Just as you appetite changes so you begin to crave the things your body needs – fresh vegetables, chocolate, fats, - travel causes a craving for certain reading material. As the list in the back of this journal shows, mine is interspersed with a good deal of junk food, enjoyable but not sustaining.
But we have either by chance or forethought, brought along or found some enriching fare particularly suited for this trip. It actually began in February as we were driving in Baja, Mexico and listening to the “The White Nile”, a chronicle of the search for the sources of the Nile. We didn’t know it at the time we checked the tapes out of the library but Speke and the Bakers found the sources here in Uganda at Lake Albert and Lake Victoria. As a result of this knowledge we hope to visit both sites and later in the trip cruise on this mighty river and see its terminus at the Mediterranean.
In addition to our Lonely Planet guides to East Africa and the Middle East we have Egyptian history and will look for more in Cairo. Connie borrowed several books on Islam from Chris and we have both read “Idiot’s Guide to the Bible” and “Walking the Bible” to get an historic perspective of the areas we will see later on. My fascination with Israel resulted in yet another re-reading of “Exodus” to be followed by “The Source”. And to keep our eyes focused on the environmental aspect of the trip we discovered “A Sand County Almanac”. Some friends would find our situation too primitive to handle but compared to “South,” the journal of Shakleton’s epic Antarctic expedition of a century ago, it’s nothing more than a minor inconvenience.
And through it all Connie continues to struggle through German grammar while both Italian and Swahili, wait in the wings. I also think I saw some books about East African history and culture back at HQ in Entebbe so we should be set for a while. Add in the bird, flower and animal guides and we are well on our way to an advanced degree in world travel. the things your body needs – fresh vegetables, chocolate, fats, - travel causes a craving for certain reading material. As the list in the back of this journal shows, mine is interspersed with a good deal of junk food, enjoyable but not sustaining.
But we have either by chance or forethought, brought along or found some enriching fare particularly suited for this trip. It actually began in February as we were driving in Baja, Mexico and listening to the “The White Nile”, a chronicle of the search for the sources of the Nile. We didn’t know it at the time we checked the tapes out of the library but Speke and the Bakers found the sources here in Uganda at Lake Albert and Lake Victoria. As a result of this knowledge we hope to visit both sites and later in the trip cruise on this mighty river and see its terminus at the Mediterranean.
In addition to our Lonely Planet guides to East Africa and the Middle East we have Egyptian history and will look for more in Cairo. Connie borrowed several books on Islam from Chris and we have both read “Idiot’s Guide to the Bible” and “Walking the Bible” to get an historic perspective of the areas we will see later on. My fascination with Israel resulted in yet another re-reading of “Exodus” to be followed by “The Source”. And to keep our eyes focused on the environmental aspect of the trip we discovered “A Sand County Almanac”. Some friends would find our situation too primitive to handle but compared to “South,” the journal of Shakleton’s epic Antarctic expedition of a century ago, it’s nothing more than a minor inconvenience.
And through it all Connie continues to struggle through German grammar while both Italian and Swahili, wait in the wings. I also think I saw some books about East African history and culture back at HQ in Entebbe so we should be set for a while. Add in the bird, flower and animal guides and we are well on our way to an advanced degree in world travel. 