Ethiopia update email sent to my family October 22 2011 before Trip

This is the first big update email to my family about the trip (edited - removed emergency contact info)



Hi Mom and everyone
updates...
Trip...
We leave for Ethiopia 11/13 Sunday and will be home the following weekend probably Sat or Sun (waiting for visas and flight details)
See www.water.org they have video under Projects and Ethiopia.

Levi's is sending a videographer and a couple other people here (Minneapolis) on Sat 11/12 to interview us and show how we live here and show us using water.
We travel with them to Ethiopia (so the nice thing is a woman from Levi's in San Francisco will escort us the whole way, same flight, same hotels).
She has a phone with internet and an international calling plan so we can call home if we want.

The hotel has an internet cafe nearby but internet access and electricity can be less reliable than we are used to but we may get a chance to send a quick hello.

The Levi's group will release some video of our trip the week of March 22 on Facebook when they run another contest on world water day. Like "hey see these nice people from Mn? You could win a trip like this too..."

Maddy...
Maddy just got a new camera from her dad for the trip.
So we are excited and busy getting ready.
She loves college and is away right now volunteering at a church camp for teens. She calls it "Jesus Camp"
She also is youth leader for a small group of about 10 7th grade girls at our church. Her co-facilitator was a baby with her at daycare! Small world.
She says some of her "sevvies" (seventh graders) are "SO TINY!"

John just had a birthday 10/14. His best friend is visiting from New York they are so happy like little kids! They are ging to visit a friend in Milwaukee for the weekend.

Ok gotta go. I'm icing my knee again. Had physical therapy yesterday at 8:30. Gotta toughen up so I can make ith through the airports.
Love
Kitty

Less than a month and we will be in Ethiopia

So I just got off the phone with one of our hosts/traveling companions for the trip.

Did I mention my daughter and I are going on a trip?

We are waiting for Visas and flight information, and we are leaving for Ethiopia on Sunday November 13th 2011. We will be there for a week, visiting a community getting clean water for the first time. Amazing. There will be videographers documenting this, so next spring there will be some video footage of us on Facebook. It's a lot to absorb.

How do you answer "so, do you have any questions?"  Um. Yep. A lot. But I do not think the answers you give me will really be meaningful, not in the way the experience will be - I expect to be surprised, humbled, amazed and delighted. Is that too much to ask? From Africa? I think not.

It's getting close! Today is October 19th, 2011, just an ordinary day. And then again, I think not.