I’ve learned this year that I’m not as consistent of a blogger
as I’d like to be. ☹ I’m also giving myself grace for only
blogging when I have something specific I want to say, and when I get to writing
about that for posting. Neil is posting
photos/comments very consistently every 3-5 days to his and my FaceBook pages. Feel free to friend me if you’d like to see
those, as that’s more regular and lighter which may be appealing! (Also, I know the pics here are posting oddly but am choosing to let it go and spend my time elsewhere rather than getting perfection-ey. Thanks for tolerating it with me.)
our kids stories and ideas, and
shared their own stories and selves with us – and also answered our myriad
questions of how to navigate in Zanzibar (Where to put the trash? How to re-up
the electricity when it goes out? How to get water when the water pump doesn’t
work because the electricity is out? What
gadgets work best to minimize mosquito bites? How to call a local taxi? Where
to shop for what foods?)
The last week of our month in Zanzibar, I took a solo trip to Juba, South Sudan for a very intense 4 day visit (Feb 11-15) that could easily fill several blogs. I’ll be brief here. Juba is an intensely meaningful place for me as I spent five formative years of my childhood there. Juba is a tough place to start with (security, logistics, heat/dust, etc.). I was very well cared-for by South Sudanese friends from my childhood – especially Pastor Milla and Pastor Clement and their families. (In this picture are friends Grace, Patra, me, Pastor Clement, and his wife Doreen.) I had powerful experiences there as a child that I reflected on as I saw my childhood home place, and reconnected with friends and others who have gone through so much
during and since the war. This picture is me as a kiddo holding Mary, a baby who we cared for and had hoped to adopt. I was able to reconnect with her on this visit which was very special, here we are along with her daughter and new grand-baby, cousin/sister Flora, and friend. My visit to Juba gave me space to reflect
on how culturally different South Sudan was and is, and how hard of a
place it continues to be as it emerges from long-term conflict, etc. I’m
sorting thru parts of my family’s legacy there that I’m proud of, and parts I’m
not, and helping me understand / accept that my childhood was truly very
different, including traumas. I’m reflecting on what pieces to take
forward in my self, in my career, etc.
On my return, my family flew to Arusha, (mainland) Tanzania
for 2 weeks. Highlights there included seeing
long-time family friend 
Awadia and her family, as well as childhood playmate
Baraka. We went on a 3-day safari which
was fantastic, we were all fascinated by lots of beautiful animals and
landscapes. March 3 we flew 
Arusha > Madrid (via Addis Ababa and Rome), and are
now 2 weeks into enjoying Spain.
Okay, that was way too fast. There are so many ways to reflect on the last few months. I’ll choose gratitude. I’m grateful for . . .
- Immediate safety and security for me and my family, and stable / peaceful countries and cities that we’ve visited during our year thus far. As we know, stable, well-governed countries take intense work and dedication by many actors for years, decades, centuries. Everywhere we’ve been, people have been helpful, cities have felt safe, and even police encounters have generally been kind/courteous. Something in less-and-less take for granted given the state of humankind just now, and also in reflections on history like the Spanish Civil War, the Slave Trade through Zanzibar, and the complicated geopolitics in Georgia , both historically and currently (which is so very near Ukraine both physically and experientially).
- Overall physical health and resilience of our little four-some. Except for occasional “traveller tummy” or the occasional respiratory/stomach virus, we’ve been super lucky. Yes, 3 of us got COVID in Georgia, but we recovered without incident nor hospitalization, I am so grateful.
- Delicious and plentiful food – There has been very yummy food everywhere we’ve visited. Since we often DIY and cook at our place, we’re not always fully availing ourselves of local dishes or fine dining. And sometimes finding meals the kids like is a bit of a challenge. Still, delicious food highlights have included:
o Georgia: delicious peaches, raspberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, cheese, eggs, shoti (bread) katchapuri (bread baked with cheeses/eggs/other things in or on), walnut dishes
o Tanzania: mangoes, papaya, bananas, pineapple, complex and yummy curries
o Spain: fruit, baguettes, cheeses, pastries, breads so far. . .
- AirBnb hosts, taxi drivers, guides that communicate well and are generally helpful (We’ve learned it doesn’t always happen, which makes me more grateful when it does.) For so many, this has meant years of practicing various languages in addition to the skills of the core task, such as how to maintain an AirBnb home with reliable utilities/wifi, or the type/behavior of animals on safari (and how to find them!), how to drive through slippery mud without getting stuck, how to deal with American kids who can sometimes seem picky as they try new experiences (ahem 😊) – and still be kind, reasonable, friendly human beings in the midst of it all.
-
My people – Can I mention that
Neil is an excellent travel companion? He’s
dependable and responsible, thinks through travel situations well. He’s also incredibly handy, whether with
figuring out gas tanks, hot water heaters/heating systems, locks, electricity
challenges, plumbing issues, rental cars, bike brakes/tires/seats, traffic laws. I think some of our AirBnb hosts wish he was
a little less handy as he’s often spotting/raising issues they’d perhaps rather
ignore 😊. Further,
he’s consistently fascinated by the street art, museums, weather, creatures,
language, culture of wherever we travel.
And he can usually find a kid-friendly way to engage Kamilla and Spencer
in that discovery process. Spencer and
Kamilla, I have to hand it to them, especially as they didn’t really get a vote
on whether we’d travel this year (tho we talked about it a lot as a family). While we try to incorporate some of their
preferences (usually of the dessert and tech-time variety), there are many
times they come along on a bus trip, a museum visit, hike, bike-ride, grocery-shopping
trip, or even eating out, when they’d rather curl up with their Kindles. Recently, they have been troopers at
learning to bicycle safely on cobble-stone pedestrian streets in
Salamanca.
- Yoga in lots of places! Still trying to increase exercise in my year, but I’m proud that I’ve done yoga classes in mixed English / Russian language, in Spanish, in English, plus occasional on-line classes with prior contacts / classes. And in all this, I’ve seen / experienced / practiced a few new things, and just gotten to practice alongside some normal, wonderful people.
- Reliable and fresh water, even if it’s not coming out of the tap. Bucket showers can still feel really good when it’s hot / sticky.
- Trash cans (This is mixed. When they aren’t there, or it’s not clear what to DO with our trash (Tanzania), it’s been good to think harder about everything I throw out – is it burnable? compostable? what if none of those?) And now I’m more grateful, and more aware that my trash has impacts down the line.)
Thanks for sharing friend! I know the kids will thank you for the invaluable experience of travel with the education it bring, as I know you appreciate. Congratulations on a purposeful use of time Gerrans Family.
ReplyDeleteCharles