Bye Bye *wave*

Disclaimer: all views written on this blog are my own and are not necessarily representative of VSO.

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Well, I wasn’t going to write another diary like I did for Australia – but that would be stupid.

It’s been a long time (three years) since I last wrote properly and this time I’m largely writing for me :)

I am on a Kenya Airways plane to Nairobi, Kenya – been in the air for about an hour and a half.

Shrek Three has just started. It was a really emotional goodbye at the airport – Mum, Dad, Merrick and Marilyn were there to see me off. I held it together well until I boarded the plane, then had a little cry.

Soon recovered, though. Sitting next to a lovely lady called Zara. Originally from Zanzibar, she married a Ugandan, and now has a home in London and a home in Uganda that she travels between. One of her sons is a pilot. She also has a daughter with my name!

It was really nice just to have her here. She went to study medicine in Russia before she was married, so knows how it feels to get on a plane on her own.

Cassie also wrote me the most amazing letter – really touching. She told me not to open it until I was safe on the plane. One line read ‘hope you’ve had your first bag of aeroplane peanuts’ – and I had! :)

She also included some wonderful photographs of us to put up on my wall. Really lifted me.

I’m tired now. Nairobi is three hours ahead of us, so going to watch the end of Shrek and probably try and get some shut-eye.

I didn’t think Shrek Three would be much good, but it’s excellent – Merlin is a hippie wiccan :op

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Okay, I really can’t sleep. We’re just over Africa now and I’m reflecting on how the gods have been smiling today.

Actually, yesterday too, with the beautiful, crisp autumn weather and the colour of the trees – perfect autumn day – my favourite kind.

Today, on the drive to the airport, I saw a huge Jay bird – my favourite type of bird, and quite rare to see. Then there was a field of about 20 white Shetland ponies. Huge hawks sitting on fence posts along the motorway, like centurions, and I also saw deer in a field!

Just to top it off, I’ve looked out of the plane window at a sky full of stars and a massive shooting star went past! How unbelievably magical. I have a good feeling about this :)

(Oh, and the fireworks taking off were pretty spectacular too – little bursts of glittering colour to wish me well on my journey!)