On the Road Again...

Sunday March 7th

At 6:30 am this morning, we headed back to Kampala. This is a 5 hour drive. Oy! The hotel packed us boxed breakfast which included a hardboiled egg, a slice of watermelon, a juice box, a dry doughnut and small sandwich with a “mystery” spread inside, an orange, a banana, and a slice of cake (similar to a pound cake). We munched along the way, but there was a lot of untouched food.

About 2 ½ hours into our drive, one of our 2 busses got a flat tire. Actually, due to the conditions of the road in Uganda, I was surprised this was our first one. Both busses pulled over and Bonnie and Kent decided to collect all the untouched food and put it in a bag. Across from us were 2 small modest buildings with teenage boys walking around. Bonnie and Kent walked up to one of the buildings where a mother came out and greeted them with these words: “How did you know where to stop?”

Not really understanding the meaning of her question, they said, “We have a flat tire and we have some food to share because we are not going to eat it and we don’t want it to go to waste.”

The mother replied, “No, how did you know where to stop? I’ve been praying all morning for someone to stop and pray with me because I’m very sick. God cause you to have a flat tire right here so you would pray with me.”

Wow…they were blown away. She invited them into her home which is the size of my master bathroom in Moorpark. The home was filled with teenage boys. While she accepted the food offering, that was secondary to her. She wanted people to pray with her. So they did. She was so thankful, she started worshipping God.

As Bonnie and Kent headed back to the bus, you could see the woman on her knees in her doorway praising and worshipping. For all of us, it was a very profound experience.

We resumed our journey back to Kampala and once in town, we saw a witch doctor and his followers walking the streets, chanting and waving tree branches and torches that seemed to be smoking. Oddly, the witchdoctors face was painted a chalky white. It was quite a site to see, but it didn’t freak me out. I know he has no power over me.

After lunch, we headed souvenir shopping. We stopped in “Africa Village” which is like a small outdoor collection of souvenir vendors. We tried bartering, but most of us felt awkward so we didn’t try very hard. But they will discount an item for you if you ask. I loaded up in one store, spending about $44 American dollars. The store owner, with a big smile, said “Thank you so much, you’ve made my whole day!” Wow.

After that stop, we stopped at the Kampala mall which is similar to our malls – a collection of shops and food court. They also had a market in there so I bought some coffee and a spice mix that I’ve been enjoying while eating in Uganda.

Once we got home, we had to creatively pack our luggage, shower and then we headed off to the airport at 8 pm.

The send off was bittersweet. Many hugs and tears laced with promises to keep in touch.

I managed to get eaten alive by mosquitoes the last day, so I was itching like crazy and looking forward to a Benadryl induced coma for the flight home.

London….here we come!