I am officially in Uganda!! My flight arrived in Entebbe last evening around 10pm. The traveling was long, but partially because of all of the stops (Detriot, Amsterdam, Kigali, and then finally Entebbe). I was able to meet up with Suzanna and Lianna, the two interns, in Amsterdam without any problems. Actually, I found Lianna pretty soon after getting to Amsterdam, and we did not find Suzanna until we were boarded on the flight. We were relieved to see that she had made it on with us! Mark and Amy Gwartney, the directors of Good Shepherds Fold, were waiting for us at the airport. Because GSF is a good three hours from the airport, we stayed in a guest house overnight. I wasn't sure what a guest house would be like, but it was pretty similar to a hotel/hostel. Suzanna, Lianna and I all felt pretty weird last night.. the time change had us pretty out of sorts. But we all managed to get some sleep.
When we went to leave the guest house this morning, Mark was feeling pretty sick. They suspected he had malaria, so we went to a clinic for him to get tested. It turned out that he tested positive for malaria, so they went ahead and put him on treatment. He felt sick for a while until the treatment kicked in, so we ended up staying in Entebbe for some time. It kind of worked out though, because a women and two twins who she adopted from GSF were stayed in Entebbe, so we were able to visit with them. They were supposed to leave on a flight out of Entebbe last night, but it had gotten cancelled. So they were happy to have company while they waited for another flight. We all had lunch together, and then left for GSF around 3.
We stopped to do some grocery shopping and exchange money on our way to GSF. The drive was absolutely beautiful. Since we were driving from Entebbe to Jinja, we got to drive through Kampala, a big forrest, and fields of sugar canel. When we got close to GSF we stopped at a fruit/veggie market. It was pretty crazy.. Mark just pulled over and then all of the sudden people started flocking his car trying to sell him their fruit and vegetables. They were putting their food right into the window for him to buy. Haha. He picked what he needed, paid, and we drove away. It was like a drive thru market!
We eventually arrived at GSF. It was so sweet.. Mark and Amy said "there might be a few people at the gate to see you." When we got to the gate, the whole area was full of everyone from GSF! They had brought speakers out and were blasting music, the girls were all dancing and the rest of the kids and workers were greeting us and yelling for us. Haha the three of us were all so shocked and felt so honored! We continued the "celebration" for a good 20 min before the kids walked us to one of the missionaries houses to have dinner. I have video of the dancing, but my I'm having trouble getting my camera pictures to my laptop. Maybe I'll be able to figure it out tomorrow.
For the rest of the evening we chatted with some of the missionary ladies. Around 10pm they walked us down to our guest house where we will be staying. Side note: The fruit here is soo delicious.
It's very exciting to be here. GSF is at a beautiful location and on a huge plot of land - it's so nice. Everything definitely feels unfamiliar though. It's weird not knowing what any of the buildings are, where to go, and what things will actually be here like. It's also hard trying to remember everybody's names. It almost feels like first semester of my freshman year at LeTourneau again. Haha. A bit overwhelming, but I know the other two girls and I will settle in quickly once things become a bit more familiar.
Like I said, I couldn't get my pictures to transfer to my laptop. So, I took this pic with my phone a few min ago. It's of my bed for the next 2 months. Check out the mosquito net! Looks pretty solid, right? Hopefully it will keep out more than just mosquitos - there are geckos and bugs all over the bedroom! I tucked my sheets in tight and have all my suitcases zippered up completely...eek! I hope they keep their distance.
Praise: Thank God for safe travels! Also, Suzanna and Lianna are such sweet girls and I think we'll get along great during out stay!
Request: Seems like missionaries getting sick is quite common here (such as Mark getting Malaria today). Suzanna, Lianna, and I are all REALLY praying to stay clear of any serious sickness while we're here! Please pray with us!
When we went to leave the guest house this morning, Mark was feeling pretty sick. They suspected he had malaria, so we went to a clinic for him to get tested. It turned out that he tested positive for malaria, so they went ahead and put him on treatment. He felt sick for a while until the treatment kicked in, so we ended up staying in Entebbe for some time. It kind of worked out though, because a women and two twins who she adopted from GSF were stayed in Entebbe, so we were able to visit with them. They were supposed to leave on a flight out of Entebbe last night, but it had gotten cancelled. So they were happy to have company while they waited for another flight. We all had lunch together, and then left for GSF around 3.
We stopped to do some grocery shopping and exchange money on our way to GSF. The drive was absolutely beautiful. Since we were driving from Entebbe to Jinja, we got to drive through Kampala, a big forrest, and fields of sugar canel. When we got close to GSF we stopped at a fruit/veggie market. It was pretty crazy.. Mark just pulled over and then all of the sudden people started flocking his car trying to sell him their fruit and vegetables. They were putting their food right into the window for him to buy. Haha. He picked what he needed, paid, and we drove away. It was like a drive thru market!
We eventually arrived at GSF. It was so sweet.. Mark and Amy said "there might be a few people at the gate to see you." When we got to the gate, the whole area was full of everyone from GSF! They had brought speakers out and were blasting music, the girls were all dancing and the rest of the kids and workers were greeting us and yelling for us. Haha the three of us were all so shocked and felt so honored! We continued the "celebration" for a good 20 min before the kids walked us to one of the missionaries houses to have dinner. I have video of the dancing, but my I'm having trouble getting my camera pictures to my laptop. Maybe I'll be able to figure it out tomorrow.
For the rest of the evening we chatted with some of the missionary ladies. Around 10pm they walked us down to our guest house where we will be staying. Side note: The fruit here is soo delicious.
It's very exciting to be here. GSF is at a beautiful location and on a huge plot of land - it's so nice. Everything definitely feels unfamiliar though. It's weird not knowing what any of the buildings are, where to go, and what things will actually be here like. It's also hard trying to remember everybody's names. It almost feels like first semester of my freshman year at LeTourneau again. Haha. A bit overwhelming, but I know the other two girls and I will settle in quickly once things become a bit more familiar.
Like I said, I couldn't get my pictures to transfer to my laptop. So, I took this pic with my phone a few min ago. It's of my bed for the next 2 months. Check out the mosquito net! Looks pretty solid, right? Hopefully it will keep out more than just mosquitos - there are geckos and bugs all over the bedroom! I tucked my sheets in tight and have all my suitcases zippered up completely...eek! I hope they keep their distance.
Praise: Thank God for safe travels! Also, Suzanna and Lianna are such sweet girls and I think we'll get along great during out stay!
Request: Seems like missionaries getting sick is quite common here (such as Mark getting Malaria today). Suzanna, Lianna, and I are all REALLY praying to stay clear of any serious sickness while we're here! Please pray with us!
Yay! I'm so glad that you made it safely. I can't wait to see the video of the people celebrating/dancing when you arrived - sounds so exciting! Love and miss you.
ReplyDeleteYou made it!! We are praying for you every day!! Thank you for the update--it made Josh and I smile as we remembered his trip last summer. The celebration you received when you got there reminded us of when he visited one of the churches and the congregation came out dancing and everyone danced his/her way into the church :) So fun!!
ReplyDeletehopefully there are no big spiders in your luggage. that would be a real shame....haha!! i hope you aren't still mad about that! I'm praying for you!
ReplyDelete