Bats, ants, monkeys, mattresses, and cheese

A bunch of things to report from the last few days. There's no theme here and nothing really connecting the different paragraphs -- it's kind of like an article in the Nation (the major Kenyan paper -- see Deb's post). Anyway, here goes:

A.

I took a hike to a bat cave this morning (insert Batman joke here). Here's what I learned about bats:

1. Bats don't like visitors
2. Bats don't like flash photography
3. Bats don't appreciate being on the receiving end of a flashlight
4. If you're in a cave with bats, and the bats are about 3 feet above your head, and one of the bats decides to let go of the ceiling and start flying around, you will instinctively (a) duck, (b) cover your head, and (c) squeal like a small child.

I'll post a photo tomorrow.

B.

Deb and I spent the last two days in Kakamega Forest (Zysmans, stop chuckling at "Kakamega"). We saw three different kinds of monkeys, dozens of kinds of butterflies, dung beetles, and approximately 300 different kinds of birds (I counted. Okay I didn't count, but the book says there are 300 kinds in Kakamega -- tee hee -- Forest, and I'm sure I saw them all).

C.

You know the phrase "ants in your pants"? Well, it's taken on a whole new meaning for us. The forest has these large black ants that, with frightening speed, would crawl up our shoes and up our pant legs; once there, they'd clamp down on whatever fleshy bits they could find. Trust me when I tell you that a burning sensation on your upper thigh -- and the knowledge that there's really nothing stopping the bearer of that burning sensation from heading further north -- is unpleasant.

D.

Deb and I used our tent for the first time while in the forest. To make a very long story (involving a rain storm, rocky ground, and non-punctual Christians**), the mattress is a really really really really wonderful invention.

E.

We've just arrived in Eldoret. We came to this town for one reason: it has a cheese factory (and ice cream too!). Biting into a half-pound brick of gruyere is pretty great (crackers? bread? what?) (Oh, quick question for y'all: Deb and I seem to remember a Seinfeld episode where George expounds on the joys of eating a block of cheese (and nothing else). Does anyone else out there remember this?)

Tomorrow (unless Deb and I are busy getting a massage for $7):

Kenyans are really bad at telling time.


**like I said, it's a really long story