Safari - Tuesday

I was up till 3:30am trying to get all of my stuff to fit into my bags. Fun stuff. Then I woke up at 6:45 to finish the job and get ready to leave. We ate a quick breakfast and loaded everything into the back of our bus. We did our last look around our rooms to see if we left anything behind, and I feel bad for whoever ends up cleaning up the house. I am sorry to say that none of us became as neat as the Ugandans are during our stay. We hugged Grace and Howa goodbye, said a group prayer, and loaded the bus.

Emily, Shelby, Susan and I sat near the front of the bus. We were all super squished with all of the bags packed around us. We were told that the ride would be about seven hours. I hoped to sleep the whole ride, but it was very difficult to find a comfortable position. I wish someone had taken a picture of me in all positions I tried to sleep in. I think the most successful one was putting my head on my knees. The best part of the ride was the snacks we packed. We brought fruit, carrots, banana bread, sandwiches, cookies and best of all, JUICE BOXES! My mango juice box had been frozen, so it was a heavenly slushie to help me cool off. We went through phases of being awake, being half asleep and sleeping.

The first stop we made was at the EQUATOR! I think this is officially the farthest south I have ever been! We spent some time taking pictures with the Equator signs. there was a bus of Koreans on the same road with us and they got out to take pictures as well. It was funny because one of them asked to take a picture with Puvii. I think he thought that because she was black, she was Ugandan. We continued driving and then got caught in a traffic stand-still because of an accident. we climbed out the windows of the van and stood beside it to stretch our legs. We were next to a field and so we used it to go to the bathroom. The grass was very tall and thick, so I was really nervous about seeing a snake. As I walked to find a good place, one of the Korean ladies decided to come with me. She had an umbrella so I thought she was going to help me by blocking me while I did my business. Instead she kinda just stood next to me with her umbrella, hopefully distracting everyone else.

As we drove, the landscape started to change. There were more mountains and hills, and everything seemed even more green and beautiful than before. We stopped on the side of a cliff to "take a short call" (pee). We all walked into the field and did our business. It is so strange not having privacy for that kind of thing. We heard these children yelling to each other. All of a sudden a group of kids ran out of the field towards us, excited to see white people. I shook hands with them and took their picture so I could show it to them. The only thing they could say to us was "money", so they kept asking us for it. The view was absolutely stunning. I have never been in a more magical place in my life. We were overlooking a valley with a lake at the bottom, and fields of banana plants. Even my pictures couldn't do it justice. All I could do was take it all in and commit it to memory. We kept driving and the landscape changed again. It became plains of tall yellow and green grasses under a beautiful bright blue sky. This is the Africa I had always pictured. We even saw some Elephants in the distance, but not close enough to take pictures. At one point we asked the driver how much longer because it had been eight hours and we though for sure that we were almost there. He said "another two hours", we all groaned. But honestly it was not a bad drive at all. I was so overwhelmed by how beautiful everything was that it flew by. I really want to come back. I could live here and take in these views every day. all I could think was how completely lucky I am to be in this moment, right now.

After ten hours of driving we pulled into the gate of the park. all of the students are in one big room with the boys on one side and the girl on the other. There are real bathrooms, though by real I mean that there are actual toilets, but they aren't completely enclosed. We went to the dining hall and ordered our food. Almost immediately the power went out. We sat on couches with lanterns and talked for the two hours we waited for our food to be ready. I have vegetable curry and rice that was yummy. At 10pm we were in bed. I have come to love mosquito nets because they make me feel protected from critters that might want to crawl on me. I slept wonderfully through the night.