Travels!

The two day journey from Oklahoma City to Entebbe is finally done! Both of us being totally exhausted and sick throughout the flights did not help the long 18+ hours in the air go by any faster. On our flight from Oklahoma City to Atlanta, I almost lost Mishana! (Let me tell ya folks, traveling with a respiratory virus is not the best idea.) While we were beginning to land, Mishana almost passed out, literally. It was pretty terrifying to watch all the color drain from her face and her eyes roll back into her head. Let’s just say that I had a minor freak out because I had no idea what I was going to do if she passed out, especially considering the fact we had less than 30 minutes to make our connecting flight to Amsterdam. But luckily, she ended up being okay.  THANK GOODNESS!

Atlanta has a crazy airport! I mean we had to ride a train to get to our terminal area. It was crazy! And I believe we were the last people on the plane …. The cabin door literally closed like 10 minutes after we had taken our seats. If you know Mishana and I at all, you would know that was a very stressful few minutes! Despite the stressful beginning, this flight ended up being the best flight in regards to sickness. Both of us were 100% fine throughout the entire flight.

After arriving in Amsterdam, all I heard about for our 2 hour layover was how good Mishana’s coffee was. No joke. 2 hours of “My coffee was really good!” Needless to say, it was about 2am Oklahoma time so we were pretty out of it. And when we are exhausted all I do is laugh and all Mishana does is repeat the phrase of how good her coffee was.

The flight to Entebbe was pretty awful. Not only were we on the very last row of the airplane (right next to the bathrooms) but this is the flight where I got very sick … throwing up is never fun. Yuck! After landing in Entebbe, the line for the Visa was interesting … I had forgotten that Africans don’t really follow the ‘standing in line’ rule. After collecting our baggage, we headed toward the door. AND MISHANA WAS FREAKING OUT! She turned to me with a very serious face and said, “I am NOT walking out those doors until we see Sister Rosemary!!” It was all I could do to not start dying laughing … I have never seen this girl so serious in my life. Turns out after dumping our luggage a couple times, our driver was at the window holding our sign: “ECU Students for St. Monica’s.”

After getting 8 pieces of luggage into a tiny car, we drove 40km to Kampala, the capitol of Uganda. Here we stayed at a hotel (hostel) that was run by the local nuns. It was very nice place and we were so very thankful to finally get some sleep!

The next day … we got to experience what it is like to go car shopping in Uganda. Similar to the States, is the fact that car dealers are always trying to rip you off and take all your money. Then that evening, we had a wonderful visit with Sister Rosemary’s sister (by birth) in her home. Here we had our first taste of Ugandan food and it was pretty good! [Mishana may not agree, lol] We had sauce that was similar to a favorite of mine while in Guinea: Mafa Haka Woosa (Not sure on that spelling!) So good!

The next morning we experienced a shopping mall in Uganda and our first supermarket, where it is normal to be searched and wanded by security … Security from terrorists is a very serious matter here in Uganda. I’m thankful for the security, but it will take time to get adjusted to it. After our shopping experience, we began the 6+ hour drive to Gulu where Sister Rosemary’s school is located. Along the route, it was incredible to look out the window and just watch everyday life. The smells of market (raw fish and meat) brought back many memories from my childhood in Guinea. It is weird how our nose remembers things that our minds have already forgotten.

Along our route to Gulu, we stopped to get some grilled bananas and grasshoppers to snack on! The grasshoppers were DELICIOUS! They tasted like salty potato chips! The bananas were good too, but not as tasty as the grasshoppers.

But even better than the yummy grasshoppers was the scenery surrounding the Nile. I had no idea that the Nile ran into Uganda. It was absolutely gorgeous and took me back to the Old Testament book of Exodus when Moses turned the water into blood … I wonder if the water turned into blood all the way to Uganda? Regardless, I am blown away by the force and beauty of the river. And it would also be a really cool river to go rafting or canoeing on!

Monkeys! There were baboons sitting on the road! WOW! I know that I have seen monkeys many times, even owned a monkey, but it is still so cool to see them! And of course, we got some good pictures!

So now we are in Gulu at St. Monica’s School for girls. Mishana and I are staying in a hut in Banana Village, which is a section on campus. We are right next to the daycare and we were blessed to be serenated by all the children this morning. Absolutely incredible to see the joy and energy that all these little kids have despite their conditions. I look forward to every morning that I have to join in the singing and dancing before classes start. All the kids wanted to hold Mishana and I’s hands and since we only have two hands, we had little kids holding us all the way up arms. I HAVE NEVER FELT SO LOVED IN MY LIFE!

Stay tuned for my next blog which will discuss the wonders of Raide!

Current Prayer Requests:

 -Mishana is still fighting her sickness. Prayers for speedy recovery!

-We will continue to adjust to the time and climate change.

-Sister Rosemary has a lot on her plate right now! Prayers for peaceful sleep tonight!

-The young women are not as receptive to us as the children are; please pray that we may break those boundaries.