15 Kenyan Lessons

I figure it's about time for a more light-hearted post.  Here is a list of things I have learned while in Kenya:

1.  Always keep bread on hand.  It is only 50
     cents a loaf, and sometimes it is the only hope 
     for feeling full...even after a meal.
2.  Avocados and bananas cost 5 cents.  Need I say
     more?
3.  Hard water pressure is a thing of the past.  So 
     are hot showers.
4.  Although I will never be okay with it, lizards, 
     rats, and spiders are perfectly normal
     housemates.
5.  Hand-washing your laundry can be very 
     therapeutic.
6.  Speaking of laundry: I will never take soft 
     clothes for granted again.
7.  Toilet paper is a luxury.  Then again, so are 
     toilets.
8.  Sleeping with a pillow is overrated.
9.  Never expect people to be on time...it will only 
     cause unnecessary frustration. 
10.  Kenyan tea is the best tea on the planet. 
11.  Kenyans (children and adults alike) LOVE 
       mzungu (white person) hair.  Don't be 
       surprised when they come up and touch it. 
12.  They are also very intrigued by freckles.  It 
       takes a while to convince the children that 
       they are not dirt marks. :)
13.  Roller coaster rides cost 40 cents.  Okay, so 
       not an actual roller coaster.  Just a matatu 
       (public transportation vehicles).  I'm
       convinced that the only traffic rule is this: 
       arrive at destination in whatever way possible.
14.  Amos's voice, Marueen's singing, and 
       Regina's laugh are three of the sweetest 
       sounds on earth.
15.  God spent extra time creating the landscape of
       rural East Africa.  It is breathtakingly
       beautiful.

lots of love,
-br