A Day with Leon, Aideen, Peter, and Sophia

While I was on day three of coffee farm visits, Monica and the kids
joined Leon and Aideen and their two kids, Peter and Sophia, at their
home for lunch and some play time. Peter and Sophia were home for
several weeks from boarding school in Kenya, creating a nice
opportunity for the kids to meet and spend some time together.

After lunch they went for a swim at the nearby polo club, and then
back to the house where they played 500, soccer, and cricket. Leon and
Aideen have a beautiful home among their new avocado plantations,
including a lovely garden with a nice lawn for the kids to play on.

Elliot, Ngomi, and I joined them for a fantastic dinner of lamb and a
wonderful assortment of vegetables. After dinner, Peter and Sophia
introduced our kids (and Elliot and me, for that matter) to a new game
called 'fireball'. The game involves soaking tenis balls in
methylated spirit, lighting them on fire, and hitting them aroun the
lawn in the dark with polo mallets. Evidently this spirit burns at a
very low temperature, so when the thrill of hitting the ball with a
mallet wears off, you can pick up and throw the balls, or even soak
and light your hand. This isn't something I can imagine at a birthday
party in the states, buy ad you can imagine there had already been
much discussion about where we might get methylated spirit at home. I
have to admit it was quite fun.

When asked later, each of our kids mentioned playing with Peter and
Sophia as one of the highlights of the trip. It was definitely an
added bonus for all of us to have unexpectedly made new friends while
traveling on vacation half-way around the world and we are hopeful
that they will cone visit us in Portland.