Travel

Kenya, Pictures

Depending on how you count, either today or yesterday marks four years since I’ve been in Kenya; I left the United States on October 25th, 2007, and arrived on the 26th. In those four years I’ve taught computer science classes, learned Swahili, traveled Eastern Africa, fainted and whacked my head on the floor, became a small-scale farmer, and bought a flat screen TV—what an adventure.

Here are some photo highlights (in no particular order):

Looking back at it all makes me want to do it all over again…

Kenya

Sometimes it’s hard to come across things you’ve gotten used to having. For some items you can just find alternatives, for others, there ARE no alternatives. Having said that, I hereby place a standing order on the following goods:

  • Peanut butter cups. Any size.
  • Old Spice Original stick deodorant (I just can’t get the hang of roll or spray on!).

If you are traveling to Kenya, bring me these things! In return for your kind gesture I will either pay you back or pick you up at the airport and take you back to Nairobi in a real Kenyan matatu! Oh the adventure!

Food, Travel

If you don’t like the sour Ethiopian bread injera, steer clear of “Tibs Firfir”! It’s number 50 on the menu at the National Cafe in downtown Addis, next to the National Theater and the big lion statue. In Amharic it looks like this: ጥብስ ፍርፍር. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. I made a bit of a mistake ordering dinner tonight with a friend in Addis Ababa. We decided we both liked tibs, an Ethiopian dish with roasted meat and, sometimes, tasty sauteed vegetables. What we didn’t know is that the “firfir” changes the game completely! Your itty bitty pieces of meat come mixed with shredded injera wrapped in a huge, pancake-like injera!

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