Hello Friends and Family back at home. Lauren Lee and Tyler King writing here! Neck is a little sore from sleeping vertical and/or on benches. The flight was very very long but was filled with many enjoyable meals and sweet treats. Tyler and I loitered around the bathroom for about 10 minuted during our 8.5h flight sharing animal crackers and about what we were to write about today. Amsterdam airport looks kind of like an IKEA + Somerset Mall. Filled with MANY fragrance, wine stands and designer windows. We landed late last night while it was dark and received all baggage and passed through customs with out a problem. We were swept up by our wonderful hosts Arthur and Juma in a large van/bus and taken to get food at a 24/7 food court outside Kenya City. The luggage was strapped to the roof of the van and we all piled in. On the way there we could hear roof top clubs blaring music through the night. At the food court, I (Lauren) ordered a “3 piecer fried chicken with spicy rice” from Chicken Inn, it was HOT. Burnt my mouth several times hastily eating my meal. Shared with a stray cat walking around the tables. We pulled into the hotel at around 1am (Kenya time) and were greeted with FRESH mango, watermelon and passionfruit juice. Tim, our host at Grace House Resort, welcomed us in with a few announcements and gave room assignments. The rooms are not like American hotels where the rooms are connected to a public hallway. Instead, the rooms are oriented around a common area which is then connected to the stairwell. The common area was filled with complimentary tea and coffee surrounded by communal couches. We had to figure out how to wash our faces and brush out teeth without using the sink water, so what Laura Taylor and I (Lauren) did was pour water out of a water bottle for each other. We will if it is worth it at the end of this week comparatively with Prof. Patrick Gentile who just used the sink water (boys *eye roll*). We unpacked and climbed into our beds which felt like glorified dining tables, but we both quickly met sleep underneath the mosquito nets.
Woke up this morning at 7:30a and made my way to breakfast which is where I will let Lexi Dehoop and Will Tobias pick up! Tutaonana baadaye!