Our final morning in Congo was spent packing and saying final goodbyes. We stopped by Papa Leon’s house after checking out of the Methodist Presbyterian guesthouse (MPH). Skip took some great photos of Leon’s family. They have welcomed us into their lives in such a warm way. The photo is of one of Leon’s daughters preparing the enormous fish we had purchased from the fishing village the day we arrived in Congo. We were caught in an hour long traffic jam en route to the airport. We really enjoyed watching the flow of people pass by as we waited for it to clear. Women carry everything on top of their heads: baskets of bread, 25 pound sacks of potatoes, bowls of green tangerines, sacks of fufu flour and anything else they want to sell. Men tend to sell their goods from roadside stands: gravel, car parts, household goods, cell phone minutes, wood and furniture. People are on the move in Kinshasa! One little girl (5?) with her smaller brother (3?) waved hello to me for at least 10 minutes. White women are rare in the city. Checking-in at the Ndjili airport was quite an experience. Our bags were checked 5 times at least. At every station we were asked to show our passports. Then we expected to give a tip (or bribe). Our flight to Addis was restful. We had time to reflect, diffuse and talk about what we had experienced and what is yet ahead. Our flight was delayed and we arrived about 2 hours late. Mike Treadwell on the MTW team met us at the airport and we are now staying in his home. His wife is Emily and they have a 3 year old son named Caleb. They have been living in Addis for 9 months and will be our hosts while we are here. We look forward to a good night’s sleep and some GREAT coffee in the morning!
No comments:
Post a Comment