Hello everyone!! So much has happened since the last time I wrote, but Saul and I have been very busy traveling from place to place and internet is a bit tricky here to find and even when found, it is VERY slow and irritating, thus I must have the patience to blog....lol! Hence why I haven't updated my pictures since Cairo. Sorry about that. I was hoping to write a lengthy blog full with pictures and even a video at Saul's mom's house, but unfortunately their internet got shut off for some reason and it has taken over two months and counting for them to come fix it. Anyway, besides this everything is wonderful!!! We had quite the adventure on our train ride from Dar Es Salaam which was actually 54 hours and not 40 like I'd quoted before. Life is a slower paced here and schedules and exact time frames are unheard of. I like it a lot though as it gives you time you otherwise wouldn't have to relax and think. It is a way of life and it is understood by all that things (especially travel) take time in Africa and thus no one is ever in a hurry. A nice change from the rushed American life that we're all used to. So the train ride....ahhhh. A great way to travel (again if you have time) as you can use the bathroom whenever you want (as opposed to the mercy of when the bus driver decides to stop). The bathroom was "interesting". A hole in the train that goes directly to the outside and if you're lucky or can wait, you can finish your business while the train stops, otherwise it is a challenge fun challenge to actually "hit the hole" as the train speeds by beautiful scenery...hahaha! The train ride was absolutely breathtaking. I would highly recommend it as the mode of transport for anyone that travels, whether in Africa or otherwise. It is a calming experience and we were able to see the "real Africa" by it. Along the way we made many stops, and you could almost always expect the local people to be there, either to welcome home their family/friends, or just to sell local fruit/nuts/drinks to the train riders. Saul always says I'm trying to save the world as there were so many poor people walking around with no shoes and the malnutrition bellies, that I couldn't help but give anything and everything I had to them. I kept looking for things that I had in my bag and eventually bought all the local goods the people were selling, only to give it away seconds later to the local children. The smiles on their faces were priceless and I would have done it again millions of times over. Although you hear of these stories in America with various charities you can't really understand the impact unless you see it for your own eyes. They were truly grateful for anything you gave them, even empty plastic water bottles, which Saul explained to me they melt and add paraffin to make a polish for their huts. I wish I could show everyone reading this a piece of my mind and heart so you could see the impact this experience made on me. Anyway, enough of that, just a reminder to be very thankful for all that you have and try your best not to take anything for granted (like food, clean drinking water, and hot running water, yes I've had to bath in cold water).

On the train we met various people. An American couple living in the Middle East that just decided on a whim to get married in Zanzibar, but first wanted to take a safari in Tanzania, hence were on the train. We also met a few others from America, one that had just finished his 2 year duty in the Peace Corps and was traveling around another that was working abroad and just finished his contract and was also traveling around before heading home. In my sleeping cabin, there was a girl (Meliza) that was from Berkeley in her first year of medical school and was doing an internship in various village clinics within Zambia. She was extremely paranoid and rightly so as she was traveling by herself (not exactly ideal). Apparently when she reached Dar Es Salaam, she was supposed to take another flight directly to Lusaka, but her booking was magically cancelled and thus had no other choice but to take the train. As we arrived quite late in Kapiri Mposhi, we decided to stay the evening with Meliza as there were no buses going to her destination until the next morning and we didn't want to leave her by herself with her 3 enormous bags. So off we went to a local hotel that had no running water and in the morning we passed up 2 buses to Lusaka in order to wait for Meliza to get on a bus. This was definitely our good deed for our trip as she complained a lot and was very high maintenance, yet despite this we couldn't just leave her by herself. Anyway, so after we left her, off we went on our way to Lusaka and then on to Livingstone (Victoria Falls) a few minutes after we arrived in Lusaka.

Well Saul is waiting and we'll be in Harare for awhile, so I will catch up with the rest of my adventures hopefully tomorrow. Hope everyone is well.

xxxooo,
Nicole