Random Travels

Kevin Woodward was on his way back to America and he needed a travel companion during his last week in Kenya. I was his man. I am thankful for each experience and I wish to write a few of them here.

Cham Ge!!

The one word I learned that day from the Nandi language was Cham Ge (hello). The people loved it when they heard a white man utter their mother tongue so I said it A LOT. Nandi is an extremely large village region in the upper foothills of Kenya. Nandi Rock is a little finger of a rock that pokes up into the sky. We could see the rock from the Nehemiah center and I concluded that we must hike up to it. Kevin agreed. Our guide was a security gaurd boy named George. He gaurds the big red gate at the Nehemiah Farm. He is from Nandi and led us up the trail without even breaking a sweat or drinking a drop. The kid was a machine. One of the highlights was the screaming monkey that was shaking the tree as we hiked. I think he was calling for a wife or something. Another highlight was the fairy-tale atmosphere of Nandi. I felt like I was in a dream world. The little round huts with thatched roofs, the green rolling hills, the red-dirt paths, and the maize growing all around. It was so quiet and peacefull and time seemed to stop when we walked through Nandi. After sweating out the near two liters of water we reached Nandi Rock. Little to my knowledge did I know I would be doing some barefoot rock climbing, but I did. Another Nandian man helped Kevin and I climb to the very top. It was a little technical, but enjoyable and worthwhile. After coming down we were met by about a hundred African school children. They were SOOO excited to see us. My guess is that a white person for them was a rare rare treat to see. Greeting one and sitting with one was out of this world for them or so it seemed. After signing autographs and letting them play with my hair a bit we went back. Nandi was great. Praise God for his beautiful creation: the mountains, trees, monkeys, and the children. I am so grateful I went there.

The Creamery

Eldoret was not very exciting for Kevin and I. We stayed with our friend Michael, who is a great man of God and a dear brother. I love him very much. We were mostly bored in Eldoret and just came for a short visit. The best part was the creamery. We went straight to the source when I inquired about getting some ice cream. I went a little overboard with my tub of banana ice cream, but it was worth it. That was Eldoret.

Uganda and the Jew in Jinga

Uganda was great. I didn't want to go because it was rushed and about as poorly planned as possible. I like to know a few things before hopping over to another country, but it all worked out great so who cares. We knew: Jinga, Uganda, in a few hours, and need some money. That was about it. We waited until 3:30 am for our bus and then struggled for some sleep between the potholes on our way to Jinga. We woke up to the bus stopping and Kevin thought it must be a bathroom break. Or was it the border? We reached Uganda and didn't really know the protocall for crossing African borders in pitch dark, but we just followed everybody off the bus. After some confusion and signing a blue card we were walking into Uganda. The bus sped past us as we walked and then we got suddenly afraid. Then we ran after the bus. In short, lets just say we made it safely to Jinja, The birthplace to the Nile River.

The Jews name was Gilad (gee-lad). He was a young guy traveling alone through Africa. We met him while we bought our visa to Uganda. We really latched onto him because he seemed to half-know what he was doing in Jinja. The three of us rode on the back of three motorcyles to Bujagali Falls, a name for a class 5 Rapid on the Nile river. It was Beautifull!!! The Nile far exceeded any expectations I had coming into the trip.

How to do a full roll in a Kayak:

Get fully secured in your Kayak and make sure no water will get into your leg chamber. Hold your paddle on your side along the length of the kayak and have the paddle-head flat and parallel to the water. Roll over and stay very calm. Slowy move the paddle accross your body and reach out with it to the side of your body. With a great thrust push down on the water and you will pop up like a duck. Only try this with the supervision of a trained professional or a random Ugandan kid you meet at the bank of a swimming spot on the Nile River.

Rafting and my new sisters

I told my new sisters that I would write about them on the blog. They were an hodgepodge of five girls from VERY different places. Three were from Delaware (I still don't know where that place is) I think it is a city in Alaska or something. One girl was one of about 15 missionaries from Dijibuti (Ji-booty). Fifteen missionaries and about one million people (that is sad). It is on the North-east coast of Africa and is completely Muslim. It is the Bakersfield of Africa. And the third girl was a delightful girl from the Netherlands. I now like the Dutch after meeting her. Anyways, Kevin and I had a great time with our guide Henry, these five girls, and the Nile River. The water was warm and the rapids were enormous. They were class 3-5 rapids. We only flipped one time, which was unfortunate. That was everyone's favorite part. The Nile was a hit and I am so thankful to God that I was able to go there. I am glad Kevin dragged me there. It was a great adventure and it gave me a lot of time to think and pray for the street boys. God keeps throwing things in my plans that force me to rest. Rest is Gods idea and we can't forget it. Rest was made for us and we were made for rest. Praise God!!!