As current residents of Kenya, the Wheels team can affirm that the number of creepy crawlies in our lives has significantly increased since a mere two weeks ago. I wanted to take the opportunity to give them a shout-out, whether they deserve it or not.
Some definitely do not deserve it. The large cockroach Danielle and Elisa found in their drawer the first day we arrived is one such party, along with the couple other members of his family we have located over the duration of our stay. Accompanying the cockroach clan is Mr. Hawk Moth, who one day found himself in the bathroom of the same unsuspecting girls. At least every other night, a scream emanates from one of the rooms down the hall. Screams that indicate “there’s a bug!” are surprisingly distinctive. No one bats an eyelash anymore, we all just smile at each other knowingly.
The moth I nailed today and the oversized ant Jessica just killed in our room are nothing more than slight irritations, along with the mosquitoes. There are surprisingly few mosquitoes here in Thika, due to the time of year and altitude. Nevertheless, everyone on the team takes malaria pills regularly, and we all sleep under mosquito nets every night. I see this as an added blessing…they keep not only the mosquitoes out, but also anything bigger than a fruit fly!
Some creepy crawlies aren’t so bad. Jessica found a gecko on the overhang in our bathroom a few nights ago. We were hoping to get it out until Mrs. Rispin reminded us it was probably killing bugs for us. At that, I decided to strike up a deal. I told Mr. Gecko that he could stay as long as he liked, as long as he killed all the bugs he could eat. Win, win win! Unfortunately, he did not take me up on my deal, and hasn’t been seen since. Jessica and I dubbed him Murphy (in honor of the old adage Murphy’s Law which is very present in Africa), and await eagerly(ish) for his return.
Not all of the crawlies here are creepy. Some of them are pretty cute! Sarah and I rallied the troops to try to woo the monkeys today using a knock-off brand of Fruit Loops we bought for last weekend. It worked quite splendidly. We also lured one more big creepy crawly, who was quite inspired by the monkey’s tree climbing abilities. ;)
Hopefully I’ll be able to sleep tonight after writing this blog post. Good thing I have my mosquito net!
Sweet dreams! ;)
Some definitely do not deserve it. The large cockroach Danielle and Elisa found in their drawer the first day we arrived is one such party, along with the couple other members of his family we have located over the duration of our stay. Accompanying the cockroach clan is Mr. Hawk Moth, who one day found himself in the bathroom of the same unsuspecting girls. At least every other night, a scream emanates from one of the rooms down the hall. Screams that indicate “there’s a bug!” are surprisingly distinctive. No one bats an eyelash anymore, we all just smile at each other knowingly.
The moth I nailed today and the oversized ant Jessica just killed in our room are nothing more than slight irritations, along with the mosquitoes. There are surprisingly few mosquitoes here in Thika, due to the time of year and altitude. Nevertheless, everyone on the team takes malaria pills regularly, and we all sleep under mosquito nets every night. I see this as an added blessing…they keep not only the mosquitoes out, but also anything bigger than a fruit fly!
Some creepy crawlies aren’t so bad. Jessica found a gecko on the overhang in our bathroom a few nights ago. We were hoping to get it out until Mrs. Rispin reminded us it was probably killing bugs for us. At that, I decided to strike up a deal. I told Mr. Gecko that he could stay as long as he liked, as long as he killed all the bugs he could eat. Win, win win! Unfortunately, he did not take me up on my deal, and hasn’t been seen since. Jessica and I dubbed him Murphy (in honor of the old adage Murphy’s Law which is very present in Africa), and await eagerly(ish) for his return.
Not all of the crawlies here are creepy. Some of them are pretty cute! Sarah and I rallied the troops to try to woo the monkeys today using a knock-off brand of Fruit Loops we bought for last weekend. It worked quite splendidly. We also lured one more big creepy crawly, who was quite inspired by the monkey’s tree climbing abilities. ;)
Hopefully I’ll be able to sleep tonight after writing this blog post. Good thing I have my mosquito net!
Sweet dreams! ;)
Author’s Note: Don't be worried...although I wasn’t exaggerating (much) about the bug count here, insects are not a concern for us, just a cause for screams, smacks, and amusement. :) Enjoy!