Packing and Flying

Spent yesterday and today organizing and packing.  Our modes of travel in Kenya and Tanzania require us to limit the weight of our luggage to 33 lbs.  The travel company actually sent us duffles with their name boldly emblazoned on the side, that we are required to use.  But hey, we got a nice duffle out of the deal.  It has been interesting watching Tena trying to pack for a 16 day trip with a 33 lb. limit.  To those who are familiar with her travel packing, it probably comes as no surprise that she is eyeing the unused space in my duffle (LOL).  The pencils, erasers, sharpeners, glue sticks, etc. that she pruchased for us to distribute to students attending the school we'll visit have added 4 lbs. to my duffle.  Once those are distributed about half way through the trip, we'll have a little extra space for purchases she is already contemplating.  At the conclusion of our exercise class this morning she was talking with some other women in the class about tanzanite.  One showed her a tanzanite ring she was wearing and I could already hear the cash register ringing (cha-ching).
We will drive to Tena's brother's home in Fairfax in the morning and he will take us to Dulles for our evening departure.  Our Nooks are loaded with a variety of reading material, including the "Fifty Shades of Gray" trilogy.  That should keep her busy during our 15.5 hours flying from Washington to Nairobi with a 3.5 hour stop over at London Heathrow.
If all goes well and we have internet access, our next blog entry will be from Kenya.  We arrive in Nairobi at 9:00 PM their time and the travel company tells us clearing immigration and getting a visa may be a lengthy experience.  So, it will probably be near midnight before we get to our hotel, The Nairobi Serena Hotel.  This means we'll be running on adrenline during our first full day.  It looks to be busy as we have excursions to the Elephant Orphanage and Giraffe Center, and the home of Karen Blixen (she was the character played by Meryl Streep in the movie "Out of Africa").  Tena loved the movie and is excited to visit her "coffee garden and museum."  Hopefully, I'll have the energy to write a blog entry.  More later!