We finally got the call that our five bags had arrived! We now have the use of a new (50 km) Isuzu white pickup. It is a four seater with a short bed. Apparently, a shell has been ordered for the back.
It is nice to drive except they put the steering wheel on the right side and the gear shift in my left hand. I have done that several times before in Thailand and England so I am adjusting.
We headed out to the airport and nothing looked familiar.
I think we were awake when we were picked up but I could be mistaken.
I was told their weren't any good signs going out to the airport so I anticipated a little early for turning. In fact the signs are great and there was no traffic.
This is the entrance to the airport. It is 29 km from town.
Our bags were there! A little scraped and mangled but all intact.
The British Airways representative was nice on the phone. I asked her where to pick them up and she asked if I "would have a white shirt on." I looked down and said "yes", she said she would find us. It took me a minute to realize she knew the missionaries well and we were in good hands.
Kristi was one happy lady.
Here are just a few shots coming back into town. I forgot to take any at the airport.
Trucks are around but not too big. This was the biggest I saw. Sort of a strange load.
Fruit and vegetable stands everywhere. They seem to pop up in random places.
Lots of people walking, always. Women, carrying items on their head and often with a baby strapped to their back.
These kids were on their way to school. Most kids in the city go to private schools. Apparently the public schools are only about two hours and 50 to 100 kids in the class. We haven't seen that yet.
This little stand is very typical right now. They are selling tomatoes about the size of a quarter and nuts that look like peanuts. The Elders tell me they are not quite peanuts, but they look like peanuts to me.
These two items are what is being harvested right now from family gardens, so there is an abundance and they are cheap.
This stand is representative of a lot of things to me.
The economy and health are tied to a fertile land and dependable weather.
Transportation, agricultural knowledge and refrigeration open a whole new world of possibilities.
Of course, clean water has to come first, along with immunizations.
Travel to another country provides an education that takes years to learn from a book.
I have seen the difference in my children since driving them down the back roads of Mexico.
I recommend it.
