The Fun Side of Africa

There were so many lessons that I learned in Africa. So many things made me sad and challenged me to get outside of myself more to help those in need.

There were lots of things though that were so fun for us to see and it was amazing to see lives lived so differently than ours here in the States.

This is a well that is covered with boards (to the left) and a galvanized bucket with a rope attached. They’d throw the bucket into the well to get clean water and use the gray tub to wash dishes. The dishes are drying in the sun. This is in the church yard.

Anyone need eggs? The yokes are orange.

No need for a car seat or carrier. Just put your baby on your back and they will sleep just fine.

The missionaries have become REALLY good drivers. There are no traffic laws really. You just hop in on the passenger’s side, get on the left side of the road and try not to hit anyone… by anyone I mean car or person… or goat.

The women in Africa wear skirts called capulanas. They are basically a piece of material that they wrap around themselves and are very strategic at making them tight so that they will stay on without buttons, zippers or pins. They don’t even tie them on. We tried SO hard to do it on our own.

and some even wore pieces on their heads…

and sometimes we just needed a little help…

This, my friends, is A potty. It is in the bush of Africa. I say “A” potty because the one on the left is for #1 and the one on the right is for #2. Basically the one for #1 is a litter box. The one for #2 is a hole in the ground.

MOVING ON….

The way that you make flour in the bush is to pound it out. Using a long stick and a bowl on a stand (picture a large version of a pharmaceutical mortar pestle) you pound away to a rhythm. These ladies had some GUNS for arms! My word!! 

The people were VERY surprised to learn that in the US we never carry things on our heads. They said that this is how they were raised and all that they knew. They can carry ANYTHING!!!! From a bundle of tree branches, to water in buckets, to a simple sugar cane stick… they carried it ALL. The biggest thing I saw on someone’s head was… a mattress.

Oh… and the yellow sign? It’s for cell phone carriers. You need a cell phone? They can hook you up!

Truly, it was a wonderful trip. I would go back one day, but I would want my husband to be with me. It is a hard trip, but we were thrilled to see so many kids attend VBS and over 120 children state that they wanted to follow Christ.