Bathroom Adventure #2

It happened again...

Really, I can't believe it. I was working on my computer at a coffee shop in Prague. After a couple of hours I had to use the bathroom pretty bad, but since my computer was all set up and I didn't want to leave it there I held it. I finished what I was working on about an hour later, packed my stuff up and rushed to the bathroom. I opened the door and standing before me was a 20-something girl.

My first though was, "What is she doing in the men's room?" The second one followed quickly behind, "Your an idiot...you did it again." Halfway in the door, I craned my head back over my shoulder and sure enough--women's room!

I don't know what the deal is. Seriously, both times the signs were stick figures...if it happens again, I will never write about it and no one will ever know...

*If you are confused about the other time please see the post: Crazy New Year's Day: Part One

Camel, Ostrich, and Crocodile

I am reading through the Bible in a year and this morning I was reading Leviticus 11 (I'm a little behind!) and I was surprised by what I read.

Two weeks ago I was in Kenya visiting Marisa. One night we went to a restaurant called Carnivore. It is the epitome of tourist dining. In a country of all blacks, 95% of the restaurant was white. Everyone who I know that has been to Kenya has been to this restaurant. It really is a novelty. They serve all sorts of exotic meats including, camel, ostrich, crocodile, etc. I love to try new things, so I never hesitated to partake in this exquisite cuisine. Camel was my favorite, but ostrich was a close second. Crocodile wasn't as fishy as you might thing and was also quite good.

Then this morning I came across these verses:

Lev 11:4 - "Nevertheless, you are not to eat of these, among those which chew the cud, or among those which divide the hoof; the camel, for though it chews cud, it does not divide the hoof, it is unclean to you."

Lev 11:13,16 - "These, moreover, you shall detest among the birds; they are abhorrent, not to be eaten: the eagle and the vulture and the buzzard...and the ostrich and the owl and the sea gull and the hawk in its kind."

Lev 11:29-30 - "Now these are to you the unclean things among the swarming things which swarm on the earth: the mole, and the mouse, and the great lizard in its kinds, and the gecko, and the crocodile, and the lizard, and the sand reptile, and the chameleon."

I couldn't believe it! All three of the exotic animals that I had eaten were included in the list of unclean animals. For a brief moment I felt conviction. But then I began to rejoice because,

"...and he saw the sky opened up, and an object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground, and there were in it all kinds of four-footed animals (camels, maybe) and crawling creatures of the earth (crocodiles, maybe) and birds of the air (not ostriches, cause they don't fly, but...). A voice came to him, 'Get up, Peter, kill and eat!' But Peter said, 'By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything unholy and unclean.' Again a voice came to him a second time, 'What God has cleaned, no longer consider unholy.'"

Thank you, God, that you have made these animals clean and that we are no longer bound to your Law!

5 Countries, 4 Airports, 3 Flights, 2 Starbucks, 1 Long Flight Home

Countries: Kenya, England, Netherlands, Austria, Czech
Airports: Jomo Kenyatta (Nairobi), Heathrow (London), Schiphol (Amsterdam), Schwechat (Vienna)
Flights: Nairobi to London, London to Amsterdam, Amsterdam to Vienna
Starbucks: London (Grande Vanilla Latte-charged me for a Tall! Oh, the little things...), Amsterdam (Grande Caramel Frapaccino)

The trip home: So, I was scheduled to depart Nairobi on Sunday at 11 am. As I approached Elaine at the ticket counter and placed my passport and E-Ticket before her the first indication that this was going to be a long day should've been the word "Training" written under her name. Elaine hunt-and-pecked at the keyboard and asked questions to her co-worker in Swahili for a couple of minutes. Then she said timidly, "The flight is full. We will put you on the flight tonight." What? Full? I tried to explain the necessity of me being on the flight and how I paid for this ticket and should be on this flight, blah, blah, blah. All my reasons were answered with, "You can talk to my manager over there." She pointed to a man who was swarmed with ten to fifteen angry passengers.

I can't get angry enough to demand the attention of this guy. I know he didn't oversell the flight. He is just paying his dues in middle-management trying to work up the corporate ladder. He gets stuck with all the angry people who "have to see their dying grandfather tonight" or "have health issues and can't deal with this stress" or "can't believe that a company can operate in this manner" or whatever other excuse people come up with to try to get on a flight. So, I sit there patiently and wait until the two Thirty Year Old British Boyscouts (I'm not joking...they were totally dressed in boyscout outfits!) finish blasting this man for this "bloody outrage". Eventually he gets me taken care of and books me on a new flight later that night (12:10 am the next day actually).

I miss my board meeting on Monday and an extra leg is added to my trip, but I get $300 cash, the rest of the day at a 5 Star Hotel, two free meals, and an extra day with my girlfriend.