Kenya Trip

Back in November of 2013, I visited Kenya for the first time with Samantha. During my three week visit, I experienced an overload of new things.

The trip started off poorly. We arrived in the morning before the sun rose. Upon leaving the shuttle from the airplane, an elderly gentleman got his arm caught in the door. I tried helping him, but I caused him more pain attempting to free his arm. After the elderly gentleman was able to free himself, I proceeded to customs within the airport. The officer that collected the fee for my visa kept the change. After proceeding past customs, we discovered our ride did not show up and so we had to wait a few hours at the airport until someone was able to pick us up. On the way to our destination, I saw a car turned over and a group of people standing around the wreck. Our vehicle just kept on driving. I felt scared after that point. There I was half way around the world, and I had just experienced an elderly gentleman possibly break his arm, a corrupt customs officer pocket my money, and a possible fatal accident all in the first few hours upon entering the country.

Those first few hours didn't keep me from having the trip of a lifetime however. I could spend considerable time writing about the entire trip, so I will just mention a few of the most memorable moments for me. One unforgettable moment happened when I found myself dancing at a club from dusk until dawn. The club was called K1, and I danced all night! I had never done anything like that in my life. It was such a blast for me and Samantha. Another cool moment was when I saw three men and a goat go down a dirt road on a motor bike. This was when I was introduced to the phrase, "T.I.A. - this is Africa" I also experienced transportation on a mutatu. Mutatu's are like public buses, except they blast rap music at maximum volume and disregard local traffic laws. I saw many, many animals on the safaris I visited and I experienced church Kenyan style. I visited a little store along the equator and I got to visit Samantha's old home. The most memorable moment, however, was when I had to slaughter a goat to be considered a man among my wife's family. While I don't think I would ever want to do that again, it was an unforgettable experience. Nothing will ever top that. I can't wait to see what my next visit to Kenya will bring.

Samantha and I hanging out at her Aunt Claire's place.

Driving down a Kenyan country road

All traffic stops for crossing zebras. 

Here I am skinning a goat I had just slaughtered.

Here I am taking some recently harvested sugarcane. 

Here is Samantha and I at the equator.