Ruthin here we come

Can't wait to get back to our beautiful warm house on park road

Now it's already Wednesday, 19th Dec. Ooops, I'm getting behind with posts. We arrived last Friday in time to join our second practice in the Ruthin Christian Fellowship carol singing group. Saturday we sang in the market, and Sunday in the worship service and then again in local sheltered accommodation.

How can I describe it? It's difficult to find words that express the amazing sense of worship and praise, fun and laughter that lifted my spirit. There's nothing like it! I kept on thinking "Soon I'll wake up to reality" but I'm still living this wonderful dream!

I sang mostly in English (it was optional), but when we sang one carol all in Welsh the whole atmosphere changed to a different level, and we were almost gasping with amazement at the sense of harmony and beauty in the singing.

Visit to Dad

In Tavistock at last! It's been a long time since we visited him. The Olympics have been and gone, and now Dad is thinking of moving into something smaller and with more support. He was offered a room in Abbeyfields on Plymouth Road opposite the park. He's very positive about this momentous decision, and looking forward to more company. Brave man.

I'm going to write more later - this is just for the record!

14th Dec OK now in Haddenham with some dear friends, Hugh and Tricia who have given us massive support on our arrival. They met us in Tilbury Docks, drove us to their home and let us mellow for two nights before driving to our house in Ruthin, North Wales. This past week we have stayed mainly with them as we visit our mission office in Oxford and have health checks.

The de-brief at CMS went well, and we feel positive about our future. Very thankful to God for His care all through these times.

water everywhere

Water surrounding us is the story of our lives in the last few weeks. Last Tuesday we woke up to the sound of fire engine sirens going past our window on Park Road (in the back of this photo).

We arrived in Britain on Wednesday 28th November, with gale force winds off the coast of Sheppy, but as we docked at Tilbury the weather seemed calmer. For our first few days the rain held off, but after allowing us to get settled into our little house, it came back.

I poked a sleepy head out of the door later on, when I heard lots of talking and activity outside, and our neighbours were putting sand bags against their doors, front and back. The floods came to within a few meters of our house, but thankfully didn't get through the defences which were put up after the year 2000 floods here in Ruthin. About one hundred houses were affected though, and the residents are still living in temporary accommodation while their homes are being de-contaminated. It will take a few months before they can get back, so Christmas will be a different story for them.

Kalahari at sea

Lifeboat practice kept us occupied on our first Saturday. The crew do this every week, and we saw the life-boat almost launched. It was swinging over the side of the boat, then they reeled it in again. The Captain gave us leave to take photos, and go everywhere, so I have quite a collection. One day I'll get organised and have a few more up on the blog.

We had freedom to go on the Bridge and look at all the dials, maps, gauges and charts. It was enormous, with lots of window space front and back, side to side. As well as keeping the radar on all the time, a crew member with a pair of binoculars was looking to see if any boats or objects were around. Most of the journey we spent with nothing but ocean in view. Then when we arrived in the English Channel, and sailed from Northern France past Plymouth, Dover, Calais and in to the Thames Estuary, as well as land closing in on both sides, we could also see around eight other boats a lot of the time. Some were going in the same direction, some in the opposite one, and some sailing directly towards us. Those mostly ended up going behind us, across our wake.

During the journey we could do email from the crew's address, when we weren't feeling nauseous, as the Bridge was at the top of the boat's swing! There was also a satellite phone, so I talked to my Dad when we were 1000 miles east of Ascension Island, and 1500 miles west of Africa.

wave-print on the ocean

A long time since I've posted - a whole month in fact!

Here's the boat, at least as much as I could get in one picture on board. Our foot-print on the earth's surface was even more distinct; I'm sure the wake of the boat could be seen from a satellite in space. We learnt that the boat could carry up to 4,000 containers of 20 foot each. On our journey most of them were 40 foot, and we were not fully loaded.

The sea calmed down for us, and it was like sailing through a mirror off the West coast of Africa. Flying fish flew out of our way, and I could even see the splash of their tails in the water as they picked up speed. Some flew only a few feet, and some flew around 30 meters before landing again in the 'mill-pond' sea. They have fins either side which helps them to glide, and the speed is quite incredible.

In the tropics we had good weather, so the swimming pool was filled each day from the sea. It was 4x4 meters, and I just swam round and round and back again to reverse the dizziness. There was a gymn as well, so our fitness kept getting better! Until the Bay of Biscay where the waves really started. The ship rolled so much that Kevin had to lie down after taking sea sickness tablets.

DAL Kalahari

http://www.safemariner.co.uk/dal_kalahari.html

This is the website for our ship, which is where we'll be now for the next three weeks until we arrive in Tilbury Docks, London, UK. The berthing of the ship in Cape Town was due today, but we've been told it will be at midnight, so asked to come at 7am tomorrow morning. That is when we'll do passports and immigration as well. Now I'm looking forward to it even more.

While we were travelling on the train, it was difficult to get to grips with the boat part, but now we're thinking about how much sea-sickness we'll have, and what to do all the time. Lots of plans! Maybe write a novel, read some books on my kindle, and study the Welsh language. Maybe. Watch this space!

Table Mountain

Our new friends, Tracy and Peter have welcomed us like family. Yesterday we set out to climb Table Mountain, but the table cloth cloud was too thick in the morning when we arrived. It was sad, because the day before had been sunny and clear.

Instead we decided to go to Robben Island, just off the coast, where Nelson Mandela was in prison for many years, so we drove around town to the habour and stood in the queue. But when we arrived at the front, the boat was full, so we couldn't go there either :^(

Instead of that, we took a boat round the harbour, "To get our sea legs in" as Peter said.

Then to cheer us up even more, we had an amazing game lunch there in the Harbour. As we were eating it, looking up at the mountain, we saw the cloth was lifting off!

Such a welcome from the maker of the Table! We drove back to the foot of the mountain and went up to the top, in the cable car! There we found, as well as the stunning view all around, it was warm, calm and peaceful. Normally there is a cold wind blowing.

At the end of the day, sleepy heads couldn't keep our eyes open, and later today, Sunday is the day we are set to board the VERY big ship in the container habour. That ship, the DAL Kalahari will be our home for the next three weeks.

Cape Town Leg

The train we took from Johannesburg to Cape Town was very different to all the others. It was the last and fifth of the overnight trains, a comfort and a delight to ride in. Kevin had booked a ticket in tourist class while we were still in Kilolo, Tanzania, but because we were not in South Africa, it was too risky to pay over the ether as required, so we lost our booking.

Our God is greater, and he gave us another of our many angels in the booking office man at Musina station. 'Dr John' found a compartment for us on the already fully booked train we wanted to take, and in addition he made sure no-one else would book into it, and we didn't even have to pay for all four seats. That meant we could totally relax and enjoy the last leg of trip South.

We went to the dining car for both dinner and a magnificent breakfast, and had some fun with the waitress taking photos for and of us. This one of Kevin, I took, though!

Johannesburg

We pulled into the station after a rough night on the train. No sleepers, so Kevin sat all night and I put my fleece blanket on the floor under the seats and lay with my feet and face under opposite seats. Amazingly I did get some sleep.

The train was very late arriving on Monday morning, but Ruth our friend met us and took us to her house. She left us getting cleaned up and went back to work, and Dave came in later after he got back. We had a wonderful evening of fellowship with them, even though we had only just met that day!

Across the Limpopo into SA

A relief to connect again. For too long we've been relying on internet cafes where we can't easily upload photos. Now using Kevin's netbook on a South African phone card, life is getting easier again.

The border crossing over the Limpopo river yesterday was long and tiring, but we made it to this Lodge in the middle of town. Most of the place is noisy and full of traffic, but this is an oasis. Even so the local music is loud and constant.

The night train from Bulawayo was less clean than the last one from Vic Falls. In fact I would rate our Tanzanian overnight as the cleanest, safest and roomiest of all. It is also the easiest border crossing, as the officials board the train on both sides. Yesterday we had to catch transport and wait in a long queue on both sides of the bridge and border.

Birdsong in Bulawayo

This morning we woke up to birdsong in the trees around our hostel. They are not bothered by all that I am concerned with. We arrived in Bulawayo on Wednesday morning and found the temperature had dropped. The views on the way in were depressing, including graveyards for both humans and trains. The city is flat, and a strong wind blows all the time, making it necessary to wear a fleece jacket and closed in shoes instead of sandles. The streets are wide and the whole place built for traffic, but sometimes strong smells make my nose sore! The power station, which looks like Battersea, dominates the main street that we use. A strange icon.

We mostly caught up with internet yesterday, though no picture uploads, and had lunch in a local Bar. We found the people extremely friendly and helpful, especially when we asked directions from them.

Today, Thursday we take another overnight train to Beitbridge on the border with South Africa. The long journey South is half complete.

Victoria Rain Falls

Watch this space. Here it is...

On Monday we went to the Falls. There are three great waterfalls on the earth; Niagra, Iguasu and Victoria. The others have a greater height or volume total, but in terms of a single falling sheet of water, Victoria takes the prize.

The canyon in front of the falls offers an amazing viewpoint from lots of different places, and the cool spray came across to fall on us. We were there until the afternoon, and had a picnic lunch in the hot shade of a fruit tree. Not sure what the fruits were, but the birds liked them. Later on we wandered back, and the sun gave us a rainbow treat in the mist above the Falls.

Back in our hostel, during the night after we had been to the Falls, the first rain fell for many months. It cooled the air, making it almost pleasant to walk around. On Tuesday evening we boarded the train on to Bulawayo, and almost boiled in our compartment as we waited for the train to set off. The night was hot, but we were well looked after by the train crew.

across from Zambia to Zimbabwe

We crossed the bridge over the Zambeze River last Sunday on foot with rucksacks on our backs; In the middle of the bridge is where the Bunge jumpers go from, and I almost was tempted. Then I remembered things aren't quite right inside me anyway, and that might just make it worse. That's my excuse, anyway.

It was a hot and steamy day, and we sweated as the photos were taken. The walk was a little longer than we expected, so after getting across the bridge, we cheated and flagged a lorry driver down. It was all I could do to get in, and Kevin had to push me up, then I didn't get a grip and nearly fell out. The driver was very welcoming, and we sat in the enormous cab as he drove to the immigration post. He showed us to the right door, where we got our visas.

A taxi took us to our accommodation; we stayed at the Victoria Falls Backpackers for two nights. That day we took it easy, then walked to the Falls the next day. I never expected to have such an experience in my lifetime. The thunder, the spray and the view of millions of gallons tipping over the edge was out of this world.

Pictures will follow, as there is no facility to upload here where we are now (Bulawayo) (later in Messina, SA, on 27 Oct, uploaded a photo of us on the bridge)

Bussing it

We wanted to go the whole way by train, but through most of Zambia it seems the track and rolling stock (did I got the terminology right, Kevin? "Yes" Editor) have not been well maintained, so either it's too slow, or leaves at midnight, or there's no security. So today we came by a high class bus to Livingstone. Air-conditioned, drinks provided, video on tap, and comfortable seats made me think I was on the UK coach trip.

Arriving in Livingstone, we asked our prospective taxi driver to take this photo, and then he brought us to a guest-house called Comfort Corner (which Kevin found on hostelbookers.com). It has: Air conditioning, en-suit facilities, spotless sheets and clean environment, all very different to what we have experienced so far. I washed out a few clothes and saw the brown water going down the plughole. A good feeling!

To Lusaka with Kevin

So far, we've been well looked after by our Lord and God! The Journey from Makambako to Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia took 35 hours, and thankfully we had a sleeping compartment with good washroom facilities. At just about every stop, we saw children asking for empty bottles, so threw ours out as we were done drinking our 14 litres of Kilolo water. We drank an average of one litre every five hours. The extremes of temperature left us gasping - from cold as African cold can be when I waited to buy the ticket in Makambako, to swelteringly hot in Mbeya station. Then mostly very warm until KMP where we spent the night.

On the bus this morning to Lusaka it got gradually hotter, and now I'm sitting in a room in a backpackers hostel, wishing there was a little more air movement. However we are safe and well, and fed on village chicken with vegetables and nsima (ugali in Tanzania), a stiff maize porridge which somehow seems wonderful when I'm hungry!

Tomorrow to Livingstone, and then across the border to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. We'll do this leg on the bus as well, then back to our train rides from there onwards.

Iringa to Makambako

Our epic journey has begun. Today we travelled by landrover the 160km South to the nearest railway station at Makambako. This town is on the central plateau of East Africa, so during the night, while we slumber here in our guest house, the train will be labouring up the escarpment to find us at around 8am tomorrow. It left Dar es Salaam mid afternoon, and will arrive in Zambia around two days later.

Today we visited our good friends Bishop Donald and Gladys Mtetemela, who are more busy now after having retired from their work in the Diocese of Ruaha. It was sad to say goodbye, but wonderful to share such deep fellowship and understanding in the Lord. We shared lots of good memories together. The present Bishop, Joseph Mgomi travelled from Dodoma this morning, and we waited in Iringa for him to arrive so as to say goodbye. A sad and profound parting.

Goodbye Kilolo

It's done, we've said our goodbyes and been back to make sure everything is OK. We're having a few days in Iringa now before the Big Start on Tuesday. I found I'd left a set of keys in one of the outside doors (!), and left a few bits and pieces that were meant to be taken, but even so, it's one more miracle that we are on schedule with packing up and getting things sorted. The mess has either been thrown away or burnt, and I feel happy that all the valuable things I've been using over the years in Tanzania have either gone to new homes, or are ready and waiting for the next occupant/s of our house. Last Sunday we had an African Barbeque with Iringa Christian Fellowship at Kibebe Farm where I have spent many happy times.

Last Wednesday Kevin handed over the computer project, and on Thursday we did the major pack in the house, so almost everything is now in one room. I taught my last Bible Knowledge lesson on Thursday as well. That was hard, and we were all crying by the end. Then we said Goodbye to the whole school as they gathered at the end of the day. The Headmaster had written a ditty for us which I found amazing, as I didn't know he was a poet, nor that he could pick up so well on where we are, and express it in words like that.

Our party in Iringa with the Admin staff of the Diocese of Ruaha on Friday was also quite moving, and full of compliments. Kevin was given a new name mkwe mlima or 'dependable son in law', and we were both given certificates for our lives and work here, beautiful cloths, plus a very large farewell card. We pray that God continues to bless all the people we love here. It's hard to part, but the time is ripe.

Teachers

We shared a meal last Thursday with our colleagues at the school. It was really to talk about how last week's graduation went so as to try to improve next year's ceremony, but we also ended up having to say goodbye to most of them.

This coming week the 'O' level exams begin, so some of the staff will be away in other schools supervising. Others will be busy invigilating our students, so we'll hardly see them. It feels quite strange to be into our last week here now, and the work we've been doing has to be continued. The hard wiring for the computer laboratory is still being completed, and may not be totally ready before we leave.

I will teach the form three students Bible Knowledge up until the last minute. There are ten eager and willing to learn. My most urgent and important prayer request is that a replacement teacher is found, to take them through to their 'O' level exams next year.

Graduation before exams

Irene took the Bible knowledge prize after completing two years of intensive study of selected texts from the Old Testament, Luke and Acts. Out of the six students I have been teaching, sadly one has dropped out just before her 'O' levels. Another needs a miracle to get him through the exams. The other four might be able to write ten essays in English during the two times two and a half hour exams, but if there's a word they haven't come across, or the meaning of the question is not clear, all the knowledge and understanding they have gained could remain unseen. Please remember all the Form Four students during the next three weeks; one week of last minute revision, and two of exams from 8th October.

Meanwhile Kevin and myself have been preparing for our epic journey South by train and then North by ship. I have been collecting things in Tanzania since 1983 when I started my checkered career here. It is exciting and daunting to be clearing up, giving lots away, trying to sell the car, and spending time with friends who we may not see again. We value your prayers for all of this, and the journey ahead.

Grandpa Time

It's time to remember him. The date is October 4, 1912. He sailed from Liverpool with the Church Missionary Society for Kenya in East Africa. He must have gone through the stormy waters around the Cape of Good Hope, and the journey probably took a couple of months, or three. I wonder whether he thought about the Titanic on his way... :(

He did arrive, and met a girl in Kenya in 1916 who became my Granny. She's in this picture (taken around 1961), on the far right, but by that time he wasn't there any more, and I don't even remember him. Their two children are in the picture; my mum and my uncle, and all their grandchildren so far. Which one am I, and who are the others? Watch this space :o)

It's exciting to be following in his footsteps - even though it's in reverse order, as we are soon to travel by train to the Cape and then take a boat to UK. After I was born, my mum told me, he held me in his arms for a long time and prayed over me. All my life he has been the closest of my grandparents; the inspiration he gave me has lead me in his absence. God has been very close; Because of him I am here.