I made it to Iringa eventually

But, its wasn't planned, so I didnt bring my usb with all my updates.

Anyhow, this place is mad! And I love it.

The orphans gave me the warmest of welcomes, and made me cry of joy.

Been out and about in different projects, such as HIV testing in remote villages, milking cows, playing twister and promoting education.
Tomorrow theres a wedding, and on sunday Im visiting a masai village.

More updates will follow.

Miss ya all

Hugs

I made it!

Or at least half of the way.

Am sitting here at the YMCA in Dar es Salaam, feeling a cool breeze from outside.
Now, it's only a bus ride between me and Ilula, yey, should be there by this time tomorrow.

Strangest things happen, yesterday at this time I was in London, ready to take off, and here I am now...

The flights has been totally hassle free. Rather comfy to be honest.
On the flight from London to Dubai, I had roughly 1000 movies to choose from. Was even handed out a menu in order to decide what to eat.
Arrived in Dubai early this morning, and had my connecting flight at 10.50.

Finally arrived in Dar es Salaam at 15.20.
Stepping off the plane, feeling the hot air and the sticky breeze made me feel like home. The heat, the smell, the buzz, the vibrant colours, the people and all the commotion made me feel like home at once.
Taxi driver Valencio stood there and waited for me, and after passing the bureau d'echange to get some shillings (675 000 to be exact) we got in to the taxi and took off towards the centre.
All the colourful taxis, people selling anything from apples to in liners, between the lanes, the overcrowded buses and dala dalas felt like a deja vu, so in place and normal somehow. The smell of smoke from the women cooking along the roads just threw me back to Ghana. I feel like I'm home.
Halfway to (my very basic accommodation) YMCA, Valencio looks at me and says "Can you give me baby?" No waisting time here huh? I politely refused his request, and started asking questions about different buildings we passed by.
After check in I decided to venture out and have a look around., came across a German couple Andrea and Daniel, and asked them if they knew a good place to eat.
They were going to red onion (up on a roof) and invited me to come along. Wonderful people, had a lovely evening talking to them and eating a nice hot red curry.

Just had a refreshing cold shower (my first in 48h) and have organised my packing for tmrw, and now as the minaret's has quieted down, I will tuck in to be prepared for whatever tomorrow might bring....

My route

This is where you can find me....

16/09 Taking Eurostar train leaving BRU 14:59 arrival London 15:56

21:15 Emirates flight from Gatwick, arriving in Dubai 17/09 07:10

17/09 Emirates flight from Dubai 10.50, arriving in Dar Es Salaam 15:20

I will spend the night at the YMCA, and next morning take the bus to Iringa.

On 14/10 I will take the buss from Iringa to Dar, spend one night at the http://www.sleepinnhoteltz.com/rates.html before taking the ferry over to Zanzibar.

23/10 I will fly from Zanzibar over to Dar, take emirates flight to Dubai leaving Dar 16:50 arriving in dubai 23:20
24/10 Emirates flight from Dubai 02:45 arriving Gatwick 07:20 then taking eurostar train 9132 from London 12:57 arriving in Brussels 16:03.

On Zanzibar I will be here 15-18 October http://dhowpalace-hotel.com/contact_us1.html
And here 18-23rd http://www.zanzibararabiannights.com/photo.htm

And now I'm all packed and ready to go (well, almost)

Torn(ado)

I feel like I have a tornado inside of me.
In 24h I'm taking off from London, and here I am, far from packed...

It's 15th September, and I am torn.
The excitement over my trip and this whole adventure is tumbling around inside of me, bubbling, fizzing, oozing and so much more.
Yet, I have a heavy heart.
It's dad's birthday, or it should've been, if he hadn't been taken away from me too soon. I wish he was here. I miss him everyday, but on a day like this, before my adventure, and his b-day, I miss him even more.

On a positive note, I have recieved many encouraging greetings, and kind words from people around me.
Thank you all for being so supportive in regards to my trip.

Confirmed

My phone was ringing and beeping at 7.30 this morning, a sunday morning!!
It was Tulia in Ilula wanting to confirm everything.

Everything needing booking has been booked, and taxi driver will meet me with a sign with my name on it :)

In less than 72h I will be on my way, feels unbelievalble, I need to pinch myself.

Packing process still in limbo, nothing much new there. Good thing is that I dont need to bring any sheets, towels and sleeping bag, that leaves a lot of space for other stuff.

Need to buy kleenex, a pad lock for my bag and bandaids before I go. Where did I put that list again? :)

My sister promised to email me some pictures from back home, so I can show the children what it looks like with a meter of snow, thank you sister! :)

And on friday I recieved a wonderful gift: a dynamo driven flash light, so no need to worry about batteries. ;)
This will come in handy as to quote Berit "electricity, water and phone connection comes and goes, we take it as it comes, one day at a time"

Now I need to sleep, will have a busy day tomorrow.

All pieces together...

All pieces are not quite yet together, but it's moving in the right direction...

Called Berit today, so nice to hear her happy voice, she's a true voice of inspiration!
Logistics seems to be in place, taxi driver Valencio will pick me up at the airport in Dar, and take me to the YMCA (Yes, I will be staying at the YMCA, so if you are going to laugh, please do it now), and on friday he will take me to the busstation.
I have been provided with instructions of where to get off the bus, and they are what one can call vague... "The bus will drive through 2 reserves, and up a mountain, count on 6-8h, then there will be a steep ascent, (you will notice that)and once you are up, there's another 10 min and you should get off." Wish me good luck on that one.

As for packing, I have gone from not worried at all to being obsessed with the thought of what to pack, how to pack and when.
At least I know that I wont be needing to bring sheets, sleeping bag, towels and such, so that's a few things less to think about.
Guess the essentials are med's (especially malaria med's), passport, workpermit, tickets and some cash, the rest can always be improvised.

One week -> 7 days to go...

And I haven't even thought about packing...

A couple of weeks ago, it felt like forever until it was time for me to depart, but now I'm beginning to wonder where did the time go?

Am reasonably prepared I think. Got all the essentials, such as passport, work permit, tickets and a some cash. The rest can always be improvised.

Have been reading up a bit, and it seems like the last leg of my journey (after touching 3 continents in one day) will be on a highway with speed bumps through a national park or two. Lets just keep the water drinking to a minimum to make sure no accidents happen ;)

It's hard to believe that its finally happening, after all this wait and preparation. Am feeling some sort of inner peace.Sure, it will be emotional turmoil, stress, feelings of helplessness, but that's what life is all about isn't it?