Fellow travelers and Kenyan currency

It has been a busy couple of days getting ready for my trip! I know that I still have a week and a half before I leave, but I am keeping myself busy by doing some of the things that need to be done.

Yesterday, I met 2 of my fellow travelers for lunch to talk about the trip. Cheryl Sanderson went to Samburu with Earthwatch 2 years ago and is now going back; she very kindly shared photos and helpful hints with me and Liz Crane. We had so many questions about what to pack, what to expect, the food, the people, etc. It was good to know that I'm mostly on track with my plans for what to pack, but seeing a picture of the very tiny plan we'll take from Nairobi to an area closer to Samburu makes me a little nervous. Cheryl and Liz are both very nice. I think it will be a great trip!

This morning, I decided to spend some time researching where and when I'll be able to get Kenyan currency. I normally wouldn't worry too much, but I will be arriving very late in Kenya before a very early meeting the next morning, so I'm worried about the timing of it all and whether or not the information I have found in guidebooks is accurate. Cheryl said that she changes currency in London, where they do have Kenyan shillings available at the currency exchange bureaus, and suggested that maybe I could get my currency during my long layover in New York or in Brussels. I found the phone numbers for Travelex at JFK and was told that they don't carry Kenyan shillings. I don't really want to call the airport in Brussels to try to find out if they carry shillings there, so I continued my search. It turns out that you can order Kenyan shillings from AAA. I get nervous thinking about carrying that much cash with me for that long, but I have a money belt and other ways to carry cash more safely, and the idea of taking out large amounts of cash from an ATM late at night in a city known for high crime rates makes me even more nervous than just carrying the cash on the airplane does. So, I ordered my Kenyan shillings and won't have to worry about not having money in Samburu. I should get my shillings in a couple of days.

According to the Universal Currency Converter at xe.com, $1 US is equal to about 74 Kenyan shillings, as of this morning. I made a list of a few basic amounts so that I'll be able to judge how much souvenirs and other things cost as I shop. I don't want to have to be dividing things by 74 in my head all the time!

I've been trying to add a picture of Kenyan currency for you all, but I'm having some computer problems. I'll try again later, or I'll take a picture of my money when it arrives and upload that.

I still have a few more errands to do to get ready. I think today I will go use up some gift certificates at REI and Barnes and Noble. I think I need to buy a little more bug spray and a long sleeved shirt, and maybe some Clif bars or something just in case I don't like the field lunches they pack. Cheryl said that some of the lunches got a little weird, like peanut butter and hardboiled egg sandwiches. Blech! Of course, I also have to pack, but I don't want to do that quite yet. I have a growing pile of things to take in my living room, and I've started trying to organize a bit, but if I start packing now, I know I'll forget what I've already packed and pack twice as much as I need. Because we'll be traveling on such a small plane, we're only allowed 10kg of luggage, so I need to avoid overpacking. That should be a challenge!

I'll try to check in at least one more time before I leave to let you all know how the packing goes!