Amazing Race: Bundibugyo

Amazing Race: Bundibugyo Day 2

7AM- Team prayer meeting. Missionaries sure work hard….they work hard to get us spiritually on track. 

Today, our task was to find all the fruits from a list (e.g. Pineapple, bananas, lemon, mangoes, jackfruit, and guava) that Amy gave us, which by the way can all be found on the trees around the compound, and find the Lubwisi word for it. Then, we were to make a fruit salad from all the fruits as a final product. After our morning fruit hunt (and it wasn’t easy, because only the locals-especially kids- know if a fruit is ripe/ready-to-eat or not, so we ended up getting some at the market), we met with Baguma Charles who runs the BundiNutrition program for malnourished infants.

Knight in shining armour? Baguma Charles came on a boda-boda, a motorcycle (also known as “picky-picky”), to pick us up to the healthcentre out-of-town. The ride was bumpy and bone-rattling on the rugged african dirt roads. I held onto Baguma, as if my life depended on it. Then we came to a shallow river where a bridge was being built. So we had to get off the boda and be…..CARRIED by African men across the river!! It was hilarious!

Sarah & I laughed all the way across the pebbled river as short, scrawny men threw us on their back and precariously felt around the rocks with their bare feet. 

We babysat the Johnson kids that night and they performed a puppet show for us of “Mr. & Mrs. Linhart” (as in the other missionary, Anna Linhart. And no, she is not married or dating yet. Oh how kids say the darndest things).

AR:B Day 3

There’s nothing worse than waking up in the dead of night in Africa, feeling like you slept all night and it should be morning soon (since we are on the equator, the sun rises/sets at the same time EVERYday of the year, with maybe a max. 30 min difference, giving us only 12 hours of sunlight), but only 2 hours has gone by since you closed your eyes; waking up to lower left abdominal pains. So I pulled on jeans, my bug net, and a flashlight, and I ran outside to the “cho”, which is a 10 ft. deep hole in our backyard for human excrements, and I released what felt like the beginning of...Olvie’s traveller’s diarrhea. 

Today we had our first orientation of the Nyahuka medical centre, paediatric ward. During rounds, we shadowed Travis Johnson & Jessica Ankney, both MD’s and practice family medicine, and later had a lecture by Travis regarding “Determinants of Health”. Travis & Jessica volunteer their time at the government-facilitated hospital because most of their own local people never show up to work. The children, mothers, and infants there are in desperate need. Most of the cases were malnutrition, pneumonia, malaria, and sickle cell anemia which then stems off to other complications such as septic infections and other illnesses.

Disclaimer: the following contains gruesome, but professional medical experiences. Discretion is advised.

Sarah & I helped distribute meds and cut pills into proper proportions for the infants. I also helped one of the local nurses, Elizabeth, with an unsafe procedure. A father brought his son into the paediatric ward. His child’s left hand was extremely edematous from an abscess that was infected with staph aureus (basically, his hand was extremely swollen like a balloon from pus and infection). So after watching Elizabeth inject the child countless times with some sort of solution, also after several failed attempts of using a glove as a tourniquet, also while the child was shrieking and flailing his arms, she took a blade (also used as a suture cutter), and aggressively cut the back of his hand open. She squeezed the purulent and sanguinous drainage out into a k-basin. The child is now out of control (I don’t blame him). Then, the nurse told me to help her pack the wound, which I’ve learned to do...but not the way she does it. She took bloodied gauze that was definitely unsterile, and stuffed it into the now empty wound. As I watched in horror what would have been forbidden in Canada, I only silently prayed, like I do for many of situations like these. But I was still uncomfortable for the rest of the day, knowing it wasn’t handled safely. Jessica, the MD, also suggested the child be admitted,  which was probably a good idea, but the father refused. 

Tonight, we shared a nice dinner of eggplant parmesan, sauteed veggies, garlic bread, and mango crisp with Jessica (the family doctor) and Anna (the teacher), the other two American missionaries and who are also our neighbours. 

One thing the nurse did right today was that she disinfected and wiped down the surface she worked on, saying to me, “we must clean everything because it is staph aureus”. Isn’t nursing school wonderful for me? I’m so glad I’m being educated.

AR:B Day 4

Today’s Amazing Race was exciting! We went on a Scavenger Hunt around the market. Amy sent us off in the morning with 50, 000 shillings (which is less than $25 CAN/USD), and we were to find/purchase certain items at the market. Sarah & I made friends and learned Lubwisi words. I also had another episode of diarrhea in a “cho” in the back alleyway of a run-down inn, which was our last check-point in the scavenger. Nonetheless, it was quite the adventure! Sarah tried this soda called “Stoney’s” a Coca-Cola product which is bascially gingerale but tastes rustic & home-made:)

These days, God has certainly been picking & peeling at my heart. Living here is not easy. You are forced to meet new people everyday, and get along with your team members because they are the closest you have to family. It’s all about humility, and learning to love. As a team, we talked about how love & humility is seamless and inseparable. My love & humility has definitely been tested. And I am grateful.

We had “Rolex” for dinner tonight, which is fried eggs rolled into a chipati (tortilla/nan-like wrap) which is literally, “Roll-eggs” instead, but sounds like rolex with an african accent. We also babysat the Johnson kids again as Amy & Travis went on a date. Missionaries need date nights too!

AR:B Day 5

Today was a long, hot, humid, and epic day. Sarah & I got very sunburned and tanned. I guess my mother did tell me to lather on sunscreen everyday, but you never realize the importance of that command until 6 hours later of being in the hazy, cloudy, african sun. 

Today’s task was to go with Mama Asita to the market and purchase groceries for a Ugandan Dinner, which took place later tonight at a farewell party. We bought raw goat meat, red kidney beans, matoke (which is a non-sweet mushy banana that we eat hot, has the texture of mashed-potatoes), rice, potatoes, cassava leaves, and G-nut paste. Then we walked in the scorching heat, with at least 60 lbs. of grocery, and followed Mama Asita to her home along the rugged dirt road that we walk on everyday.

Oftentimes, when we walk on this dirt road, Sarah & I (the missionaries too) are viewed as celebrities. Hundreds of people stare or giggle, and wave to us from afar. We get hundreds of “olayo”s or “how are you”s from children and adults. Most of the time, they call us “mujungu” which means white person, but since my skin is lighter (despite my obvious chinese distinctions), they call me mujungu too. Mind you, some smart ones call me “china”. Sarah and I often have dozens of children following us, trailing behind us. And once in while, they reach out to touch us...or “pet” us. They are so curious as to what we must feel like, sound like, or act like, it is quite fascinating for me to observe too. 

So we finally lugged all the groceries to Asita’s mud home after grueling travels. We helped her make sombe (which is boiled & mashed cassava leaves. We used a giant pestle that resembled that of a butter churner), cut goat meat/onions/tomatoes, and prepared the beans. We learned so much from her. Webale kotega! Thank you for cooking!

Tonight, we had a wonderful dinner party with 18 people, eating the food we helped prepare. We played several games, ate Jackfruit, prayed, and sang praise songs the African way. It was a farewell party for Pauline & Baguma Charles, locals who both helped run BundiNutrition, but are now leaving. They are wonderful, godly people, with a heart to serve. Please pray for new leaders to run the nutrition program, as it is now being suspended due to lack of leaders. So many uneducated malnourished children & their mothers depend on this program to survive.

A weekend in the mountaintops.

An exciting weekend was laid out before Sarah and I.

Yesterday, we hiked a good 50 minutes along the main dirt road in the blazing sun and through the lush green rainforest, winding up the Ruwenzori Mountain Range. We followed Jacqueline, a student at Christ School Bundibugyo (a boarding school across from the mission), to her home, highly elevated above Bundibugyo and on top of the mountains. Her family kindly hosted us, and gave us a modest sized room in their mud-house home. Her mother, Rosemary, whom we also called, Mama, cooked us delicious Ugandan dishes for dinner last night, then breakfast this morning, and finally lunch after church today. Jackie has 6 siblings, and they were all adorable and such a delight to get to know!

This morning, we went to their Anglican church in their mountaintop village, Bundikakemba. As we entered the back door of the church (late of course! Never show up on time to an African service), everyone had their heads turned and for the duration of the service, they could not stop staring. African services are often long, but we really enjoyed the singing and dancing!

It was such a blessing to get a glimpse and taste of the village community lifestyle. In their poverty, they certainly have richness. 

and so the days get hotter and longer.

Dirt, sweat, and joy.

So much goes on here. 

I don’t even know how many words it will take to fill you in on the last 2 days.

Saturday:

First of all, as soon as we got here, there was a water shortage. The people of Nyahuka and district of Bundibugyo were without water. Amy Johnson (our team leader, the wife of Travis, and mother of 3), sent us a text “continue to conserve water. No water is flowing into tanks this am. Pray for wisdom in handling water”. Electricity is also limited here and we are always trying to conserve energy as well. 

I remember back home, sometimes we just turn on the light or leave it on for hours in a room just because a brighter room cheers up the atmosphere. Here, we read and converse in the natural dim sunlight up until the sun goes down, and the room goes dark.

On Sunday, we went to a local church, Bundimulinga. Church starts at 10:00am, but in Africa, never show up at the time they tell you because no one else will be there. So we went to church at 11:00am, with African time. The entire service was comprised of intervals of prayer, exhortations, and a sermon, interlaced by singing, all in Lubwisi, except for the sermon which was delivered in heavy african english.

Dirt & Sweat: 

This morning, before the day began, Sarah and I put on our leggings underneath our long skirts and we laced up our runners and ran for a 1/2 mile down the dirt road from our house. Running, just for sheer exercise, is a very bizarre idea to Africans. Because they work hard enough in a day. A workout is not necessary. 

So as we ran, hundreds of people nearby stood to watch, and several “picky-picky”’s and “bota-bota”s, which are motorcycles (they call them picky-picky because they pick people up! Haha), would give a friendly honk and zoom past us. When we ran up the 2^nd big hill and decided to turn back, about 20-some kids started running after us! It was hilarious as they chased us and giggled with joy until the adults told them to stop. I would turn around and they would stop and giggle, and then when I started running again I could hear their little feet patter along. As we ran, we smiled and waved, saying, “Olayo!”. One man along the path said, “you are warming?”. African english is so unique.

Amazing Race: BUNDIBUGYO:

Today was the first day of our Amazing Race: Bundibugyo, which is designed by Amy Johnson, our team leader. It is basically our one week invigorating and exciting orientation to the local language, culture, and daily labour duties. Our task #1 was to hoe our own garden. So we went with Gladys (a local who has been working for missionaries) to the market and bought 2 “ensukas”, which are hoes, and we got nice and dirty in our garden of pumpkins, tomatoes, and weeds (until we slashed it all off). We sweated and slashed under the African sun, while we learned Lubwisi words and sang Lubwsis songs with Gladys.

This afternoon, we also spent time with Vincent, who is a local teacher and also fluent in English, and he gave us a tutorial of Lubwisi. We sat under the Kintubi, which is a community hut made from palm branches that sits outside of people’s homes (since it is not often normal for people to enter your home, unless they are close, they would meet you at the hut on your front lawn). Then he took us around the village to practice what we learned. The families were overjoyed to see us as we went around and conversed with the new phrases we learned. They hollered with laughter and beamed as soon as they heard their own heart language coming out of our mouths...especially from the Asian-looking one. Next week, we will start to have more normal weeks where we will spend time at the health centre and work with the local people.

Prayer praises: 

1. We arrived in Uganda safely with all our luggage. Nothing was missing. Praise the Lord, as losing luggage in the transition between Toronto and Kampala, Uganda, was very likely.
2. We travelled safely between all the crossovers and layovers different cities. Nothing detrimental happened. Sarah & I were safe and healthy throughout almost one full week of travels/commute.
3. My jet lag has been much better! On my first night, I woke up at 3:00AM and laid in bed, wide awake until morning. I had a terrible time trying to sleep. I still have sporadic episodes of intense drowsiness in the middle of the day, in the middle of conversations, at the dinner table, etc.
4. The water pipes from the waterfall have just been fixed! The village is now slowly getting clean water from the waterfall. The water tanks are slowly filling. Students might be able to return to school next week!

Prayer requests:

1. Team unity, especially that our roles here would be Christ-centered, and that we (especially Sarah & I) would not compete for Survival of the Fittest! Funny, but It’s often  difficult, when adapting to a new place, meeting new people, trying new things. Pray for discernment, that we will each hear from God and the individual & unique calling He has for each of us.
2. I have not had too episodes many of diarrhea, constipation, or vomiting yet. Thanks to your prayers. Please continue to pray for health & safety, as the mosquitoes are bad at night, and some days are long and exhausting. The water from the river is also contaminated, but thank God they just got some clean water flowing. Clean water and adequate food & nutrition is a concern here. 
3. Learning the new language & culture, Lubwisi of the Babwisi people. It’s coming along slowly, but it makes such a difference when people see us using their language instead of English. Pray that our eagerness and genuine love of Christ will softly touch these hurting & suffering hearts. 

We're here, Uganda!

June 17th, 2011

Africa is beautiful.

It’s been a few stressful days of travelling with all our baggage.

Sarah and I had a nice layover in London for 11 hours. We left our luggage at the Heathrow airport for a fee. Then we took our day packs and crossed the British customs, exchanged some euros, and hopped on the Underground tube on the Piccadilly line to Covent Gardens. A day of exploring:)

England is beautiful too. All the historic buildings are so characteristic and intricately designed. Every street and corner reminded me of Mr. Bean movies. Every rugged looking structure wrapped in vines was like a scene from Harry Potter. We ran around the city with a map in hand and a camera, and we somehow managed to touch all the major tourist sites and get back to the airport in time within the allotted time. 

The days and months leading up to this missions trip, I was bombarded with questions of “are you ready?” or “are you excited?”. But even getting 7 bottles of bugspray, 3 bottles of sunscreen, and enough packets of tissue to last me a year (and packing suitcases with Mom for days), or attending the intern training did not necessarily make me “ready” for what Africa had to offer. I believe this trip however, will equip me for a bigger adventure, and prepare me for His call to the field.

As we flew over the African terrain after a 9 hour flight, my excitement finally built. Seeing the lush green physical geography was breathtaking. It’s more beautiful than National Geographic pictures. And I was just beheld by what this country might have to offer, and how God will change me and use me.

We are staying in the ARA (American Recreation Association) where everything is catered to your "American" from treadmills to Philly Cheese Steaks. Tomorrow we take an early flight on a small 6-seater bush plane to Bundibugyo! Can't wait! Please continue to pray. Will update once we arrive at our final destination!

I'll have a Philly Cheese Steak please.

Americans are wonderful.

They love my Canadian accent. They think it's cute when I say "Mmm-hmm" instead of "Uh-huhhh", or the way I say Out and About.

The Appalachians just outside our hotel

It's been a wonderful two days at the SPADE conference centre, an Amish country in Steinsville, PA, 1 1/2 hours west of Philadelphia. We had a total of 15 interns together, and we did our training retreat style.

A tour of the Amish-country hotel

We talked and shared about what it means to abide in Jesus, and being humble as we serve others overseas.

We spent time sitting in the fields alone, surrounded by the Appalachians, talking with Jesus & reading the Word.

We played Bocci.

We roasted giant marshmallows.

We barbecued and ate tender seasoned chicken on a skewer.

And ate ice cream & brownies on waffle cones right before bedtime.
I guess it's our last chance of fine dining before we depart.




It's too bad the England, Vienna, and Kenya team left today, when we just met yesterday.

2011 Summer Interns

Sarah & I fly tomorrow (since flights to Uganda are only available every 2 days) to London, where we will have a 12 hour lay-over before we head to Uganda.

The Africa Team (Sudan-Caleb, Kenya-Taylor & Adam, Uganda- Sarah & Olvie)

Some praises:

• Thanks for your prayers for an available flight (for those of you that received the news in time). My flight was cancelled right before we were about to take-off. We were told that no flights were available that day (and I was at the bottom of the waiting list). The earliest flight available the next day was full, and the flight after that was filling up. Somehow, by God's grace and provision, as I was waiting at Customer Service to rebook a flight, a plane was sent and enough people cancelled their flight for me to board that night!
• The staff & the training was great in helping us mentally and spiritually prepare. The entire staff at World Harvest prayed for each team. I feel so blessed to be sent in the safety of this organization.
• Sarah Barton, the other intern, is totally sweet & cool. I cannot wait to get to know her more the next 2 months in Bundibugyo!

Prayer requests:

• We have lots of supplies & luggage to bring to the team over there (on top of what we have already!). Continue to pray for efficiency and organization as we travel with this load.
• TIA- This Is Africa. The team in Uganda sent us an email recently, notifying us of changed plans and how "This Is Africa" and we will have to be flexible to adjust to constantly changing plans.

...Until the next time I have internet!

After several nights of packing, living off of meagre hours of sleep, I could not wait until the moment I can just board the plane, close my eyes, maybe read a book, eat some peanuts...and trust that if I don't have everything I need, He is my shepherd I shall not be in want.

Even sitting in the Pearson airport right now, at my gate waiting for boarding, gives me some of that relief.

When I crossed customs a few moments ago, I was definitely being asked more questions than usual. One small asian girl with 2 oversized suitcases, a backpack (which is probably double my width), and a overstuffed carry-on suitcase.
Suspicious? Or simply Spirit-filled, with the intention of giving.
"What are you doing in Philadelphia?", "What do you mean by 'training'", "Why do you have so many suitcases for 'training'", "What do you mean by 'donations'". I am sure he quoted my every word and turned it into a question. I think I would've cried if it wasn't for months of experience with the intimidating interrogation of nurses & patients at my hospital placements.

My sister, Olga, is gonna pop soon (next saturday)! Too bad the baby just couldn't crawl out a little earlier before I leave. But I would probably be at the hospital now instead of the airport if she did. 

Quick prayer requests before boarding:

1. Training & Orientation in Philadelphia for the next 3 days. Pray that Sarah (the other intern) & I will be open and receptive to what God has to speak into us.
2. My clumsiness. I haven't tripped and fell on my face, or spilled my entire backpack out yet...there's more travelling to come! More opportunities for me to be absent-minded and scattered.
3. To always stay connected to God, and never forget the purpose of this trip: To live out His calling for His people as a nursing student. 
4. For my sister's first baby, who is ready to climb out in a few days!

See you later baby niece in 2 months!

eyelids laden with sleep & exhaustion.

Yesterday's labour. Mom doing what moms do best. Couldn't have done it without her!

Brownie mix. Chocolate Cake. Matchbox cars. UNO. Checkkk.

Being able to attend & witness the marriage of two of the greatest people in the world before I leave. I wouldn't have it any other way. A blessing indeed.

They have been such an encouragement to me:)

It's 3:00 AM, three hours after returning home from Johnny & Sophia's wedding. We're still packing, condensing...like trying to zip up a fat suit. And the result is, 50 & 70 lbs suitcases.

Now, I'm down to packing my personal carry-on bag. 

I'm tired of packing, preparing, and stressing. I can't wait till I board that plane, and can breathe without thinking about whether or not I need more band-aids, or an extra packet of tissues (which I have 30 pkgs of already).

The reality of going to Uganda still hasn't hit. It still seems surreal. But most people tell me, it often doesn't settle until you've boarded the plane, or until you're actually there...living, breathing, eating on foreign lands.

i cannot wait till take-off.

Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! ps.46:10

Four more days: packing up!

My check-in baggage limit (from Philadelphia to Uganda): 3 
Donations & goodies for the Uganda team: 2 suitcases

Personal belongings: 1 hiking pack + 1 carry-on knapsack

I guess I'll be reusing my underwear.
As my dad always says, you can wear one pair of underpants 4 times before it needs to be washed: inside out, front & back. Not exactly the most hygienic, or wisest. But with only one backpack for 2 months, I'll do with what I have. God will provide the rest.

Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah
Psalm 62:8