The Village - the Journey There.

On Thursday last (Nov.7), we left Kampala for the Mubende district.  It took a while for us to get going as we waited for the arrival of some items we needed to bring along.  Someone once said, "In America you have watches, in Africa we have time."  When we say that we'll leave at 10 in the morning, we should add "ish" to that schedule. So, as we waited, I took pictures...

Before leaving the city, we picked up Annie and her son Adrienne.  Annie is married to Edrin Serwano, the Assistant Director of Children of Promise here in Uganda.  She also works in that office.  Annie was coming along because we were going to her family's district and she would help in the teaching time and other activities.  Annie's father, Pastor Fred, is the district overseer.  Those who have been on trips here before may remember him and Annie's family from our church project in Kasenke, where that family lives. Annie has 6 brothers and 3 sisters - 2 of the brothers, Titus and Charles, along with one sister, Constance, were immensely helpful as interpreters for teaching times and during the services we had on Sunday.  When a child of God is surrounded by his (or her) children who love Jesus and want to serve in His Name - that is a blessing to be recognized and valued. Pastor Fred is a blessed man!

It rained most of the way there and even after we arrived.  The roads are difficult in Uganda - especially in Kampala.  Potholes, erosion, speed bumps, and speed humps (quite large) make a trip interesting to say the least.  Once we traveled outside of the city, the road was good and we began to make good time until we came upon an accident.  On this two-lane road, a tandem truck jack-knifed, with the engine and front truck hanging over the guard rail of the road and the tandem truck stretched across the road.  We tried to get a local Boda-Boda driver to guide us around a back way (all dirt roads) to avoid the accident, but the road was washed out and quite slick.  So, we went back to the accident and discovered that they were trying to open up a lane for folks to pass through one direction at a time.  So, we waited.  After about 2 hours (!), we made it through and were on our way...again.

We stayed 15 miles away from the village in Mubende at the "Pride Travellers Hotel", a five-story place that offered the most modern facilities I've ever experienced on a village visit - ever.  We each had our own bathrooms and showers along with a TV.  We unplugged the TV so that we could use the power outlet for charging the phone and iPad.  The power was intermittently provided and we were glad we brought our flashlights.  The hot water was on a separate switch that we had to remember to turn on at least 20 minutes before we wanted to wash up - as long as the power was on.

After we got our room keys, we received a lesson in the importance of building standards. We were on the 3rd and 4th stories and, naturally, there was no elevator.  As we walked up, there seemed to be no stair equal to another stair.  The stair height ranged from 3 inches to 14 inches! It's amazing how trained I am as I walk up and down stairs!  I don't think about how far to lift my legs up and down to use the stairs. We learned quickly after Christine had a tough fall while holding the baby Adrienne, that we have to watch our stair climbing carefully!  The next time you walk up and down stairs, be thankful for building codes and standards!

Arriving just before dark, we enjoyed a buffet meal at the hotel restaurant and prepared for our first day at the village, excited about the adventure in store for us.