Well the jet lag is over, the nerves of walking out of the apartment will in some ways never leave, and Olivia and I are proud owners of a flat and a car. Yes, in many ways Olivia and I have never left our honeymoon, which I hear is the duration of your first year of marriage, but really. We had a pretty sweet gig and we still do in many respects. I mean how many couples, have the opportunity to live abroad, pursue your passion right out of college, and do it together. We are pretty blessed and continually feeling His presence on our lives.
So... Time for some stories. Well if you haven't heard, the trip over here was pretty crazy. Our first complication came in Newark and it was due to the bathroom in First Class not working properly. From that point on every airport had a delay with a different way of communicating. The US was quick to try to explain why we weren't being let on the plane and in their attempt, said a "mechanical malfunction" as opposed to a "convenience issue." And the two bring completely different responses. From yelling at the attendants, to people demanding their money back, it was crazy. There were about 8 of us who were going to miss our connecting flight and 5 of them were Kenyans, and it was funny to see their responses. They honestly had no idea how to respond or what to do, so they mimicked everyone else, which didn't help the situation at all. After that Zurich never gave us any points of communication as to why our flight was delayed and even when they were ready to board no one said anything. People just cued and got in line. Istanbul was a little different in that the people at the gate refused to give any reason as to why we were late or where the plane was.
On that last flight that was totally unexpected, I found myself in prayer, praying that Olivia's bags would make it and if anyone's were to be left behind that it would be mine. Well what do you know. Olivia's were left in Zurich and it wasn't until three days later that she was able to stop wearing my clothes. I got pretty rugged because my toiletry bag was in her bag, so after 2 full days of traveling and then three days of waiting for our bags, I looked like a cave man while Olivia remained as stunning as ever.
The only other adventure that's worth noting here is our first bribe. So yesterday was our first full day of driving our fun, little, purple, Toyota Vitz and what do you know, I got pulled over. I was pulling out of one of the larger Westernized malls and foolishly decided to pull a U-turn in the middle of a two lane highway. I had been gaining a ton of confidence since the last time that I was here, which I was extremely thankful for because I no longer sweat with uneasiness of what could happen when I leave my apartment or dwell on all the scenarios that could possibly go wrong. So I guess I needed this to bring me back to earth and humble me a bit, but as I do this I see out of the corner of my eye a policeman just watching me. In Kenya, the Police are not in cars to chase after you, rather they are standing on the side of the road with their AK 47's and wave you down. We will not repeat what I said as I'm pulling over, but the man begins by asking me if I knew why he pulled me over and I said yes, and so he then goes through the spiel that I have offended Kenya and that I will go to jail and wait for my court case. This is Saturday mind you so he goes on to explain that Olivia will not be able to get me out until Monday and that I will pay a Bail of 10,000 Kenyan Shillings which is around $121.95. He then goes on to explain that all of this depends of course on me. AKA "how much are you willing to give me?" I've encountered a few of these situations before and know roughly how much a bribe like this should be, so I try to get out with only giving him 400 Shillings, about $4.87 and he merely laughs at me and asks of 2,000 Shillings, $24.39. Regretfully I pull out the cash and are allowed to carry on, and all I can think is, TIA, This Is Africa.
Olivia is currently attempting to make our first chicken dinner, which she feels is way out of her comfort zone, but you should smell how good it smells in here. She is an amazing woman and I am so blessed to have her by my side, even when I do stupid and crazy things. Enjoy your Sabbath and until next time, "Live Like it Counts!" - Lifekraze.com
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