Mom's Visit and Kenya

My mom has been here for the last couple weeks.  I had to move rooms in my apartment, so it was almost like she was here helping me move into my college dorm or something.  =)  She even helped me shop for some furniture.  The first furniture I've purchased in Africa!  (Just a couple bookshelf-type things for better storage.)

We spent 2 nights in Jinja, the small touristy town about 2 hours east of Kampala.  We did a lot of craft/gift shopping there, especially at The Source, a non-profit cafe/gift shop who's procedes go to help the local communities.  We stayed on Lake Victoria (the 2nd largest lake in the world), just a short walk from The Source of the Nile (where Lake Victoria feeds into the Victoria Nile, which eventually finds its way down to Egypt).

We just got back from 5 days in Kenya.  We spent one day in Nairobi visiting two girls that my mom has helped support for several years now, especially since their mom passed away.  It was really neat to get to spend time with them in person (I had met one of them before), and we even got to eat at the local restaurant that the older sister owns!!  The next day we did a one-day safari to Lake Nakuru (where I went in June, see pics in previous blog), which is only two hours from Nairobi.  We went with the two girls and Danielle and her husband Jon.  Danielle is a friend of mine from college, and we actually traveled to Kenya together way back in 2001!  She and Jon just happened to be in Nairobi doing research for her phd, so it was great to get to meet up with them and spend the day with them!

Then Megan (a fellow EMI intern) met up with my mom and I and we headed down to the Masai Mara for a 3-day safari!  The Masai Mara is supposed to be one of the best places for an African safari, so we were so grateful for the amazing opportunity to visit.  (The Masai Mara and Serengeti are basically the same thing.  The Masai Mara is the part in Kenya and the Serengeti is the part in Tanzania.)  We stayed at an amazing lodge in the middle of the park (a 1.5 hour drive from the park gate), and had lots of amazing animal sightings.  We got to see lions, hippos, giraffe, antelope, gazelles, crocodiles, jackals, foxes, vultures, elephants, warthogs, and many other beautiful creatures. 

Also, we happened to go during the great wildebeest migration, so we got to see hundreds of wildebeest and zebras that aren't always there in the park.  We also got to see some of them cross the Mara River twice, which is the highlight of "the great migration."  The park and surrounding countryside was absolutely beautiful, a testament to God's beauty, creativity, and majesty.

Also, to complete the experience of a lifetime, we took a sunrise hot air balloon ride over the plains!  We watched the wildebeest running below, and we even went right over a pair of lions!  What an amazing trip.  I know I am so blessed to be able to experience something like that and see that part of God's creation, especially knowing that the majority of Kenyans have never been to the park.

I'll post photos soon!