What would the "Trip" look like?

With our email list growing I have been fielding some questions in regards to traveling to Africa in the Summer of 2009. While I currently have...um...yes...I have exactly 0...zero answers; I can add some insight with experience from our previous trips.

Caveat: This is all speculation and I cannot make any promises in this regard, this is meant to be a dream building process to get people thinking about challenging their comfort zones to make a difference in another part of the world!



What would we do?

• Fly to Nairobi


• Travel the "one of a kind" African roads


• Game Drive (I highly recommend Masai Mara) Note: Picture to the right is of Shelley and Joanne at Masai Mara on the Kenyan/Tanzanian border.


• Visit and volunteer at Hopewell Jr. Academy. Note: Picture on the left is a picture of the Hopewell Jr Academy...think pre-school.
• Eat lots of interesting food!
• Meet lots of great people!
• Celebrate the grand opening of WTW's International Village-Hopewell, and hopefully be the first guests during our stay.

How long would we stay?

• Probably anywhere from 10-17 days; remember travel to and from takes a "few" hours :)!
• There is at least one person who is considering staying a longer time ie. from Mid-June through the end of July/early August.

What would we need to do to make this happen for ourselves?

• First, you have to have a dream and align this with your priorities. Most people never make a decision to go...you are elite!
• Next, make a decision, make a commitment, and just do it!
• Passport...if you don't have a valid passport you will need one...head over to the Post Office today and get an application...what's it going to hurt?
• Shots! Close your eyes, grin, and bear it! Really, they are not that bad. Everyone will need to call the travel clinic and schedule the shots they need to travel safely.
• Money...everyone knew this is coming...and for those couples out there, get out your calculators because you will need to do some multiplying. Some guesses would be about $2000 for airfare and probably another $1000 for everything else. Now this is just a guess...so please don't hold me to it. These costs may rise and they may fall depending on everything that is going on.
• Participate...get active! You know, read your email, check the blog, comment on it...attend fundraisers, take some responsibility, etc. You can do it!

That's all I can do for now...Ill post more later.