So I realize that I havn't written in ages, and as I think back I can see why. Well - its just really hard to put into words what my daily routine (if you can call routine) life is like. Especially now that Holy Given is here things have sorta settled into a groove - life just goes round and round without too much effort. Although living in Pemba requires effort to start with so what I meant was that it doesnt require too much EXTRA effort!
Some things have happened tho: both good and bad - let's start with the bad...
My car broke down while I was in town one day and I had to be towed back to my house - at first they thought it was dirty fuel, but it turns out to be an electrical problem. Fortunately there are some friendly South African mechanics in Pemba who helped me out free of charge! I was so grateful to have my car up and running again because the next day a good thing happend:
My parents came to visit me! Well, technically they didnt just come to visit me - they were team leaders for Georgian Banov's team and so their time was divided between the team and me. But it was great to have them in Pemba, for them to see where I live and what life is like up here!
Also I ran over a baboon. I was driving back from an overnight outreach early (We dont have many sound systems working at the moment, so I had to get the sound system back in Pemba for it to be used again at another event!) so, I was driving and suddenly a baboon ran out infront of me. I was on a dirt road, which meant that braking wasnt even an option - he went under the car between the wheels, and my mom (she was with me) says that she saw him get up and limp to the side of the road so at least I didnt kill him... oops.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Monday, June 25, 2007
Banditos
Its taken me a while to proccess it and get to a point where I was OK writing it down - so here goes!
Saturday June 16 was a regular day off, I woke up late and then Jessie and I made pancakes (both American and South African versions) and we went over to 'Mantown' and had breakfast with the guys - then some of our boys offered to wash my car! Plans were made to take one of the boys, Luis, to Murrebue Beach, about 20mins away from Pemba - it was his birthday and it would be a treat for him and a few of his friends.
We set off at noon, and the boys piled out the car, Bala in tow with a soccor ball and much laughter. They ran down to the water and I decided to take a walk down the beach with Bala - Jessie and I talked for a bit, trying to decide if it was safer to leave my car keys in her bag at the restaurant or to take them with me. I took them with me. I also had my phone with me, so I clipped it all together and hooked in on the inside of my trousers. My mp3 player I tucked into my underware. Bala on the rope I set off down the beach. I love walking here - its desrted, and stretches for miles. There were some fishermen out in their little dugout canoes and a few of them had already beached and dragged their boats up the sand dunes.
I had walked for nearly 2km down the beach when I thought it was about time I turned around - Bala was being SO cute, chasing the little crabs - she'd cornered one but it was standing its ground - defending itself with tiny tiny pinchers. (Bala finally gave up)
I had passed many fishermen sitting on their boats while I was walking down the beach - but now they had already left for the village. There were just 2 little boats still out in the water, and they were also heading towards land.
One of the other missionaries, Papa Joel, was also out for a walk - coming towards me - we stopped, said a few words and then I continued on back to the restaurant where Jessie and the boys where playing. I had hardly gone more than 100m when I drew level with the 2 fisherman, and 4 guys started walking down towards the water. They sort of cut infront of me, and they were scared of the dog - so I thought they were the fishermen's buddies - going to help them beach the boats.
Then I saw the knives - long bladed machetes. The ring leader was wearing a red shirt. He pointed to my earphones, I looked up the beach towards the restaurant fro help. No one. So I started screaming. They pushed me down into the water and I struggled. I bit, scratched and kicked for all I was worth. Beside me Bala was barking and (biting I hope). Suddenly they were gone. Running up over the dune and into the bush. In shock I look around me. To the side the 2 fishermen are still at sea, behind me Papa Joelie was running towards me. I glance down at my waistband and I realise they got my car keys and phone. I get up and run. And run and run and run and run. When I am exhausted I double check that they really had stolen my stuff. I discover my mp3 player still tucked in my underware. But they have my car keys. MY CAR. My car, its parked next to the restaurant, no one will be watching it - they'll try to steal my car. I have to get back. I have to run. One the last dregs of adrenaline I start running again. I'm soaked, covered in sand and my trousers were not designed for jogging on the beach.
I see Jessie, she looking confused becuase Bala is running loose, and I'm running... The wind kept snatching my words and blowing them back towards the ocean. Finally she hears me, 'I was mugged, they have my keys', over and over I say this. I run past her to the parking lot. My car is there, no one is around. I just sit down on the sand.
Papa Joel had tried to keep up with me, but I was to fast for him. He tells me that they were kicking me, and hitting me with their knives - I found the bruises later. Bala's nose was bleeding and she was suddenly very aggressive towards Mozambucan men carrying implements - she also wouldn't let me go anywhere without following me.
~ 1 Week Later ~
I am OK now, for the first few days afterwards I didnt want to leave the house, when I tried, the world closed in on me and I would focus on the shadows and all the banditos that could possibly jump out at me. Kids scared me. Men wearing red scared me. So many people prayed for me - and I am so thankful for that!
I went back to Murrebue this past Saturday - this time walking down the same stretch of beach with 5 men and carrying a huge machete of my own. I was OK - but it will still be a while before I walk anywhere near the beach alone... which is a shame cos I used to love walking with Bala on Pemba beach in the evenings before it got dark.
Saturday June 16 was a regular day off, I woke up late and then Jessie and I made pancakes (both American and South African versions) and we went over to 'Mantown' and had breakfast with the guys - then some of our boys offered to wash my car! Plans were made to take one of the boys, Luis, to Murrebue Beach, about 20mins away from Pemba - it was his birthday and it would be a treat for him and a few of his friends.
We set off at noon, and the boys piled out the car, Bala in tow with a soccor ball and much laughter. They ran down to the water and I decided to take a walk down the beach with Bala - Jessie and I talked for a bit, trying to decide if it was safer to leave my car keys in her bag at the restaurant or to take them with me. I took them with me. I also had my phone with me, so I clipped it all together and hooked in on the inside of my trousers. My mp3 player I tucked into my underware. Bala on the rope I set off down the beach. I love walking here - its desrted, and stretches for miles. There were some fishermen out in their little dugout canoes and a few of them had already beached and dragged their boats up the sand dunes.
I had walked for nearly 2km down the beach when I thought it was about time I turned around - Bala was being SO cute, chasing the little crabs - she'd cornered one but it was standing its ground - defending itself with tiny tiny pinchers. (Bala finally gave up)
I had passed many fishermen sitting on their boats while I was walking down the beach - but now they had already left for the village. There were just 2 little boats still out in the water, and they were also heading towards land.
One of the other missionaries, Papa Joel, was also out for a walk - coming towards me - we stopped, said a few words and then I continued on back to the restaurant where Jessie and the boys where playing. I had hardly gone more than 100m when I drew level with the 2 fisherman, and 4 guys started walking down towards the water. They sort of cut infront of me, and they were scared of the dog - so I thought they were the fishermen's buddies - going to help them beach the boats.
Then I saw the knives - long bladed machetes. The ring leader was wearing a red shirt. He pointed to my earphones, I looked up the beach towards the restaurant fro help. No one. So I started screaming. They pushed me down into the water and I struggled. I bit, scratched and kicked for all I was worth. Beside me Bala was barking and (biting I hope). Suddenly they were gone. Running up over the dune and into the bush. In shock I look around me. To the side the 2 fishermen are still at sea, behind me Papa Joelie was running towards me. I glance down at my waistband and I realise they got my car keys and phone. I get up and run. And run and run and run and run. When I am exhausted I double check that they really had stolen my stuff. I discover my mp3 player still tucked in my underware. But they have my car keys. MY CAR. My car, its parked next to the restaurant, no one will be watching it - they'll try to steal my car. I have to get back. I have to run. One the last dregs of adrenaline I start running again. I'm soaked, covered in sand and my trousers were not designed for jogging on the beach.
I see Jessie, she looking confused becuase Bala is running loose, and I'm running... The wind kept snatching my words and blowing them back towards the ocean. Finally she hears me, 'I was mugged, they have my keys', over and over I say this. I run past her to the parking lot. My car is there, no one is around. I just sit down on the sand.
Papa Joel had tried to keep up with me, but I was to fast for him. He tells me that they were kicking me, and hitting me with their knives - I found the bruises later. Bala's nose was bleeding and she was suddenly very aggressive towards Mozambucan men carrying implements - she also wouldn't let me go anywhere without following me.
I am OK now, for the first few days afterwards I didnt want to leave the house, when I tried, the world closed in on me and I would focus on the shadows and all the banditos that could possibly jump out at me. Kids scared me. Men wearing red scared me. So many people prayed for me - and I am so thankful for that!
I went back to Murrebue this past Saturday - this time walking down the same stretch of beach with 5 men and carrying a huge machete of my own. I was OK - but it will still be a while before I walk anywhere near the beach alone... which is a shame cos I used to love walking with Bala on Pemba beach in the evenings before it got dark.
Thursday, June 07, 2007
Driving Fun!
Outreach last night was amazing – well it was a normal outreach after a normal stressy day, but the drive there just made me SO happy! I loaded the sound systems; my 3 helpers jumped in the back and off we went to a place that was 'not to far away'. 40km down the road we turn off onto a dirt track and what a dirt track it was!!! Treacherous sand, a rocky riverbed, 2 hills to climb - 4x4 heaven!!! It was fun – and what made me even happier was the fact that after the outreach I would get to do it all over again!!! J
Friday, June 01, 2007
Children's Day - June 1
The outreach last night went well, my little Media Player worked wonderfully! Yay, we have finally eliminated DVDs and DVD players from the movie showing process. Goodbye scratched DVDs, goodbye broken dusty DVD players!!! Now I just am praying that the teams will have some respect for these little $1000 pieces of equipment... they look after the projectors really well, so there is hope.
The sound systems are looking better everyday, slowly but surely order is being restored and I think that I could quite possibly be ready for next Tuesday!
In the meantime, its Children's day today and all the kids are going to get presents and a chicken dinner. There will be games and their rooms are being decorated! My roomie was in charge of organizing it all - and its a LOT of work, I think shes been more stressed than me - also she's still in charge of ALL the kids and there are a few who are sick at the moment, and yesterday she had to leave our 4 month old baby, Natalia, at the hospital because she has malaria and they need to put her on an IV with quinine. Jessie was devastated, the hospital is a fairly scary place... not to the standard of a western hospital, so we are just hoping that Baby Natalia will be OK.
Then with Children's Day, there is the hope that the clothes we are giving to the kids fit, that they will like the clothes we give them and that when lunch is served to the 2000 people that are coming to the center today there will not be riots (and that the chicken doesnt run out before the people all received). But it should be a fun day - and its for the kids, so I hope they enjoy it too!
Tomorrow will finally be a day off - after 11 straight days without a break I am sure ready for one!!! We are planning a trip to the beach, Murrebue, and just doing nothing all day!
The sound systems are looking better everyday, slowly but surely order is being restored and I think that I could quite possibly be ready for next Tuesday!
In the meantime, its Children's day today and all the kids are going to get presents and a chicken dinner. There will be games and their rooms are being decorated! My roomie was in charge of organizing it all - and its a LOT of work, I think shes been more stressed than me - also she's still in charge of ALL the kids and there are a few who are sick at the moment, and yesterday she had to leave our 4 month old baby, Natalia, at the hospital because she has malaria and they need to put her on an IV with quinine. Jessie was devastated, the hospital is a fairly scary place... not to the standard of a western hospital, so we are just hoping that Baby Natalia will be OK.
Then with Children's Day, there is the hope that the clothes we are giving to the kids fit, that they will like the clothes we give them and that when lunch is served to the 2000 people that are coming to the center today there will not be riots (and that the chicken doesnt run out before the people all received). But it should be a fun day - and its for the kids, so I hope they enjoy it too!
Tomorrow will finally be a day off - after 11 straight days without a break I am sure ready for one!!! We are planning a trip to the beach, Murrebue, and just doing nothing all day!
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
My thoughts for today...
I'm back in Pemba, arrived monday night after getting the 1000 tennis balls I was waiting for. It is great to be back home! But things are totally chaotic here. I think I might want to cry. The sound systems are a wreck - I might have 1 working system... but I need 5 before next tuesday when the mission school starts. And the things I need to make it work are BIG things, like generators and speakers - not just little connectors or microphones. I'm so tired of buying new things and just them being messed up within 6 months - I feel like saying 'NO!!!' but I cant, cos then the evangelism wont be as effective/wont happen.
I looked at the sound room where I lock all the systems away. I had it nicely organized into sections, each system seperate. Now everything is just jumbled into one heap, broken and working together. I looked at the toolkits I have made up for the outreach teams - they are all empty, the tools just missing. I feel like just not bothering to replace the toolkits - let them suffer if something breaks when they are 5 hours into the bush in the middle of nowhere. Then maybe they wont steal it. Of course nothing was stolen, its just missing. Do I sound frustrated?
So now I am faced with the enormous task of getting it all sorted before Tuesday evening when the Mission School kicks off with an guest speaker from the States. Oh, and did I mention that I have to have one system working perfectly by tomorrow night so that nothing will go wrong when a film crew that is here at the moment can experience an evening bush outreach...???
I looked at the sound room where I lock all the systems away. I had it nicely organized into sections, each system seperate. Now everything is just jumbled into one heap, broken and working together. I looked at the toolkits I have made up for the outreach teams - they are all empty, the tools just missing. I feel like just not bothering to replace the toolkits - let them suffer if something breaks when they are 5 hours into the bush in the middle of nowhere. Then maybe they wont steal it. Of course nothing was stolen, its just missing. Do I sound frustrated?
So now I am faced with the enormous task of getting it all sorted before Tuesday evening when the Mission School kicks off with an guest speaker from the States. Oh, and did I mention that I have to have one system working perfectly by tomorrow night so that nothing will go wrong when a film crew that is here at the moment can experience an evening bush outreach...???
Monday, May 28, 2007
Nearly Back in Pemba
Well here I am, 1 week later and only 5 hours before I get to Pemba!!! I am in Nampula at an internet cafe, wasting time... I have to buy 1000 tennis balls and they´ll only be ready at noon... so I have 3 hours to kill. There is an interesting rock formation mountain thing with a little house ontop of it, so now I´m trying to figure out how to get up there! (hoping to find the info on the internet)
I´ll write a complete update of my journey up to Pemba, it was fairly interesting - made loads of detours, stayed in many places and of course drove a LOT! So keep an eye out for that!
I´ll write a complete update of my journey up to Pemba, it was fairly interesting - made loads of detours, stayed in many places and of course drove a LOT! So keep an eye out for that!
Friday, May 18, 2007
Photo: Where I live: Centre 1
I came across this photo of Centre 1, my HOME in Pemba! It was taken by Will Hart, one of my fellow missionaries. (See their website)
1: My House where Jessie & I live with our puppy, Bala
2: 5 Appartments: Jacques and Mary, Dr Eric, Betty Johnson & the 2 Pedros' Appartments.
3: My Old House area (used for male Mission School housing)
4: My Old room (used for male Mission School housing)
5: The water tower
6: Mozambican staff housing & Accomodation for our older Mozambican boys (its all behind the baobab tree)
7: The Old church
8: Mantown - Long term missionary accomodation for guys
9: Housing for our Mozambicans Bible School Students
10: Katie & Octavia's House
11: Where Papa Joelie and Josham Live
12: Julio (Our Mozambican Administrator)
13: Norberto's room
14: Where Ania, Shara & Melissa live
15: The 'Elijah House' where Heath & Emie and their kids live
(also in that area, Doctor Angela's House)
16: The Parking area
17: Kent & Andrea
18: Will & Musy (and Baby Joshua)
19: Angela, Teisa & Yonnie
20: Old Administration Offices & Store rooms
21: The Old Kitchen (no longer used) - but this is where they deliver supper to our centre
22: Store Rooms
(The Hand-Pump well is located between 20 & 22)
23: The Generator
So there is where I call HOME!
1: My House where Jessie & I live with our puppy, Bala
2: 5 Appartments: Jacques and Mary, Dr Eric, Betty Johnson & the 2 Pedros' Appartments.
3: My Old House area (used for male Mission School housing)
4: My Old room (used for male Mission School housing)
5: The water tower
6: Mozambican staff housing & Accomodation for our older Mozambican boys (its all behind the baobab tree)
7: The Old church
8: Mantown - Long term missionary accomodation for guys
9: Housing for our Mozambicans Bible School Students
10: Katie & Octavia's House
11: Where Papa Joelie and Josham Live
12: Julio (Our Mozambican Administrator)
13: Norberto's room
14: Where Ania, Shara & Melissa live
15: The 'Elijah House' where Heath & Emie and their kids live
(also in that area, Doctor Angela's House)
16: The Parking area
17: Kent & Andrea
18: Will & Musy (and Baby Joshua)
19: Angela, Teisa & Yonnie
20: Old Administration Offices & Store rooms
21: The Old Kitchen (no longer used) - but this is where they deliver supper to our centre
22: Store Rooms
(The Hand-Pump well is located between 20 & 22)
23: The Generator
So there is where I call HOME!
Thursday, May 17, 2007
My Helicopter Ride
OK so while I am waiting for the anti-malaria tablets to fully envelope my body with its potent anti-malaria mosquito formula I thought that I would tell you about the helicopter ride I had at the beginning of April while I was doing flood relief!
Just to recap the events leading up to the ride: I heard about an area called Malingapansi where apparently they had not received any food aid. This are was completely cut off, and only accessible by canoe, or helicopter. Thru some contacts at the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), a helicopter was arranged to take myself and an official from the Mozambican Disaster Management Agency (INGC) to make an assessment of the area. It would be my FIRST ever trip in a helicopter and I was very excited (and totally flabbergasted that it had actually been arranged and was going to happen!)
So the morning dawned bright and clear... I would know, I was awake. Not by choice believe me, that is just when the village wakes up! Miguel, my translator was going with me - I can speak Portuguese, but I'm not fluent enough to speak to government officials - and it is his first time to ever fly. So he was really excited too.
We had to meet at the 'White House'; a large white tent set up to be the Air Ops command centre, at 9am. It is staffed by South African Air Force personnel, and we sat and waited while they sorted out the paperwork for the flight. Our pilot asked me to point out Malingapansi on the map. Slight problem... I had NO idea where it was. No one actually knows exactly where is was, except the government administrator in Marromeu who had contacted us about the place! There was a slight uproar as the pilot tried to figure out in which direction we should fly!
When Colonel Fringe, the INGC representative arrived he solved the problem quickly: "We will fly to Marromeu and get directions there". Simple as pie!
They called the helicopter 'Augusta', I thought that was weird until I realized that was cos it was an 'Augusta'!
~Augusta MH68 Helicopter~
The rotor blades started spinning and we had lift-off. It felt like I was in a car, except for the fact that I was hovering above the ground. That was until the pilot suddenly made a mad dash for the fueling station just a 100m away, then it stopped feeing like a car and started feeling very much like I thought a helicopter should! After we had re-fueled we headed to Marromeu, skimming along quite close to the water, following the twists of the Zambezi river. We saw hippopotami!! And there were many canoes in the water, the people fishing - they looked up and waved, some jumping up and down excitedly (the people in the canoes wernt jumping up and down... these bouncy people where on sand banks in the middle of the river). We were flying so low, so they could see us wave back at them! :-)
It seriously felt like I was travelling in a car! We arrived in Marromeu, circled and landed in an open field next to the road. Within seconds we had what felt like half the town lining the roads on all sides, and the Deputy administrator arrived on his bicycle 2 minutes later. The Administrator who had told us about Malingapansi was not in town today, but the Deputy was able to give us directions to get there:
"Just go straight towards that tree, and then after a while you will see big flat plains. Go across them. Then you will get to a bend in the river, and you must turn right, then you will see some buildings. That is Malingapansi."
The pilot wasn't impressed to say the least, and he went to fetch a map, hoping that the Deputy would at least be able to point out on the map which grid block Malingapansi was in.
There was some 'oooing and aaaing' as they tried to figure out which way was north, but finally the deputy pointed at a block on the map and said, 'There'. So now we had a general direction that was a bit more specific than the directions we'd been given!
The kids who had dared come closer to 'Augusta' scattered as the blades started moving. We were strapped in and ready to go. After a few minutes in the air we crossed the plains, and finally we saw some buildings. The pilot circled twice trying to find a field big enough to land in, and by the time we had landed the WHOLE village was there! The doors opened and the village chief ran forward. Colonel Fringe asked the vital question, "Is this Malingapansi?". "YES", came the reply.
We had made it - the chief led us down the main road (the only road) towards the brick administration office.
~The Main Road in Malingapansi~
There was a flag pole in front of it, proudly flying the Mozambican flag. I won't go into detail about what our assessment was, You can read about the that here.
By the time the meeting was done, all the chiefs of the 10 other villages had arrived, and all had huge toothless grins, everyone wanting to shake our hands, and each asking "How do you do?" (in Portuguese of course). This was a HUGE honor for them! The meeting over, we were lead back to the helicopter, our entourage of the whole village following us back. The now 'back to nearly normal level' Zambezi River was quite running close to the road, and I imagine that this whole area had been underwater during the worst of the flooding.
The engine on, the crowd scattered, and we lifted off for the last time.
~Lift off from Malingapansi~
The pilots set the course home and we flew high above the earth, the trees specks against the green of the grassy plains. It seemed like the trip back was faster than the flight out, and in no time we could see Caia in the distance (its quite a large town actually!).
~A small part of Caia from the Air~
Back on the ground we got out quickly, the engine still running, and by the time we got to the edge of the runway only a few steps away and turned around, 'Augusta' had disapeared; off to go refuel and go on another mission.
It was fun, quite an experience - Not something that I ever imagined I'd do when I signed up for the Flood Relief, but really cool!
Just to recap the events leading up to the ride: I heard about an area called Malingapansi where apparently they had not received any food aid. This are was completely cut off, and only accessible by canoe, or helicopter. Thru some contacts at the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), a helicopter was arranged to take myself and an official from the Mozambican Disaster Management Agency (INGC) to make an assessment of the area. It would be my FIRST ever trip in a helicopter and I was very excited (and totally flabbergasted that it had actually been arranged and was going to happen!)
So the morning dawned bright and clear... I would know, I was awake. Not by choice believe me, that is just when the village wakes up! Miguel, my translator was going with me - I can speak Portuguese, but I'm not fluent enough to speak to government officials - and it is his first time to ever fly. So he was really excited too.
We had to meet at the 'White House'; a large white tent set up to be the Air Ops command centre, at 9am. It is staffed by South African Air Force personnel, and we sat and waited while they sorted out the paperwork for the flight. Our pilot asked me to point out Malingapansi on the map. Slight problem... I had NO idea where it was. No one actually knows exactly where is was, except the government administrator in Marromeu who had contacted us about the place! There was a slight uproar as the pilot tried to figure out in which direction we should fly!
When Colonel Fringe, the INGC representative arrived he solved the problem quickly: "We will fly to Marromeu and get directions there". Simple as pie!
They called the helicopter 'Augusta', I thought that was weird until I realized that was cos it was an 'Augusta'!
~Augusta MH68 Helicopter~
The rotor blades started spinning and we had lift-off. It felt like I was in a car, except for the fact that I was hovering above the ground. That was until the pilot suddenly made a mad dash for the fueling station just a 100m away, then it stopped feeing like a car and started feeling very much like I thought a helicopter should! After we had re-fueled we headed to Marromeu, skimming along quite close to the water, following the twists of the Zambezi river. We saw hippopotami!! And there were many canoes in the water, the people fishing - they looked up and waved, some jumping up and down excitedly (the people in the canoes wernt jumping up and down... these bouncy people where on sand banks in the middle of the river). We were flying so low, so they could see us wave back at them! :-)
It seriously felt like I was travelling in a car! We arrived in Marromeu, circled and landed in an open field next to the road. Within seconds we had what felt like half the town lining the roads on all sides, and the Deputy administrator arrived on his bicycle 2 minutes later. The Administrator who had told us about Malingapansi was not in town today, but the Deputy was able to give us directions to get there:
"Just go straight towards that tree, and then after a while you will see big flat plains. Go across them. Then you will get to a bend in the river, and you must turn right, then you will see some buildings. That is Malingapansi."
The pilot wasn't impressed to say the least, and he went to fetch a map, hoping that the Deputy would at least be able to point out on the map which grid block Malingapansi was in.
There was some 'oooing and aaaing' as they tried to figure out which way was north, but finally the deputy pointed at a block on the map and said, 'There'. So now we had a general direction that was a bit more specific than the directions we'd been given!
The kids who had dared come closer to 'Augusta' scattered as the blades started moving. We were strapped in and ready to go. After a few minutes in the air we crossed the plains, and finally we saw some buildings. The pilot circled twice trying to find a field big enough to land in, and by the time we had landed the WHOLE village was there! The doors opened and the village chief ran forward. Colonel Fringe asked the vital question, "Is this Malingapansi?". "YES", came the reply.
We had made it - the chief led us down the main road (the only road) towards the brick administration office.
~The Main Road in Malingapansi~
There was a flag pole in front of it, proudly flying the Mozambican flag. I won't go into detail about what our assessment was, You can read about the that here.
By the time the meeting was done, all the chiefs of the 10 other villages had arrived, and all had huge toothless grins, everyone wanting to shake our hands, and each asking "How do you do?" (in Portuguese of course). This was a HUGE honor for them! The meeting over, we were lead back to the helicopter, our entourage of the whole village following us back. The now 'back to nearly normal level' Zambezi River was quite running close to the road, and I imagine that this whole area had been underwater during the worst of the flooding.
The engine on, the crowd scattered, and we lifted off for the last time.
~Lift off from Malingapansi~
The pilots set the course home and we flew high above the earth, the trees specks against the green of the grassy plains. It seemed like the trip back was faster than the flight out, and in no time we could see Caia in the distance (its quite a large town actually!).
~A small part of Caia from the Air~
Back on the ground we got out quickly, the engine still running, and by the time we got to the edge of the runway only a few steps away and turned around, 'Augusta' had disapeared; off to go refuel and go on another mission.
It was fun, quite an experience - Not something that I ever imagined I'd do when I signed up for the Flood Relief, but really cool!
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Gettin Better
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
OK here is an update! I am pretty much recovered now. I woke up 3 days ago and I felt sorta normal... the pain had mostly gone (my skin had been very painful to the touch), the swelling had gone down loads and I could get out of bed without having to rest for 2 minutes first! Everyday since then I have been improving.
I have started swimming at a local gym (since monday), taking it slowly, and I can feel the difference in my energy levels already, which is, after 3 weeks of feeling SO sick, really wonderful.
So, at the rate I'm going I should be well enough to leave early next week for the 40 hours of driving it will take to get back to my house in Pemba!
*****************************************
Friday, May 11, 2007
I am out of hospital now and doing MUCH better. Still pretty sore & tired, and my body is working hard getting all the 'nasty' out of my system, but I can feel that I'm getting better each day. I sure wont be travelling to moz again without anti-malaria tablets!!! You kinda get lax when you've been there for over a year, it stops being an 'exciting safari' and more day to day life - and taking a tablet everyday gets kinda annoying. But from now on I'll take them, everyday!
So for now I am just resting - from the day I start the malaria tablets its takes 2 weeks to fully protect my system, so I am aiming to leave South Africa 2 weeks from now. I probably wont be going back to the flood area - things have quietened down quite a bit and I am told that the sound systems in Pemba are in some need of serious TLC!
OK here is an update! I am pretty much recovered now. I woke up 3 days ago and I felt sorta normal... the pain had mostly gone (my skin had been very painful to the touch), the swelling had gone down loads and I could get out of bed without having to rest for 2 minutes first! Everyday since then I have been improving.
I have started swimming at a local gym (since monday), taking it slowly, and I can feel the difference in my energy levels already, which is, after 3 weeks of feeling SO sick, really wonderful.
So, at the rate I'm going I should be well enough to leave early next week for the 40 hours of driving it will take to get back to my house in Pemba!
Friday, May 11, 2007
I am out of hospital now and doing MUCH better. Still pretty sore & tired, and my body is working hard getting all the 'nasty' out of my system, but I can feel that I'm getting better each day. I sure wont be travelling to moz again without anti-malaria tablets!!! You kinda get lax when you've been there for over a year, it stops being an 'exciting safari' and more day to day life - and taking a tablet everyday gets kinda annoying. But from now on I'll take them, everyday!
So for now I am just resting - from the day I start the malaria tablets its takes 2 weeks to fully protect my system, so I am aiming to leave South Africa 2 weeks from now. I probably wont be going back to the flood area - things have quietened down quite a bit and I am told that the sound systems in Pemba are in some need of serious TLC!
Sunday, May 06, 2007
In Hospital... AGAIN!
I was discharged from hospital with a clean(ish) bill of health last tuesday (the malaria parasites were dead), but was readmitted on friday night again. The cerebral malaria had affected my spinal cord which caused numbness and weakness in my arms and a constant horrible headache. This is only the 2nd case like this that my doctor (a specialist in tropical diseases) had seen this year, and apparently its very rare.
The malaria has also caused the red blood cells in the very teeny tiny blood capillaries to clump together and the doc described the red cells as 'sludgy' - this just affects the availability of oxygen to my limbs and brain, causing pain and discomfort.
The neurologist is treating me on Cortisone, and I am feeling so much better today! I have energy and for the first time in 2 weeks I actually am starting to feel better! I have an appetite now, and was contemplating a walking tour of the hospital... but maybe later!
My specialist doctor will see me again on monday (he was off for a well deserved break this weekend) and then between the two of them they will see what else needs to be done.
So I am (hopefully) on the road to recovery and maybe my next post will be an update from my home in Pemba!
The malaria has also caused the red blood cells in the very teeny tiny blood capillaries to clump together and the doc described the red cells as 'sludgy' - this just affects the availability of oxygen to my limbs and brain, causing pain and discomfort.
The neurologist is treating me on Cortisone, and I am feeling so much better today! I have energy and for the first time in 2 weeks I actually am starting to feel better! I have an appetite now, and was contemplating a walking tour of the hospital... but maybe later!
My specialist doctor will see me again on monday (he was off for a well deserved break this weekend) and then between the two of them they will see what else needs to be done.
So I am (hopefully) on the road to recovery and maybe my next post will be an update from my home in Pemba!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
