Sunday, February 12, 2006

Kili Crew: Bonafus, Flo, Diana, Genesis, Scott, & Godfrey

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Saturday, February 11, 2006

Back in London

We arrived in London last night at around 5pm.  Scott, Flo, Danielle, and Allison all had connecting flights to NYC as soon as we arrived.  We had a quick goodbye as we got off the plane & they were off to catch their next flight.  It was a strange feeling to suddenly be completely on my own.  I kind of got used to having people with me all the time! 
I found my way to the hotel w/no problems and crashed by about 8pm and didn't get out of bed til 8am.  Guess I needed the rest!  I've opted not to explore London this morning.  If anything, I was going to do the London Eye to get a good view of the city.  It's about 40 degrees and overcast so I don't think I'm missing much by skipping that.  Plus, I think it's better to get some rest/peace and quiet before taking off again.  After all we've done over the past month I shouldn't feel like I have to squeeze in anything more!!
I was able to check my luggage all the way through from Dar to Mpls yesterday so it's nice I don't have to lug around my 100 lbs of bags! 
 
Not much else for updates at this point.  Be back in the states within a day....

Thursday, February 09, 2006

Soon to be homeward bound...

We have had a nice, relaxing time in Zanzibar the past couple of days and have spent our time in Stone Town.  We toured the historical sites, went on a tour of a spice farm, shopped at the markets, and lounged by the pool.  Tonight we fly back to Dar.  I'm doing my best to fight off the "back to reality blues!!"  I think I'm going to be dealing with some culture shock when I arrive back in the States!  We've had an incredible experience and made some great friendships along the way. 
My contact by email/posts may fade for a couple of days since I will mostly be in transit from Zanzibar to Dar, Dar to London, London to Chicago/Mpls.  I'll be home late Saturday night, trying to recuperate on Sunday, and back to work on Monday.   YIKES!!!
 
See you soon!
Love,  Diana
 

Monday, February 06, 2006

We did it - 19,340 feet!!!!!

Wow....each time I sit down to write I feel I'm at a loss for words.  This time it's even more difficult than the earlier posts!  I am happy to report that Scott, Flo, and I all made it to the summit - 19,340 feet and are still great friends!  Whoohooooo!!!!!   We did the trek in 6 days.  It was truly a once in a lifetime experience.  When all was said and done I felt physically and emotionally drained.  We keep looking back at our pictures and thinking "wow - we really did this!!!"  We had an incredible group that took us up the mountain.  They made it an amazing experience for us.  The chief guide, Genesis, was an amazing leader and an even more amazing person.  I don't know how to express how grateful I am for his support and friendship.  He took exceptional care of us - especially me.  It's unlikely I'll try to reach that height again. 
I was thoroughly exhausted and had difficulty with my left eye.  He stayed by my side and literally held my hand the last hour to the summit and then the entire descent down to our camp.  Helpful tip:  check with your eye doctor if you've had Lasik or similar surgery before trying to climb to those heights.  We met a group of 6 doctors doing the climb and I was able to talk to them when we came down from the summit.  They immediately diagnosed my problem as oxygen build up under the flap under my left eye (common for those that have had this eye surgery.)  They assured me it would clear up probably by the time we got down.  They were right.  Basically what happened is my vision became increasingly cloudy/foggy (white) in my left eye after we reached about 16/17,000 feet.  It was a bit unsettling { euphemism!} Their advice was to not climb that high again.  I'm glad I was determined (okay, maybe stubborn) enough to complete our goal.  Flo and Scott were truly team players!  I couldn't have asked for a better team members.  We spent last night reflecting and celebrating with our chief guide.  It was very sad to say "until we see you again...."
We completed our trek yesterday and flew to Zanzibar this morning.  Today we will relax before exploring the island. 
Until next time.......
Love,
Diana
 

Saturday, February 04, 2006

Trip

At first it didn't sink in to us that we could e-mail you. Hope your
climb was awesome. All is well here. Your kitties are doing just fine.
Amazing how well they make themsevles at home!!! It's waiting til you
come home to be super cold. Take care. Love, Mom & Dad