Hello my favorites!
Harvey the Hyena, Jack the Eagle, and I are back from our adventure.  I know you've been waiting for this update, so over the next few days I'll fill you in on as many adventures as I can.  I thought about all of you (lots) and kept my promise as I only unsealed all your letters the night before reaching the top of Mount Kilimanjaro!

Yes, your kind words brought tears to my eyes.  Patrick, Austin, Dylan, and Roberto, you got me good--I had to pause for Kleenex for all four letters. (Which I didn't have, so I grabbed toilet paper.)  You boys know me too well.

You made me laugh with your pictures (Breonna and Sarah, I did open my duffle and you two weren't there).  Gregg--it was a perfect image of me on top of the mountain!  Malik--those smiles on your people and mountain made me laugh-snort, you are an artist!

Emily and Chenoa--how did you know I needed salt? LOL.  I was craving it for the whole week!  They even had hot sauce on the table!  I put it on my pizza and dipped my fries in it.

Kolbe and Matt, they fed us toast all the time.  I put butter on it Cynthia--lots of butter. LOL. I even have a picture of it--I'll have to bring it to you next year in 5th grade.

Giana, you rock too!  The last part of the climb was right up the rocks.  Eek--I was very careful not to fall.

Jacob--I did channel Steve from Minecraft.  I didn't see a frozen mammoth, but who knows what is really in that glacier...

Brett, I got a hole in my sock--any chance you might be able to sew it shut?  I actually carried a small sewing kit and used it a few times.

Allison, thank you for being proud of me no matter where my summit was!  Katelyn you too--and the heart was amazing! Bella and Isabella, I miss you both too!

Brianna, Candy Crush came with me and I saw little moles and rodents that looked like your hamster.  So cute.  We tried to catch them, but were not fast enough.

Reece, of course I'm coming back from the mountain--You can't get rid of me that easily.

You all even gave me some motivation to get to the top without quitting. Justin--you are a sweetie, Kevin--you are awesome, I did say that, thanks for reminding me!

I climbed it all the way to the top--took me 13 hours, and no, no medic.  But that picture of me falling down the other side of the mountain was really, really funny.  Thankfully Sonic caught me, thank goodness!  (No name on that paper, of course--you always keep me guessing... could that have been Aaron's letter? hint, hint.)

Don't worry Lanna, I did not fall in a hole or get stuck in a glacier.  I wiped out a few times though on my way down the mountain as I tried to ski through the gravel.  You know what a tough cookie I am (just as stubborn as you sometimes!)--I got up, brushed off my very dirty pants, and kept going!

So here we go.  No, reading this whole blog cannot count for a chapter book--nice try there, LOL. But remembering to send me a photo of your adventures will get you some bonus points!

HERE ARE SOME VIEWS OF THE CITIES WE TRAVELED:

Remember how nervous I was about them not having my pop? Hakuna matata--no worries!  Coke and Pepsi both had bottling plants and glass bottle Cokes (And Coke Lights) were available almost everywhere!  Fanta had orange and passion flavors and they even made a really, really good gingerale (like Vernors, but tasier!)  The odd thing is, now that I am home I am not drinking much pop anymore. We drank so much water everyday and had tea in the morning I have changed my routine a bit.  Water is healthier than pop, so I am keeping this change!  You'll see water on my desk more often this next year for sure!

Here is a view of a street market--how they sell some of their fruit daily is right by the roadside!  We had lots of fresh fruit that was always ripe & tasty...yum!  I always grabbed pineapple when available for breakfast or at dinner.  They also had papaya, watermelon, cantaloupe, and even mangoes for breakfast once.  I ate mini bananas and oranges (at least, I think they were oranges/mandarine type citrus) daily.  I have searched for those mini bananas since I got home, but haven't found them for sale here... yet.

Do you know what this is?  That's right... sugarcane!  There are sugarcane plantations all over Moshi and many people buy a piece for a meal or snack.  You'll often see people riding on their bikes carrying different produce and even milk in aluminum canisters to deliver it to people in the city!  It was really cool seeing all the items people balanced on their bikes.  We're just so used to using cars here, but in Africa bikes and motorcycles are more popular.

Oh Aaron and Isabella--these pictures are for you!  Bananas!  Bananas! Bananas!  On our way up to start our Kilimanjaro climb we passed miles and miles of banana farms.  Giant bundles lined the streets and were loaded on huge, open trucks.  I wanted to reach out and grab them.  I was afraid we weren't going to get a lot of bananas on our climb, but Azizi (our leader) had them for us!  Our cook on the mountain, King, even made us a banana stew one night.  Sounds very different than what we eat, you might even be making a face, but I can assure you it was delicious!  The bananas were still firm like potatoes (because they were "green" and not as ripe as we eat) and the stew was exactly what I needed after a long day of hiking and cooler weather.

Harvey the Hyena was totally checking out the city too!  Here's a restaurant that smelled amazing from our Jeep.  Judging by how crowded it was it must have been delicious!  We were driving through Mwanza on our was to visit the Sukuma Tribe.