On my way to Africa!

In approximately 13 days, 1 hour, and 30 minutes I will be on a plane leaving Indianapolis. This flight will be one of three through Detroit and Amsterdam (with amazingly short layovers), which will take us to our final destination: Nairobi, Kenya! That's right folks, I'm going to AFRICA!

The trip dreaming began last year when I learned that my dear friend Rose would be working at a hospital in Eldoret, Kenya for six months. My love for her mixed with my love for travel (and my desire to cross Africa off of my "must visit" list) got everything going. I started talking with some other friends (Lori and Charity) who shared my loves, figured out a good time to go, scoured the airline sites (that would be my obsession), and locked in our dates: March 9-22, 2011. We bought our tickets late at night, huddled around my dad's MacBook in my parents' living room, giddily comparing each person's itinerary (making sure we were all on the same flights!). With a few clicks on the track pad, we each added a quick $1300 to our credit card statements. The excitement and adventure had already begun. As soon as the two week trip was booked, I wondered out loud "Why aren't we going for 3 weeks?" Oh, how I love to travel!

As you can see, the countdown has gone below the 2-week mark, which is so hard to believe. And a lot has happened since we committed to Kenya back in November of 2010. A summary...
1. Amie joined our travel team. After a few weeks of "being interested", she cleared her time off with work and bought her tickets to join us.
2. Rose left for Kenya. She left in January with farewells and some very excited people (that would be me and my travel buddies) saying "See you soon!"
3. Our in-country itinerary was planned. With the help of Rose and a wonderful Kenyan travel agent, we have the most amazing trip! Everything--hotels, lodges, in-country flights, transportation--everything has been planned for us! There will even be someone holding a sign with our names on it at the airport in Nairobi. Best thing ever.
4. We went from 4 to 3. Indianapolis got hit with some serious ice in January and our travel team has lost a valuable member due to the slick stuff. Lori is out with a broken ankle. So sad! While she's hoping to reschedule her visit with Rose in Kenya for later this summer, we are definitely going to to miss her!

As the departure date gets closer, I have shifted into "let's go!" mode. I went to my travel doctor (yes, I have a "travel doctor" and he is awesome!) to get my Yellow Fever vaccine. (Check!) He also gave me scripts for anti-malarial meds and antibiotic, which still need to be filled. (Add to the To Do list.) On Saturday, we got together for coffee to talk about what to wear and what to pack. So, this week I got serious about creating a packing list. And I mean serious. I did research (hunting websites for advice on what to pack/bring/leave at home), considered my previous travel experience, and put together the most detailed list I've ever seen. (I'll post it later for interested travelers.) I am already feeling less stressed and even more excited.

Now that I've finished this post, I'm even closer to take-off! The countdown is now...13 days and 51 minutes.