Day 0

This is the official post for day 0 of the trip.  As I mentioned, Colleen and I took a flight from Chicago to London, and then from London to Nairobi.  The second flight was very cool.  We flew over the Alps, but they were covered by clouds.  Then we went over the Mediterranean and headed south-east; that was when it got interesting.

We headed directly for Cairo and flew over the Nile River delta.  You always see the Nile on a map that ends in the north of Egypt as sort of an upside down triangle, but its from the air that I really appreciated what was going on.  The Nile splinters into dozens of smaller rivers which drain into the Mediterranean.  Each of those give off tons of small branches and streams as well.  Man-made irrigation canals top it all off.  The whole delta is this dark lush green surrounded by parched brown desert.

I mean, that is what a delta is, so it isn't surprising to say it.  But when you see it, you think Aha!  That is why this site produced one of history's first great civilizations.  And it was Egyptian grain that powered the Roman Empire.  When the Vandals took Egypt, Rome fell decades later (almost immediately when you consider how long it had been around).

The plane continued south along the Nile, and we went over Cairo.  It was also cool to see how populous and green the land immediately around the Nile is while heading south, because it is so strongly contrasted by the empty desert.  Unfortunately we did not see the pyramids at Giza from the air.  I was looking for them.  Maybe I needed to look out the windows on the other side of the plane.

Anyway, so we landed and Colleen's Tanzanian friend Said met us at the airport.  He guided our taxi to a small hotel in Nairobi.  After dropping off our bags, we went out for some drinks and food.  First we went to a local pub, then to a food stand with greasy chicken and soggy French fries (more like potatoes soaked in warm grease than fried really).  We then went to a music bar which was basically the pub plus loud music.  Soccer was playing at all of the stops, which is pretty typical for anywhere that is not the USA.

The beer is good.  One I had I thought was funny.  It was called "Pilsner" lager.  I think that is funny because a Pilsner is a type of beer just like a lager is.  Which would be odd in itself, but then consider that the beer actually tasted more like an ale, which is nothing like pilsner or lager.  At least, none that I've had.  I'm an amateur beer snob so I could be wrong.