Before I left the US to go to Nairobi, a good friend asked a great question that I thought often when I was away. He said, “What is it that you are going to do in Nairobi that will help you know, after the fact, that it has been a successful trip? That is, if [...]
Archive for July, 2009
A successful trip if…
Posted in Uncategorized on July 14, 2009 | 2 Comments »
A month’s worth of birthday parties (and sometimes the first in a lifetime)
Posted in Uncategorized on July 10, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
In a couple of months I’ll have a birthday. I bet Jennifer and the kids will make a cake, have a couple of presents, and try to do something nice for me. I’m sure my parents will call and send a card, and that other family members will also send well-wishes. I really like that [...]
Back in MN
Posted in Uncategorized on July 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Just a very short post that we’re back safely at our home in Minnesota. We were later arriving than expected due to a little aircraft congestion and bigger back-ups at immigration/customs at the airport, but everyone is fine (though very tired). We were happy to have a warm welcome from some good friends after arriving [...]
Dirty Shoes
Posted in Uncategorized on July 9, 2009 | 1 Comment »
Today we walked across Europe and onto North America – or at least that’s what the kids tell me. We visited the rift valley in Iceland, where the North American tectonic plate and the European plate are pulling apart very slowly over time. (It was also the place where the Vikings gathered beginning in 930 [...]
Only one life
Posted in Uncategorized on July 8, 2009 | 2 Comments »
On the plane from London to Iceland(!) today I finished a book (“A Long Way Gone…: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier” by Ishmael Beah) and then had time to read a newspaper from the UK. I’ve been behind on news of many sorts for the past 3 weeks — only catching some headlines occasionally about [...]
4th of July
Posted in Uncategorized on July 6, 2009 | 2 Comments »
(I’m writing on the bus on the way back from Oxford to London now. I like the Wifi on the bus – but it failed me on the way to Oxford last time, and I didn’t have internet access while in Oxford. I think I’m behind the times and need to get email on a [...]
Catholics and Protestants
Posted in Uncategorized on July 4, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Today we had time at the Tower of London. One thing that really struck me was the great number of inscriptions on the stone walls of the towers (which were used as prisons) that were religious. Intellectually I know quite well that many of the quarrels in English history relate in some important way to [...]
Fetching water and other differences
Posted in Uncategorized on July 2, 2009 | 1 Comment »
We’ve landed in London after a long-haul flight last night from Nairobi. We have just a few minutes in the hotel (while kids rest) where I am using a wireless connection — something I didn’t do at all on this computer when in Nairobi (and when I was supposed to be able to do so [...]
Smaller than in zoos
Posted in Uncategorized on July 2, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
We returned from our safari last evening, and it was really an experience (too many experiences to write here, in fact). One thing that we all really noticed was how the animals all looked so much more “in place” in their natural environment than in zoos. That is, elephants look enormous when you’re standing next [...]
