"Still Raining!!!!,.,.....& other Saturday Craziness!...

                    

                           "Still Raining,......& other Saturday Craziness, at Station Katshungu"......

August, 25, 2012: Saturday

SO,....this is the 'path' to the outside latrine,..aka hole in the ground!. OH, a problem,....rain has made the path to the 'john' slicker than slick!!!......

        Toilet contraption Pastor made for the Muzungu's,..whites,...to use. Note leakage around bottom!                    gotta love it anyway!

     So,.......Phillip's motorbike, -piki-piki,-still wouldn't run.  FRUSTRATING!  Now gas was also leaking from the carburetor,....so carb must be changed,..did that.   We were also sending out word for other piki drivers we could make deals with to go to Station Katanti......Hoping they would do it just for a reasonable price, & the 'free' gasoline we have stockpiled. Maybe we can ride on Sunday,..& maybe on Monday,....all depends on the rain!!! 

     Went to my bedroom for a nap,..while Tom was meeting with some guys from the village.  When I awoke, they were gone,...& Tom was sound asleep on a chair.  While Tom napped, I sat by the piki piki needing repairs,..just to GUARD the parts, tools, etc.  One really must keep a watch on things here,..stealing is a BIG problem!  Even Pastor Masudi's own kids steal from their Dad.  MERCY/YIKES!  Basically, this is a lawless culture.  The so-called Central Government just ignores the Eastern provinces because they are too hard to govern peacefully.......

     Here at Station Katshungu the missionary/African tennis court is gone,....soccer field is overgrown,..and any/all thoughts of cottage 'industries' are gone.  With this location being on a much travelled Path to the Interior, the danger factor from rebels/soldiers is much higher here,...besides there is a gold mine here!  Pastor Masudi has been here 40 years, & has fled to the forest 45 times,.....3x this year!!!  Masudi's been on the soldier's 'death list' for years.  Example:  one time when the missionaries were still here,..Masudi sheltered some of them in the forest for a month,.....this was done at his own peril, and that of his family,...at risk for 'harboring'.  Other times he has taken his family to Bukavu for safety's sake,....
                                                                                 
      Later: some men came to have a big discussion about the Christian Education department in their school.  Basically, they were asking for help.  The government wants the churches to run the public schools,..& in return they can have 1 hour daily to teach Bible principles.   Problem: their aren't any female teachers,(which would be advantageous), to do the teaching.  Why?- because over 30 women who came to the last training school, but do not want to take responsibility to teach.....When the soldiers come, they burn all the school materials in the front yard of the teachers,..& make the villagers watch as their school stuff is pillaged & burned,.......!!!   And, that's the least of what could happen,.....

    Mid afternoon 2 soldiers came to Pastor's house for another 'shakedown'.   One was nice, & one was drunk!  The drunk one took Tom apart for "not telling them, (the soldiers), we were coming,-& getting their permissin!"  Oh, by the way,..there is no 'permission' required,....he was just saying it was "against regulations", so he could try for some $$,........blah, blah, blah, blah,....Tom said, "We're sorry,"...& left it at that. YIKES.

    A local radio station is talking about our coming to do a Leadership (Bible) Seminar @ Station Katanti.  Apparently many, many people are already on their way there,..some walking up to 200 miles!

     Remember now.....T I A,....'This Is Africa!'............we can now close the book on Saturday @ Station Katshungu,.......

     Oh, I FORGOT,....it is still raining,......so we're going NOWHERE,......
Rogers, Banwamazi

                                       

"Time At Station Katshungu,..watching it RAIN!"

                                     "Time @ Katshungu,..with Songa & family & his new laptop!"
August 25, 2012:

     SO,.....this is the 'dry' season,...SO, why did it rain for 3 days!!!   Like Tom said, 'Roger, dry season is a myth,..Congo really has a 'rainy' season, & 'a rainy-er' season!   Time on our hands @ Station Katshungu, watching it rain.............the 'path' would now be a thrill a minute,-when we left on piki's, to go to Station Katanti!!,...........

     Woman came to visit with us,..and me.  NyaYoanne's her name.  She is the daughter of a man who worked starting the Bible Schools with my Dad many, many years ago.  She's quite elderly now,..but a real "hoot" of a lady,..........great times!  We talked & talked.  She says it is sad that the Balega people are losing their culture, language, proverbs, sayings, & tribal markings on their faces. 

     The picture above shows Songa & his family.  Songa is a nice young man, who works at the Hospital here.  He is showing off his new laptop, he just bought from Tom.  Later, he realized it is programmed in English,..-which Tom had told him upfront,-& wanted to know if Tom could take it back to Bukavu & re-program it in French!   "Yes," said, Tom, "but it will take me time, & you'll have to pay for the French program!"   So, there you have it!   I'm guessing Songa didn't think that thru before buying the laptop??  But, it wasn't a big deal, & I'm sure Songa figured it out with Tom.

    Up early on that day,..after it rained most of the night.  Many Africans came to see Banwamazi, aka Rogers, & Tom/Kathy.  Much laughing, talking, & praying!   This is how they show their appreciation for our working so hard to come & visit them.  NyaYoanne brought me a live chicken,..in an old tote bag she got from somewhere!   The gift was for me,..but for all of us to eat for lunch, just a couple hours later. 

     For our part, we were busily discussing "Plans A thru Z",..since our original plans had been scuttled a long time ago!  Tom decided to try to get his nephew Phillip's motorbike working, so we wouldn't have to rent another motorbike.  Also, we had to figure out how to measure gasoline in Congo, since it is sold only in used plastic water bottles,..and we had to figure out 7 liters to take us to Station Katanti!  Like I said earlier,..'everything is a big issue here!'  Tom discovered he needed to take the carburetor off, and trade it out with one from another 'hospital' motorbike,......

                Tom working on nephew Phillips bike,..to save us some money,........stay tuned!

              Dirt & deposits Tom cleaned out from Phillip's gas tank, after sitting idle for 3 years!

     Mid-morning, Kathy & I asked Songa to take us on a walk around Station Katshungu, while Tom worked on the bike.  Toured Station on foot.  Hospital still in use,-making do with what little they have & using African doctors/staff;  Pharmacy & Clinic buildings no longer in use,-they have been folded into the hospital bldg.;  missionary Dr. Zemmer's house is falling down,-with Africans living it it;  Maxine Gordon & Joyce Owens house is gone.  We came across several hulks of trucks and cars,..now overgrown with jungle.  Also, we saw a house built for Tom/Kathy some years ago,..now crumbling to the ground.

                        Rudimentary Maternity Delivery room,..in Station Katshungu Hospital

Pastor Masudi's palm nut press.

"Gold Creek"

On our Station tour,  suddenly the pastor stopped & said "We can't go up that hill, to see that house!  Soldiers have come & taken it over!"  We were all too happy to go a different direction!  Other lowlights or highlights(!):  the Bible School building is still in use,..however, soldiers came & stripped the Library & classrooms;  the Secondary school is still in use,..in AWFUL conditions;  in one place we came upon a gas engine-operated 'flour mill', & Pastor Masudi's palm nut press.  First, it presses out palm oil, then the nuts are heated & ground for palm candles,..then, still later, the husks are sold for making soap.  By Pastor Masudi's press is a stream with dubbed "Gold Creek".   Yes, it IS gold in color from all the gold dust in the water.  There is mining upstream,..where they are taking out gold bars the size of cement blocks,..and you can see gold in the hillsides, where they have been dug out.  

     That day I wore Tom's clothing,....Tom is a size 44 & I'm a size 34,-so it was interesting to say the least.  My clothes were having the red mud/clay washed out.  And, with the rains falling, nothing was drying out! 

     Last project for the day:,......now that I had lost my cell phone & all its pictures in the river on our way thru the jungle,...I was even more upset when I dropped my backup digital camera on the ground,-right on its lens!   Of course, it bent.  So,..Tom & I fiddled with it for an hour,..and got it to work again.  In the meantime, I used Kathy's,....but then had my own back again,...YAY...!!!!

     With Phillip's motorbike giving us fits, & not wanting to start,..we've decided to stay here at Station Katshungu until Monday,....hoping the rains stop & we can fix the piki piki.........

     Stay tuned,....
Rogers, Banwamazi

"The Hassle Continues,..Must be the Congo!"

                           This is how the 3 of us looked BEFORE our first motorbike (piki piki) ride thru the forest,....you don't want to see how we looked AFTER that ride!!,..........


August 24, 2012, Thursday, Cont'd.: OR, put another way, "all Hell breaks loose!"

     OMG'sh,.....There is a new & unique meaning to the word "road" in the Congo!    95% of the time 'road' means a narrow, windy, path through the jungle,-which is taking over from both sides!  Oh yes, there WAS a 'road' here,....like back in the 1960's,.....but no one keeps/kept it up, so the jungle just has taken over.  Couple that with a torrential rainy season,..and it becomes a treacherous path!

                            African woman & child carrying unbelievable loads on their heads!

 The path features slippery, stinky, red mudpits of brackish water,-big enough to swallow a VW bug!!  Since there is no way around many, many of these,..you just have to hang on as your piki piki driver goes right through the puddles,-splashing the above brackish water all over both of you! Our drivers wore knee high rubber boots.  (We had no such thing!).  The trick is to not fall off the bike into the mud or river.  Our bikes fell several times.  BTW,  my driver, bike & me slipped off a log and fell into the river, mudpit, whatever you want to call it.  At least the water was 'trying' to flow at this site!  (Gallows humor!).  Upon picking ourselves up, getting the bike & us upright, and, a deep breath,-we took off again!  No harm, no foul,...-or so we thought!  Another time I was attempting to help Kathy across a 'bridge' on foot, when I lost my footing & went into the mud again!   Later that night I discovered my domestic US cell phone had fallen off my belt holster,..and 'drowned' in the river!  Gone forever are my contacts, emails, & my 150+ tunes!  The Africans will retrace this path tomorrow, & said they would watch for it on the road.  By the way,..those odds are SLIM & NONE!!  It was gone forever.  OMG'sh, there was also sawgrass slapping us hapless motorbike riders; fallen trees to either duck under or haul your bike over; - rivers with questionable "bridges",- aka logs over the water; snakes, crocodiles???!!!!;...& huge rocks.  I failed to mention the drops along the side of the path when climbing mountain escarpments, or meeting other motorbikes or bicycles without any lights or warning, or the women walking the path carrying unbelievable loads on their head,...or the cows being 'herded' along the path!   BTW, all 3 bikes fell several times,....that's why you don't want to see what we looked like AFTER the trip to Katshungu!!  I swear there isn't even 1 stretch of smooth road in the whole jungle Interior!!  My 'insides', 'backside' & 'bones' have been re-arranged time after time!  I lost count how many times we had to dismount & push the bikes thru the muck...........remember,..all of this in the dark of the African night!

     As mentioned, my piki piki driver was a surly young man!  His favorite expression was a scowl,..you've seen the type!   He constantly complained that the "Muzungu" he was carrying didn't know how to ride on the back of his bike,..........Finally, he stopped the caravan & ceremoniously began to berate me in Swahili about my lack of skills.  The speech ended with him refusing to take me even another inch!!  So, as happens in the Congo,..negotiations ensued.  Tom told him to "haka makalele yako!", which means literally to stop your laughing(at the white man)!!  Put another way,....it can mean, 'shut up', or 'get over it!'  For good measure, as the driver lit a cigarette, Tom said, "& by the way, that cigarette will kill you!"  The drama was 'ON', in earnest,..and it was nearly dark, to boot!  I was transferred to the cargo motorbike, driven by Songa, a nicer young man from one of the mission schools, who works in the hospital at Katshungu.  Fine by me!! 

     We arrived @ Lugungu, a village along the path, at full dark,..with a LONG way to go, and Tom's headlight not working on his bike!   Had a meeting among ourselves along the road.  Our choices were to sleep by the bikes on the ground, or press on thru the night, -with the biggest mountains still ahead of us.  We tied an LED (Chinese) flashlight on Tom's piki piki and decided to press on to Katshungu, thru the night.  My new driver, Songa's, contribution to the decision was that the road ahead would be MUCH WORSE!  He wasn't kidding,.......ROUGH, SLOW, ROCKY, BUMPY going in the dark,....had we known, we'd have passed on the decision to go to Katshungu.......too late now to change.

     Then, it began to lightning in the East!  What else could happen????   Tom was reminding me, I told you it won't be EASY!"   Yeah, right, Tom,.....Finally, we reached the top of the escarpment, and took a break on top of the mountain,...so dark you could barely see your hand in front of your face,..but, PTL, not raining.  I have named this mountain "Telephone Hill".  On the top of the mountain there is a path leading to the very summit in the forest.  If one stands just right under a specific tree,....thru the wonders of atmospheric changes one can receive a poor, slight cell signal!!!!,...in the forest, in the middle of NOWHERE!!  Say it ain't so, Mabel!   The signal is good enough in an off and on way to 'talk'...........Now we were only about 7 km from our destination, Station Katshungu,-down the 'short' side of the mountain. We passed the hydro-electric plant that several Missions/missionaries had built across a rushing mountain river.  Even in the dark we could hear the rushing/roaring water.  (The soldiers had come several times, and for no good reason have trashed the electric plant,.....just because they CAN!!)  Wow!

     After ALL that, we arrived Station Katshungu at 8pm. Over 3 hours to cover the route we had been told would take 1.5 hours!  The pastor & other locals had waited for us until 7:30,..then they had given up.  Despite some people having left,....we had a BIG welcome, singing, praying, from Pastor Masudi & his extended family.  WONDERFUL!  (Tom & Kathy had taken a wrong turn in the night, & finally showed up about 20 minutes later!).

    

    Pastor Masudi, his wife, & Rogers (as they call me in Africa: Sunday morning @ Station Katshungu

My very small room at Pastor Masudi's...

Water well at Station Katshungu

Makeshift 'toilet' over hole in the ground....

     We were fed supper of rice, Sombe(greens), bugali(manioc), & fresh pineapple.  This station still has deep groundwater wells installed by some of the missionaries,..so we could drink the water without having to boil it for 30 minutes to an hour.  We committed ourselves to God's care,.& .drank deeply & gratefully!   Masudi's wife gave us each a pan of warm water to do a 'spit bath' in our rooms to get rid of the muck, mud, & stench!  PTL!  WOW!  (She would hand wash our muddy clothes next day).  I had one room in Masudi's mud/stick house, the family  another room, & Tom/Kathy a third room.  The fourth room was occupied by Masudi's grown daughter & her kids.  The rooms were small, with dirt floors, and a low platform for lying on, & a mosquito net.  I did have a window!,..is that a good thing????   Never mind.  The 'toilet;,..a hole in the ground, was 'down the path',....but look at THAT!  Pastor Masudi had built a small wooden device to make things easier for the "Muzungu's".  God bless that man!!.........

     Went to bed about 10pm,..EXHAUSTED,..and dreamed of yesteryear in the Congo!  No matter that the bed was HARD,...and, a huge thunderstorm broke over us!   Love the sound of the rain on a tin roof,..but this will make the paths even more impassable,..for our scheduled trip to Station Katanti,-my home-, tomorrow,........STAY TUNED,....... OH!, with the low window in my room,..& the rainstorm,..'things' became easier to avoid walking to the toilet down the path,....you figure it out!,....

Rogers, Banwamazi

"Let the Games, 'Hassle' Begin,....Shabunda, Congo"

August, 24, PM, Shabunda, Congo, Africa:

     .....You'll recall we had just landed in a rickety old plane at the dirt strip, aka, a clearing, in the middle of nowhere!    In this case,....'nowhere' is a regional town in the middle of Maniema Province, Congo.  This is one of the worst areas of unrest,  but on this day all appeared to be peaceful, PTL.  

     Immediately, an immigration man met us 3, and insisted we needed to follow him to a mud/stick building for Immigration.  Altho' we had somewhat expected this,..we had no idea what was to follow!  We showed him our papers,...which made absolutely NO difference!!   We were told we'd need to be 'processed', and the man produced some kind of form, which looked significantly like the ones Emile had prepared for us in Bukavu,-precisely, so we wouldn't need to deal with this here!   This Immigration man's words were punctuated by the appearance of two African soldiers/police, who insisted we MUST do this.  Oh, by the way, the forms would cost each of $30US, & if we would just fill them out, we could go on our way.  My guy, Tom,-doesn't like to pay these "fees", since doing so just perpetuates the graft and hassle in this country,...and, I agreed with him.  Besides, we had not planned financially for this eventuality.  So, while we sat in the boiling, humid, heat, they questioned our papers, visa, passport, residency,..etc.,etc.,.....just because they CAN!!!  SURREAL!! doesn't even come close to describing the situation.  I had to admit this seemed like 1960 all over again,..back when we fled the Congo the first time!  Now, we were having a hassle to get INTO the Congo Downcountry!  YIKES.  Tom negotiated, and called Emile in Bukavu to explain,..and guess what?,...the local officials wouldn't talk to him on the phone!!!     (Turns out this local official doesn't like being told what to do,..and so he's obstinate).  Negotiations continued until the locals were down to $5 each.  We stood on principle, while they stood on their demands,..and the soldiers/police turned up again!  So, who's going to blink first!???  (Tom had signalled me that if I wasn't there, & he hadn't promised to take me to my former home at Katanti, he would have just left on the next cargo plane out of there!).    So, we waited for 3 hours, being 'treated' to many & much shows of authority,..just because they CAN!!.......EVERYTHING is a BIG ISSUE,...talk, talk, talk, talk, talk,.blah, blah, blah,....it sure is a good thing Tom is doing the negotiating,..as I would certainly have lost my cool!  .Finally, 2 local pastors came to bolster our case,..and after all that, we were allowed to just "register" our presence,  and go!  PTL. 

     Gratefully, we walked 2 miles to pastor's house.  His lovely wife fed us rice, sombe(greens), & pineapple.  Two or three people from Katanti were at his house to greet us as well.  We had 'flirted' with the idea of going to another place, Station Katshungu, to see those folks, & to retrieve gasoline from the Mission stockpile there.  Since it was getting on into the afternoon,..we decided against going to Katshungu.  HOWEVER,  the idea was quickly resurrected, since the pastor had motorbikes,..here called piki-piki,..and we were told we could leave soon.  We were also told it would only take 1 1/2 hrs. to go to Katshungu, so we still had plenty of daylight.  Or, so we thought!  

     First, it took at least an hour for the piki-piki guys to show up.  Then, as is ALWAYS the case in Congo, much talk, talk, blah, blah, about the price to go.  I think I mentioned to you that EVERYTHING is a problem and a process here!??,..even the smallest detail!   After 'making a deal', the guys had to go fill with gas for their bikes,...another couple of hours lost!  If memory serves me correctly, the piki-piki guys charged us $20 each, plus gas for the trip,..(they had started at $50/ea.).   And, if my math is any good, the gas in Shabunda was about $30/gallon!,..out of a plastic bottle.  Where do they get the gas???--don't ask!!    We finally left at 5PM, for what we were told was a 1-1/2 hr. trip.  I was on the back of a piki-piki driven by an African; Tom/Kathy drove/rode on the second piki-piki; & Songo, from the hospital in Katshungu loaded our considerable luggage onto his piki-piki.  (Forgot to say we did send things for the Seminar at Katanti on ahead with a man on a bicycle taking that stuff). 

     So, heading into the setting sun, in the rainforest, with 3 piki-piki's,-two driven by Africans,....AND, MY driver immediately complaining & complaining that "the Muzungu,-(translation white man)--isn't riding on the back of his piki-piki correctly"!!!!    Frankly, I didn't know there WAS a 'correctly', instead focusing on just staying ON,.........and, as O'Hara once said to Scarlet,.."frankly, my dear, I don't give a -------!!!!"!!

     In just a few kilometers, we were stopped at a decent sized river,..where the bridge was OUT.  Had to walk the bikes on logs across the river...........BUT, that is tomorrow's blog,.....

Rogers

"The BIG ONE is here,. "Flying" to Downcountry Congo!"

   "The BIG ONE is here,....and this is a picture of a plane similar to what we took  55 minutes into the Rainforest, to a place called Shabunda!"
August 24, Friday, flying in Congo, part one:

     Oh, did I mention the plane in this picture looks MUCH BETTER than the one we rode to Shabunda?  Specifically, it is a LET M-410,.....made somewhere in Europe, flown by European & African pilots,...and like NOTHING you've ever seen before!    Now converted inside for cargo transport, it is a huge MESS!!,......but I digress,......

     On 'fly day', I was up by 5 AM, after a fitful night.  Emile, (from Immigration), & Kandoto, (the plane agent), were to come at 7AM with a taxi.  Imagine our surprise when they showed up at 6:15!,...did I mention that 'early' is not a word in the Congolese language?   Well, now it is!-:)   The taxi waited while we quickly downed some breakfast with Emile.  (Kandoto had left).  Next, we loaded up & took a taxi to Kavumu (Bukavu) airport,..about 30km, driving beside Lake Kivu.  We saw all kinds of 'sights & sounds' on this short drive.  Words cannot express the contrasts of this country!   Squalor right below where the President comes to retreat in a spiffy place by the lake;  soldier roadblocks(3), and checkpoints right beside the beautiful Lake Kivu;  open markets teeming with people right beside rickety wooden tables selling gasoline in plastic drink bottles; boats plying their trade across Lake Kivu to Goma, right beside dugout wooden canoes! 

     Emile , our 'protocol', went with us to the airport, smoothing the way at the checkpoints, and to help us with Passports, Go Pass, & Visa.   2 more checkpoints at the airport,.....more stringent, but OK.  Remember, in Congo one must have a Passport, Go Pass, & Visa, just to travel to another province?  (That is similar to going to Oklahoma from North Texas!, USA).  Yikes!  Everything is such a hassle here!   Our taxi driver spun his wheels on the gravel & sped off without paying his "airport tax" to the police/soldiers.  That produced much yelling, and the police kicked his moving car,..then, threw rocks at it! 

     Inside the tin building, a SURPRISE!   They have added an actual waiting room, with actual chairs, & an actual bathroom!!  Say it ain't so, Mabel!!-:)  Tom/Kathy were stunned to see it.  The airport itself is quite primitive,..but sees lots of traffic.  The UN Mission has a headquarters there, and many, many relief planes, non-government organization (NGO) planes, Red Cross planes, not to mention the daily cargo flights into & out of the Interior of Congo.  In addition, there are numerous airplanes, old & older, in various states of repair,-or just rotting hulks.  The most interesting is an old single engine Antonov, made by the Russians, and which WAS the means of travel downcountry.  However, that plane has now been 'grounded' by some 'authority', due to its excessive number of crashes!!   The Africans now call the single engine Antonov "Titanic"!. 

     Well, TIA,(this is Africa!), our flight time came & went without any sight of our plane, the Let M-410.  Numerous Africans were waiting with us for the flight, not to mention the cargo stacked on the plane parking area.  2 African Ministers of 'Something' are also waiting,....we met the man who used to be the governor of Bukavu, & the entire Sud Kivu district.  Our plane finally came, two hours late,..having decided to fly to Goma,- across the lake,- first!  Now, about the plane:

     EVERYTHING inside has been removed,.ALL bulkheads, seats/seat belts, lighting, air blowers, inside walls, - just an empty shell of a plane!!  The cargo is loaded, then the people.   The Africans climbed into the cargo hold,..and made the best of it.  Sometimes, that means lying on top of the cargo, with maybe a foot of space!  (Remember, we 3 had been promised actual seats?  Well,....as they say again, TIA!,...the two African dignitaries took precedent, and took 2 of the 3 seats!   Tom & I shared a seat,..(again, no belts, nor safety anything),& Kathy climbed onto the cargo right behind the African Minister's of Something!  (I immediately offered to go on the cargo & give my half a seat to Kathy,..but she steadfastly refused).  ABSOLUTELY NO PICTURES of ANYTHING were allowed.  The cockpit was separated from the rest of the plane only by an old, well-worn curtain, resembling a blanket!  The pilot(s) climbed over us to get to their chairs to fly the thing!  The European apologized to us, as he knew we had been promised'seats',-(& I use that term seats loosely!).  Explanation:  pilot didn't know the Ministers were coming,..and there is nothing he can do.....The Let M-410 is OLD, OLD, & OLDER.  Frankly, I didn't think it was any better than the so-called 'Titanic' plane!  It has 2 LOUD turbo prop engines mounted up high on the wing, which is on the top of the plane.  There are no belts, no announcements, & one just feels lucky to be on the thing!   Did I mention places in the fuselage I'm convinced I could see through?????????   The plane is a real workhorse, but looks barely airworthy.  In fact. the Int'l agency that rates planes/airports won't even give it a thumbs up!!  Did I mention the unrest of the people in the back?!

     We committed our lives to God, and took off at NOON,..3 hours late.  Climbed above the first layer of clouds,..so really couldn't see much of anything thru the window,..which was brown/yellow with age anyway!  Arrived in Shabunda, a regional town center, in about 55 min.  The airstrip is just a clearing in the middle of the forest!  No buildings, just cargo waiting on the ground!  No lights, no security, no pavement, ...you get it?  BUT, PTL, a nice soft, smooth landing.  Hundreds of people were there in a festive mood, dancing, singing, music, and just kept on coming!  NO,..the welcome wasn't for us,..it was for the Minister(s) of Something!   

     Well, here we were in the heart of the rainforest, in Shabunda, Congo, Africa, peeling ourselves like sardines out of a rickety old airplane!!   First leg of the trip back to "my house" accomplished,.....little did we know what was ahead,...................

Rogers

"The Day Before the BIG ONE!!!"

"The Day Before the BIG one does NOT refer to the giant earthquake everyone fears in California,......you know, the one where San Bernardino becomes 'beachfront' property!

Thursday, August 23, 2012, Bukavu, Congo

     Awoke to the building excitement for our trip tomorrow into Downcountry, and to the place, Katanti, where I grew up 52+ years ago!  Decisions, decisions:  packing, weighing, & deciding what to take & what to leave behind.  We were allowed one checked bag each,..the rest in a backpack.  Including all the supplies for the Bible Seminar, we were not to exceed 160 kilos.  Plans were coming together,....

     Pastor Kitoto & a doctor, (both from Berean churches), came to discuss our Seminar plans for downcountry, and to give us some needs of the churches, too. 

     I took plenty, (I thought), of batteries Downcountry for my Int'l Phone, music phone, and cameras.  Pictures in the rainforest will be easier than they are in the border towns.  Still need to be careful, & ask permission.  Sometimes I could get an African to take the picture,..that would help with that issue!  Crazy!!

     The view in Bukavu was the best yet that day.  Could see the mountains where the gorillas are,..Lake Kivu, & into Rwanda.  However, lots of haze & smoke were building over the city. 

     I have spent over $100US for Int'l. Phone calls & texts!  WOW,..sure adds up fast.  I added $200US to my SIM card global, so we'd be covered Thursday & Friday,.....& when we get back from Downcountry.

     The "Twin Crises" continued:  No water, & No power again today. 

     Noon:  Kathy & I walked to the Internet & Copy place down the street.  The walk was yet another 'eye opener' on the roads of Bukavu!  Hot, dirty, & people walking everywhere.   I needed to scan my Downcountry tickets to our church Treasurer in US, so he could re-imburse the amounts to my hosts, Tom/Kathy, who had fronted the money for tickets.  When we left the store,  we forgot our original tickets that were still in the copier!!!  UGH!   Sent Basodecki, (houseboy), back right away,....somewhat with fear & trembling.....PTL, the pages were still in the copier,-a HUGE blessing considering this is Congo!!,-and Basodecki was able to retrieve the original tickets & return them to me.  PTL.  Ain't growing old & forgetful just grand??!

     Lunch: today Kathy added a new twist,...coffee cake,...YUM.  We had that with our lasagna, coffee, & fresh tomatoes.

     Last minute details:  I tried to go online to USA, but the Internet had quit also.   It was the warmest day we had, since coming to Congo. Kathy & Basodecki went to an area called 'Pageco',..after a Belgium company of the same name.  The sign is still there, altho' the company is long gone.  I stayed with Tom at the apt.

     Emile,-Immigration friend,- came to say everything was ready for our trip next day.  He stayed, & stayed, as is his pattern......finally, we had dinner around 8pm this time.  Also, I was able to go online after dinner.....I sent texts, emails, & Facebooked prayer requests for our safety & ministry in the jungle.  Told everyone we'd be completely out of range of ANY type of communications for 'at least' 9 days! 

     Got to bed around 10:30pm,..and slept fitfully,....my excitement level is too high to sleep well,..

     TOMORROW'S the BIG DAY!......
Rogers

"Wednesday in Bukavu, Only 2 Crises Today!"

        Roger & Tom with some of the Berean churches pastors & leaders in Bukavu, Congo.

Wednesday, August 27, 2012

      Slept til 7:30AM, then took another cold spit bath, and washed my hair cold!

     Only 2 crises today,..for Congo that qualifies as a "slow day"!!!. 

     WATER CRISIS:  no water from the 'town' for the second straight day.  While we had saved a good amount of water in our "crisis containers",  we can't go forever without water,..especially with 3 of us using what we have.  So, Tom gave us the 'rules' for water management/conservation: re-use bath water, re-use sink water,  only flush 'solids & brown water', re-use teeth brushing water,  conserve drinking water, and conserve coffee water!!!   Things aren't critical yet,..and, we can buy bottled water at a store, but it is an expensive way to go.  We would only do that if the situation hits "critical", by our standards. The word on the street is that the water will be OFF indefinitely,  they are supposedly 'fixing something'.  We had enough water for 2 days,..so we had to see how things turned out,......

     ELECTRIC CRISIS:  no electricity from the 'town' for the second straight day. Tom's battery system was still good, PTL.   If things were to get "critical", we'd have had to set up the solar panel to charge the batteries.  So far, so good,.......stay tuned.....

     The Bukavu evenings are cool,..and the mosquitoes appeared at sundown, too!.   Kathy had a small bunsen-burner type device with a citronella candle, (I think), which she lit to put on the floor under her chair in the evenings.  Fire code?????!!!!!!, what firecode?????  Thank goodness for the mosquito nets at bedtime.

     Word came of  an "African" chance,..meaning a big, FAT, MAYBE(!!),.....we could get a truck of some kind Downcountry to drive to Station Katshungu. We would love that, but 'this is Africa',..so the chances are "slim and none!"   Word also came that we'll sleep in Jansen Hall at Katanti!  Yay!   That is the house I fled from with my family in 1960.  The reason it is still there,  it was built with bricks and has a good tin roof.  While it IS still there,..it is crumbling, and has been stripped by the soldiers several times!  I can't wait to see it again!!

     An African man came by with a mini-cassette he wanted us to play for him.  Alas, we don't have any devices to do that.  Pictures were still a big problem,..and one that wasn't going to be fixed.  Remember, it is unsafe to shoot pictures in the villages & towns of Eastern Congo. I'm learning to sneak a few here and there, but must be very discreet.  

     As the day wore on, we couldn't get ahold of the African who "MAYBE" had a truck downcountry for us.  It was probably too good to be true,..and the road may be impassable to cars/trucks anyway. It is SO HARD to move between villages, cities, & towns here!  You need a passport, visa, Go Pass, and whatever else they can think of,-just to go between places.  Yikes!  And, someone always has their hand out for $$!!  If for no reason,...they'll just make one up!! Then, negotiations begin,.....

     A man, Flavien, came from an orphanage in Kaziba, outside Bukavu.  They have 60 kids,..20 are infants. These are children of the wars, AIDS, & HIV.  So sad.  Flavien speaks English & Swahili.  We discussed the Buyamba Uganda orphanage I'm a part of, & he invited Kathy & I to visit his place when we return from Downcountry.  Rich MacDonald, the missionary radio station owner, came by again.  Meanwhile, the cargo plane agent still has not brought a scale,-finally, he came by mid afternoon.

     Suzanna, SaSimon's granddaughter, came bringing Bibles, songbooks, & Bible Seminar lesson books for us to take Downcountry.  We will have a load,....

     Today we had some boiled peanuts,...GREAT!   I haven't had boiled peanuts in years & years. For lunch: Spanish rice, sardines in red sauce.  Nice change.  We also bought 2 cases of drinking/coffee water. 

     At 4pm it was time for us to go to the Pageco area of Bukavu & meet with the Balega elders of the Berean churches.  Took a taxi,-Tom, Kathy, Suzanna, & myself.  There were thousands of people just teeming around near the grounds of the Berean Center.  We met Kitoto & 25 others, who said they'd waited in vain for us YESTERDAY!   (For no reason,-...we had always planned today!).  All of them were introduced, as we were as well.  Here is what they said they need:  funding, sponsors, permanent missionaries, ideas, & help.  Meeting was about 45 min.  Tom translated as I spoke for 5-10 minutes. We had to leave before dark,  as it isn't safe too be out after dark.

     Words CANNOT express what I saw in Bukavu,......and, Lord, have mercy, this is only maybe 3/4M people!  In the capital of Congo,- Kinshasha-, there are reportedly 15M,..mostly in shanty towns & slums !!!  We saw places where my parents had worked, & met several guys who still remember my Dad/Mom.

     All of us were hot/tired upon returning to the apt.  Dinner will be leftovers: rice, sausage, avocado, pineapple, cheese, bread, peanut butter, jelly, & carrot sticks.  I had 2 helpings of PBJ, 2 rice, 2 pineapple, & carrot sticks.  I was hungry, after all the trooping around!

     Had good talks with Tom/Kathy re: Congo/Africa politics and crises.  Also, we reviewed my day's events & critiqued my responses to the Africans.  Valuable info,.....

     Fell into bed,..tired & happy.  What a God,..what a day,...what blessings!  Tomorrow we make final prep for heading inland & Downcountry,.....

Rogers