Safari and A Hard Goodbye

We had a great week in the village and were able to get a good idea of the health of the kids. The doctors and nurses said they saw everything from "healthy" kids to some that were literally near death from dehydration and malnutrition. We assessed both sponsored kids and non-sponsored kids. Generally the sponsored kids were healthier than the non-sponsored kids.

Most of the team would be leaving on Saturday. There were 6 of us who would be staying for the second week. The hardest part about it was that Anthony would be leaving and I would be staying. On Friday we were having our "fun" day going on a safari at Taringire Game Reserve. We were excited, although we had seen giraffes, zebras and a lot of other wildlife on our drives to and from Mairowa everyday. However, we hadn't seen any elephants or lions, so we were looking forward to spotting those! I was going to be spending the weekend with 2 other women who were staying on. We would be staying at a game park Friday night and then going on safari at Lake Manyara Game Reserve on Saturday. Anthony was able to spend the morning with us and our guide and then we met up with the whole group at lunch. That's when we had to say goodbye. The safari was fun. We were in a jeep that had a top that opened up and we could sit up top and watch for animals as we drove around. We saw pretty much everything, including lions. It was cool. And I'm so glad that Anthony and I were able to spend at least the first part of the day together.

Compared to most couples, Anthony and I are familiar with the idea of being apart and saying goodbye considering he's a pilot and I also travel for work. However, this goodbye was so different! We were going to be spending 2-weeks apart, which isn't easy, but to top it off, I was going to be spending those 2 weeks in Africa! That's a whole different story. The safety net that I felt having Anthony there with me would be gone. I knew I wouldn't be able to look across the room when we were out at Mairowa or driving in the city and see him. But the opportunity was so great that I couldn't pass it up. The idea of having those experiences without him was hard to think of. Thankfully he is the best husband in the world and did just the things I needed to know that all would be well and that he would be with me. But it really was a hard goodbye.

Pictures:

1- Saying bye. 2 - Amos, Eddie, Kim, David and me. We spent 2 days on safari and a night at a safari lodge. 3 - 2 lions we saw on safari. 4 - Giraffes. 5. Me and Anthony on safari. 6 - An elephant upclose! 7 - Lunch at the safari lodge.