Safari time!

So... this will be a bumpy ride so buckle up  well i guess the bumpy part has passed so maybe not literally.
This last Friday Mj and I wanted to go and see some elephants, unfortunately no elephants are free on this island,  I'm unsure about the whole country.. so picking a tour can be difficult , we don't want to encourage any animal cruelty but we do understand that it's because of people like us that zoo's and the likes exist.
The tour we stumbled on was a whole day riding up north for 2 hours to the national park called Khao Lak-Lam Ru.
On our way we stopped to visit an elephant family,  we met and bathed Phūkheā which means mountain in Thia. He's adorable!! He had a baby brother or sister coming in 60 days.  🐘😍 Hes trained to give kisses.. <i don't mean to brag, but i got 3>.

After we got to go on a short ride, courtesy of hes older sister. Madam is what she read called.  Elles love bananas & pineapples..who knew! 🍌🍍  Next we head to a beach area where they are making a huge effort to save the sea turtles. They have ones from 30 years to few weeks old.  They are on the middle of building more adequate buildings. I had no idea how social tortoises are,  as soon as we came close they would swim over to see us looking for treats i believe.  No touching of course,  they are going back into nature.  

Next was a waterfall, and because we are here in rainy season it was full! 

Now comes the intense and unforeseen adventures. We signed up for, what we thought was a calm ride down a river on a bamboo raft. Now has anyone ever made a raft out of huge bamboo?? it's not very flexible.. or soft. And as i said, rainy season,  adding it up yet? We didn't.  We go on our merry way with our tiny 90 pound thai guide... We start with me in the middle and Mj in the back..

we almost immediately hit rough water.. you could call or white water.. yep.. we shipwrecked on a rock.  I don't mean a small rock,  a boulder of one.  Also it's a small gap so we then start a domino effect on other rafts.  Mj suffers a few collisions as i help our guide push off the rock, and has also completely sank in the back end and is drenched.
We go another... say.. 10 yards and yep another rock! This time it was a doozey.

This time i have to get off the raft completely, which is not easy because the  current is super strong,  so i have to climb up the side of the raft to the back and try to pick it up off the rock.  Technically we are stuck on 2 boulders,  front and back. As I'm in the back i glance behind me only to see in slow motion Mj roll feet over head into the white water and our guide slip and hit his head on our raft.. This is a pickle people.!! 

Oddly enough no boats are crashing into us. Although in anticipation of them coming my adrenalin starts pumping. After much pushing, lifting, and yelling in languages no one understands, we get the raft off  both and we all hang on for dear life, because once unwedged we shoot back down the river. This takes place in about 5 to 10 minutes,  but felt like an eternity.  

  In the end our guy lost both his shoes and possibly had a concussion,  we both have open wounds and i some how have both of Mjs sandals on my arms.. 🤦🏾‍♀️

whew.. I laugh even as i write this.. it was an adventure i won't easily forget.  

I will let that sink in,  and tomorrow will complete the day.  Although i warn you,  it's not as exciting. This was for sure the highlight of the trip thus far.  

😂

Day at the Beach 🏝

The other day we went on our boat excursion, that included a speedboat ride and a visit to 4 little island of the east coast of Phuket.  The views were amazing.  We both braved the water and fish and tried our hand at snorkeling. Instantly we both lost all of our snorkel gear, I managed to dive top the bottom and grab it.. Only us..

We went to the islands: Khai Nui, Yao Yai, Phi Phi (pronounced Pee Pee 😳).  The weather was perfect. Now days apart of Phi Phi is closed to the public due to the environmental issues of erosion and such.  As a tree hugger i can't fault them for that.
Our guides name was Meow Meow...And she refused to take a tip from MJ because direct quote,  "I can't take that,  it's like taking from a handicap. " Had we known that ANY surgery makes one "handicap" we would have pulled that card out a few more times.  😬  I completely recommend her.

There are about 2500 people live on the island full time and they ate very limited on pet and water sources.  One of these 4 do not even have outside electric running it.  It was such an nice day by 5 PM we what ready top crash.  Friday we are trekking with the elephants up north about 2 hours away from the island.  

Sunday Sunday Funday

As noted we are living in the party side of this island so in the evening and early morning we have what seems to be drag scooter racing below us.  Happily these last two nights it had thunder stormed so badly that MJ and I considered cuddling.  😂
Sunday we were able to visit the Phuket English Congregation on the east side on the island. We where able to snag a ride with a brother and his study. Both are from the Philippines and very chatty.

The congregation is small even in the high season maybe 50 or 60, and in low season which is now its down to 30. They have a ton on visitors which helps their numbers and participants for the meetings. I had planned service for two of one days here, but the work here is restricted and they don't have enough locals to get with us on a regular basis.  Like many governments they don't understand the idea of giving something for nothing.  We're allowed to do informal, which I'm trying to take advantage of, the language barrier is..just that a barrier. Many have not even heard of Jehovah's Witnesses! The reason being of course is that thes island is predominantly Muslim. (i felt i should adapt to the local custom, when in an area that i see no visitors. )

Also The one congregation had had the whole island but they have been able to recently formed another English group half way up, in the middle of the island.  The hall also has a Tagolog congregation as well. 

By the time we leave our street we will make sure that they all know who we are and the difference there soon will be.  

chat again laters

We have arrived! Patong Beach!

We landed!! For awhile anyway.. (Now pleased realize that when I booked our room I based it on a few things.... 1st beach location based on price, 2nd the food stalls around it and 3rd thd Hotel amenities. With that being said please note this part of town is not for families.. oops. But we got a great price and we are normally in bed when this part of town comes to life anyways 😁 ).
We do feel very safe here especially in twos with it being a tourist area, so no reason to worry.
For the time being the exchanged rate is wonderful, it's 32 baht to 1$, that means one can live on about $10 a day. It does take time to get used to them saying something is 1500 baht and not have a coronary. 💓

For dinner we walked down to the fresh food Bazaar and got a meal for $1.50! We decided that will be our dinner of choice while we are here. 😂  They sell fresh squeezed pomegranate, pineapple, mango, even dragon fruit,I believe, here for less then a dollar. All of the food is cooked right in front of you free and streaming. I've fallen in love with it. There's plenty of meat on a stick of course and seafood all of which I'm going to try because I have the stomach of a goat. 🐐

For our 1st breakfast we tried Indian food today we went with an English/American breakfast and that is never complete unless there is baked beans. (FYI beans are never at breakfast in America. 😂) Just so you know these pages will be mentioning food often.. Just be aware. 

Sunday will be our first day in the ministry, til then we relax taking in the sun and rain. 

มันคือเวลา! (It’s time!)

Hello friends,
It’s that time again, time to pack a bag and see more of the world for a month. This time it’s Thailand and Malaysia!
In between Swahili I have been trying to memorize a few Thia words as well, so that we won’t be completely lost the few weeks we are there. I never thought I would say Swahili is easy, but it is compared to Thia. 😆

Let’s discuss brass tacks, it will be myself and my cousin Marianne for this eventful safari... first time for her on such a long plane ride, (pray for her), 😉 the tip will last just19 days,  and will be spent between  Phuket island in Thailand in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, two more countries down for me puts me in the latter 30s!
We have big plans while on the island, one being a little educational field work with the local English Kingdom Hall, searching all 210 square miles of it via scooters and tuk tuks and giving the beaches some serious scrutiny. 🏊🏼‍♀️🏖 It’s going to be ridiculously hot, humid and sticky of course weatherwise but it will be something we can  check off our lists.
So keep your eyes peeled for new photos and updates as the weeks progress. We leave Michigan the 8th and return on the 26th, hopefully tan and ready to Get back to work after our short rest.

                   Talk with you all soon!

kuzungumza na wewe baadaye!

 พูดคุยกับคุณในภายหลัง!

Jambo!!

Habari!
Well I'm back in the road again for a week or so this month. For those who do. It know I've started learning Swahili! It's been a safari for me here lately trying to balance pioneering, taking care of a home, working and learning a language. A journey well worked for though especially when you see the people hear you speaking their mother tongue even it's slightly off. 😜
I never thought of English as a fun or descriptive language but as I learn more and more words in Swahili I start to appreciate language more. For example the word for disappointment is literally translated to, have collapsed heart. And if you think about the feelings you have it makes perfect sense. Sometimes it is hard to find an equivalent in Swahili right off the bat so it takes a lot of thinking outside the box to find just the right descriptive word. At the moment my favorite fun word is Bwana thluji which translates to snow lord and basically means snowman. ⛄️ I think that's adorable. I'm still living by the phrase, "mimi hapa, nitume mimi!" Here I am send me! I will go where there is a need in this world.

I am currently in Austin Texas sharing in the Bible education work in English, Swahili and hopefully a little of Russian as well. This state, like many now a days, is a melting pot of many cultures and languages keeping us on our toes. I made the trip to attend a 6 hour bible seminar in Swahili, it will take place outside of Dallas and will be a real test to my language skills.

Tutaonana baadaye
See you later

Holiday Away

Hey Guys,
So i now it seems silly that I needed a holiday away, mostly because some you think this is one giant holiday away..(you know who you are)  NOT TRUE!

Granted I don't have the normal workday pressures or stresses. Stresses now have come from relocating myself, learning and keeping up a 3 new cultures, new ways of thinking and new ways of doing these are not always easy an easy task.

My brain needed a few days to not think, and my feet to not walk so I went up to Nyanga for the weekend. It was a nice 4 hour car ride past balancing rocks and small towns. We also took a small car ride over to Mutare which is a stones throws from Mozambique...it took everything I had not to try to cross the border to add another country to my list.

 Where is It?? Its Zimababwes' eastern highlands boarding Mozambique,  it holds some beautiful waterfalls, wild animals, mountain peaks and the coldest weather. (no snow but super windy and
it was at 5 C ( 41 F) the other night...and its NOT winter yet.. Yikes!

I happen to bump into the family that helps deliver the literature to the Shona & English kingdom halls up there. So I grabbed the chance to explore a bit more of the area, knowing my days are numbered here.

There is a small area called Mutasa, it lies between Nyanga and Mutare, it has the most concentrated witnesses there, every 3 miles (5Ks) there is a kingdom Hall! I had the pleasure to visit one of the 2 English halls this last Sunday, I think we had about 20 or more there and only 2 cars in the "parking lot"--technically it was the yard-- and no microphones, you had to use your big boy voice there. (I had no problems in that department :D)

Zumbane Lodge

It was a nice few days away in the wilderness, hiking a trail or two and staying at the Zumbane lodge. Of which I highly suggest that if you come to Zim you MUST see this place and might as well stay in a fully furnished home for a fantastic price. We did lose power but whats a trip to Africa with the full amenities of the 1st world counties? Zasa these days..haha I also may or may have not gone to bed with my winter hat on, and a towel as extra bedding..I found out later my extra blanket was being held hostage in the the other room. or....maybe I just forgot to ask for it...oops.





Now I am back home, with only two weeks left to go. These four months...man I tell ya..flown by.  The emails may be coming a bit closer together now, I have so much I want to share before I leave. Bear with me folks.

See some of you sooner then later.
Katie

Count Down

The countdown has began over here, not in a "YAY" kind of way, but in a "sigh" kind of way.
The other day I had a hard time telling if this was my real life and the one in the States is my "Holiday" life.  The friends here make me feel like I have always known them, like this is my congregation.  I know that might cause a bit of pain for some, but there is room in my heart for many these days.
I sadly only have just over 3 weeks to go, so those in Michigan awaiting my arrival it is close.

These last few days i have been helping the maids with the food preparation.  1st it was the sugar beans, setting them in the sun to dry them out then sorting the good from the bad. Then the other day it was harvesting pecans. Eish Hard long work, no wonder the cost is high in the shops. Good thing i only like them covered in sugar and maple syrup. :)

Nothing has been happening this last few weeks. The studies have been going well, they are progressing slow but sure. I had to miss rurals this last week because i needed to go to an immigration appointment, due to my ever growing visa issues. No worries we are good for the last month!

Katelyn helping Nyarai with the intercoms

 Here are some photos for you all, mainly because my stories this week are BORING. :)
This week brings Harare International Festival of Arts is here so hopefully i can grab a few artsy shows before i come home.


much love you all soon,
if something happens, I'll make sure to write it.

Kate

Heart Warming

Today was an epic day for me gaining new bible studies. I now have 6 regular ones, three youngsters and three adults. The kids i am working with rang from 10 to 13 years old, and speak and read English beautifully. Today was gift day, all the kids got their book or booklets either in Shona or English.

 We passed a few houses that they made gardens for, not something you see everyday in an area that they are struggling to get food in, but making the earth beautiful is something they value here.

I started playing the Caleb videos to four kids, before i knew it, there were ten and by the end I had 15!

 For the most part this is an email full of photos not much of the stories. I couldn't post all of these on social media so thought a little slide show would be good enough. :)  The father of the four just below, said thank you a few times to me for taking the time to sit with them and teach .




I take so many photos because when i get stressed or overwork myself back in the States I see these little ones and know that whatever pain I am enduring is worth every moment.

I can see that I am making a mark on them, they wont easily forget the murungu (white person) that sat down and read English and Shona to them. Thats what we want, to make sure people don't forget us and the deeds we do.




They start early being little mommies, strapping little ones on their backs. I offered to carry her but I think she was a bit nervous.
The one that is doing the work cant be over the age of 6, they build them strong over here.

Alright family and friends, I am bushed,a few miles walking was done and much talking (never new for me). Yesterday was independence day over here so we came a day late.

Cheers to all you readers. Keep traveling and I'll keep up the stories.