It Takes a Village!

January of 2010 was when I first heard about The Dream Project (TDP). When I spoke to Jeanine on the phone she explained to me that there was a Center in the north in the town of Pemba and that TDP had about 6 acres in the south in a town called Ponta do Ouro. Minutes after getting off the phone with Jeanine I got onto Wikipedia & google maps and started looking at the two towns. I was very drawn to Ponta and was hoping that I could go there on my first trip to Moz, but decided not to go as I would have had to go alone.

When planning this trip, I was told that we would be taking a bus from Maputo to Ponta. It’s a three-hour trip, the shortest of all of my scheduled bus trip… no big deal.

The route we took was straight south from Catembe.

Maputo is a costal city and we have to take a barge across the water to a town called Catambe to catch the bus. As we exit the barge I look around and don’t see any buses… only schapas? Oh that’s right people call schaps buses…

I know I’ve written about schapas before, but I feel the need to write again so you get a better idea of my experience. A schapa is a cross between a mini van and 15 passenger van. The height and width of a mini, but closer to the length of a 15 passenger. There are four rows of seats, behind the driver are permanent seats that are designed for two people then at the end of each bench is a chair that folds up and down so people can come and go (it folds up to look kind of like an arm rest for the two seater). Only the front two rows have windows, the back two rows have a bar going length ways though the middle of the window… to hold on I guess?

So in my eyes this schapa would comfortably seat 12 people plus 2 up front. But not in Mozambique… When we arrive there are probably 9 people or so already on. I ask when the schapa leaves… the answer I get… “When it’s full.”

What’s full? Full ends up being four people in each row, one man sitting backwards on a small seat behind the driver and three people up front… 20 people! For three hours. I feel bad for the guy in front of me, the bench in his row is taken up by two larger ladies and he and another lady are left smashed into the chair that flips down. Not only are there 20 people in this schapa but we all have our bags and purses on our laps. I was happy to be in the last row with 3 skinny guys, one of which I knew making things slightly less awkward… but only because we could coordinate who should lean forward and who should lean back.

I’ve been squeezed into this back row for 30 – 45 minutes and we haven’t even left Catambe! The driver takes all of our names and we each pay 175 MTN (abt $6.00) and away we go! It has been raining so the air is cool and the breeze feels so good against my face. The road on the other hand… yeah it’s bumpy. In Moz they drive on the left, well at least that is the idea. But when you get on dirt roads you just drive where the holes are the smallest. So our driver zig-zags all over this dirt road. After about 30 minutes I close my eyes, I start praying that I don’t get carsick.

I actually started thinking if they had schapas in America what would be on the warning sign at the station: “Warning: It is strongly recommended that you don’t take schapa if you are even the slightest bit prone to motion sickness, are claustrophobic, have any sort of tail bone problems, have a weak bladder, and easily lose sensation in your feet. Take the schapa at your own risk. Thank you enjoy the ride, please come again.”

I don’t get sick, I eventually open my eyes and realize that we are actually on a paved road. My guess is that it was paved once years ago and never again has any work been done to it. I think the holes in the pavement were actually bigger than the holes in the dirt road. Funny, right?!

With all the rain, we do come across a few sections of the road that are covered in water. I forgot to mention that that schapa has 4 wheel drive, one thing for sure… the drivers are professionals, they can get over, around, and through anything. While I’m looking out the window, I keep noticing these little pools of water that are connect to the road. Some are really over grown, but then when I see one only surrounded by dirt I realize that they are man made ponds. They were dug so that the water would have a place to pool up, besides the middle of the road. Maybe it the designer in me, but I’m always so impressed with simple solutions such as this. One thing I love about Mozambique is looking around and seeing simple cost effective solutions to problems.  

This was the best picture I could get. In most places the
pond would fill leaving the road dry. The pond is the angled body of water .

About one hour into the drive we pass a woman and her young daughter. They have a flat tire. Our driver pulls over to help. He takes the spare from under our schapa… I think that’s amazing that our tire will fit their truck. Not so amazing when the driver rolls our tire back 15 minutes later! By this time 2 other schapas and one truck have also stopped. Looking back out of the schapa window, I think to myself, “I guess it also takes a village to change a tire!”

The rest of the ride is uneventful. We make a pit-stop about one hour before we arrive. There are a few little bamboo shops so people can buy drinks and snacks. I stay on the schapa… I’m not sure if I can move and I don’t want to be left behind.

When I was researching Ponta, everything kept saying 4 wheel drive is required. I was really curious if they were just being cautious cause they are sick of tourists getting stuck… I mean it’s a horrible road but 4 wheel drive? Well the last 45 minutes of the trip I finally understood why you need it. Once you get off the dirt road there is a one way trail going up and down sand dunes. Most of the dunes are covered in grass with the exception of 2 tire marks winding up and down and up and down… talk about bumpy! When a vehicle comes from the other direction each person gets one tires mark and the other tires goes off road.

It was not the most comfortable rides I’ve ever been on, but it wasn’t horrible either. I love learning about life in Mozambique, I will never forget my first “bus” ride to Ponta do Ouro!

The Big City

Maputo isn’t exactly what I thought it would be. In some ways it is just what I think of a big city… in other ways not so much. I think the best way to describe Maputo is that it’s 10x’s Pemba. I know that 99.99% of the people who will read this have never been to Pemba, so I will try to explain what I mean.

In America when you go from a small town to a big city there are changes in architecture, clothing, driving, food and so many things that go unnoticed. Here from Pemba to Maputo I feel like everything is just multiplied by 10. From the downtown part of Pemba to Maputo the buildings look a lot alike… they are just 10x’s taller. 90% of people here dress the same as those in Pemba… there are just 10x’s as many people. When I go to a restaurant the food is basically the same… there are just 10 more places I can go to eat chicken. Other things there are 10x’s as much of: police, cars, street vendors, taxi’s, the size of the city and schapas (buses).

There are some different things between Maputo and Pemba. About 10% of the people are dressed very well in trendy clothing with no holes and they stop along the way to have their shoes shined. Many of the cars are the same, but the variety is much greater here. I’ve seen everything from a VW “slug bug” to a brand new Mercedes luxury 4 door. There are also a lot of Rav 4’s and cars similar to the Honda Fit (I think that is what it’s called).

For as long as I can remember police have intimated me. Even in America when I see a cop, I get a few little butterflies and wonder if I’m doing anything wrong. I’ve noticed that the number of butterflies goes up significantly depending on the size of the gun and number of police officers I see in any given day. Maputo is crawling with police and they don’t have a cute little gun in a pouch on their side… they all have some sort of rifle on a strap hanging over their shoulder. Many of the police are dressed in what an American would call army fatigues. I know police are supposed to give you a sense of safety and security, but these guys scare me! I think the fact that they are usually walking around in pairs of two makes it worse… if they were driving past in a car I probably don’t notice as much.

Everything in Maputo feels like it takes forever to get to. A 30 minute walk is the norm, but all the walking is helping me to sleep better at night. Good bye jet lag!

I called South African and was happy to find out that my suitcase was waiting for me at the airport. The airport is on the outside of the city and so you can’t take a schapa to get there. Nunu thought it might be cheaper to take a schapella, so we did. A schapella is a little motorcycle on 3 wheels, the driver sits in the front and steers with handle bars, while the patrons sit in the back on a bench and the entire thing is covered by a canopy.

So thankful that I got my suitcase back in one piece!!!!

Casa K

While in Maputo, I will be staying in a home for missionaries… I’ll call it Casa K. Other Dream Project missionaries stay at Casa K while they are in town and was told that the best part about it is that get home cooked meals every day! Casa K is run by 2 widowed sisters from Maine. They have both lived in Moz since around 1965!

My favorite part about staying here has been the other missionaries that come and go. Some come for one night while others are in for a few days. Upon my arrival I was surprised to find Michael (another Dream Project missionary), I thought he left a few weeks back but it has been nice to catch up with him.

My second night a Brizilian family came though with two children, a three year old boy and a six year old girl. The sisters who run Casa K usually start dinner off with a song and a prayer. When asked what song we should sing the little boy put down his head and started praying (in Portuguese). It was so cute, I didn’t know exactly what he was saying but I knew what he was praying was sincere.

I also met a missionary from Nampula (which is about 3 hours from Pemba, a larger town from what I understand). He has the most amazing story! He grew up in poverty in Nampula, taught himself English, worked in the states as a missionary and began college. While he was stateside he realized that with the money people were giving him for seminary he could put all 7 of his other siblings through college in Mozambique. So he approached the supporters and that is what he did. He and his wife now run an orphanage of 42 (60 is there max) children and one of his brothers is one of their largest supporters as he has gone on to become very successful. I was so touched by his story.

Since my arrival in Maputo it’s been raining. Raining is the wrong word… it has been torrentially down pouring! For at least my first 2 days, there was so much rain it was coming sideways in my window! The good thing about rain is it’s cooler =)

I left Casa K for the first time on Tuesday morning. I needed to give Nunu some paper work. The rain was so bad he had to take a taxi to meet me and the driver dropped us a few blocks away at a bank (as I also need to get local currency). Maputo is the capital of Moz, so the roads are paved, there are curbs and sidewalks. With the water you could see where the road stopped and the side walk started. I just kept watching people walk with water up over there ankles and then they would take a step and their cavles would disappear under water.

I so badly wanted to take pictures, but it is illegal to take pictures in Maputo! You can take pictures of people…so I made Nunu pose for me. It’s hard to see but beyond the green benches is the sidewalk, it is completely covered in water about 5 feet from that the street starts. I admit this isn’t the best picture, but it might be the only one I ever take in Maputo. The building and cars in the background are typical, so I hope it give you a feel of Maputo.

Rainy season in Maputo!

Prayer Requests:
- On Saturday I will be getting on a bus to Pemba. I just learned that a major bridge along the way in the town of Xai-Xai (Shy-shy) is out (because of all the rain).  I'm not sure how it will impact my trip. I will be going to buy my bus ticket on Wednesday. Flying isn't really an option as I have so much luggage this one way ticket would cost me ALOT of money.
- Health... every time I get a mosquito bite I wonder about Malaria... my ankles are covered.
- Praise God my body is responding well to Mozambique, no travel sickness (continued prayer in this area as I am probably susceptible to this for the next few weeks)

Last One On Is A Rotten Egg!

Sunday started out early. Nunu and I were catching the 7:50 bus out of Johannesburg into Maputo. I bought my ticket a few weeks back online so all I needed to do was get my boarding pass. I’ve never taken a bus before, but I thought if we got there 45 minutes early we would be okay.

When Cesar dropped us at the bus station I immediately knew I was in over my head. I was imagining a small strip mall with a bench out front, but this place was huge!

We finally made it to this huge lobby that was full of bus companies and food vendors… more like a mall than what I had imagined in my head. Each line had a handful of people in it, so I was beginning to think that we had timed this just right. We were taking the City to City bus but I didn’t see a counter for them. The information desk wasn’t open, so I went to the Travel Lux Bus counter (I think it’s a sister company). The woman told me to walk down another hall and I would find it. So thankful they speak English in South Africa!

Nunu and I wound down another long corridor happy that we didn’t have one more 50 pound bag to be pulling (because it was lost on my flight). We get to another lobby, my stomach instantly sinks… this place is packed full of people. I come to realize that the majority of people in the lobby are waiting in line for City to City! Nunu waits with our bags (he already has his ticket) and I jump in line.

It’s 7:20, I stand there for a few minutes and the line goes nowhere. I have a sinking feeling in my stomach. It’s now 7:30, my bus leaves in 20 minutes. The line has moved about 5 feet, the line winds around for as far as I can see… things aren’t looking good. If I were in America I would have started working my way up the line asking if I could go in front of people, but here I’m not sure what to do.

I ask the woman in front of me if she thinks I will make it to my bus on time. She looked over my ticket and told me to go to the security guard near the front of the line and show her my ticket. I make my way up to the front trying not to look like I am cutting… luckily the security guard is near the outside where I can reach in to get her attention. The security guard is a no-nonsense woman. With a stern look on her face she reads over my paper work. I’m shocked when she tells me I can go to the front of the line. I get there and I’m not really sure how to cut in. People are very protective of their spots and not to keen on the idea of letting me in front of them. It’s hard for me as I’m sure these people have waited there turn for hours and here I come just stepping right in.

A woman complains about me and the security guard comes up and physically puts me right in the front of that line! The guys behind me are very kind… I think they could see the look in my eyes. I’m guess I had the look of shock on my face as I really couldn’t believe how long this line was and I was trying to grasp the reality that I might miss my bus.

I get to the window. It’s typical glass with the opening below for you to exchange money and ticket. The window is heavily tinted, with the exception of a small circle that is slightly tinted. I’m not sure what good the circle does, I could barely see the man.  I slide my internet print off in. And strain to look in the window. The man says nothing to me, which is probably good because I don’t think I would have been able to hear him. He moves at a snails pace hand writing out my ticket.

As soon as he hands it to me, I head off back to Nunu running! As I’m making my way back through the line the woman who was in front of me reaches out and say, “Did you get it?” When I said, “Yes” she got a huge smile on her face. 

One of the things I love about traveling is you get to meet so many people. Some people that become your life long friends, others who are involved in your life for only a matter of moments. Just as in the States, some of them aren’t in the best mood, while others want the best for you. I was so touched by this woman’s concern for me and my bus ticket.

I’m not sure where the bus is, so when I find Nunu we take our bags and hurry down the corridor. I was so happy to find that it was just around the corner from where Nunu was standing. We get my bags loaded and get on the bus to claim our seats. Nunu says that he will wait outside to watch our bags under the bus.

He comes in a few minutes later to check on me and I ask him if he can buy some phone credit so I can call South African Airlines again. I asked him this because I thought there was a guy selling them just outside of the bus. About two minutes after he leaves the bus driver comes down the isle checking our tickets and passports. Nunu isn’t back yet, so I made my way to the front of the bus so I could be looking out for him. I hand the bus driver my ticket and say, “When are we leaving, my friend should be right back.” His response, “We are leaving now.”

Still no sight of Nunu, I tell the bus driver I am going to look for him. I head out and watch thinking, “how long can it take to get phone credit?!” I finally see him and am able to gesture that he needs to hurry. As he gets closer I notice that he has more than just the phone card. A bag of Chicken Licken and a Coke! Not sure where or when this bus stop along the 8 hour drive, I figure that this was probably a good thing as all I had was a few granola bars in my bag.

Best fried chicken I've ever had! 

I get back to the bus and the driver ask, “Where is your friend?” Nunu boards right after me and I point. And the bus driver closes the doors shortly after. I’m not enjoying this trend of being the last ones on.

The bus stopped at least two if not three times for bathroom and food breaks. We also made a stop at the border. It was pretty confusing, I’ve never walked through a border before. I’m not even sure if I understood what was happening. But I think we got stamps from South Africa saying we were leaving and then stamps going into Mozambique. All I know is we kept waiting in lines. But we basically made it through without any problems.

The first stop our bus made. It's a gas station, note the parking spots all have canopies.  

South African farm house.

So now I’m in Mozambique! I’d like to say the most stressful situations are over, but on January 28 Nunu and I will be taking the 2-3 day bus ride up to Pemba. I’m excited to see more of Mozambique but just hoping we aren’t the last ones to get on the bus!

Prayer Requests:

- That I would get over my jet lag, for 2 nights in a row I’ve woken up around 1 am and I find myself not ready to fall back asleep until about 6 am (11 pm back home).

- A safe bus trip on January 28^th. Not only for Nunu and I but also for our luggage =)

The Adventure Begins!

My morning started out with a last minute trip to AAA to get an International Drivers License. According to the internet they open at 8:00 am… when I arrived at 7:55 I was disappointed to find out they open at 8:30am. I had other errands to run so I figured I would just do them first. By 9:00 am I had gotten my International DL, gone to Wal-mart, and to Michael’s.

I spent the next 3 hours finishing up my packing, cleaning my room and getting ready. And it was off to the airport at noon!

I arrived in Washington without any issues. My friend Karin is spending a year in Lesotho so we planned our trips together so we could be together for the 17 hour flight from Washington to Johannesburg. I kept trying to call her because I thought she was supposed to arrive before me but it kept going straight to voicemail. Our flight was at 5:40pm, at 4:30 they started boarding… and I still hadn’t heard from Karin!

She finally called me at 4:40 to say that her flight from Chicago had been delayed an hour. I knew she was cutting it close but I think it took me about 30 minutes to get from my United flight to our gate, so I figured she would make it. She also told me that she got bumped from her seat on South Africa. We had called 2 times to make sure we had seats next to each other but she still got bumped.

I went to the counter to see if we could get seats next to each other (isle, window like we had reserved) and all they had was middle of the center… wah wah waahhh. I asked for us to be switched and then stared down the terminal waiting for her to emerge through the crowds… and finally she did!

We were literally the last 2 people to get on the plane. They “made” us gate check our rolling bags as they weighed to much to go in the over head bins. This was amazing… one less thing to worry about on the plane. Gate checking is the way to go!

Settled in for the 17 hour flight! 

Sure enough we were both in the middle of the center, but luckily each leg (the plane stops in Senegal) there was an empty seat on one side of us. I didn’t sleep much on the plane, I wanted to but our flight arrived in Johannesburg at 5:40pm and so I was hoping I would be exhausted when we landed.

Karin’s friend Justin picked us up from the airport. We met Nunu at our hostel around 7:30. It’s really nerve wrecking having to coordinate so many people without the use of cell phones… so praise God everything went off without a hitch. We watched movies till it was time for bed. Karin and I lay there like little girls giggling though out the night… We were both so tired but falling asleep was impossible. I think we both took a few naps, but it was the worst night of “sleep” ever!

Johannesburg was interesting. It wasn’t what I expected. I’m sure it was in part because of where we were. The hostel we stayed at has a driver they always use, her name is Cesar. She was telling us that the area we stayed in was like the melting pot of Johannesburg… Africans from all over move into this part of town. I guess I expected it to be more like America than it was. We went to the main street of this part of town to eat and so I could buy some shampoo and conditioner (as they were in my “lost” bag) and it’s back to school season. It was so funny to me that I was so far from home, but seeing such a familiar sight of mothers frantically running around a store with school list in hand scooping up backpacks and pencils. We did go to a mall and once we got inside it felt just like any suburb in the states… more stores than anyone could ever need, escalators, and a food court.

I’m not sure if it will ever work out for Karin and I to fly together but it was so nice to travel with a friend. I think my parents were less nervous this time around knowing that I was flying to Washington alone and then Karin would be by my side until she handed me off to Nunu who will take me the rest of the way to Pemba.

210 Pounds later!

I love packing for trips like this. I think I like the challenge of getting as much (both weight and size) in the suitcases I’m allowed. I tried to document the process a bit to share but I started packing on January 1st and was hoping to be done by the 8^th but I ended up packing till the morning I left.

See below for a list of what is in the bag I'm packing.

My flight was through South African Airlines and they allow two 50 pound checked bags and two carry-on bags that are supposed to be under 18 pounds. I ended up getting so many donations for Christmas that I decided to take a third 50-pound bag! It allowed me SO much more room for things =)

When I arrived at the airport my 3 big bags were about eight pounds over, so I fit what I could in my carry-on bags (which each probably weighed about 28-pounds). I had to take out a bunch of Matchbox cars, 2 soccer balls and some cups… they will make it over eventually.

All together I think I had around 210 pounds of luggage! 

Knowing that every pound and inch counts… I decided to dress in a few layers =) Wearing my jeans under my skirt meant that I didn’t have to pack my jeans or my belt. And carrying my pillow meant I could stick my towel (which I like to use as a blanket on flights) in there.

At the airport ready to go though security.

One of my bags didn’t arrive in Johannesburg =( But I was told yesterday that they found it and will forward it on to the Maputo airport for me to pick up. It was actually nice not having to drag that bag to the airport… so maybe having a lost bag for a few days isn’t such a bad thing! 

Here is what I got in one 50 pound bag (the one that is "lost"):

18 – Swim Trunks

9 – Water Bottles

2 – Splash Balls

39 – Matchbox Cars

1 – Flashlight

2 – AA Batteries

4 – Watches

5 – Headlamps

12 – AAA Batteries

3 – MP3 Players

12 – Boys Underwear

1 – Tripod

5 – Boxes of 8 Crayons

4 – Boxes of 24 Crayons

2 – Remote Controlled Helicopters

2 – Remote Controlled Cars

2 – Puzzles

48 – Glow Bracelets

2 – Soccer Balls

1 – Air Pump

1 – Laptop Bag

2 – Rubbermaid Boxes

2 – Long Skirts

1 - Dress

1- Swiss Army Knife

1 – Sun Block SPF 15

1 – Hand Sanitizer

1 – Shampoo

1 - Conditioner

1 – Child Cough Syrup

1 – Adult Cough Syrup

100 – Band Aids

20 – Gauze Pads

1 – Bottle of Liquid Band Aid

1 – Tube Canker Sore Cream

1 – Bottle of Pepto Bismal Tablets

1 – Bottle of Benedryl

1 – Pack Imodium AD

1 – Pack of Day Quill

1 – Bottle 500 Tylonel

9 – Travel Pack of Kleneex

1 – Pair of Scrub Pants

2 – Bags of Suckers

1 – Alarm Clock/Flashlight

1 – Barbie Doll

1 – Hair Clipper Set

I've tried to take pictures of most of the things I packed. 

Things to Pack: Pic 1 of 4

Things to Pack: Pic 2 of 4

Things to Pack: Pic 3 of 4

Things to Pack: Pic 4 of 4

My garbage pile... After I flattened and recycled the big boxes it still filled up 3 garbage bags!

Prayer Request:

- Health, mainly that I would stay healthy and get over my jet lag.

- Traveling & Safety... That my guard would be up. 

- That my bag would arrive in Maputo in one piece =)

Countdown...

Look what came in the mail TODAY!!

With 3 days to spare! Whoot Hoot!!!

Thanks to all of you who have been praying with me about this!

I leave in ONE week!

I don’t even know what to write today, I have so many thoughts in my head…

I leave one week from today! While I am thrilled beyond belief, I have so much to do. Oh and there is that little fact that I don’t have my visa yet and I had to send my passport along with my application in the mail. I sent both off on December 19^th to the Embassy in Washington, with the assurance that it takes 3 days to process. I figured a few days in the mail there a few days on the way back, no big deal.

Well I called yesterday, because I was surprised that I didn’t have it back yet and they said it arrived on Tuesday! I’m not sure if their office was closed between Christmas and New Years or what, but they told me it would be in the mail no later than today.

I’m a worrier. So this isn’t easy for me. There are few things that could keep me from going… one of them would be not having a passport. 

I find comfort that God is in control, that He has called me to Mozambique, and that things will work out according to His will. I keep my Bible open to Matthew 6 and when I feel the worry creeping up on me I read part or all of verses 25-34.

These verses talk about how God provides for the birds and lilies, yet we are so much more important to God than these things, so of course God will provide for us… He knows what we need.  Verses 33 and 34 say, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

All this being said, I’m finding peace knowing that God is in control and that at least one of us knows the difference between a need and a want.

Support Update:

I’ve raised 82% of the funds needed for my trip in January and 24% of my goal for monthly support for long-term ministry.

Prayer Requests and such:

- Praise God! I’ve been so overwhelmed with the way people have responded to the kids Christmas needs. I’ve surpassed my goal of raising money for shoes and presents! Because of this generosity we will also have some gifts for Children’s Day in June!

- That my passport & visa would arrive before Wednesday January 11^th.

- That I would continue to find peace knowing that God will provide what I need, and understanding that what I need isn’t always what I want.

- Harvey & Carole Curley are hosting a Spaghetti Fundraiser for me on Monday January 9^th at Genesis (309 N. Main Street in Royal Oak, MI). Pray for a good turn out.

- That God would continue to give me peace and direction about the role I’m in. That He would give me more ideas than I know what to do with and the resources to see them through!