when "processing" turns to procrastinating

OK, so I've been putting off posting about the trip bcoz 1) I'm a lazy uni student, 2) I've either been saying not much about the trip or having sudden verbal diarrhoea about it, 3) we did SO much, it feels like I'd need to write for like 6 hours straight to get it all down, and I don't want to bore you with unecessary detail.

BUT post I must. Maybe it'll turn out short, maybe it'll turn out long, we'll see. Actually, I've just been hit by a wave of brilliance - I shall break it up. Into easily digestable chunks. Let's see how that goes ;)

First up: le journey - a trip in itself.

The Adelaide crew arrived at the airport at at civilised hour in the afternoon (compared to Law's early morning departure - it was kinda cool that we were leaving on the same day, but it sucked as well because I couldn't do all the farewell things with the others for him!). Seeing as most of us hardly knew the rest of us in the group, I think we were all kind of nervous, but excited as well at the friendships-to-be. I was glad to have my farewell party there (Mum, Dad, Dan, Dave, Anne, Miz and Jordan). At the airport I was in a bit of a daze (tho if you ask my parents, thats not that unusual ;) - after half an hour of just hanging around (a weird time of limbo, standing at the gate where there's nothing between now and saying a big goodbye except time) all of a sudden we were boarding. I don't really like goodbyes, because I always feel like I've forgetten to say something vital, and hate it if they aren't 'right'. As soon as I was walking down the walkway thing I was feeling terrible - already missing people, and also because I forgot to tell Dave that I loved him (which I knew he knew, but at a time where I was ripe for a freakout, it wasn't good!) So rather than stealing myself to save up my letters for the big flights - as in 9 hours, as opposed to the 45 mins to Melbourne - I read them before the plane even took off!

Anyway, my first lesson of the trip for trusting in God for peace of heart - Mum made me this awesome notebook for the trip which had a verse and comment for each day, and for the first one (read before we were even taxiing!) had a pretty apt quote :
Lord, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts find no peace unless they rest in you." Augustine of Hippo. (haha, Hippo - how ironic as I was going to Africa!)

In Melb we arrived, walked with our big backpacks, feeling every bit the travellers already (well, kind of - I was a bit of a weakling complaining after 5 mins of sore shoulders!) the 20 min walk to our oh so classy overnight abode - 'Formule 1' (as opposed to Formula?? were they trying to be French we wondered?), which despite having fun campervan type bathroom (where you can toilet AND shower at the same time - score!) were comfy. Me and Rose were together which was good fun - I was impressed, she managed to come on the trip while doing year 12, had just done all her trial exams, and was still sniffly at that stage with a cold :( (well I wasn't impressed by the cold, that sounds a bit odd). We met the rest of the group from Gippsland and went out to a restaurant to bond and stuff. 'Stuff' meaning in this sense both stuffing our faces because we were STARVING (*warning, family joke that others prob won't get ahead* I could feel a CP attack coming on...), as well as playing get to know you name games, chatting, getting our shell necklaces (each line representing a diff part of our pilgrimage - I thought that a pretty cool idea of Lindy's) and ladada.

This is getting long ... oh well! The next morning we all woke up, bright and chirpy of course, at 4am (and, I was able to send a couple of emails righting the goodbyes that felt a bit wrong *sigh of relief*, and hence giving me enough closure to be able to leave the country!), hung around at the airport for a while, and finally boarded our Cathay Pacific plane (our first taste of waiting in lines at airports). I was actually feeling pretty relieved at this stage because everyone more or less was getting on really well - which is a good thing when you're about to go on an overseas trip with them! Bizarrly one of the guys - Gabriel - has a personality a fair bit like Michael (superstar cousin Michael) who arrived in Adelaide just after I left, so that was strangely comforting. I scored a window seat (and would somehow proceed to do so for all of the seven flights, but two) next to Kat, and we spent the next 8 or so hours enjoying the novelty of screens in the seat in front of you (viewing such quality movies as She's the Man, Keeping Mum (seperately seeing beginnings and ends several times in fact...), and shows like The Office - English version of course!) chatting, trying to unsuccessfully sleep, and ... I don't know, whatever you do when you fly.

Touch down in Hong Kong was pretty cool - come on, Hong Kong! A foreign country! woohoo!! Yeah, another few hours of killing time - despite wanting to try out some cultural food, we ended up getting Burger King - oh the shame! The next flight I was next to a nice girl who (I think) was from Hong Kong, going to see her bro in Nairobi - embarrassingly just as we were striking up a good convo I managed to spill my tea all down the front of my largely white shirt, before the turbulance hit so I couldn't even blame it on that - classy! But funny... :P Actually we had pretty bad turbulance - scary, but kind of fun. When we had a 45 min stopover at Bangkok I was feeling tired but strangely chirpy...
After another 9 hours we touched down in NAIROBI! at 4.30 am...

And that concluded our broadcast for today, tune in next time for... Kenyan adventures!

I would post pics but blogger's not letting me ... will try again soon.

here I go...

In about an hour we leave for the airport.

This time tomorrow we'll be half way to Hong Kong.

Right now Law's half way to LA.

Let the adventuring begin.

I'll miss you all!!! love jess xo

ps I reckon this is a valid excuse for lack of blogs in the next few weeks. But when I get back there'll be THREE weeks worth of comments, woah! So i've got a challenge for you guys - 20 entertaining (or non-entertaining, your choice) comments by the time I get back. I don't reckon you can do it (notice subtle reverse psychology). That way you'll never notice I'm gone from blogland!