Friday
Friday morning, I felt very good when I got up. My stomach still felt kind of uneasy so I went light on breakfast. By the way, our breakfasts have been instant oatmeal or cereal. This is the only meal that the African crew here at the guest house does not prepare.
After talking to Bob, I decided to work in the morning and depending on how I feel, stay at the guest house in the afternoon. I worked on the trim on some of the doors. It really felt good to do something like that with my hands. It’s good to be able to see the finished product. When things come together well, I just want to say “yeah”. I obviously don’t do enough of this type of thing. Unfortunately, from about mid morning, the sun came out and my stomach started giving me mixed messages.
We came back to the guest house for lunch and I had a very light one. I explained to Bob that I felt like I should not go back out this afternoon. He has been very understanding. Apparently, this happens quite often with teams from the US. Especially with people who have not been here before. The environment is really brutal. It’s so easy to catch a parasite. The culture here is that you have to show respect when you meet someone by shaking their hand and saying ‘bala-o’, Sango for ‘greetings’. It goes without saying, that if you don’t wash your hands after meeting a group of locals, you have to be very careful not to touch your food or put you finger in your mouth, etc.
I am writing this as I sit in the dining area of the guest house looking out the window into the street. I finally took a very discrete picture of the street life earlier. Many of the local people are very suspicious of foreigners taking pictures. Bob told me that one of their leaders some time ago found that National Geographic had published pictures of Africans with no clothes on. So he announced to the people that westerners were taking their pictures and then taking their clothes off in the pictures. Well, enough said about that. Nevertheless, most of the time, you can take their picture for a price. But you still can’t take a picture of any public building, monument, or the airport. National security, you know.
The African lady, named Ann, that cleans and does our laundry came in and asked if I was leaving this week. She speaks very little English and I speak no Sango or French but I find it fairly easy to communicate. My friend Vernie surprised me when he just started conversing with people in Sango almost like it was natural. He spent time in Bata, some years ago, where there was a bible school that taught many of the African Grace Brethren pastors. That was one of the places that was pretty much destroyed during the war a few years ago.
Yesterday when we stopped for a Coke in the village outside of Boali Falls, we met a fellow from Bata who was on his way to Bangui. Jim introduced him to us. He is the dean of the college. They have 6 students this year.
While sitting here, a couple of missionaries who are staying here came by and asked me how I was doing. I just talked to Bob, who is part of a non-denominational medical ministry. He and his wife have been over here, in various locations, since 1997. He said that they see all the denominational groups working together to provide medical assistance to this part of Africa. To me that’s very encouraging. I like it when all the groups work together.
Later this evening, Jim or Bob will be taking is to a shopping area so that we can scope out the souvenir ware to take home. We will see what they have and then go back to bargain on the prices on another day.
After talking to Bob, I decided to work in the morning and depending on how I feel, stay at the guest house in the afternoon. I worked on the trim on some of the doors. It really felt good to do something like that with my hands. It’s good to be able to see the finished product. When things come together well, I just want to say “yeah”. I obviously don’t do enough of this type of thing. Unfortunately, from about mid morning, the sun came out and my stomach started giving me mixed messages.
We came back to the guest house for lunch and I had a very light one. I explained to Bob that I felt like I should not go back out this afternoon. He has been very understanding. Apparently, this happens quite often with teams from the US. Especially with people who have not been here before. The environment is really brutal. It’s so easy to catch a parasite. The culture here is that you have to show respect when you meet someone by shaking their hand and saying ‘bala-o’, Sango for ‘greetings’. It goes without saying, that if you don’t wash your hands after meeting a group of locals, you have to be very careful not to touch your food or put you finger in your mouth, etc.
I am writing this as I sit in the dining area of the guest house looking out the window into the street. I finally took a very discrete picture of the street life earlier. Many of the local people are very suspicious of foreigners taking pictures. Bob told me that one of their leaders some time ago found that National Geographic had published pictures of Africans with no clothes on. So he announced to the people that westerners were taking their pictures and then taking their clothes off in the pictures. Well, enough said about that. Nevertheless, most of the time, you can take their picture for a price. But you still can’t take a picture of any public building, monument, or the airport. National security, you know.
The African lady, named Ann, that cleans and does our laundry came in and asked if I was leaving this week. She speaks very little English and I speak no Sango or French but I find it fairly easy to communicate. My friend Vernie surprised me when he just started conversing with people in Sango almost like it was natural. He spent time in Bata, some years ago, where there was a bible school that taught many of the African Grace Brethren pastors. That was one of the places that was pretty much destroyed during the war a few years ago.
Yesterday when we stopped for a Coke in the village outside of Boali Falls, we met a fellow from Bata who was on his way to Bangui. Jim introduced him to us. He is the dean of the college. They have 6 students this year.
While sitting here, a couple of missionaries who are staying here came by and asked me how I was doing. I just talked to Bob, who is part of a non-denominational medical ministry. He and his wife have been over here, in various locations, since 1997. He said that they see all the denominational groups working together to provide medical assistance to this part of Africa. To me that’s very encouraging. I like it when all the groups work together.
Later this evening, Jim or Bob will be taking is to a shopping area so that we can scope out the souvenir ware to take home. We will see what they have and then go back to bargain on the prices on another day.
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