tandem biking.

Three weeks left. It's not everyday that you are in Africa. Yes,
right now it seems like it is since I have been here for 5
months. But despite that feeling, the truth is, that this day, in
Africa, is a very exceptional day compared to the rest of my
life. So, I've been trying to make as many memories, experience as
many things, and learn as many lessons as I can in this last
stretch. I know my friends always roll their eyes when I use this
wonderful motto but.....

If you are given a moment and you could either let it pass you by or
make a memory, ALWAYS make a memory! Or M.A.M., as Tara Becker so
wonderfully abbreviated it.

So the other night I took my camera (I know my mom would have a fit
if she knew how few pictures I have actually taken) and went out on a
long walk in search of things to photograph. As I walked out of
town and towards the river, a wrinkly, elderly man on one of those
rickety bikes that I have talked about, came riding up beside
me. "Lapia, Lapia, Lapia!!! LAPIA BUJA!!! " Alrighty little guy
calm down. He was so cute though and he stopped his bike to
talk. After finding out that we were going in the same direction,
he told me that I could ride on the back of his bike. Wow! Like
hitch-hiking! I would never in my life pass up a chance like that

So, I sat on the little metal platform behind the bike seat and hung
my legs down incase the take off wasn't as smooth as we wished. He
tried to get going, but honestly i was definitely bigger than
him. His little frail leg muscles just couldn't push us through the
sandy path on this dying bicycle. So we decided that I would give it
a go and he would ride on the back.

So off we went. Lisa (my cousin) and I have lots of practice riding
double on bikes. One of us will usually sit on the handle bars and
the other peddles down College Ave. (Spring Quarter here we come Lisa!)

It got tipsy in a few places and there were times I even thought we
were for sure going to take a tumble. However, we pulled it off. I
even managed to take a snapshot of the two of us WHILE driving the bike.

We rode a few miles. This was no short jaunt. A could times I
would ask him, "Should we turn her? Should we stop her?" He would
always hurriedly shriek his answers, "No! not yet! I'll tell you,
I'll give you warning before the road comes!" I think he was worried
that if we stopped that we wouldn't get going again. Soon we got to
the next village and the little man introduced me to his family and
one of his wives.

But soon they started making plans to feed me and I knew that it was
getting dark. I still had to run back 3 miles mind you. So I got
back on the road and the sun had already set. It got darker and
darker and I started passing some interesting types of people on the
road. I started jogging. Soon, a young boy came up beside me on his
bike and started talking to me with all of the English he knew. He
accompanied me all the way home in the dark. Not that I'm afraid of
the dark or anything. :)

Count-down.

-Go to the river and collect firewood and carry it back like those
ladies who were doing their thing.
-Sell random goods at the market with Ansley.
-Go to the Arab Village.
-Trap mice out in the fields and fry them to eat.
-Organize a 5k in Bere.
-Sleep a full night outside. (Not a half a night and then have to go
in because you are so cold.)
-Gather junk fabric from off of the streets for sewing when I come home.
-Paint the murals in the church.
-Put together a slide show for my family.
-Cook a meal for my family.
-Be the one to kill the chicken. (I don't know that I have the heart to do it.)
-Family Portrait