Made it to Zim! =D

  Air Canada take note...  We've now flown three african airlines (Etheopian, Zambezi and Zimbabwe) and have not only been fed on each flight regardless of how short, but also been escorted personally through customs just to help us to get our bags, get to an agent and get a flight booked, get through security and seated for a flight to Harare - all in 45 minutes or less!  Thank goodness the flight was delayed =D.
  So ... we made our flight to Lusaka and managed to get a last-minute cheap pair of seats to Harare (mostly because the flight - which was scheduled to leave 15 minutes after we arrived in Lusaka, and was FULL) had standby and was delayed.  Thanks to the incredibly friendly people in Zambia we were able to cut a few corners and find our way to Zimbabwe with remarkable expediency.  We made it!
  Not knowing if our text-messages were getting through we were relieved to leave Zim customs to find Risina, Angela and Kudsi (sp?) running at us arms open!  They were instrumental in helping us get our flight and were so warm and welcoming.  We drove back to their place and had a great dinner and an incredible conversation that educated us about the history and economy of Zim - the education continues!  After we kept them up far too late, we all tucked in and woke this morning to a refreshingly cool day.  We're both extremely thankful (and relieved) to be here - so thanks again to Chi, Risina, Ang and their family for giving us this opportunity. 

  Currently, we're at the National Art Gallery and are about to venture off to explore Harare which, so far looks absolutely beautiful!  In the next few days we're looking forward to exploring some of the incredible nature and history that Zim has to offer.

~ Much Love,
  Jenny & Jimi

PS:  Moms and Dad:  Please note you've been spoiled by frequent posts thus far and while we'll do our best we suspect posts will not be as frequent in the coming weeks.  So please don't worry... we're in good hands!  Besides, the less posts are happening, likely the more fun we're having =D

Falling in love with Dar

Jambo!  We’re currently at the Dar Es Salaam airport waiting for our flight to Lusaka (within driving distance of Harare, where we’re headed), and we’re working on driving or flying options to get to Harare.  We’ll make it… eventually… and in the meantime Angela and Risina Mandivenga have been incredibly patient and helpful in getting us to them! 

It took us two hours on a very slow and intermittent internet connection at the only internet café open on Sunday in Dar to book our flight… But I can tell you that we were very, very excited when it finally went though, after many enthusiastically shouted encouragements to the computer (it didn’t respond well to expletives).  And then, Plan B in place, we set off to explore Dar. 

One thing we’ve really appreciated here is the music.  It began on our cab ride into town with a 4-piece band performing from the back of a moving pickup truck, and continued with another band playing on the street for the Islamic New Year celebrations.  On Sunday morning, we came out of our hostel to be greeted by beautiful singing from a church choir next door, and this morning the school children at the YWCA where we were staying were singing as we ate breakfast.  Music is clearly such an important part of the culture here, and it has been a privilege to witness the beauty and joy of it.    

As for our explorations, we took a walk along the shoreline to the very active fish market, and then we found a beach with about a dozen outrigger canoes anchored just offshore, with many small islands nearby and dhows sailing by.  At that point, we fell in love.  The scene was so beautiful and serene, and such an authentic glimpse into the lives of the people of Dar.  It was around sunset, too, which definitely helped!  We introduced ourselves to the Indian Ocean, and between that and really, really delicious Indian food, we really started to enjoy our time in Dar. 

Hopefully, the next time you hear from us, we’ll be in Harare!

Much love to all,

Harare or bust!

Jenny and Jimi

Stranded in Dar =)

“Bloglemas”

Sorry about the site going down. The night before our flights we were working on an update and we got blocked for some reason. If this is posted all is repaired and hopefully there will be no more hiccups.

Stranded in Dar =)

Hamjambo? Hatujambo! Our 18 hours of flying were not half as rough as we expected. Ethiopian Airlines were fantastic to fly with – the trip was comfortable and they fed us well =)
We arrived finally in Dar Es Salaam and promptly received our first humbling lesson in backpacking – where did we ever get the idea that things would go according to plan?!?
Said plan was to book a ticket upon arrival for Harare – everything we had read/heard said it was easier and cheaper to book a flight once we got here. NOT TRUE! Suddenly it looked as though we’d need to fly to Nairobi or Johannesburg to get to Harare and for no less that $600 USD each. OUCH! Needless to say, a new plan was in order.
This new plan is still a work in progress.
We got ourselves a cell phone and got a taxi to a hostel – the hostel is good and we found some great food nearby – the Indian food in Dar is out of this world!
Just as we were about to tuck in for the night a few fireworks went off. Which were followed by more fireworks… and more… and more and more and more until we were unsure if we were in celebration or war-zone – Happy New Year Islam!!! We were thinking that Africa was just REALLY excited about our arrival but as it turns out the Muslim population of Dar was celebrating new years. What a cool thing to witness on our first night! The fireworks were all through the city and lasted all night with music and song of all kinds. It was a fun first night.
This morning we’ve been touring around Dar on foot in search of an internet café and minutes for our phone. We had another lovely lunch and found worlds slowest computer connection – which we are grateful for as apparently nothing is open on a Sunday in Dar.
So here we are, waiting for our e-mail to load and hoping we can get a flight out to either Harare or Lusaka as soon as tomorrow.
Moms, Dad, friends – we’re doing great and while we’re not where we had hoped, we’re together and happy and safe. Life is a journey and we’re DEFINITELY on it! Love to all!
Stay tuned for our next update, Kesho!

-- Jimi and Jenny