September 10, 2010

Shortly after we last wrote in our blog, we planned to do an overnight trip to the Kazahiini Campsite and concession that is about an hour drive from Maun. It really is nice to take a break from our busy schedule to refresh and regroup spiritually. Getting away from cell phones, etc. and going to the bush is one way to do just that.

After doing a few things to prepare, the plan was to leave Maun in the afternoon and drive out of town with our friends, Angela and Graham Young. Graham is the village trust manager for that area, which takes him in and out of the concession regularly. Note the decal on the truck he uses below.

Just as we were locking the door to go, Colin got a call for a charter the next day and agreed to take it. So, Julie grabbed a few of her things from our packed Pajero and jumped in the truck with the Young's. The truck was a regular open air safari truck that many of the tour operators use. Driving in an open air truck, reminded her in some ways of days gone by traveling in open boats on the Yukon River. Very invigorating! After getting there, we drove around seeing wildlife as we gathered fire wood for our evening meal.

As we sat around the fire that night, we heard some commotion in the bushes and then a loud purring noise. Shortly after, while we were still chatting around the fire, we heard a soft roar of a lion nearby. We all froze and got very quiet, then Graham cheerfully stood up and said charmingly in his Welsh accent, "Well, I think it is time to put the kettle on the fire." In other words, "Let's just relax and have a spot of tea." In the morning we found the lion tracks to be very close and just on the edge of our camp. We were also visited in the night by a resident honey badger.

The next morning we ate breakfast and headed out with Graham as he made his rounds to different areas of the concession. We saw lots of impala, elephant, giraffe, warthogs, and zebra. Also, we saw a group of Tesesabe pictured below.

In addition to animals, we got to visit some of the special use lodges and camps on the concession. After we returned to the Kaziikini camp ground, Graham gave a tour of the cultural village site constructed for tourists. There were a number of traditional huts in a reed enclosed area.

There were items used to clean millet.

Also, a container to store millet and next to the container is a fish basket. It is lowered into the water to bring up fish.

This is a dead fall trap to catch smaller animals.

By the time we returned from the village tour, Colin had arrived and the sun was starting to set. We all stayed in the few traditional huts at the camp ground, rather than pitching a tent.

The huts were simple and clean.

Just before dark, we went to a nearby water hole. Along the way there was a elephant warning sign, as elephants are everywhere.
At the water hole was a young elephant taking in a long drink. This photo does not really give an idea of how large it was for a teenager.
If you click on the photo below to enlarge it, you may get a better idea of the how big the elephant was. It is in the background on the left.
Once again, we cooked our dinner on the fire and visited into the night. The honey badger returned while we were cooking dinner, but the lions waited until we went to bed for the night. In August it is still winter here and it was quite chilly in the morning. Colin was up early to get the fire going, and soon after we all gathered by the fire in the sun to get warm. Angela and Graham are pictured below warming in the morning sun.
Since Graham took over as manager of the trust a year ago, he has been gradually finding ways to improve the campsite. Below is the reception building getting a new thatched roof and reed siding.
A couple weeks after our trip to the Kazakiini Campsite, we decided to take a day trip to see if we could find Lake Ngami. It would be our third attempt. The FMS chief pilot had recently stayed with us for a week, and had given us some direction after he did a day trip to the lake during his stay. On the road south west from Maun, the bridge had washed out with the high water so we had to take a detour over the old bridge.
Note the sand bags piled on the sides for support and the strength of the currents passing through the culverts.
Since there is no road sign marking the entrance to the lake, we were told to look for the car door about 95 kilometers from Maun.
We found the car door and turned off the tar road to follow the sand track into the lake.
All we found at the end of the sand track was a bunch of cows and the lake water flooded up into the trees. Spring has arrived and there was pollen all over the water.
We continued on our quest and drove into the village of Sehithwa to ask for directions. There was an old man walking with a cane, so we gave him a ride and he pointed us down another road that he said would take us to the lake. When we got to the end of the road there was a group of school students on a field trip from Francistown that had also been looking for the lake.

The road just ended at the edge of more water, as the lake is flooded way beyond its perimeters.
One of the escorts that accompanied the group on the field trip, snapped a picture of us together.
Our hope was to see the large lake as a whole, so we traveled on an old gravel road that goes on the back side of the lake. There were some hills on the road, so when we got on top of one Colin got on top of our Pajero to see if he could see the large mass of water that makes the lake as a whole. By then it was late afternoon, and we could not find a way to see the whole lake. We realized that to truly grasp the size of the flooded lake, it may just be something that has to be seen from the air. The picture below is of Colin searching for the lake from on top of our car.
The flight schedule has continued to remain very busy. That is good, as all the profits go to help people in need through the Flying Mission care ministries in Gaborone. Colin always takes the time to explain that to the many tourist he flies out to different camps. The family pictured below had brought pencils, caps, and Juicy Fruit gum from London to give to children they hoped to encounter on their trip. Realizing they were headed home and had leftover items, they generously left a bag of items for us to use in our ministry in Maun. The kids and people here really appreciate even the littlest things we have to offer.
As was mentioned earlier in this blog, elephants are everywhere and Colin can regularly show passengers groups of them from the air as he flies back and forth from Maun.
Even when parked at Jack's Camp on an overnight, he had elephants tromping all around the plane. If you click on the picture to enlarge it, there are elephant prints on top of the truck tracks right up to the wing of the plane pictured below.
It is always a highlight for Colin to fly to the remote San bushman village of Xai Xai (pronounced Ky Ky) that is north west of Maun. On a recent flight he was delayed while waiting to pick up a mobile safari group, who were late in their arrival. It did not bother him, as he always enjoys the people and little children that come to the landing strip. It is not uncommon to see many of the young children caring for and packing around a sibling.
The children are always fascinated with the plane and Colin spent time entertaining them. He even allowed them to sit politely in the plane while they asked questions.
You can tell by the picture below, that it was no small gathering of children that turned out that day.
There was a large veld fire that burned most of the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park that Colin flies over almost daily to go to Jack's Camp. One day he flew over and everything was as usual, then the next day he flew over and most everything was burnt black. It is mostly open grass lands with a few palm trees. The fire does not harm the trees and the grass will be growing back in a few weeks.
Even our favorite camp site at Njuca Hills was burned. All you can still recognize is the roads in and out of the camping spots.
With the fires, came dust devils that reached up to 5,000 feet. See them swirling in the distance in the picture below.
Every month we are able to provide a ministry of hospitality to different people passing through Maun. The last week of August, two Rescue One EMTs stayed at the flats on our property for two nights before participating in a special country wide event. They were providing medical support for the week long "Journey of Hope" breast cancer campaign. Twelve Vesper motor scooters traveled from Maun, Gweta, Nata, Francistown, Serowe, Palapye, Mahalapye, and finished in Gaborone. FMS in Gaborone helped to coordinate the ambulance and Rescue One team, and we were happy to host them here in Maun for a couple of nights.
The first of September quickly rolled around, and we were anticipating a visit from our old friend Tim Osborne. He had contacted us as he would be in Maun for that night, while picking up some clients he was transporting back to Namibia for a tour there. It was really good to see him, reminisce about old times in Galena, and catch up on current events also. We were disappointed that Laurel could not come though. When Tim left, they still had a client at their game farm so Laurel stayed behind to run their business. Tim is pictured below repacking his gear for the next day's journey.
The day after Tim left, Julie was hit with a terrible toothache. The tooth continued to get worse, so she had to fly down to Gaborone to see the dentist. It happened to be her birthday when an appointment was available, and it will certainly be a birthday to remember. She spent three hours in oral surgery when the tooth shattered while being removed. The highlight of it all was getting to spend time with the Spicer's in Gaborone. Deb Spicer is always there for Julie when needing to go to Gaborone. Once again, her compassion and help were greatly appreciated. Deb is pictured below with her daughter KG.
Many other friends here in Maun continued to call and text encouraging messages, as Julie returned to spend a number of days recuperating. One friend even brought a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers. During those days, she found this passage on a daily calendar. It was very appropriate. "Friends seem to be like aspirin: we don't really know why they make a sick person feel better, but they do."

Just for fun, here are a few more snap shots of everyday life in Maun. The car in front has a bed on top of the roof. It was barely tied down and the driver was just crawling along the road while transporting it.
Another driver has the huge JoJo water tank balanced in the back of his truck. Again, the driver was just crawling along at a very slow speed.
Livestock is every where on the roads daily. In the next picture the on coming traffic is a small herd of horses.
We would appreciate prayer in a few areas. Julie is still in need of surgery on her thyroid and we are hoping to have something scheduled soon in Johannesburg, South Africa. Also, please keep her in prayer for continued healing after the extensive oral surgery she recently had. She is still very sore. The school break is over and Sunday school, in addition to Bible Club starts this week. These two main ministries will be Julie's primary focus for the next few months. All the children she has been working with are eager for the Bible lessons to start again. One of her previous students from Standard 4 has been coming to church regularly with us the last few weeks, and last week started bringing his little brother. It is so encouraging to see the openness here to the gospel. "The God we serve is able..." Daniel 3:17

August 11, 2010

To start off the blog up date this month, we thought it would be good to add a map of Africa to give some of you a better idea where we are. This probably should have been done when we first came here in July of 2008 because most often we are asked the question from people back in the states, "Where is Botswana?" Hopefully when you click on the map above, it will enlarge and you can see Botswana just above South Africa on the southern point of the continent. Recently Colin emailed a favorite aunt of his to explain a little about our life here. We decided that some of what he wrote to her would be nice to share with all of you who read this blog.

Colin says: "Most people have no clue where Botswana is. I think it is because they have never had a war here and don't make the news. We are surrounded by countries with mountains, but we are living in a country that is as flat as land can be. In Alaska, I was accustomed to queuing off mountains for navigation, but had to quickly learn to electronically navigate here. Most pilots feel that there is nothing to navigate by when looking at the ground but now that I have been here a while, and using my years of Alaska experience, I see many and varied assortment of landmarks. I must say that no hills makes for great hiking for this old guy!

Most of the infrastructures in Botswana (roads, buildings, government agencies, etc.) are brand new because of the sudden wealth created by the diamond, tourism, and cattle industries. The people are still learning how to use the money effectively though. Patience is the name of the game here. Taxes are also high, but much of the money that goes to the government does seem to return to the people through services and infrastructure. This government works hard for the people as opposed to some others around the world. A recent move to cars from donkey carts means that most drivers here did not grow up watching their parents drive around. First generation drivers are a problem.

There are challenges here like landing a plane and having herds of animals or elephants in the way. You don't trim brush or tree limps around the yard without checking for snakes first. It can also get very cold during the winter months of May through August in this desert county. On the other hand, September through November can be hot and dry much like Phoenix, AZ. After living in Alaska for over 30 years, the climate is really very pleasant and manageable.

The people are kind and gracious. You must wear a suit jacket and tie to weddings and funerals, even if they are a bit ragged. Little kids are not afraid of strangers, and can wander around with out risk of being molested. People are very polite, and in the two years we have been here I have never heard a curse word in public."

Perhaps Colin's comments above will help some of you understand our life in Botswana a little better. If you can tolerate reading another lengthy narrative, the article below about the town we live in really paints a picture of what we see everyday. Again, if you click on the scanned page it should enlarge for easier reading.

In a previous blogs, we have tried to portray some of the same points written in the article, only in our own words and by using pictures. Think back to some of the images we have shared through the months and years of thatched roof huts, donkey carts, and local people including the distinctive Herero women. We have posted other photos of everyday life in Maun including the "small shacks of street vendors" mentioned in the article above. In the photos to follow, we have attempted to capture some of the more modern pictures of daily life here.

The first snap shot is of the "bus rank" in the center of town. Bus travel is the most used public transportation for people in Botswana. Multiple buses are loading and unloading in a small area, with people everywhere. There are local shade shack vendors on the sidewalk mixed in with local businesses and shops.
The bus rank is really just a parking lot area and the photos do not even touch how busy and congested it gets there. Note the man on the roof of a smaller bus loading bags on top and the shade shack vendor selling bunches of oranges in the background of the next photo.
Across the main road from the bus rank area are small chain grocery and department stores seen all over Botswana. They have names like "Shoprite", "PEP", and "CB Stores".
Standing in the same spot by the bus rank, looking across the side road is a chain restaurant called "Nando's". See the large chicken on top of the building? That is what they specialize in.
Just past Nando's looking up the side street is a small shopping complex. There are no large malls like you find in the states. There are just a number of small complexes and shops spread out around town. It took us weeks of exploring, when we first got to Maun in August of 2008, to figure out where we could buy the things we needed.
As the article states that: "Maun's shops and street stores are a mixture ranging from modern, almost high tech," (that is a questionable statement by American standards), "to the more traditional". Below is a picture of about as "modern" as you will see around Maun when out shopping. The "Spar" store in the background is a grocery chain and the "Akerman's" is another small department store chain that is a bit more expensive than "PEP".

The author of Maun- A Strange Town closes by saying," If you are arriving in Maun for the first time, especially if it's your first visit to the country, then you might be taken aback to start with; Maun definitely isn't Paris or London..." That sums it up, but there is no other place we would rather be right now.

While driving around Maun or anywhere in Botswana for that matter, you will see people carrying large items or buckets of water on their heads. It is pretty amazing to see young children to old women packing and balancing heavy loads on their heads. This woman was walking along the road in town when Julie was leaving the Post Office.
So among all the hubbub that surrounds this small community, we continue to stay busy with our responsibilities to FMS and the operations of the Maun base, relationship building in a variety of areas, and direct ministry outreach. The information to follow reflects just a small sample of the activities we were involved with over the last month.

The 11th of July, we drove down to Gaborone so Julie could see a specialist about a thyroid condition that was discovered while in the states last April. Somewhere in the next few months, we will need to go to South Africa so that problem taken care of. While driving the 10 hours to Botswana's capital, we saw an average number of people driving donkey carts, but it was the first time we saw a sign warning drivers to be cautious of such transportation.
Our trip to Gaborone was brief, and after a full day driving on a Sunday we saw the doctor on a Monday, and drove the long drive back to Maun on a Tuesday. It was also the Kowalski's last week with us here before heading back to Canada on furlough. The flight schedule was rather slow, but there is always work to do. There was an important meeting that Keith and Colin attended at the airport concerning air space changes.
Thursday the 15th of July, we had a send off dinner for the Kowalski family and all the FMS Maun personnel and their families came. Our chief pilot from Gaborone, and two medics were also able to attend while based here temporarily.
After the large and filling meal, the Cressman's , Colin, and a few others lingered around the "braii" pit in our yard.
Saturday morning on the 17th of July, the FMs team was at the airport to see the Kowalski's off. Also, Pastor Alex from our church was there and we were able to send them off with lots of hugs and prayers.

Julie got her share of hugs from the kids also.

The snap shot below is a great photo of all the FMS Maun team, except Matt who was preparing for a flight. He said his good-byes out on the ramp.

July 24th was Misheck's 39th birthday. He invited us over for a small celebration with some of the Zimbabwean members from our church. Julie baked him a large chocolate cake.
After we all sang happy birthday, the cake was cut by his wife Debra with help from baby Briane on her back.
Once the cake was distributed there was congratulation speeches, singing, and a good time of fellowship.

Misheck and Colin

These two sisters come to church regularly with their Zimbabwean parents, and are part of the Sunday school group Julie has been working with.

Some of the other regular Sunday school students are pictured in the photos below. Ontiretse (left) and her little sister, never miss a Sunday.

Below is the early bird gang warming up in the sun on a cold winter morning.

It is winter now, and cold in the mornings so the children bundle up to be at church by 9am.

Colin continues to fly regularly and it has been very busy since to end of the World Cup games in South Africa.
Above is the Kasane Airport in Northern Botswana with the Zambezi River in the background and the Chobe River in the fore ground.

Below is a closer shot of the Chobe River (fore ground) joining the Zambezi River.

The third week of July, Colin was in Gaborone while the C210 was having the 100 hour inspection. Another charter came up and he was asked to fly a person to the Orapa diamond mine for a meeting. Above is the Orapa runway. It services the Orapa diamond mine. Orapa is a closed community due to the mine activity. People need special clearance to go there.

Below is the big hole, the Orapa Diamond mine.

Devango and Nicoline continue to grow consistently in their relationship with Christ and are now formally engaged. Hopefully they can save enough money by the middle of November, to have a small gathering with a few close relatives and the church family. Julie and her friend Angela have been helping them with the planning.
While teachers and students in the states are preparing to start a new school year, the children here are now 2/3rds through completing their school year. Term 2 ends this week and the students will get one month off before starting Term 3. They will be finishing their school year in early December. Last Monday was the last Bible Club for this term. With the thoughtful care boxes sent to us from friends in the states, Julie was able to give out special treat bags to all the kids that have faithfully been attending. The group has not only grown in the number coming each week, but they have also shown great growth spiritually.
All the kids wanted a picture taken to say thank you to all that have helped to support this portion of our ministry.
Pusetso was in Maun for a short visit last week. She came by the office to visit with her daughter and sister. After her husband (Robert our porter) passed away in April, she moved back to the village of Sepopa north of Maun to live with her mother. It was really good to see her. Despite all the hardship in her life over the last few months she has continued to find comfort in the Lord. In her village, she has been participating in regular Bible studies but shared that Bibles are in short supply there. We were able to give her some Setswana Bibles to take back with her. It has been such a blessing to have received Bibles through the Flying Mission Care ministry in Gaborone. As we see needs arise, they have been being distributed through out our region.
Other blessings from the Flying Mission offices in Gaborone were visitors. Pictured below is Sheila from the HR department (right) with her friend Chelsea (center),who was visiting from Canada. Jessica (left) and Julie had a lovely lunch together with the visiting ladies by the river during one of the few days they were here.
Another visitor from Gaborone was Tina Kort, who coordinates initial ministry and cultural orientation for Flying Mission. She was traveling through Maun with two long time friends also from Canada. The three of them were able to take a scenic flight with Colin one evening, before departing early the next morning.
Flying Mission has also hired a new pilot that had been flying for another air service in Maun the last few years. Tuan Van Dyke has temporarily joined our team in Maun while Keith is on furlough. Eventually, Tuan will be moved to the Gaborone base to co-pilot in the King Air twin engine planes there. Tuan will be staying in one of the flats on our property for the next few months. He is pictured below.

Since there are no wild animal photos to share with you this month, we have included this picture of a friend's "leisure dog" just for fun. Jessie looks like so many of the other "Tswana" street dogs. As a stray puppy, friends of ours took her home as a pet and you can see that she is living the good life now. Notice the magazine on the sofa is a "House and Leisure" addition.
And if we are speaking about dogs, we must not leave out a photo of our overly friendly guard dog Red. She is pictured below enjoying the warmth of a sunny spot by flowers that continue to blossom even in mid winter.
Once again in closing we want to say thank you so much for your friendship, prayers, words of encouragement, gifts, and interest in what we are doing here.

"The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile, nor the joy of companionship; it is the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson