Quick Update

Hello everyone!! Sorry it’s been a long time since I’ve written. I’ve been very busy these last few weeks visitors, so I haven’t spent much time at the internet lately. I’ll do a quick update on life since my parents left.

My friend Allison (from St. Ben’s) is here! She arrived a few days after my parents left, so it was perfect timing. Allison, James and I have been having an absolute blast so far. We have gone on 2 hikes to the top of mountains, went to have dinner with some of the girl students at James’s school, walked around town quite a bit, and now we are at Mvimwa Abbey. Mwimwa Abbey is the Benediction Monastery about 2 hours away from Sumbawanga. It is located in the middle of nowhere (literally), and is surrounded by plains and mountains in the background. This morning Allison, James and I went on a 4 hour hike to the top of the mountain. It was a steep climb, but once we got to the top it felt like we were literally on top of the world.

So exciting news: ALLSION is staying here for an extra week! She changed her flight because she is having such a great time (and because of the giant ash cloud over Europe right now).

We will hang out in this area until this weekend. Then, we will go on our safari through Mikumi National Park. Then next week we will spend the entire week in Zanzibar (the island off the cost of Tanzania). Zanzibar activites on the list so far are:
-take a spice tour, where we get to go to farms and taste different spices
-relax on the beaches (with the turquoise-blue water and the straw huts)
-possibly go snorkeling
-possibly swim with DOLPHINS!! (Apparently you can hire a boat to take you out a ways from shore where there are a ton of dolphins … hopefully we’ll be able to figure this one out)!

So, needless to say, I’ve got a busy (but amazing) few weeks ahead of me! Sorry if I don’t communicate with everyone as well these next few weeks … but I should be back to Sumbawanga on May 5th, and I’m guessing life will return back to “normal” then.