Tanzania - Dar es Saalam - 2011
Journal entry (edited)
My day stared early in Paris. Not sleeping last night I kept waking up thinking I had overslept. My alarm was set to go off at 440am to catch the 5am shuttle to the airport. I woke up at 1am, 2am, 230am, 3am, 310am, 320am, 340am.. you get the idea...
Finally I got up with my alarm, took a very fast shower and grabbed my bags and checked out of the hotel. I got the 5am bus and went to check in at the airport. The agent gave me a seat right away so I was set to go for my 725am flight. Just had a LOT of time to kill. Luckily the agent put me near the front so I could make my tight connection in Amsterdam.
The lady at the transfer desk only checked me in as far as Kilimanjaro, not all the way to Dar es Saalam. So when I went to check in my bag they had to do some extra finesse on my ticket.
I was told the flight was wide open both up front and in the back so I had hopes of riding first class.. XXX nope.. coach seat, window in the back.. but I got on!
Luckily I was so tired I passed out even before take off and woke up in the skies. I slept on and off on the flight to Kilimanjaro. They passed out a postcard to each person for some promotion that KLM was having with the Netherlands.
We landed in Kilimanjaro, most people deplaned and I got to chat with the Flight Attendants until the plane reloaded.. Luckily it was only a 45 minute flight on to Dar.
I deplaned, paid my 100 usd visa, and then exited to find the Worthens there waiting for me.. It was so nice to see a friendly face that far away from home!
The drive back to their place was fairly uneventful and it was almost midnight. We still stayed up chatting for quite sometime until we were all nodding off.

That night I had bad dreams about Grandma Flegal passing.. not good
The next morning we had a delicious breakfast of fresh bananas and pineapple. SO yummy!
I went to music class with the Worthens, they were teaching the basics about how to lead music. It was great to see the people so interested.

Dinner tonight was in downtown Dar at a place that was voted best BBQ in Dar. It really was quite tasty! We ended up taking 2 missionaries with us and had ourselves a great meal!
Pam and Bruce are a hoot! Bruce talks to the other drivers in the cars like they can hear him. I just had to sit back and laugh. Its no wonder these two are such good friends with Mom and Dad.

Sunday was another full day of conference, again I kept falling asleep. I went in to hear it in swahili as the room for english was jam packed. Swahili is a language that has tones from a bunch of different languages. I heard Portuguese, Dutch and other one I couldn't identify.
We had planned to go to Zanzibar the next day on the ferry but it turns out with the ferry schedule we would not have had enough time to explore it, so we decided to drive the 40kms up to Bagomoyo.

Tanzania/Dar is a crazy place but beautiful none the less.

Paris for work.. really not a problem!

I guess there could be worse places to go for work right? I had a 3 day training class that I taught to those who are considered in the Atlantic region for the company. We got a chance to go to dinner in the city and I took a few really great pictures at the Arc de Triumph of it and the Eiffel Tower. Enjoy

Happy Mothers Day

To my mother..
Hope you have a fantastic Mothers Day with your little Munchkins in NYC. It was so nice to see you this past weekend. Time spent was fun and I loved to see all you were doing with the house.
Much love and tons of kisses!
Mike

It is Official!

I am going to run a race....
I know I know! Anyone who knows me has heard me say, 'running is for convicts.'
Well I am apparently on the lamb from exercise or something because I am getting heavy sitting there on my duff at my job and I have not been volunteering for anything in the community..
So I thought I would kill two birds with one stone! Its a Charity Race. I am with Team Challenge of Georgia and they sponsor the Crohns and Colitis Foundation. I have 4 months to raise $2500. Thats right family and friends.. Im asking for sponsors!
So what do you have to do? Its easy! They set me up with a donations page.. Here is the link. So click and donate and help me raise money!
If you are thinking you don't know anyone with Crohns or Colitis and just want to donate to encourage me to get off my duff that is fine by me. Just DONATE!!!!!!
love you all
Mike

Not on the crapper list

Just so I don't get placed on the, Who's not posting to their blog black list I thought I would pop on and say hey!
Its a bit late on a Monday and about this time last night I found out I would be going to a meeting in Minneapolis tomorrow. In my sleepy state I got on the computer and booked a flight. The timing didn't seem all that right but I just figured what the heck.. I didn't realize until I got to work the next day that I had booked, out of habit, a flight out of Salt Lake City.. Silly boy.. You've only been living in Atlanta now how long? Coming up on my 8th month..
Oh well.. silly me.
It has been lighting and thundering all week and I have loved every minute of it. The lighting strikes, the Thunder claps and its like the most perfect night sleep!

So there.. Post, posted..Katie, loving the bellie shots! Liz, always good to see that little peanut grow!
Teresa, uh you are on the bottom of the black list, so much to say! and not a post in sight since new years.. Sara.. I know you have fun pictures from your trip to SLC.. and well Ali, I am letting you slide for just a moment as you are moving but don't think I wont harp on you.. You guys did ditch me in the South!

Loves to all
Uncle Mike

St Patricks Day is coming!

Mother this one is for you! I came across this recipe and it sounded like your famous green drink.
Enjoy!

Juice’s Patrick’s Day Punch
Ingredients

Gorgeously Green Saint Patrick's Day Punch
1/2 cucumber
8oz/227g spinach
1 whole apple, seeded and cored
juice of 1 lemon
juice of 1 lime
Method
Add ingredients into a blender and mix to a pulp.
So with all of those drink options everyone will have a drink to chink on the big day – cheers!
Get to know a bit more about the man you’re toasting this Saint Patrick’s Day by taking a trip round

Life and Death..

Its crazy how something so tragic as the death/loss of a friend can remind you of how sweet life is.
I found out this week that a very good friend of mine passed away over the Christmas break, yes, JUST found out. Apparently I wasn't on the notification list or something. Actually he was Canadian and I just didn't get the memo. Im finding out that a lot of his friends didn't know he had passed.
His name was Ashley Warren Haslett, 36 years old and one of the most upbeat, amazingly happy people I know. The details of his passing are currently a mystery, wrapped in an enigma. In reaching out to his parents to verify that the obituary was really my friend, I got a one line answer, 'yes your friend was our son.'
I don't know what to make of their response. I know they must be grieving extensively, I just wish they could have shared a bit more.. Did he suffer? Was he ill? Was it expected? Sudden? My mind continues to ponder over what must have happened.
In that however, I have been given insight as to how precious life is. We can be here one day and gone the next. Live life to its fullest right? We hear this all the time but how many of us actually take it to heart and try to find the beauty in each and every day?
The beauty of today was that I got to have dinner with a friend I hired on with at Delta almost 10 years ago. She was in town for some training and we got together and went to my favorite burger place in town. Catching up and just talking about friends we both new while the sun was setting over the city totally made my day! Thanks Nahe!!!

On a more bizarre note. My roommate went out of town for work and I was supposed to be out of town Tues and Wed. So his mom came into town to watch the dog. roomie Of course what happens? My trip gets the ax and I am stuck with his mother all week!
Now if it was my own mother that would be a joy and I wouldn't be complaining.. But this is someone I don't know very well and now she is my for the week.. can you say AWKWARD.......

Love y'all

Blondes have more fun...

So this is what I have heard from other people.. Id been feeling a bit like I wasnt doing much of anything fun so I thought.. Why not dye my hair blonde?
It didnt do exactly what I was thinking.. luckily I have a great stylist back home who told me to do a bit of work on it.. I cut it yesterday and this is what ive come up with..
Tell me how you like it!!!

Awh.. Honey, I baked!!!

Yes.. I baked. But not a lucious cake or dessert type. I made something classical. MEATLOAF!!! Why, you might ask did I make meatloaf? Well because I bought a big 3 pound thing of ground beef and didnt know what to do with it.. Et Voila.. Meatloaf.
I scoured FoodNetwork.com to find just the right recipie and low and behold I came across Double Pork, Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf. Yes, I started drooling too!
Now of course I had beef and not pork but I did have bacon! So I made it following the recipie with just that difference. Here is what it looked like before I baked it.

I baked it for an hour and it was swimming in juices. I did go and use a baster and take them all out but this is what it looked like when it was done!
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Now let us not forget DESSERT!!!
I got the mix when I went to New Orleans for a day..
they are OH so yummy!!!