I'm Coming Home, To The Place Where I Belong...

Orange dust stuck to my feet, warn sun on my skin, and absolute exhaustion.  Yup, I have arrived back in Malawi!  I touched down today and was picked up by ABC staff at the airport.  I am working on moving in to my house, which is a 4 bed, 4 bath home - I am currently sharing with only one person, but after Christmas, we'll be full!

This weekend is time to move in and get used to the time zone (so, of course, I'll be up early and out the door to visit with friends and catch up!!), and starting next week will be orientation and frantic prep of classrooms.

I apologize for the quietness of the blog during the summer - it was busy at home, and I wanted to really settle in and enjoy being with my family.  So, I kept track of things I wanted to share, and as I have time, I will write and back-post them!

Thank you all for your support and prayers - it means the world to me!  I am so thankful and amazed that not only did I make every single connection, but all 4 of my checked bags did too!  Not only that, but I had enough of a layover in Amsterdam that I was able to leave the airport and spend a few hours exploring the city.  It made an otherwise long and tedious journey a lot more interesting!

Landed in Amsterdam and ready to go adventuring!

The original Heineken's Brewery - no longer producing beer, just giving tours.

A big weeping willow that a heron was hiding under.

A boat for my dad - beautifully made out of wood, and named Kingfisher.

Such a beautiful view down the canal.

Dichotomy: The back of a cathedral is home to a shop that sells drug paraphernalia.

Such a green city - it is fascinating!

One of the many adorable houseboats along the canals.

The architecture is so amazing!

There were herons all along the canals, within feet of motor boats, people, and houseboats - they just stared at us all as we went by.

Sculptures on top of the building? Why not?

OK, I was pretty much drooling the entire boat ride over the architecture.

Didn't have the time to go in, but got to see the Anne Frank house from the outside!

Gorgeous old cathedral architecture.

A cute little tea garden that I walked past and wished I could stop at,

A pretty car for my brothers to salivate over.

A bar with a statue of Mary (I think?) in the window.

Heading off to Nairobi!

So beautiful!

I have a thing for clouds... they are so diverse!

A mountain peeking over the cloud cover as we arrived in Nairobi.

Beautiful canals and beautiful ancient houses.

A map of the inner city - most of which I covered either in the boat tour on on foot.

The clock tower of the train station.

Got to watch a gorgeous sunrise twice - once on top of the clouds, and once underneath the clouds!

One of my favourites.

I could see city lights underneath the clouds - they were still in the dark.

Flying in over Malawi!! Entlich!