Lions and Elephants and Giraffess...Oh My!

Our safari was AWESOME. It has really shown me how limited my vocabulary is, because everything I have to say about it is great, incredible, amazing, fantastic, wonderful (I'm starting to sound like Jodie...).

But it really was great. Our safari guide was named Ali Bilali (very akin to Amelia Bedelia) and he was great. His claim to fame is that he took former president George Bush on a safari when he visited Tanzania, so I told him I'd let Obama know that he should choose Bill (as we affectionately call him) when he comes to Tanzania. Everyone thinks I'm BFF's with Obama because I'm from Chicago.

I could tell you so many anecdotes about animals, but I'll try to keep this post shorter and will tell y'all stories when I'm back home. We saw a male lion, giraffes, elephants, wildebeasts, impalas, elands, crocodiles, hippos, cranes, zebras, buffalos, and so many beautiful and colorful birds. I have been impressed by God before, but I had no idea how incredibly awesome all of these new creations would be. The sunsets, sunrises, and stars were awe-inspiring...for real. I cannot even begin to describe it, so you'll just have to come to Africa and see for yourself.

I know you all are itching to see pictures of elephants next to our car, lions lazing in the grass, giraffes running, and zebra butts, but unfortunately the man who runs this internet cafe got very upset because when you upload pictures it uses a wider bandwidth. Jacky and the rest of us had no idea, but we're all trying to refrain from uploading so the internet cafe doesn't have to be shut down. For those of you making bets on how many pictures I've taken, I'll let you know that my memory card is almost entirely used up, so get excited to see all the photos on Facebook sometime next week.

In other news, school was much better today. The kids and the school really are great and I appreciate the challenges I faced last week because I feel like I have a much better perception of what goes into being a teacher in Tanzania. I'm already feeling really sad about having to leave these kids in a few days. Actually, let's not talk about that...if it weren't for graduations, Disney World, and camp, I wouldn't leave until the end of summer - without a doubt.

We found out from Mama Thea today that Mama Christine, our Home-Base Manager, was in a terrible car accident on her way home to Dar over the weekend. She was riding in a bidagi (spelling? small three-wheeled cars that are rented like taxis) and a car hit them and sent her flying. She broke her femur in several places and was left lying on the side of the road for a half an hour before anyone helped her. The car that hit them drove off immediately and the driver of the bidagi ran from the scene. Unfortunately, most people do not stop on the side of the road at night to check out situations and 911 really does not respond to situations often. A man finally did pick her up and take her to the hospital, thanks be to God, because if he hadn't she almost certainly would have bled out on the side of the road. One of the bizarre things about accidents though is that you HAVE to have a PF3 (form from the police station) before the hospital will even see you - no matter how bad your injury. Not a good system in any of our opinions. She made it to the hospital in time, though, and despite the hospital environment being very noisy and crowded, she is in good hands. She had surgery on Saturday to put pins in her leg but is still in terrible pain and will have to stay in the hospital for no less than a month. There is so much to be grateful for in this situation - that her head was not injured, that that man stopped to help her, that she is even alive today - but this is incredibly hard news for CCS. Mama Christine takes care of so much here at CCS; plus, there are approximately 33 new volunteers arriving this Saturday for the summer program. It is a very busy time of year here and without Mama Christine, there are a lot of new responsibilities for others in the program to take on. Please pray most importantly that Mama Christine's pain lessens soon and that she recovers well and quickly, but also pray that CCS finds a way to adjust to these changes in the coming months. Please also pray for her family, friends, and all the volunteers here who are all very shaken by this news.

Hopefully I'll post once more before the end of the week. Love from Baga!

PS
Kiely - I cannot WAIT for chapati in the fall with you!!!!!! It is seriously my favorite food here. We've had it two nights in a row just because I love it so much. Can we please eat it all the time back at Vandy? We should have an African food night at least once a week. Can't wait to talk with you when I get back!