December 3, heavy rain causing chaos everywhere. People walking with their shoes in hand, through knee-deep water on the roads; street vendors selling umbrellas stacked high on their heads (but not using an umbrella to keep themselves dry) and one man who had a long cardboard box pulled on over his head/body and a small rectangle cut out so he could see...all you could see was a box with a pair of sunglasses peeping out.
Today, the sun is shining again and the city drying out. In the suburbs though there will be problems for many days with the swimming pool size puddles on the roads.
December 4, nice present from Jaa. She will be gone from Luanda for a few months now. And little Mali has gone to live on Thailand. I will miss them.
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| From Jaa, who speaks Thai, English, Portuguese but not Gaelic. |
December 7, busy few days with BP dinner, farewell for church pastor and tonight, out for Lebanese with Rukaya and Huub, our South African/Dutch friends. We then went on to the Concerto Cancoes de Natal at the lovely church across the road.
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| Asian Christmas lunch at Nancy's - Jaa, Kelly and Katie |
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| Christmas angels |
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| Friends: Ngoni, Ambassador from Zimbabwe, also Jane and William, background couple |
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| The Lads |
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| Farewell to Pastor Terry and his family. Relocating back to Houston. |
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| Our friend Henry, solo Baritone in the choir |
Poor Henry had food poisoning so he did an amazing job keeping it together for the singing. Wonderful.
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| Finally inside the beautiful church across the road |
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Coro ACDS da TOTAL E & P Angola. Muscicos da Escola de Musica Mimbu. Direccao: Gilles Esteve.
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| Ana |
And finally, this is Ana. A most beautiful young woman (19 years old) who has suffered tremendously following a road traffic accident almost 5 years ago that left her paralysed from the waist down. I went to visit her with nursing friend, Petra and Henriette. Ana has been bedridden since the accident, living in this tiny concrete room. She is amazingly resilient, despite the on-going health issues she has which are typical of someone who is bedridden.
On Tuesday, I will join Petra, with Ana and her mother (Fernanda) on a road trip to Lubango, South Angola. It will be a 14 hour trip so we will break it up with a stay overnight in Lobito on the coast.
We will take Ana and her Mum to a rehabilitation centre in Lubango where they will stay for possibly a year. It is hoped that Ana, with the physio that she has not had since the accident, will enabled to at least sit in a wheelchair and become mobile again. As there are several health issues to overcome beforehand, this will be a long process for this strong young woman. If you pray, please do so for the four of us. It will be a big journey.
December 18, and the trip went well. We travelled 1000kms by road through southern Angola. Vastly different landscapes, roadside stalls, hills and many, many abandoned cars/trucks standing as reminders to take great care on the roads. Mostly the road was reasonable however there were alot of large potholes, animals crossing and people overtaking on blind bends and hills. Hard work from sun-up until falling into bed at night but truly blessed by it. And more importantly, Ana is getting the care she needs.
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| Starting off |
The ute was packed as much as possible. Ana lay on a slight diagonal on top of a mattress on the back seat. We had her lifted so she was able to see out of the window. Ana was thrilled to be able to see countryside again. She showed us where the accident happened. On that night, she was a back seat passenger when a car blind-sided them and took off. Ana and other occupants (no-one else was injured) were taken firstly to the Police station then then hospital for a brief time.
On this trip, Fernanda was tucked in alongside with their meagre belongings. A quiet woman, of Ubando origin, apparently Fernanda speaks minimal Portuguese so we had limited conversation. I would have guessed her age as being late 60's/70's due to poor eyesight, shuffle, and literally no usable teeth. I was shocked to know she is 54, only a few years older than me.
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Some challenges on the roads
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| Distinctive rock |
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| Selling bags of coal to make a living |
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| Lobito, on the coast |
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| Swimming and fishing |
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| Into Lobito |
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| Tidy shacks |
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| Our home away from home in Lobito, right across the road from the beach... |
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| ..so, it's time for a swim! Ana's first trip to the beach in a long time. |
Ana didn't take a swim but she enjoyed lying on the sand, with the sun on her face. When we went back across the road to our accommodation, she bravely tested the swimming pool.
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| Back in to the water...Ana's first swim |
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Random boat monument
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| Buying small stools |
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| Back on the road again |
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| Petra's home...no, it's the local shop (cantina) |
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| I didn't see the snakes or rats, but sure did the centipedes and mozzies |
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| Motorbike towing motorbike! |
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| Bus cemetery |
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| Abandoned cars everywhere |
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| We don't have much but we can be proud |
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| Cristo Rei in Lubango |
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| Overlooking Lubango, at the foot of the Cross |
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| Serra de Laba |
This breathtaking mountain road built in the 1970s, spirals down from the 'plano alto' (high plateau) elevation of 1845 meters to almost sea level in just over 10 kilometers; literally transversing 3 or 4 different climate zones during any ascent or descent. Serra de Laba is a famous Angolan landmark which is listed in the Dangerous Roads' of the World catalogue.
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| Centro de reabilitacao fisica da Mapunda, Lubango |
Entering the rehabilitation clinic was a very positive and humbling experience. Following the earlier hospital visit where there were people crammed into hallways, being washed and fed, and a room full of 'fistula girls', this centre was a very peaceful place.
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| Everyone likes a photo, even having blood taken |
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| Laboratory |
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| Sandra. This little 8 year old girl (with her brother) has been in hospital for 2 years following paralysis after Malaria |
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| Washing the dishes |
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| House work continues |
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| Accommodation for families...the food storage sheds are at the back of main building. |
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| Just waiting |
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| Bouncing along in physio room |
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| Massage time to stimulate the nerves. A wooden cylinder is passed up and down the arms/fingers 10 times |
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| Many people at the clinic had this wide, open smile |
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| Dancing |
Being at the clinic reminded me of the years of operations, physio and wearing special caliper boots when I was 5. Sometimes there are simple remedies to birth defects and sadly, not everyone gets the treatment they need.
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| Off for a spin, all dressed up |
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| Dr Elisabeth McGovern, examining Ana |
We had spent the day at the local hospital before going to the clinic where Ana had examinations, xrays etc done. Carrying her in and out of the car, going for long stretches without stopping...this girl did not complain once.
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| Friendly staff |
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| Everyone's busy |
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| Fisioterapia |
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| Tired Ana and Mum |
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| Saying goodbye |
After a shopping trip to get Ana and her mum set up, (they needed all pots, cooking/eating utensils plus some bedding/toiletries etc, also coal) we left Ana to settle at her new home. Fernanda and I walked out of the clinic hand in hand. We hadn't been able to speak much to each other but shared a common purpose and bond. I look forward to returning to see them again one day.
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| Tostradas (delish cheese and ham toasted sammies) at The Chalet |
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| Even the toilets are pretty funky...note the elephant sitting on a potty (wearing a headscarf to indicate its the women's loo) |
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| Henriette took this photo but this lovely woman is typical of the people we saw |
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| Market vendors |
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| Petra telling the crowd that she didn't need to hear them all yelling at her and she was wanting a fair price |
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| Loaded up |
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| Open air supermarket |
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| This boy had a lovely smile too |
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| Friends of Petra..Adeleida and Carina. |
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| New friends |
Visiting good friend of Petra next door was a delight. Single Mum Adeleida lives with her young family and works at the clinic. She also supplements her income by sewing. I bought this red bag from her. The home is very simple, with no electricity and the outdoor animals all come inside to sleep at night.
We spent one day attending the clinic where Petra works (sadly I had no working camera). Petra works with the mums and babies. It is a small busy bush clinic (but not as rural as some she visits). As Petra was having some time off, I will go to Lubango to visit again one day to work alongside her. I felt very much at home in the domain of mums and babies.
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| Back to Luanda |
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| After Church, Jane and William waiting for a ride |
