Rainy October

Mbote!  Greetings from Gemena and a month packed with storms and monsoon rains.  

Monsoon.   

Although it creates challenges with the dirt roads and lack of transportation, it also provides cool breezes and happens to also sustain life no matter where you live.  I am one of those 'strange' people who happen to enjoy the rain.  I lied. Enjoy is a massive understatement.  I turn into a little child on Christmas morning when it rains.  My heart skips beats.  My voice may or may not go up three octaves.  

I. Love. It.  

Let's start today off with a pile of cuteness.

Sukali (Sugar) & Nzoku Moke (Little Elephant)  Our two little snuggle bugs.  These two love each other!  They also love to hate each other.  If you have a brother or sister, you can relate.

This photo makes me smile.  Totally candid.

Visiting a mama and having the Joy of holding her brand new baby boy :)

Josh and I visited the University in Gemena yesterday.  It began to storm after being there about 20 minutes.  What was supposed to be a short morning visit had us there for more than two hours.  In the end, we could not even see the entire school.  The pouring rain makes roads and plans a wash.  Josh and I have experienced this three times in the past few days.  It can be frustrating, but it also helps us to understand how life works here.

Some of the students we met.  They were so gracious talking with us.  I was able to combine French and Lingala to converse - Although, we find laughter is the best universal language!

This is Christine, Josh and me with Mambo at the first of many Sundays of giving clothes and shoes to local orphans.  Josh is hoping to serve with him in some of the projects he is working on.  Will write more about him later!  He is someone everyone should know about.  He is a man you will be blessed to know.  

Josh outside the University in Gemena.  There was one room with desks and one without.  The building is still under construction, and they are looking for help in purchasing desks for the students for the other room pictured below.

Went to the bathroom the other night to see offspring of the large spider that guards our room!  I think I'm most creeped out by the fact that he barely moves.  He will sit there for hours.  Also, he looked bigger in person.  And at 2 in the morning.

Christine and I took a long walk on the outskirts of town the other day.  We ended up meeting lots of kids and teaching them how to do the hand slap games.  (I'm sure they have a name, I just cannot think of it!!)  We even took video.  Will post that too!  So. Much. Fun.

Our sweet friend, Rose.  She is hilarious.  While Josh and I were having our lesson yesterday morning, she was milling around the garden waiting for us.  After our lesson was over, I tried my best to explain for her that we were getting ready to head out to visit the University.  After about 20 minutes of talking back and forth (both of us being confused) I thought she got it.  Then I closed the door and went inside the house to get things ready to go.  I was talking to Josh in the main room when all of a sudden I looked passed him at one of the screen windows and her face was plastered against it, peering in at us.  She did this for a while.  Kind of creepy.  Mostly funny. 

She then came over early this morning and brought with her a little notebook with lots of blank pages inside and a scribbled drawing on the front.  She also brought a crumpled up piece of paper and a banana.  She promptly threw the crumpled paper in the grass (Christine went inside and grabbed the garbage bin, brought it out to her and said 'you can throw that in here, not on my lawn').  

She somehow thought (after our gibberish communication yesterday) that we were leaving the area today to go back to the States.  She had written a 'letter' to say goodbye.  She is adorable.  Unpredictable.  Isn't afraid to talk and walk with us (even if other kids are laughing at her).  I'm sure there will be many more stories about her in the near future.

The older girls wanted a photo with me, but as you can see, it was a little chaotic with the littler ones.

Will post again soon - 

Thank you all for your continual love and support!

Lots of Love,

M&J

xoxo

Mobutu's Palace

Gbadolite - The Road Less Traveled

Mbote Moninga! (Hello, friend!)

Last week, we had the joy(?) of traveling to a village named Gbadolite (pronounced bahd-oh-lee-tay).  We were intrigued about the 'road to Gbado' as there was a group that had just arrived from there who stated 'if you want to subject your friends to agony' travel that road.  Of course, we thought they were being dramatic.  Bad roads?  We came from Chicago where winters tear up our roads and swerving is second nature.  Little did we know...  Pigs, chickens, goats, people... Many were jumping out of our way.  And the roads being made of dirt didn't help much either...

Then, we'd be trapped behind a large truck about to tip on it's side

Lots of this:

A main reason for us going to Gbado, was to visit Mobutu's palace.  If you don't know much about Mobutu, I encourage you to watch this short clip from the BBC that was recently posted.  

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-24386990

  

When we went, we were told we were the first people allowed to take photos there.  It is a shame to the residents of Gbado the state of the palace.  I found it interesting that we passed Dan Snow in his car while he was on his way, and we were leaving the same fascinating place.  Mobutu is quite a polarizing figure and we were surprised to learn how many people here still love him.  Because of him, Gbadolite has paved roads and the power plant.  He wanted to make his home town nice and could you really blame people for appreciating what he did for them?  

Fascinating place to visit.

The hospital in Gbado

Tried some new yummy fruits

Our first glimpse of the Congo River... Right outside Gbadolite's own power plant.  If this power plant was fully operational, it could power the entire province of Equateur.  Yet, as it is, it only powers the town of Gbadolite.

Christine said these panels reminded her of Apollo 13

Outside the power plant

Gbado had paved roads... Quite the sight in this mostly unpaved province.  

Where better to lay your clothes out to dry?

(Most people use their homes)

We went to a hotel that is well known in Gbado as being quite the place in its former glory.  It was beautiful, and eery.  No longer crowds to enjoy its beautiful self.  We did our best in the low light emptiness.  

(movie theatre)

We stayed at a hotel that we were told used to be a Hyatt.  It had electricity (!)  

Does it look like a Hyatt near you?  The decor was only slightly dated... 

(friendly visitors)

(our room, complete with MASSIVE bed)

Our shared bathroom for the 8 of us!  They have a large garbage can size plastic bucket with water in it.  Once you use the toilet, you pour water from the large bucket so that the toilet flushes.  The sink leaked (and wasn't operational), so there was a bucket beneath it as well.  The only way to 'shower' was to use the water from the large plastic bucket as well.  When going anywhere here, you should always have your own toilet paper too.  It was not included with our stay.

Strange to have a bidet in your bathroom, but no running water!

(living room)

TO BE CONTINUED...