The Full Africa Trip in Pictures

Still a bit jet-lagged, but safely back home, we're finally able to post all of our pictures from the trip. Too wonderful to truly put into words, these pictures should help add some context and do our amazing trip justice. . . Enjoy!

Kenya

Tanzania

South Africa

Uganda

Uganda at Play

When Winston Churchill declared Uganda to be "the pearl of Africa" he pretty much nailed it. What a beautiful country and a beautiful people. Despite the fact that our hotel in Kampala had a metal detector and armed guard (as did places such as health care clinics), the capital city felt safe and friendly. The countryside even more so.

Walking around the village of Ishaka and through the lush, vibrant, tropical hillsides, the yell of "Hey! Mazunga (whitey)! How ah youuuuuuuu!" was always accompanied with a smile and was often sang more than simply shouted. Even in 2010 we were a novelty, only seeing 3-4 other whites the entire time we were in Ishaka, but the novelty quickly wore after a few days as we spent most of the time when we weren't volunteering being out and about and taking walks through the village.

We were also lucky enough to have our last weekend in Africa free of obligations. On Saturday, it took all of about 10 minutes to decide to hop in the car and cruise up to Fort Portal, the jumping off point for a series of magnificent, untouched crater lakes. This part of Uganda sits at an elevation of about 5,000 feet, and we rolled through the countryside (ok, jungle-side), enjoying the views, more shades of green than I've ever seen, and a quick dip in Lake Nkuruba - a lake surrounded on all sides by vegetation (and at least one side by colobus monkeys).

The rich, almost hidden, day-to-day life that unfolded before us as we wound our way through this remote area was as fascinating as the landscape. Children waving, entire families walking the dirt roads to church, bikes with more bananas than would seem humanly possible to carry bouncing along the uneven ground. . . we could have stayed in this scene forever.

We were a bit dejected when we finally hit a paved road after spending time in this enchanted forest setting, but we quickly perked up when we got to see a bit of Queen Elizabeth National Park. Already having had our fill of game drives and hours in the car in Kenya and Tanzania, we saw a bit of the park by boat and enjoyed a much different perspective as we once again witnessed some of the great animals of Africa.

Then it was a couple more days of volunteering, a quick trip to Nairobi where we spent our last day visiting an elephant orphanage and an open-air city market before an amazing last meal (we have no problem finding things to do to fill our time), and all of a sudden it was sadly time to start the 30 hour trip back home and say goodbye to Africa.

For now. . .

Uganda at Work

We spent a night in the bustling capital of Kampala before being picked up to spend a week in Ishaka, a rural area about a six hour drive west and only about 100 kilometers from the Congo border. Thanks (again) to Jennifer Stockert and Minnesota-based HealthPartners, we would spend the week working here with Uganda Health Cooperative (UHC), HealthPartners' local NGO affiliate.

Wow. What an amazing team. Led by Dr. Owembabazi Ndyanabo Wilberforce, UHC works to get community and village members enrolled in their prepaid health plan and faces many of the same health care questions that we face in the states, for example, "Why should I keep paying my 5,000 shillings (equivalent to US $2.50) every three months if I'm not sick? Isn't that money just going to pay for someone else?"

Never mind that a single incident of malaria could kill a child or bankrupt an entire family, but it is difficult to discuss the benefits of pre-payment and preventative health care when basic needs - food, shelter, clothing - are a constant concern for many within the rural areas of Uganda. In addition, the caregivers that are available are typically used to fee-for-service, curative care, so have less incentive to go into the communities and help prevent potentially more urgent treatment and care down the road (thereby reducing their revenue stream). Sound familiar?

To gain members, UHC mobilizes Village Health Teams (VHTs) and also works to identify Income Generating Activities (IGAs) for communities to help them pay for their health membership. The easier it is for community members to earn money and join and stay in the health plan, the easier it is to keep them healthy and keep premiums low. So while it's not rocket science, it's obviously much easier said than done since we still haven't figured it out in the states.

The UCH staff have all the knowledge and enthusiasm in place and their drive to bring members into the health schemes and help prevent malaria (rampant and a major issue in Uganda) and other communicable diseases is an important and ambitious one. I learn quickly that I'm a guide, a consultant, someone with a fresh perspective to an ongoing problem. In no way am I a teacher. To use a cringe-worthy workplace cliche, I'm simply there to sharpen the tools that are already in the team's toolkit.

Over the course of two intensive days (after a couple of days of orientation and a tour of one of the local clinics), we covered a number of areas. And while we might not have used such corporate speak, we broadly talked through stakeholder management, data collection, feedback and reporting mechanisms, communications messaging architecture, conducting difficult conversations, common communications tactics, and creating emotional and intellectual connections with your message.

I was also able to spend a full day with the local UCH Board of Directors covering similar topics (mainly fleshing out a plan of attack for identifying sustainable IGAs) and offered the team and the board ongoing consultative services which I very much hope they will take me up on.

Before we left, I was already seeing project plans being changed and updated - and being made more specific and concrete - so I hope it helped. For me, the experience was rewarding and frustrating at the same time. They are doing such great work with so little - and the people they are trying to help have even less - but there is so much optimism I know they will continue to progress and achieve improved health within the country.

We have so much more in the states, it would be refreshing to see things moving in the the right direction more quickly back at home (although we know that Kaiser Permanente is leading that charge and proving what can be done with thoughtful, integrated care delivery).

Courtney, in the meantime, spent some time consulting at a hospital and children's program in the area and was touched by the openness, wisdom, and kindness of the doctors, counselors, patients and students displayed despite the immense daily challenges they face.

A Week Around Cape Town

We wanted to write a quick entry before we begin a week volunteering in a remote village a few hours outside of Kampala, as we are guessing we will not have internet access. Since we last wrote we spent a week in South Africa that could not have been more fulfilling and beautiful.

After a “quick” re-route of our botched flight from Arusha to Dar, we only had to make three stops to finally get to Cape Town (Arusha>Nairobi>Harare>Johannesburg>Cape Town) but still arrived on

schedule.

We met up with our friend (and co-worker) Kim Cash and spent a couple of days exploring the beautiful Stellenbosch wine country outside of Cape Town. It’s like somebody picked up Napa and planted it in a mountainous valley in Switzerland. We hiked through the hills to a waterfall, enjoyed wine tasting, explored the town, and had fantastic meals.

The added bonus of the time in Stellenbosch was to spend time with our friend Songo, learning about all the great work he is doing in his township of Kayamandi just outside of Stellenbosch.

The township sits right next to a vineyard and serves as a very immediate example of the contrasts and complexities that are prevalent throughout South Africa. It's breathtaking and heartbreaking at once. Kayamandi is one of the nicer townships, but there are still squalid living conditions, lack of access to fresh water, extreme poverty, and it’s very hard to earn any kind of a living. Despite all of this, there is a great sense of hope and pride and possibility and community and Songo is leading this charge. He’s already collected over 100 bicycles to keep kids active and off the streets, and provides life skills and coaching in addition to the simple joy of just being able to ride bikes. We are just missing a fund-raiser he’ll be doing in about a week, but will be contributing to help keep this and other projects in the township going strongly.

We said goodbye to Kim and Songo and explored Cape Town for a few days. Court was able to visit Wola Nani, connect with her mentor and supervisor, Moira Jones, and will continue to stay connected by donating to Wola Nani and providing consultative services from the states. Unfortunately Nate wasn’t able to meet Moira, but he was able to finish his presentation for the Ugandan clinic.

This productivity allowed for some more adventuring and sight-seeing! Robben Island, Table Mountain, and Cape Point all offered unique perspectives on the history and surrounding environs of Cape Town.

We also got to catch up with an old (to Courtney, new to Nate) friend Vanessa and her new husband Sean. Their wedding took place about three hours outside of Cape Town in Cederberg – a rugged, rocky, sweeping, openness of land that has similarities to the Grand Canyon and the Canyon Lands of Utah. We made new friends from South Africa, Namibia, the UK, and Zimbabwe (including six adorable little flower girls who had been adopted, and in many ways rescued, by Vanessa’s cousins). We also got a chance to do a bit of hiking and see some amazing 6,000 year old rock paintings before saying goodbye to South Africa and heading off to Uganda.

Game Drive Recap

We covered a lot of ground in our game drives throughout Kenya and Tanzania and were lucky enough to track down "The Big 5" (Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Cape Buffalo, and the elusive Black Rhino) over the course of the first three days.

The set up of the game drive is simple - go out into the expanse of nature, observe amazing animals in pristine settings, repeat as needed. Between drives there is literally nothing to do, so you just get to be. Eat, drink, swim, read, rest - it's been one of the most relaxing and enjoyable experiences of my life.

Hezron, a friendly, knowledgeable, seasoned safari pro, picked up where Salaton and Josef left off and guided us through Tanzania. Ngorongoro Crater, the Serengeti, Tarangire - the landscapes of each location are as spectacular and diverse as the animals that inhabit them. We don't have time to thank each and every animal that took time out of their busy schedules to share their world with us, but a few deserve some special recognition:

The "surprise standout" awards go to. . . the eland (a massive, magnificent beast) and a sweet ostrich street fight. Trust me, you do not want to be wing slapped.

The "we could stare at your weirdness all day" award goes to. . . the giraffe. What an awesomely majestic oddity.

The "we get it. You're super big and strong" award goes to. . . the full-grown male elephant that charged us in the Serengeti. You quickly appreciate an elephant's size, strength, and speed when you have a six-ton bull gunning for you. Even Hezron laughed a bit nervously as we sped away.

And finally (as you may have guessed from Court's earlier post), the award for "best lead animal in a feature length game drive" goes to. . .the mamma cheetah of Maasai Mara! (Insert raucous applause here.)

This cat really showed us something. We came across her on our first morning out feeding on a fresh kill with her six cubs - if you've ever wondered if it's possible to look adorable while graphically gnawing at a gazelle, the answer is yes. The very next day on our cab ride to the airport (read bonus game drive en route to the dirt airstrip), we actually got to see this same cheetah stalk and take down a gazelle. Precise, graceful, silent movements as she inched to within 80 meters of her prey, and then she just took off, absolutely exploding with speed and easily taking down her target.

Maya (age 3), Santi (age 4), Dave (age 30), and Kevin (age 31) asked for photos of elephants, crocodiles, and rhinos, so they get priority. The rhino and croc were tough to find, so you'll have to look carefully. . .Enjoy kids!

Picture, Picture (now featuring actual pictures!)

We are traveling without a laptop and still having a lot of connectivity issues, but we finally have a few shots of our time in Kenya to share!

Sorry for those of you that don't have Snapfish accounts, but it's a quick and free registration to view the pictures, eloquently labeled as follows, when you click on the above link.

1: Jumping for joy to meet the Maasai
2 -3: Our Maji Moto abode
4: Cleansing ceremony
5-8: Marriage ceremony
9-12: Enkiteng Lepa students learn yoga
13-19: Shots from our walking trek

Also, for your viewing pleasure, a couple videos from our trek that we had time to upload.

Sienna Plains Jam
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sly739gftc


Poison Arrows 101
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ICr7Ip5tzM

Why did we have time to upload them you ask? We won't go in to a lot of detail, but the short story is that Precision Air is not all that precise. They had no record of our confirmed and paid for flight out of Arusha, so we're stuck here another night when we're supposed to be in Dar es Salaam and in the process of re-routing a big chunk of our itinerary to get us to Cape Town.

We will have missed checking out Dar and a day in Johannesburg, but these were bonus pit stops that we hadn't planned on, so no big loss.

A few trekstra thoughts. . .

If we had to do it all over again, I think we would spend at least another day or two walking through the bush and across the plain. The game drive may be more visually rewarding, but the trek rejuvinates the spirit. . . how can you not expect to have a somewhat religious experience following Moses into the great wide open?

We walked about 18-20 km the first day and 12-14 km the second. Along the way, Salaton pointed out the heart of his nature conservancy. The goal of the conservancy is simple: protect the land, protect the Maasai way of life as well as the innocent animals that roam these plains.

After meeting Salaton in February, we believed in his mission and donated an acre of land to the conservancy. We now obviously feel much more strongly about the need to conserve this beautiful piece of earth and will be adding another acre now (thanks to the friends and family that helped with this trip) and will continue to help this cause in the future.

Even though the time out in the middle of nature felt a bit too short, it was a welcome site to see Josef spot us and come tearing across the plain to pick us up. Josef is a Maasai madman. Crazy in the best sense of the word, his good humor and contstant laughing are contagious. He and Salaton do a decent Maasai take on "The Odd Couple," but it is easy to see that they truly enjoy each other. We get to share in this joy when we begin our game drives.

We'll be providing a full Kenya / Tanzania game drive recap once we've finished (we have our last morning out tomorrow before heading to Dar es Salaam) and will hopefully have a connection quick enough to share some pictures.

Asante sana, Kenya!

I won’t even try to capture what my talented new husband was able to express in the previous post but I wanted to write a couple of thoughts from my perspective…

My sense of Africa that I developed from my previous experience two years ago when I was volunteering in South Africa has been reinforced over and over again. Being in Africa feels like a homecoming where we are truly welcome. “Karibu,” the term used almost constantly by the Kenyan people and especially our Maasai friends, means “welcome” in Swahili.

We have felt embraced since the moment we stepped off the plane and said "asante sana" (thank you very much) dozens of time each day. The natural environment is also so warm and inviting with its warm colors of orange and brown and the characteristic smell of Africa is rich and earthy. I love it here. The Maasai people are so generous and spiritual, resourceful and communal. The have limited possessions and survival is not easy, yet they emanate joy and calm. They smile so easily and chatter endhey cross paths with one another. The fact that they honored us with participation in a cleansing ceremony and a wedding ceremony just demonstrates their instinct to share themselves, their energy and their culture.

All of these qualities seem to be magnified in Salaton, the chief of this tribe, and our primary guide. He said to us once, “When I am well, I use my energy to contribute to the community and during times when I am ill, I focus the same energy and that of my ancestors back to myself.” He displayed this throughout his life and within his village. He works to conserve the land around him. He supports a least a dozen widows who, according to their culture, are not able to marry again after her husband dies no matter how young she might be. So the widows support one another and Salaton provides support as well. Additionally, many orphans live in the village, many of whom are young girls who have been rescued from early marriage and female circumcision. Additionally, Salaton, has helped create a school for less privileged Maasai children. We visited the school and the children were so eager and well behaved and engaging. I felt so fortunate to be given the opportunity to teach these children yoga. They were very receptive and seemed to have a lot of fun and many fell asleep during the final resting pose! Why is it that children seem to “get” yoga so much more quickly than us adults?

After a few days in the village, Salaton and his friend Moses led us into the bush for two days of trekking. This was by far my favorite experience thus far! There wasn’t a car building, road in sight for two days. The countryside was dotted with red cloth (the Maasai’s traditional clothing) and the cattle and goats that they herded, Acacia trees and other plant life and more species of bird and other wildlife than you can imagine. Fortunately, our fearless guides carried spears, knives and bows and arrows for protection.

We arrived to the camp in the afternoon where we were joined by two more Maasai men and a cook, James (who by the way cooked the most incredible food on the campfire). We spent the evening exploring and talking and, my favorite, listening to the men spontaneously, throughout the night, break into a chanting song and dance – to create a beautiful sound and image and clearly a joyful and intimate experience for them.

One of the other men was there solely to keep the fire going throughout the night to deter large animals and prevent us from being trampled by elephants (not nearly as dramatic as it sounds, maybe, but a reality nonetheless – we learn in the morning that elephants wandered very close to our tent)!! Scary!

Luckily, he did his job well.

The next day we completed our trek through the bush and we when we reached our destination in Masai Mara – a 15,000 square Kilometer natural reserve park, we were greeted by Joseph who turned out the be the most charismatic, adventurous safari, game driver guide you could ever meet. His driving was dangerous, his joking was constant and his ability to seek out and site animals was uncanny. Throughout our two days and nights, doing game drives by day and staying in tent cabins by nights, a few highlights should be mentioned: watching several lion cubs nursing, ostriches fighting, hippos floating, giraffes, elephants, zebras, impalas, gazelles and cape buffaloes grazing, a leopard sleeping, thousands of wildebeests migrating, and, the grand finale…a cheetah chase and kill a gazelle while her 6 week old cubs crouched in the bushes behind her!! All so exciting, so beautiful.

It was soon time to leave our dear friend and mentor, Salaton. I admit that I cried when we waved goodbye from the window of the 12 passenger plane and sped down the dirt air strip off to Tanzania, our next African adventure. I think what I took from the experience was a deeper sense that all of us, all things: Americans, Maasais, gazelles, lions, Acacia trees, running water are all so vitally important, yet no one thing more than the other. We are all so interdependent and interconnected and we are all impermanent. All we are meant to do is live based on our instinct, connect with our community, and contribute whatever natural gifts or roles we are meant to contribute.

I am so grateful for this experience, and so grateful to get to share it with Nate, my perfect travel partner.

Picture, Picture

We have pictures, just can't load them on the extremely slow connection we currently have. We promise they're coming!

“I am happy for you to meet my country”

With these simple words, Salaton welcomes us to his Kenya.

We navigate the chaotic streets of Nairobi with Salaton and our driver, Timbutu. Even in the capital city of Nairobi, the sight of two traditionally dressed Maasai and two pale Americans is a novelty.

The simultaneous, one-word response to Court’s “Are there many accidents here?” is a quick and curt “yeah.”

When we arrive at Maji Moto we are greeted by four Maasai with a welcome song and traditional shukas (bright red Maasia wraps). A quick look around and you realize it’s a world removed from . . . just about everything. The traditional huts are constructed of the key materials needed for any solid building project – soil, water, ash, and dung. Our basic quarters where we spend the next two nights are quiet, relaxing, and perfect.

We get a chance to sit down and talk with Salaton when we arrive, and it’s instantly apparent that he’s a true leader. He’s quick to smile but careful with his words. He resembles a devout Buddhist in many ways (Eastern religion being a more recognizable reference point for us Westerners). He understands the energy and impermanence of life, owns nothing, gives everything back to his community, and has the ability to be stoic and amused at once. An old, wise soul with childlike joy.

When we discuss our new home state of Hawaii, Salaton has never heard of it – and can’t believe it’s part of the same United States that he has visited since it is so far removed in the middle of the ocean. Even without knowing the aloha spirit, the oft repeated phrases po-le po-le (slowly slowly) and hakuna matata (no worries) make me think the Maasai would appreciate the Hawaiian way of life.

Salaton advises us that we will take part in a cleansing ceremony on our first evening. Foot-and-mouth disease has been detected in the area, and we will be cleansing the livestock as well as ourselves with smoke. We enter the circular livestock pen and perform the ceremony with the animals still in it. We dance around the fire purifying the cattle and ourselves. The ceremony ensures good health and long life to both the human and bovine participants.

The next day, we are honored with a wedding ceremony to begin the day. We again head to the small village where the cleansing ceremony was performed, and enter a small, crowded hut with three (and possibly four) generations of Maasai. We are adorned with sacred skins, our shukas, ceremonial beads, sandals, traditional red clay face markings, and I am given a special walking stick (which few Maasai own).

Court receives a traditional leather belt. The Maasai notch their belts a bit differently than Americans, tying a knot for each child they give birth to. An elder female performs a blessing and advises us that our child will be a boy. When the time comes – easy, moms, easy. Po-le po-le.

We receive further blessings and song as we emerge from the hut and are married as Maasai.

What to do after you are newly married? Teach yoga of course.

We are given a tour of the Enkiteng Lepa school where disadvantaged girls (typically those that run from circumcision and early marriage) are given an education along with other students. Neither the teacher nor the students had ever heard of yoga, but this doesn’t seem to matter as Court leads a laughter-filled practice outdoors. I’m taking pictures and am struck that she is the yogic equivalent of Johnny Appleseed. . . Saffron Fennel Seed seems fitting.

We return to Maji Moto for a relaxing evening and dinner, which is good, because we spend the next two full days trekking the expansive vastness of the Loita and Sienna plains.

(NOTE: We will be giving back to Maji Moto by supporting at least one disadvantaged girl through a full year of schooling as well as giving support to the school to continue improving its infrastructure.)

Placeholder Post

After a quick 29 hour jaunt and 10 hour time difference from CA, we have arrived! The trip was uneventful in the best of ways (I don't care what anyone says, the Newark airport is a lovely place to spend a layover this time of year).

It is an absolutely beautiful morning in Nairobi, and Salaton will be meeting us soon to take us to the Majio Moto camp.

Away we go!

We embark on 10/12 to start our month of travel throughout southern and eastern Africa. Thank you to everyone that contributed to our trip!

Here's the quick rundown of our itinerary. . .

Kenya: Arriving in Nairobi on 10/14 and then off to the Maji Moto cultural camp to volunteer in the community before heading out on a 2-day walking safari with Salaton Ole Ntutu, Maasai tribal chief and new friend.

Special thanks to Susan Olofson for helping arrange our trip and for connecting us with Salaton and the important work he is doing.

Tanzania: Safari, safari, safari! We will be traversing to a few of the world's premier big game viewing spots including Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater, and the Serengeti.

We have a specific request from our niece Maya to get photos of elephants and crocodiles, so these will be on the top of our list.

South Africa: We will be spending time in Cape Town and the surrounding townships and will also be attending a wedding in the wine country outside of Cape Town.

Courtney spent four months volunteering with Wola Nani and will once again be providing her counseling expertise while in South Africa. Nate will be assisting in any way that Wola Nani and its partner organizations need him to.

Special thanks to our dear friend Gwen Vogel. Not only did she create this connection through her own non-profit organization, SalusWorld, she also created the Courtney / Nate connection by introducing and subsequently marrying us. We love you, G! Courtney is looking forward to making contacts and connections with some NGOs in hopes of creating new partnerships with SalusWorld.

Uganda: When we get to Uganda at the beginning of November, we will be entering the most volunteer-focused portion of our trip.

Courtney will be spending time with the Uganda Health Cooperative member group Kyamuhunga Child Development Centres, an HIV/AIDS Orphans and Vulnerable Children project. Nate will be leading a 2-day communications capacity-building workshop with the Uganda Health Cooperative (UHC) board of directions and then assisting the team construct the 2010-2012 work plan for the UHC/Malaria Communities Project.

Special thanks to Jennifer Stockert and Scott Aebischer with HealthPartners for facilitating this amazing opportunity, and to Kaiser Permanente Chairman and CEO George Halvorson, who helped found these health care co-ops in Uganda while he was with HealthPartners and who connected us with Jennifer and Scott.

We will be traveling light and sans computer, but will be posting updates, photos, and videos when we can. . . stay tuned!

Thank you for supporting our trip to Africa and the NGOs we will be working with while we are there.