Arriving In Uganda

Our flight arrived at 7:30am Ugandan time. We bought our visas, grabbed all the luggage (which ALL arrived…including the Drisner’s 13 bags) and met up with the people who had come to drive us back. We loaded up the vehicles and headed for the grocery store. It is amazing how much food you can get here. Kampala has more than Masaka but both places have more selection than we had in Brazil. It was very comforting to be able to buy things like peanut butter, honey, jam, nutella, soy sauce ect. Although both Alisha and I were feeling a bit nauseous at the time, we were able to sort out what we needed and buy enough to survive for awhile. Our next stop was the Equator. There was a little restaurant there that we stopped at for lunch. The original plan was to all stop there but the Drisners wanted to get the little girls back to the school so it was only our car that stopped. After eating some lunch we headed off again and about ten minutes down the road got a flat tire. We were on a busy road with a tiny shoulder, 4 women and one eight-year old girl in a car full of groceries and luggage. Luckily there was a taxi driver across the street who was stopped and offered to change the tire for us. There were a few times I though he was going to get hit by passing cars. We got back on the road and ten minutes later hit a huge storm. At one point it was hailing so hard you couldn’t see out the windshield. We were all thankful that the storm didn’t hit while we were stranded on the road. We finally made it to the Timothy Center around 3 in the afternoon. Alisha and I spent the rest of the afternoon unpacking and it was a relief to be somewhat settled. We are staying in a duplex that is part of the compound where the staff live. It is gated and guarded 24/7 by men and two big dogs (just in case any of you were concerned for my safety). We have a full kitchen, living room, dining area, bathroom (with toilet and a solar powered shower) and a bedroom with two single beds. It is absolutely beautiful and more than sufficient for our needs (including a maid who comes to clean it every morning). We have a little porch overlooking a marsh area and forest. The Timothy Center is outside of town so it is very quiet here, aside from the constant sound of crickets and birds. We have two other families living on the compound with us and the Drisners live in a house just outside the gate. The place attached to ours is empty at the moment and we will be converting it into a school room for the kids. Further down are three smaller guesthouses for visitors. Tuesday night Sue made us all a spaghetti dinner and we ate out on the lawn. The staff include Karl and Arlene, Sue and Mark with twins and Ken and Carina with their three girls.