Today's Blog: "Let the Games Begin!",.click/Enjoy

Sept. 6, 2012: Thursday:  "Let the Games Begin!,...Heading Home From Africa"

     SOOOOO,...after a couple of 10 hour flights,-one from Rwanda thru Uganda to Amsterdam, & the other from Amsterdam to Detroit,-I was more than ready to be Home!  One little problem, I was still in Detroit, awaiting my flight to Dallas & home!!  I must have looked TERRIBLE,..because when I checked in for my Detroit-Dallas flight the agent said, "Sir, I'm going to do something REALLY NICE for you!"  With that she handed me a FREE upgrade ticket to 1st Class!   (Did I really look that BAD??).  I gratefully accepted the upgrade, with sincere thanks.....

     Boarded & headed for home in style in the 1st row of 1st Class.  I had to try & remember how to act,..as I NEVER fly 1st Class unless someone is giving it to my, free!  One wonderful thing,..I think all the others in First Class were business people, who were working on some type of presentations.  It IS great to be retired from that rat race!! Flight attendant served drinks, chicken salad sandwiches, fruit, chips, & a brownie,..all free.  LUV IT!!  I could get used to this First Class lifestyle,..however, it really isn't worth the extra bucks,..unless your company is paying for it!  All of us arrive at the same destination, right?

     We hit moderate turbulence about 20 minutes out from DFW,..not unusual in the Summer/Fall in Texas.  I was getting excited to see oldest daughter, Michelle, who was picking me up at the airport.  Landing was smooth, & as usual, took forever to reach the gate @ DFW.  Michelle was a welcome sight as I found her,-or she found me,-at Baggage Claim,.....I only had my carryon backpack, but @ DFW one meets his people @ Baggage Claim anyway.    Onward,....now REALLY heading home,...grateful that Michelle's kidney stone,-suffered while I was away,-had been taken care of......

     By the time I got home it was early evening,..so I just unpacked my backpack,..drank some juice & ate a quick bite,..then, went to bed for a L O  N G rest.  Didn't get up til "Noon-thirty" the next morn.   Then, I stood in my warm wonderful shower for an hour,-after having only spit baths for some 25 days!! 

     Stay tuned,....tomorrow's blog post will be a retrospective on the whole trip,....

Rogers/Banuamazi

FLY DAY II: Amsterdam to Detroit, USA........

     Sept. 6, 2012:                     "FLY DAY II.  Amsterdam to Detroit, USA!"


     After the L O  N G KLM flight from Entebbe to Amsterdam,....I was tired,..but only 1/2 way home!  Had to keep on truckin'!.....Boarded an Airbus A-330, one of favorite long-haul planes, for the trip to Detroit.  It started to feel a little like home,..-since this plane actually was a Delta plane.  KLM & Delta are code share partners.  Flight was FULL, & my seatmate was an African lady,...I think she was Islamic & from Somalia.  The flight dragged on & on for about 9 hours.

     My International Phone battery was down again,..so I charged it a little in Amsterdam terminal,..using my battery operated Chinese cell phone charger 'thingy',... & I.hoped to continue on the plane,..but once I got settled, I couldn't find my the charger thing. BUMMER!   And, neither KLM nor Delta offered electrical outlets on these 2 flights,....altho' many International flights I've been on do offer electrical outlets. 

     Breakfast was served onboard,..for the second time that day:  fruit, french toast, cheese, crackers, yogurt & coffee.  Listened to onboard music, -Alan Jackson's 34 #1 Hits!......tried to sleep, but didn't do much good at that.  I maybe got an hour here & there,....Delta served an afternoon snack of orange juice, water, pretzels, & peanuts.  Yep,..we must be back with an American airline,.....the flight felt like it would NEVER end.  Filled out US Customs forms for re-entry @ Detroit.

     About 10 minutes out from Detroit's airport,-on final approach,- we hit HEAVY TURBULENCE,...in fact, one of the flight attendants fell down in the aisle!    Finally, we made a smooth landing with no problems PTL.

     I walked 'a million miles' to Customs in the bottom of the airport.  Following that walk,..was another
L O N G walk to US Immigration.  The Customs/Immigration folks questioned me more than they usually do for returning US residents,-due to the fact that I had been gone a month, & didn't have anything but a packpack,-no checked luggage.  Finally, they believed me,.. that I had been on two Mission trips, & had given away most of my things to the Africans I'd gone to help,.....Somewhere along the Immigration/Customs line I met a young woman who had been in Africa on business for the US consul.  Shared a few experiences,.....

     Headed thru Detroit's nice new terminal to await my flight to Dallas/Ft.Worth Int'l,....and HOME!!

     Stay tuned,..there's still more fun ahead,.....!!!
Rogers/Banuamazi

"FLY DAY,...With a 'Toilet Tsunami' en Route!!"....."

Sept. 5, 2012: Wednesday: "Going Home to Texas, by way of Rwanda, Uganda, Amsterdam, Detroit, to DFW"

     Awoke pretty excited,..with a mix of nostalgia & sadness that I was leaving the Congo!  Tom & I would have to leave the apt. for the Congo border with Rwanda at about Noon.   My series of flights to Texas would  take the better part of 24 hours,...& lose a day on the way. 

     BTW, the power came on in Bukavu from 10pm-6am!  YAY!!  Charged up 'devices',..and the apt. battery power system.  Four Balega came to see me & wish me safe travels.  Afterwards, we ate a lunch of instant potatoes, bananas, meatballs & gravy, Grenadine drink, & pineapple.  YUMMY. 

     I forgot to say that yesterday Kathy & I went to a store downtown & I was able to buy 2 African shirts to take home with me.  We also went to a religious store to buy some souvenirs........

     Tom & I left his apt. by taxi around 12:30pm,..to go to Congo Immigration @ the border. Tom helped with Customs & Immigration, first on the Congo side, then, on the Rwanda side.  Again, I cannot TELL you how important it is to have a "protocol",-someone like Tom,-who knows the ropes and can smooth out the red tape!  Thank you Tom!!!!  Rwanda Customs wanted to look thru my backpack, so while that took place Tom got a taxi for me to use to go the 8km to Rwanda's Kamembe Airport,-my point of departure.  The taxi ride was about $5.50US-6,000 francs Rwandan money-,..driven by a man who knew passable English.  When I got to Kamembe, I had to wait until 1:30pm,-sitting outside on the steps of the "building",- for the Security & check in to open.  Here in Africa, one cannot enter those areas at all until 2 hours before flight time. 

     My Rwandair 3:30pm flight to Kigali, Rwanda, arrived at about 3:25pm. Oh,.we would be late leaving,...
T I A !!!.  There were 28 passengers on a 37 seat Dash 8,..mostly Africans.  In fact, this time there were only 4 of us Caucasians.  We finally took off about 4pm,..-30 min. late.  Flight to Kigali, Rwanda was uneventful, but very rough.  At Kigali International Airport,.-in the capital of Rwanda,-I had about a 3.5 hr wait.  At the 2 hour advance checkin & security rule,..I gained access to my gate for KLM's flight to Entebbe, Uganda, & on to Amsterdam. 

     In Kigali, 2 interesting things happened:  1). My newly acquired Delta/KLM Medallion Frequent Flyer status got me access into the Elite Pearl Lounge for free food, drinks, rest & free WiFi.  A man came to announce each flight, so no one misses theirs!!   2).  As I used the restroom downstairs,  something CRAZY happened.  When I flushed the toilet flush button stuck somehow,..and water began to overflow out onto the floor!!!!  YIKES,.....I had to high tail it outta there, before I was 'washed' away by the toilet Tsunami'!!!!!!!  UGH.   Anyway, I got out with a sigh of relief!   From Kigali Airport I was able to get my International Phone going again,..& texted the kids in the States.  My youngest granddaughter, Reese, texted me 'good nite!' How nice!!   Michelle texted that she would meet me the next day at DFW, USA!   How nice again!!   This was the first my kids knew for sure that I was then out of the Congo,....after all those days!! 

     As I boarded KLM, I met my seatmate, a really nice middle aged man from Cologne.  This gentleman, Mr. Jorg Weyer, is a Catholic who owns a  hospital equipment company for caring for premature babies. He had just been to the far corner near Rwanda/Congo border installing incubators!!   At that particular hospital there is only electricity 4 hours a day & the water supply is 'sketchy',too,.......so his job was longer than he expected,.....Mr. Weyer was very interested in my work with orphans in Uganda & Congo,..& we enjoyed a great sharing time. 

     Our flight attendant for the 35 min. flight to Entebbe, Uganda, stayed seated most of the time so we got to chat with her.  She is a veteran with KLM, very nice lady, with two kids @ home,....& works 'part-time'.  She can name her flights & destinations pretty much after 15 years!  She goes to places like Amsterdam, Uganda, Rwanda, Accra, Dubai, Shanghai, Narita Japan,...and, only flies International routes.

     At Entebbe, we had a 1 hr. layover, which we stayed on the plane.  A whole new crew came on for the flight to Amsterdam,..scheduled for 10 hours,....Both Mr. Weyer, my seatmate, & I tried to sleep during the long trip,..but only got maybe 3 hrs. at best.  KLM feeds you what seems like "all the time",..at least every 2 hours!   Our 'dinner' was served @ 11pm!   Amsterdam was overcast,-not unusual,-when we arrived.  I said goodbye to Mr. Weyer, & went to await my next flight,..from AMS to Detroit,.....

     But,..I'm getting ahead of myself,.....that story is for tomorrow's blog,......Stay tuned,...
Rogers/Banuamazi

FINAL Full Day in the Congo,..Exciting as always!!

Sept. 4, 2012: "My Final Full Day in the Congo,..Exciting, as always!!"

     Up @ 6:45am, took a spit bath & shaved!!  Wow, hadn't shaved in at least 2 weeks!!  Packed my bags to get EVERYTHING into my backpack,.....just carryon people-,..that's what my goal was!!

Ruins of Hotel where we were guarded in house arrest: 1960

More ruins of hotel

     A man named Wavimba, who owns an auto/truck parts store in Bukavu-since 1986-, came to take Kathy & me on a driving tour of places I'd remember in Bukavu.  Nice of him to do that!  He spoke pretty good English.  We saw the Grace Mission Guest House, on which property my parents & my sister lived for several years,-in a smaller house.  Then, we went to the ruins of Hotel Riviera, where the 30 of us missionaries were held under house arrest by drunk African soldiers with Soviet weapons,...all the way back in 1960!!   The Hotel is in ruins, but someone is planning to rebuild it, right on the shore of Lake Kivu. Also, Wavimba took us to see the Orchid Club, restaurant, lake front, & swimming/bar areas.  This is an exclusive type place built by the Belgians back in the day.  Rooms  here were $300-$500 dollars a night,..& the suites even higher.  It is still open, & locally run.  We took the steps down to the lake,..& Kathy 'snuck' a cellphone picture of me putting my feet into the water,..As a kid we swam many, many times in Lake Kivu.  Nowadays, the lake is giving off methane gas & carbon monoxide.  Well, I stuck my foot in anyway!!   There is some concern that the two chemicals being emitted may combine to force a MASSIVE explosion in a very populated area!!   Drove by the Plaza de la Independence, where policemen pulled us over, after seeing white people in Wavimba's car with hi!!.  Hassled him over his papers for his car.  One has to have 18 different 'permits' to maintain a car in Bukavu, Congo!    The police made him show them ALL!  Finally satisfied, they let him/us go ahead, without any money changing hands,.....!!!!!  On the way to the top of the hill overlooking Bukavu, we drove past the Governor's house,...-no pictures allowed,...-& one can only drive by,.....Anyway, @ the top of the hill was a beautiful view of Bukavu, Lake Kivu, the Ruzizi river,  Goma & volcanoes,what I call "Gorilla Mountain",  & Rwanda. 

Lake Front, Lake Kivu, Congo

Lake Kivu now give off methane gas & carbon dioxide,......

Me dipping my toe into Lake Kivu, for old time's sake!

     Lastly, we stopped downtown and saw the Grace Mission Apartment where my parents & sister lived,..and the building that was a Bookstore run by my Dad back then,...Oh,  I forgot,...while touring I walked right into a corner of the open car door,..hitting my left cheek!  Of course, as on old person,..it bled profusely, & looked like I had lost the match,............why is it I have always hit my head?????   BTW, while we were downtown we heard what sounded like a gunshot.  Kathy jumped a foot,..of COURSE,..I was cool & calm,.......NOT!

    .  Back to the apt. by 1:15pm,..waiting for Rich & Kathy MacDonald,..who own the Kahuzi Christian radio station here,..to come for a visit.  I grew up with Kathy(Baylor)MacDonald,..& my parents knew her husband Rich very well.  In fact, Dad & Kathy's father, Fred, used to play amazing practical jokes on each other & on our families.  Good Memories! 

      After a bit, the Berean pastors & two Youth pastors came with Pastor Kitoto.  We had promised them that I would give them my thoughts about their work I had seen Downcountry & in Bukavu.  We discussed the Orphanage they are starting here with 50 kids in 5 locations,-maybe this is something I can help with????  The meeting took 2 hours,-then, the Youth Pastors & the Adult Pastors gave me a 3 page letter to take to USA churches,.....

     For dinner, we shared bread, cheese, Grenadine(yum), tomatoes, pineapple, & peanut butter/jelly sandwiches.  sent texts to kids when to expect me in DFW airport.  No water, nor power in Bukavu again,...went to bed about 9:15pm.

Rogers/Banuamazi

     OH, an agent for the flights from Kamembe to Rwanda came by the house to see me.  After discovering that I planned to be out on an 8am flight,...he did some checking.  This was because the border between Rwanda & Congo is VERY BUSY in the early morning,..with folks coming from the Rwanda side to work,..& vice versa.  My original schedule would have included an 8 hour layover in Kigali, Rwanda.  This man was able to re-book me free on a later flight with the same routing,....--so, my wait would be mostly at Tom/Kathy's apt. the next day, instead of in Kigali airport.  AND, we wouldn't have to get up at 4am!!!  PTL.

    

"Visit to Kaziba Orphanage & Hospital,..on a Road from Hell!"

Sept. 3, 2012, Monday:  "A Visit to Kaziba Orphanage & Hospital,..on a Road from Hell!"

     Back in Bukavu, I got up around 7am.  About 9am a man came with a Land Cruiser to take Kathy & me to see an Orphanage called Kaziba Orphanage & Hospital.  Before we went Downcountry, we had met the Director, Mr. Flavien, & promised him we would come visit his place when we returned from Downcountry.  Since I'm involved with Buyamba Orphanage & God Cares Schools in Kampala, Uganda,....I particularly wanted to visit & compare the two..... and, to see what I could learn about this ministry, too.

     Kaziba Orphanage & Hospital, Congo, has about 60 kids in residence,..from newborns to 6 years old.  At age 6 the Orphanage does all it can do to get the kids placed for adoption,-or into the hands of foster parents.  It was started many years ago by Norwegian missionaries, & is now run entirely by Africans.  Many supporters of these kids are European/American,..& other nationalities.   The kids are often from families torn apart or killed by the many wars, uprisings, AIDS/HIV,........or just 'unwanted',....HOW SAD!

"Dorm room, 4 beds, 4kids in ea. bed(sideways)=16 kids!"

Brand 'new' baby born last nite, mother died in childbirth..

They love their "bumbo" chairs!!,..

Dorm room for the toddlers,....

     The "road" we took in the Land Cruiser was the WORST 'road' I had seen YET! (Notice, I did NOT say it was worse than the "paths" we had traversed downcountry on motorbikes,- thru the jungle!  That is a whole different thing!).   The Kaziba 'road' of 35 mountainous, rocky miles,..took us 3 hours by Land Cruiser!!  Bone jarring, mud, rocks, one way hairpin turns, landslides,....just to give you a picture of the 'road'!!  Also, this one is used by HUGE trucks carrying red mud bricks back to town,.& most often, the HUGE loads are capped at the top by many, many people, riding up there!   One wondered what in the world the people would hold onto,.-we could not find any evidence there WAS ANYTHING to hold onto.  I mean, those trucks may have been 3-4 stories high!!!  Our driver was cautious, and I really don't think that we ever travelled over 10 mph, due to the roughness/mud, trucks, & meeting people on foot.  The driver would sound the horn every time we approached a 'blind' corner,..of which there were about 5 million:-)!!!  

     In addition, we came across at least two of the huge trucks which had slid off the road & into the ditch.  On one occasion, the truck was blocking the road!  Another truck came to off load the first one,..& since we were on a one-way stretch, we had to back up a ways before we could fit by,......"'What's that drop on our side of the road???,....DON'T ASK!!!"  To sum up the 'road',..it was so bad that by the time we arrived at Kaziba, we had a broken shock absorber on the Land Cruiser.   Believe it or not,..in the middle of NOWHERE, someone fixed it while we toured the Orphanage & Hospital!  Don't know if they 'fixed it',..or just took it off,..anyway, it quit clanking under the truck.

Hydro electric plant built by Norwegian missionaries..

Dam over river to power the hydro plant,..

     The Kaziba post is very well organized, has 3 African doctors @ the hospital,..and good places for the kids to live.  Also, they have a huge working hydro-electric plant built by the Norwegians many years ago!!  It boggles the mind that the soldiers have not come & destroyed it as they did the one Downcountry at Station Katchungu!  Who knows why they haven't,??????,....... Anyway, Flavien & his folks @ Kaziba have electricity from the Plant!  He & his wife fed us lunch, & then we left about 2:15pm in order to get back to Bukavu & the apt. before dark.  Several sections of the road go thru places it would NOT be good to be out in a car as white people, after dark!  Flavien came with us, along with another relative who needed a ride.  Along the way we came upon two  trucks stopped,..with a mob of African young men fighting hand & fist,..or with poles/sticks,...all over the fact that someone had broken seven bottles of whatever the trucks were carrying!  Flavien knew some of the combatants, & we stopped to see if he could broker a 'peace deal'.  After a bit,- realizing it was a fruitless effort,- we drove away,....(Kathy & I breathed a sigh of relief!).

     We reached some of the worst areas of Bukavu just @ 5:30pm,..twilight time.  Roads were teeming with thousands of people on foot,....so thick that cars could barely make it through.  FINALLY, we arrived at the apt. @ 6:15pm,..almost full dark.  Kathy & I were absolutely BEAT,..from the pummeling we took on that road,..and some of the 'dangerous moments' we had survived as well.  We had peanut butter & jelly sandwiches & some cheese for dinner.  Again, no lights, no water,.......

     A man from the Balega church came to see us in the evening.  He talked & talked for an hour & a half.  He knows passable English,..so we could all communicate. He ended with a passionate plea for me to tell my kids & grandkids back in the States to come to Congo & work with the Balega!  (Now that's a TOUGH SELL,......!!!).

     I fell into bed about 9pm,....but WHOOPS!,..Songa came by to practice his English again.  I got up & talked with him for maybe 20 minutes,..& since I was falling asleep(rude),..I said goodnight & went back to bed.....

     Tomorrow would be the last day before my FLY DAY out of Africa,......if there were as many surprises as there were on Monday,..I'd certainly be caught up on my 'surprise quota',.............

     Stay tuned,......
Rogers/Banuamazai

"Another Flight 'From Hell',...flying back to Bukavu!"

Sept. 2, 2012: "Another Flight From Hell",..aka flying back to Bukavu!"

     Sunday dawned partly cloudy, after it had rained HARD two times during the night.  The roof over my 'bed' leaked, & the bed got wet down at the bottom.  So, just slept with legs drawn up,.....Up around 6:45am,..& waited for something for breadfast,..which never came.  Back to the good old 'power bars'; we're eating the last of those, too.  The African did bring us boiled water we used to refill our bottles, & make some instant coffee. 

What was left of a black Mamba snake(very poisonous)

     Tom was showing the glasses & watches he had brought from the USA to some pastors.  Since we were going to take ANY cargo flight out,..we decided to not attend church,..rather, to await word from the airport, & be ready to go at a moment's notice.  Suddenly one of the pastor's phone rang, with a message that there was a plane leaving for Bukavu in 15 minutes, & the pastor would come to get us.  We rushed around, rather 'like chickens with our heads cut off',.....to get things ready to go!  As usual, the messenger took 35 minutes to show up!  So, we finally started our walk to the airstrip,...maybe 2 miles.  Upon arrival, we noticed the Lett M-410 was the SAME one that had broken down the night before!!   This would be our plane for that day!!,  Everyone connected with the cargo flight ASSURED us that even though the plane had broken down the night before,..it was fixed & ready to fly!!!,...well,-what could we do?????  .In fact, the plane was already loaded w/cargo & a few people,..& just waiting for us to show up!  Thank God, they waited.  Immediately, we each climbed up a  STRAIGHT UP, VERTICAL ladder,..which was BARELY big enough for us to make it up & into the plane's belly. PTL, Someone had totally taken care of our Passports, visas, & Go Passes,...remember this is the place where on the way into Downcountry we had been hassled for over 3 hours!

      Once again the inside was totally STRIPPED, & made into a cargo plane.  There were two African pilots in the front, with no bulkhead nor door between them & us!!   We just sent up some silent prayers for our safety!  This plane had 4 seats,..occupied by Congolese soldiers!!!  The pilot came & told the soldiers they would have to move to sitting on the cargo/floor,..& let the "paying passenger's" have the 4 seats!  The soldiers were NOT happy.  We all agreed we'd rather have the soldiers 'happy', & just let them have the seats,...but, the pilot wouldn't do that.  So, the soldiers sat on the cargo & the floor,..looking quite upset!  That was ALL we needed, at the beginning of another 'adventure' flight,....!!!!!!!

     A young male African businessman/student sat beside Kathy, & couldn't keep his eyes off of her.  She was quite uncomfortable,....& Tom & I sat right behind them,......OH,..you wanted SEAT BELTS????????    As    they say in New York,  fugetaboutit!!!   Some barrels of something were rolling  freely around toward the back of the plane.  Of course, the bathroom was gone, too.

    The pilot started each of the twin turboprop engines separately.  Altho' they had insisted everything was fine with the plane,....I was comforted to notice he ran each engine up to high rpm's, ...for longer than usual!!  Satisfied that all was well, he released the brakes, & we lumbered down the dirt strip.  Amid much NOISE the plane lifted off, & the crazy thing actually FLEW,  PTL!   Our trip was just about 45 minutes, to Bukavu,(border town),...punctuated by a very good, soft landing!  (When flying into the Congo interior, one is able to see wreckages of numerous of these flights that went down in the jungle,..the planes are usually just left where they crash!).

     At Kavumu airport outside of Bukavu, Immigration was a breeze, with no problems.  It maybe took 15-20 minutes.  It felt so good to be back to "civilization",...such as it is, that is,.....Upon arriving by taxi at Tom's apt., we discovered there still was no water, no electric, & the emergency batteries were getting low! We were able to charge our International phones off the batteries,....so we could make some calls & texts to let loved ones know we were ok.  Remember, we had been out of any communication for 9 days!

     Since it was Tom's birthday, we went to a restaurant within walking distance of the apt.  It was clean, & we shared a nice meal there.  Tom had a fish entree,-& I mean the whole fish, head & all!  Kathy had tilapia(meat only) & potato fries,..and I had pork chops with fries.  I treated Tom & Kathy to the meal,..and it was only $45US.

     We needed some bread,..but didn't find any on our walk back from the restaurant.  All 3 of us took a much awaited, long, nap,..until 6:30pm!  Then we ate leftovers from the restaurant meals for dinner.

     A BIG, WINDY, noisy thunderstorm came thru after dinner.  Had to batten down the hatches,...Emile, our Immigration friend came over & true to form stayed til 10pm!

     Even after the long afternoon nap, I was 'wasted',..so I went to bed around 8pm.  I loved hearing the rain on the metal roof,..especially now that we were out of the Downcountry,......in just two days l would be reversing my steps from Congo thru Rwanda, Uganda, Amsterdam, Detroit, & Dallas,.....to the good old USA!!  Meanwhile I was giving away clothes, shoes, jackets, etc.,...with a goal of getting EVERYTHING into just my backpack.  And, this was making several Africans extremely happy with my gently used stuff!!,.....

Rogers/Banuamazi

   ...

BIG DAY! Leaving Downcountry, Congo!!

September 1, 2012, Saturday, 'BIG DAY,.Leaving downcountry, Congo!!


     I was awakened two times in the night by wind, thunder, lightning, & rain blowing in my room's window.  WOW,....we really needed to get going that day,...but God did provide.....

     Got up @ 5:30am, & breakfast @ 6am.  Guess what?  The sun is out now & drying the paths for us,..BUT, true to form (T I A),....a new problem surfaced.  Tom's piki piki's rear tire was flat as a pancake,..AGAIN!!  Our piki drivers went looking for an inner tube & gasoline.  (The piki drivers had not brought all the gasoline we needed from our stash @ Katshungu!!).  Why?...who knows?   The guys found gasoline, but no inner tube.  Well, we pumped up the tire,..prayed over it,...& waited an hour.  Praise God, the tire held!!  

Saying goodbye to SaSimon @ Station Katanti, Congo

     Started out @ about 10am, after emotional goodbyes to SaSimon & the other Africans.  I cried all the way down the Station Katanti hill,..on the back of my piki piki.  This time my driver was a really nice young man, & a good driver!  I think he knew 3 words of English,..'yes' & 'no' & 'ok'!!    As expected, the road was a mess, so we had to ride pikis very carefully, with many dismounts & pushing.  The rear tire on Tom's bike held until we were about 4km short of our first goal, - a place called Mapunga.  So, we stopped in that village to re-group.  Over the course of an hour and a half, the Africans took off the back wheel and tire,..and patched holes in two places.  (Now, why didn't these guys tell us they had patches & glue in their toolkits before we started out????!!!).

    The next phase of our journey was Mapunga to Lugungu,...this particular stretch of path is AMAZINGLY difficult passage.  Trees down, many,many rivers, many, many culverts, very overgrown,...you get the idea.  Very slow going,.....so we finally reached the crossroads @ Lugungu around 2:30pm.  We rested a bit, then headed out on the final leg, from Mapunga to Shabunda(regional center). 

     Just 6km short of the regional town of Shabunda,  Tom's piki tire went flat again!  Same tire,..new problems.  We negotiated with some villagers along the way to push Tom's piki to our destination,..& we would just walk.  Their price was so exorbitant,...& they wouldn't budge on price, so we went to 'plan B'.  Tom went ahead with one of the good piki pikis, while Kathy & I stayed behind with the broken down piki.  Plan B was for Tom to return, or send 2 piki piki back to pick us up BEFORE nightfall!!   Kathy & I sat under the thatched  roof covered village 'meeting place',..waiting & watching over Tom's bike. 

     While waiting, a plane flew right over our heads, on its way to Shabunda air strip.  We knew it was the last plane into/out of Shabunda for Saturday.  Our hopes of making it onto that plane that same day, Saturday,..were dwindling to zero & none!   Kept telling myself, Roger,- God is good all the time'!.......  Now our hope was to get a plane to Bukavu the next day, Sunday.  Meanwhile back at the village,.. a crowd gathered to watch the Bazungu(white folks) under the meeting roof.  A couple of them knew passable English,..& with Kathy's Swahili & my Kilega, we were able to converse.  Two of them said they were the local Catholic priests for the village.  However, one of them said, "If you will take me with you to America, & give me a job,..I'll gladly switch to your religion!"  The two men were drinking palm wine, or palm whiskey,..made locally from the fruit of palm trees,..the palm nuts.  They 'dared' me to taste it,...so I did.  Now I won't need an airplane to fly!!!!,.......

Kathy & I waiting with broken-down piki piki

     Kathy & I waited over 2 hours, & began to get a little nervous as the afternoon wore on toward darkness.  An old man, who claimed to be Protestant, came to see us too.  He couldn't keep his eyes off of Kathy, which grew to be an uncomfortable situation.  He had been drinking, & at one point asked Kathy to "go home with him!"  Of course, she refused.  This was met with more bravado & jabbering on his part.  Later, he asked Kathy to "go home & pray with him, & cook for him!"   In Congo, that last phrase means he wanted to make her his wife!   Uncomfortable, to say the least.  SO, we pushed the bad piki piki up the hill away from the meeting place, & thankfully the crowd,-including the man,-did not follow us!   PTL. Some 35 minutes later 2 piki pikis returned to pick us up.  We left Tom's piki piki with careful instructions to the Africans that someone would come the next day for the piki. 

     The 8km ride to Shabunda was uneventful,..UNTIL,...we approached a crowded crossroad, filled with people, including police/soldiers.   I noticed all of them were standing stock still,....& it looked menacing.  My driver stopped, & told me to get off the bike, and also to stand still.  My thought was,..'this can't be good,..and may not end well',..so I stood there praying & standing still.  After a time a whistle blew,..like a referee's whistle,...& everyone began to move again.  My driver told me to get on the bike,..& off we went, to our destination,...the Shabunda pastor's house.  (Upon passing the airstrip, we noticed the plane we had watched over our heads,-while we waited in the village.  It had broken down somehow,..and was needing repairs before it could fly back out!).  We found out later that every day at sundown they take down the Congo flag,....EVERYONE who happens to be at that place must stand at attention until the whistle blows for all clear!   WOW!!  Shabunda was teeming with people, & to me didn't feel completely safe!!  I couldn't help but flash back to 1960, when we fled this very area!  We also discovered that due to the erronious report on the radio regarding missionaries coming back to dig up buried treasure,..local pastors had put themselves at risk, & went on the radio to say that it was a hoax,....that we were missionaries who meant no harm. 

     The pastor's wife had boiled drinking water for us,...& we were able to spit bath our weary, tired bodies.  I was given a small room with a mat bed,...& Tom/Kathy had a larger room with the same things.  The bathroom,-a 'hole in the ground'  was 'down the path',.....AND, did I say,..it started pouring down rain AGAIN!  And, this is the "dry" season??????????? 

     Shortly after a meal of the same things we've been eating for two weeks or so,...I/we went to bed.  As for me,..I was BEAT!!!!!! & sleep came quickly.....First leg of our trip out of Downcountry was completed,..I could 'hardly wait' for what may happen the next day,...a Sunday,....

Rogers/Banuamazi