Something Pretty Cool

Well, I've got this pet chameleon. His name is Amon. He's a little green about life, but we're changing that. ;) The program manager here in Yei found him on the side of the road on the way back from the air strip one day. He used to live in a big basin with a bowl of water until I read online that chameleons are arboreal, living completely in trees. And I learned that they don't like to drink standing water, preferring rather to drink sprinkled or sprayed water from the foliage they live in. So I transplanted a little leafless shrub found all over the place to a bucket and put it inside my room. I stuck a big banana leave in the dirt to give him some privacy and I sprinkle the whole thing with water a couple times a day. Little Amon seems to like it. A couple times he has wandered away from the tree and we've found him in some precarious positions. Once he was rescued from the volleyball court in the middle of a game. Not quite sure how the little guy wasn't trampled. Another time he was almost run over on the road next to our compound. Some of the ladies who work for us came to get me and told me to get rid of "that monster!" So I picked him up and brought him back home to his tree. You should have heard the screams when I did that. Most all of the locals are afraid of pretty much any animal except goats. Most of the American's do fine with all those animals, but can't stand goats. As Joe, the finance guy, puts it, "I hate goats!"

So anyway, here's Amon. He's so handsome.
Please don't make fun of his lazy eye...s. He's sensitive about that.

Here's his good side. The guy's got flexibility going for him, at least.
So most days I take Amon's tree out on to the porch for a little while and he eats flies that land on it. It's a good time for all. Today I actually managed to photograph him in action. This first picture is with his tongue rolled up in the front edge of his mouth, ready to strike, with the fly on the branch in front of him. And by some wild chance I happened to snap the shutter just as he was recoiling his tongue after snagging lunch! I couldn't believe it! It's crazy because I read online that chameleons strike their tongue and bring it back in about one thirtieth of a second. Talk about random good fortune catching my little guy in the act. Sorry about the blurry recoil in that picture, but my camera is just not capable of capturing something so fast clearly. Click on the pictures to blow 'em up if you can't see what I'm talking about.

This is me and Paul, a newer one that is a bit larger. He belongs to a guy in another sub-base here. He used to live with me too but I only really have room for one. They are highly territorial and would fight if kept together.

Anyway, I haven't posted in a while and I thought you guys would get a kick out of little Amon. I'm actually in the process of building a little, well...a big, enclosure for him. It's gonna be about 1m by 1m by 1.5m tall, screened in with plants and rocks and dripping water and the whole 9. He can't wait. He'll then spend his days and nights on the porch, enjoying the sunlight when he wants and sleeping in cool crevices under rocks when he wants. I'll catch flies in our office compound and set them loose in his enclosure so he gets a little sport and feels like he's taking care of himself. You know, chameleons have a very fragile sense of their self worth. I'll edit this post with a picture when I get the Chameleodge finished.

Kenyan Adventure

About a week ago I went on safari in the Masai Mara National Reserve in southern Kenya. The Masai Mara borders Tanzania's Serengeti National Park to the south. A friend of mine, who also works in Sudan, went with me. We chose to go with a safari outfit that drove us down the A104 Highway, famous for its views over the rift valley escarpment. The alternative option is to fly down from Nairobi, saving some six hours in travel time, but taking a nice chunk out of your pocket. So for the views and the thrift, we drove the escarpment. As it turns out, this view of the escarpment from A104 is somewhat famous. It's the panorama after which a scene in the Lion King film is reportedly modeled. If you can remember, when Mufasa takes Simba to a peak and they look out on a beautiful landscape, he tells Simba that all this land is under their family's rule and that it will all be his one day. Well, the makers of the movie supposedly took the basic look of that scene from this view over the escarpment. I thought that was pretty cool. As a matter of fact, the national language of Kenya, and other East African countries, is Swahili. Their language also made it in to the movie. Of course, hakuna matata means "no worries", but several of the names of the characters, i'm told, are common Swahili words. True stuff, check it out.

The time of the year we went, early September, happens to be near the end of what is known in East Africa as the Great Migration. The term refers to massive herds of wildebeest, beyond a million strong, crossing the border between the Serengeti and the Mara. This is the single largest herd of animals in the entire world. I mean, these things blacken a landscape with their sheer magnitude. It's a funny looking animal, and zebras mingle among the herd's ranks, lending an element of oddity to the spectacle of so many animals in one place. They move from the Serengeti to the Mara for the food source, the grasses watered by seasonal rains. And in doing so, present themselves as a food source for the predators who live there. Our only experience with "big cats" was with lions, but man were they memorable experiences. These next few photos are of a bachelor pride of three males around 3 yrs. old who had just taken down a wildebeest and were nearing the end of their meal when we arrived. You'll notice they don't have the characteristic manes of adult male lions.
That comes some time after their fourth year. Our guide told us they're most likely brothers. (WARNING: The following description is not intended for the squeamish...but hey, circle of life and all, you know)
You can see the wildebeest's head, with its still-in-tact horns near the lion on the left. The stomach and liver lay disemboweled on the ground in front of the big guy. Such a good sport. :) They never did eat those. Guess that's more the vultures' speed.
We watched as this brother walked away from the table. It's about time, I'd say. Look at that belly! But wow he's gorgeous!



Apparently manners have not made their way to Kenya quite yet. This guy's got his food all over his face. You'd think these fellas were raised in the wild!


So on the same morning we saw the three brothers polish off the migratory guest above, we saw these jokers with their ma. I hear it's extremely rare to see male lions eating like we did, or to see a mother nursing her cubs. So right there it's official, "This Trip is A Success!" A couple more:

Does she look nervous? That look makes me nervous.









Look at that punum.











Look at that punum.












We were fortunate enough to ride up on this lioness scoping out a herd of wildebeest herself. It would have been cool to see her take one down but our guide told us with the grass so low, and her by herself, the chances of her catching one were low.
So we moved on. We saw the standard spectacles...
Elephants












Giraffes













Hippos












Zebras












Yeah, I'd say a couple things caught my attention. :)








While we were in the park we met some Masai warriors who danced for us. Part of the dance is to jump as high as possible. The one to do so the highest gets the most wives...or something like that. :) We learned that they wear red all the time because of the wild animals they live in close proximity to. While out grazing their cattle, sheep or goats the Masai want any predators who might think about an attack to be warded off by associating their red clothes with danger. I guess through centuries of fearless, warrior protection over their herds these guys and their reds have developed quite a reputation with the local wildlife.

Well, the trip was nice and restfull,

but eventually the sun set on this adventure like all the rest.
I had a good time but I was ready to get back home to south Sudan by the time it was over.

That Was A Good Day

Today was a really great day! Actually, every day here is a really great day. I mean I'm in the middle of Africa with a bunch of guys my age, building stuff. It feels like we're a bunch of kids and there are no adults around, like we can do whatever we want. I'm making some of the coolest relationships I'll ever have, with some of the most outstanding people you could hope to meet. These are my best Sudanese friends, Aloro, Moses and Simon (left to right). AWESOME guys!But today was especially nice. The weather was clear with the temp. in the mid 80s. The sky was beautiful, the deepest, cleanest blue with the same clouds from the opening theme-song scene on The Simpsons. I drove about 25 miles from our base to take building materials to one of our sites, then pick up two of our carpenters who had been taking care of the final touches to another church building. The police left me alone, I made it back to our compound in time for dinner, and the cherry on top of this day is that we're having fried chicken tonight! Yeah!
Most of the time I love it so much where I am that I'm pretty sure I'll be in Sudan for more than just a year. But days like today make me feel like I could stay forever. Today gave me a feeling of well-being that made me actually feel physically stronger, taller, more handsome, just, well, right. Incredible! It's a powerful thing when you have such a sense that you are where you belong that it makes you feel this way.

Well my first round of R&R (rest and relaxation) begins next Thursday. I can't believe I've already been here 10 weeks! While I'll miss the guys out here, I'm looking forward to spending some time in the big city of Nairobi, eating at restaurants, going to bookstores, that kind of stuff. I'm also going on safari for a few days in the Masai Mara Wildlife Preserve with a girl who works in Juba, about 100 miles north of our base in Yei. She'll be going out on R&R at the same time. It should be fun. Stay tuned for pictures from that adventure.

"On this rock I will build my church..."

I came to South Sudan to help Samaritan's Purse in its project to rebuild churches that the Fundamentalist Islamic government of Sudan, based in the north of the country, had destroyed in the past 40 years, or so, of civil war against the Christians and people of traditional/tribal religions who make up most of the population of the south. We just completed a church in the town of Yei, where our base is located. So I was able to go by the construction site and take a picture every day, showing the progress of building over the 16 or so days it takes for the average church. So here are some pictures and some brief explanations about what you're looking at. I'm not an engineer (we're blessed with several highly capable engineers from the US and Kenya) but I'll tell you what I can about the photos, and you'll get to see a church rise up from the ashes...or from the dirt, as it were. This first photo was taken about half way through the first day of construction. The crew, comprised totally of Ugandans and Sudanese, has set out the bounadries of the building with stakes and building line. They then dig the foundation by hand and make sure everything is level, with a method I'm not completely sure about, but which uses a thin transparent hose pipe, water and the principle that if you fill the pipe and hold the two ends up, the water will settle to the same height in the two ends of the pipe. Like I said, I'm no engineer. But apparently it works, so that's what is important! In the next photo the crew has begun to place the foundation blocks in the place where they've excavated and has begun to erect the trusses. The blocks being used for the foundation were built by hand and a simple block press by two skilled block makers and help from 8 or 10 guys from the local church community. The blocks are made of "river sand" which the community gathered by hand with shovels and hoes, and cement which we provide. The trusses were fabricated in our workshop by Ugandan and Sudanese welders. So on day two the trusses are all put up with concrete footers poured around their bases. The crew then builds up the foundation of the building with their concrete blocks. On day three the forms for the "beam" are built. The "beam" is poured in the forms between the trusses using rebar and cement. I'm told this is so a "beam" connecting the tops of the vertical section of the trusses is not necessary. At least that's what I gathered from the mumbo jumbo that I heard when one of our engineers tried to explain it to me. :o) The next day, after the concrete has had 24 hours to set, the forms are removed and another later of blocks is placed on top of the "beam". Then the crew begins to back fill the foundation with a compactable clay-like soil called mirrum. It's basically the red dirt you see whenever you see a picture of Africa. On the fifth day the back filling continues while the foundation for the veranda is added to the front of the church and purlins are welded across the tops of the trusses for stability. Day six involves more back filling of the foundation and installing the veranda trusses. On the seventh day they rest. Just kidding. :o) On the seventh day they back fill some more, this time in the veranda foundation. Also, the masons start to bring up the walls with blocks. Day eight means installation of the zinc roof. A specialized roofing carpenter is brought to the site and bolts the roof on the trusses. Fiberglass sheets are used in four locations instead of zinc, so that light can enter during the day. The building will not have plumbing or electricity. This is part of the reason it can be built so quickly. Also on day eight the steps up to the veranda are constructed. The next day the walls begin to climb in the front and rear of the church, and fascia board is installed along the front of the veranda. The roofing carpenter had to be moved to another site before he could finish the roof of the veranda, so he'll return in a few days to wrap up the job. On the tenth day the walls all around the building climb higher still.





Day eleven shows that the walls are all constructed up to the top of the window openings on the sides.



The windows and doors arrive to the site on day twelve from the carpentry shop on our compound where Ugandan and Sudanese carpenters build them. They use the most beautiful mahogany for everything here. It's as abundant as pine in the states. We even burn the mahogany scraps in fires for the shower water and for cooking sometimes. Anyway, we end up with these windows and doors that are the most beautifully-stained works of art hanging in each building. The crew continues the walls after installing the windows. On the thirteenth day a mason hangs from the veranda truss and perplexed children stand on a dirt mound staring at the white guy with the camera pointed at their new church. :o) Hahaha! Actually, on the thirteenth day the walls are finished up to the roof and plastering begins inside. Also the crew begins to plaster the base of the outside of the building...skirting, I'm told it's called. The plastering inside and out takes a few more days. And on one of those days the roofing carpenter returns to finish the veranda. Somewhere around sixteen days after construction began, the church is finished.

The community of Yei now has a permanent structure to replace the stick and mud-wall, grass thatch-roof building they built after their church was destroyed in the war. Despite all the work that goes in to making these beautiful buildings, our hope is that the ultimate result of our work here is that more and more people are presented with the Gospel than ever before, that people hear how Jesus loves them and how he died for them.
The next step in the work of Samaritan's Purse in Sudan, after these churches are rebuilt, is to begin to train their existing pastors and enrich the lives of the Sudanese with community development programs such as HIV/AIDS education, water purification and filtration systems and World Medical Mission, among others. Take a gander at the Purse's website, www.samaritanspurse.org to see what else is going on in Africa and around the world. I feel an intense sense of honor and excitement to be part of this organization and I know I'll never be the same because of it!

What is it they say about children?

If children are the future of our world, I'd like you to meet some of the rising stars of New Sudan.
Everywhere I go the children clamor to greet me, to shake my hand, to say, "How are you?" That's the phrase that EVERYONE here knows. They may not know what you are saying when you answer that question and they may not know how to respond if you ask them, but people have heard westerners greet them with this phrase for so long it's simply what you say when you see a "khwaja" (white person) on the street.

Anyway, please keep my friends from Sudan in your prayers. The political situation is calm now but there is possibly another civil war on the way. The Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) between the government of Sudan, in the north, and the governing force of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), in the south, is set to expire in 2010.













Also, please remember the women of the country who raise these gems. They themselves are shaping the future of their nation.

From Sudan With Love

So i've made it one week in Sudan. Having been to Africa before, I knew somewhat what to expect. And that helped me adjust quicker I think. People are substancially poorer here than in Uganda, if anyone who's visited Africa before can believe that.

The drive to our base in Yei from Juba, in South Sudan, where I flew in to from Nairobi, was only 100 kilometers. However, since there are only about 15 kilometers of paved roads in all of South Sudan, the entire trip was on a dirt road. The road was full of pot holes, rainwater runoff trenches and INCREDIBLY dilapidated bridges. So that 100 km drive took every second of 4 and a half hours. That was a sign of things to come for sure. There is not one single stretch of paved road anywhere in the area I travel on a regular basis, between all the churches we are constructing. And some of the roads still have yet to be cleared of all the land mines left over from the civil war against northern Sudan.
This is a photo of a "Mine Wolf" vehicle we passed on the trip from the airport. It's one of the pieces of equipment the mine-removing crews use. Hopefully the fact that we passed it going the opposite direction doesn't mean we had just driven through a mined area. :) Just kidding. I was assured he was just on the way to another mined road which was not cleared and opened yet.

So, in an intentional transition to a related subject...this is the truck i drive. :o) We use Toyota LandCruisers, both hard-top (SUV) and pickup truck styles. They're extraordinarily tough!! And it's so much fun driving on dirt roads in the countryside, across rivers and through mud bogs, hopping pot holes and puddles!

So when we got back to the compound where the staff lives I was pleasantly surprised. They've taken great care to make sure we are comfortable here. I was fully expecting to live in tent camps and to have no reliable electricity and that type of thing. But fortunatley I was sent to what is held as the most comfortable Samaritan's Purse base in South Sudan. This is what the area of the compound where our living quarters are located looks like. Yeah I think I can handle it here. :)

We have electricity but only that which we generate from our diesel generator. The generator runs during the day and charges batteries which we use for power at night. We actually have hot water in our homemade shower. The photo on the left shows the business end of the shower. The one on the right shows the fireplace where a fire is kept going to heat the water overhead. Pretty groovy setup, huh?

This is of one of our banana trees and some of our pineapple plants. If you click on the picture to enlarge it you'll see both are bearing fruit right now.

They have these huge tectonic semi-mountains here that bulge out of a mostly flat landscape. It's an amazingly beautiful country. The problem is that the government will not allow people to climb up these massive hills. I've heard that the government thinks there are valuable natural resources such as mercury in them and they think people who climb them are trying to steal those resources. But there really hasn't been a suitable explanation given as to why nobody's allowed to climb. It's a pitty because they really look like a lot of fun. In fact, they're so enticing that a couple months ago some of our staff tried to climb one and were arrested and had to stay in a local jail overnite. Maybe one day when the government mellows out and the economy/infrastructure develops, tourists will be able to come and climb.

As evidenced by some of these photos, the weather is pretty violent right now, during their rainy season. Yes, that is an overturned, fully loaded gasoline truck we had to pass one day during a storm. It probably rains five days a week on average during this season, but the climate now is very nice. It's usually no hotter than 85 and always very low humidity, execpt when it's raining, of course. However, I hear the dry season is scorching. We'll see. :o)

Well that's all for this post. I'll have another going up soon with pictures of our local construction workers and of churches under construction, as well as some general photos of the people of Sudan.