leaving Kisumu and the beginning of our travels!

Yesterday, Jason and I left Kisumu for the last time (at least for this trip to Kenya). It was bittersweet as we sat on the 8-hour long bus ride crawling along eastward through the expanse of beautiful green country side and treacherous mountain-side roads. I said goodbye to my old internship supervisor for the last time at the bus stop and exchanged many hugs with newly-met friends over the past week. Oh, and, as a... reminder? of our leaving Kenya, Jason and I have been sick with a nasty cold for at least the last week--think sore throats, congestion, and blocked sinuses :(

Jason and I had a delicious goodbye meal with Elise, Josh, and Jen on Monday night--stuffed peppers, wheatberry salad, and mixed greens with an appetizer of Holland cheese (special thanks to Josh for sharing this treasure :D). Dinner ended with Jason's banoffee cupcakes (banana + toffee) topped with the last bananas I would buy in Kisumu. All was well until Elise found out that her water pump was broken (while staring at a pile of dirty dishes from her hungry dinner guests)...

Jason and I spent the majority of Tuesday packing up our things and finishing up some last minute running around. I joined Elise and a few other friends for my first (and last) yoga flow get-together in Elise's beautiful backyard. I found a mix of yoga songs that I acquired from the previous teacher of late-night yoga at the SERF and Victoria lead us in a relaxing, yet surprisingly active flow to the sounds of crickets chirping, mosquitoes buzzing, and the Lord of the Rings sound track (where Josh the yogi found his inspiration for late-night flows).

Last night (Wednesday), Jason and I and a few PCVs headed to a very fancy sushi place in the nice part of Nairobi and then to HP: Part 2. The sushi was not so great, but the restaurant was beautiful and modern--something you might see in the hip and trendy parts of downtown Madison (though, way too pretentious for Willy). And, Harry Potter was better the more I think about it. I truly enjoyed the cinematography, make up, and style of the final installment of the addiction of my teenage years (who am I kidding--I'm 22 and am still reading the series!). An ending that, while not following the words or chronology of J.K. Rowling's imaginative dream in quite the way I read it, the story was still told well. And, I'm sure when I watch it again in a few months (after I've forgotten exactly the sequence of events as it's written), I'll love it even more :D

Anyway, onwards from Nairobi, Jason and I are flying to Malindi tomorrow late morning and staying for a few days before we make our way to Lamu. We're still in negotiations for finding a place to stay for the month of August, but hopefully something will work out so we can make our own delicious foods and not live in a hotel room for a month. Whatever happens, it's bound to be a surprise!!

Oh--and just a word about communication--I won't really have internet access in Lamu (think rustic Island where people get around by donkeys and most restaurants don't serve alcohol), but I'll be sure to update when we get to South Africa at the end of August!

AND--special thanks to my mommy for sending me a delicious and much desired package! My tummy is happy--and growing from foods that I *enjoy* :D (which means, I'll spend quite a bit of my Lamu vacation running along the Indian Ocean to make sure my pants still fit me when it's cold enough to wear them again)
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