trips.schrull.us

DUBAI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, UNITED EMERITES.  Writing this during our layover in Dubai. We’ve had our first Starbucks in over two weeks (hot chocolate for me – I hope to get SOME sleep on the flight to New York) and are currently camped out in some lounge chairs.  Most folks use them for napping.  We just want to be able to get out feet up for an hour or so.  These flights always leave my ankles swollen for several days, even though I try to do the suggested “in seat exercies”.

I was hoping to have a praise report  about my lost kindle, but I’m afraid that it is remaining somewhere in Tanzania.  I’ve de-registered it with Amazon and ordered a new one.  However something, or rather someone else that was lost has been found:  our original technology vendor, who we have not been able to get in touch with this year.  We were waiting for our flight in the Tanzanite Lounge at the Dar Airport and there he was with his entire family.  They were on our flight to Dubai, on their way to Toronto for a summer holiday.  So good to know that they are all okay.

In closing this post, I’ll leave you with some final pictures of the Guest House that is under construction at the DWT compound:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have been following Bill’s blog over at http://tzblog.schrull.us you know that we flew back to Dar es Salaam yesterday.

FOUND:  I have to admit that I was not really looking forward to the flight:  I have been dealing with a minor sinus “thing” ever since Friday, and sinuses and flying don’t go together particularly well.  I try to bring “just in case” medications with us when we come here.  This usually includes everything for dealing with a cold: vitamin C, zinc tablets, musinex and sudafed (or the generic equivalent.)  This year, when I was putting together the “just in case” package, I couldn’t find any sudafed in the house.  It was then after 9 pm, and thanks to sudafed being a major ingredient in cooking some kind of nasty illegal drug it is now kept behind the counter at pharmacies:  you can buy it without a perscription but you need to show all kinds of ID.  So I shrugged my shoulders and prayed that we wouldn’t need it.

Yesterday morning, as I was reorganizing my toiletries kit, a found a blister pack with eight sudafed tablets in it!  I took two right away for the flight to Dar.  The other six are ready to for our flights to Dubai and then to New York.  I thank God that I didn’t find them until yesterday:  I would probably have taken them and then they would not have been available for the trip home.  Side note:  my ears still really hurt when we landed in Dar yesterday, but I seem to have less congestion today.  Don’t know if it’s just the timing of the “bug” or sleeping in filtered air that has made the difference.

LOST:  I had been reading my kindle on the flight to Dar.    Because we were sitting in the exit row, my purse, where I normally keep my kindle, was in the overhead bin. I stuck the kindle in my seat back for the landing, telling myself not to forget to take it out of the seat back.  Note to self:  Don’t EVER tell myself not to forget something; I’m almost guarenteed to forget it.  And I did – forget it.  I remembered when we were in cab, about a mile from the airport.  The cab driver was kind evnough to turn around and wait while Bill went to Tanzania Air and asked them to check the plane (which was still at the airport) for my kindle.  They couldn’t find it, but took Bill’s cell number.  We will check with Tanzania Air when we head back to the airport in an hour or so.  I hope that my next post will include a praise report; if not, it is not an major disaster, just a disapointment.

We’ve enjoyed a nice relaxing night at the Tanzanite Executive Suites.  Enjoyed the first long hot shower in two weeks and took in the news cycle and some Discovery channel in English.  We don’t MISS TV in Kasulu, and all of our friends there have it, but we don’t really watch it there.  

Bill has spent the morning exploring this part of Dar a bit.  Soon we will be on our next leg to home, our work and our silly cats, Allie Cat and Marlie.  Allie will probably not forgive us for at least an hour.  Marlie will probably help us unpack!

Church today was at Marusi and it was a huge celebration, ordaining three new deacons who had just graduated from the Bible College yesterday.  Marusi is a very beautiful church, but it is not particularly large.  The service was jam-packed, both with people and activities.

The service was almost delayed due to the late arrival of the new deacons…there had been a communications snafu about who was providing transportaton.  It was really sweet, they were all wearing matching brand new suits.  There wives were also wearing matching brand new suits as well.

There were four choirs: KCC (Kasulu Cathedral Choir which is THE choir standard in the area), Maursi, and what I think was the Marusi Mother’s Union choir. Also a traditional choir that sang in Kiha (the traditional tribal language of the area) and danced. They wore bells on their legs so it was quite a change for the guitar/synth based sound of the other choirs.

 

Canon Helen preached the sermon, which I think was very special.  These had been her students for the past two years and she had a very important part in sending them out into their new ministires.

There were so many people present that the offering required two choirs before everyone had come forward. Then there was an opportunity for everyone to come up and shake the new deacon’s hands and make a contribution towards their new minisitries. There was communion, which went quite quickly, and the saving grace was that they did NOT auction off the non-monetary offerings (of which there were quite a few) before recessing from the service.  Still it took over four hours before we processed out and proceeded to lunch.

It was Sunday afternoon, so of course there was a Bridal Party doing wedding pictures in the garden at the compound shortly after we returned.

This evening we had a nice quiet celebration with just the DWT “core” group at the usual hotel with the standard menu: rice, chicken, beef, beans, cabbage and fruit.

KBC gave us a lovey konga with a map of Tanzania, Kenya and Burundi (? can’t remember and it’s folded up for packing now.).  I really admired the katanga that Mama Escofu was wearing on Friday.  I thought it would be lovely to get some of the cloth.  Well, behind my back, she contacted her friends to get some and had it made up into a shirt and skirt that fits me perfectly and a matching shirt that is a little tight around Bill’s middle, but will fit him perfectly when he drops a little weight.

Love the people here, and will sincerely miss them, the sounds of the Tanzanian birds and the dry warm days and cool nights, but must admit that I am ready for a salad and not having to crawl out from under a mosquito net.