Hmmmmmm.....

It's 9:30am and I have an hour in Amsterdam airport before my flight home. Do I drink cold Heineken or extra cold Heineken?

Hidden Paradise

During my Tanzania trip I spent an incredible three nights at a place called Lupita Island. This private island in Lake Tanganyika covers 130 acres and only has 13 chalets, the smallest of which is 1200 sq feet (the largest is 2500). Lake Tanganyika is the longest lake in the world and the second deepest - it has more water than all five Great Lakes combined! The water temp is between 70-80 degrees all year and as clear as the Caribbean. This place was literally paradise.
I kayaked, snorkeled, swam, drank and the food was phenomenal (this is also where I did the village visit, previous post).
Besides what I've just said above there is really no way to explain this place so I will just let a few pictures attempt to describe the sickness that is Lupita Island...

My New Haircut, Part 2

I LOVE getting haircuts in random countries/cities. I've previously posted about my best haircut - in Johannesburg (the crew that went with me in October all experienced that), but today I got the best value haircut ever.
I had a free day in Arusha, Tanzania before heading to the airport to start the long trek home. After two weeks on safari my hair and beard were at an irritating length so I asked my driver/guide John to take me to a local barber shop. $3 & a half hour later (yes, THREE DOLLARS) I had a freshly shaved head, trimmed beard, my hair had been washed and conditioned (which is comical because I just had the little hair I have left completely taken off), and I got a head and face massage from the cute female assistant. That's the type of value even a Jew can enjoy!

Manda Ulwile

I spent this morning (20FEB) at a small remote African village in Tanzania called Manda Ulwile. This village is on a large island in Lake Tanganyika. The only contact these people have with the outside world is when they get visits from people like me (which is not very frequently).
It was incredible to wander around and interact with the curious villagers, especially the kids. The population is approximately 200 (140 of which are children). There's not even a school on the island so everyone pretty much chills and just plays all day everyday...
I taught the kids the English words for some of the animals that they have on the island (dog, pig, goat, etc) and we made the animal noises. Then I found some small fruits and juggled for the kids. Our guide told me that they had never seen anyone juggle before - based on their faces I believe him. I showed some of the older boys the basics of how to juggle and a couple were actually decent. Then we played catch and I got a big stick of sugar cane and we played a ghetto version of baseball. Finally I taught them the only Swahili song that I know. The kids (about 30) were singing, dancing and laughing.
Then it was time to head back to my resort on the private island next door. This was one of the most incredible and authentic experiences I've ever had!