Rhino is ready...

This week the Prado aka Rhino had to undergo some major modifications as you will see in the photos. First Rhino had to have be serviced for the journey. Toyota in Westlands, Nairobi, informed us that the shocks needed to be replaced, so Daniel had to spend two hours waiting at Rob's Magic for the work to be done. The car will next be serviced in South Africa.

  

Rhino as you would have seen her on the Kenyan roads before modifications

Rhino in good company at Rob's Magic

That’s when I will also be meeting Daniel’s family. They have already read my nomadicchameleon blog and have told Daniel that I have a big heart. But you all can still pray that I make as good an impression in person as I do in cyber space. And I will have to learn some Afrikaans, for those of you who know how much I've struggled with Swahili, you will know I’m not optimistic about my ability to add yet another language to my repertoire. I have exactly 33 days to learn enough Afrikaans to impress Daniel’s family. Gulp!

After weeks of Daniel’s blood, sweat and tears (okay, maybe not tears), of building a YouTube inspired drawer system for the back of Rhino, our kitchen complete with a refrigerator, drawers for canned and dried food, table, and cooking utensils is now complete! Well from the pictures you just see the frame…but believe you me…we almost were dancing in the parking lot when the bloody thing actually fit in the back of Rhino! However, a bunch of tenants all came home about the same time our dancing should have commenced, bummer!

However, the most hilarious part of the installation was the squeezing the frame out of the apartment where Daniel was busy putting the finishing touches on it minutes before. All I can say is its HEAVY! It wouldn't actually have been that difficult if we weren't having fits of laughter trying to get the bloody thing down the stairs! In the photo on the stairs, I really am hanging on to the stupid thing for dear life and Daniel managed to get his phone out of his pocket and take a photo with one hand.

Laughing while carrying heavy
objects is hazardous to your health.

Isn't it beautiful, and it all actually fits.
The luggage rack you can't see, the water tank behind the
frame and the the kitchen frame I'm showcasing.
It barely fits, but the door closes! SUCCESS!

We have yet to see if everything we plan to bring will actually fit in. You have to remember that we are two people going down but there will be three of them coming back with only so much space for packing…only two pairs of underwear each…just kidding!  We also hauled all the camping supplies from Daniel’s apartment (entryway bathroom/closet) to his new house which has a man cave!!! We have failed to mention that besides packing for the trip, Daniel is also moving houses on this Wednesday (today is Sunday)…only one week before we leave. Just like a man to think that would not be an overwhelming experience. The moving company said Daniel was supposed to move anything that was particularly valuable so we moved all the camping equipment and the birdbath. Enough said. 

He thinks I’m making him sound like a weirdo, so let me set the record straight. Daniel is an amazing man. He can create anything that requires man tools to put together. I felt like a little girl again helping my father who is a carpenter. I don’t think I could love a man who wasn't good at working with his hands. He wouldn't be enough like my father. I’m still daddy’s little girl at heart. 

So now Rhino is sufficiently tricked out. But we realized we still have some things to move and will have to stuff them in around the frame because taking it out is not an option!