The journey begins

You will have noticed that my blog lately has suffered from a dearth of entries. Perhaps, dearth is understating the case. Absence of entries would be more accurate. We will now explain that dearth/absence by going back in time, followed by going forward to the present, and possibly the future.

As all of you who know me are aware, and many who don't know me, I have been fixated/obsessed for months with this great adventure that I undertake. Everything was in readiness. My daughter, Julie Rose Friedrich, came to my apartment on Saturday to help me pack. Actually, she didn't help me pack; she packed. She is the uber-packer.If packing ever becomes an Olympic sport, I put her down now as the Gold Medal winner. The real race will simply be for silver. One can remark about one's obsessive/compulsive tendencies, but one should never forget that an obsessive/compulsive personality does have secondary gain. The ability to pack efficiently is a prime example of that secondary gain.

Pictures having the ability to tell a thousand words, I show you pictures of what has accompanied me on my travels.

And #2:

I will also show you two items that, despite my pleas and entreaties, did not make the journey with me. Julie, My Packing Commander, refused to see reason, and would not let me take these two items.

Too bad, because the one thing Burundi needs is more Bichons.

Anyway, the point of all of this is that, after Saturday, all was in readiness to go. The packing was essentially done, and, on a more serious note, we were able to provide the clinic in Burundi with much-needed items: stethoscopes, otoscopes, pulse oximeters, bottles of hand sanitizer, packets of Bacitracin (a topical antibiotic), gloves, rechargeable batteries. So many of these things we take for granted, but are unavailable there. And what was so clear from the myriad of e-mails that I received from Burundi is that they are so grateful for everything that I bring them. I have no idea how much help I can or will be when I get there, but, at least, I know that, by bringing these items, I will have already helped.

So I was ready, my bags were ready, my psyche was ready, perhaps even my dogs were ready. What was not ready was the world at large, specifically, a small, inconsequential piece of that world that goes by the name of Iceland. All I have to say is god damned Iceland and god damned volcanos. Europe was closed, and there was virtually no other way to get to Africa than via Europe. If you don't believe me, give it a try. I finally found a way, and would have done it if I'd had to: L.A to New York, and then an 18 hour flight in coach to Dubai), followed by overnight in Dubai, and then a 5 hour flight to Nairobi, followed by a four hour layover, and, finally, a two our flight to my Bujumbara, my final destination. Fun trip, eh?

But, of course, the ban on European travel was lifted just in time for my trip. I have now completed two legs of the trip: L.A.-New York and New York-London. Don't underestimate the value of miles, because I was able to book my trip on Business Class, using the tens of thousands of miles I had accumulated over the years. It makes a major difference, simply in terms of comfort and amenities. For instance,I sit now in the British Airways Lounge reserved for First and Business Class travelers. All the food and drink, including alcohol (for free) that you could possibly want. Here I am in that Business Class Lounge:

I will sign off for now, because my free massage (thanks to British Airways) awaits me. What also awaits me in about 16 hours is the continent of Africa: about as far a cry as one could possibly get from the sybaritic splendor that I enjoy here in the British Airways lounge. I close by adding that I miss all of you, but mostly my two girls (and, of course, the person who has assumed, in my absence, the title of "man of the family," Mr. Garth Friedrich), and also miss my two boys, those of the canine variety, the ever-adorable and annoying Bichon brothers, Ozzie and Harry. Peter