We’re on our way home! We are excited to see friends and family, and to take long, hot showers.

It is hard to say goodbye to those we spent time with in Kenya. The students really were wonderful and kind to us. We did not have time for long conversations, but the short conversations during breaks were encouraging and edifying. One sister, during her breaks, taught me how to crochet a Kenyan style handbag. I don’t think I learned quickly enough to reproduce it (don’t expect homemade handbags for Christmas), but it was fun to try.

At the end of the week the dean, Stanlas Ndambuki, taught us how to eat the traditional Kenyan dish “ugali.” It’s a thick corn-meal bread that is typically eaten with stew. Kenyans roll the ugali in their hands and form a bowl to scoop up the stew. I think Dean Ndambuki got a kick out of watching us try it, and we had a great time laughing at the differences in eating habits our cultures have.

We spent our last afternoon being tourists. Our hosts, Rev. Kim and his wife Susan, took us to a Maasai market to purchase souvenirs. The market is tightly packed with vendors who call out for your attention:

“I will give you a special deal.”
“It’s almost free!”
“You remind me of my sister! I feel a special connection with you.”

With David’s help, we managed to haggle with vendors to bring their outrageous prices down to ones we were willing to pay. It’s a game and it is quite the experience, but as someone who hates conflict (to a fault), I would not call it fun!

At this point we are on the last leg of our journey, just one more flight from Detroit to Philadelphia. We have been traveling for almost 30 hours, so we are anxious to be home!