We're off to Africa for the summer! After a crazy-whirlwind last week or so, Bryan and I are packed and ready to leave tomorrow for Nairobi.
We're leaving the U.S. for two months to travel where I've always wanted to go: East and Southern Africa! Something of a delayed honeymoon four years later… (Peace Corps in Jamaica definitely did not count as anything close to a honeymoon!) We're also moving from our lives in Santa Monica, to Santa Barbara, since Bryan has been offered a full-ride fellowship to earn his doctorate at UCSB! We'll be moving to Santa Barbara in early September, where I also plan on pursuing my graduate studies (applying this Fall).
We spent the last week wrapping up our responsibilities and getting the next phase of our lives in order… my last day of work at TreePeople was Friday, Bryan finished his master's thesis and graduated Saturday from UCLA, and we packed all our stuff out of our apartment and into storage for the summer (our kitties and aquarium will be cared for by Troy in Wrightwood).
We'll be on the continent of Africa for two months, leaving tomorrow, returning in late August. First we'll be living with a Swahili family on the coast of Kenya, doing volunteer work and teaching at a local school. After that, we'll be camping and traveling overland through 8 countries in East and Southern Africa with a group of other travelers for a month, ending in Johannesburg, South Africa. During our last two weeks we'll be roaming around South Africa on our own, flying back to California from Cape Town. Thank you VERY much for those of you who have passed on tips from your various experiences in Africa—your suggestions definitely have helped!
I have always wanted to explore Eastern and Southern Africa, and I am absolutely thrilled that this is our chance! Ever since I took geography courses on African wildlife in college, I've been aching to go and experience the continent for myself and see the places, people, and wildlife I've only been able to read about. I am also really looking forward to helping local communities while we travel, volunteering where we can, and am only sad that we won't be staying longer to help more...
Although I anticipate internet access being very intermittent, I plan on sending out update e-mails when I can to let you guys know we're OK.
Thanks again for all our friends and families' support during our last couple busy weeks- love you guys!
Here are a few pictures from Bryan's graduation Saturday:
No comments:
Post a Comment