that looks very much like the impala only bigger. It seemed that all the birds that we saw had some sort of bright coloring somewhere. The ranged in size from the very tiny to the big buzzards and storks. We drove fairly close the the river in hopes of seeing a crocodile or hippopotamus, but it was hard to find a spot in the river that had enough water. Just when we were going to stop for lunch regardless, I looked over a bank and there in the river were at least ten of the large beasts. Some had their heads out of the water, some were barely visible. When we got out and walked to the bank, up about twenty feet from them, they looked huge. We stayed pretty quiet so they wouldn't get upset, but they still checked us out. Once we had taken our photos, we ate lunch then realized that we needed a bit of video that we had forgotten to take back at Talek. Since we were very close, we went back, got the video and re-entered the mara. Only this time we had another rider, a Maasai man that Dan had promised to take across the mara to the gate we would be exiting.

We drove a ways before seeing anything new, but then I spotted a family of elephants by a mudhole close to the road. It looked to be the parents with two young ones. They didn't want to hang around us long, but gave us an opportunity for a few photos. A little farther down the road, Dan stopped the Land Cruiser suddenly and grabbed his binoculars. He then turned the Cruiser around and into the grass towards a tree and stopped about twenty feet away. There were three cheetahs sleeping under the tree. We crept a little closer and shut off the engine to watch and photograph. It was pretty amazing to be just twelve feet away from these very fast and powerful animals. They didn't seem to mind us being there and barely opened their eyes, even when he started the engine to move to the other side for a different angle.

As we moved on, we saw some young wildebeast butting heads and playing, two large herds of buffalo, and then some more elephants. We got 30-40 feet from the elephants and just watched for a while. They were constantly eating and didn't seem too concerned with us. Again, to be so close to these giant creatures was a rare treat that we greatly appreciated. There were more birds, but as we wound around the mara, we arrived at the exit before we saw any girafes or lions.

Then on the open road, in fact a little detour around construction on the main road, were seven giraffes leisurely beginning to walk across the road. What site that was, as these large creatures looked at us as much as we looked at them as they crossed. We just parked and photographed them for about ten minutes, then they leisurely went on their way and we went ours. Patrick pointed out that God certainly is creative.

Today we were off at 9:00 to pick up Dori Cazier and then out to the Maasai areas west of Nairobi. The first part of the journey was very beautiful with good roads. It seemed to be a farming region, even though there are many hillsides and the fields are very irregular. One crop we saw being grown was tea, which grows best around the 7000' level. We stopped at an overlook point to just take in the view over the Rift Valley. It gives you the sense that the earth is a pretty big place and that God knew what he was doing when he created it.

Shortly after this point, we saw three giraffes feeding on the trees well off the road. We made turn onto the road to Narok, and the condition of the road changed. It was very, very rough in most sections and even worse in others. There were many places where it was down to one lane due to construction, and of course, there were many police checkpoints, though we never had to stop. The road construction is pretty baffling, since it was nearly impossible to figure out their plan or any reason to what they were doing. Some sections were almost finished, while a kilometer later it looked like they just started. However, The section they finished in the last few years was very nice. We stopped in Narok to go the restroom, which was interesting in that the guy outside directing people into the proper room, were sending the women to the men's, even when there were men in there.

Our first stop was at Ewaso Ngiro to drop Dori off. We will return to this point and stay the night tomorrow. We had lunch on the road and arrived at our first stop, Aitong, to check out the clinic there. The resident clinician met us and showed us around as we taped and shot photos. They insisted we sign the guest register and then we were off to the Barron's at Endoinyo Erinka.

On the way, we stopped at a pond that was know to have a couple of rhinos living in and around it. We didn't see any, but took some interesting photos and continued on. Shortly thereafter, we saw lots of zebras beside the road, with impala, gazelles and even a lone wildebeast.

We were met at the truck by Joshua Barron and his two daughters, Aliztah, and Hannah, 2. The third daughter, Eliana, is only two months old. His house is very American looking from the outside, even with a fence around the yard. The electricity is provided by batteries that are charged by solar panels on the roof. The main lights are 12v and he has an inverter to provide very limited 110v service. No curling iron or hair dryers allowed.

We stayed in the guest house out back. I'm hearing the sound of bats squeaking on the roof as I write this. At least its not mice. We're hoping we don't get eaten alive by the mosquitos, since we don't have a net, but of course we have applied the insect repellent liberally. Showers and toilets are in another small building behind this one. The toilet, called a “

” (pronounced ch

ō

)

here, actually has a seat and the hole below is pretty deep, so it should be usable for a long time. Next door, the shower has a gas powered water heater that you light just before you shower. Then you turn another knob to start the water flow. You have to turn off the heater after 30 seconds or so, or else the water will get scalding hot. When it cools down, you turn the heater back on. A little inconvenient, but you get the hang of it quickly.

Today we left at 5:45 am to pick up Jeff and Tammy Brown and head south to the Maasai tribal areas. By leaving so early, we missed the Nairobi rush hour traffic, which is a big deal because there are no interstate highways, just bumpy city streets and lots of roundabouts.

The first place we visited was the Kajiado Training Center. The first order of business was to visit the

(pronounced ch

ō

)

, which means outhouse, then gather for

, which is a tea with lots of milk. They also served us butter and jam sandwiches on white bread. Among the Maasai, serving

is a very important part of a visit. The young director there gave us a very thorough tour and Dan left some sporting supplies with them. We actually returned to this center in the afternoon to observe a class in progress. The instructor asked that all of us introduce ourselves while one of the class members interpreted.

Then we were off on small dirt roads to a church and school at Inkito. The school kids were all dressed in uniforms and were anxious to perform a song for us as a thank-you for the aid given to them. It was pretty cool to see fifty kids singing at the top of their lungs and doing the Maasai jumping dance. We then went to see the new church building where the leaders had the missionaries sit up front while they thanked them. They served us warm soft drinks in glass bottles be fore they started. Over here, Coke is sold in 12 ounce glass bottles and is quite popular. All of us had to get up front and give a greeting, which meant tell who we were, where we were from, and any other remarks you might have. It takes a little different cadence when speaking through an interpreter.

Next we were off to Kumpa, to see their clinic and new bore hole (well). Here we had lots to document and got to talk with some of the leaders. While I was video taping some of the men, they decided they wanted to look into the camera. I showed them where to look and they were fascinated as I pointed the camera towards their friends. Pretty quickly, I had a crowd around me, so I let one of the men hold the camera and stood back to take a photo. They were very appreciative and seemed to really enjoy the experience, as did I.

After this, we hit the winding dirt paths again in our Land Cruiser and made our way to the home of Daniel Tuke, a minister that had been with us all day. This was back in the same town as the Kajiado Training Center. He built the house with red bricks and was one of the strongest we've seen. He has twelve children, cows, goats and sheep. Of course, the chickens had the run of the dirt-floored house. His wife had a meal all prepared for us when we arrived. She brought out soft drinks in glass bottles (no ice of course), rice, mystery meat stew, and tortillas. Daniel is very personable and fun to talk with. We filmed an interview with him about HIV/AIDS in the Maasai lands while we were there.

   The Mathare slums have grown so big they are now numbered to designate the different areas. The shacks spread across the Mathare valley on the eastern side of Nairobi. Most are made of corrugated metal and tree limbs. Some are made of very ragged cement and/or earthen walls. Of course, the floors are dirt, at least until the water overflows or the roofs leak, then they become mud floors. There are ruts and channels that run through the narrow pathways that carry water, urine and solid waste to the lowest point, which is the river. There are fires where people are cooking or burning refuse, so there is smoke in the air much of the time. There is no garbage pickup, so the trash just piles up all throughout the neighborhood. The stench is somewhat overwhelming at first. Once you think you are used to it, you come across a different area with a new strong aroma.

   As a photographer, I am sort of able to insulate myself from the subject matter and the emotional impact is somewhat less than it may be for someone just touring the area. But even with the camera, it is difficult to be immune to sympathy for these people and what they go through on a daily basis. There is just no way most of us can even imagine what it is like without being there and seeing it first hand.
   At the same time, it is amazing to me how happy the children seem to be and how much hope they have. The ones that attend the church seem to be totally committed to Jesus and worship with their whole being. We only encountered three or four people that were begging in our two-and-a-half hours in the area. Everyone was very welcoming and all but a few were fine with us making photographs. The children would rush up to us extending their hands and saying, “How are you?”. The smallest of kids said this with great clarity, frequency and volume. In fact, white people are called either “howareyou” or “mgundas”. Equally amazing was how well-dressed, clean and in many cases, professional-looking people were that lived in the slums. We were shocked that two of the people that took us there pointed out their houses. One was a professional photographer and the other was a teacher at the boarding school! We had absolutely no idea they lived there.

   God is a big god; he touches hearts all over the world, whether in Carmel or the Nairobi slums. It's sometimes easy to think that everyone needs to live like us with fancy homes, nice cars, interstate highways, etc. in order to be happy, but that just is not the case. I am coming to understand that our goal should not be to make everyone like us, but to help them be the people they were meant to be. Helping them is one thing, forcing our way of life on them is another.

   The morning started with a light breakfast of coffee cake, banana, kiwi and a taste of passion fruit. We held hands and prayed before we left for the day. Dan dropped Pat and I off at Keith Ham's and from there we went to the Kosovo Church.
   The church is a church Pastor Wallace and his wife, Mary started in the Kosovo slums in eastern Nairobi. The singing was lively, expressive and led by four singers and a keyboard player. The keyboard player queued the recording music and added color from the keys. The group from Tarpon Springs was also there, so they were introduced and gave a short greeting. Their music minister delivered the message through an interpreter. Then Wallace got up and gave a short message followed by prayer time. It was neat to see people who live in unbelievably primitive conditions have such hope in Jesus and worship with such fervor.

   When the service was over, Pastor Wallace had the visitors leave first and line up outside the door so they could greet the people as they came out. The church is built into the side of a hill, so there is a very uneven wooden walkway to get down to it. So when the people came out, they filed through the line of visitors and then up the stairs. I positioned myself towards the top of the walkway at a curve to photograph the event. That meant that everyone came by me also, and I must have shaken a hundred hands. It was pretty cool to have the kids of all ages, the men and the women want to shake my hand and offer a greeting. It was an experience that I didn't plan on having, but I was very blessed by it.

   After the service, they served lunch to all of us visiting. And again, two ladies held a basin and poured warm water so that we could wash our hands. It was again rice with carrots, beef/goat stew, cooked cabbage and tortillas. Pat and I both commented on how good the potatoes were in the stew. After everyone had their fill, we departed for the Mathare One slums.

To be updated soon...

   After a great night of sleep, we took a late morning trip to the Village Marketplace, a local indoor/outdoor mall. Since this was Friday, the Maasai Marketplace was open. This is an area under a cloth roof where the Maasai come to sell the items that they make. Each one wants to talk with you and sell you something. They aren't really pushy, but very outgoing. They make it clear that whatever price they give to you is always negotiable. I refrained from buying anything until I got the lay of the land, but did talk to a few of them to learn the process.

   The mall is across a valley from the US Embassy housing and just down the street from the United Nations compound. None of us noticed the sign prohibiting photography until we were on our way out of the mall and after we had taken many photos. When I later saw the exact same style of sign outside the US Embassy, I figured that the sign only applied to photography in the direction of the embassy housing across the valley. Apparently, a few years ago there was a bombing at the embassy and they found out someone was taking photos of it a few times before the incident, so they put up those signs to help prevent another occurrence.

   We went to the Java House, a well-known coffee house and restaurant for lunch. This is just around the corner from the UN, so one can see many diplomatic personnel from various nations there. They have excellent food, coffee and free internet access, so it is very popular. After we ate, we took advantage of the internet access by pulling out our MacBooks and checking our email. I suspect we'll go back there a few times while we're here.
   After lunch, Connie took us to the CMF Kenya office where Jeff Brown is the office manager and accountant. It is a small two-room space in a nondescript building, but is all they need and works out well. A funny thing we found out is that the public restrooms in the building aren't so public. Apparently they are locked some of the time and your access is limited by the mood of the caretaker.
   The rest of the day was spent at the Crum's. Connie made some of the best cheese enchiladas that I have ever tasted. When I say she made them, I mean exactly that. She made the tortillas, the sauce and grated the cheese. Tortillas and sauce are very expensive here, so it is better to make them. Many of the pre-prepared grocery items that we take for granted in the States are not available here or are very expensive.
   Just before dinner, Connie flipped a switch for the water heater, and all the power went out. All the neighbors had power and it happened right when she hit the switch, so we determined the problem was in the house. We searched for the circuit breaker box, but didn't see anything amiss and then went outside to see if there was another box. We did find one that housed the meter that appeared to be locked, so we couldn't do anything. As it turned out, the wires inside this box had burned and required an electrician to fix it.

   The flight to Nairobi was pretty smooth and not near as bad as I had feared. The time went by..., well it went by. I did get some sleep, so that helped a lot. We got into Nairobi at 7:10 local time and it was quite dark--much more so than at home at 7:10.
   Once we got off the plane, I knew I was someplace different. The airport construction and décor reminded me more of the movie “Casablanca” than it did a modern airport. Brightly painted (many times) stucco-type walls, narrow halls with low ceilings and lots of people with colorful clothes were everywhere. We went by a small room that must have been a chapel, because there was a man standing on his prayer rug praying to Allah, no doubt. I asked Pat if that was an equal-opportunity chapel where we would be welcome to kneel down and pray. He wasn't sure and we decided not to make a scene and try it.
   A quick look at our visa application and $50 got our visas taken care of. Even though we filled out the form for multiple entries, we're not sure if we'll have to pay again when we get back from Tanzania. It seems to be one of the many variables to life in Kenya. After waiting a long time, all of our bags finally showed up in good shape on the conveyer belt. We carried them to the customs agent, and he just waived us right on through without even taking a look. Bet that doesn't happen coming back to the US!
   Our hired taxi driver was waiting for us holding his “Gerber” sign. He took us out to his well-used Nissan minivan, loaded our bags and we were off. On the way out of the airport, we saw an army truck with three soldiers sitting on the back with machine guns. They drive on the left side of the road here and have few posted speed limits. I found out the speed limits are based on a sticker on the back of the vehicle. It seemed to me that they were ignored and all the drivers must be very talented because they drove within inches of each other. One car was weaving in and out of traffic and was headed right for the side of our van, apparently expecting our driver to slow down to let him through, which he did by slamming on the brakes in the nick of time. After many confusing roundabouts, bends in the road, hills, and miles of rough pavement, we made it to our destination.
Jeff and Tammy Brown met us at a local mall where they had arranged for the taxi to take us. The Browns recently moved to Nairobi with their three children and are still getting used to life here. They are a very nice young couple who took us the rest of the way to Dan and Connie Crum's house, where we will stay when in Nairobi. The Crum's also have three children, although only 17-year-old Rachel remains at home. She is very cute and the most pleasant person you could ever want to be around.

   This flight was much better than the Detroit Amsterdam flight comfort-wise. Having the vacant seat helped, and there was more leg room--not any more knee room, but we could stretch our legs under the seat in front. We are still a couple hours out, but we have both slept a little on this flight and feel somewhat refreshed. We'll probably stay up now to get more in sync with Nairobi time, since we'll arrive around 7 pm, so it will be time for bed by the time we get settled. Actually having a bed and sleeping horizontally will be very welcome indeed!
   Since we did sleep, I only got a quick glimpse of the Alps and pretty much missed the Mediterranean, Italy, Egypt and other notable landmarks. Oh well, they're better viewed from the ground anyway.

   The flight from Indianapolis to Detroit was on a CRJ, which is the small commuter jet, and it was cramped! I love to fly, but I'm amazed people continue to pay money to fly on these things. The seats are narrower than a 737 and there is no knee room. One could get quite claustrophobic in this airplane!
   We had a four-hour layover in Detroit, so we had a leisurely lunch at Max & Erma's in the airport and then found a power outlet to plug in our MacBook Pro's. AT&T's website was incorrect in that they did not have free wireless internet service in the Detroit airport. Their partner, Boingo, charges $9.95 for the first month of service, so I signed up so we could connect. Can't be without that internet lifeline!
   Now I know what a long international flight by air feels like. 7.5 hours from Detroit to Amsterdam, cramped in the middle seats of a four-seat aisle. Only inches from my knees to the seat in front. But with a color screen on the seatback, it wasn't all that bad. I watched the latest Fantastic Four movie, which was entertaining, but definitely not a block buster. The girl to my right was a very nice exchange student from Columbus, Ohio going to Brussels for three months.
   It was dark and raining in Amsterdam when we arrived. Temperature 55 degrees. We found these fixed recliner lounge chairs where we could park for a couple of hours. Most people using them took off their shoes and went to sleep. One man wearing a suit took off both shoes and socks. We also found that the Boingo internet service worked in Amsterdam, too, so we were able to check and send email.

   There were many stores in the secure part of the airport. We walked around and found two camera stores, electronics stores, music and video stores (complete with porn on display). As we went to the gate for departure for Nairobi, we found that we had to go through security again just for that gate. Not as extensive as the US, but I did need to remove my belt, empty my pockets, pull out my MacBook and plastic bag with the liquids. This was the first time I have encountered a double gateway. Once we got to the plane, some entered through the front of the plane and some went farther in the gateway towards the rear. This worked out great, since our seats were just forward of the rear entrance. We sat on the right side of the aircraft in a three seat row. The best part was that there was no one in the middle seat, so we could have extra space. Off to Africa!

Per Dr. Jones:

Use sunblock at least 40. His favorite is Coppertone Sport
Always wear shoes outdoors because of parasites in the soil
Don't get into fresh water ponds, lakes, rivers, etc.
Don't handle or feed animals
Take a baby aspirin one or two days prior to trip to thin the blood and prevent clots due to inactivity
Drink lots of fluids on the flight
Move around frequently
Don't drink tap water
Don't eat salad
Cooked vegetables are fine
Peelable fruit is fine
Take sanitizing gel and wipes to clean hands
Make sure all meat is cooked, hot and not sitting around
No food from street vendors
Check on traveler's insurance (International SOS $80-$100) so if you have an accident, you can get flown out
Sawyer Clothing Insect Repellent for clothes. Important ingredient: Permethrin. Available at Dick's, Gander Mountain
3M Ultrathon Insect repellent
Always apply sunblock first, then insect repellent

   Today I went to Dr Jeffrey Jones at the St. Francis Travelers Health Center in Beech Grove. What a wealth of knowledge! Dr. Jones is an experienced traveler and asked very deliberate questions pertaining to my trip and health history. Based on those answers he recommended the proper vaccines for the trip. He also talked about how to prevent illness, make the flight safer, even insect repellent and sunscreen. He warned of the foods and drinks to avoid, such as salad and tap water, to prevent infections. Another plus was that he charged half of his normal office visit fee since this was a mission trip.
   I had the adult polio vaccine (IPV) ($40), the Yellow Fever vaccine ($90), and he gave the oral Typhoid vaccine ($45), which is four pills taken one every other day. Apparently, it's important to take the first pill within 24 hours of the Yellow Fever vaccine. Total charge: $205
   I also went to the Marion County Health Department for the second of three Hepatitus shots ($45).