Saturday Jan 7th started out perspirous eating breakfast at Wista's Chalet at 6 AM in anticipation of the long bus ride to Ilula. We had an uneventful morning start and ride thru Morogoro then Mikumi National Park. From the road we saw zebras, giraffe, impala and a large herd of cape buffalo. We arrived at our lunch stop, Tan-Swiss, at 1:30 PM and sat down for lunch. Our bus driver, Abdulla, however, became preoccupied with issues related to the bus. We have had Abdulla as a driver before: an always-smiling man who speaks very little English. The bus would not start; there was a problem with the fuel intake valve. "Shida?" I asked--Kiswahili for problem. "Shida kidogo, kidogo" he replied--small, small, problem. A fuel valve had gone bad and Abdulla had to call a fundi (a repair man) to come and fix it. We sat in the shade and John lounged by the pool while the bus got fixed. We took off 2 hours later and arrived at Ilula to a welcome by Dr Saga, Kikoti and Anna, our cook. We have a great group this year with some diverse backgrounds; We are all looking forward to the upcoming day with plans for a Swahili lesson Sunday afternoon.
Randy
Habari zenu, friends! It was a delight to find your blog! Jake and I think so fondly of our time 5 years ago (!!!) in Ilula. We are currently in Eldoret, Kenya for the next 10 weeks at Moi University Teaching & Referral Center, part of AMPATH www.ampathkenya.org
ReplyDeleteOur trip with you 5 years ago absolutely paved the way for continued interest in east Africa. Can't wait to read more about your experiences this year! Best, Meg & Jake Feigal