GETTING ENGAGED ON THE NILE

With tears in his eyes, Gert proposes to Rhoda. 

Memorable travel moments come in all shapes and sizes. 

Some may involve the terror of falling off a cliff in Thailand. Others could stem from the joy of getting lost underwater while surrounded by thousands of friendly fish. 

On a sunset boat cruise at the source of the Nile River in Uganda, we were invited to share in someone else's travel moment. And it will go down as one of the most sincere and touching memories of the trip.

As we boarded the pontoon boat, Rhoda, a stunning Kenyan woman with a constant smile, told us she had always wanted to cruise the Nile. She thought that's what her doting boyfriend Gert had brought her to Jinja to do. But Gert had other plans.

Unbeknownst to Rhoda, her boyfriend had been planning stealthily to make the boat trip far more than just a cruise. Gert was going to ask Rhoda to marry him, which he whispered to Kip only minutes after they climbed on-board. The plan was hatched. 

We shared drinks, travel tales and laughs. We took an unauthorized swim in the dark, swirling waters of the Nile. Soon after, to the tune of Shania Twain's "From This Moment," Gert dropped to one knee and, tears in his eyes, he asked the "woman of his dreams" to marry him. 

The happy couple.

Between sobs, Rhoda screamed "Yes!" Gert slipped the ring on her left hand. He held her close and told her he loved her. She cried some more. 

Drinks were served. A celebration ensued. 

Somewhere in the middle of it all, Rhoda explained to Gert that he would need be ready to negotiate with her family on how many cows this would cost him. She laughingly added he might get a discount for her poor cooking skills. Gert assured her he would be ready. 

And a very special travel moment went deep into the memory banks for all of us.

Congratulations, Gert and Rhoda! Thanks for sharing your special day with us!

BYE BYE MADAGASCAR

From its ancient baobabs to its adventurous sailing trips to its incredible (and oh-so-friendly) wildlife Madagascar's been good to us. But it's time to move on. South Africa, here we come.

Til then, below are a few parting shots from the land of the lemurs (and tortoises, and geckos, and ...).  

Nature at its most "natural"--these radiated tortoises live (and love) in one of the world's only programs set up to breed the highly-endangered reptiles. Seemed things were going well when we visited. 

That's one tiny gecko catching rays on the mirror of our rented motor bike.

A trip to Madagascar without a photo of a ring-tailed lemur? Not a chance.

Sadly, despite its reputation as a haven for rare and endangered wildlife, the island remains a frequent venue for slash-and-burn agriculture, as seen in the photo above.

Us at 20 feet under, diving near Ile Sainte-Marie off Madagascar's remote east coast.

INDIA: MEET THE PARENTS

Really hard to take a bad photo of the Taj Mahal, possibly the world's most architecturally stunning building. 

When you experience something memorable for the first time—swimming with a school of sharks, for example—it’s really nice to have people you love nearby…especially if the fish get hungry. 

So when Kip’s parents Paula and Larry decided to meet us in India, we were excited. Not only were we finally getting to see some of our family after nearly nine months on the road, but we also would be accompanying them to through New Delhi, Jaipur, and the Taj Mahal. As an added bonus, we also knew Kip’s mom would probably be hauling a backpack full of Clif bars, and his dad might even leave Kip a fresh shirt or two, which Liz was really pumped about. 

Larry and Paula warily pet a live cobra at Jaipur's City Palace. Nice shirt, Larry...maybe you'll leave it behind?

We kicked things off in New Delhi, where Paula splurged for a hotel with hot water, satellite TV, in-room wi-fi, and even clean, white sheets and fluffy towels (such rarities, at least where we usually sleep). We lived the good life, doing serious damage to the breakfast buffet and stopping by the sauna, while the folks slept off jetlag. The next day we toured some of the city’s highlights—the Red Fort, India Gate—weaving our way through the dust, dirt and chaotic traffic while clinging for life in the rear of an Indian auto-rickshaw, which thrilled Larry to no end.

Next we were off to Agra, home of the Taj Mahal. On the side of the road, “parked” at a gas station en route (seriously), we spotted a camel, which Liz and Paula both had to ride. Paula even got a big kiss. 

After a lunch break at McDonald’s for some fries, a Coke and a beef-free Big Mac, aka a “Maharaja Mac,” (Indians don’t eat beef, so there’s no Big Mac; but Mickey D’s remains insanely popular), we finally made it to our hotel, where through a thick blanket of fog we caught our first glimpse of the Taj Mahal. 

It was incredible, as was our long visit the following morning at sunrise. We'll only show a couple photos here, but as you can imagine, we took hundreds. 

The Patricks visit the Taj--Larry, Paula, Liz and Kip

 

 Dressed in their new "Indian" clothes, Liz and Paula share a laugh (left). The Taj framed (right).

Last stop was the historic city of Jaipur, the highlight of which was a visit to the Amber Fort. All four of us got to ride elephants up the steep, stone roadway to the entrance. Larry and Kip even allowed themselves to be conned into buying these stylish turbans. 

Larry and Kip go local at the Amber Fort outside of Jaipur, India.

After a lot of chicken curry, too many miles, and the making of some long-lasting memories, we headed back to India’s capital, tired but happy. We had watched the sun rise over the world’s most stunning architectural creation—something we’d dreamed of doing forever. We rode elephants. Some of us kissed a camel (Paula) and a water buffalo (Larry). And we got to do it with some of the people we love.

Not too shabby a way to spend a few of the not-so-many days we’re allotted on this planet. Not too shabby at all.

Addendum: If you’re back home in Louisiana and run into Paula and Larry, make sure to ask them about our not-so-friendly car driver, the over-eager postcard and trinket sellers at the Palace, and last but not least, how much they enjoyed being celebrities and having their picture taken with strangers everywhere they went.

V-DAY IS FOR VOLUNTEERING?

Liz thoroughly enjoying her romantic Valentine's Day...at the WAMU-Radio membership drive.

It's Valentine's Day. You're supposed to spend quality romantic time with the one you love, right? So I planned a big night out (BNO) for me and Liz.

Yes, I know what you're thinking, and I agree--I deserve a huge prize.

But before you get the Man of the Year committee on the phone, there's just one small thing--the BNO included free dinner and entertainment...as long as we volunteered for three hours, answering phones and taking donations during the annual membership drive of our local NPR station, WAMU.

I've got a feeling this one's going to cost me a lot more than a cash contribution to NPR would have.

Ring, ancient phone, ring!

Happy to accept Visa and Mastercard.