Jet lag and culture shock.

Praise the Lord, I made it! Two things I’ve realized about myself...

1. I absolutely LOVE traveling. Everything about it was an adventure.
2.  I am absolutely exhausted.

With that being said, there is so much to share, so I’ll share as much as I can before I’m overcome with my Jetlag.

Overall, everything went very smoothly. The only delay was my flight to London, which normally wouldn’t have been a big deal deal, except for the fact that I was supposed to take a private tour 15 minutes after my scheduled arriving time.  Fortunately, even after arriving 2 hours late, John, my tour guide, and Charlie my driver, were still there waiting for me! . John was a young and charming law student, who made the afternoon seem like a stroll about London with a dear old friend, rather than a formal, educational tour. Charlie was an adorable old man with a heavy Spanish accent and only scared me a few times with his navigating about town. I learned so much about the history, architecture, art and the culture of London, and enjoyed it all immensely. I simply must go back someday. 

London is absolutely stunning.

The most cliche London tourist picture ever. 

After London, I flew into Dar es Salaam. We spent the day doing some sightseeing and shopping. We enjoyed a fabulous lunch right on the Indian ocean. I would say that the culture shock hit me the hardest in the city. The sights, smells, and sounds were all so foreign and the poverty was utterly overwhelming. What shocked me was how naturally they functioned in their circumstances, whereas for me, I felt awkward and ashamed of how tempted I  was to plug my nose and keep a distance from all the filth.

street vendor in Dar. 

The next day, we took a 14 hour bus ride from Dar to Mbeya. The buses were very nice, however, again the smell took some getting used to. At one point, we were completely stopped in traffic for over an hour because one of the tour buses had flipped off the road, killing several of the passengers. Hundreds of people got off all the buses and trucks that were stopped on the road to try and lift the bus off of people pinned down, but as we passed, they were still unsuccessful. It was a very sobering experience.

So devastating. 

All in all, I’ve come to really appreciate the little blessings through these days of traveling. I know so many of you were praying me through the last few days and I couldn’t have made it without you! I’ve been blown away by the response of prayer and encouragement from you, my darling reader! 

God bless and goodnight!

Love, em