Tonight two good friends are leaving for Kenya with a group of 15. One of their husbands has been there already a month working with AIDS patients. This group will work along side those who already have earned the acceptance of the people.

But here's the thing: they leave here at 11:30 PM on a bus for a three hour ride to a major airport. There they fly to Dulles International and then on to Ethiopia. From there a short plane trip, more buses and they arrive at their destination. This will take 36 hours!

They were allowed one carry-on (no more than 45 pounds) and half of a tub the size of a microwave oven.

This is why I do not especially enjoy traveling with a group...unless I am the one in charge. No, I take that back, groups stink at travel and I do not make a good group leader or member. Traveling is tiring and tired people often, even those who profess and exhibit deep and mature spiritual development, get cranky. And cranky people get on my nerves.

This group has been forming for three months. Last week the group leader told them (kind of like an 'Oh, by the way...' sort of statement) that they would be spending one night out in the bush. Not a problem for most of them, then added that there would not be enough tents for everyone so some would be 'under the stars' (how romantic, especially when your spouse is 5000 miles away) and to top it off, there would not be enough sleeping bags so people would need to double up (see above comment).Oh yeah, I would have been asking for a refund.

I don't need comfort when I travel...although I can be, and have been accused of being, a real princess at times, but there are some lines to be drawn. One has to wonder just how long this group leader had this information before he told the group. Given enough time most people can adjust to most things. Information is power....enough said.

I predict that they will have a grand time and come back with amazing stories of the people and the culture, especially the music. Any kind of interpersonal difficulty will fade away as the group is overwhelmed with the bigness of the world and the broadening of their personal horizons. I look forward to listening to the stories.

And that's what I think about it.