So, we made it to Kenya. Malindi, Kenya to be exact. We had a very eventful time at the airport on Wednesday. We decided to leave at 8 from the hotel because our flight was at 11. We figured that would give us plenty of time. Well, we walked into the lobby as the shuttle was driving off, which means we had to wait another 30 minutes for the next shuttle. This means we got to the airport around 8:45, but we walked to our counter to see this:
I was a little nervous. My compadres would say that I was a lot nervous if you asked them. I did NOT want to miss the flight across the ocean. So we waited in line, forming new friends as we went along.
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| Julie and new friends Isaiah and Nathaniel |
We finally got up to the counter and the guy was sooooooo slow. The lady next to him checked in 3 separate groups while he checked in the four of us. We checked in our luggage (and they didn't even charge me for my overweight bag) and went to security. Again....the line was sooooooo long. I looked so nervous that the girl in front of me let the 4 of us go in front of her. I'm telling you, we had our liquids and computers in our hands way before we were at the front of the line. When we finally got finished we made it to the tram that took us to our terminal. It was like 10:50 at this point. We ran up the escalator (I'm EXTREMELY out of shape) and made it to the gate in time to SIT ON THE PLANE FOR ANOTHER 50 MINUTES! Yep, we got on the plane just before 11 (the time our plane was supposed to take off), but did you know that those long flights have a built in extra time for boarding???? Yeah, so I was all nervous for nothing, which is what God was showing me the whole time.
The plane ride was ok. It was not the best by far, but it wasn't bad. Julie's tv didn't work, so we switched seats in the middle of the flight, just so she could get some screen time. When we landed in Ethiopia, Julie realized that her guitar was with the "checked" carry-on baggage and we were getting out the back of the plane onto the runway and going to a different terminal altogether from the arrivals, so there was no where to pick up the checked guitar. After a series of people, she was promised that a phone call would be made so the guitar would get to the correct flight. (It did, for all of you who are nervous for her) While at the airport in Ethiopia, we met a man working for E3 ministry (check it out, it seems really neat) and just chatted until it was time for our final flight into Mombasa. I can tell you that none of us remember this flight because we were so exhausted that we slept through all 4 hours of the flight, stop in Kilimanjaro, and flight into Mombasa.
When we got off the plane we filled out our paperwork and we were the last ones to go through customs because we wanted to make sure all of our stuff was filled out correctly. After getting our luggage, we proceeded through the customs section where they tax you. We had a couple of bags with things for the Taylors, so he made us open one, saw the printer we were bringing, and made us pay tax on the printer. When we got all of that taken care of, we went outside and there was no sign of James. We didn't have a phone number or anything, so we just waited. It's in those moments that you realize "What did people do before cell phones?" He got there shortly and we were off to Malindi with a stop at the mall in Mombasa. The ride was pretty quiet:
And driving at night is pretty dangerous. I don't know how Brother James does it and survives. There were people walking, big trucks, little cars, tuk tuks, bikes, motorcycles, and animals all on the road and the sides of the road. It would definitely take some practice to get used to using that much brain power while driving.
When I got to the house, I got to see all of the Taylors and Ricklynn and Safari. It was so good to see everyone! Ricklynn pointed out that I was bigger than I was last year (which is a compliment in Kenya, but not so much for my self-esteem) so we will all be doing Insanity the rest of the summer. :)
On Friday morning we met with James about the summer and then went to language class with Getrude. It was so good to see her! I missed seeing her all of the time. She is so much fun! She is a wonderful teacher and gave us a few words to use while we are here. After chai time (that's tea time and it is necessary) we went back and had another meeting about what our internship was going to be like. We all realized just how short our summer is going to be. Friday night was movie night, so we watched The Croods and ate ice cream.
Saturday is a church work day. Every Saturday some of the church members go up to the church to work on the property or just clean and get ready for Sunday. I don't have any pictures, but we cleaned and painted the whole outside of the church building and the men completely tore down the choo (toilet) and rebuilt it. It all looks so nice! I will post pictures later. When we got back to the house, it was rest time, so everyone went swimming, and then Logan, Brittany, and Julie drove down to the beach for a few minutes.
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| The new puppies were so cold after swimming in the pool! |
Sunday=church day. We went to the church here in Malindi. Julie got to teach Sunday school for the kids and we had a great service. I got to see a lot of people that I know and even got to see Mama Cedrick's new baby, Serah. Pray for Serah because she is getting a cornea transplant next week to help correct her blindness. She is one month old.
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| Julie teaching Sunday School |
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| Logan holding baby Serah! |
After church we had business meeting, choir practice, and then lunch. We got back to the house and got our supplies ready for our camping trip. We are going on an intern retreat Monday-Thursday and I will tell you all about it when we get back. Pray that we have a safe and enjoyable time preparing our minds for the summer. We have our tents and sleeping bags ready and we are leaving at 4:30 AM!
I'm so excited to get to spend this summer with such incredible people all around. God is doing awesome things and will continue to show is might and power. Continue to pray for us interns as we learn what God has in store for us!
Kwaheri!
In Christ,
Ashley
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