Celebrating July 4th in Uganda

Happy 4^th of July! I hope all of you are enjoying your day off! Today has been another semi-lazy day. I got up early this morning and headed back to the pharmacy to purchase the remaining medications we needed for the clinic. We pulled up in front of the store about 8:45 and it wasn't yet open. Seems all the employees were there, but the owner with the key hadn't shown up yet. So Kyemba dropped me off and I waited. Meanwhile he took one of the interns to the market to shop for our 4^th of July celebration tonight. It is always good to have a local with you for insight but also so you don't get the Mzungu price (that happens all the time)! After about 15 the man with the key showed up and I was able to order what we needed. Then it was a waiting game while they filled the order. Fortunately, the market took a while too so by the time they returned I was ready to go. We headed back to Musana and Kyemba took the medications out to the village. Unfortunately, we forgot to pack the suitcase with the gloves and malaria testing equipment so he had to come back before the clinic could begin… Nothing in Uganda is easy or fast! I'm afraid the clinic didn't actually get started til mid afternoon; frustrating for all, the medical team and the villagers! I've asked Kyemba to bring back the remaining medicatons so I can account for them. I'm curious to see how many actually make it back to me!

 

It has been the rainiest it has been in months. When it is beautiful it is beautiful and when it is rainy it rains hard. It has also been much cooler the past few days so that has been nice. Hannah is still sick so I am hoping tomorrow she feels better so we can get back to painting. Andrea would like her to paint everything but we will take it one step at a time! Every time we talk painting Andrea just grins with anticipation. Hannah has actually given me permission to paint by numbers. She will outline and I will fill in the spots!!!

 

The good news is after yesterday's debacle with the airlines I think our team is actually in the air headed home. The bad news is they have an 8 hour layover in Qatar. The good news is that the flight from there is then direct to Houston. The bad news is that it is 16 hours long. The good news is they don't have to spend hours in the London airport. The bad news is that they land in Houston and then have a 3-4 hour drive home. The good news is that Hannah and I are chilling for the day!

 

So tonight we celebrated… and we celebrated in style! Oh my goodness, steak on a stick, hamburgers (yes, I said hamburgers), the best corn salad ever, and guacamole just to name a few. To finish the evening we cooked s'mores over the open fire. Most of the people here had never tasted a s'more so it is fair to say we made new friends. Carol, the head of the clinic was actually poking us with a stick to get more!!! Tomorrow we plan to paint and then go to Sol View for dinner.

 

I love you all. Steve-O, I miss you bunches.

 

Sue

Rest for the Weary

Today we woke up at 6 and headed out on a hike to Pride Rock to watch the sunrise. The walk was longer than I remembered, but the beauty of the sunrise made it all worthwhile. I was shocked at the amount of "development" that has taken place since a year ago. But even at 6 am the streets were full of people starting to open their little shops, most of which I would describe as a wooden hut! The young kids continually yelled, "Bye Mzungus" which is how they say hi while waving frantically. Pictures cannot do the sunrise justice and it was good to have this final moment with the team. We returned to Musana around 8:30 and Hannah graciously made us all fried eggs for breakfast. What a treat!!! And then we waited for Kyemba… and we waited. The team was supposed to leave for the airport at 10 but finally got rolling at 11 am with Sam in the backseat with the suitcases, Tamara, Julie and Laura stuffed in the middle and Emma (because of her long legs) in the front!! It will be a long drive. Meanwhile, Hannah and I have changed rooms and been to the craft room to order the stuff that wasn't delivered the first time! Now I am actually sitting with my feet up, and will remain so until we go down to continue the painting.

 

A few hours later… the painting may have to wait until tomorrow. The rain is pelting down and the sound is so refreshing. For one thing, it means we cannot paint and so I am sitting on my bed under a blanket working on pictures. Sitting outside in the gazebo we could hear the rain long before it came to us. I love the sound of rain and am really thankful we are not out in a remote village doing a medical clinic. Instead I have my feet up doing nothing. Whoop!!! I have to admit it feels great and I have been missing my Sue time. It has been a long time since I've listened to the rain and it is very calming.

 

Update…Hannah is sick with a fever but is starting to feel better. So we stayed in the room all day reading, listening to music and working on pictures. It was much needed and very relaxing. Tomorrow we are back to the grind. I am leaving early in the morning to go back to the pharmacy for more medications for another medical clinic that Andrew is doing. We won't be going to the clinic as we have committed to Musana to finish up some projects and interact with a new team that arrives tonight. So after the pharmacy Kyemba will go and transport Andrew and his team to the village.

 

The rest of the team left today for what was supposed to be a 6:30 flight. Even though Kyemba was late this morning they arrived at the airport in plenty of time; however, Qatar Airlines moved the departure time to 4:45 without contacting any of the passengers. So the team and many others missed the flight. They are now spending the night in Entebbe and will be leaving tomorrow afternoon instead. The good news is that the flight out of Qatar flies directly to Houston so they don't have to stop in London. I'm wondering why we weren't on that flight to begin with!!! Such is the life in Uganda. One never knows what is going to happen next!!

 

Love you all. It is 8:25 my time and I am going to bed…

 

Sue

Dunked in the Nile

Today was a day full of rest, good friends and incredible beauty. Our rest day was well spent in a beautiful place right on the Nile called Wild Waters Lodge. We were blessed to have good friends, Andrea, Haril, and their cute little Dezy and Edward, his wife, Damali, and their adorable little baby, Matthew Austin, join us on the adventure. The place seemed like something out of a movie, we were convinced it was a green screen. There was so much beauty, it was a bit overwhelming.. but in a good way. We got to explore and climb rocks that we probably shouldn't have climbed(but we did anyway because we're #rebels) to get the best view and were in awe of the places we found. What made it even better was that we got to have Edward baptize Laura and I for the first time and rebaptize sue and sam. We ended the day drinking coffee and eating chips at the source in Jinja. This was a wonderful way to wrap up the trip(though, sam and i are planning to "lose" our passports so we never have to leave.) and it showed us the true beauty that is Uganda. The Father was good to us today and he's bringing new seasons full of joy and full of wonder, and we're very excited about it. 

love from emma. 

Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone

When Nothing Goes RIGHT Then Turn LEFT

July 3rd came and 5 of us (Sue and Hannah are staying 2 more weeks) prepared for the journey home. We did all we could to prepare our hearts to leave beautiful Uganda. The team went on a morning hike to watch the sunrise at pride rock. After that we had breakfast, took our feet in red dirt picture and said our goodbyes. At 11am (one hour late otherwise known as On time in Uganda), we left for our 5 hours drive to the Entebbe. Kymba did his usual out of this world driving and made it in 4 1/2 hours. So we arrived at the airport 3 hours prior to departure or so we thought. When we arrived we learned that they had rescheduled the flight to leave 2 hours early but did not notify us. So our fearless leader Julie was the first of many to hit the Qatar Airlines help desk. She worked her magic and got us an even better flight for tomorrow. We then booked a beautiful hotel for the night. The best part is they have wonderful showers! Due to the water being shut off in Iganga we are pretty stinky. 

All that to say that sometimes God takes us on sweet detours so we are soaking it up as a blessing. 

****Side note if we had followed Sue's fathers travel rule and arrived 4 hours early we would have made our flight. 

See you on the 5th!

Tamara

For the fantastic five. 

Sent from my iPhone

When Nothing Goes Right Them Go Left

July 3rd came and 5 of us (Sue and Hannah are staying 2 more weeks) prepared for the journey home. We did all we could to prepare our hearts to leave beautiful Uganda. The team went on a morning hike to watch the sunrise at pride rock. After that we had breakfast, took our feet in red dirt picture and said our goodbyes. At 11am (one hour late otherwise known as On time in Uganda), we left for our 5 hours drive to the Entebbe. Kymba did his usual out of this world driving and made it in 4 1/2 hours. So we arrived at the airport 3 hours prior to departure or so we thought. When we arrived we learned that they had rescheduled the flight to leave 2 hours early but did not notify us. So our fearless leader Julie was the first of many to hit the Qatar Airlines help desk. She worked her magic and got us an even better flight for tomorrow. We then booked a beautiful hotel for the night. The best part is they have wonderful showers! Due to the water being shut off in Iganga we are pretty stinky. 

All that to say that sometimes God takes us on sweet detours so we are soaking it up as a blessing. 

****Side note if we had followed Sue's fathers travel rule and arrived 4 hours early we would have made our flight. 

See you on the 5th!

Tamara

For the fantastic five. 

Sent from my iPhone

Drawing to an end

Sue Today was another long day even though we didn't show up to Andrew Wambi's till 10! Church started between 9:30 and 10, although I think they waited for the Mzungus to start!! The children started the service with singing and dancing and it is such a neat thing to watch. The benches were packed. At least five, if not more, children crammed together. Ugandan services have been known to last hours and hours. So after the singing Andrew preached and the service was over in just over 1-1/2 hours! It was a great service but it was so hot and we were surrounded by children who constantly were touching and pulling at us. After the service we were able to meet with Masiat, Ruth, Moses, Barbra and Samuel. We also had Augustine (who use to be Tule) and Dennis with us as they are hoping to move to New Life Ministries. One day this next week I will drive into Kampala with Kyemba and Dennis. Kyemba needs to go to the embassy for the final (at least that is what I am told) and Dennis needs to fill out the application for university. We also need to see what the expenses will be for a school year. He hopes to major in social work. It was just so great to see those kids that I have loved on for the past 7 years. I also got to meet our sponsored child through Andrew's; a little girl named Liz. She is actually Ruth's little sister, who's mother left her on the street about 6 months ago. She is the cutest little thing with a huge smile. Personally, I think she runs the place… much like Dezi.

 

We then took the kid's from Phil's to the Sol View for dinner. They were telling me that for every meal at school they get posha and beans so it was a good change for them and a chance for us to really talk to one another. Andrew did a great job with them both encouraging and letting them know how valued they were. He also told them that their grades were important and if they didn't do well they would be dropped from the sponsorship program. It sounds harsh but they are being taught to value the education they are given in hopes of bettering their lives for the future. Jen, Moses ate spaghetti which was so fun to watch. We then had Kyemba drive them back to their various schools and we walked home from the restaurant. It was fun to be out among the people and I was really thankful that Julie knew the way. I would be sitting on a street corner crying by now after walking in circles forever!

 

Tomorrow morning before the team leaves we are climbing up Pride Rock to watch the sunrise. It is always a beautiful moment and a good way to end the trip. Then Kyemba will drive the five returning members to the airport and they will begin the trek home. Hannah and I plan to continue painting at Musana and I have told Atwiiya and Rashida that I would come down after school and just spend time with them. I haven't been able to do that yet and I am really excited.

 

I love you all so much. Steve, Cody and Kari it was terrific talking to you tonight. I miss you all (the whole family) so much. I can't wait to see you all in two weeks!!

 

Suebee

Dunked in the Nile

Today was a day full of rest, good friends and incredible beauty. Our rest day was well spent in a beautiful place right on the Nile called Wild Waters Lodge. We were blessed to have good friends, Andrea, Haril, and their cute little Dezy and Edward, his wife, Damali, and their adorable little baby, Matthew Austin, join us on the adventure. The place seemed like something out of a movie, we were convinced it was a green screen. There was so much beauty, it was a bit overwhelming.. but in a good way. We got to explore and climb rocks that we probably shouldn't have climbed(but we did anyway because we're #rebels) to get the best view and were in awe of the places we found. What made it even better was that we got to have Edward baptize laura and I for the first time and rebaptize sue and sam. We ended the day drinking coffee and eating chips at the Source in Jinja. This was a wonderful way to wrap up the trip(though, Sam and I are planning to "lose" our passports so we never have to leave.) and it showed us the true beauty that is Uganda. The Father was good to us today and he's bringing new seasons full of joy and full of wonder and we're very excited about it. 

love from emma. 

Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone