I have dreamed of Africa all my life. Sadly, your reporting, Stephen, did not stoke my dreams. It did not excite me about air travel either. I have not boarded an aircraft since before 9/11. I am now even more disinclined to fly the friendly skies.

But, damn it, when I look at your nature photos above I am just a bit jealous.

Thank goodness I still have my memories of other lives. The east coast of Africa had always had a special tug at my heart. There is something about it that I just can’t describe. No coastline on Turtle Island has that same indescribable quality.

And is there any other geographic name more exciting than, Zanzibar? Timbuktu comes close but there is no ocean near Timbuktu. (Maybe that is why all the doors in Timbuktu are blue.)

And speaking of really cool names, one of my entries on my top ten bucket list is to stare into the heart of Mt. Kilimanjaro. I have stared at that mountain so many times but never in this life. Sadly, it may never come to pass because of my aversion to modern air travel. I might change my mind if they served New Mexico green chile enchiladas on the flight. Or if I won the lottery and had tons of money to spend on air travel.

But there is nothing I would want to do more than dip my tootsies in the Indian Ocean. That, for me, would be the experience that culminated my fantasies. I hope you do it, Stephen, so that I can at least partially experience it vicariously through you.

And that is why I look forward to your ongoing travelogue. Keep it coming!