Bus Stop
Last year, our first day on the ground was rather eventful. Eventful is not a good adjective in these circumstances...
The missionaries and the medical supplies had been split across two different buses, and we were headed to a location about hour away from home base. Less than halfway there, our bus driver pulled over to the side of the divided four-lane highway we were on and drove in slow, short spurts for another hundred yards or so before finally stopping.
The highway was heading up a fairly steep hill, and had been for some time - clearly we were gaining elevation and heading up into the mountains. Or we were, until the bus broke down. Translating from the bus driver to the police officer to one of the missionaries we were told that the engine had overheated.
Here we are, on the side of the road, making the best of it.
Unfortunately, our bus had all the pharmacy supplies and
the mission leader onboard! One of our ground team members had been
following us in her car, so she pulled over, got on her phone and
started coordinating. We couldn't find other transportation, so the plan
eventually emerged that we would have to wait for the other bus to make
it all the way to the final destination, drop everyone off, turn around
and pick us up. When it was all said and done, we were stuck there for about two hours total.
As badly as our day was going, at least we weren't forced to take one of these babies. I can't even count how many we saw drive past while we were stuck there. This is a very common mode of public transportation there.
If you have a little more money, I guess you get to ride in one of these.
During the long wait, I was anxious (but not toooo much) because Elizabeth had insisted on NOT being on the same bus as me. So there we were, totally separated from one another on the very first day out!
But, of course, we were not the only ones sitting there waiting. The other half of the mission team had done the best they could to get everything set up, but without Dr. Mike and the rest of the supplies, nobody could actually start seeing patients. Likewise, the patients had been sitting waiting VERY patiently for half a day. I know they prayed at least one rosary. What else they did to pass the time, I have no idea.
Our bus rolled in right at lunch time, and I have to say, the view from up there was definitely worth the wait.
They had a beautiful church building up there too (the rectory as well).
We did have to eat lunch right away, but we hit the ground running after that - set up the pharmacy, the provider stations, etc... and ended up seeing all the patients who were still there waiting. Here are some of our satisfied customers!
Everything worked out in the end, but it was definitely a baptism by fire on our very first day of mission work. Fortunately, we didn't have any engine trouble for the rest of the trip, and things went a lot more smoothly after that. Here's to hoping that we don't have a repeat this year!
The missionaries and the medical supplies had been split across two different buses, and we were headed to a location about hour away from home base. Less than halfway there, our bus driver pulled over to the side of the divided four-lane highway we were on and drove in slow, short spurts for another hundred yards or so before finally stopping.
The highway was heading up a fairly steep hill, and had been for some time - clearly we were gaining elevation and heading up into the mountains. Or we were, until the bus broke down. Translating from the bus driver to the police officer to one of the missionaries we were told that the engine had overheated.
Here we are, on the side of the road, making the best of it.
Playing guessing games...
As badly as our day was going, at least we weren't forced to take one of these babies. I can't even count how many we saw drive past while we were stuck there. This is a very common mode of public transportation there.
If you have a little more money, I guess you get to ride in one of these.
During the long wait, I was anxious (but not toooo much) because Elizabeth had insisted on NOT being on the same bus as me. So there we were, totally separated from one another on the very first day out!
But, of course, we were not the only ones sitting there waiting. The other half of the mission team had done the best they could to get everything set up, but without Dr. Mike and the rest of the supplies, nobody could actually start seeing patients. Likewise, the patients had been sitting waiting VERY patiently for half a day. I know they prayed at least one rosary. What else they did to pass the time, I have no idea.
Our bus rolled in right at lunch time, and I have to say, the view from up there was definitely worth the wait.
They had a beautiful church building up there too (the rectory as well).
We did have to eat lunch right away, but we hit the ground running after that - set up the pharmacy, the provider stations, etc... and ended up seeing all the patients who were still there waiting. Here are some of our satisfied customers!
Everything worked out in the end, but it was definitely a baptism by fire on our very first day of mission work. Fortunately, we didn't have any engine trouble for the rest of the trip, and things went a lot more smoothly after that. Here's to hoping that we don't have a repeat this year!
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