Rio to Nairobi!
December 31st -January 12th, 2017Jambo!
We left Rio on December 31st, New Year's Eve! We had no idea Rio was THEE place to be on NYE until we arrived and people told us that we were crazy for leaving! Fortunately for us the cheapest tickets to Africa was on NYE so we were able to save half the price we would have originally paid. We said good bye to our new Brazilian family with a nice farewell lunch with everyone we met. We spent our last day in Rio with Carla exploring the city and seeing the city center, including all the new additions from the Olympic games. We also visited the quaint little neighborhood of Santa Teresa. We then retired to our hotel room to pack our bags to head to the airport. It was nice to be in one place for a couple of weeks where we could unpack our bags and stay a while! We decided after packing that we would stay up until our flight since we had to leave for the airport so early. I accidentally fell asleep and got two hours sleep which was worse than not getting any because I was so tired when I woke up. We headed to the airport via Uber and checked in. The flight to Morocco was uneventful. We landed safely and was able to retrieve our bags without any glitches. Landing in Morocco felt different the moment we stepped off the plane. The vibes felt more foreign than ever. I said to Jackie that "even if I tried there is no way I can figure out the language!" After grabbing our bags we headed out to find a taxi. A gentleman approached us and offered us a ride into the city. We obliged and set the price before going with him. Driving at night we were unable to see the country side as we rode to our hotel. Our taxi driver was friendly and told us the must do's to see in Morocco. We arrived at our hotel, "Ibis hotel," and we ordered room service and waited for the clock to turn midnight and we wished each other and our family "Happy New Years!" And then went to bed. The next day we had big plans to go sight seeing but instead we chilled at the hotel and caught up with our family. We ventured out of the lobby to find food and stumbled upon a great little Mediterranean restaurant and it was just what the doctor ordered! We ate at "Loubane Express," and it was delicious and cheap! We then got another taxi and headed to the airport. The taxi driver and us set a price and we were off. The guy then stopped at a gas station to get gas and to fill up our tires then when he dropped us off and then tried to charge us extra because it was night time now and we left during the day. Jackie and I put our foot down and he agreed for us to pay what we originally agreed upon. GIRL POWER! We then caught our flight to Africa!
We had an 8 hour flight into Nairobi, Kenya. Jackie and I filled our time with lots of movies and we didn't sleep a wink! We were so excited to land in Africa, it felt like Christmas morning! Africa has been on both of our bucket lists for as long as I can remember. It was a dream that we didn't think could be a reality until much later in life until I stumbled upon a blog who mentioned a tour company called "Absolute Africa." Jackie was a gem and price compared Absolute Africa to other tour companies and this one was legit. We liked this one because unlike other tours where all the activities are already built into the price this one we could opt in or out if we wanted to. Also, we could find other tour companies and book with them if it was cheaper. It's nice to have flexibility like that when you are traveling so you don't feel obligated to do everything. We also really liked that the price was right! For about $1500 we were able to secure our spot.
Before our tour started we had 10 days to chill in Nairobi. We decided to stay at a place called "Wildebeest Eco Camp," which was referred by Absolute. We researched getting an Air B N B and other hostels but this one had really nice reviews and the price was good ($18 a night). We booked and were not disappointed. The place had everything you ever needed: a pool, a restaurant, grounds to walk around on, and WIFI. It was nice because everything you ordered at the restaurant you could put on your tab and pay with card later when you checked out. We met a lot of amazing people while staying there. Most of the people passing through stayed for about one or two nights before either starting their own safari tour or their own agenda. Jackie and I filled our time with catching up on social media (obviously not the blog hahaha), laying by the pool, and going to the mall. I even decided to try out the box braid look for our big tour! I heard that getting boxed braids would help a lot with the heat and no shower situation we may be encountering on the tour so I decided to give it a shot. First, I researched a lot on the hair style. The one thing I didn't want to do is offend anyone with my new look. Secondly, I didn't want to damage my hair. I asked around to a lot of locals who said it would be fine for me to get my hair done. Actually, they encouraged me to do it and were quite puzzled when I asked if it was ok for me to do it! Next, I did what anyone would do, I googled the crap out of how to take care of my hair while it was braided and other people's experiences. Now, I wanted to find other races besides African Americans because I needed to compare their hair with my own. There weren't a lot of people out there who did the look who wasn't African American so it was a bit dodgy but I decided to go for it any ways! I made an appointment at a local salon and for about $40 with the hair extension, time, and service it was worth it! The woman who did my hair was amazing. I've never seen anyone braid hair so fast! At times there were about four women braiding my hair and in total it took 4 hours! I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. I didn't know how I would look after it was done or how others would look at me! The final product was cool! I would definitely tell anyone to try it but I myself wouldn't do it again. I didn't like how I couldn't wash my hair after I sweated and how heavy they felt (not heavy as in it hurt, but just uncomfortable). Ultimately I kept them in for a few days then took them out! 10 days flew by quick! Before we knew it our 73 day tour was about to start! We will try to update as much as possible but as you know from previous blogs, it's not our forte (lol) plus wifi may be a bit dodgy, but we will try our hardest! Remember you can always follow us on Instagram or Snapchat for more up to date updates! :)
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