To any loyal readers who may have wondered if I fell off my ferry to Zanzibar and was therefore unable to continue my blog, fear not. Zanzibar had no electricity, and by the time I got to America I was so thrilled with my ability to talk to people for limitless amounts of time that I thus abandoned this.
So - a quick recap of the last 8 months or so:
Zanzibar was beyond beautiful. We snorkeled and explored and had an ocean-side campfire singalong on the beach at Nungwi. I also found out I got the position of Program Coordinator for this fall, so I got to tell everyone I was coming back! This caused me some problems at the market when I accidentally told one vendor that SIC was buying me a plane. I just didn't know the word for "flight" in Swahili, which is actually something SIC is paying for this time around.
Getting back to America was an adventure - ferry to bus to Arusha for one night, missed my early-morning flight out and ended up on a later flight which gave me a crazy layover in Nairobi. After THAT flight I had another crazy daytime layover in Amsterdam, where I froze to death (only a slight exaggeration), and then had a 5-hour delay before my flight to London. I didn't think I would make it to DC because it was snowing in both London and DC when my flight took off, but somehow this was the most predictable part of my trip.
Less than 2 weeks in DC, including Christmas, New Years, and a quick journey to Massachusetts to see my Grandma, and I was back on the road bound for LA. The drive wasn't bad. I even got away with a warning for speeding through Oklahoma - oops!
Then this last semester happened. Highlights include reconnecting with friends, enjoying a little LA nightlife, going on a Spring Break cruise to Mexico (Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas), and finishing my last classes of college. I also had a herniated disc in my spine that caused quite a (literal) pain in the ass. I'm still dealing with it and glad to announce it is slowly but surely improving.
Post-graduation I went on a road-trip with my friend Sandy to San Francisco, Ashland OR, Seattle, Vancouver, Portland, Corvallis OR, and then camping in June Lake (which is sort of near Yosemite but actually closer to Mammoth - surprise!). It was a great time and I want to go back to all the aforementioned places.
Then I spent the month of June living with my sister Jeanne in Denver, helping with last-minute things for her wedding and trying to heal my spine by watching tv and reading books. I highly recommend this treatment plan.
Jeanne married Brian Baak on July 3rd, and it was a beautiful and fun event. Congratulations - I couldn't be happier for them! While they took off for a Turkish honeymoon, I made my way across most of the country again and have now been in the DC area for 5 days.
So here's what's in store:
On Sunday I leave for Nairobi for 2 months, where I'll be working with a theatre company called Amani People's Theatre. They do the kind of participatory theatre I studied at USC, called Theatre of the Oppressed. I'm very excited, and I know it will be an adventure. Then I get to go back to Tanzania to help with the same sort of program I volunteered for last year. I'll be in different villages than last year, and will have more responsibilities as well as more independence in my new position. I'll try my best to keep my blog readers informed, but internet can be unpredictable in this part of the world.
Thanks for reading!
No comments:
Post a Comment