Day 291 - To Madrid, Spain - 25th May, 2005

Granny and Grandpa joined us for breakfast at the Queens then we left for the journey back to Heathrow. The weather was not so dire today. The wind had dropped and the skies were a bit clearer but still no blue sky to be seen

We were in good time for the flight and we lingered in the airport for a while. I do have to say that Heathrow really is the pits after some of the places we have visited. However I did see the progress they were making on terminal 5 (funny I thought it was still in the planning / consulting the public stage) and I do believe that it will be a world class type building. Now if only we could get some of the airport workers to dress a bit better, pick their feet up when they walk and get the Sun newspaper from out of their back pockets we might become quite impressive. But there again .....

How many people do you know that have said they were looking forward to coming back to London until they hit Heathrow? I bet there are a few.

We arrived in Madrid and we were instantly lifted into a weather system that all human beings should live in. It was 34 deg C, the sun was shining and we were back on the road. Why, just why can't we have weather like this. I am twice as alive when the sun is shining. I am sure the productivity would increase in the UK if we could only have a few more blue sky days.

We got a shuttle bus to our hotel the "Hi Tech Airport Hotel". I chose this place not because they promised free 2 mbps internet connections but because it offered a swimming pool. So straight up to the rooms (all very high tech - except when I tested the free internet connection it was only running 750 kbps) and into our swimming costumes and down to the pool. Mummy had a bit of a headache (she always gets them when we fly - even after her 27 flights so far on this trip she hasn't got used to it !!) so she stayed upstairs.

The boys and I agreed that the water temperature was comparable to the sea in Cancun which was 82 deg F. The pool was lovely and we swam in it for about an hour. Then I took the boys to dinner. We saw some bullfighting on the TV and when we got back upstairs we all watched the Liverpool vs Milan match. The Spanish waiter said (I think) that there were 5 Spaniards in the Liverpool team. He must have been right because every bar around here was packed with football fans looking at the TV.

Here we are outside the hotel. Sammy having problems with his pants again. And in the bar with the Liverpool football match on. Liverpool became the UEFA Champions that night, beating Real Madrid on penalties after coming back from 3 - 0 down at half time. The Spanish were distraught and Mummy was happy. (YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OQToElxke4). It was an incredible match.

Day 290 - Portsmouth, UK - 24th May, 2005

Yes you read right. Portsmouth it was. This is the story.

We were in Nairobi and I went to check the on-going flight to Jo'burg with British Airways. Sorry sir but we don't fly that route anymore, you will have to purchase another ticket to go there if you want.

Well we didn't really want to go to Jo'burg but it was on the original ticket routing and was the way we were to get to Athens (via Madrid) our next stop. After much wrangling we were told that the only thing they could do was to route us back through London. OK, I'll go with that as long as there is an overnight involved at no extra charge. So that's what we did and we rented a car and went down to see Grandma and Grandpa in Portsmouth for an unscheduled visit.

We had been out of the country for 291 days. It was not really a pleasant home coming. It was wet, dull, cold and generally miserable. We arrived at 5:00am when London is not at it's prettiest. We still had some sunburn from up country Kenya and we have no winter clothing any more. Yes folks, what ever you may say, it was still winter in London today.

We drove down to Portsmouth, stopping at the motorway services for my most expensive breakfast of the last 291 days. Bacon and eggs and the works with a cup of coffee cost me almost a month of an average Indian's wages (£14.25). Was coffee always £2.45 per cup or has it gone up by about £2? I will never be able to afford to live here.

Portsmouth was being battered by a storm. The waves were shooting over the pavements and roads and the wind was getting up to force 4 or something. It was atrocious. I have never seen the tide so high. It was within 20 feet of the road. I guess it's the spring tides.

Grandma and Grandpa were delighted to see us. We had rung them and told them we were coming. They had seen Julie a couple of months ago but were anxious to see the boys. We checked into the Queen's Hotel (Sammy's favourite, until we discovered they had filled in the pool) and hung out in the room all day. We did some shopping, had some room service and watched a little TV. I managed to get some work done as well. The boys showed Granny and Grandad their juggling and yoyo tricks.

For now we are off to Madrid tomorrow at 2:00pm where we stay overnight. Then we fly to Athens, stay one night in an hotel and then jump on our yacht. (see yacht details: yacht). We are going sailing. When we get back from that we have to find a way to get to Nice from Athens and we hang out with my mum for a month or so.

 Day 286 - The Rains and the Walk for Water

Well thanks be to God. It rained all that night and the next morning. A true answer to prayer. Some of our hosts were beginning to think that these "white men" visitors had some sort of direct line to the Lord himself. The crops would be saved. The water butts (huge things) were filling up again.

For breakfast, we were taught how to milk the cattle. Some of us were more able than others.

We then set off to do the walk for water. This is a 7 klm round trip, which Eunice and her family had to do everyday of their lives until quite recently, when a local water well was installed at the side of their farm. 

The day was hot and steamy after the rains and the going was soft under foot. Eunice told us how they would have to make this trip before school every day and that the weight of the container on her back when she was so young, had damaged her spine.

The water source was just small pool under a large rock but it had provided water for the family and others in the community, for years and years. The fact that it was muddy was of no consequence. It was drinkable.

We trudged through the mud on our mission, each of us carrying our empty containers. This was the easy bit. Here we are leaving the compound and on our way.

At the spring we filled our water containers and discovered just how heavy they now were. The trip back was harder work. The boys stuck at it for a while at least but Mum ended up carrying Sammy's in the end. I managed to haul my 10 litre container the whole way. We arrived back hot and damp.

And then it was time to leave. The whole extended family gathered to see us off and I was presented with a goat. I left it with them and asked them to look after it for me.

On the way back, we stopped off in Nairobi to see the new house that Kevin and Enunice were having built for themselves. And to think that they started off in mud huts ...

Day 285 - The Farm Visit

We were immediately surrounded by all the extended family and the animals that lived with them. A goat was slaughtered for their highly honoured guests and the boys set about catching (well trying to catch), killing, plucking and preparing a chicken to accompany the goat of dinner. Sammy immediately joined in with the bare foot approach to life.

After a great many attempts, we discovered that the trick was to grind up some maize and get them to come to you. I even managed to catch one myself.

Even the family was having difficulty catching the chosen one. But he was finally caught.

And quickly dispatched and made ready for cooking.

We even discovered the remains of our goat around the back.

The fire was made and the BBQ commenced. As the guests we were the first to eat and we were presented with the choicest pieces. This turned out to be the liver of the goat. For the boys, it was a first. It was delicious. The boys ate some under a bit of duress but survived the ordeal in order to uphold the honour bestowed on us.

We were also shown around the farm. Basically they grow maize to feed all the animals. They have about 5 acres. But at the time we arrived the crop was in a very sorry state. The rains had not come and the crop was all shriveled and in real danger of failing completely. Baba Eunice was very troubled.

We collected some vegetables and fruits.

Eunice and her family were very religious and most weekend nights would be completed around the fire, singing songs and praise and offering prayer. The situation with the drought was top of the list of prayer. We all joined in, with many of the songs that we knew and offered our own prayers.