It's been a heck of a year

This weekend marks our year anniversary in Burundi. What a year it's been. I distinctly remember my last trip to Dunkin Donuts on that Saturday morning before we went to the airport. We had quite a time getting the cats on the plane. But twenty-four hours later we were here, in Bujumbura, starting a new life.

I've been thinking about how to arrange this blog post. Some months not much of note happened, other than we lived in Burundi. But we had one of the highest high points of our lives--climbing Mount Kilimanjaro--and one of the lowest low points--Grendel's death--in the last year.

August 2008: Leaving Washington, D.C. and arriving in Burundi

September 2008: Settling in, road rage, first hippo sighting

October 2008: Trying to find fresh milk, the rainy season begins, a huge shipment of stuff from home arrives

November 2008: Being in Africa for Obama's election, struggling with French, adjusting to winter holidays in a tropical climate, making reservations for the Kilimanjaro trip

December 2008: We become obsessed with Kilimanjaro preparations; we also discover some local crafty goodness

January 2009: We have some American visitors, a new restaurant opens in town, and we discover a blue-headed agama lizard living in our yard

February 2009: Kilimanjaro and the Serengeti

March 2009: Some of my safari posts spill in to March; also, Grendel dies and we fall into a terrible funk

April 2009: Monkeys invade and we get chickens

May 2009: European vacation

June 2009: We finally get our luggage back after the vacation; the dry season sets in; rabies

July 2009: All sorts of critters invade; I think I've learned French now

All of our photos are up on flickr.