tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65312822433432340912024-02-08T01:42:26.728+00:00Cool Chad?Latest news from Chad. Is it cool?
No it's 40 degrees in the shade.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-18405093074583540292017-08-13T18:29:00.003+01:002017-08-13T18:46:35.008+01:00Boule, beignets and bye<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">As most of you probably already know, my time in
N’djamena has now sadly come to an end. The last month was very busy finishing
up all the many things that I wanted to do before leaving and saying good bye!
Here is a picture blog which hopefully sums everything up.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIgt3vySaQAec58uwLYYA2NbHV_cmB86bkz2V32u82kIneVkFSGsXqPEPRGJR97Qnpf03QG-9gJF32TJlNMa4olqSKNMIi7I2zlr4gLmMxilIdWf02EVkK9-LlriitgWCUw6Vt_R9EF7Vq/s1600/P1030272.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIgt3vySaQAec58uwLYYA2NbHV_cmB86bkz2V32u82kIneVkFSGsXqPEPRGJR97Qnpf03QG-9gJF32TJlNMa4olqSKNMIi7I2zlr4gLmMxilIdWf02EVkK9-LlriitgWCUw6Vt_R9EF7Vq/s320/P1030272.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boule, sauce and beignets which I made with (a lot of) help at one of my friends from choir's house </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">One of the things I wanted to do before leaving Chad
was learn how to cook Chadian food. Ruth in particular asked if I could learn
how to make her favourite – boule and spinach sauce. Boule for those of you who
don’t know is the staple diet of most Chadians. It can be made with any type of
flour or rice mixed with water until it becomes very thick. One of the ladies
from the centre, Elizabeth who worked at our house taught me how to make all
the delicious food that she had been making me and my flat mates throughout the
year including peanut butter sauce a type of meatballs and most importantly
boule! I was also able to make it with a friend from choir when I visited her
house. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQiKknT_ikETnP1txIzx1FPLP00fYD0m8cb544mUPit1cdsfQhX8QLOLy8jghUW8M1w7PXxfcIo1T9_fPXBIa8V2HK8XIr2df_Il2Es5ZsqBtVu76oeYybYFSIkLWNS9_TwY9Db0BoUR2a/s1600/P1030220.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQiKknT_ikETnP1txIzx1FPLP00fYD0m8cb544mUPit1cdsfQhX8QLOLy8jghUW8M1w7PXxfcIo1T9_fPXBIa8V2HK8XIr2df_Il2Es5ZsqBtVu76oeYybYFSIkLWNS9_TwY9Db0BoUR2a/s400/P1030220.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">This amazing 16 year old was making boule for her whole family (10 people) on a wood fire! </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxfrZvZSSlUpxCoUehYRZcu37otWGnfk5XJB-Joys3xaeO5Lm63o6HE7MXJfSy7DmrFo2H_SZlUC3Ue1w-HATLwTRX-IUIdtG89Wv9Yi7E9yoFuFnnmDBD9KpqqrhDgjhD2Z8i2HUyb4ov/s400/P1030214.JPG" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">This requires strength which I discovered I do not have in my arms! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span> </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div align="left">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd";">My friend Elizabeth insisted on giving me all the dry ingredients possible so that I could make Chadian food for my sister so have been able to treat my family to Chadian food whilst we were on holiday.</span></div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd";"></span> </div>
<div align="left">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd";"> </span><o:p></o:p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3OxBj9D1JRxDV8u850-jKavgRjws2n0xmNa1wF1YHOHYk0TUcpST0_T0VPHrTiN2XKlZwEHBOXAsPT7leOEc9_Qea5Y3b9r_NqR9_ElUiWeFQD6pZkdsIoVZS00yVSZs6vJyAxK9NZrxt/s1600/IMG_20170810_180738.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3OxBj9D1JRxDV8u850-jKavgRjws2n0xmNa1wF1YHOHYk0TUcpST0_T0VPHrTiN2XKlZwEHBOXAsPT7leOEc9_Qea5Y3b9r_NqR9_ElUiWeFQD6pZkdsIoVZS00yVSZs6vJyAxK9NZrxt/s400/IMG_20170810_180738.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
</td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boule and sauce in Wales!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">I was also taught how to make beignets (like chadian
doughnuts/cake) by Elizabeth and the two ladies from the second group in the
centre. My friends from the centre as well as from choir were as keen to cook
European food as I was to make Chadian food so I had a number of good times
making chocolate cake and pizza with different friends!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhukpvPQDDMTgOVKo7g1LrE6FUkoHG_mA4AcIkADB0FqG2QXPjkDufl2-_w7r82aCwtYp3rkMjR2N8crTt63N_MP48_vWstYdxj7nuQUQzSMNj2uuQCbMBP70s39jZgyGjsHyccjndLozwC/s1600/IMG_3935.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1425" data-original-width="1600" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhukpvPQDDMTgOVKo7g1LrE6FUkoHG_mA4AcIkADB0FqG2QXPjkDufl2-_w7r82aCwtYp3rkMjR2N8crTt63N_MP48_vWstYdxj7nuQUQzSMNj2uuQCbMBP70s39jZgyGjsHyccjndLozwC/s320/IMG_3935.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our cakes</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">One of these ladies from the centre had done training
at a hotel and was very happy to be able to make a chocolate cake in my oven. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicv3N9O8kW4hs34gLFVI6oUjp4WI3RkCRh8PzVT4mXGNbxVm4ohhema45t4r1XgtWNU-1YYPrZ3Whojmu1VRZv6zovLP7-M5aA2y6IWjGWAvsKU_e59jcOERg4msrS5szb5lMkBqcfzDYK/s1600/P1030173.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1241" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicv3N9O8kW4hs34gLFVI6oUjp4WI3RkCRh8PzVT4mXGNbxVm4ohhema45t4r1XgtWNU-1YYPrZ3Whojmu1VRZv6zovLP7-M5aA2y6IWjGWAvsKU_e59jcOERg4msrS5szb5lMkBqcfzDYK/s320/P1030173.JPG" width="248" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eating pizza at the centre</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">I also made pizzas with one of the ladies daughters which we then enjoyed at the centre one afternoon!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">So that’s the boule and the beignets and it’s great to
have been able to learn how to make Chadian food and cook with friends. I think
the most important thing that I’ve been able to do during my gap year has been
making friends, getting to know different people and building relationships. Of
course this has made it very hard to say good bye and leave Chad.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">This is our final day at the orphanage. I was a fun afternoon, the children were especially calm and cooperative on the day which meant we were able to have a small party and eat their favourite food- watermelon! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQkKrmQ17P1rWRUH8tHqGy3PJHrA30iV4pqoos71jbnQsSWyWVY8Sj3JoGL4t03bC5L3pRWe7Pt9yWQ4RWur8zgSc-CwqjKLwq1KjqLD82wRPcr8IeDGb8UBv5RtTE59AHUBIi8Q8buHQz/s1600/IMG_6647.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQkKrmQ17P1rWRUH8tHqGy3PJHrA30iV4pqoos71jbnQsSWyWVY8Sj3JoGL4t03bC5L3pRWe7Pt9yWQ4RWur8zgSc-CwqjKLwq1KjqLD82wRPcr8IeDGb8UBv5RtTE59AHUBIi8Q8buHQz/s400/IMG_6647.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oooooh.... hokey kokey kokey!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">For the street children we had parties at a local Christian college to celebrate the end of the “school” year of activities. We had a sort of fair with lots of fun games, a football match and a meal. The “Projet reflets d’esperance” is continuing with a young missionary couple and lots of Chadian volunteers from local churches. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW2VMkbSsqX1y0mal8OQvqCL2K1PJA6PKfb_njaomCnjj4kLDevqInFJRd6rPS619dH0urEELPu6S5dFdSKQVofWCLXge5UtO_ngvwflPij8G7Ju4DMK-YYIvCFMqKssxZy31AOxNeZC62/s1600/DSC06008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1066" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW2VMkbSsqX1y0mal8OQvqCL2K1PJA6PKfb_njaomCnjj4kLDevqInFJRd6rPS619dH0urEELPu6S5dFdSKQVofWCLXge5UtO_ngvwflPij8G7Ju4DMK-YYIvCFMqKssxZy31AOxNeZC62/s400/DSC06008.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colouring masks</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy4bipDluoTacsyuHskY7mjrg0jjFvbWSfgWl0mT2deXpMUTb8hbkt7WabK9aB3b7ymFbZl14Wklo4eb0OiMOny_jFQwog4KSKEAvqOphwLYmO7W-RhMRhPLnfh8xUMuT75Xk0qExNrs5k/s1600/DSC06053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1390" data-original-width="1600" height="347" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy4bipDluoTacsyuHskY7mjrg0jjFvbWSfgWl0mT2deXpMUTb8hbkt7WabK9aB3b7ymFbZl14Wklo4eb0OiMOny_jFQwog4KSKEAvqOphwLYmO7W-RhMRhPLnfh8xUMuT75Xk0qExNrs5k/s400/DSC06053.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing football</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">I also had to say good bye to the children in the
community that I had been playing with. These are the children of ladies that
Naomi knows but who aren’t interested in becoming part of the centre. It was
great to be able to play endless games of hokey cokey and have fun with them.
One of the ladies from the centre who lives in the area came out to play with
me a few times and suggested that she might continue. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlTeGpU4u0ATMJ7QF4Z8brkHWn3g_MRO9qrVliJCPllbSErMqoWzzQ_GFyAlVWIwugB3MvGYbf7tNgMXuBhNHwFJFLCVnj3nMYAndcR8AXLHL6KvAL6kpiUN4oiuOVAl2rb4qdLLzvrmug/s1600/P1030338.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlTeGpU4u0ATMJ7QF4Z8brkHWn3g_MRO9qrVliJCPllbSErMqoWzzQ_GFyAlVWIwugB3MvGYbf7tNgMXuBhNHwFJFLCVnj3nMYAndcR8AXLHL6KvAL6kpiUN4oiuOVAl2rb4qdLLzvrmug/s320/P1030338.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing with the children</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">My French flatmates and neighbours all left before me
so I had to say good bye to them all gradually. We had some good last times
together including this day out with Prudence, a Chadian lady who lived on our
compound for a while and wanted to take us all to a themepark which was quite
broken down and eerie. I also had to say good bye to all my missionary friends
and colleagues from TEAM who have supported and helped me in many ways during
this year. Before my neighbours left we also visited our Chadian neighbours
together to say good bye. It has been lovely sharing this year with all my different
friends and I miss them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKKxvdK2sA1Jr1W8VAwzvtIWSt28owHGHTSEId9rO-xomFrJUb7vd8vAKPhr7aHH8A4ffuK73yQucpyxDLhLC807wK1pcWv4y_Wxc6OTdnEp5LZxcQ3JeRzytBJpf8x17ZWm7mSR2UoEiG/s1600/IMG_4238.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKKxvdK2sA1Jr1W8VAwzvtIWSt28owHGHTSEId9rO-xomFrJUb7vd8vAKPhr7aHH8A4ffuK73yQucpyxDLhLC807wK1pcWv4y_Wxc6OTdnEp5LZxcQ3JeRzytBJpf8x17ZWm7mSR2UoEiG/s400/IMG_4238.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the theme park</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">It was difficult to say good bye
to my choir and all my friends at church. Lucile and I wanted to visit as many
choir members as possible before leaving and were able to spend a number of
good days with friends in different areas of N’djamena. We also had a special
meal after one of our practices to say good bye. I have really enjoyed being
part of the choir and the church and making lots of good friends. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXhnXjDb22QEhBx5TurMEr9R6mPDGLDByRzD1rTBNKh8MxnnV7Jy_mcSijQt3J3mh_gitTdetsjNjhVfEoSxO3Tsn8MtPcegX4rRH3OOPPZGT1UlxG9fqel3Og0JrA_hjXwkNQYI6UXuW/s1600/DSC08074.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXhnXjDb22QEhBx5TurMEr9R6mPDGLDByRzD1rTBNKh8MxnnV7Jy_mcSijQt3J3mh_gitTdetsjNjhVfEoSxO3Tsn8MtPcegX4rRH3OOPPZGT1UlxG9fqel3Og0JrA_hjXwkNQYI6UXuW/s640/DSC08074.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My choir and below a video of us singing during the offering at church</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzCn-qs7mfJeQnUBu4gIBlYvPTmp1NNCGOZCzP8nVF-rvkkZBYA6iG7a-yiDPf13YyG9wPE_QQQPliO5kOE3g' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">The hardest thing I had to do by far was say good bye to all the ladies at the centre.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has been a privilege to get to know them, to be able to visit and spend time with them and to be encouraged by what God has done to totally transform their lives. They are amazing women and I have been inspired by their faith and strength in the face of all they have gone and are going through. </span></div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKy3_SP3qmNgH4Ol6-P6Cw3xw4Oz6OnuV1yrl87Xj6jMnqUsv1N_0SK7Rc7kF5sZBSaB3Vs0nTUPxh9nv_emKusinh09MSldjIts82UWe2S1kAISI_6pUg12obK_AwR7WyySNNLNA60urj/s1600/P1030189.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="635" data-original-width="1600" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKy3_SP3qmNgH4Ol6-P6Cw3xw4Oz6OnuV1yrl87Xj6jMnqUsv1N_0SK7Rc7kF5sZBSaB3Vs0nTUPxh9nv_emKusinh09MSldjIts82UWe2S1kAISI_6pUg12obK_AwR7WyySNNLNA60urj/s640/P1030189.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Learning how to sew at the centre</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXU0nBHLGLqPXXPGW37kxRtEGOuHmNchT15cwovAI9IFrgjBgdeYdCgpa_XemeDi_TTKwXtz5lrPbR8EDKndTXdyAl4fXBEUipgfWWJnqoy7SGHgSkpaRZaZBHKArZZ9Rd7iO8Qby9heEw/s1600/P1030153.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXU0nBHLGLqPXXPGW37kxRtEGOuHmNchT15cwovAI9IFrgjBgdeYdCgpa_XemeDi_TTKwXtz5lrPbR8EDKndTXdyAl4fXBEUipgfWWJnqoy7SGHgSkpaRZaZBHKArZZ9Rd7iO8Qby9heEw/s320/P1030153.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Telling Bible stories to the second group</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmaKrhNMm8gYlLG9VDil74ieO5Njgj74i_3hHKrOobdHe_OOiWFsLG1dV4hO2SghzNHIPDpGm6BwL1q6_Gdu0MiG49pRgiq4VV7u3FvLQUgKOGQOz5RXZeqLaP1uOwW-O_4DyNUiXLWMsS/s1600/IMG_20170712_165904171.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1026" data-original-width="1600" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmaKrhNMm8gYlLG9VDil74ieO5Njgj74i_3hHKrOobdHe_OOiWFsLG1dV4hO2SghzNHIPDpGm6BwL1q6_Gdu0MiG49pRgiq4VV7u3FvLQUgKOGQOz5RXZeqLaP1uOwW-O_4DyNUiXLWMsS/s320/IMG_20170712_165904171.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eating cake on my last afternoon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3QcCEsikBCrdP8ZDiB1QjpV6702tP2LuSqjOJYS5h9uFqE1FUf62tAXYXfKBxS4TLTjnkbwjrLiKg7EadilMWTEbmZKJhjJdkk9k0i_TWkUyBF9gv9cyzNnGaTbqBJA9U5I526p5r7oBI/s1600/P1030352.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3QcCEsikBCrdP8ZDiB1QjpV6702tP2LuSqjOJYS5h9uFqE1FUf62tAXYXfKBxS4TLTjnkbwjrLiKg7EadilMWTEbmZKJhjJdkk9k0i_TWkUyBF9gv9cyzNnGaTbqBJA9U5I526p5r7oBI/s320/P1030352.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the ladies making jewellery at her house</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">The project
is of course continuing with Naomi Duff, Annie Wilson and Anne Hoyt. The ladies
in the second group that I mentioned in my last blog have now finished the 3
month rehabilitation course and are in the process of joining the 1<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">st</span></sup>
group making Acacia products. I’m missing the calm afternoons at Acacia, making
things, doing Bible studies and chatting together. It was very hard to say good
bye to my friends and leave the Acacia project.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">So now I am back in the UK. I am spending the summer
with my parents and sister, going on holiday, visiting family and also lots of
churches around the UK to speak about the work in Chad. In about a months’ time
I will be starting medical school at King’s College London and beginning a new
chapter in my life. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkznVTCavtMYiuQCC7R0gqAOFyWTT1BTee7rrfdOIeucnudiCfXKSwO24_Gg71o3K0UeeiiveLf52MjDS4h-eQbfxMbY9aftETwjGrs16K-X7hojyZahn3aN5FOPmR6HkF9XMzk_Yb0647/s1600/IMG_20170721_111326.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkznVTCavtMYiuQCC7R0gqAOFyWTT1BTee7rrfdOIeucnudiCfXKSwO24_Gg71o3K0UeeiiveLf52MjDS4h-eQbfxMbY9aftETwjGrs16K-X7hojyZahn3aN5FOPmR6HkF9XMzk_Yb0647/s400/IMG_20170721_111326.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready for King's with my "3 bananas" which Elizabeth plaited before I left!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">I am sad to have left Chad, it feels more like home
than England sometimes. This last year in particular has been an amazing
opportunity to get to know Chad better and have the time to make good Chadian
friends. It’s been a great experience to be able to be part of all the
different ministries especially the Acacia project. I am very glad to have been
able to get to know the ladies and see what God has done in their lives. I just
want to take this opportunity to say thank you to everyone who has followed my
blogs, thank you for your support and prayers which have made this year possible.
<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "maiandra gd" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Rebecca</span></div>
</div>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-80823650058659889502017-06-07T21:22:00.000+01:002017-06-07T21:22:49.732+01:00Une semaine à Moursal (continued)<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Thursday<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipEEdd9M9RjoAPzrLajxd2ywGwP-ZuffQRwYB9x_p33UMCPDuxco8ds_zUTEXVPHvOmfWWVsNfBB5y3YFvLoWWIJDRVe23u2eb_zU7-cM5N2Kup7gruJOcflPdk8MS5BAR1dnNFM26bQU6/s1600/IMG_3932+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipEEdd9M9RjoAPzrLajxd2ywGwP-ZuffQRwYB9x_p33UMCPDuxco8ds_zUTEXVPHvOmfWWVsNfBB5y3YFvLoWWIJDRVe23u2eb_zU7-cM5N2Kup7gruJOcflPdk8MS5BAR1dnNFM26bQU6/s320/IMG_3932+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baking cakes with ladies in the second group on one of our days off</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On Thursday mornings
we are at the centre with the second group again. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We finish at about
midday and I have lunch with Ophelie before resting for a while or visiting
friends in the neighbourhood. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At 3.30 Lucile and I
walk to church again for choir practice. Sometimes we walk with Joy one of the
ladies from the first group at the centre who has joined the choir with us. On
Thursdays our practice lasts two hours and we learn and practice new songs for
Sunday. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Friday<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On Fridays we are at
the centre with the second group again. We tell a Bible story, have a tea break
and then have a lesson like on Tuesday. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Afterwards I have
lunch with my neighbours, Ophelie and Elizabeth again (she works at my
neighbours’ house on Fridays.)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyaibBhkO-8yXv3k3PYEYz0nMlPNKI1tI7b4uwY4dlL4V1WBsPfii-xzQNHFQC6qlf2SDiXj6-bOd5YaK89y6GB9Y02JFR28JIDMQV_J81go34oaQtYZmxh3ooCF-EN-tq6644MSy3arwX/s1600/blog+002+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyaibBhkO-8yXv3k3PYEYz0nMlPNKI1tI7b4uwY4dlL4V1WBsPfii-xzQNHFQC6qlf2SDiXj6-bOd5YaK89y6GB9Y02JFR28JIDMQV_J81go34oaQtYZmxh3ooCF-EN-tq6644MSy3arwX/s320/blog+002+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The TEAM compound</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the afternoon I get
the bus to a roundabout near Naomi and Annie’s house and they pick me up on the
way to our weekly prayer meeting at the TEAM compound. At the start of the year
I used to take the bus all the way there but there isn’t a direct route so you
have to go to the central market and wait there for a bus to fill up before it
takes you to the other side of town. I have waited between 5 and 40 minutes and
there is no way to know how full the bus will be when you get there. Even on a
good day the journey from my house to TEAM takes about an hour so I am very
happy to be able to get a lift and take a more direct route! At the TEAM
compound all the TEAM missionaries currently in town meet and we all share
about our past week and pray for each other. It’s good to meet different people
and spend time sharing and speaking in <o:p></o:p></div>
English! By the time we finish it is
dark (in Chad sunset time varies between half 5 and half 6, it's always very strange when we go back to England in the summer!) and so I get a lift home. <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Saturday<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM85dGmoLxtR4OMiILGNLtRgtAtAFRTIqX6mLeXkl0UuSz_855YJEI4oqiecrvFLE3rIeQKFtVwH02uFfzMg-77zogD0nxH2q-SMAzohedytHs1SavHyhrls1G77n0wv0xbv1Hw7D2x9CR/s1600/209_9511+-+Copy+%2528576x1024%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="576" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM85dGmoLxtR4OMiILGNLtRgtAtAFRTIqX6mLeXkl0UuSz_855YJEI4oqiecrvFLE3rIeQKFtVwH02uFfzMg-77zogD0nxH2q-SMAzohedytHs1SavHyhrls1G77n0wv0xbv1Hw7D2x9CR/s400/209_9511+-+Copy+%2528576x1024%2529.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At one of ladies' houses</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On Saturday mornings I
get to sleep a bit longer! Since I have got back from Abeché I have been visiting
the ladies from the first group at the centre on Saturday mornings as Naomi has
less time to spend with them. So far it has been really good, we spend time
chatting and getting to know each other. At one ladies house we made pancakes
together, at another we looked at photos from her past, at another’s I spent a
long time playing with her lovely children. They all (apart from Elizabeth)
live quite close to my house. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At about lunch time I
head home and have a short break or go to market to do some shopping! At 3:30 I
walk to choir practice with Lucile. On Saturdays we have our longest practice
which lasts 3 hours (or more…). We go over the songs for Sunday and practice
them with the musicians (the church has a keyboard, a couple of electric
guitars, a bass and a drum kit) and microphones. We also work out the dance
moves for each song. About half way through we have a short meditation on a
bible passage and at the end we all pray for each other. I have really enjoyed
this part of choir. By the time we finish it is too dark for Lucile and I to
walk home by ourselves. At the start of the year we used to taxi but now we
walk with friends who live in the same direction. We can never quite predict
who is going to turn up at choir as people don’t always come very regularly but
it is good to be able to walk home with different people and get to know them. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Sunday<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b></b><br /><b></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On Sunday mornings
Lucile and I have to be at church for 7:30 to sing in the choir. It used to be
8 but because of the heat they have made the time earlier. We put on our
special blue and pink robes on top of our skirts and tops made from Chadian
material and sing as people slowly arrive. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqL9PfsjK0zpP7bphoefcBexcfbidZQQvkVbQTnMCAZUy1QGxaw7D0Jb6qEgYKvP07hPWDAGbvkqalbSTPaLlSMOTRjGyMNitaXlFfyUm7k_QKS6TWHbemcQKw7L96v3CSa6p-RC8u5dqR/s1600/IMG_4777+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqL9PfsjK0zpP7bphoefcBexcfbidZQQvkVbQTnMCAZUy1QGxaw7D0Jb6qEgYKvP07hPWDAGbvkqalbSTPaLlSMOTRjGyMNitaXlFfyUm7k_QKS6TWHbemcQKw7L96v3CSa6p-RC8u5dqR/s320/IMG_4777+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our choir</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Being late for church isn’t really a
problem (unless you’re in the choir) and people slowly turn up for about an
hour after the service starts. We sing the “praise” (joyful songs) we practiced
on Saturday then when enough people have arrived there is a special time for
“worship” (slower songs) with a time for open prayer. After that the secretary
gives the announcements, reminding us every Sunday when each different group in
the church meets and where. He also welcomes new members and visitors. After
that there is the reading and the sermon which can last anything between 20 and
40 minutes. Once a month when there is a second shorter service for communion
the service is translated into Nanjere (they normally have a service after the
early French one) which obviously doubles the length of the sermon. After the
sermon we have the offering, the choir sings as row by row everybody walks or
dances up to the front to give their offering. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When we have the “twinned”
service in two languages there is a second choir. Often during the offering is
very lively and people come up to the front to dance a traditional shoulder
shaking dance! Then the secretary comes back to remind us any details that we
may have forgotten and we receive the final blessing. The choir sings as
everyone files out and then we all stand around and chat outside.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPgkpc_9X6XefCyQnT-CRZZvoOckfXeM_30roiLCjE3qy2z5XBGoaZZOi2QjPG8GNfnWh1bNhWPa5onKBZX_9DlbUP_kqA7WjTjbpHe9SR1O0iabbvgp_-6bvnw45DTOZ4_qNgfXFppd7f/s1600/church+-+Copy+%25282%2529+%25281024x541%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="541" data-original-width="1024" height="338" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPgkpc_9X6XefCyQnT-CRZZvoOckfXeM_30roiLCjE3qy2z5XBGoaZZOi2QjPG8GNfnWh1bNhWPa5onKBZX_9DlbUP_kqA7WjTjbpHe9SR1O0iabbvgp_-6bvnw45DTOZ4_qNgfXFppd7f/s640/church+-+Copy+%25282%2529+%25281024x541%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">People dancing during the offering</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Every other Sunday I
then go on to SIL where there is an International service in English organised
by missionaries. I go to help Annie sell our Acacia project soaps, cards and
bags after the service. Walking home I have to remember to lather on the sun
cream as it is about midday. I have lunch with my neighbours and then have the
afternoon to rest and/or visit friends in the neighbourhood and from choir. Although at the moment my Sunday afternoons
are being increasingly taken up by good bye parties as different missionaries
are leaving Chad. Our time here is coming to an end very quickly.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6CK8xuDSV-yv0ys3Rzxk0cpkGrlFJpLGTaNRiyRo8LWTk-knoFVezVvQuYVMAKORX5MIhA7r3qpu05kRyb4nfukST67nRU1bmGCMvNpYJRmy4ztdmqeNgET8o4UqD0ByZcHe0nQ5bH2H6/s1600/IMG_3916.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6CK8xuDSV-yv0ys3Rzxk0cpkGrlFJpLGTaNRiyRo8LWTk-knoFVezVvQuYVMAKORX5MIhA7r3qpu05kRyb4nfukST67nRU1bmGCMvNpYJRmy4ztdmqeNgET8o4UqD0ByZcHe0nQ5bH2H6/s640/IMG_3916.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Good bye party at the pool with other short termers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Every night Ophelie
and I close up the house, I go up to the balcony upstairs, put up my mosquito
net over my camp bed and fall asleep (if there is enough wind) to the sound of
dogs barking and the local bars. Most of the time I am so tired I don’t even
notice the noise. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-12509767213449108302017-05-20T12:51:00.000+01:002017-05-20T12:51:00.056+01:00Une semaine à Moursal<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Your alarm goes off at
6:20 and you think already? It’s only just got cool enough to sleep. But after
a few minutes you’re up, take down your mosquito net, walk down the stairs and
unlock your front door. The week has started.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRwztQpWIZgazq6oThHxv1spmSDPg4I1mN0x7fGDB7rATlGIRJcXSmpMC81hxrUDtOGhWf9-N-ia0OfIy_8oLBTvwqw_E6A4xvvZ8tdYiu2VfwPh-SFuRkj4XqnOGosPvXl-o47bJtPbyq/s1600/P1090500+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRwztQpWIZgazq6oThHxv1spmSDPg4I1mN0x7fGDB7rATlGIRJcXSmpMC81hxrUDtOGhWf9-N-ia0OfIy_8oLBTvwqw_E6A4xvvZ8tdYiu2VfwPh-SFuRkj4XqnOGosPvXl-o47bJtPbyq/s640/P1090500+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The terrace where I sleep with Ophelie, it's much cooler outside though quite noisy sometimes!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">A few weeks ago I
wrote a blog about what I do during a week. It ended up being very long so I
have split it into three parts; here is the first part of “a week in Moursal”
(the area of town where I live). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Monday<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFRYGp_Rjy8az90otengp0KoC5KYAQP_CKF0bL5MbP8ZYCIVUhXue0xys3gpKp_UXRyMVHgq6Q1Jd-TMHmoune980RYARA6JccNasCy00V4VyxSJ3SRtSL1WztRqHyMfNwNhhoja51n_SC/s1600/P1090502+%2528768x1024%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFRYGp_Rjy8az90otengp0KoC5KYAQP_CKF0bL5MbP8ZYCIVUhXue0xys3gpKp_UXRyMVHgq6Q1Jd-TMHmoune980RYARA6JccNasCy00V4VyxSJ3SRtSL1WztRqHyMfNwNhhoja51n_SC/s320/P1090502+%2528768x1024%2529.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The balls and lessons</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My week starts at 8
o’clock when I go out to play with children in the neighbourhood. These are children of the vulnerable women
who we are trying to reach who haven’t taken part in the program. The children
go to school every other day and otherwise they just play by themselves. They
are always very excited when I come (shouting Naomi, I hope that in a few weeks
it will be Rebecca!). They love playing
duck duck goose, singing He’s got the whole world in his hands and are very
keen to teach me Head Shoulders Knees and Toes in Gumbaye, the most common
language in the South of Chad. A new favourite which I have just taught them is
the Hokey Kokey; they never know when to stop going ooohhhhh!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I play just outside of
the house of Lisa*, one of the ladies who is in the new group at the Acacia
centre. She is very lively and plays with us she often has more energy than the
children! After we have played for about an hour, Lisa and I walk to my house
and I have a lesson with Lisa. I have just started teaching her how to read and
write. She speaks French well and knows the alphabet as well as a few simple
sounds. I’m doing my best to help her be able to read. It’s not easy but she is
very willing to learn. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">After that I sometimes
go on to visit Lisa and Sarah*, the two ladies in the new program but if not I
head home to rest and read a bit! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Around 11 O’clock Elizabeth* one of the ladies
from the first group at the centre comes to sweep and get rid of all the dust
that accumulates in one week. We quite
often chat for a bit first and drink cold water together. It takes her about an
hour to come from her house, walking and then taking public transport which in
the 40 degree heat is tiring in itself! Elizabeth has been working in our two
flats for the past few months, she comes three days a week to clean and cook. As
at the beginning of the year I was at home most mornings so we have become good
friends. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Then at about 12.30
Ophelie, my house mate comes in from her morning activities with street
children and we have lunch which could be fried sweet potatoes bought from the
lady across the street or a sandwich with French bread. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I spend the afternoon
at the centre with the first group, getting in at about 6.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM6xwwHUIfuBJThDoWzNdTrp4w-KhtGmk8efSDBM77jyHkDKSTDPeC_csbcrvJ-q3VvkuBR54LCdFsCLNhgvzxGVZzgorC9J7NiMtuzetkABw9FNPa_hSSfxbsb3c9l0qWj0JBWtS1IneZ/s1600/beignets-tchadiens-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM6xwwHUIfuBJThDoWzNdTrp4w-KhtGmk8efSDBM77jyHkDKSTDPeC_csbcrvJ-q3VvkuBR54LCdFsCLNhgvzxGVZzgorC9J7NiMtuzetkABw9FNPa_hSSfxbsb3c9l0qWj0JBWtS1IneZ/s320/beignets-tchadiens-6.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Beignets, mmm....</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Tuesday<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The next day I am up
at 6:20 again! We have breakfast- obligatory coffee and French bread with
peanut butter and laughing cow cheese- a great combination or marmite.
Sometimes we have beignets which are kind of like unsweet small doughnuts which
we buy from a lady across the street.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">All morning we are at
the centre with the second group.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Once we have finished
(how long we go on for changes every day), I go home and have lunch with my
neighbours, Ophelie and Elizabeth. Elizabeth cleans our flat
on Tuesdays and then cooks Chadian food, boule (a paste a bit like playdough
made with rice/ maize flour and water) or rice and sauce for us. My favourite
sauce is peanut butter sauce with beef. We eat sat on a mat outside as it is
supposedly cooler.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNa3FBlIbpqFn7CmvO6YktHTAq8QGwI3Qz-ZTBzoUa_fpJmWqs-L7FYeLL_S9ZLOhaze6pWtdiJ1heyyZKWTxFUW05PDIbBfG0eexn73S-re6PsvVY7dbarQjUYkcfg-WQK366JbKQU7GE/s1600/IMG_2997+%2528774x1024%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNa3FBlIbpqFn7CmvO6YktHTAq8QGwI3Qz-ZTBzoUa_fpJmWqs-L7FYeLL_S9ZLOhaze6pWtdiJ1heyyZKWTxFUW05PDIbBfG0eexn73S-re6PsvVY7dbarQjUYkcfg-WQK366JbKQU7GE/s320/IMG_2997+%2528774x1024%2529.jpg" width="241" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Eating boule and sauce with Elizabeth, my flatmates and one of my flat mate's brothers</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At 2:30 every two
weeks, Laure (a Belgian missionary who works with street children) comes by and
picks Lucile (one of my French neighbours) and me up to go to an orphanage
where we organise a club for about 10 3-5 year olds. The orphanage is quite
small and was set up by a Chadian Christian who basically started welcoming
orphans and abandoned children. The children (like all children) need love and
often the youngest ones don’t get much input. We tell them a bible story, do an
activity and sing songs with them. For the past few months we have been talking
about how we are all precious in God’s eyes based on Isaiah 49:15-16 : </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: #fdfeff; color: #001320; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Can a mother forget the baby at her breast</span></span></div>
<div class="line2" style="background-color: #fdfeff; color: #001320; font-size: 16px; padding: 0px 25px 0px 50px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">and have no compassion on the child she has borne?</span></div>
<div class="line1" style="background-color: #fdfeff; color: #001320; font-size: 16px; padding: 0px 25px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Though she may forget,</span></div>
<div class="line1" style="background-color: #fdfeff; color: #001320; font-size: 16px; padding: 0px 25px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I will not forget you!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #fdfeff; color: #001320; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands</span>. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It's good
fun and it will be hard to leave these children.</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwsuF2d8yhyObtOf7aD4C0C2z0pPFNHusTAXoNj_r2K2HzKR61gW8P-ns7FkPxa05eNABr_ebvPP9AnOm-pQZxViKgE861NDAIiwDNkM59kCkC5T0LZZKhUUx6HaREXKuXrHQc-9cUzkKu/s1600/IMG_3770+%25281024x683%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwsuF2d8yhyObtOf7aD4C0C2z0pPFNHusTAXoNj_r2K2HzKR61gW8P-ns7FkPxa05eNABr_ebvPP9AnOm-pQZxViKgE861NDAIiwDNkM59kCkC5T0LZZKhUUx6HaREXKuXrHQc-9cUzkKu/s400/IMG_3770+%25281024x683%2529.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Playing a game at the orphanage</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">On Tuesdays when we
don’t go to the orphanage, Lucile and I are trying to visit different friends
from our choir. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At 4:30 we take a bus
either from home or the orphanage to our church for choir practice. On Tuesdays
we only have one hour during which we are meant to practice songs for the album
which we are preparing. Most of the songs are in Nanjere (the language of the
church) which is proving interesting especially for Lucile who has been asked
to sing a solo! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We walk home after
choir as it is still light and get in at about half 6. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Wednesday<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">On Wednesday’s I get
up at 6:20 and actually leave the house with Ophelie to go to work! I help out
with the street children project on Wednesday mornings. We take a taxi to a
church in a different area of town. We start by chatting and saying hello to
all the children waiting outside. Then we pray together as a team before
starting the activity. We have a team of 9 including missionaries and short
termers working with the project as well as Chadian volunteers. We welcome
about 30 children and give them water. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAMI2IYgv1GrxxV168Y2QIxYlyA7gtxebUgYj9pUHJenPrhLKh1fmrSZ8yM_sizfOG4RnFghxlenyVq0nITyhlIzJxhGTNLVrNmDxjvyhud2nFJLwf4kVvB5YxSsYQj-y_6EVWfMrr90wN/s1600/IMG_3848+%25281024x683%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAMI2IYgv1GrxxV168Y2QIxYlyA7gtxebUgYj9pUHJenPrhLKh1fmrSZ8yM_sizfOG4RnFghxlenyVq0nITyhlIzJxhGTNLVrNmDxjvyhud2nFJLwf4kVvB5YxSsYQj-y_6EVWfMrr90wN/s400/IMG_3848+%25281024x683%2529.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">An activity</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We each take it in
turns to tell the bible stories (using the same books as the centre) in French
translated into Arabic and then we have a short lesson. We are teaching them to
read and write in Arabic but using roman script. After the lesson they have a
small page of exercises to complete before they wash their hands and get
tickets which they can exchange for a meal with a lady who has a road side
restaurant. It is often fun with the children and a good opportunity to improve
my Arabic but it is also quite sad as they lead very difficult and dangerous
lives in the streets and are addicted to drugs, glue and alcohol. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">After the activity
Ophelie and I take the bus home. At 11 I have another lesson with Lisa then a
lesson with Sarah who I am also helping to read and write. And I just about
have enough to time to have lunch before I have to be at the centre again with
the second group. We finish at about 6. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Once home I have time
to rest. Ophelie and I cook tea, sometimes chat to our neighbours about the day
and spend the evening either resting or preparing things for the rest of the
week which I’ll tell you about in my next blog!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">*Names have been changed to protect identity.</span></div>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-8057813763565589972017-05-07T20:29:00.000+01:002017-05-07T20:37:23.627+01:00Acacia<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">For the past month I
have been back in N’djamena, doing the work I am actually meant to be doing
during my gap year! Work at the centre has changed quite a lot during my
absence as a new group of women has started doing the rehabilitation course. To
give you a better idea of what goes on, I have decided to take you through a
week at the Acacia centre. Over the next few weeks I’ll also tell you about other things I do during the week. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3X1SVa8V3PolfTwKSpT4wmuOM7wD1_cbkn0Pp5PDnL4vcoyh5BmrJH8H2u0xvlTNuSlmmG3I67Fwe4qurxHTKrI2Cbndo6_JUPVY7lRr-HoIt51y-zirwq9Z3dn-0kQZxrWPxFdSZ-EPC/s1600/DSCF0004+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3X1SVa8V3PolfTwKSpT4wmuOM7wD1_cbkn0Pp5PDnL4vcoyh5BmrJH8H2u0xvlTNuSlmmG3I67Fwe4qurxHTKrI2Cbndo6_JUPVY7lRr-HoIt51y-zirwq9Z3dn-0kQZxrWPxFdSZ-EPC/s400/DSCF0004+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In front of the centre</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The week’s work at the
Acacia centre starts at about 1:30 on Monday afternoon. All five women from the
first rehabilitation course come to spend the afternoon making soap, bags and
cards.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU01yLb6Hw9l7UKlxNitA5rRmXOE_8fBAbmGeA6jJdBhjSgAJKj3CBNedLToYdQ1db_A-_DB82yT1412Z0D2Tt-qturVkQQ2yVrD5bgt0ffYXamw7S0RKrla376k8TNY3O8hewFTGhljdP/s1600/DSCF0010+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU01yLb6Hw9l7UKlxNitA5rRmXOE_8fBAbmGeA6jJdBhjSgAJKj3CBNedLToYdQ1db_A-_DB82yT1412Z0D2Tt-qturVkQQ2yVrD5bgt0ffYXamw7S0RKrla376k8TNY3O8hewFTGhljdP/s400/DSCF0010+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soap in moulds and our buckets</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The centre is actually in the same building as
my flat (I really have to travel far to go to work- a 30 second walk!). On
Mondays we generally start by cleaning the buckets and things which we used to
make soap the Wednesday before. One lady is always there on time so I mostly
help her as she sets things up and measures the oils and lye for the soap. We
mix the lye with water and then have to leave it to cool all afternoon as it
gets very hot. Naomi (a Northern Irish missionary who set up the vulnerable
women’s ministry) and Annie (an American missionary who also works as a sports
teacher at a local high school) and the other 4 ladies from the first group slowly
arrive, some of them have work in the morning and finish late so they aren’t
always on time. </span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Now that the first
group have finished the initial course we mostly do practical things so they
can support their families. Lately we have had quite a few orders for cards so
we have been busy making sure we have enough of each type. Each order is
slightly different, but thankfully Annie is there to sort everything out! We
often sit and make cards all afternoon, each lady cutting out different animals
from the scraps of African fabric and sticking them onto cards. I get to do
mundane jobs like sticking stickers on the back of the cards or cutting out the
“greetings from chad” messages.</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQscbw6JtG5r6mkjz2iQfmbeFYbPjKOPG2zL8qEewuzVasFTuMDWqxBF0wl7Snd_8iWVDNyvOz0f8KLwawu_EjpFpxxuADlEmf8C-tU9PaoQkiyKNphj4i6FehXRqfTkX8f8aiJh-sJQOY/s1600/IMG_20161219_162115985+%25281024x576%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQscbw6JtG5r6mkjz2iQfmbeFYbPjKOPG2zL8qEewuzVasFTuMDWqxBF0wl7Snd_8iWVDNyvOz0f8KLwawu_EjpFpxxuADlEmf8C-tU9PaoQkiyKNphj4i6FehXRqfTkX8f8aiJh-sJQOY/s640/IMG_20161219_162115985+%25281024x576%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cards</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">It’s generally a nice
“safe” place to be. We chat about everything and sometimes listen to music. At
five we all get up and make the soap mixing the oils with the lye and pouring
it into moulds. Then we tidy up, fold away the mat and everyone goes home. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-_CwPcwPnRXL_X18JsaBOLe57kFUPUFzF-uw9IcTapqx2kX7xwqhUbVYFoBLa5PeSd5s68XxPjczQ7tqYUdM9rXALmoESoGhem_HGYOeVZ8GFHzKeA-s9SzF8hzj_Ss4jjHKX2Q5szY3/s1600/DSCF0011+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-_CwPcwPnRXL_X18JsaBOLe57kFUPUFzF-uw9IcTapqx2kX7xwqhUbVYFoBLa5PeSd5s68XxPjczQ7tqYUdM9rXALmoESoGhem_HGYOeVZ8GFHzKeA-s9SzF8hzj_Ss4jjHKX2Q5szY3/s400/DSCF0011+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inside the centre</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">At 8 o’clock on
Tuesday Naomi and I are back at the centre (Annie joins us later after school).
We have a lesson with the second group. There were originally 3 ladies in the
group; they started their three month rehabilitation course at the beginning of
March. Since I have come back from Abeché the already small group has been
reduced to 2 ladies. They generally arrive on time and we start with a Bible
Story which I tell using big story books made by WEC, a missionary society. We
have just finished going through the story of Moses and the Israelites going to
the Promised Land and have started on the gospels and Jesus’ ministry. I read
through the story then we go through it together and discuss what it teaches us
about God. Then we have time to share prayer requests and pray before we have a
short tea break. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Annie generally turns
up about then and we do some “sport”: stretches to wake ourselves up before
Naomi teaches the lesson of the day. Naomi is teaching the three month
rehabilitation and counselling program which goes through varied and essential
subjects to help the women gain life skills. We have talked about our value in
God, limits, truth, forgiveness and many other subjects. Anne (an Australian
missionary) has been helping her but has just gone on a break for a few weeks.
I help where I can and read Bible passages. We go on until one o’clock in the
afternoon.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi18DrAmE7EQC1jOIKactf9Sb43TsjBsOXtoo8LT7IvMoeqKQ7ldJQj2VEwYme6Sbf2ZBm_QbL8QrJK4gbNipsxONOmfnN9Eggl5jgL5eBbkaXeNJigyBFvTk_KwB-z8qVvCRBa8WJNoyZf/s1600/DSCF0007+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi18DrAmE7EQC1jOIKactf9Sb43TsjBsOXtoo8LT7IvMoeqKQ7ldJQj2VEwYme6Sbf2ZBm_QbL8QrJK4gbNipsxONOmfnN9Eggl5jgL5eBbkaXeNJigyBFvTk_KwB-z8qVvCRBa8WJNoyZf/s320/DSCF0007+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soap drying</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">On Wednesdays we meet
again in the afternoon with the second group.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">We tend to do pretty
much the same things as on Mondays, cleaning the soap buckets, measuring oil…
We also have to cut out labels and cloth to label the soaps after they have
dried for 6 weeks so that they are ready to be sold. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">We also make bags. The
ladies are mostly able to make the bags at home now so all we do at the centre
is cut up the cloth. </span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbk87N-WbqUFHua5fwdrhsgRbUGmfrVWTiMMVFYO9QbduhpVLrwOXY8S3-kUPAPpOEtwMvotpzSjhF3Z3AGFnbxmyqBXH64KL-GOXDb8Ve1oeI1tdFUybowZsUEnAN9O9rkq_ugHmmWUJw/s1600/IMG_20161219_170413492+%25281024x576%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbk87N-WbqUFHua5fwdrhsgRbUGmfrVWTiMMVFYO9QbduhpVLrwOXY8S3-kUPAPpOEtwMvotpzSjhF3Z3AGFnbxmyqBXH64KL-GOXDb8Ve1oeI1tdFUybowZsUEnAN9O9rkq_ugHmmWUJw/s320/IMG_20161219_170413492+%25281024x576%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Using the new sewing machine</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Lately they have also been making bags at the centre using
our 2 new sewing machines. Rebecca (a lady from our old church who used to cook
for our family at Guinebor) is also a seamstress and has been teaching the
ladies how to use the machines. Some like it more than others but they all seem
to be doing pretty well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On Wednesday’s
Naomi or Anne also do a short Bible study with the ladies. At the moment we are
studying Ephesians. We hope that these ladies will share their experiences with
those around them and that they one day may be able to run the centre by
themselves. After the study we make soap again and finish at about 6. </span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw0DEi3WykuRvYz-uAG7iKXJBW8p_xN1C3iaFeWQqZQ0fVrOd2VpYMjSxzqYpLdBpxQbvBthVeoE27aVBNuxseIzMxQwvTbnAeLDiNbqSwwzZP5HOh5Cw60TyiSv8C6RUdWmzQMk5WALGC/s1600/DSCF8006+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw0DEi3WykuRvYz-uAG7iKXJBW8p_xN1C3iaFeWQqZQ0fVrOd2VpYMjSxzqYpLdBpxQbvBthVeoE27aVBNuxseIzMxQwvTbnAeLDiNbqSwwzZP5HOh5Cw60TyiSv8C6RUdWmzQMk5WALGC/s320/DSCF8006+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bracelet made with you-yous</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">On Thursday mornings
we are at the centre with the second group again. I tell the Bible story then we
do some crafts so that the ladies have time to go over and think through the
things Naomi talks about during the lessons. So far we have made jewellery
using homemade paper beads and small decorative flowers made from fabric which
we call you-yous. We have also started making cards as the idea is that in the
end this group will join the first one. In a few weeks’ time we are planning on
making candles. We have our tea break and chat and listen to music.<o:p></o:p></span></span>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic6P6glbjvoN1KO8liB3srawd60Yi-gbtjkC8KWbK5DVS0tOYC9vN5jLMObbf9JH1L2XdrSz9e9LvQbtZN9WaL7rFdmgHvIg36_ZyIYUmShSfJi3Bwd8DMLCPALtRWvYRT5zFMfgv4mMqq/s1600/Beignet_Haricots_1+%2528220x181%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic6P6glbjvoN1KO8liB3srawd60Yi-gbtjkC8KWbK5DVS0tOYC9vN5jLMObbf9JH1L2XdrSz9e9LvQbtZN9WaL7rFdmgHvIg36_ZyIYUmShSfJi3Bwd8DMLCPALtRWvYRT5zFMfgv4mMqq/s320/Beignet_Haricots_1+%2528220x181%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Woman making cossey</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">On Fridays we are at
the centre with the second group again. We tell a Bible story, have our tea
break for which I go with one of the ladies to get cossey from across the
street. Ccossey are deep fried doughnuts made with crushed beans which we eat
with a sauce made from chili peppers. Often when we go the lady has only just
started making them so we wait a while sat under a tree chatting and watching
everyone walk by. When we get back we eat, drink tea and chat together. After
the break and some sports or dancing we have a lesson like on Tuesdays. Around
midday we finish, wish each other a “bon weekend” and lock the doors. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The centre is quiet
for a couple of days.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHlfCl1cY4aCKcxIhpY1aznYNgs_IOwVgcYSYb9GWda1vPYE8VHBfFp_-qS5znWuyFKwGINuzEfkoTz99Nqii3N3ugW7P9c4g90db1-YPrS2SrUjsENW_qmpwD8EXhvBcfg9WqZ9ha3sIW/s1600/DSCF4005+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="99" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHlfCl1cY4aCKcxIhpY1aznYNgs_IOwVgcYSYb9GWda1vPYE8VHBfFp_-qS5znWuyFKwGINuzEfkoTz99Nqii3N3ugW7P9c4g90db1-YPrS2SrUjsENW_qmpwD8EXhvBcfg9WqZ9ha3sIW/s320/DSCF4005+%25281024x768%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You-yous</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-15704264087416857712017-04-02T21:17:00.003+01:002017-04-02T21:17:47.211+01:00Hi tihajji waheda?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span lang="FR">Est-ce qu’elle parle seule? </span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Does she talk by herself? <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You’re sitting on a
mat in a small church building. It’s 43 degrees outside and the pastor’s son
has just handed you a small glass of boiling hot, sugary tea. Opposite you a
man nods an affirmative response which for once doesn’t need translating. Sat
next to him a lady, probably his sister stares into space with wide eyes. Hmm…says
the doctor, then the cycle starts again, is she ever violent? Est-ce qu’elle
est violente? Hi tidawwis walla? </span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs-h6NREVQtz1SUsBYvFdtzbpKqLjbaCpAc1tpvzjiEYI0N3uN-zbqTNnDs6sI44PBKg3H_jiXLqZU07OZda59D7znT2hjZEJNse01dTmPXk1sdqNDOM6JFqkNv-n41ea6B6GwR2WSajwB/s1600/IMG_20170330_122942+%25281280x720%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs-h6NREVQtz1SUsBYvFdtzbpKqLjbaCpAc1tpvzjiEYI0N3uN-zbqTNnDs6sI44PBKg3H_jiXLqZU07OZda59D7znT2hjZEJNse01dTmPXk1sdqNDOM6JFqkNv-n41ea6B6GwR2WSajwB/s640/IMG_20170330_122942+%25281280x720%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Consulting</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For the past three
weeks I have been in Abeché, a city on the other side of Chad, not far from
Sudan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m here to help with translation
for a conference on psychiatry. Two American psychiatrists, Mary and Bryan, who
are working in Cameroon, were invited to Abeché to teach the MHGAP, a guide
created by the World Health Organisation to help people treat psychiatric
problems in areas with limited resources. </span></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"></span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrYT0Ivehtey9pIbiwj5IdGL220NEZAOw2ctjspumWwVi5daMSZkfEkmiEsXJkUIglDPnxdY4PVzR10Byw7-rBPu8VlFvyK4xDTLTjruV2zgVpkzqzjhbLDH651FZEMrQZTNSLEfpIeBqI/s1600/patients+waiting+%25281280x960%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrYT0Ivehtey9pIbiwj5IdGL220NEZAOw2ctjspumWwVi5daMSZkfEkmiEsXJkUIglDPnxdY4PVzR10Byw7-rBPu8VlFvyK4xDTLTjruV2zgVpkzqzjhbLDH651FZEMrQZTNSLEfpIeBqI/s400/patients+waiting+%25281280x960%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Patients waiting at the Health Centre</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Since August last
year, Ann Fursdon a British doctor working with AIM has been seeing mentally
ill patients in Abeché. She has been doing one day a week at a health centre
and one day at a local church, helped by Sarah, a surgeon from America. On the
first day there were 9 patients. Last Thursday, we saw 60. As her reputation has grown, more and more people
have been coming from all over Chad to receive care that isn’t really available
in any other place in the country. There is just one trained psychiatrist
working in Chad, at the central hospital in N’djamena and even he isn’t around
a lot of the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So Ann, having always
had an interest in psychiatry decided to start seeing patients, she has been
getting more and more people over the past 6 months, people who have been in
chains for the past 25 years, others who have been having untreated epileptic
fits for 10 years, children with developmental delay which their parents just
can’t understand… As more people have been coming Ann can’t cope with the
numbers and wants to help other Chadian doctors and nurses to know how to
provide this care. </span></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So she has organised this conference. </span></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNt7DBfQGl5A21SFj2VrIy5io35yFQVf4RsjOiQXHHQSuU2EKrzzrwYqRuk_coO0f9jfxj9XxAPPZZ-OzOklWMVoOWnx1zbdKjWTs6LZDLdjPr0rKfaIFwndE-eEGwCAjDPm-83nqxHB1U/s1600/IMG_0842+%2528960x1280%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNt7DBfQGl5A21SFj2VrIy5io35yFQVf4RsjOiQXHHQSuU2EKrzzrwYqRuk_coO0f9jfxj9XxAPPZZ-OzOklWMVoOWnx1zbdKjWTs6LZDLdjPr0rKfaIFwndE-eEGwCAjDPm-83nqxHB1U/s400/IMG_0842+%2528960x1280%2529.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Many patients are brought in in chains</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzV3DmhBARrxxB6XflKLmWnI-ikzdt926HCuoSG16QuvyCmHdBwDepRw16Br_dX2IJTvz5URQF1GJ0U7PGfctXznCcn3q1JyG-hc0v9rA9B4zUIY8aRkBD1G_Pgb1dUroIJ9SDLwBUXJvG/s1600/IMG_0839+%25281280x960%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzV3DmhBARrxxB6XflKLmWnI-ikzdt926HCuoSG16QuvyCmHdBwDepRw16Br_dX2IJTvz5URQF1GJ0U7PGfctXznCcn3q1JyG-hc0v9rA9B4zUIY8aRkBD1G_Pgb1dUroIJ9SDLwBUXJvG/s400/IMG_0839+%25281280x960%2529.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The church where Ann also consults</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">My parents happened to
hear about it while they were in N’djamena and mentioned it to me. I am
particularly interested in psychiatry and never imagined I’d be able to see
what providing psychiatric care is like in Chad. The conference was meant to
take place last week but a few days before the flight to Abeché, Ann rang me to
say that they had had to postpone it as the government had organised a
vaccination campaign that week which meant that most of the health care workers
that she had hoped would come would be busy. As our flights were booked we came
to Abeché anyway and for the past few weeks we have been seeing patients at the
two clinics, four days a week from 8 till 5. It’s been an amazing experience
through which I have learnt a lot. I have been translating from English (the
two American psychiatrists only speak English) into French and writing the
medical notes and others have been translating the French into Chadian Arabic
so that the patients can understand. Hence the three way conversations. My Arabic
vocabulary has improved a lot; yesterday when the other translator was busy I
was even able to translate a few consultations from English into Arabic. Though
I still make lots of mistakes, I have now extended my skills of greeting and
introducing myself to doing a short psychiatric consultation and telling people
how to take tablets in Arabic. Useful skills! <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvOOPM1WuksyHehgffGnKygk_iukGp3cnDLgQAf-Kdbg7Qnq-v-GwHlHUY44jlx14nIJx-XUkJPjB0KmwRyvorS7Pkp40biErK92V-nPWRPPT5BajGhQHSgyTzWDRIy5fLBSRIGum1ckaE/s1600/Snapshot_20170402_8+%2528640x480%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvOOPM1WuksyHehgffGnKygk_iukGp3cnDLgQAf-Kdbg7Qnq-v-GwHlHUY44jlx14nIJx-XUkJPjB0KmwRyvorS7Pkp40biErK92V-nPWRPPT5BajGhQHSgyTzWDRIy5fLBSRIGum1ckaE/s320/Snapshot_20170402_8+%2528640x480%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Henna!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Being in Abeché has
also allowed me to spend more time with Arab women, which I have really
enjoyed, it reminds me of Guinebor. I spent a couple of hours last Saturday visiting
Mariam, a lady who has been helping with translation at one of the clinics. We
drank sweet coffee, laughed at her three year old son and then I helped one of
her friends set up a face book account. It’s an interesting paradox; she was so
excited to eventually be “joining the world” that we had to entertain her baby!
Today, after the Arabic service at the church where we have been running the
clinics, Mariam invited Mary and I to have henna put on our hands (and feet for
Mary as she is married!). I have also been able to see the amazing Chadian
mountains and rocks again, I’m preparing for the next 3 and a half months in
flat N’djamena!<o:p></o:p></span></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzh7N8-T3YmPIVI597SLw9sRib3HM3Lcq028g_MTW79OkR9B5xRwAD2V9tStk_Uhb1ZT7gAR3Sf1NAbFc7WL3yvt8_y3ZHFcvGRFiu28xfAngqfb2_vwgVfymXLMUcz4Outi46vq0xgmcU/s1600/IMG_20170315_165443+%2528960x1280%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzh7N8-T3YmPIVI597SLw9sRib3HM3Lcq028g_MTW79OkR9B5xRwAD2V9tStk_Uhb1ZT7gAR3Sf1NAbFc7WL3yvt8_y3ZHFcvGRFiu28xfAngqfb2_vwgVfymXLMUcz4Outi46vq0xgmcU/s400/IMG_20170315_165443+%2528960x1280%2529.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Mariam and Mary after a day at the clinic</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It has been great to
be able to be here for a 3 weeks, even though it seemed frustrating to miss
even more time at the centre in N’djamena to start off with. I am very glad and
thankful that Naomi and Anne were able to spare me at this busy time, I will
write more about what’s happening when I get back. It has meant that Mary and
Bryan have been able to get an idea of the culture and the care that can be
provided before teaching and it has also meant we have been able to see and
then follow-up patients and I have seen how they get better. There was one lady
in particular who had been repeating the same phrase all day for 6 months. She
was insulting people, calling them dogs and donkeys nonstop. We saw her in the
first week and adjusted her medicine slightly, the second week she was no
better and so we changed it again and then last week I saw her waiting outside,
thought I recognised her and suddenly realised who she was. I hadn’t recognised
her because she was silent! She shook my hand and greeted me normally. Even
with limited resources it’s still possible to really help people!</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIwxwlHfl58d05cWlBeSdqObpLR6jvoP1zpxMRb_KrVPcvBTdDwCoN4oFhIkAIIr3_r2WpugSHp67O76kvEiEC7HMQ4fbC-hgirPvW0IN3yBINMah0dilAWIvQEy8Z6lMWNdcygy7sVGto/s1600/IMG_0606+%25281280x960%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIwxwlHfl58d05cWlBeSdqObpLR6jvoP1zpxMRb_KrVPcvBTdDwCoN4oFhIkAIIr3_r2WpugSHp67O76kvEiEC7HMQ4fbC-hgirPvW0IN3yBINMah0dilAWIvQEy8Z6lMWNdcygy7sVGto/s400/IMG_0606+%25281280x960%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A lady arriving at the church in a "rackshaw"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This experience had
made me even surer about wanting to study medicine next year which is good as whilst
I have been here I have also been hearing back from the different medical
schools that I applied to! I am very excited to have received offers from
Liverpool, Bristol and Edinburgh and am really hoping to hear from King’s soon!</span></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnExSuwjfKYKZEjL3mUwM21nnJRgbD-nn-YsGRBQ0CNEo_qSzBsM7FitiEhmJPvURFilIq5oGRYBUkbo9-s9WSqD5A25zR9-iTL3GBpqpJD9UNXBGaoeBnGkgU8UhxtwopXzgNnZ8TCCkg/s1600/IMG_20170329_143200+%2528720x1280%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnExSuwjfKYKZEjL3mUwM21nnJRgbD-nn-YsGRBQ0CNEo_qSzBsM7FitiEhmJPvURFilIq5oGRYBUkbo9-s9WSqD5A25zR9-iTL3GBpqpJD9UNXBGaoeBnGkgU8UhxtwopXzgNnZ8TCCkg/s400/IMG_20170329_143200+%2528720x1280%2529.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Counting medicines at the church</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Next week will be very
different, translating the lessons at the conference from English into French. We
did a practice run today, it is extremely tiring. We really hope that the nurses
and doctors taking part will understand, be interested and inspired to start
helping people with these problems themselves as Ann can’t do all the work by
herself. The course will be from Monday to Friday and then we have a 10 hour
coach trip back to N’djamena on Saturday, one day before Mary and Bryan’s visas
run out! It has been a brilliant opportunity, I’m really glad to have been able
to take part in this amazing work.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-29460327684546756162017-03-06T20:39:00.001+00:002017-03-07T19:34:18.213+00:002 coach trips, 44 train tickets and 4 flights<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-8Yo8tImR3duhQ94v9WaOsqqUHuq7rOpzltRhoIGhlZsFnr2vI955wD0FyWdGD-GMj3fq52B-rnrpUrPMvrmytwPyR2nM_-CIbBDdyqUJLqLRT7grsRnjvXKmyp6CET1j2fw6CYkSkGHf/s1600/WhatsApp+Image+2017-03-03+at+10.16.36.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Hi, I’m sorry for not
writing for a while it’s been a busy few months. I had a great Christmas ( it seems a very long time ago now) in N’djamena celebrating with my church, choir and flat mates. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQb4J2oUk5I_97rcG1i9DMvwbgCagjNsflYoQ7t06Coe1G0ObtLOldaG0WFbu3ACEauMTa6Sbu-0Ut5DUcylekXveL-Xv1MpYQWn6Djm4veGp6WJaUUBh8rS_-DaCvuelt9czFmMBrpLPR/s1600/IMG_2889+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQb4J2oUk5I_97rcG1i9DMvwbgCagjNsflYoQ7t06Coe1G0ObtLOldaG0WFbu3ACEauMTa6Sbu-0Ut5DUcylekXveL-Xv1MpYQWn6Djm4veGp6WJaUUBh8rS_-DaCvuelt9czFmMBrpLPR/s320/IMG_2889+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boxing day dinner with friends</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Over new year one of my flat mates brother’s came to visit and we all went to Am Timan to see my parents. We also got to go to Zakouma, Chad’s amazing safari park which is right next to Am Timan. It was brilliant, we got to see giraffes, lots of different deer, lions rather too close up, marabou storks, pelicans, the interesting secretary bird...</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT5A4Ut7SeBbYS20r85nnW6ti90XnB_o5m4yHvZL1RxSV2ickR47kEG4wT-9Y392annhyphenhyphenkRF3CH_yPqkExUqwya98tqE1ZP0W0BPg8qwbXhl3KzFUkvT_JDlO28Y-LSUioQFePgtZDd-4f/s1600/DSCF8386.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT5A4Ut7SeBbYS20r85nnW6ti90XnB_o5m4yHvZL1RxSV2ickR47kEG4wT-9Y392annhyphenhyphenkRF3CH_yPqkExUqwya98tqE1ZP0W0BPg8qwbXhl3KzFUkvT_JDlO28Y-LSUioQFePgtZDd-4f/s400/DSCF8386.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixjEASCx6iJl8pS5dEdSu-M0OAQut5BxhbhifjYH7VCUlqdvVSUuVrdogrWGsmuVeAwQo8nzWM7HO-Nzxsv5ZIGRhnQvwEDJA8_6ZZfVtjDbntmMeF4tqZhDgSDUFz0kFcPWz9_eaSGHbE/s1600/DSCF8429.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixjEASCx6iJl8pS5dEdSu-M0OAQut5BxhbhifjYH7VCUlqdvVSUuVrdogrWGsmuVeAwQo8nzWM7HO-Nzxsv5ZIGRhnQvwEDJA8_6ZZfVtjDbntmMeF4tqZhDgSDUFz0kFcPWz9_eaSGHbE/s400/DSCF8429.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></span><br />
<div style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCRZChybiLOg-FpHjiikMxPhaAjoNwPf_B1_Cx8DhurK76EqA5s_2PkLCmynpoEQoQgANxEfv2unVC19zsSwWuBi0DPyKxObHhzuxjBSPhzAVwr8MMi-ZWZN5BHaCuF-OwFvK2YQ43PFk_/s1600/DSCF8537.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCRZChybiLOg-FpHjiikMxPhaAjoNwPf_B1_Cx8DhurK76EqA5s_2PkLCmynpoEQoQgANxEfv2unVC19zsSwWuBi0DPyKxObHhzuxjBSPhzAVwr8MMi-ZWZN5BHaCuF-OwFvK2YQ43PFk_/s400/DSCF8537.JPG" width="400" /></a> </span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">
</span> </span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
It was also a fun experience
travelling as we took a Chadian coach. It was very nicely decorated on the
inside with blue and white curtains on the way there and on the way back red,
blue and yellow curtains to go with the Chadian flag. On board entertainment
was a lot of Arab music videos and some Chadian films which were quite interesting
though hard to follow as they were mostly in Arabic! <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiueXtBhOx8o-YxPvnezcMk4NOSLTZh5tJi4C5fSeRxWMjysFOyVqMAwQ6GThseD6UEW-Jji1FbkigwMhrjRnRVlaR1UYTdtPUey92Zl3QBk9UX-c89k_oT8zMOteDfZuGn1ZCpH-yhZuhS/s1600/IMG_2899+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiueXtBhOx8o-YxPvnezcMk4NOSLTZh5tJi4C5fSeRxWMjysFOyVqMAwQ6GThseD6UEW-Jji1FbkigwMhrjRnRVlaR1UYTdtPUey92Zl3QBk9UX-c89k_oT8zMOteDfZuGn1ZCpH-yhZuhS/s400/IMG_2899+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the bus- curtains in the background</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
When we got back to
N’djamena I just had 3 weeks left at the centre before I had to come back to
the UK to do my medical school interviews. As you would expect the time flew by
as I had to do some preparation, getting up to date on medical news and I
wanted to finish going over the translation of the Acacia project’s course. It
had been translated from English to French but Naomi asked me to take a look
and try and make the French more natural. I managed to get through all 21
lessons which are now ready for the new course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Whilst I was gone Naomi, Anne and Annie have been trying to find the
right women to join Acacia and take part in the new course. They started this
Thursday and I will be joining them tomorrow!</span> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaG2Hm1i1XjgxhEoXAtjVQkQMSzXTNDxpSSAjLfAdrJ06PpxoDowqnPkjzsnbQ0M9X9cDuQ_UXztSHLJfiNYfCl4pJLyMNYzr_R-uEYDf3U_-3mnsdKBsDubXDHdRySIZ3GxmPdqRG-rrX/s1600/WhatsApp+Image+2017-03-03+at+10.16.36.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaG2Hm1i1XjgxhEoXAtjVQkQMSzXTNDxpSSAjLfAdrJ06PpxoDowqnPkjzsnbQ0M9X9cDuQ_UXztSHLJfiNYfCl4pJLyMNYzr_R-uEYDf3U_-3mnsdKBsDubXDHdRySIZ3GxmPdqRG-rrX/s400/WhatsApp+Image+2017-03-03+at+10.16.36.jpeg" width="400" /></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I was in the UK
for about 6 weeks which is where the first two flights and the train tickets
come in (unfortunately there are no trains in Chad). I had to do quite a bit of
travelling as I had interviews at King’s College London, Liverpool and Bristol
and also visited Edinburgh ( I have applied there but they don’t do interviews
for medical school). On the whole I think they went well, it’s hard to tell but
hopefully I will hear back from them soon. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">So I travelled back to
N’djamena on Friday, it was a 7 hour flight to Ethiopia then a further 3 hours to
Chad. I’m glad to be back and happy that now my interviews are over I can
really concentrate on work with Acacia.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">So what will I be
doing now that I’m back in Chad?</span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHpr32uKYLHP2oB-mYbXrTescC3I1VEnlPIuS39gDW_Bj-sNxgWwzot_oMyAvgAeI-JSns7DYvMjppNm1Du9eakLGbD_JU2j4hJRTqC1BaqZpFE5o1l7to2YqU7rVbiuDyrFGZNi-fIf3_/s1600/IMG_20170120_105702.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHpr32uKYLHP2oB-mYbXrTescC3I1VEnlPIuS39gDW_Bj-sNxgWwzot_oMyAvgAeI-JSns7DYvMjppNm1Du9eakLGbD_JU2j4hJRTqC1BaqZpFE5o1l7to2YqU7rVbiuDyrFGZNi-fIf3_/s320/IMG_20170120_105702.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hilton soap drying</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Well I’m going to be
helping as much as I can with the new course which is three mornings a week
from 8 till 2. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Naomi has suggested that
I may be able to help with telling Bible Stories. Also as Naomi and Anne will
be busy preparing the teaching I will probably have more to do with Annie
running the more practical side of the centre making soaps, cards and bags. The
centre has been very busy recently as we have just got a contract with the
Hilton hotel in N’djamena. They want to use our soaps in the hotel and would
like us to make 2000 a month! We have got some special smaller moulds and more
of their chosen essential oil- lemongrass and when I left we had made our first
3 batches. It’s hard work making sure they all look perfect and trying to get
the soap into as many moulds as possible before it gets too thick- I’m sure
they have worked out some new techniques while I’ve been gone. I’m also
bringing back more lemongrass oil- it’s taking up 9 kilos of my luggage
allowance. It’s a brilliant opportunity for the centre as it will mean the
women have a regular income and publicity, we are very excited. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQdkGCNsFY5TDEZvUgyf4WI2SjSZTOXR-JcTDcQEkrvSNdOWvh3ZJMU1cLrcjElMwlAsTUsxE3D4sPqZAuvUUB5-JMFAtxA3rlHJ7bGX2KDx1r44WKPC1H22cATIbNLWXb322vIikeBFKH/s1600/IMG_20170120_105642.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQdkGCNsFY5TDEZvUgyf4WI2SjSZTOXR-JcTDcQEkrvSNdOWvh3ZJMU1cLrcjElMwlAsTUsxE3D4sPqZAuvUUB5-JMFAtxA3rlHJ7bGX2KDx1r44WKPC1H22cATIbNLWXb322vIikeBFKH/s320/IMG_20170120_105642.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our special Hilton moulds</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Just before leaving
for the UK I also got to visit some women in the community with Naomi and I spend
some time playing with their children. Now that I have been introduced to them
I will be able to go and play quite often. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I will also be back to
choir practice and helping with the street children project.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I’m also going
continue running a children’s club at an orphanage with a missionary friend and
one of my French neighbours. We have been doing it for a couple of months and
just before I left we worked on making it more structured, it’s good to be back
so I can take part in all that we planned. Our theme for the month was you are
precious. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBkGvpnDx_RJkuX6vXshuDmKvWyMZ643N1IEcp6pZybMShfbF8V4v09AN9akGoq20yAfaNhuEv0PYEp-MwQupRsNwCpL6Zh9Q9urzpCaidT0aiae6_TIytDZzWBhQ7s3gQx9pxfRzVwVFY/s1600/HAR10_Map_Chad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBkGvpnDx_RJkuX6vXshuDmKvWyMZ643N1IEcp6pZybMShfbF8V4v09AN9akGoq20yAfaNhuEv0PYEp-MwQupRsNwCpL6Zh9Q9urzpCaidT0aiae6_TIytDZzWBhQ7s3gQx9pxfRzVwVFY/s400/HAR10_Map_Chad.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Abeche is close to the border with Sudan</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Finally in a few weeks’
time I will be flying again, but this time in Chad. There is going to be a
course on psychiatry in Abeche a city on the other side of Chad. I am very
interested in psychiatry especially in developing countries. A missionary
doctor working in Abeche has invited 2 American psychiatrists who are living in
Cameroon to come to Chad to do a two week course. She has kindly allowed me to
take part and I will also be doing some translation work. It’s a shame it’s so
soon after I come back but is an amazing opportunity for me to gain experience.
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">So I’m back in Chad, it’s
nice to feel warm though today at 41 degrees it did feel like a bit too much!
It’s really good to be back with my friends at the centre, at the choir and at
home. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYaPnlmMEcNPihuIjQQ79kUYpnh283oTzl1H56NfxJbJTUD4GcYRZESepviaJet2dB_z7fjr6vLcNJSKs3WbpS50kciVSDLJYFOSTywFVjTdIy-JJp6rsex0YGVvCQKJXx2MAd0mQ_GcoX/s1600/IMG_20170106_153826.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYaPnlmMEcNPihuIjQQ79kUYpnh283oTzl1H56NfxJbJTUD4GcYRZESepviaJet2dB_z7fjr6vLcNJSKs3WbpS50kciVSDLJYFOSTywFVjTdIy-JJp6rsex0YGVvCQKJXx2MAd0mQ_GcoX/s400/IMG_20170106_153826.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Camel riding with my neighbours Lucile and Estelle, my flat mate Ophelie</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbuT_HQVUN-YIkgXBC3-iieLum3TXhZQT2JY12rKjd6Y9X4Xo5eEl8c-_UYTYiWcFQMJOqFvQuAR3J9o39MfCaAL16UbEts2FkPATqWlruRB6oERtA7EErW7_mDwDQNq4sa-Os4nDEs469/s1600/IMG_20170106_160037.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbuT_HQVUN-YIkgXBC3-iieLum3TXhZQT2JY12rKjd6Y9X4Xo5eEl8c-_UYTYiWcFQMJOqFvQuAR3J9o39MfCaAL16UbEts2FkPATqWlruRB6oERtA7EErW7_mDwDQNq4sa-Os4nDEs469/s400/IMG_20170106_160037.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And Lucile's brother!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-3112767025894163962016-12-11T16:42:00.001+00:002016-12-11T16:49:47.882+00:00Un, deux, trois et sing..<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Singing in a language
you don’t understand is interesting. A few weeks ago the Sunday evening prayer
group which I have joined with my neighbours decided to organise a trip to a
centre for street children. It has been set up by a Chadian pastor, Moise who
decided to start accepting boys who had nowhere to go into his home, his
project has since grown and he now has a centre which he runs with the help of
this wife. There are about 15 ex-street children who now live there full time.
Our prayer group hired one of the mini buses I wrote about in my last blog and
we all went to the centre to spend the day there. We prayed, sang, did a Bible
Study, played party games and then shared a meal prepared by some of the women
in our prayer group. It was a very inspiring experience as at the end of the
day a number of people shared their testimonies and told us how God had changed
their lives. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXg_w-ddLQKCS3ltpSxNQvRj-Ea8UR4GEQ9_C6jKs58ild77RY0PVEUVDAZFbp86jxRerDO8CqYjGV9Igr9hZQAgLAypzSht1GXWGgKiJ9z7CLxzllJL3P8EdG7z214uJd13QrlwfiUCE9/s1600/101_9003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXg_w-ddLQKCS3ltpSxNQvRj-Ea8UR4GEQ9_C6jKs58ild77RY0PVEUVDAZFbp86jxRerDO8CqYjGV9Igr9hZQAgLAypzSht1GXWGgKiJ9z7CLxzllJL3P8EdG7z214uJd13QrlwfiUCE9/s320/101_9003.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The river on the way to the centre</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">When we arrived Pastor
Moise and the boys sang a song to welcome us which continued into a time of
praise. Most street children speak Chadian Arabic and I was enjoying singing worship
songs in Arabic which isn’t spoken in most churches here. So when people
started singing cukran abina Isa, I understood straight away and was able to
join in, the song then changed to Oyo Jesu Christ. One of the women at the
centre has been teaching me a bit of Gumbaye the main language spoken down
south, so I was pleased when I realised I could understand this as well and was
able to join in after the first chorus. Then the leader sang tankyu fada jesus
and I thought oh no my language ability has reached its limit, they are singing
in a language I don’t understand. Then suddenly after they’d sung it through a
few times I realised that they were singing Thankyou Father Jesus in English
and I hadn’t recognised it! It was very funny to have recognised Arabic and Gumbaye
which I can hardly speak faster than English. Sometimes it’s even more
interesting to sing in a language which you do understand!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8hnmXyOsB5txWTG18oFtg7ycASwhS-d6llJwgkkcfEv8zHwmMtEsDb6B-cG9rDbBzOmjFE-9gZ0oWgV0KrJlbbkYw6oDHYFhYMOL2yYFfOthEPbErGxlW8M44a5IdWk42JjtB7C-nlV9_/s1600/chir3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8hnmXyOsB5txWTG18oFtg7ycASwhS-d6llJwgkkcfEv8zHwmMtEsDb6B-cG9rDbBzOmjFE-9gZ0oWgV0KrJlbbkYw6oDHYFhYMOL2yYFfOthEPbErGxlW8M44a5IdWk42JjtB7C-nlV9_/s320/chir3.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">La chorale Bouclier de la foi or The Shield of Faith Choir</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUA29xMmlMW51Ab_-OGBp6G479GRdXdqZzxCjhrVox7uolRXz78wPPlz-RFTn3Rv8j5x6cMUzW2WCkeTBj49VCEiYHu1_zpm16I0afZzQOgNETQKts-iFPY7aFBNvQJIyi2YlRL3wzpY3W/s1600/IMG_4777.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUA29xMmlMW51Ab_-OGBp6G479GRdXdqZzxCjhrVox7uolRXz78wPPlz-RFTn3Rv8j5x6cMUzW2WCkeTBj49VCEiYHu1_zpm16I0afZzQOgNETQKts-iFPY7aFBNvQJIyi2YlRL3wzpY3W/s320/IMG_4777.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our choir in our lovely uniform</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">This last month I have
been singing in lots of different languages as I have joined the choir at our
church with one of my French neighbours and one of the ladies from the centre.
Lucile and I have been having fun singing words in Nadjire the mother tongue of
most people at our church which has sounds we have never pronounced before.
Thankfully the vast majority of the songs are in French which means we can sing
more easily and concentrate on copying everyone else’s dance moves! We have
also been singing in English which is thankfully more comprehensible than at
the centre. One of our choir directors is especially keen and always leads the
choir saying Un deux trois et sing!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiih37SYeh4o0cGAHjHR06vjAWPYikMU6nH0r53cWGKvuQEM2XGynAUQ_J8llo4gQNWxZpxIpcm4RqoNIDtoKNo652CKzAHDRz9FfGK_GGv5DZ0TOIp5LOpCLW4_yBmV5R0C2IQxAQdrFCz/s1600/101_9177.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiih37SYeh4o0cGAHjHR06vjAWPYikMU6nH0r53cWGKvuQEM2XGynAUQ_J8llo4gQNWxZpxIpcm4RqoNIDtoKNo652CKzAHDRz9FfGK_GGv5DZ0TOIp5LOpCLW4_yBmV5R0C2IQxAQdrFCz/s320/101_9177.JPG" width="195" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Arabic lesson I taught last week, <br />
the key word was fire- naar</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I have also been
practicing my Arabic lately I have started taking part in one of the activities
with street children which my flat mate Ophelie is involved in. It’s a project
set up by Swiss missionaries they have “activities” in churches in different
areas of the city for children who are living on the streets. I’m helping with
the alphabetisation activity on Wednesday mornings. We have about 25-30
children every week. We give them water then one of the volunteers tells a
bible story which is translated into Arabic. They then have a short lesson
teaching them how to read and write in Chadian Arabic using roman script. It’s
not very complicated; the project is using some books created by another missionary
society. The boys are learning letters and simple words, the aim is to
stimulate them and if the enjoy it and want to learn more then the missionaries
try to help them either to go back to their families, to a centre like the one
we visited or to a foster family so that they can have a more stable life style
and go to school. At the end of the activity they are given tickets made by the
project which can buy them a meal from a lady who sells food by the side of the
road. </span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMQtqux1zTq9mZgG_w1RbkfRfD0sFQ4wAo_e22SxTv65P_SrRXwhDTwvIlpJe3JWz6eRcWGDgT2lr1tMlAzJhWcoZv1wu04yzXhWpG-j6F-A4uNwU8ahQbPJVj6n5fCl4kpA1ui3FPhxV6/s1600/101_9115.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMQtqux1zTq9mZgG_w1RbkfRfD0sFQ4wAo_e22SxTv65P_SrRXwhDTwvIlpJe3JWz6eRcWGDgT2lr1tMlAzJhWcoZv1wu04yzXhWpG-j6F-A4uNwU8ahQbPJVj6n5fCl4kpA1ui3FPhxV6/s320/101_9115.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"The birth of Jesus" - The picture books we use with to tell Bible Stories</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The missionaries running the project have decided that I speak enough Arabic
to teach the children to read and write at the activities. I was a bit worried
at first but it’s actually not too complicated, I only really need to know how
to say “what is this?” or “Who wants to read” and then read all the words on
the blackboard so that the children repeat after me. I taught for the first
time a week ago and it went well, the children are really enthusiastic and all
of them want to answer the questions! Last week I also told the Bible story; it
was be about Zachariah and Elizabeth as we are starting the Christmas story
leading up to Jesus’ birth. I’m really enjoying the opportunity to help the
street children and also improve my Arabic!</span></span></div>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-82668673854653504972016-10-15T21:48:00.001+01:002016-10-15T22:27:37.876+01:00Estop!<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD4GAAkjD01wpBm_QpSidNAwENw-AAHEmuGW0_h8Of_Zxe6kYBUGty6IX0vAmtjCr_XSxiCQNZoAcbquuCDFW-d1fT7mVMeb7gviLzfRLpbinNtc_xiL-wZkkh1aTmfTM3uaXJAS5fSI7-/s1600/13220775_611177672369077_144345030596660430_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD4GAAkjD01wpBm_QpSidNAwENw-AAHEmuGW0_h8Of_Zxe6kYBUGty6IX0vAmtjCr_XSxiCQNZoAcbquuCDFW-d1fT7mVMeb7gviLzfRLpbinNtc_xiL-wZkkh1aTmfTM3uaXJAS5fSI7-/s400/13220775_611177672369077_144345030596660430_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A typical Chadian mini bus</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">You are sat in a rickety
mini bus squashed between a lady wearing a laffay with a big bag of leaves and
a boy dressed in a school uniform. Peering out of the window, you realise that
you have just passed the petrol station which marks where you have to get off
to go to your friend’s house. You say "stop" but nothing happens, the lady next
to you realises that you want to get off so she says “estop” and the young man
by the door taps the roof. The bus comes to a halt and you get out squeezing
past all your fellow passengers and give the man 100 francs thinking next time,
I will remember to say “estop”! </span></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">In the past few weeks,
as I have moved into my new flat, I have had to learn how to use Chadian public
transport. A swiss missionary helpfully explained to me the a few of the main
routes of the mini buses (and the fixed prices) and I have been taking mini
buses, learning along the way that if you want to be understood then you have
to say “estop” as that is how Chadians pronounce it! So far it has been going
well and I am slowly getting used to catching buses and taxis though it is nice
once in a while when I get a ride in Annie or <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mum and Dad’s air conditioned cars! I have
seen quite a bit of them as I have been finishing my medical school
applications. This Thursday I took part in a “rally” which was organised for
all the French speaking short termers. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE9Bq2uUwGRMx0gnUj-DZsr4JumCRA2-Uc9E7qeLiEGIQiNBuwyVwZ-qtTf0Qc9HjV8cjcjfRscfq93YB5w53rZoEZfCiW4CYWsGaFyW0iXTJiE_jetE9yBlstuZj6u0NxQDD_49nes5II/s1600/101_8922+%2528800x450%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE9Bq2uUwGRMx0gnUj-DZsr4JumCRA2-Uc9E7qeLiEGIQiNBuwyVwZ-qtTf0Qc9HjV8cjcjfRscfq93YB5w53rZoEZfCiW4CYWsGaFyW0iXTJiE_jetE9yBlstuZj6u0NxQDD_49nes5II/s320/101_8922+%2528800x450%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mandawa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">We were put into 3 groups of 3 and given
a list of things to do around town like buy something you don’t know and ask
how to cook it, greet 15 people in Chadian arabic, buy 500 francs worth of “mandawa”
which we discovered was a special type of peanuts after a long walk to
a different market following a boy selling bags! All these activities were designed to
help us get to know N’djamena and to force us to use public transport. We ended
up taking 4 buses and 2 taxis and only got lost at the very end before arriving
back at our start point an hour late! It was good fun and certainly has made me
more confident, I’ll never be lost in that part of town again!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjx7cRFDKQvARZNIrDCyXm8HfkAxs6YZtYkoNck7jXrxgNHR6YXJbCFv6XywGtw7RQrEI4aayfhznsr765iuG7z2f_nofQe2VyenYzARK7gsXOwzoES8cjITFKSEq1Lt0aia_QshyphenhyphenMPTsi/s1600/FullSizeRender+%25282%2529+%2528640x480%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjx7cRFDKQvARZNIrDCyXm8HfkAxs6YZtYkoNck7jXrxgNHR6YXJbCFv6XywGtw7RQrEI4aayfhznsr765iuG7z2f_nofQe2VyenYzARK7gsXOwzoES8cjITFKSEq1Lt0aia_QshyphenhyphenMPTsi/s400/FullSizeRender+%25282%2529+%2528640x480%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Selling bags, cards and soaps at the international service at SIL</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I have been in my new
flat for two weeks now. It’s very nice to be right next to the centre so that I
can check on things and open it up if anyone needs anything! It also means I’m always
already at our meeting point, in the past two weeks we have been to two mission
conferences to sell soaps, cards and bags. All the ladies have been working
hard to make enough bags as they are selling very quickly! I have started sewing
one but my job at the moment is ironing the straps which suits me just fine as
I have always liked ironing. I think will have heat proof fingers by the end of
the year as the waxy material gets very hot! I also have to cut a lot of
material with Annie to make sure there are enough bags ready to be made. In the
past week with have made a test batch of scented candles which we hope to sell
around Christmas time! I’m really enjoying getting to know the women as we work
together. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Things have been going
well in my new flat. It is just the right size and very conveniently 5 minutes’
walk away from one of the city’s biggest markets! I went there today with Ophelie
my flat mate and Estelle and Lucile our neighbours to buy a mat so that we can receive
visitors outside (where it is much cooler) in a shady area as well as round
platter for serving drinks! So far we have been out to visit a few girls who
live across the street and they have also come to see us. It’s nice to have
neighbours who speak French and not only Arabic like in Guinebor, it means we
can play games with them so we have been teaching them how to play dobble! </span></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">My everyday French has been coming on very rapidly as I have to speak it at home with Ophelie. She
is here for a year to work with street children and Estelle and Lucile are here
to teach French at an evangelical school not far from where we are living. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijUm69BfhRxZcqtXAzADb_7w4v9D32MBAAV8jkEhISfrxbyLUWZRdiKTpttu4vb0DYVVQNL_JQ8kGajfnewXzrSkk7Ow7Qozu2Bgd4flgygBqolNMegx0yS6bGcoVC4VcFi15yttWArkn-/s1600/101_8923+%2528800x450%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijUm69BfhRxZcqtXAzADb_7w4v9D32MBAAV8jkEhISfrxbyLUWZRdiKTpttu4vb0DYVVQNL_JQ8kGajfnewXzrSkk7Ow7Qozu2Bgd4flgygBqolNMegx0yS6bGcoVC4VcFi15yttWArkn-/s400/101_8923+%2528800x450%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ophelie in our front room</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">They arrived in Chad from France on the same night as Ophelie and I moved house so we
have been busy introducing them to life in Chad. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is very nice to have unpacked all my things
(after 3 months of living out of suitcases!) and to have a more normal and
predictable life style. We have been experimenting with cooking, using sweet
potatoes, Chadian chili peppers and okra! Just this last week a lady from the
centre has started coming to help us at the house; hopefully she’ll be able to
give us some lessons in Chadian cooking.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">In our first week we
went to eglise 12, an evangelical church which is right next to our house.
About 1000 people worship there every Sunday so we felt a bit isolated and lost
in the crowd (even though I’m sure everyone noticed our presence). Last week we
went to a smaller church which is a bit farther away. It has a congregation of
about 300 on a Sunday morning and everyone was very friendly and welcoming. We
are going again tomorrow and Lucile and I are going to ask about joining the
choir! I already feel like I have learnt a lot more about Chad just by living
independently for a few weeks but I am hoping to be able to get involved in the
church and make more Chadian friends.</span></span></div>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-46589893573203965972016-09-26T10:22:00.001+01:002016-09-26T10:27:39.130+01:00C'est maintenant?<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">This is how Odette,
our old house help used to greet me when I came in from school. Is it now? Are
you back? Yes, I am, I have been back in Chad for almost a week now. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3rqoWMgFeqhcvtIDhsMHMz5lfk24q3bOArLnlKiyM0zSfihvj5T4jMxXQHflikhW8SHxRp8o-AXRX83jflKmGiH915dSa-W-s3oFhVhQswn8nt2KzQki0nlDCNFvuESXvZaRnjogiPDHz/s1600/blog+002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3rqoWMgFeqhcvtIDhsMHMz5lfk24q3bOArLnlKiyM0zSfihvj5T4jMxXQHflikhW8SHxRp8o-AXRX83jflKmGiH915dSa-W-s3oFhVhQswn8nt2KzQki0nlDCNFvuESXvZaRnjogiPDHz/s320/blog+002.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mum and Dad's house on the TEAM compound for the next few months</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I have been living on
the TEAM compound in the middle of town with my parents. Next week I hope to
move into my new flat! I’ll be meeting with my flat mate, Ophelie this afternoon
to discuss moving in furniture and cases. So far things have been going well. I
have spent two afternoons at the centre making soaps and also cloth bags which
is the latest idea. The centre has moved since I was last there, it is now in
the same building as my flat! It has got two rooms, one which is used as a
storage space and office and the other where we all sit on a mat to make things.
At the moment, three other missionaries are working there, Anne, Annie and
Christina. Naomi who set up the centre will be coming back at the end of
November. The centre is only open for two afternoons a week so that the 5 women
who have done the rehabilitation course so far can come and chat and make things.
When Naomi comes we hope to do a second course with different women. I feel
quite at home being back in Chad and have been wondering what I would think of
the past week if I had never been here before. What would I find different?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<ul>
<li>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Food<o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
</ul>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx1QVe4-uwrJAoEart2gq9wpTD0gzWr-Wkz-D9eGFeapLGSbeGYwmfBx3WqiYkOpv3YI00gfbT67EjCesToFpQlnPWaZCdMmZ71YMxn9VlRgEIBLW2ho0MCMf3Bg0HwwlHerUqakSPxsh-/s1600/blog+004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx1QVe4-uwrJAoEart2gq9wpTD0gzWr-Wkz-D9eGFeapLGSbeGYwmfBx3WqiYkOpv3YI00gfbT67EjCesToFpQlnPWaZCdMmZ71YMxn9VlRgEIBLW2ho0MCMf3Bg0HwwlHerUqakSPxsh-/s320/blog+004.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A typical 'yellow' Chadian fruit bowl</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I’ve been enjoying
eating guavas and proper African bananas! The fruit in Chad is very seasonal so
I’m glad I haven’t missed the guava season. The other rainy season food is corn
which you can buy charcoal grilled off the side of the road. It tends to be
quite hard and burnt but it tastes amazing! I’ve also been enjoying the French
bread, as in all ex French colonies you can find French baguettes on every
street corner. It is one of my favourite things about the Chadian diet. </span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Heat! <o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
</ul>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">It is really hot and
humid at the moment as we are coming to the end of the rainy season. It has
rained once and I guess I would find that strange too, in Chad we don’t just
get rain we get big thunder storms with lightning, violent winds and thunder. A
few weeks ago I was in Didcot when there was a big storm last night and a lot
of flooding. I woke up in the night and felt quite at home with the sound of
the storm raging outside!</span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Traffic<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I think if I’d never been in N’djamena before
I would be shocked by some of the crazy driving! Cars and motor bikes just seem
to come from all directions. At the moment I’m lucky to be able to go round
with Mum and Dad in their car but soon I’ll be on my own and will have to
master the Chadian taxi and bus system. One of missionaries is going to teach
all the short termers how it works next Saturday by giving us a list of places
to go by bus! </span></span><br />
<ul>
<li>
C<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">lothes <o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
</ul>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1bdb9VKaya2FqDXThFDDJyHBSSBjQNJ7vIsLBQFi5FatxssbUyb1MnEBgClYlrC9io6J2k0hio87vpal3x9K9C9FF3f-8xzNOEx552vLTW9EtNBBBa5TiHPeIEt6oHjY7ds-7Kq8D6OX9/s1600/blog+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1bdb9VKaya2FqDXThFDDJyHBSSBjQNJ7vIsLBQFi5FatxssbUyb1MnEBgClYlrC9io6J2k0hio87vpal3x9K9C9FF3f-8xzNOEx552vLTW9EtNBBBa5TiHPeIEt6oHjY7ds-7Kq8D6OX9/s320/blog+001.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our basket of headscarves</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I suppose if I hadn’t
been here before I wouldn’t be used to wearing ankle length skirts, flip-flops
and headscarves! It seems normal to me and I am enjoying wearing my Chadian
clothes all the time as when I went to school, I wore western style clothes.</span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Language <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Language is the one of
the hardest things to master when you arrive to a new place. Most people here
in the capital speak at least a little French and if not they speak Chadian Arabic.
The French of course is fine and I can understand most Arabic if it is spoken
clearly enough. However at the centre the women speak French but also other
languages from the south of the country of which I don’t understand anything!</span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Night-time <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I think I notice this
most when I go back to England in the summers and we have really long evenings.
In Chad the sun sets between half 5 and 6 o’clock, there is no significant
change throughout the year. This means its dark really early which is fine when
you have electricity as we do in town but it can be confusing at first as it
makes it seem later than it really is.</span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Showers<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">A lot of houses in
Chad don’t have running water and even less have hot water! The shower in our
house gives us water straight from the pipes so the temperature depends on the
weather. When it is hot and you want to cool down the water is warm and when
you want to warm up (in February) it is freezing! At the moment it’s not too
much of a problem as in this season the problem is the humidity rather than the
heat so the shower isn’t too warm.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<ul>
<li>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Market <o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
</ul>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCChjGmMABMTt6sPlDl0VaFVyqfou4HmwA1bUXRhFf6KJK_WsfMlPnHTk2sxyAXuKe22eww2GAakuRbI2GMMuHROWUg_92wsSYZpSWmW1iBqeF5rZlzUg5ZoN-gDOa13cTltF5qCFAG1r_/s1600/blog+003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCChjGmMABMTt6sPlDl0VaFVyqfou4HmwA1bUXRhFf6KJK_WsfMlPnHTk2sxyAXuKe22eww2GAakuRbI2GMMuHROWUg_92wsSYZpSWmW1iBqeF5rZlzUg5ZoN-gDOa13cTltF5qCFAG1r_/s320/blog+003.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Material that we're using to make the cloth bags</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">On Thursday I went to
a market just five minutes away from my new flat with Annie and two women from
the centre to buy material for making bags and oil for the soap. It was fun but
quite tiring as it was very busy and full of people selling a huge variety of
things. I guess if I’d never been here before I would have found it quite
overwhelming but I think I also would have been surprised by the amount of
cloth and things available! <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I hope this gives you
some insight into my first week back in Chad! Before leaving I managed to reach
my target of £2,500, selling all my jigsaw pieces. Thank you all for your
support and prayers.</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmlHC_AOIsVIdJgHexDelL53A1ftpxtRp_tSswqyaGNBWWjM_NpHTD5Rcjt9kPGI4QeyBrAJKVe9TRR0aiJbDhq7b7oXcxDBSa229WSQ4Ft8TzL9Y8l-8cNU55rrGJX-G0boudBq4YdQ8C/s1600/500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmlHC_AOIsVIdJgHexDelL53A1ftpxtRp_tSswqyaGNBWWjM_NpHTD5Rcjt9kPGI4QeyBrAJKVe9TRR0aiJbDhq7b7oXcxDBSa229WSQ4Ft8TzL9Y8l-8cNU55rrGJX-G0boudBq4YdQ8C/s320/500.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My complete jigsaw puzzle</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-26174872675114043982016-08-10T21:35:00.001+01:002016-08-10T21:35:43.220+01:00Back to the startHi everyone, <br />
<br />
It seems like a long time since I last wrote a blog, lots of things have happened! I have finished school and got the results I need to apply for medical school and Ruth has just finished her first year of studying Theology at Exeter University. I have decided to spend a gap year volunteering with <a href="http://www.bmsworldmission.org/" target="_blank">BMS World Mission</a> back in Chad. I'm going to be working with the ACACIA project which was set up by <a href="http://chad.team.org/initiatives/vulnerable-women-ministries-initiative" target="_blank">TEAM</a> and <a href="http://www.missionafrica.org.uk/ministries/vulnerable-women" target="_blank">Mission Africa</a> to help Vulnerable Women in N'djamena. For more information about these missions please click on the links. <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh67JGPzFgCZsY_s1T4xO8kRdUO9XuRcsWdMs1R97ViF-eERKf5gpDngIztG9itFGc1zPZApn4-j6W-lX1-p2E0ppPQgvYP70KSuloxN5DM-5VlQXEWVG-6K3wapJBJzSUwZJsSzOoHu1ni/s1600/may+2015+219.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh67JGPzFgCZsY_s1T4xO8kRdUO9XuRcsWdMs1R97ViF-eERKf5gpDngIztG9itFGc1zPZApn4-j6W-lX1-p2E0ppPQgvYP70KSuloxN5DM-5VlQXEWVG-6K3wapJBJzSUwZJsSzOoHu1ni/s320/may+2015+219.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Chadian market scene painted by Ruth</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYlVmikX63kIly-URlXwCuv4sP5KtVAfSjFVHeSF_feKTE51NLarL2axusoEnMo_xBYSBWcjWmCPjZGQVvUql4ajrH5LYpJ3MmUx1KC7InzN-GUVaBMTHynTeXRe4yBHJIWsCa6hCYkBjH/s1600/DSCF6494.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYlVmikX63kIly-URlXwCuv4sP5KtVAfSjFVHeSF_feKTE51NLarL2axusoEnMo_xBYSBWcjWmCPjZGQVvUql4ajrH5LYpJ3MmUx1KC7InzN-GUVaBMTHynTeXRe4yBHJIWsCa6hCYkBjH/s320/DSCF6494.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">N'djamena, close to where I'll be living</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The project helps women who are trapped in prostitution or domestic violence and who may be suffering from HIV/AIDS, by offering them counselling, a chance to learn new skills and also a purpose through Christ. After 6 years of reaching out to women in the community, a centre has been opened where 2 missionaries run rehabilitation courses with a bible based syllabus and teach women how to make soaps, cards and jewellery. I'm going to be helping at the centre and will probably spend most of my time with children either out in the communities or playing with the children of the women who are on the course. I may also be translating course documents from English into French so I can put my hard earned French skills to use! <br />
<br />
I feel that after living in Chad for 6 years I still don't know much about Chadian culture as I have spent most of my time at a French High School. So I'm really excited to be able to go back and find out what it's like to really live in Chad on my own and outside the hospital context. I'm going to be living in the middle of N'djamena, the capital, which will be quite different from Guinebor (where I have been living for the past 6 years with my parents) which is on the outskirts of the city. I'm going to share a flat with another short term missionary. I'm hoping to get more involved in Chadian life mostly by joining a Chadian church and maybe joining a choir! <br />
<br />
I will be updating my blog so you can see how I get on throughout my gap year!<br />
<br />
RebeccaRebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14693758754255329073noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-43479177491428038832015-05-24T08:14:00.002+01:002015-05-24T08:46:38.420+01:00The heat goes on<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The hot season has arrived and unfortunately exam time as well! Ruth will be passing the French baccalaureate at the end of June and Rebecca has just one exam which will count towards next year. Here are some pictures of life at GII at 50 degrees C:</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaksjnozidoNU5kGRibfqOq84457o3W6izZXWS5IJrCJOUHMWkXVF0qo12WavKKvt49gCuSBML_23Kb-esWO_SOTzgGJpKNp1JHl5Ln8W3Mm_XYWYOneLpFFr0IzivJ9cv0yqU63t-2_w/s1600/may+2015+221+%2528600x800%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaksjnozidoNU5kGRibfqOq84457o3W6izZXWS5IJrCJOUHMWkXVF0qo12WavKKvt49gCuSBML_23Kb-esWO_SOTzgGJpKNp1JHl5Ln8W3Mm_XYWYOneLpFFr0IzivJ9cv0yqU63t-2_w/s320/may+2015+221+%2528600x800%2529.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dad working hard one Sunday afternoon (yes the water on the floor really is his sweat!)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW7d-YQztszS4ihrP4Iaxq3o3x-FbJMr5lQwNOWmsy9oCSUnG424ozenC-QwClNUBFKge3F5J-hWEzExEon3hB4UEO3D5-gFrDXgsOw1MDlU5V-grdT2MklmKjIJ0S28Y-57PpDAAMfOc/s1600/may+2015+224+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW7d-YQztszS4ihrP4Iaxq3o3x-FbJMr5lQwNOWmsy9oCSUnG424ozenC-QwClNUBFKge3F5J-hWEzExEon3hB4UEO3D5-gFrDXgsOw1MDlU5V-grdT2MklmKjIJ0S28Y-57PpDAAMfOc/s320/may+2015+224+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruth has a special luxury: a fan so that she can revise properly for her exams! We were glad to go back to school just so that we could live in air conditioning for 7 hours a day!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyzV5ZsxaHRoELcGHdlQrBe8ISYAmwko8rUnCbBt2MIEjb9owJISewXNkQrMR9gped-acg9p0U0fenq3yaJYrtaeXHz55iOxW2i2a53P7otEcAHwmwKT5itBbzRTUE_dFI51fNiEmFF2M/s1600/may+2015+229+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyzV5ZsxaHRoELcGHdlQrBe8ISYAmwko8rUnCbBt2MIEjb9owJISewXNkQrMR9gped-acg9p0U0fenq3yaJYrtaeXHz55iOxW2i2a53P7otEcAHwmwKT5itBbzRTUE_dFI51fNiEmFF2M/s320/may+2015+229+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rebecca's holiday jobs included making the most of the one good thing about the hot season: mangoes!<br />
We've been drying them in our solar cooker...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiToN3mZKf2W4Mnc0coGMlBBB-GeRHJMVSn0lzcaFwOiHaVt5bL6eJi3FqTsZAWm94ma_hkQW_34jAa6wNQCtcNVaYoX-NWswwhS9mKB0qcHhNa9TaGml46NPSCQwa_Ougwe6Vr-a9Op_g/s1600/may+2015+226+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiToN3mZKf2W4Mnc0coGMlBBB-GeRHJMVSn0lzcaFwOiHaVt5bL6eJi3FqTsZAWm94ma_hkQW_34jAa6wNQCtcNVaYoX-NWswwhS9mKB0qcHhNa9TaGml46NPSCQwa_Ougwe6Vr-a9Op_g/s320/may+2015+226+%2528800x600%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And making mango chutney! It's a great way to get even hotter, spending hours stirring boiling vinegar!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I can't wait till I next feel like putting a jumper on!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-50949851303909055552015-04-28T11:34:00.002+01:002015-04-28T11:34:53.641+01:00Things that go bump in the night<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In England, I used to
complain about the cars passing in the street outside my bedroom window which I
claimed used to keep me awake at night. Since coming to Chad I have discovered
that there are much more interesting sounds from the neighbourhood that can
keep me awake. Normally, I manage to tune it all out but once I’m awake I can’t
help myself from listening to the unusual sounds around Guinebor II at night. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJtrDbWdfLX2T1au-hXESJ9tSA_B-_AEmuFBoiqO_L6VadPZgZy7HkoRLzSPJVDFQck16yzC0bFA2EOOi8wznbCi3GoawrMd4j7olzyd5eEFKT_3uw1gEKa9ofyvlZuAvl5kSXfU5xTWI/s1600/DSCF3315+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJtrDbWdfLX2T1au-hXESJ9tSA_B-_AEmuFBoiqO_L6VadPZgZy7HkoRLzSPJVDFQck16yzC0bFA2EOOi8wznbCi3GoawrMd4j7olzyd5eEFKT_3uw1gEKa9ofyvlZuAvl5kSXfU5xTWI/s1600/DSCF3315+(800x600).jpg" height="164" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wood delivery</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">About two months ago,
a new shop opened about 100m away from the hospital compound. It sells hardware
supplies like paint, hammers, spades and also large planks of wood. For some
reason, the wood is delivered at night time and so in the early hours of the
morning we hear the sound of it being thrown off the back of lorry, one plank
at a time. Unfortunately, this sounds rather like gun shots and so can be quite
worrying in the middle of the night! </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One of the most important
animals in rural Chad is the donkey. Chadians use donkeys to carry water,
people and large quantities of straw! Guinebor II village has about two donkeys
in it (normally there’s one per family but Guinebor being close to N’djamena
has lots of water pumps and so doesn’t need them as much). So does the village
to the North of the hospital. So does the village to the West of the hospital.
You get the point. At night, especially when we first arrived, you can hear the
occasional donkey braying, funnily all the other ones upon hearing it start to
bray as well so sometimes you get woken up by whole donkey conversations!
Thankfully camels don’t make much noise.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXsNLHnPFnKT0k6Wsn4L3hz7O5WPE2MLvKPcX8GDSMx12wil4pKRVvzzj62thyphenhyphenJjvEI-eVnccmPzWAo35YatiCBUQw5tCmzek63gxU1G0_QwFn9u2WYZ2M2_5VY6pa6JidLbegWU4Y_hY/s1600/Guerra+feb+2012+158+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXsNLHnPFnKT0k6Wsn4L3hz7O5WPE2MLvKPcX8GDSMx12wil4pKRVvzzj62thyphenhyphenJjvEI-eVnccmPzWAo35YatiCBUQw5tCmzek63gxU1G0_QwFn9u2WYZ2M2_5VY6pa6JidLbegWU4Y_hY/s1600/Guerra+feb+2012+158+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Water delivery at Bitkine</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our cats are also
pretty good at waking us up. The other night Ruth and I woke up to a great
yowling and screeching noises coming from the roof! We soon found Farid up
there fighting another cat! Ruth went out to try and coax him down while I
tried to get back to sleep but unfortunately it was 4 o’clock and time for the
call to prayer from the mosques around the hospital! Different ones call out
over about a half hour period and once you are awake it can be very difficult
to get back to sleep especially when the speakers aren’t working properly!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirnP1-FOsuiTZQziHRPAvjzvxa_KwuasXZf7JfZPXei2kt18EeZ291F4_B1CLMsynT8Vuy0jzWcCoAZajVxRI8MCRs0CqQ7ds8uhHvCeVE1_3aObMX5v-iKer-4K5QrMsAUrhFBjftuWE/s1600/2+Ruth's%2Bcam%2B634%2B(600x800).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirnP1-FOsuiTZQziHRPAvjzvxa_KwuasXZf7JfZPXei2kt18EeZ291F4_B1CLMsynT8Vuy0jzWcCoAZajVxRI8MCRs0CqQ7ds8uhHvCeVE1_3aObMX5v-iKer-4K5QrMsAUrhFBjftuWE/s1600/2+Ruth's%2Bcam%2B634%2B(600x800).jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ginger sleeping during the day</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our neighbour Rebecca
North complained once that every night a man whose house is just outside the
compound came home every night for a week at one o’clock in the morning!
Apparently she used to hear the car driving up, honking its horn at the gate
for about five minutes to wake up the guard then the screeching of the metal
gate being opened and closed again! Some other neighbours of ours have regular large
parties at late hours with the music blasting out till midnight.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">At one point, a small
Koranic school was set up under a big tree just outside the hospital. Every Saturday
morning Ruth and I used to wake up to chanting at 7 o’clock so not much chance
of a lie-in! Another good alarm cat sorry clock is our Ginger who every morning
at dawn comes home from her night out hunting lizards. She meows at the window bars
until one of us stumbles out of bed to let her in. This is fine when dawn is at
6 which is my normal waking time for school but when dawn is at 5 or 5:30 I can
never get back to sleep before my real alarm goes off!</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Something I’d like to
wake up to is the sound of rain pitter-pattering on our tin roof. Unfortunately
we are just at the beginning of the really dry and hot season and so not much
chance of that for at least 4 months!<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-0LDBouDbo3RTx5esoSNu247TqlwyJgq-Gln77Nk8gOIf-9c6glUTfVEh0EJ-1bhp1uHAwXCAT-5lliaLhFSH-rpy_Sn2kE7oEaQfASft_ZIfV9SSI3CuPfNUxLVxlFy7HE4e4hzHr8o/s1600/chad+may+2010+060+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-0LDBouDbo3RTx5esoSNu247TqlwyJgq-Gln77Nk8gOIf-9c6glUTfVEh0EJ-1bhp1uHAwXCAT-5lliaLhFSH-rpy_Sn2kE7oEaQfASft_ZIfV9SSI3CuPfNUxLVxlFy7HE4e4hzHr8o/s1600/chad+may+2010+060+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Guinebor II during the dry season</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxYnKAlb5AaGP9c1aSrzzQG1Y5c0fc9BdaNBFtSiNhh6EDdBtB09j1goGnkR3goVKbWAEyZTXcFGvaH9ry0sDvgEnzTgxKb_lu9DMyD3O_tfMzS3VXxg69gDb-VMABFm67TU_steek2LM/s1600/june2010+058+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxYnKAlb5AaGP9c1aSrzzQG1Y5c0fc9BdaNBFtSiNhh6EDdBtB09j1goGnkR3goVKbWAEyZTXcFGvaH9ry0sDvgEnzTgxKb_lu9DMyD3O_tfMzS3VXxg69gDb-VMABFm67TU_steek2LM/s1600/june2010+058+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Guinebor II in the rainy season</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">With all this you’re
probably surprised to hear that we ever get a full night’s sleep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Actually it’s amazing how you get used to
tuning out sounds at night. Unfortunately for Mum and Dad, they have to keep
half an ear open when they’re on call in order to hear the nurses and midwives
who call at the window if there’s an emergency at the hospital!</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Thankfully they have got a week off as we are staying at a missionary compound in town, TEAM for a week's holiday. Here we get a rest from noisy nights at Guinebor II, there is however a handy construction site just next door which makes a good alarm at 7 each morning!</span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
</span></span><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-55967244013716631502015-04-05T15:17:00.002+01:002015-04-05T15:18:09.335+01:00Stairway to heaven<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7wzVYR1xoHQHHtTbJAozE-xThjqb11zkebrFKRRcI-EoDwU3Gfgotvy2MoYGCpG5JrUCbqRRxd3f1c0TKsrP19ggQ87OliCaozdvQFKgrKhaE9zTybVVHKaXTCbUpirX7nzqLIijNM18/s1600/easter+2015+013+(600x800).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7wzVYR1xoHQHHtTbJAozE-xThjqb11zkebrFKRRcI-EoDwU3Gfgotvy2MoYGCpG5JrUCbqRRxd3f1c0TKsrP19ggQ87OliCaozdvQFKgrKhaE9zTybVVHKaXTCbUpirX7nzqLIijNM18/s1600/easter+2015+013+(600x800).jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc14JzIvJa4OSFStmG7B4oimroSa9ZChXmv6bLWE4FkJQ4QVXpoj5LqO8qPAsol5djg9KaVTOFhw9yGKzAvfOqxh9UPGKEdaX_NyR_99PqVgP5t9NWeik_mocEUZbxp19frASB_0B0-Gw/s1600/easter+2015+008+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc14JzIvJa4OSFStmG7B4oimroSa9ZChXmv6bLWE4FkJQ4QVXpoj5LqO8qPAsol5djg9KaVTOFhw9yGKzAvfOqxh9UPGKEdaX_NyR_99PqVgP5t9NWeik_mocEUZbxp19frASB_0B0-Gw/s1600/easter+2015+008+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Gs50SKpEYxe8fkgO9JFq08PpY_h-7SUfHxq9aOMKOV6w8peNBYvPQuI2HgMFU83jfBsj_9axrCPHpqpO-pLxrG6E_DPhoSF79aCUvCuNXxbooALObEbRFczVqOuZyGa0-BHQPBF8K4o/s1600/easter+2015+022+(600x800).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Gs50SKpEYxe8fkgO9JFq08PpY_h-7SUfHxq9aOMKOV6w8peNBYvPQuI2HgMFU83jfBsj_9axrCPHpqpO-pLxrG6E_DPhoSF79aCUvCuNXxbooALObEbRFczVqOuZyGa0-BHQPBF8K4o/s1600/easter+2015+022+(600x800).jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Christ is risen, hallelujah!</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-75479501389892762942015-04-04T16:14:00.000+01:002015-04-04T16:18:07.112+01:00We’re going on an egg hunt...<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Earlier this week we
got quite excited when we were told we had a parcel waiting for us in the post
office. We were hoping that it would be from our Grandma, containing long
awaited Easter eggs! Only one shop sells them in town and they are very
expensive as they are hand-made. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjckgX4WsDJl-V7ddS166GKc2T1FH1Q6xhhcIpGg5nJXaX3BPvk7FQyBt1YmktbYeY19GoZKqoCf85l4z23fYWBor4R7x-XYy8XuhXaGuJRkahPi-PJgJw1OXhAQbBNzryhyphenhyphenNf420hUlMA/s1600/post+002+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjckgX4WsDJl-V7ddS166GKc2T1FH1Q6xhhcIpGg5nJXaX3BPvk7FQyBt1YmktbYeY19GoZKqoCf85l4z23fYWBor4R7x-XYy8XuhXaGuJRkahPi-PJgJw1OXhAQbBNzryhyphenhyphenNf420hUlMA/s1600/post+002+(800x600).jpg" height="71" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A parcel!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When we went to pick up the parcel the next
day after school, we were surprised and even more excited to find there were
two more! In the evening, we opened the three parcels and discovered the long
awaited Easter eggs but also an early birthday present for Ruth and… a rather
late birthday present for Mum from last June! This is a perfect example of Chadian
post: one day we’ll get a newspaper from a few days ago and the next a
six-month-old letter! Who knows how it works, it can be very entertaining! We’re
just glad to receive things. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi315p2okhf7V__aBsr3Og-xBEY7_lhr1nbjntS2Y6s7Pzj7CVuHG5alGEM_znb8_x-hpxqDDmlGQj1UWgIC3cIZ_iaoXpCV7UnrFqN6FIMZ1Hr8WOZGv7I9zevwUDSHwekYlC837DZGk8/s1600/march-april+026+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi315p2okhf7V__aBsr3Og-xBEY7_lhr1nbjntS2Y6s7Pzj7CVuHG5alGEM_znb8_x-hpxqDDmlGQj1UWgIC3cIZ_iaoXpCV7UnrFqN6FIMZ1Hr8WOZGv7I9zevwUDSHwekYlC837DZGk8/s1600/march-april+026+(800x600).jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Melting the chocolate</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8p3um0jKKjCV69NaWjjCiIiCEyR0qsCELH6GSTmq3xbWkpFgZskZd4HcCkqW60Hpf_7ClJslOq9SuTNmH5TLhJ32fRUUCGLxDaKf6ebHCkpjagBrItHQ8CH223koGtYvd8lKENaR8kzQ/s1600/march-april+033+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8p3um0jKKjCV69NaWjjCiIiCEyR0qsCELH6GSTmq3xbWkpFgZskZd4HcCkqW60Hpf_7ClJslOq9SuTNmH5TLhJ32fRUUCGLxDaKf6ebHCkpjagBrItHQ8CH223koGtYvd8lKENaR8kzQ/s1600/march-april+033+(800x600).jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Squeezing the choccolate out</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So this year, despite
being saved at the last minute, we’re quite short of Easter eggs. Luckily, we
have some emergency Easter egg moulds for such occasions and have spent the
afternoon first melting chocolate in the solar cooker </span></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">and then either squeezing
it into small egg moulds or painting it onto the big one! It’s been very fun,
much better than just buying some!</span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdu_tIulOAy6jYhMyX4ZPSkiLZkm_pcnPxVMe8kjYwGH40xQK46KbAfusWChHZWcSs4bWz_DrzzZ0XY09Z0nSxvUjOjpHm9UfX2DBR5LjKRBD_vCaaWEVIeFsR0bMiIf5kz2fzSU225_M/s1600/march-april+032+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdu_tIulOAy6jYhMyX4ZPSkiLZkm_pcnPxVMe8kjYwGH40xQK46KbAfusWChHZWcSs4bWz_DrzzZ0XY09Z0nSxvUjOjpHm9UfX2DBR5LjKRBD_vCaaWEVIeFsR0bMiIf5kz2fzSU225_M/s1600/march-april+032+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Finding" small eggs</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibu3jTF2QsbPhtM_iCl4-IMeKko0IoRwwP2e6U9TJBUAEkwll4sG01yIHLuFUs1pB_rTjbnhV64cWk2KfiyAvhN32ENkDdZCbbOZiA7tY6ZeBrQZbsb5kqQ9BK69EaVYstCsnR4LAyAgI/s1600/march-april+038+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibu3jTF2QsbPhtM_iCl4-IMeKko0IoRwwP2e6U9TJBUAEkwll4sG01yIHLuFUs1pB_rTjbnhV64cWk2KfiyAvhN32ENkDdZCbbOZiA7tY6ZeBrQZbsb5kqQ9BK69EaVYstCsnR4LAyAgI/s1600/march-april+038+(800x600).jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dad "found" a big egg!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We’ve been back at
school for about 3 weeks now. We don’t get “Easter holidays” as they don’t fit
into the French school year but we will get Monday off. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">To celebrate Easter,
we will get up at dawn on Sunday morning to see the sun rise like last year. As
there aren’t any nearby hills to climb up, we all stood on the table tennis
table and even got out a step ladder! We often try to do a small Easter egg
hunt (when we have some) even though we have to rush before they melt.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZlLAv-m_qF11_LHdEhkyoj2bTK1xYQa7RYpGMQyeMeerDlo1ZnE3miz75-ji9Qm-gzlEvgGsJ-VufBxEwInnz7N2doRvZevU5J_hpey3eojfr3wfSLaPwzxcgAhCMRBIXCAeeCVNpfiY/s1600/DSCF8921+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZlLAv-m_qF11_LHdEhkyoj2bTK1xYQa7RYpGMQyeMeerDlo1ZnE3miz75-ji9Qm-gzlEvgGsJ-VufBxEwInnz7N2doRvZevU5J_hpey3eojfr3wfSLaPwzxcgAhCMRBIXCAeeCVNpfiY/s1600/DSCF8921+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Easter Sunday 2014</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After that we will
probably go to our nearest Chadian church and celebrate. In the afternoon there
will be a sort of concert with songs, short sketches and bible readings. In the
evening we will have our weekly bible study with the other missionaries on the
compound, singing, and praying together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg87tMWJgLjloDuFS9gVCRFHF1Mord1NOAV2G190FZAJghDXkwFnocGJaFwu6dXW1StwlThMJ1ApBom4e7gb690XKiWv5gBgFKGweSFwcv2uW-g_eTWt-PXTZ7datCe1jbZ1UuDig9TLiE/s1600/post+003+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg87tMWJgLjloDuFS9gVCRFHF1Mord1NOAV2G190FZAJghDXkwFnocGJaFwu6dXW1StwlThMJ1ApBom4e7gb690XKiWv5gBgFKGweSFwcv2uW-g_eTWt-PXTZ7datCe1jbZ1UuDig9TLiE/s1600/post+003+(800x600).jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A card for Ruth</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-T0WIlgYwFuVsXuguUhBgCcS2mJPuIuyh16HddHT0CPeJi_d0sQeZh9AAVsQdFlnky-I8HWp4iBrpkG0SblGJdG4tjg0z0aAXfbEnlE7qm7WA9keX6YGhqo86psuzgtm4P9xyv95ym7A/s1600/post+005+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-T0WIlgYwFuVsXuguUhBgCcS2mJPuIuyh16HddHT0CPeJi_d0sQeZh9AAVsQdFlnky-I8HWp4iBrpkG0SblGJdG4tjg0z0aAXfbEnlE7qm7WA9keX6YGhqo86psuzgtm4P9xyv95ym7A/s1600/post+005+(800x600).jpg" height="140" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our latest Christmas card!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dad has just come in
with some more post, a Christmas card from 2013, another early birthday card
for Ruth and news of another parcel. I wonder what we will find in it this time!</span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFWVBNfLpUiKf1mCQ_dTq-fmKcJGfU0kdunmt05sU4Sh6AIgiJjl2senSH6hyRWYQt_tQIxCNmBaDhvvVc8HX5JlsHm56b7SYXAs3-TOXnexcJyDyEK_UKNeApVB5fmX9GAz1QiQxhPNg/s1600/easter+garden+001+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFWVBNfLpUiKf1mCQ_dTq-fmKcJGfU0kdunmt05sU4Sh6AIgiJjl2senSH6hyRWYQt_tQIxCNmBaDhvvVc8HX5JlsHm56b7SYXAs3-TOXnexcJyDyEK_UKNeApVB5fmX9GAz1QiQxhPNg/s1600/easter+garden+001+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our Easter garden, a collection of just about every green plant around the banana tree! </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Joyeuses Paques and Mubrak Id from hot Chad!</span></span></span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-38436409459547320962015-03-18T15:14:00.003+00:002015-03-18T15:52:14.216+00:00Laffays, a handbag essential?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmPFoqtqNlf1lTcQFQ-pFGBTtZJs3a77nGd9UmzRaFny7OZz66Z2epRVee6Ud18obrfopYXF441wl38mxB4h2l-D-RiGhNniOQq-kBP3HyOhplP0CPqYuGLTZQ9wYf_kbbDCQPebQSmF4/s1600/Chad+March+2014+-+143+(533x800).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I wonder what you normally put in your handbag. Tissues, a
pen, money, a mobile …a headscarf or a laffay… I don’t think what my Mum takes
to church is high up on your priority list! As well as the usual mobile, pen
etc. my mum’s handbag contains a fan, a water bottle, insect repellent wipes, a
bible, a song book and a laffay.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcUmL64pRG9xlH9_BVEnqPJ13-Cp1YKwJmuq8Thp5DpleON8tLKnAStnA8zqmFK48yzXDelJ_zeTthqNkdXKIcvywszjI287_EgBeNGDuz8F7LY7OOktwWK959smzfL4fS9oO26gj35WU/s1600/DSCF2942+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcUmL64pRG9xlH9_BVEnqPJ13-Cp1YKwJmuq8Thp5DpleON8tLKnAStnA8zqmFK48yzXDelJ_zeTthqNkdXKIcvywszjI287_EgBeNGDuz8F7LY7OOktwWK959smzfL4fS9oO26gj35WU/s1600/DSCF2942+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mum's handbag</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">You may be unsure about why some of these things are doing in
a handbag or even asking yourself what they are. Some of these are more normal
in Chad than others for example the water and the fan are a permanent feature
wherever we go as at times Chad is not so cool as it seems… The song book and
bible are essential for church as we all read the reading for the day in unison
and sing lots of songs from “chants de victoire” a French hymn book. In case of
an emergency, she also has insect repellent wipes so we don’t get bitten to
death!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmPFoqtqNlf1lTcQFQ-pFGBTtZJs3a77nGd9UmzRaFny7OZz66Z2epRVee6Ud18obrfopYXF441wl38mxB4h2l-D-RiGhNniOQq-kBP3HyOhplP0CPqYuGLTZQ9wYf_kbbDCQPebQSmF4/s1600/Chad+March+2014+-+143+(533x800).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmPFoqtqNlf1lTcQFQ-pFGBTtZJs3a77nGd9UmzRaFny7OZz66Z2epRVee6Ud18obrfopYXF441wl38mxB4h2l-D-RiGhNniOQq-kBP3HyOhplP0CPqYuGLTZQ9wYf_kbbDCQPebQSmF4/s1600/Chad+March+2014+-+143+(533x800).jpg" height="320" width="134" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A typical patient at the hospital wearing a laffay</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">However, the day we took this picture was special. Mum and
Dad were going to a one of the hospital guards, Hassana’s house after church, for
his marriage celebration. Before going there after church mum put her laffay (which
was in her handbag) on. A laffay is basically a big piece of thin material which
you wrap around yourself on top of normal clothes. It is sort of like an Indian
sari. Some of you may have seen me wear one when we visited churches last
summer. You may have guessed it is a typical Muslim outfit. As Hassana is Muslim
it was appropriate to wear one, as all the women in the area wear one all the
time. They had a good time sharing a meal and so did we a week later when we
went to the house next door for Dago’s baptism that Rebecca mentioned in our
last blog!</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwnwLs5RL7tr-TLr60rPPDLmhG0pGUG7-b-ttH-0Q1JvaxAjP2wb3N69dD3_nkRVJkMyDtuQy9pc2kXoDQoTru9yYdzGlllM0mIj_aeXdzyzr2HYBDMnxSGyDMGrqA4XXp_hwCa9YkSDM/s1600/Ruths+chad+316+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwnwLs5RL7tr-TLr60rPPDLmhG0pGUG7-b-ttH-0Q1JvaxAjP2wb3N69dD3_nkRVJkMyDtuQy9pc2kXoDQoTru9yYdzGlllM0mIj_aeXdzyzr2HYBDMnxSGyDMGrqA4XXp_hwCa9YkSDM/s1600/Ruths+chad+316+(800x600).jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Typical Chadian "fete" food</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Talking about traditional dress has made me remember that we
have just managed to get some photos of the traditional day we had at school.
It was all part of the celebration of the last day of school before the
holidays by some students in my class.</span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQpzBW2twSlWDhwdE1k7yJCSOBO8vpZAcQjVYblb83Zf_9D7bUA0tHNUqdSf4xks6mLAGu7LA64uoBvIEXq80vYnMWwa9EwX3ekL-JZx_bWIIRynlk2aV1xsv16lkWTD9-XCwbev0WEjQ/s1600/IMG_6789+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQpzBW2twSlWDhwdE1k7yJCSOBO8vpZAcQjVYblb83Zf_9D7bUA0tHNUqdSf4xks6mLAGu7LA64uoBvIEXq80vYnMWwa9EwX3ekL-JZx_bWIIRynlk2aV1xsv16lkWTD9-XCwbev0WEjQ/s1600/IMG_6789+(800x600).jpg" height="233" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rebecca's class : 1re S</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Having not been allowed to have a
football match with acts in between, as we had just before Christmas where we
both played our instruments, they quickly organised a day where everyone came
in traditional dress and had a photo taken of the whole school at break time. Thankfully
they specified that we had to come in traditional African dress, which means in
material with African print or laffays (girls) and jalabias and scarfs (boys) as
you can see in the picture of Rebecca’s class. However the sports teacher said
the material is not traditional enough as they used to wear grass skirts before
that! Imagine… If they hadn’t specified we might have had to go in Victorian
dresses as we are English! We don’t own that sort of dress funnily enough! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The same week our school organized a school visit to a
Refugee camp on the outskirts of N’djamena. I was one of the four students from
Terminale (the highest year) chosen to go with 2 teachers. All the women we saw
were wearing laffays! </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MsqXiIU33gSQyJj5EToynex7YVajXpGjSDUnEkPnHGvfZketFCfSgUO6V9ItEbO2vb300dvxjZqChEJ_Hg2C28j3WQ3mQj6YLYoa-ZzyHvnwHEGhS3TShDYkRxin1bdRC4OY1AENFwE/s1600/DSCF3121+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MsqXiIU33gSQyJj5EToynex7YVajXpGjSDUnEkPnHGvfZketFCfSgUO6V9ItEbO2vb300dvxjZqChEJ_Hg2C28j3WQ3mQj6YLYoa-ZzyHvnwHEGhS3TShDYkRxin1bdRC4OY1AENFwE/s1600/DSCF3121+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The refugee camp at Gaoui, N'djamena</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">We went to visit the school that has just opened at the
camp. </span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRmmQw9PuGlEiJLSkXzgfeo48SIchP9DozjbZ7MoNh7884vsMztcyE_N7GitaUYwriVMmURI7b4x67IteuMu2ntvSAZ66WkhOoaCwVZjcROBtWoGR-bN-TAeW9WloTDeHYCd6rDcOw4zs/s1600/Crop+salle+de+classe+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRmmQw9PuGlEiJLSkXzgfeo48SIchP9DozjbZ7MoNh7884vsMztcyE_N7GitaUYwriVMmURI7b4x67IteuMu2ntvSAZ66WkhOoaCwVZjcROBtWoGR-bN-TAeW9WloTDeHYCd6rDcOw4zs/s1600/Crop+salle+de+classe+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A classroom at the school</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It goes from Nursery to about the equivalent of year 11. There are about
700 students even though some of the children from the camp have gone to
private schools as the school started late. We want to create a link between
our two schools in order to help them with school materials. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">They don’t have
many books and sit on mats as they have no tables and chairs. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The refugees are
mostly Chadians who have come back to Chad from the Central African Republic
following the problems which started in 2012.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I have already made a little
video and a PowerPoint in order to tell our school about their needs and how to
help. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirGjWoex_sudNtRmwrJX5xp_yeL5YG5sAx6rxMDlDjsDF32TgEPM5UphMcButrA3EEiRuAPTscUEJOCRrYkZ9T3q9T4YDv013b5Jn4KEoF6JeNxTCA6k_-3dDyp_3QAI-9GNY5ZiNvX5c/s1600/DSCF3080+(800x600).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirGjWoex_sudNtRmwrJX5xp_yeL5YG5sAx6rxMDlDjsDF32TgEPM5UphMcButrA3EEiRuAPTscUEJOCRrYkZ9T3q9T4YDv013b5Jn4KEoF6JeNxTCA6k_-3dDyp_3QAI-9GNY5ZiNvX5c/s1600/DSCF3080+(800x600).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Reception class</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As well as a school the camp has its own clinic and hundreds of tents
each one with about 30 people living in it. We will now have to work out how to
raise money ourselves as a school and all this in not much time. Apparently the
other day the camp received lots of cows as a gift… I suppose that sounds
funny. When my friend and I told the philosophy teacher (the one who organized
the trip) he looked very surprised! I wonder whether they just killed them (yes
they were probably alive!) or kept some of them to sell or milk. <o:p></o:p></span>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> was meant to finish the video and presentation with some
friends when we came back from the holidays, unfortunately there have been some
problems. Despite going back to school as planned on the 9<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> of
March after the holidays we haven’t been to school since. There were some quite
violent student protests in town about a new law which enforces the use of
motor cycle helmets. All schools and universities in N’djamena have been closed
since then though things are looking better as we go back tomorrow!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Please comment and tell us what you put in your handbag!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOyGBHgz5KOkz6GuxZO2frWHveio92pcNTvC7-i7UNVVdyCsjReeOZpZE6sH531kf0AQUU24vyYe8ZgreRhA1QNpPfqYsu0pthgWh6CT_IjvsO_QhYli_taG7WEnV48dJrU5jPxMtOnHM/s1600/DSCF5311+(614x800).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOyGBHgz5KOkz6GuxZO2frWHveio92pcNTvC7-i7UNVVdyCsjReeOZpZE6sH531kf0AQUU24vyYe8ZgreRhA1QNpPfqYsu0pthgWh6CT_IjvsO_QhYli_taG7WEnV48dJrU5jPxMtOnHM/s1600/DSCF5311+(614x800).jpg" height="320" width="245" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Chadian artist's impression of women in laffays</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-30321042845278918402015-03-07T15:18:00.003+00:002015-03-07T15:20:25.636+00:00Picnic, Policemen and Python<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ok, so the last one is
a slight exaggeration but read on to discover the pleasures (and perils) of our
latest holiday. We’ve just had our two week February skiing holidays (the
French always have two weeks off because one is just not long enough for a
skiing holiday!). Mum and Dad had the first week off. We spent it at Bakara, at
a Catholic retreat centre. </span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7QWvErRcwU5Z_CFnMhLNrdxwoINcSeZogybVmw55fJ-0FMsv37FXrXrBwuRCgw-JierXitlHX9IitPbumt5nVulrCtvfAp-hWQFBWWGMnt9M_h6jUSVdxk1pJiksLOP4Q_XPkXQZft3E/s1600/DSCF3079+(1024x768).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7QWvErRcwU5Z_CFnMhLNrdxwoINcSeZogybVmw55fJ-0FMsv37FXrXrBwuRCgw-JierXitlHX9IitPbumt5nVulrCtvfAp-hWQFBWWGMnt9M_h6jUSVdxk1pJiksLOP4Q_XPkXQZft3E/s1600/DSCF3079+(1024x768).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bakara</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It was very pleasant and relaxing. The centre is on
the eastern outskirts of N’djamena next to the river Chari. On the other side
rather than being northern Cameroon you can actually see another part of Chad.
We spent our time there resting, reading and bird watching. Being a lot closer
to the river than normal we saw a lot of different birds like herons,
open-billed storks and pied kingfishers. Unfortunately we forgot our bird book
so we weren’t able to identify them all! As well as reading Ruth and I did some
running. After the holidays Ruth has got her sports BAC. She has chosen to do
demi-fond which means running 500 m as fast as you can three times while
predicting your time. We did some practising as her teacher had recommended it.
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5z3ZIa6I0QfHidQsrZ16qQMvbJSNL8IczGFcOUmjg0pDJeB942NSXkfWjVDEAQ83oyo58azM7V4aeVm741P1G0YiRMp6s3hCyX-dkwsun6DAkjFGcKCivraosMf_qFvmly68xNh1f1L4/s1600/DSCF3086+(1024x768).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5z3ZIa6I0QfHidQsrZ16qQMvbJSNL8IczGFcOUmjg0pDJeB942NSXkfWjVDEAQ83oyo58azM7V4aeVm741P1G0YiRMp6s3hCyX-dkwsun6DAkjFGcKCivraosMf_qFvmly68xNh1f1L4/s1600/DSCF3086+(1024x768).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Running! Well actually we saw that Dad was taking pictures so...we posed!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Whilst there we also went on an adventure! We decided to go on a picnic on one
of the empty stretches of the river bank by Bakara. We set off and wandered a
bit along the bank looking at the birds and river. Dad was just trying to get a
picture of these beautiful green birds in flight when a policeman and a soldier
pulled up on a motorbike behind us. They spent 10 minutes talking to Dad,
asking us where we were from, if we had a tourism permission paper and if we
had permission to take photos! They were surprised to hear that we had been in
chad for 5 years, living and working at the hospital in N’djamena, and
therefore hadn’t thought of applying for a tourism pass. As for the photos they
let us off after checking that we had only photographed birds. The security
around N’djamena has definitely gone up over the past couple of months. This
meeting put an end to our wanderings and we headed back to the car to quickly
eat our picnic and then go. Whilst we were enjoying tuna sandwiches, Mum
suddenly spotted something moving in a pile of rocks behind us! She saw what
looked like the head of a lizard, but it slithered out and lifted its head off
the floor, no legs! A snake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before it
came any closer we moved everything away from the shade under the isolated tree.
We had soon finished and headed back to Bakara where we decided it was probably
safer and more relaxing just to stay on the compound! Whilst picnicking we had
been approached by the local village chief’s son who offered to take us on a
boat trip to the island in the middle of the river to see hippopotami! In the
end we decided it sounded a little too dangerous though we hope to see some
again before Ruth leaves us. We did however manage to go on a last family camel
ride! </span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH1UYZCtoQFPjZ9miHIEH5BVLOxFIrLioCJq5FgsJjDD4zJVBuDTB9jmSDQH_Lxe2E8fMTi3AHhwXyHuwOSuY92FZXMO3OdAPNMsrNRbA6rb4CiNTyeWpgkf0i3XgNnZJJSaD30ZILhMc/s1600/DSCF3062+(1024x768).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH1UYZCtoQFPjZ9miHIEH5BVLOxFIrLioCJq5FgsJjDD4zJVBuDTB9jmSDQH_Lxe2E8fMTi3AHhwXyHuwOSuY92FZXMO3OdAPNMsrNRbA6rb4CiNTyeWpgkf0i3XgNnZJJSaD30ZILhMc/s1600/DSCF3062+(1024x768).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The camels arriving</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOLxL-QuGRW_wdxMDL1lsJ3WrEvh1xKzMdDo3wQ6Em8HXwShsXX1Ilq3rwrLUcoagN5FlFYpz5Jv2WVCguVaLXJQXVJwEIWC7j5nbDrZR84FnGMCYpSBzBKQFVG0KMaGD08e0rqKxYrE4/s1600/DSCF3069+(1024x768).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOLxL-QuGRW_wdxMDL1lsJ3WrEvh1xKzMdDo3wQ6Em8HXwShsXX1Ilq3rwrLUcoagN5FlFYpz5Jv2WVCguVaLXJQXVJwEIWC7j5nbDrZR84FnGMCYpSBzBKQFVG0KMaGD08e0rqKxYrE4/s1600/DSCF3069+(1024x768).jpg" height="200" width="188" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruth and I from the back of Dad's camel</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUeXfPqjkwJ0eIoFDIVEdo7yfNqgRQ8K53LOP33bizQgE-JMCT30D6KGrE2dBF6RKzSgNpbKAb2mdmspGSd0vnd9K8TCkcGCrRdheF6UvAlkIOMMAG58lUrvQNKrKZYtrJm7WYDdd1XtY/s1600/DSCF3066+(1024x768).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUeXfPqjkwJ0eIoFDIVEdo7yfNqgRQ8K53LOP33bizQgE-JMCT30D6KGrE2dBF6RKzSgNpbKAb2mdmspGSd0vnd9K8TCkcGCrRdheF6UvAlkIOMMAG58lUrvQNKrKZYtrJm7WYDdd1XtY/s1600/DSCF3066+(1024x768).jpg" height="200" width="186" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mum</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We had failed to organise our usual three Wisemen Christmas excursion but
Mum and Dad surprised us both by telling us they had organised one for that
week as Bakara is very near to the golf course where we have ridden camels in
the past! We spent an hour riding camels through the golf course which was full
of young Chadians studying and people drying mats on the empty plains. No one
was playing golf. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was very fun though
the camels seemed to have insatiable appetites and ate a lot of neem tree
leaves! After the usual abrupt coming down Ruth and I thought we’d never be
able to run again!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76mQNJf4inUWZTVftyn5EYlsjodLXYKuN0nQbyRki1-8e6ccr7rTDwE1rFqq03Fz6YW0m6_GB8cC30qQYbX-OdQ-z8TVokT4rF552pLIiPQi1sKpeNSunVTEvoA0DiOpOMwpdxLP4uso/s1600/DSCF3197+(1024x768).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76mQNJf4inUWZTVftyn5EYlsjodLXYKuN0nQbyRki1-8e6ccr7rTDwE1rFqq03Fz6YW0m6_GB8cC30qQYbX-OdQ-z8TVokT4rF552pLIiPQi1sKpeNSunVTEvoA0DiOpOMwpdxLP4uso/s1600/DSCF3197+(1024x768).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The camels</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Later in the week we were surprised to see more camels this
time from afar. We were just eating a picnic (at Bakara this time) when we
spotted a herd of camels walking along the long island in the middle of the
river! There was one man with about 100 camels of various sizes! </span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGZkVZ-E9FbFtYene5fBm6cGVFHptF3Nmg7af-jp1OJAakXV5vD9XGKgTpkaTq-KAJYU25lRn2RdplfHBw1pzZTpzUZCMT2sSKrUm-lDMBrnZbadN16AaalAuqwAxPTwcw3kiiOH3q6Gg/s1600/DSCF3202+(1024x768).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGZkVZ-E9FbFtYene5fBm6cGVFHptF3Nmg7af-jp1OJAakXV5vD9XGKgTpkaTq-KAJYU25lRn2RdplfHBw1pzZTpzUZCMT2sSKrUm-lDMBrnZbadN16AaalAuqwAxPTwcw3kiiOH3q6Gg/s1600/DSCF3202+(1024x768).jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The camels on the other side of the river</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ9AzeWKl1DL6-vs6oYyOHUGtGNFzkLerVgt-BOOmpsVKbr4AcQwo99QNBY7_mZCeDLo5RRGKi7n35JTLJP2MxT3PV_kjwm9t38QpjL8Qq-m6upXwLHUL-uGYDe8dBLlcC-fS08n-JjeM/s1600/DSCF3213+(1024x253).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ9AzeWKl1DL6-vs6oYyOHUGtGNFzkLerVgt-BOOmpsVKbr4AcQwo99QNBY7_mZCeDLo5RRGKi7n35JTLJP2MxT3PV_kjwm9t38QpjL8Qq-m6upXwLHUL-uGYDe8dBLlcC-fS08n-JjeM/s1600/DSCF3213+(1024x253).jpg" height="98" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It was an
amazing but fleeting sight as they had all soon moved on, on their way out of
town. We’ve had a very nice break at Bakara; we finishing with a trip to the
swimming pool where we all got thoroughly tanned! </span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7gpNjLrxyhTX6eHHDSkgqztGwwS_e2LYJv-LikCHePkj0co3-SCJ5Wr7sc_46TTz68EEZMs4ugZoE4GgDmC22iBRo5vKC2HgtIjcP2Iyns7OuYqNqKOKHk_m_HsuDZdJJWGfVTVq6_2s/s1600/DSCF3234+(1024x768).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7gpNjLrxyhTX6eHHDSkgqztGwwS_e2LYJv-LikCHePkj0co3-SCJ5Wr7sc_46TTz68EEZMs4ugZoE4GgDmC22iBRo5vKC2HgtIjcP2Iyns7OuYqNqKOKHk_m_HsuDZdJJWGfVTVq6_2s/s1600/DSCF3234+(1024x768).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Relaxing at by the river Bakara</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now Mum and Dad are back at
work and Ruth and I will a quickly getting our homework done before school
starts again on Monday!</span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-2752419556732819342015-02-14T11:24:00.002+00:002015-02-14T11:24:32.591+00:00Guinebor II NADIF<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">We have a busy couple
of weeks since I last blogged! All our mock exams are now over, we are slowly
getting our results back, so far we have both been pleased. We’ve still got
plenty of homework as ever but are finding more time to do fun things… I read
my first book for month last weekend, I’ve found time to write a blog and
Ruth’s been looking at uni stuff for next year (she’s got 3 offers now!). We
also have been doing more fun things at school. My project on solar energy in
Chad will be handed in next week (if you fancy practicing your French, you can
visit our website at </span><span lang="FR"><a href="http://heliostchad.e-monsite.com/">http://heliostchad.e-monsite.com/</a>).</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimoHtka4VLzmeYUfLz0um8ciZ3wW5SjBcTtmwwsX8duueieygfgN07g8eoDomLPt2E8JXL55Rvv69dElkoUlip-VHWG1dPh5L16_1ljWo7K19GFJ3q2tZ884509y3nqP1Ca-ZNOngMMRc/s1600/IMG_6450.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimoHtka4VLzmeYUfLz0um8ciZ3wW5SjBcTtmwwsX8duueieygfgN07g8eoDomLPt2E8JXL55Rvv69dElkoUlip-VHWG1dPh5L16_1ljWo7K19GFJ3q2tZ884509y3nqP1Ca-ZNOngMMRc/s1600/IMG_6450.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our two solar cookers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixQUg9m0ANZ4eCx_5OJwrLHgTAo3-AjtKfu2MLat9ooo2ahdpoFNpoBfNKuMjHdBYNwU6pJD9wZHm0RMJblIJF2JASOwXZfnYAASYKjHBjT6mR0_16Y4kKoO4Pi41zHaPCmxzJ_-Nkotw/s1600/IMG_6446.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixQUg9m0ANZ4eCx_5OJwrLHgTAo3-AjtKfu2MLat9ooo2ahdpoFNpoBfNKuMjHdBYNwU6pJD9wZHm0RMJblIJF2JASOwXZfnYAASYKjHBjT6mR0_16Y4kKoO4Pi41zHaPCmxzJ_-Nkotw/s1600/IMG_6446.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Helios Tchad!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Last Saturday, our school organised an open day for “la semaine de la
science” (Science week). Groups of pupils from the 3 highest years presented
different experiments to teachers, parents and year 11 classes from other
Chadian schools. Today, they are doing a quiz at the cultural centre on what
they learnt. Unfortunately, today we couldn’t go but I took part in the
experiments, presenting solar cookers from the chado-swiss organisation
PROMOSOL and one we made ourselves from a tyre. My friends presented a solar
dryer, an experiment with a photovoltaic cell and games still on the theme of solar. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUUCN9hfca2Vjnv5k6tJxvDLH180WmZcUOhFOp5gzdXJoDz63CNq34u4mMvc1Ck4n7lIzWZUVjaFvjWsXomCVGGtwjj5qdpefo9_vsO2khZpb-vLp-NB_8fq6eO9buFjKZ8csvzz4mcZs/s1600/IMG_6452.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUUCN9hfca2Vjnv5k6tJxvDLH180WmZcUOhFOp5gzdXJoDz63CNq34u4mMvc1Ck4n7lIzWZUVjaFvjWsXomCVGGtwjj5qdpefo9_vsO2khZpb-vLp-NB_8fq6eO9buFjKZ8csvzz4mcZs/s1600/IMG_6452.JPG" height="200" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The photovoltaic cell experiment</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
We did this as you might guess for our project on solar energy; a big
part of it is about getting people interested and teaching them about solar
energy. We had great fun, especially me standing in the sun for 2 hours talking
non-stop! It was tiring but good, people seemed very interested and the whole
day was a success. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisPvK7lz78uxz8UXRQe7sGM2niiN8xh6lG_1JFOmFSivFJ0Q6rDNplC9c_UNx9q22ryp2nUr7iicVpADR5jo7OhE2Y-nidNGvMDYaSCNcMSXHWftImyJ5aJ4xg5o18fuKI8MOohjce7LQ/s1600/DSCF2952.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisPvK7lz78uxz8UXRQe7sGM2niiN8xh6lG_1JFOmFSivFJ0Q6rDNplC9c_UNx9q22ryp2nUr7iicVpADR5jo7OhE2Y-nidNGvMDYaSCNcMSXHWftImyJ5aJ4xg5o18fuKI8MOohjce7LQ/s1600/DSCF2952.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heading out</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Afterwards, you might think that I went home and had a rest
all afternoon after the hard work but actually we had our Teen’s Bible Study
litter pick! Mum’s been doing Teen’s Bible Study for a random group of
missionary children, once a month for about a year. Lately we’ve been studying
Acts and the early church. Thinking about this led us to wanting to do a
sponsored “act” for the community, so we decided to do a sponsored litter pick
in Guinebor II. We’re to be paid a certain amount per bag of rubbish. <br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrwK5wmV7F1Nv_ffIj9l6gAgZI1swlTPNb-jeWFbYQyRwKcSPCoZagjSA3L-rvkNLzv_zdLYJY-2v1H1iIhSCK3ZUBgsmghSHvXs30tI7MjNuzUbFYN9CBpPPmTPBuy6gRX19go7YyC70/s1600/DSCF2955.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrwK5wmV7F1Nv_ffIj9l6gAgZI1swlTPNb-jeWFbYQyRwKcSPCoZagjSA3L-rvkNLzv_zdLYJY-2v1H1iIhSCK3ZUBgsmghSHvXs30tI7MjNuzUbFYN9CBpPPmTPBuy6gRX19go7YyC70/s1600/DSCF2955.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGEQ5KkVV7r8bqKChxkbgd78rKP942VvSBcMZH7jXUJ_UcWN4vkufq0NSed9zfn76B4V9PIRR_VrTjSF-vq2nttKiWTnG824ffZabolHPKt7CJA-eApwwdwys3TSxw7P8cZPRLixDaUSk/s1600/DSCF2958.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGEQ5KkVV7r8bqKChxkbgd78rKP942VvSBcMZH7jXUJ_UcWN4vkufq0NSed9zfn76B4V9PIRR_VrTjSF-vq2nttKiWTnG824ffZabolHPKt7CJA-eApwwdwys3TSxw7P8cZPRLixDaUSk/s1600/DSCF2958.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
Guinebor II NADIF and our helpers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
The money raised will go to the hospital, we wanted to do something concrete so will buy
some sort of equipment the size of which depends on the amount of money raised.
Last Saturday afternoon we all went out into Guinebor with plastic gloves and
bags. We ended up being helped by a large crowd of enthusiastic children and
collected more than 40 bags! We could have stayed for hours (or perhaps days)
but actually ran out of bin bags! Afterwards we burnt it all in the hospital
incinerator. It was a fun afternoon, we all really enjoyed it and the villagers
all seemed pleased if a little surprised to see us bothering to pick up
rubbish. We even came up with a name for a group: Guinebor II NADIF. Nadif
means clean in Chadian Arabic and is the name of the group of street sweepers
of N’djamena. As it went so well, we hope to do it again someday!</div>
</span><br />
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicf52IhDzn6cw7gS16fVh34GjNNPq6Py0d7ZF_yXrVpAmNEM_foQu0VpmNxi9kWaMwbIMr6A1BlyXBjcIF0IDasl6iyDTawHdEOrhFg-WJ0ltsnZTvzpQgrXJxD1jZ-iNEWbPNwmK2Cb4/s1600/DSCF2961.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicf52IhDzn6cw7gS16fVh34GjNNPq6Py0d7ZF_yXrVpAmNEM_foQu0VpmNxi9kWaMwbIMr6A1BlyXBjcIF0IDasl6iyDTawHdEOrhFg-WJ0ltsnZTvzpQgrXJxD1jZ-iNEWbPNwmK2Cb4/s1600/DSCF2961.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Burning the rubbish</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
</div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I hope this weekend
will be slightly less busy… On Sunday afternoon we’re going to the baptism of
the new-born child of Dago, the driver who takes us to school each day. Though
totally different from last weekend, I’m sure it’ll be just as fun!</span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-91399529635300139732015-01-23T15:24:00.003+00:002015-01-24T16:05:02.375+00:00Hedgehogs, solar cookers and pond water!<span style="font-size: small;">Hello!<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-oIIYJswjSzW1p0zaLB1wlA6ltIpahhXdMIPdWpIgkp1AsvyDFJXdj_aM5NWKeSfgyu9OphlJ0QhxVrfszNuq23OMNoJSyy4veb4QqGS02xrtNjEgfY2HEDvGbVXr1Xy4FcgPbKtUyK8/s1600/DSCF2828.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-oIIYJswjSzW1p0zaLB1wlA6ltIpahhXdMIPdWpIgkp1AsvyDFJXdj_aM5NWKeSfgyu9OphlJ0QhxVrfszNuq23OMNoJSyy4veb4QqGS02xrtNjEgfY2HEDvGbVXr1Xy4FcgPbKtUyK8/s1600/DSCF2828.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><br />
<br /><br />
Look who we found in our garden the other day! Isn't he cute! He's a pygmy desert hedgehog. After showing it to all our neighbours we considered keeping it as a pet with Braveheart (our tortoise) who has quite a large area. In the end we decided not to, thinking that he might actually be female and have children to look after hidden away somewhere....<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Cv0nv4uaB1XrrwEe3XuPmDxGIi01CDALPPr01E3RUZ-60jdrqpNCeTWZLV_N23R_GhY_PK7vAsRn-U3oGhqd74l_7aSM-sJCprAVsUXwSgRjp2SyFCeQWGM5jiqtQaT71ehBbt2mP1M/s1600/DSCF2418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Cv0nv4uaB1XrrwEe3XuPmDxGIi01CDALPPr01E3RUZ-60jdrqpNCeTWZLV_N23R_GhY_PK7vAsRn-U3oGhqd74l_7aSM-sJCprAVsUXwSgRjp2SyFCeQWGM5jiqtQaT71ehBbt2mP1M/s1600/DSCF2418.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
At the moment, we are both very busy with school work. Next week Ruth is doing the BAC blanc (mock exams), there will be 6 written exams: philosophy, economy, maths, history/geography, english and Spanish and has 2 orals the week after in english (I guess that will go well) and in spanish. I only have one written in french on Friday and an oral in a few weeks. I'm also trying to get my project on solar energy in Chad finished in time for the next holidays! I made the tyre solar cooker that you can see in the picture (on the left) with my friends and we've been to visit the centre of the company which made the other one next to it (PROMOSOL, a swiss/tchadian organisation).<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-7_O6_9Gcxe4bnDQOh1iJgZMxyU8COLc0WngEB44m8SyQgIx4DiXYkTtdgwEsBJhkAPXgsSGCQLPwbRWNEjq5CZkpLf-ZFiHbjhcE7uYLXz27Bqg-WbJXlLjEikQ4Yr55t1gjmGjB9X4/s1600/DSCF2882.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-7_O6_9Gcxe4bnDQOh1iJgZMxyU8COLc0WngEB44m8SyQgIx4DiXYkTtdgwEsBJhkAPXgsSGCQLPwbRWNEjq5CZkpLf-ZFiHbjhcE7uYLXz27Bqg-WbJXlLjEikQ4Yr55t1gjmGjB9X4/s1600/DSCF2882.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a>I've also done an experiment to see if it is possible to purify water using the sun's rays. We left one clear plastic bottle and two painted ones (black and white) in the sun for a day and then gave our specimens to a hospital in town yesterday to see if we managed to kill all the bacteria. In the picture you can see me collecting water from a pond on the way home from school with Dago our chauffeur...<br />
<br />
Thankfully the heat has come back so I can carry out all my experiments properly! It is still quite cold at night though as we discovered a few nights ago, waking up shivering after thinking we'd be fine without covers. <br />
<br />
Just one last thing yesterday Ruth found out that she's has got an offer from Liverpool Hope University to study Theology and Religious Studies! We're very excited and hoping to hear from the other three (York St John's, Exeter and Chester) soon!<br />
<br />
Hope you are all well, love Ruth and Rebecca </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Segoe Print; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Segoe Print; font-size: small;"><span lang=""></span></span></span><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-59067473175973363682015-01-07T15:50:00.000+00:002015-01-07T18:34:15.602+00:00Holidays, Parties and 14 degrees<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";">Hello! As a New
Year's resolution, Ruth and I have decided to write 'postcard' blogs based on
pictures... here is a rather a long one to start off with!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdtJjaqCF8SK6ThllQLKQbJs_IV8anR0i_K3iLsaGd8y-4u4cRQ50hXpAUYbRBu7Z6CHsiTHaDvqIgjyEVg6JmYP9yeUGYHk_OP7vaRwECsa54sEHAG6bTT9_i7ZJHTuvQrDMEVGYbIHk/s1600/DSCF2328.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdtJjaqCF8SK6ThllQLKQbJs_IV8anR0i_K3iLsaGd8y-4u4cRQ50hXpAUYbRBu7Z6CHsiTHaDvqIgjyEVg6JmYP9yeUGYHk_OP7vaRwECsa54sEHAG6bTT9_i7ZJHTuvQrDMEVGYbIHk/s1600/DSCF2328.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCukrOp_FcQCiaHPkCeaw1-WMIbUCMRhlzJSMzwfZUID3iZTxO7lGLSNG4_vPM74og-ggZP6yqMLSfKQfDo4U-jHmLdK5Ntc1PSy23uElg2Oi0z2NU8LvWYKXnqCoR_kKXTRjnFIiOM8U/s1600/DSCF2330.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCukrOp_FcQCiaHPkCeaw1-WMIbUCMRhlzJSMzwfZUID3iZTxO7lGLSNG4_vPM74og-ggZP6yqMLSfKQfDo4U-jHmLdK5Ntc1PSy23uElg2Oi0z2NU8LvWYKXnqCoR_kKXTRjnFIiOM8U/s1600/DSCF2330.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";">Here is Tabitha
preparing for the Christmas party at the hospital which I think you’ve all
heard about on my parent’s blog! She is making "kak" with Rebecca and
Odette our house helps....in very large quantities as you can see! I helped out a bit as it
was during the holidays but it didn't seem to make much difference as it's
quite hard work and I'm not very skilled though I had progressed after a couple
of hours of plaiting the dough! It was all then cooked in hot oil on a wood
fire out the back of the house and given out with meat and coke the next day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCvidK_OSpD9egTvIc3A9UkpW2U4vimYWUFRKPSFAoCADd66y5LLnWyeR_Lc8yWUywUYbu7pKVCdV7daGZRUqWHwEGkU1MnPKN-3jWRKegVxP11lBL4BeGNs3ijmCrtU0PXBvL-HHQ08I/s1600/DSCF2276.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCvidK_OSpD9egTvIc3A9UkpW2U4vimYWUFRKPSFAoCADd66y5LLnWyeR_Lc8yWUywUYbu7pKVCdV7daGZRUqWHwEGkU1MnPKN-3jWRKegVxP11lBL4BeGNs3ijmCrtU0PXBvL-HHQ08I/s1600/DSCF2276.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";">This is Ruth and
Joe, our neighbours with a tray of freshly baked buns for a very different
party: our end of term football tournament at school, everyone had asked me to
make my delicious 'English' cakes! Ruth and I played the guitar and flute with
a group of friends and surprisingly in the end, the youngest team won!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhay7LXXuw0fw8RrKRJ96MuZb-DyVRZgio_sPppQ_oi5pMtghq-73mREGcq_Byo5afLVxYlXZD-d8_-2MWHr64RzZP0M9Ye4IwnmI09dcoDEPagLoDyn0aXIfCnB53gHzL0mPbsTsbLLrU/s1600/DSCF2418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhay7LXXuw0fw8RrKRJ96MuZb-DyVRZgio_sPppQ_oi5pMtghq-73mREGcq_Byo5afLVxYlXZD-d8_-2MWHr64RzZP0M9Ye4IwnmI09dcoDEPagLoDyn0aXIfCnB53gHzL0mPbsTsbLLrU/s1600/DSCF2418.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";">Here is another
party, this time a birthday of one of our friend's little brothers. We spent a
morning dancing, talking in broken Arabic and then taking pictures which I will
print next week in town! We were given delicious mutton and would have stayed
longer to eat a proper meal but we were going to Bitkine the next day and had
to pack!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uVQPYR90bpKBHzuz38VfEA3k3ElIazSJ5GD5sJfn6k89nm-wt17pAzBSZJElBriVzzZWPJ0bErW3LwrPwmu8hkckSFrtG28ZYjg0W0tfHRKgPaZNyWwcAlppSR8g96jCdW-50wfN7PQ/s1600/DSCF2528.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uVQPYR90bpKBHzuz38VfEA3k3ElIazSJ5GD5sJfn6k89nm-wt17pAzBSZJElBriVzzZWPJ0bErW3LwrPwmu8hkckSFrtG28ZYjg0W0tfHRKgPaZNyWwcAlppSR8g96jCdW-50wfN7PQ/s1600/DSCF2528.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";">Unfortunately,
after 3 hours in the car on the way to Bitkine, we heard some funny noises and
the car eventually came to a stop just as I was going to sleep! We were by a
small village and thankfully had phone signal! Dad rang Isaac who contacted
Dago, the hospital driver who takes us to school every day and he set off to
rescue us. We then had a four hour wait ahead of us. Dad went to greet the
village chief who very kindly offered us a mat! So we sat and played the bean
game before eating bread and cheese, a rare treat to be 'forced' to eat so much
cheese at one time! Afterwards we sat in the car as it got cooler and watched
Beautiful Lies which finished just as Dago arrived at nine O'clock! We then
parked the car in the village and drove the next four hours to Bitkine,
arriving at 1 O'clock in the morning to an amazing sky full of stars... and
bed! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiim_L9SZiqCBk42k5EBekvXEM0K5rT23jscZA_jLRZ-NqgIZ-4Xn4ZykOb65EyN-LAhUnNFlzyQtwF6P5MPmRYp1XjEQVgSvhFdussrWgr8nz-1FseefWdkQsdtEGoLnai4T-EePu39Ic/s1600/DSCF2645.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiim_L9SZiqCBk42k5EBekvXEM0K5rT23jscZA_jLRZ-NqgIZ-4Xn4ZykOb65EyN-LAhUnNFlzyQtwF6P5MPmRYp1XjEQVgSvhFdussrWgr8nz-1FseefWdkQsdtEGoLnai4T-EePu39Ic/s1600/DSCF2645.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5DNnon1fD6XlH5vqQKn2EZRai0wfHPIEy_sMGLlsYZJLzntSW-SuPFMWTckN91L3w5RHT-KRpPFv1YIJLMjpEdNHeLnuWWkvrNDKkLX303xVE1yTUtPWe0kqv0_SCpewh4AJ4hfVfdqg/s1600/DSCF2730.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5DNnon1fD6XlH5vqQKn2EZRai0wfHPIEy_sMGLlsYZJLzntSW-SuPFMWTckN91L3w5RHT-KRpPFv1YIJLMjpEdNHeLnuWWkvrNDKkLX303xVE1yTUtPWe0kqv0_SCpewh4AJ4hfVfdqg/s1600/DSCF2730.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";">Here is a sunset the
next day, we rested and generally relaxed for a week at Bitkine. We went on
some brilliant walks in the mountains that were slightly smaller than the ones
in the photo! On the New Year’s Day walking down a small rocky hill, Mum
slipped and discovered that a slide had been polished in the rock! We all had a
few rides, it worked surprisingly well! We afterwards saw children going down
an even bigger one on sacks, yes; you can go sledging in Chad! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjS1S7HoBL6YCfdH5OCbUP0ake7IttPPjHSk_sN0zdZ4vffQye8dpDHlxAHeerm6mlVo07dTZA_TYujFVrhhehxwofrh8Gk-L4bm9nHoeYzfHgZiekNwZoQ6aUCEVGK9k0q5SqCyCnUMk/s1600/DSCF2333.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjS1S7HoBL6YCfdH5OCbUP0ake7IttPPjHSk_sN0zdZ4vffQye8dpDHlxAHeerm6mlVo07dTZA_TYujFVrhhehxwofrh8Gk-L4bm9nHoeYzfHgZiekNwZoQ6aUCEVGK9k0q5SqCyCnUMk/s1600/DSCF2333.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";">Now, we are back in
N'djamena and have restarted school and work... Ruth is doing a four hour
philosophy test this afternoon and I am enjoying the slight rest from homework
offered by the first week and working on my TPE project on solar energy for
March. One last picture: this is our cat Farid who has been wrapping up against
the cold much like us! Someone said temperatures have reached 14 degrees
Celsius at night and we are all feeling it! After the warmth of Bitkine (the
rocks apparently absorb the heat of the sun), Guinebor seems very cold,
especially this year. Fortunately we brought a few jumpers back from England
and are (just about) able to cope so long as no one puts the air conditioning
on at school! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";">Hope you are all
coping with the freezing temperatures of England which I keep explaining to my
friends who can't stand anything below 20 degrees! "No, this really isn't
cold!" I don't know how Ruth will cope next year!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 18.0pt 36.0pt 54.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt 108.0pt 126.0pt 144.0pt 162.0pt 180.0pt 198.0pt 216.0pt 234.0pt 252.0pt 270.0pt 288.0pt 306.0pt 324.0pt 342.0pt 360.0pt 378.0pt 396.0pt 414.0pt 432.0pt 450.0pt 468.0pt 486.0pt 504.0pt 522.0pt 540.0pt 558.0pt 576.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Segoe Print"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe Print";">Hope you are all
well and had a great Christmas, Happy New Year! love Rebecca.</span></div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-7413553208522617012014-10-25T18:03:00.003+01:002014-10-25T21:29:49.956+01:00Truly Endless Possibilities...<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpF8xdbGiPaUSniMRaQB_-jSauMcNXNXVCtliWHZQfrM633rtGi_iTu3Tgk2nfj3Y59f84hZrOl1xlOcKtXw7adIzO6Jb1sqWbyuEj3c3bCtNGcKybqeHPfiBpVR_NuAgKZv-kkDKfcxw/s1600/toy-craze.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpF8xdbGiPaUSniMRaQB_-jSauMcNXNXVCtliWHZQfrM633rtGi_iTu3Tgk2nfj3Y59f84hZrOl1xlOcKtXw7adIzO6Jb1sqWbyuEj3c3bCtNGcKybqeHPfiBpVR_NuAgKZv-kkDKfcxw/s1600/toy-craze.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Chad is a very remote place, living in Guinebor II at times, we seem to be cut off from the western world… But somehow the loom bands craze has hit Chad, we see children proudly showing off their bracelets, necklaces and rings every morning when we drop off our neighbour Gioia at the Primary School… We’ve even been given some: my piano teacher’s youngest daughter Clara gave me a ring and Ruth’s friend Amira gave her a bracelet. There is one problem with loom bands in Chad though, you’ve probably all heard about their terrible effects on the environment well here it’s the environment which has terrible effects on them! Just look at this picture of Ruth’s bracelet…<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGgZeK_8XsHtCn5di-zrSiPWD_MYaKs_QmwnZIfjwWlW_xwYH6T4juOllDfM-8kT5xgX_LCQN6tQ88ph8V_dN8_NZW2MYn1puOy1N3JtKU6xutgCHrAPWSjx3OgwfsjEi9YjxaKHmsksI/s1600/DSCF2240.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGgZeK_8XsHtCn5di-zrSiPWD_MYaKs_QmwnZIfjwWlW_xwYH6T4juOllDfM-8kT5xgX_LCQN6tQ88ph8V_dN8_NZW2MYn1puOy1N3JtKU6xutgCHrAPWSjx3OgwfsjEi9YjxaKHmsksI/s1600/DSCF2240.JPG" height="256" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">They just can’t withstand the heat and dryness of the climate and disintegrate after a couple of week’s exposure… it’s not even the hot season! At school my friend’s ponytail suddenly fell out in the middle of a maths lesson, she had been using a loom band bracelet as a hair band! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">We’ve even nicknamed one of our kittens Lumi… his real name is Lumineer (I’m sure you’ve all heard of Ho Hey) the others are Magic, Wednesday’s Wolf and Fun. We’ve only got Wednesday’s Wolf left now, Lumineer has found a new home with Dia, one of the hospital's midwives. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">As for the heat I’m exploring in my TPE (Travaux Pratiques Encadrés) project how the weather can be used for development through solar energy! In my year (1re) in our French school all the students have to do a project on a subject of our choice with a group of friends. We have to write up our finds and then present them to some teachers in February as part of our Baccalaureate. So we’ve chosen solar and are working out how the sun’s energy can be used in Chad!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNncqvLu8jYX90VIxPlqxuRpjGbCdPhdtzC-EvK6L0MxLUQHJBcEQ9ssTTeMaHsvEDYwhftkV6K1XZKnjDI31WqPSW9gmtV3xj5CRFQBIb9zNyeRSzlpUnVZ3rPsW8PMyj0_TDKZ4n_OE/s1600/blog+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNncqvLu8jYX90VIxPlqxuRpjGbCdPhdtzC-EvK6L0MxLUQHJBcEQ9ssTTeMaHsvEDYwhftkV6K1XZKnjDI31WqPSW9gmtV3xj5CRFQBIb9zNyeRSzlpUnVZ3rPsW8PMyj0_TDKZ4n_OE/s1600/blog+2.jpg" height="252" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Earlier I mentioned my piano teacher’s daughter Clara, I have a piano lesson every week with a Swiss missionary friend called Viviane and she’s just found someone who is willing to give Ruth guitar lessons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I doubt his daughters will be offering Ruth loom bands though; the craze just doesn’t seem as appealing when everything you make falls apart after a couple of weeks... Then again it’s a perfect excuse to make more!</span></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-87531836207204561412013-08-14T20:27:00.003+01:002013-08-15T13:42:26.726+01:00Perspectives<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">Sisters, twins or just friends<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzU0XmAQQ0k2SZEqGZV6XDqQjpntK4RMx7wumltIBPZ5n609zq9ae0WQNELI4CM_HM0cIzG0PHPhwys4aDAZfEaUIJwRk_XMUWycksXyBf2_2GV8fLRKh6d_1ofogKAYaSLdTWG-Ub9Ls/s1600/june2010+120+(640x480).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzU0XmAQQ0k2SZEqGZV6XDqQjpntK4RMx7wumltIBPZ5n609zq9ae0WQNELI4CM_HM0cIzG0PHPhwys4aDAZfEaUIJwRk_XMUWycksXyBf2_2GV8fLRKh6d_1ofogKAYaSLdTWG-Ub9Ls/s320/june2010+120+(640x480).jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Butterfly which we raised from a caterpillar</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">It’s interesting how in different cultures people automatically assume different things. It’s also funny to think how your own perspectives get altered by the places you live in and the people you talk to.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">It makes you wonder whether what we mean by our ‘opinions’ on subjects are in fact only reflections of the mixture (or not) of places where we have lived...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">If another person lived exactly the same life as me would they be the same? I think, probably not.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">My sister and I by English and Chadian standards look about the same age even with our age difference. Despite this we don’t look like sisters to most English people and because we look the same age they assume we are just friends. I don’t know if that is just because our hair colour is different but at our school which is quite French although we are in different years and talk to each other a lot, people who don’t know us think we are just friends as well (perhaps this is because in their eyes sisters aren’t always best friends). In fact, one of the teachers thought I was American and my American friend was me just because she has the same hair colour as Ruth and that would make her more likely to be Ruth’s sister (regardless of our accents from opposite sides of the world). Ruth has also been asked by someone in her class who the ginger haired white girl she talked to during break was!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">On the other hand when we go to market (with headscarves on so you can’t see our hair) all the Chadians automatically assume that we are twins! We always get asked whether or not we are twins and no one will believe that Ruth is in fact two years older than me; maybe this is just because they would love to meet white twins? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">Similarly, at the Arabic course that we have been doing during the summer holidays even when the others found out Ruth was the eldest (after assuming I was because I am more sociable) they still thought that simply meant she was born a few minutes before me and that we were twins. Interestingly enough we wear headscarves to our Arabic class.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">Maybe it’s just our hair that makes all the difference.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">Hot and Cold /Good and Bad / Normal and Unusual Weather<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFo8Ci481scJheovXaDfD8xP-9kKXPsDRdQ0_EhoNyobLFzaVdJsw-hmM-q7CqzKkEZc39mh5Roy2kOLmbOgRPBl1-Yuklf7dzUT747igYaHDpmRQu4QdkBBxAn-gSDWfPyHav2x1IP8/s1600/Chad+sept+2010+0601+(640x425).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFo8Ci481scJheovXaDfD8xP-9kKXPsDRdQ0_EhoNyobLFzaVdJsw-hmM-q7CqzKkEZc39mh5Roy2kOLmbOgRPBl1-Yuklf7dzUT747igYaHDpmRQu4QdkBBxAn-gSDWfPyHav2x1IP8/s1600/Chad+sept+2010+0601+(640x425).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeFIfZJFF_YJEXbBlTwMR6D5AIkKQCoXugRH4LCOlG9LkgvAgwIgF38ahkTKk2obHiCb9vyxCtNXXcfx6yAPIrP8hFRAJTW_V9IneqeGichxPTNXBzvaD3JfPn-_CvJGhEi3Ykw6ddu-A/s1600/Chad+sept+2010+052+(640x480).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeFIfZJFF_YJEXbBlTwMR6D5AIkKQCoXugRH4LCOlG9LkgvAgwIgF38ahkTKk2obHiCb9vyxCtNXXcfx6yAPIrP8hFRAJTW_V9IneqeGichxPTNXBzvaD3JfPn-_CvJGhEi3Ykw6ddu-A/s400/Chad+sept+2010+052+(640x480).jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Sunset outside hospital in rainy season</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFo8Ci481scJheovXaDfD8xP-9kKXPsDRdQ0_EhoNyobLFzaVdJsw-hmM-q7CqzKkEZc39mh5Roy2kOLmbOgRPBl1-Yuklf7dzUT747igYaHDpmRQu4QdkBBxAn-gSDWfPyHav2x1IP8/h120/Chad+sept+2010+0601+%28640x425%29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">Another example of people’s impressions on things being changed depending on the country came to me when I was reading a newspaper. I read that they were planning to close schools and offices over a certain temperature (ABOUT 25 OR 30°!) The temperature in Chad rarely goes below this. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the rainy season (now) when it’s meant to slightly cooler its 28</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Ezra SIL"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">°</span></span><span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";"> throughout the day. If they said this in Chad we would next to never go to school. The lowest temperature was 17</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Ezra SIL"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">° </span></span><span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">at night in January- February time! In Chad 23</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: "Ezra SIL"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">°</span></span><span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";"> is cool yet the same temperature in England is a heat wave.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">When you look out of the window up at the sky your point of view will change according to the country:</span><span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">If you look up and see a blue cloudless sky in England you would think it’s great and feel like going to the beach. In Chad it is like a cloudy day in England, ordinary. You don’t even think about it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">If you look up and see a cloudy sky and see that it’s raining in England you would be disappointed but in Chad you would go outside and enjoy it. In England it is classed as an ordinary and common thing however in Chad it only rains during four months of the year. You might think that Chad has less rain fall per year than England but this is not true. According to BBC weather the average rain fall per year is the same.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFo8Ci481scJheovXaDfD8xP-9kKXPsDRdQ0_EhoNyobLFzaVdJsw-hmM-q7CqzKkEZc39mh5Roy2kOLmbOgRPBl1-Yuklf7dzUT747igYaHDpmRQu4QdkBBxAn-gSDWfPyHav2x1IP8/h120/Chad+sept+2010+0601+%28640x425%29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" class="bk-H-q" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFo8Ci481scJheovXaDfD8xP-9kKXPsDRdQ0_EhoNyobLFzaVdJsw-hmM-q7CqzKkEZc39mh5Roy2kOLmbOgRPBl1-Yuklf7dzUT747igYaHDpmRQu4QdkBBxAn-gSDWfPyHav2x1IP8/h120/Chad+sept+2010+0601+%28640x425%29.jpg" style="left: 0px; top: 0px;" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Lily in a puddle/lake which appeared in the rainy season</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">Gardens<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">When you see grass in England it is everywhere and normal. You can only occasionally see it in Chad. When you see it it’s either in a rich person’s garden or a posh hotel or it’s the rainy season. The amount of times you would need to water the garden to make it like England’s grass is so much that you would spend half of every day watering. You would probably need to employ a full time gardener to have grass all year round! If they left it alone for a few days it would shrivel up and die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">If you sow some flowers in summer in England you could just leave them and they would grow without too much trouble. In Chad you need to make sure you’re not planting just before a thunderstorm where the seeds would get washed away or forgetting to water them every day if it’s not raining that much. But things still manage to grow during the rainy season and by the river. What are these animals?</span></div>
<span style="-ms-layout-grid-mode: line; background: black; border: 1pt black; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: X-NONE; mso-bidi-language: X-NONE; mso-border-alt: none black 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: X-NONE; mso-font-width: 0%; padding: 0cm;"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi14Z2I3NFmtU2nqrTqEKqdx6BNf0C_ECEJROmNRJ2LQkrzgJQE7uwZ9G05BGr9us-pCQJgIUiuh8XiPRQDTGqdzUUr7okdzqV5d1NH36n1VeQ_tsmJrm5wJlosjBVFZuQ9PUTWVWzWc2M/s1600/DSCF9963+(800x600)+(640x480).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi14Z2I3NFmtU2nqrTqEKqdx6BNf0C_ECEJROmNRJ2LQkrzgJQE7uwZ9G05BGr9us-pCQJgIUiuh8XiPRQDTGqdzUUr7okdzqV5d1NH36n1VeQ_tsmJrm5wJlosjBVFZuQ9PUTWVWzWc2M/s320/DSCF9963+(800x600)+(640x480).jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"></span> </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">Bye for now <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";">Ruth and Rebecca</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrFo8Ci481scJheovXaDfD8xP-9kKXPsDRdQ0_EhoNyobLFzaVdJsw-hmM-q7CqzKkEZc39mh5Roy2kOLmbOgRPBl1-Yuklf7dzUT747igYaHDpmRQu4QdkBBxAn-gSDWfPyHav2x1IP8/s1600/Chad+sept+2010+0601+(640x425).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeFIfZJFF_YJEXbBlTwMR6D5AIkKQCoXugRH4LCOlG9LkgvAgwIgF38ahkTKk2obHiCb9vyxCtNXXcfx6yAPIrP8hFRAJTW_V9IneqeGichxPTNXBzvaD3JfPn-_CvJGhEi3Ykw6ddu-A/s1600/Chad+sept+2010+052+(640x480).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Ezra SIL";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeFIfZJFF_YJEXbBlTwMR6D5AIkKQCoXugRH4LCOlG9LkgvAgwIgF38ahkTKk2obHiCb9vyxCtNXXcfx6yAPIrP8hFRAJTW_V9IneqeGichxPTNXBzvaD3JfPn-_CvJGhEi3Ykw6ddu-A/s1600/Chad+sept+2010+052+(640x480).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </span></div>
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-8266766859982676532011-08-22T16:58:00.003+01:002013-08-15T13:11:40.375+01:00Mali, cats and new house<span style="color: black; font-family: lucida grande;"><strong><em>Hello everyone,
<br />This blog has been split into 3 parts:
<br />1. What we did in Mali
<br />2. Ginger and Dipsy
<br />3. Moving house
<br />
<br />We hope you are all ok and enjoying the summer holidays as much as we are!
<br />Ruth and Rebecca xxx
<br />
<br />1. Mali
<br />
<br />In our last blog we mentioned that we were going on holiday to Mali. This first part of the blog is about what we did there.
<br />1st of all we stayed in a hotel for a retreat with other BMS missionaries from Guinea and other places. It was by the river Niger and was very nice they had a pool in which we swam every day and they had delicious food too!
<br />In the mornings we all had a service in which Rebecca played the flute, Ruth would of played the guitar but couldn't bring hers on the aeroplane. Then we went off with 2 other children Raphael-8 and Beatrice-3 and Rebecca North(Andrew North's daughter who's soon coming here in Chad)and Rosemary who did bible study with us.
<br />Then in the afternoons there were extra meetings and things to do and also the swimming pool. On one day we went on a boat trip all together down the Niger we got some very nice pictures and got to see a bit more of Mali. We also got to explore the touristy street by the hotel on which there were lots of nice shops though not very English! Ruth bought some pretty red leather sandals and we found a 'small' supermarket that was better stocked than any of Chad's!
<br />When we moved out from the hotel we went to live on Bamako's SIL compound the same mission organisation that runs the English/American church in Chad.
<br />We had a smallish flat to ourselves and it was very nice. We visited the local 'medium sized' supermarket and it was huge well compared to what we're used to anyway! We managed to get sausages and bacon! So almost each morning we had a different variation on an English breakfast and also croissants 1 day.
<br />Right next to the compound was an English family with 2 girls and 1 boy about our age who had a swimming pool. They were friendly and showed us the sights of Bamako (a lot more than Chad) they have a beautiful park and museum which are both very European. We went to the park twice and to the museum once. The museum was very interesting and we learnt a lot. On another day we went to see an amazing rock formation like a bridge which we climbed.
<br />We cooked for ourselves on some days and had a lovely tea of roast pork with apple sauce and vegetables on one day and also sausages and mash on another. We went out and had burgers which made a nice change and also we ate at some other missionaries houses. On one day we went to an ice cream shop where they had 36 different flavours, we tried 2 each! We also got some school stuff for next year as Mali is much better stocked than Chad! We got some beautiful 'bazan' material which has the design imprinted into it and also some tie dye material too. Rebecca got some very nice leather flip-flops and our parents bought a bed cover.
<br />On the way back and there we had to stay overnight in Ethiopia and we stayed in the Hilton on the way back! It was very posh and we had fish and chips and In'jara (Local Ethiopian food)room service at midnight because that was when our plane got in we even had some delicious strawberries and cream too for pudding! In Ethiopia it was very cold (About 15-20 degrees!)
<br />and we had to sleep with thick blankets!
<br />We had a really nice time in Mali and really enjoyed ourselves, it was nice and refreshing to be somewhere other than the hospital especially for our parents!
<br />
<br />2. Ginger and Dipsy
<br />
<br />Our cat, Ginger went missing when we came home from Mali. We didn't know what had happened to her but when we came home she wasn't there.
<br />She's always disliked the other kittens and been a scaredy cat not even liking us much. So we guessed that with us not being there, the kittens roaming free and strangers around she got scared and ran away.
<br />We went outside our compound a few times to call her but she didn't come.
<br />Then 3 days after coming back from Mali our Dad came into to the house in the evening saying: "Where's Biscuit?" (Ginger's almost identical twin) Apparently an orange and white cat had been spotted underneath the containers. Biscuit was indoors so we ran out and called the cat to us and it was Ginger! Or so we thought…
<br />We lived happily with the new Ginger explaining away the slight differences between the 2 cats. Then 2 days later our friend Aïsha came round and she questioned the 'other cat' so we looked at some pictures of Ginger and the 'other cat' and found they were different!
<br />We couldn't just throw out the other cat because she was very nice, purred a lot and the other cats had accepted her so much that Mowzer even let her breastfeed!
<br />So we renamed the 'other cat' Dipsy and she kind of replaced Ginger for us.
<br />3 weeks later just after we moved house, a man who was working for the hospital, cutting the grass must of seen us calling our other cats because he said to us that when he had been out of the compound and passing a hole he had heard a cat or something like that. Biscuit hadn't come back that day from wherever he goes at night and we were looking for him.
<br />So Ruth and I went out and looked around but we couldn't hear any cats or see any holes. We were about to go back when the man came out and said to us " Oh, I'll show you where"
<br />So we followed him to the to the toilets for the care givers village!
<br />Now in Chad and the rest of Africa they don't have toilets like we do, they have a big hole and build on top of it a little building which has separate cubicles with a little hole in each. So basically squat toilets.
<br />Anyway as we approached the toilets we called and heard the voice of a cat magnified by the hole yowling and sounding really desperate. We didn't have a torch or light with us so we ran back to the house bumping into our mum on the way. She went to find our dad to see if he could think of a way to get it out.
<br />As it so happens they have this trapdoor on the side which leads into the pit so our dad got a ladder and put it down the trapdoor. By this time we could see an orange and white cat down there looking very thin and helpless. Our cats know how to climb ladders from their trips up in roof so we hoped that it would be able to climb it and save us a trip down!
<br />But the poor cat which we had by now had recognised as the true Ginger, was not able to climb more than two rungs of the ladder as she was too weak!
<br />So our Dad after taking his phone and other things from his pockets, went down and rescued her!
<br />Every one had crowded round by this time and they scared Ginger so much that she almost jumped back down the hole!!!
<br />But we got them to go away and got Ginger home where she had 2 showers as she stank of well…
<br />She is very thin and has almost no leg muscle left as she hadn't been able to do exercise.
<br />We suppose that someone must of come when she was in a cubicle sheltering and she had jumped down the hole in fright! Apparently the man who told us she was there had been hearing her for 2-3 weeks so who knows what happened and how she survived! She's doing well and should be better soon.
<br />She's had a change of personality, smells a lot better and now purrs loads!
<br />We have now given away all of the second lot of kittens and are planning on giving Dipsy to Michaela a German doctor who is coming to live on the compound at the end of August.
<br />Mowzer and Biscuit have now had operations so no more kittens for us or big yowling cats! They are both doing fine.
<br />To finish here is a rhyme some of you may recognise about Ginger:
<br />Oh dear, what can the matter be?
<br />Ginger stuck in the lavatory
<br />She was there Monday to Saturday
<br />Nobody knew she was there!
<br />
<br />This isn't quite true but still funny! =)
<br />
<br />3. Moving house
<br />
<br />We've been in our house about two weeks now and it already feels like home. It's much smaller than the other house and more cosy but cooler, it should be with all our windows. Rebecca and I painted the border of our room peach ourselves unlike the rest of the house which was painted by our painter in dark blue. We moved in when the carpenter had made our beds, dining table and desks even though the rest of the furniture wasn't ready. The cupboards and drawers came for our kitchen yesterday with two bookcases we are hoping to have our chest of drawers for our clothes soon ,they are in suitcases at the moment. Our games and craft things are in boxes waiting for when the carpenter finishes those things and we can order more. At the moment the builders are putting the anti-voles(bars) on. The tiles were finished yesterday too.
<br />Instead of having a sofa, armchairs and a table we have a mat and some mattresses and cushions around the side, the tailor is making covers for those. The mat is like what most Chadians use in their homes instead of sofas .The curtains for our bedroom are purple and green tie dye material (we sent them to the tailor too) we have bed covers that we put on during the day which are the same colours but not the same design. We have those already on our beds. The cats have settled in fine and like our new home just as much as we do.
<br />
<br />Hope you enjoyed reading the blog.
</em></strong></span>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-24800479679164972952011-06-28T11:03:00.011+01:002011-06-28T11:34:53.815+01:00<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623216658331037890" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 241px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 170px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEighE_s8fAI2d95ZHjV4FD_pSrzvud3UDAKj6FeEL8zb0zqT470arE9OnasZazE6yF_IMHpW43PLvgPUgB_5BSRZ3ggdc1qT__Iv7TxViGXt1BkGds46h4xX7N1pVhzemIom9QJJXniKSQ/s200/DSCF5649.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Our News<br />Hi again! As we have not been writing blogs we have decided that we’ll just write short ones when we have the time, don’t expect them to be regular.<br />So much has happened since we last wrote a blog, it’s nearly the end of the school year Mowzer has had yet more kittens, Ruth’s turned 15 and Mum had her birthday just a week ago. The rains have started now it rained last night with an amazing sandstorm, we were sleeping on the veranda because of the heat and we all got covered in sand and had to go inside. We’ll put news about the important stuff that has happened then we’ll add some poems at the end.<br />For Ruth’s second birthday in Chad we went swimming at the Chari hotel by the river with her best friend from school-Hélène. Thank you to everyone who sent presents!<br />Just 4 weeks ago Mowzer our 1st cat had 4 kittens! 1 was born dead but the other 3 are very healthy! We have named them Thing 1, 2 and 3 as we mustn’t get too attached as we have already found homes for them.<br />For Mum’s 2nd birthday in Chad we had a pizza at a very tasty pizza place. Also went swimming.<br />We had this week off school because the Terminales (Oldest students at French school) are doing the Baccalaureate which is the test you do as you leave school. We had parents evening this week too and both of us have got good marks.<br />Soon we will be going to Mali for a mission retreat with other BMS missionaries which will be good fun and good for our parents to have a break!<br />Mona and Ward 2 american missionaries have come to live with us to help with the hospital they are very friendly.<br />Here are some acrostic poems that we have written about our cats hope you like them there are 6 (far too many!)<br /><br /> 1st Mowzer our cat that we got last year when we first came to Chad:<br />Mother of many <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieRcOv6Gi0AAmqVqUnpg59IehWk6x9BRZsHSTeSkOFPFFZmYD4QKzHllVkysnwPpBEvhmSRUoECFh-m0JjxoUukL6g1hY3cR9f9Kr3AGP8wBfHof0W1MXwEiuc03iypxKYoeM7vppCvsE/s1600/Mowzer.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623210215860836642" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 193px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 136px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieRcOv6Gi0AAmqVqUnpg59IehWk6x9BRZsHSTeSkOFPFFZmYD4QKzHllVkysnwPpBEvhmSRUoECFh-m0JjxoUukL6g1hY3cR9f9Kr3AGP8wBfHof0W1MXwEiuc03iypxKYoeM7vppCvsE/s200/Mowzer.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Orange, black and white<br />Wild at night<br />Zooms after lizards<br />Excited by many things, but<br />Runs when stormy<br /><br /> 2nd and 3rd her first 2 kittens Ginger and Biscuit one’s very scared and the other is quite plump: <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjueSCldUq5_aq0hUGbVIrhEgKahIG5LT-hAJqQs62c69peQuCJF-f-WwxUvAzZH3khsMGdjwMF5qmwwD6mnFY1tLncMmNIVU81jDII_ET22RI2zZRymNeqn5gthEP-mm7LsJX6u2lllvY/s1600/Ginger.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623213777709042370" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjueSCldUq5_aq0hUGbVIrhEgKahIG5LT-hAJqQs62c69peQuCJF-f-WwxUvAzZH3khsMGdjwMF5qmwwD6mnFY1tLncMmNIVU81jDII_ET22RI2zZRymNeqn5gthEP-mm7LsJX6u2lllvY/s200/Ginger.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Got to go<br />Instantly<br />Never there for long<br />Growls and purrs, loves<br />Eggs scrambled<br />Runs wild with Biscuit<br /><br />Biscot<br />Is very fat<br />Slim is not his thing <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_XJxquvyn9T262o4KYqwxGvqLzhCVbZd6KNWA7HFXwcRNGGlQzC9CSkGGkNR1sp4urdApxV7mCFO1dmsc7O9-PXBzjPi2NrQmcUuKnDHJT-nlhBQ9jkjCKoW1hSOu_xvrMbOOmZNvGhA/s1600/Biscuit.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623214169794009874" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_XJxquvyn9T262o4KYqwxGvqLzhCVbZd6KNWA7HFXwcRNGGlQzC9CSkGGkNR1sp4urdApxV7mCFO1dmsc7O9-PXBzjPi2NrQmcUuKnDHJT-nlhBQ9jkjCKoW1hSOu_xvrMbOOmZNvGhA/s200/Biscuit.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Cute butUnbelievably clumsy<br />Instead of waiting he yums all the food up<br />Takes in the smell of food from miles away<br /><br />Last but not least the three new kittens:<br /><br />Takes her time exploring<br />Head of the triplets<br />Includes her brothers<br />Nimble and quick <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO_puYlECTnJZPbJRnfQNm_37jQRLEHVPzW4TIjOoZQyVJXJYALIrVEB3EroFvdaCwjqdbXnB5HGqceNCEF6qdQyrbOdDlYNOrBqalC-GRB6iRPK2pdtL18sq4HU-KkKMKTs1JIx1vui4/s1600/Thing+1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623215945526855506" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 188px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO_puYlECTnJZPbJRnfQNm_37jQRLEHVPzW4TIjOoZQyVJXJYALIrVEB3EroFvdaCwjqdbXnB5HGqceNCEF6qdQyrbOdDlYNOrBqalC-GRB6iRPK2pdtL18sq4HU-KkKMKTs1JIx1vui4/s200/Thing+1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Gets anywhere she wants<br />1st place for climbing walls<br /><br />Totters along<br />Hopelessly tired<br />Incredible at hiding<br />Nearly gets squashed<br />Gobbles down milk<br />2 much walking is not good<br /><br />Tail up high <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5TNC-ylxOJrypvtMAmFwEsjlyB1lhCCHo1jNau4ACCoAPr3mvLEaKIYUEltQzki0u8jmBVO-s2gwebwmn7Cth6kY02iz2rbUbY3U9dPYSFmKEDin1b7onS0A5llqvV8th1rDUxKZmy0/s1600/Thing+2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623215036389236386" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5TNC-ylxOJrypvtMAmFwEsjlyB1lhCCHo1jNau4ACCoAPr3mvLEaKIYUEltQzki0u8jmBVO-s2gwebwmn7Cth6kY02iz2rbUbY3U9dPYSFmKEDin1b7onS0A5llqvV8th1rDUxKZmy0/s200/Thing+2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Hyper when in a new place<br />Ink splodges all over<br />Never misses anything<br />Go, go, go<br />3 times as fast<br /><br />To finish here is a conversation Rebecca had with a new Nigerian English teacher who is very enthusiastic (I speak 1st):<br />“Hello”<br />“Hello, how are you?” <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP3_Oli8SzlCu7pH-yAJ-gMllhIAkmdlx6qZpRL7GLaCazhxxNXwIzJioYTUW0GiwShW7VJUXYmKkEd4hV9UL6TwAi6fwXoV3vcFaNG1D2W0SOaT6LJko3NW5vmMYzOFxicutnNWkBeMg/s1600/Thing+3.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623216358742460498" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP3_Oli8SzlCu7pH-yAJ-gMllhIAkmdlx6qZpRL7GLaCazhxxNXwIzJioYTUW0GiwShW7VJUXYmKkEd4hV9UL6TwAi6fwXoV3vcFaNG1D2W0SOaT6LJko3NW5vmMYzOFxicutnNWkBeMg/s200/Thing+3.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />“I’m fine”<br />“Do you speak English?”<br />“Yeah, I am English”<br />“No, the answer is: ‘yes, I do’<br />“I know but I am English”<br />“Oh, well you shouldn’t say ‘yeah’ to a teacher, only to your family “and friends…”<br /><br />Hope you are all well in England, we still miss you all! Did you know we are going to go to Mali soon for about 2 weeks?<br />Ruth and RebeccaUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-74530191120331957472011-03-12T14:01:00.002+00:002011-03-12T14:38:33.935+00:00Our News!<span style="font-family:lucida grande;">Hi everyone! As we haven’t written for a while we have decided to do a very long blog about all our news. It has 6 parts and a little twist somewhere see if you can guess what it is!<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">1.Notre Vie d’école!<br />Bonjour, comment allez-vous? Maintenant, tout va bien à l’école sauf qu’on n’a pas un accent français. Mais heureusement nos amies peuvent nous comprendre. Rebecca a une amie qui s’appelle Victoria, elle est demi-tchadienne ; demi-russe. Ruth a une amie qui s’appelle Hélène, elle est tchadienne. Un des deux et l’autre voulaient venir à notre maison pendant les vacances ! L’école n’est pas si bien qu’en Angleterre mais ça va mieux et on progresse vite !<br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"></span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"></span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">2. Happy holidays<br />We have just come to the end of 2 weeks of holidays. Our Dad says that they’re skiing holidays and that’s why they are so long though as far as we know no one has gone skiing from our school..... But unfortunately at French school you get homework to do in the holidays so we worked our way through it and we managed to finish it on time! We went out about 3 times during the holidays. Once to a pottery village just outside N’djamena which was really amazing and interesting.<br /></span></span><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5583194784894116594" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0kxIqKYs8oseQZ8mkLMEfSuJGpPE4L6mdPSHVQ_xDIRgZPBwa0zp07KEa5-qB-Vez7M8D9kmUX7kdt3BhWInnWkjR8bFgI-RFUJMgS_X-HKwrHFHLIeBgLKsYWaXbKwToOJNUKOJea00/s200/kittens+and+Gaoui+092.jpg" />We went to a museum which was an ancient sultan’s palace then we went round the village which was all painted (on the houses) and looked really pretty we also found out how they make pots in Chad. It was amazing to find such a place in Chad! Then we went to town with mum and bought lots of lovely material which a tailor in town is making into clothes for us. And we went to a hotel for a swim which was really nice and refreshing <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5583194792767057986" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9iV5kiBUMlhN9k0QdoZKOwiicPxoT873NVGkKfVBiZ0YVAQIWHw1vXvOM9NwVeVNbVpo65gHxim_zCcZDX6jtXZT_W6v_obTmVRay2G-1E2UtkYHEU6YISbLai1yVGkYX0TszMOjS6CQ/s200/kittens%2521%2521%2521%2521+064.jpg" />-we even had ham and cheese sandwiches which were lovely! But we’re back at school now and it’s been a pretty normal week, though on Tuesday Mum and some women from the hospital went to parade in town as it was international woman’s day! <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5583194769515957682" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSL6sYdys46UIBlaNSLP9V_p7lu4NNWSO_AI9FJx5_PelNjz7dUiWMkKgPakv0mWMh27w3av7GO6-iW-ofvfobJsaw1mykmoLOWLy_y0tb8EzewYaBi2T2lCRq6HE98FtR4qaApr5rS-w/s200/International+womens+day+094.jpg" />Apparently there were only 3 white women there but mum had a really good time. Next week Andrew North is coming to stay for a bit and also on Monday it’s Pie day! We are celebrating in maths because our maths teacher used to be in America and they write the month before the day so the 14th of March is 03/14 which is the start of the number pie. We’ve got to bring in cakes and pies and are going to watch a film. We’ve just 5 weeks then 2 more weeks of holidays......<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">3. From Rats to Cats<br />About 6 weeks ago our cat Mowzer had two healthy but not so cute rats on Ruth’s bed. <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5583194793386312178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOF3BX0sg2bcyrx3iYaFZDO-cqFlZ_WN0_qY-Y6m_eezVpUHpgwKF-VAvcqXVnstc1YU-IbJ9dq_U0XZUHR6xFUd60eZnzjtzzZqPInJDveH5ae7JdLYqganeIivooJExk8fGdtH3Iig8/s200/kittens%2521%2521%2521%2521+045.jpg" />The rats have now grown up a bit and look much more like kittens.<br />They were born by Ruth’s legs then they were transferred into the cupboard by Mowzer on top of the box. Next, at about 2 weeks in the middle of the night they moved down onto the floor and woke Ruth and Mum up. At about 3 weeks they were moved by Mowzer into the office cupboard which was a mess and the kittens were trapped not able to move just when they had started to run around two days before. So we moved them into the bathroom but Mowzer wasn’t happy, so now they are in our parents’ bedroom cupboard and love climbing the suitcases.<br />At the moment the kittens are running around like crazy and are always fighting each other or their mum’s tail. They haven’t really changed from rats to cats it’s more like rats to hamsters then hopefully cats. They walk and run around in the washing basket like it’s a hamster’s wheel while Mowzer watches looking bored as they run over her paws. About 2 weeks ago they started eating just like that. One minute drinking the next eating. We are planning to keep one and give the other one to our friend Aicha. Oh, and by the way their names are Ginger and Biscuit! <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5583194772862241554" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRgicC0Gf0mt5H1UbhBTIC_vlt2ySxZTaad0ykW-T6SCrO6ie6tC8XPME8L2orUXltpps24LkIHHdb3EbwOmO1qvROiaqqEHG4DODcTxPUyiJatXccYBQjL48hvmx4ollXrgE0VrA0D-g/s200/kittens+and+Gaoui+006.jpg" /><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">4. J.E.A est un nouveau monde<br />Lately we have been going to a group at church on Sunday afternoons at church. We have been going for quite a while now and it’s good fun. It’s like an African and more Christian version of scouts. There are 2 different parts-Lumières and Flambeaux the girls are lumières which means ‘lights’ and the boys are flambeaux which means pretty flames. We sing songs and learn stuff about the bible and also bible verses. At the moment we are trying to pass our 2nd étape, we have to learn stuff and do some trips. Soon we are planning on getting uniforms so we can really be part of the ‘troupe’ even if we are the only ‘nazares’ there! It’s much better than going to church with our parents and we really enjoy it!<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">5. Our new sandpit and giant moles?<br />Half way through the holidays a truck came to our compound and dropped of a load of sand right in front of the badminton pitch (we’ve been playing badminton for a while and have a net). We moved the pitch over a bit but when they came and stuck a huge pile of gravel on it we gave up and took it in(it’s too windy now anyway).The sand pile is fun to play in with the children who come round though Rebecca did manage to lose a shoe in there once! Any way it’s being used to make our new house and since they got permission the workers have been digging holes everywhere for the foundation. It looks just like giant moles! We are both looking forward t having a proper house and we are getting a bunk bed! The other day we bought nice material for the curtains in our room and have already got big plans for it! When it’s finished we will write a blog and show you pictures.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">6. Our School life!<br />Hello, how are you? Now everything is going well at school though we have yet to perfect our accents! But our friends can still understand us. Rebecca has a friend called Victoria; she is half Chadian and half Russian. Ruth also has a friend called Hélène, she’s completely Chadian. One of them came, and the other one wanted to come, to our house during the holidays. School’s not as good as in England but we are progressing fast!<br />'</span><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">Well we think that’s about it for news, we’ll try to email and blog more! Hope you are all ok back in England, we miss you all lots.<br />Ruth and Rebecca</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531282243343234091.post-23956802317140831502010-11-27T17:08:00.008+00:002010-11-27T17:43:14.944+00:00Answers to picture blog (don't read them first!)Hi these are the answers to the picture blog! Sorry that they are a bit late!<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544280173471860178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCmxMguHeFB63eqI5foU5LDrfenFAfGhjeZa2y19q5t-ckkqAcECsfpVjfFtpvUpHsQ_EBmBEpFVqwCptftH0LokKD4d3kBVS5ipQImfFGNI6VO3TDPJJPhh-oIzkb3xoJlbTQuzWX3QE/s200/Picture+blog+1" /><br />P1 These funny looking ‘skittles’ are actually old plastic bottles filled with sand which we are using to play skittles with children in the village Guinebor II near us. We have been going out with Clare a short termer every Saturday afternoon to play with them and have made some friends! Also our friend Aicha who lives nearby and speaks English has helped us too as she speaks Arabic.<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544285753271237074" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMs_x_AxXCSsIUtGtKJLTMxrK1evVdN702-xEujtgUz49LD6GvKKFODC88sLr8Jg_4QAW3Maxx-f7lG1aSXesB8qlOtJ__dhk6yuv4mR0RkdnTA2eoZeMM8JKAaE5Vag8MoCae-uKChc4/s200/Picture+blog+22" /><br />P2 This is a picture of our tortoise’s Alfie’s home. We got around September time when a man with him turned up at the hospital and our mum bought him of him! He’s very funny when he walks but strangely for the past couple of weeks he has been asleep underground, we think he might be hibernating but for a different reason as we are in a mini hot season again…..<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544280181549211906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimPqdYidN2z-08aLyJxYbXfOzfb3ZXGgh7a3oNBhROYrhv9uTsks3pcX2FYDONQYdr-yTON2NfYQH7242XUu6cJ4UfmrExL_yrnSHTHsnB9-z9d9zE6EFmmrZHkBCgIOPcmky9z5PZq6k/s200/Picture+blog++3" /><br />P3 In this picture Mowzer is up a tree. Normally as soon as she steps outside she sees a lizard run straight up one and chases it (she has become a very skilled lizard catcher!). But the problem is lizards can jump from a tree to the ground and still be OK, unfortunately Mowzer can’t and occasionally pretends to get stuck as she must feel rather silly……<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544280188305803714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcSVlgmu50QgOhZDCb-g5LQntIqtA3iCeCFKk24sV6UksqcywK5JLC6u2HHCRkOtYnoAmg78X3zGuqiV4nW7cO9tXRl_fNxBfg9uQMypMeoAyX9rOxOuE7C6HVl2n9xcU6A-wS76kq-lE/s200/picture+blog+4" /><br />P4These plants are called carcangee (in arabic) satit (as they called it in Guinea) and are really a form of hibiscus! You can get two sorts white-which we use the flowers from for a sauce with boule and red-which we use the flowers from to make a drink which makes your lips and tongue turn red!<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544280197483060386" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX_aGml1-arISSovBPjqENVBpzsFiF2cNPf3YAAdjCLqd5CJWeU-KDkZq4UFNqsRZzXtSa0VHO7U2Ek1R7FEqGKXlouJLptvIU6Ho3MziDfPgbJ-8cHSDL_xeR14YXM4KeIFVzdp2HVrg/s200/Picture+blog+5" /><br />P5 This a mango tree which was planted with many others a while ago before we came. Unfortunately for this tree it was planted too far away form the tap to be reached with a hose pipe and didn’t get as much water as it should. But now it seems to be revived if the hospital gardener sticks with watering cans!<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544281967447609186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB8gyiL91hR7nbOdkyvfBXrIdukt68cJh2Hil4cGrixnpOLs1iyqwYJH8i2R-0235BjKXx3XnhYYIaPfTTP4f951lH2AMSEYPeAfWn2fLO98P4OiaZT2nlbjdxbqPNmcITeQckXfUAOYc/s200/Picture+blog+6" /><br />P6 This plant is called Gombo (in French) and Okra (in English) though we don’t know what in arabic! During the rainy season lots of plants were grown and this in particular. It can be used in many different sauces dried or fresh and we had it in guinea too! The wife of the guardian of the hospital has been growing it all over the compound to sell at market!<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544281969846669890" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbvNEpS35kNPj6ec3phPdRUhessSXQD-GDSngyhNcyQ3_9Cl6mHVNIRyXjR94w4GQzkMvfa2E-gs6-6Ax7fpDR-P65dRwRhbGNhoIxSb8DopGKXMZ8F9GUogWqpwCavVo5p-022J1wa2Q/s200/Picture+blog+7" /><br />P7 These bricks are the start of our house which will be built when the hospital is open and finished! Our Dad is carefully planning it out to make it as cool as possible in the hot season! So this time next year we should be moved in.<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544281978779639762" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH4uFiFoSkymJ1jCoNM_0HQi9556sDCwHQxp9HbOlbOA6JW-Iqf-FRfOlVDOYpQpZEpMsIEw-m8r1ZKGEztJ8zyvKmnocthrE1EZZyhSSjaNgIMR50OUuwCps5ZWqTJKyyD_1JleOmTm8/s200/Picture+blog+8" /><br />P8 These cute little chicks belong to their mother, yes and also to the guardian of the hospital. Their father is the lovely cockerel that wakes us up at half past five every morning. Thankfully Mowzer hasn’t taken to eating them, yet……<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544281980856228770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFe4NHmjKwUrs6I-MMnBD0rA90flhLJzAiRCe4k9Hb_XbUHXoOPBswQcWHMEfO_JCrFYV4DwQnEUO0mV9WyhYpMlnaYdxzjgkzK59Nb2yPopI-TjwZ9qamMp0DNwA6mmPJmjvZ6TVbqHs/s200/Picture+blog+9" /><br />P9 Now this might seem a bit strange but when we were on the way to school in the rainy season we managed to get stuck in the mud. So Dogo (the hospital driver) grabbed a spade and tried to dig us out. Meanwhile Rebecca had phoned our mum and they were coming to help, some minutes after that with Dogo still digging us out a huge digger came towards us down the road! We joked that it might come and save Dogo the job of digging us out as it wasn’t working. But when the digger came closer Dogo shouted a few words in arabic to him and just as our parents arrived ready to tow we were being dug out by this digger who’s driver was Dogo’s friend (he knows everyone!). Our mum wasn’t there in time to take a picture of it happening but she took this picture of the digger afterwards whilst we zoomed (literally) off to school!<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544281980886653010" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilcVQ8ReeQHBPjxNQBVTPzCg7RXFHMXXBVoXEBMJCKUSS0pHA7ZOeJx2JEQcTmQqn-0oVjmLmEHXfVxJA5y5-OtlSGcdArwTDUBrum4ZOmuDAc_hoXxJITEqSA2NI40keHRo0Bz86icSY/s200/Picture+blog+10" /><br />P10 This is a picture of some of the lorries that used to come past us each morning starting at 5.00 at the latest! They are getting sand to take to a road in town that the president is having built so that we don’t have what we call “tapis rouges”( red carpets or huge traffic jams) when the president is coming back to or leaving the country. It will run to the airport and they have postponed the 50 years of independence celebrations until January just for this road so it needs to be finished quickly! Thankfully the Lorries are now going a different way (as they messed up ours!) to annoy the missionaries who live by there!<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544284208826723426" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUrZ861BNKWOK8TVyUxsZTizzLCMhJxKgI_dn1cRU8Dl5yrssyTVzi3lCqIhjWqtt8MzOAk979KaNB0RqfWvsorkn7NmxzokUOv2kV8rv2ICX5IKHW0FzVtw38FW_YrmzT7nPCdbJfl9g/s200/Picture+blog+11" /><br />P11 In this picture Mowzer is being lifted down from the eaves of our roof! Lately she has taken to climbing up and into the roof to explore and get stuck. We have done our best to block it off but she always finds another way! But now her latest adventure is to go out of the compound and meet her boyfriend that she found….. So she spends all night out miaows at the window at 5.30 (to replace the lorries!) and spends the day asleep!<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544284209731932338" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6WiTzsCswmNPgzqo3SOQyfFAr4Sb8HDEFscSHqw00BblAqu4Xy3LgHKNtJB66BbhwMVJxZG5ehqkPhwgZ2XvCPq1D7EgVcn13_yExIuogDqrb1dXqzWoWtF7MOdZlzpxTU1nIsQmkyQk/s200/Picture+blog+12" /><br />P12 The children in this picture go to a youth group at our church called Flambeaux and Lumières. Lately we’ve been going every Sunday afternoon to join in! We haven’t yet got our uniforms and everyone thinks it funny that ‘Nazaras’ want to go there but we have fun and have made some friends! This picture is of when at a baptism they were encircling the people that were baptised though we haven’t been part of anything like that yet……<br /><br />Hope you are all ok and in case anyone didn't know our Dad had to come back to England for a swallowing problem to be checked! But he is back now and the hospital should be opening soon! <div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><br /><br /><div>Ruth and Rebecca </div><br /><div>P.S Thanks to anyone who sent Rebecca birthday presents!</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0