So far....

So, we are here :) We have been for a few days now, since late Friday night. And the flight delay wasn't even the worst f our troubles in getting here. We finally reached the airport in Lilongwe, Malawi and met Philemon, Moffat, & Rev. Chipeta (Peter) who loaded all our bags on the two Pajeros. We were expecting about a four hour drive to the border, and from there only ten minutes to the village we would be staying... But God had other plans for us apparently. We ended up blowing a head gasket about an hour into the trip. We were on the side of the road, and while Liam, Philip & I played some soccer with the kids who came out of nowhere and swarmed around us, the other guys, and a few men from the village nearby made a "towbar" out of a thick branch and some string. They seemed pretty confident about it, so we kept going, one car towing the other. We stopped for drinks after about another hour, and this is when that tow bar snapped. So we bought a metal one from some guys who were driving past, at a ridiculous price. We towed for a bit longer like that, when one of the wheels from the broken car went flying into the ditch, and nearly rolled it. Then we were really stuck lol. So all but 3 of us squished into the one good car and drove the rest of the way. We had to sneak around the border, because it closed at 6pm and by then it was at least 9. But that came with consequences, because that bak road was THE bumpiest road on earth, and we were all squished, hungry, and having to pee. Later, the rest came in another car, some others had gone to pick them up. And so here we are :) Finally. We've had two days of work already, and have made alot of progress. The weather is awesome here, and we're all loving it. The people are so good to us and never fail to tell us how grateful they are that we didn't only provide funds, but also came to work side by side with them. I've had alot of comments from people asking why we have to travel all the way here, and why we cant just give the money. But Philemon, Moffat, and Rev. Chipeta had told us countless times how  much more it means to them that we actually came to work with these people and get to know them. It makes them feel so special and it is also so good for us. I could go on and on, but I'm scared the power will go out and I'll lose this entire, ridiculously long post. So for now, ciauo :)

Cheers,
Kailee

Wednesday

We've all had brekky at Bob Evans, and are all packed up to go :) We are going to kill some time at an Aircraft Museum, and after that off to the airport to fly out!! After the flight we will be spending a night in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, courtesy of Ethiopian Airlines :) Looking forward to getting to our final destination FINALLY... :)

xx Kailee

Washington D.C.

Today turned out really well, despite the disappointment from yesterday the rain today! We took a taxi to the subway and took the subway into the center of Washington D.C. The first thing we did was go visit the Holocaust Museum, which was amazing. Very eye-opening, despite how much we think we already know about the World Wars. After that we got some lunch and a hot drink and walked to the White House. We got close enough to take some cool photos and see Barack & Michelle on the balcony (not) and then kept walking. We visited the Lincoln Memorial which was also very neat. By then we were already losing light, so we headed back to the subway, back to the hotel. We are all beat and ready for another good night's sleep so we're all set to fly out tomorrow night! Can't wait :)

xx Kailee

Tuesday

After showers and a great night's sleep, we all feel great and just enjoyed a complimentary continental breakfast :) After meeting at 9 in Henry's room we will hopefully have a plan for the day. It is wet & rainy, but I'm sure we will find something to do... Any ideas? :P

xx Kailee

Stranded...

Soooo, after a long night, and a very long day, here we are at the Courtyard Hotel inWashington DC. Due to the fog in Washington, the plane we took from Toronto to DC couldn't see the runway, and so we couldn't land and had to divert to Richmond, Virginia. We sat in that tiny plane for about 3 hours, until the fog finally lifted enough. By then we had already missed our connecting flight to Rome with Ethiopian Airlines. Ye... Ethiopian.... And since they only fly into Washington every few days, we are stuck here until Wednesday night at 8:30. We will then fly to Rome, re-fuel, and fly to Addis Ababa (Ethiopia). Ethiopian Airlines is "hopefully" footing the bill for a hotel since we will be spending the night there and finally flying to Zimbabwe at 9:45 the next morning. After that we will drive the rest of the way across the Zambian border, and into Lusaka.... SIGH.
But,we are going to make the most of it, we've even picked up an extra friend (a lady who is flying with us most of the way and is stranded without money).
We're hoping to tour Washington tomorrow since we're here :) Can't wait to finally be in Zambia though!!

xx Kailee

2 hours till we meet with the team to get on our way to the airport!! Can't wait to be on that plane finally. Although, with all the stories Liam's kindly shared with me about Ethiopian Airlines, I'm a bit worried.... :S
But hopefully all goes well and the next post I make will be from Africa!!!


xx Kailee

The Smithville HANDS Team

Zambia's Flag

Lusaka, the city we will be working in

Only 3 days to go!

Today we are finishing up the devotions we've been asked to prepare, that we will read and discuss as a group each night. We are getting super excited, and can't wait to be on that plane on the way there!