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In July and August 2003 we traveled to Kenya and Tanzania [map] with Jo's family to revisit some of the places they served as missionaries 20 years ago. Below are a few pictures from the trip. There are a lot of pictures (150+), so keep scrolling down! It might take a while for the page to load if you have a dial-up connection. Enjoy! (PS--the animal shots from the Serengeti are about halfway down.)
On July 21, 2003, we left Eden with Lin's parents and flew to Nairobi, Kenya, to meet up with the rest of Jo's family. This was our first extended time away from Eden, but as is usually the case, we were more concerned about it than she was!
While in Nairobi, we stayed at the Mennonite Guest House, a lovely little nook just outside of the downtown area. Left to right: mom, dad, Heidi, Andrea, Dwayne, Jo, and Lin.*
Thursday morning we went into downtown Nairobi to do some shopping. Nairobi is a very fascinating city--teeming with activity and beautiful in some regards but also a bit dirty and polluted. We were virtually the only white people around, which meant we received lots of stares.
The primary mode of public transportation in much of East Africa is these little vans--matatus--which are always stuffed full of people, up to 15, 20, or even more people, including a fare collector hanging out of the open door on the left side. Each of them has a unique name plastered on it somewhere, and we had fun looking at all the funny names, like "Michael Jordan," "Queen Latifa," "Oops, I did it again," "Superstar," "Las Vegas," and "Big Mama."
Other modes of transportation existed, too, like these human-drawn carts that even ventured into busy traffic circles!
The streets of Nairobi were busy and crowded, but for the most part the traffic was manageable and we soon got used to driving on the "wrong" side of the road. Roundabouts (traffic circles) abounded!*
The markets in many of these cities were quaint, colorful, and beautiful. This particular stand was in the market in Nairobi.
Just outside of Nairobi is Rosslyn Academy, a missionary school Jo and her siblings attended for part of the time their parents served in Tanzania.
I experimented with the macro function on our camera...
And some more...
And again...on this bird of paradise flower.
Dwayne, Jo's sister Andrea's husband, poses next to an Elephant Ear plant.
In general, the plants and trees were diverse and yet unique. This picture captures a variety of trees and shrubs, including a rare evergreen tree!
From Nairobi we headed toward Tanzania [map], making a large, lazy loop northwest, west, and finally southwest into Tanzania. In the process, we climbed to around 9,000 feet and descended the eastern escarpment of the Great Rift Valley. Although it was a bit hazy, we still had a beautiful view of the valley floor thousands of feet below.
More of the Great Rift Valley.
The floor of the Great Rift Valley is mostly flat but sometimes broken by lakes and old volcanic mountains (this is Mount Longanot that the Wenger kids climbed during their boarding school days). We saw a lot of cattle!*
The roads are in surprisingly poor condition for the most part. This is the main road running from central Kenya to Uganda and Lake Victoria (we turned off of it and headed south a few miles later), and it is in pretty rough shape. This one particular stretch of road in the Great Rift Valley is completely straight for six miles.
En route to Tanzania, we stopped overnight at the Tea Hotel in Kericho, Kenya, which is deep in tea country. Kenyan tea is delicious and is shipped all over the world. It is usually served mixed with lots of milk and is called chai, the Swahili word for tea.
Tea fields.
Tea pickers hand-picking the tea.
A Masaai warrior in full garb was at the Tea Hotel--it seemed his job was to pose for pictures--for a small fee, of course!
One thing we really never got used to was being instantly surrounded whenever we pulled into a gas station or stopped anywhere else. In much of Eastern Africa, the unemployment rate is very high--there just aren't many jobs to be found--so many people sell things on the street. When these merchants see wazungu (white people) or foreigners in general, they know money can't be too far away.
A typical East African town scene, with lots of stands and people milling everywhere.
More of the same.
We took a little detour to Tabaka, Kenya, a little village way off the beaten path that is home to soapstone carvers.*
The soapstone carvers had about a dozen rooms packed to the gills with their beautiful carvings. Bargaining is the normal language of purchasing, so we quickly got used to counter-offering about half the initial price and working to a price somewhere in between. I got the sense that bargaining is half business and half relationship. Offering a straight price just seems so boring and impersonal!*
Dwayne tries his hand at soap-stone carving.*
A crowded main street in Kisii, Kenya. It was a two-way street, I promise!*
The two moms in the foreground (in Kisii) are carrying their kids in typical African fashion--strapped on with a kanga, a traditional African cloth that serves a multitude of purposes.
We had a bit of a wait to cross the border into Tanzania [map], but were (as usual) surrounded by a small crowd of kids offering their wares.
The Tanzanian landscape was much rockier than in Kenya.*
Once in Tanzania, we were on a really nice (and rare!) stretch of recently-paved highway--mysteriously broken only by this strange dirt-ramped bridge!
This modern bridge more than made up for the other one, however. When the Wengers lived here, they used to have to take a ferry across this river (the Mara River that feeds into Lake Victoria).
Once in Tanzania, we soon reached Nyabange, the small town just outside of Musoma [map] where Jo's family served approximately twenty years ago. This is the house that Jo and her family lived in—it really hasn't changed that much in twenty years! Although it looks pretty primitive, it is quite a mansion considering the living conditions of the local people, and does in fact have plumbing and electricity. Notice, once again, the crowd of kids, although this time they were there for the pure novelty of seeing more white people and weren't trying to sell anything.
Jo in her old bedroom.
The backyard of Jo's old house. Note the nice mango tree to on the left. The outhouse is a more recent addition. When the Wengers lived here, they usually had running water. Now there isn't any because the pump used to pump water from the lake to this community was stolen one too many times and funds to replace it have not been secured. Now they (Jo's aunt and uncle who presently live in the house) depend on a giant tank that collects rain water and hope that it lasts through the dry season.
Directly in back of Jo's old house is a large hill that has a shoe-shaped rock on top of it. Jo used to have nightmares as a kid that the rock was going to roll down the hill and smash into her rear-facing bedroom. The Wengers also picnicked frequently on the the 'Giant Shoe.'
We wanted to climb "shoe hill" in back of the Wengers' house, but the old trail seemed to be gone. These local kids offered to show us the way, but it turns out they might have been climbing the hill for the first time, too! Either way, we finally cut a path to the top--and in fact, the Giant Shoe seems firmly in place, even after all these years. :O)
Once on top of the Giant Shoe, we had a beautiful view of Bukiroba, the region surrounding the village of Nyabange. In the background is one of the many bays (Mara Bay) of Lake Victoria, the second-largest freshwater lake in the world (Lake Superior is the largest).
On the way back down the shoe hill, we passed a huge ant hill--a fairly common site in Tanzania. Some of them can be 6-7 feet tall! This particular one was around 4-5 feet high.
The old main road that used to run through Nyabange to Musoma. Fortunately a new paved road has been built since the Wengers lived here.
We stayed for three nights in Musoma. Since Tanzania is generally lower elevation than Nairobi and other parts of Kenya, we had to sleep under mosquito nets at night to prevent mosquito bites and the possibility of contracting malaria. Here Heidi, Andrea, and Jo show off their nets.
The main intersection in Musoma is the little roundabout in front of the white van.
The market in Musoma. Note the perfectly-sculpted pyramid of salt to the right.
Here Dad Wenger is purchasing some deliciously sweet bananas for a later snack. Everybody carries stuff on their heads--guys and girls alike.
We attended the Mennonite church in Nyabange on Sunday morning--and Dad was invited to give the message. This church was founded by Mennonite missionaries many decades ago and was the Wengers' home church when they were in Tanzania. Dad Wenger even pastored here for two years, in addition to teaching at the theological college in Bukiroba.
The outside of the church.
While in Musoma, we took a one-hour drive on a dusty, bumpy road to Mugango, Dad's childhood home. He was born and raised in Tanzania. This vehicle has just a few too many people on/in it!*
These houses are fairly typical for Africans living in the countryside, though tin roofs are becoming more and more popular.
This is a view of Lake Victoria from a huge rock pile not far from Dad's old home.
The house where Jo's father grew up.
Jo's grandfather, Ray Wenger, died in Mugango (when Dad was six) and is buried there. This is Dad by his father's grave, which is well cared for by the man whose cassava field surrounds it.
Some Tanzanian ladies pound the dried root of the cassava plant into pieces. Cassava is the main staple food for many Tanzanians. It is a tough, potato-like plant that grows almost anywhere but is unfortunately devoid of much nutrition.
Some of the boys who had demonstrated how they pound the cassava roots into flour to make ugali, a traditional East African food that is eaten with the hand--rolling it into a small ball and then pressing a hole in the middle to scoop up some sauce.
After leaving Musoma, we stopped at the house of an old friend of the Wengers and were naturally treated to a feast. They slaughtered and prepared a goat for us--a real honor in this culture!
After a night in Bunda, we drove into the Serengeti National Park [map], approaching it from the western entrance.
Our trusty safari van took quite a beating! Note the placement of the steering wheel--on the right side. In Kenya and Tanzania cars drive on the "wrong" (left) side of the road, a British influence. :O)
Our safari (literally means "trip" in Swahili) through the Serengeti was immediately fruitful. Here are some wildebeests and zebra.
Three giraffes (here and below) were right along the side of the road.
Another giraffe.
We found these lions a distance off of the road and drove off-road to get a closer look. Dad spotted them by first noticing that the zebra in the area were all looking the same direction--a sure sign that a predator is around. Sure enough, these lions were just hanging out--but they apparently weren't hungry. They obviously weren't bothered by our presence--shortly after this photo was taken they very casually attempted to copulate. :O)*
They let us get within 10-15 feet of them.
We took a little side road and suddenly found ourselves in the middle of a wildebeest and zebra herd! Apparently they don't mind hanging out together--probably there is safety in numbers.
Three elephants were right next to the road and one crossed our path. We wanted to get close, but not too close! He was much larger than our van.
One of the other elephants stops to check us out.
Whatd'ya think, Jo--would a safari van stick out in Boston? I think I like it.
A hippo wallowing in the river.
More giraffes.
We saws lots of zebra in this friendly position--they stand like this to allow each other's tails to swish the flies from their faces.
Guinea fowl.
We happened upon a cheetah less than ten feet from the main road just relaxing under a tree. He seemed completely at home with the crowd of vehicles that stopped to watch him.
Same cheetah, with background.
I was on the lookout for a perfect Serengeti tree to photograph, and this flat-topped acacia came pretty close.
This shy little silver-backed jackal didn't want his picture taken!*
The roads in the Serengeti weren't exactly the best all the time, but overall we could still make good time.*
A Thompson gazelle in the foreground (stripes on the side) and some Grant's gazelles in the background (stripes on the back).
We stopped at the entrance to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area to pay our fees, etc., and spotted this lizard sunning on a rock.
Having crossed the Serengeti length-wise, we entered the Ngorongoro Conservation area.*
As we exited the Serengeti, we started to climb up into the mountains.
This Masaai kid (note the typical red cloth) ran after our van and wanted something to eat or drink. We gave him some crackers.
Although it is hard to see, this is a typical Masaai village--a group of mud huts surrounded by a thorn and tree fence. The Masaai have learned to capitalize on the tourists, however--note the tan Land Rover in the upper left-hand corner. The Masaai allow tourists to enter their village for a small fee.
We carried an extra can of gas with us across the Serengeti--it's not like there is a BP or Sheetz every few miles or anything!*
The Ngorongoro Crater [map] is absolutely amazing. It is an old volcano that caved in on itself and created a crater. The rim of the crater is around 10,000 feet in elevation, and the crater itself is ten miles across and 2,000 feet deep. It is virtually a self-contained ecosphere, with a variety of terrains and almost every East African animal you'd find in the Serengeti except giraffes and one or two other animals. I took this panoramic picture from the deck of the lodge where we spent the night.
We stayed at the Ngorongoro Wildlife Lodge, positioned on the very edge of the crater.
The next morning, we loaded into a four-wheel drive SUV and descended into the crater. The roads were very steep and our driver took his time--which we all appreciated!
Two Masaai and Heidi in the crater.
It was really cold in the crater! We were bundled up well, but it was worth it to see the animals. Notice the elephant behind us to the left--partially hidden by the tree and brush. He was too shy to show his face.*
Once in the crater, we saw a lot of animals, but at first only from a distance. This buffalo didn't feel like raising his head for a nice photo.
The morning fog shrouded the walls of the crater, which made it very cold and yet provided a very ethereal backdrop for this yellow-barked acacia tree.
Ride 'em, cowgirl! We saw a few buffalo skulls like this one lying around.
These warthogs were trying to keep warm, no doubt. Shortly after I took this picture, though, they ran off in the other direction--which looked funny, because when they run their short little tails stick straight up in the air.
A lonely hyena.
There is a sizable lake in the crater--and usually hundreds of flamingos can be found there. We saw a lot, but not as many as expected.
Of course, it wouldn't be Africa without zebra!
When you see a group of safari vehicles crowded together like this, you can almost be certain there is something good to see...
This time it was a bunch of hippos! They put on a good show for us--making noises, grunting, splashing themselves with their tails, and so forth. This guy decided to take a big yawn as I snapped a picture.
There were many different varieties of birds in the crater.
Some of the wildebeests didn't mind if the van pulled right up beside them.
This guy was just hanging out in the shade, with his partner in the clump of grass just to the right.
The ostrich were pretty shy the whole trip, until this male decided to strut his stuff right past our van. The males are dark black, and the females are a lighter brown.
From the floor of the crater we could see our lodge perched high on the wall of the crater.
As we climbed out of the crater, we traversed some pretty steep and crazy roads.
But as we climbed out of the crater, the views just got better and better.
More of the crater from the road out.
After descending the outside wall of the crater, we then descended into the Great Rift Valley for the second time, but this time in Tanzania. This is a Baobab tree overlooking part of the Great Rift Valley. Legend has it that one time God was taking a walk and came upon a Baobab tree. He was angry because it had no fruit and so he cursed it by turning it upside-down.*
As we approached Moshi, our next stop, we saw Mt. Meru towering in the distance. But Moshi is known for a higher and more famous mountain, Mt. Kilimanjaro [map]; Moshi is gently nestled in Kili's shadow and on a clear day affords a spectacular view of the mountain.
A street scene in Arusha [map], a city we reached before Moshi.*
Andrea with some coffee plants and banana trees outside of Moshi, a common combination. Moshi has lots of bananas and many wall hangings and other crafts made from banana leaves are created there.*
The East Africans can pile more things on a bicycle (not to mention their heads) than I previously thought possible!
Another interesting example of a bike load.*
This guy must be using the invisible "cow lane."*
Once in Moshi, we hit the market and toured the town a bit. It was an overcast day, so for most of the day Kilimanjaro was hidden.*
From Moshi we drove a bit into the foothills of Mt. Kilimanjaro and hiked back to this beautiful waterfalls.
On the way back to our hotel from our hike, Mt. Kilimanjaro decided to make an appearance. Up until this point, it had been shrouded in clouds.
Actually, Mt. Kilimanjaro is made up of two peaks, Kibo on the left and Mawenzie on the right. Kibo is the highest one at 19,335.6 ft., and is the most familiar one. On the top of Kibo is a 1.5 mile-wide crater with a huge glacier in it that is slowly melting and shrinking due to global warming.
As the sun went down we caught a beautiful African sunset with Mt. Meru in the background.
After spending two nights in Moshi, we hit the road again and headed for Mombasa, Kenya [map], on the Indian Ocean. The road for the first three hours was a mix of dirt and hard clay, like you see below. This large group of baboons was right along the side of the road.
This baboon was part of a large group by the side of the road, but this guy decided to cross in front of us.
As we crossed the no-man's land between the border gates of Tanzania and Kenya, we came upon a large herd of cattle--seeking political asylum, perhaps? :O)*
After a long day's drive, we finally reached Mombasa [map], on the east coast of Kenya, on the Indian Ocean.*
Mombasa is known for its resorts, and ours was certainly beautiful. Strangely enough, however, the downtown section of Mombasa was dirty and crowded, so when we got to the Nyali Beach Hotel, it was hard to believe we were in the same place.
We immediately took advantage of the pool! It felt good after a long, bumpy ride from Moshi.
Our resort had a few pet monkeys that made sporadic appearances--and this one chose our porch!*
The plants were tropical and very interesting--like this one, for example.
Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate with us entirely--it was overcast and rainy one of the days.
Even though the weather wasn't perfect, we went out on a little glass-bottomed boat and got to go snorkeling and see a variety of sea and coral life. Here Dwayne is holding a leather star fish. It really felt like wet leather.
Jo and Andrea, about to take a dive.
Under the water, the sights were really cool, although since the sun wasn't really shining the colors appear a bit muted on the pictures. These are zebra fish.
More fish. The long ones are a kind of sword fish.
And some more...
Jo holding a spiky sea eagle.
One of our snorkeling guides picked up this thorny starfish from the ocean floor. After staying a few nights in Mombasa, we drove a grueling 8 hours back to Nairobi [map] and from there flew to the U.S. via London.
Well, that's all the Africa pictures, but we also made two little stops in England--in Oxford on the way over and London on the way back. Oxford University is made up of 39 colleges--each a self-contained college with a dining hall, cathedral or chapel, classrooms, library, and dorm in the form of a square and with a central courtyard (note the college on the right as an example). This is a view of Radcliffe Camera (center), which is actually a library, and some of the surrounding colleges.
This is Magdelan College, which was C.S. Lewis' college and is supposedly one of the most beautiful of the colleges.
The main entry to Christ Church, the largest college in England's oldest university.
Christ Church was used in the filming of several Harry Potter movies--this stairway and the next picture might look familiar if you've seen the movies.
The dining hall of Christ Church College.
Since we were in England, we had to stop for a proper English tea--tea with little scones and clotted cream and yummy sandwiches.
The dining hall at New College. Yes, the students do actually eat here each day! Quite an inspiring mealtime atmosphere, don't you think?
Another main Oxford library.
The courtyard of Exeter College, where a friend from seminary, Allen Yeh, is working on his Ph.D.
On the return trip, we spent a day and a half in London. We did the easy tourist things--a bus tour on a double-decker bus and a riverboat cruise. Pictured here is Big Ben (although technically Big Ben is the name of the clock's bell, not the tower) and the Houses of Parliament.
Jo, Andrea, and Heidi pose in front of Buckingham Palace, the primary residence of the Queen of England. Of course the day we were there the guards did not do the full changing of the guard ceremony. Bummer.
Westminster Abbey, the final resting place of many figures in English history.
St. Paul's cathedral, designed by Sir Christopher Wren after the Great Fire of 1666 in London destroyed a large percentage of the city. St. Paul's is also where Princess Di was married in the early 80s.
The London Tower Bridge.
Tralfager Square. The National Gallery (art museum) is on the left.
The double decker buses--a main staple of public transportation (along with a great subway) in London. Our tour bus was like this but had an open top on the second deck.
London Tower, where the crown jewels are stored and where important people were imprisoned and sometimes executed in the sixteenth century (like two wives of King Henry VIII).
The newest eyesore in London--the British Airways London Eye. It is the highest viewing point in London. We didn't go on it because it costs too much, but we've heard the view is great.
A reproduction of the Globe, Shakespeare's sixteenth-century theatre, where productions of Shakespeare's works still continue.
After flying back to Baltimore we were finally reunited with Eden, who made the transition back to us from Lin's parents quite easily, fortunately! We missed her a lot but were really glad she was able to stay in the U.S.--the traveling conditions and food and water issues in Africa were less than ideal for a little energetic toddler like Eden. She has loads of fun at Grandma and Grandpa's house and wants to go back soon!* Well, that's all there is (actually there are hundreds more, but not enough space for them all here!). I hope you've enjoyed this sampling. Feel free to email us if you have any comments, questions, or corrections, or sign our guestbook below. * Pictures marked with an * after the caption were taken by Andrea and Dwayne . All of the other pictures were taken by Lin and Jo. Thanks, also, to Jo's Dad for corrections and information. :O)
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This page was last updated 09/24/06. |
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