Back in California

Hi everyone,

I'm home now. After many long flights from Nairobi to London, London to Los Angeles, then Los Angeles to San Jose, I'm home. Amazingly my baggage made it 10,000 miles to LAX where I cleared it through customs, only to have them not manage to make it the last 350 miles to SJC. Go figure. (They just arrived at home a few minutes ago)

It took a while to find my way home last night as every freeway entrance to downtown San Jose was blocked off for the Cinco de Mayo weekend, but I finally got through. I wandered out for a sushi dinner (ahhh, food!!) then passed out around 10. So good to be back on a nice mattress instead of the 3-inch thick foam I've been on for two weeks. A hot shower! Smooth roads! Cappuccino! Ahhh

But… I miss Kenya already. I miss the kids. The smiles. The stars. The sound of animals instead of traffic. And lots of other little things that will undoubtedly sink in over the course of this first day back.

I love you Kenya, you were good to me. I will return one day, without question.

I have a TON more to write and post, and will do it as quickly as possible. I shot over 6,000 pictures and need to finish sorting them. On Friday, the orphanage was visited by past President Moi, and I have a massive gallery of that visit.

[picture: Me meeting former President Moi. Photo credit: Solomon Kipsang Tallam, President Moi's personal photographer]

On my last day we went out at sunrise to see the Lake Nakuru National Park, home to 1.5 million flamingos, as well as giraffe, zebra, hippo, dik dik, black and white rhino, baboon, monkey, and many many more wonderful animals. As I go through these and other pictures I'll recall other stories to tell, and will get them up here quickly.

For now though… it's back to the other world.

Thank you all for following, and for posting comments, and generally coming along for a ride with me. The show is over but the stories will continue.

hwakerini,
-Joseph