Friday, May 4, 2012

April!!

April Showers!!!
The first term is over and the second has started but I was able to go on vacation!!  April was a full month of travel and adventure!
The first stop was Zanzibar, Tanzinia.  12 days on a beautiful island, swimming, spice tours, laying on a beach visiting Giant Turtles, snorkeling, reading, and eating seafood at least once everyday.  The island is beautiful, the water was crystal clear and so very blue!!  We were there at the end of the tourist season, and many of the hotels had closed for the season, at one point in the East we were the only ones on the beach for as far as we could see.  It was so quiet and peaceful. 
My goal for the vacation was to eat seafood at least once everyday.  I accomplished that goal very easily, in fact I was an over achiever some days!  I felt it was my duty to try the wonderfulness that came from the Indian Ocean, so I did, I tried baby shark, barracuda, lobster, clams, tuna, king fish, shrimp, and octopus.  It was so good.  I was also able to have sushi for the first time in nearly a year and a half and I was in heaven!  It was so fresh and prepared so beautifully.  I love it when my food is like a work of art it makes me smile!!
So after a wonderful 12 days in tropical paradise I was able to see one of Rwandas true treasures; Mountain Gorillas!!!
I have been wanting to see the Gorillas since I first found out I was going to Rwanda.  They have done a really good job at protecting these animals and it was such a joy and honor to be able to see them.  I have seen Gorillas in a zoo but to see them in their habitat, with no fences or barriers and only our guides to protect us if something were to happen was exhilarating!!  They are a true thing of beauty and it is remarkable that they are still here; and now the population is actually increasing which is also amazing to see.  The Family Group that we went to see had the oldest Silver Back male and the newest baby to the population.  We were in such close quarters with the family that we were sometimes less than a foot away, at one point we were totally surrounded by the family and they were coming down the hill behind us and one actually walked through our group and we all held our breath as she split our group in half and waited until she passed by!  It was totally worth every penny and all the mud that we had to walk through to get to them.  They are truly amazing creatures and again I feel blessed to be among those that have visited them.

But April is past and school has once again started; so it is back to the grind, but this year it is about finishing projects and preparing to return home or somewhere.  The end is nearly upon us, and in about six months I will have had to decide where I am going next, but I think I will wait a little longer on that!!!