The 27th of June found us arriving in Johannesburg, South Africa and immediately on our way north and west to Namibia. That first day we crossed the border into Botswana, where we stayed with a friend of the Marais's. We had to leave early the next morning, so by the time we went to bed, then had to get up at two in the morning, we only had slept about four hours. We five cousins rode with Amrie Geise's brother Es-via (28). We all went back to sleep, so we were no help to keep him awake. I didn't know until later that one way he kept himself awake was to use his phone to video us while he wiggled the steering wheel. Then he would laugh and laugh at how funny we looked, wobbling back and forth!
These pictures are of the next night at the place we stayed in Windhoek, Namibia's capital.
The Marais's visiting with our hosts.
The next day we stopped at this church, where we picked up coal for cooking and had lunch. This vehicle is the Land Cruiser we rode in.
This is the Toyota Hilux that the Marais's, helper Kuni, vet Neinke, and missionary Diane rode in.
Having lunch
That evening, we arrived at the girl scout campground in Ongwediva where we would be staying. We set up camp and gladly fell into our beds, where this night we could stay as long as we wanted to.
Our camp: on the left is the Marais's tent, and on the right is Neinke's.
To the right of the first two tents, the girls' tent and Diane's tent.
Furthest to the right, past the "kitchen," the two tents in which Nathaniel, Ezra, Es-via, and Kuni slept. As you can see, the tents are in front of one of the camp buildings. We were allowed to use the facilities in the building, so we were better off than we had expected.
The first day was given to us to rest and wash clothes and anything else needful, while we waited for the man who was to come give us access to the Bibles. The Marais's pay for Bibles from the Bible Society of whatever country they are selling in. HIM pays for part of the cost so that the Marais's can sell the Bibles at a cheaper price and not lose any of the money that they pay. We could not get the Bibles until the man from the Bible society came and let us into the Bible society's storeroom on the campground. In this picture, Ezra was reading a book about an emergency room doctor. I enjoyed his stories describing work in the emergency room. Actually, Ezra is reading from a Kindle, which you can download whole books on. Much less bulky than packing several books to read!
The chore of the day: laundry! By hand. I didn't mind it all that much. At least at first, it was fun to do it a different way than we normally do.
I was impressed by the boys' willingness to do their own laundry, which we girls gladly allowed them to do!
We girls helped chop vegetables for supper.
This coal burner is mostly what "Aunt" Hester used to cook. There was a propane burner too.
This is in the Bible society's storeroom, after "Barnabas" unlocked. Several of the team took stock of the Bibles before moving them to one of "our" rooms.
A couple cute little ones on the campground.
The boys were quick to pitch in with dishes several nights. I really appreciated that. This is in the kitchen we were camped behind.
The Bibles were transferred the next morning, before we took off on our first day of selling Bibles.
The first day, we set up in a little roadside market in Oshakati, a few minutes from our campsite, but business wasn't good, so we moved to a different spot. Here you can see a couple people who were interested.
We took turns walking through the shopping centers, trying to sell more Bibles. We sold a lot that way.
Here's a kid I thought was so cute. It would come through with the other goats every day.
The rest of our time in Oshakati, we were set up here. This is where I got robbed because a door was not latched correctly. (Plus my purse was in plain sight. Not smart!) Of course I felt bad for not hiding my purse and getting robbed, but at the same time I was not sorry I came. I felt a sense of peace that I was where I belonged. Here I want to thank the Lord for how He worked everything out for the trip. When I was first invited by my cousins, I was eager to take the opportunity. Brother Phil was able to get tickets for a very good price, and the Lord provided through people who wanted to help, all the funds for the ticket, vaccinations, fuel, food, and various other expenses. Flights and connections went smoothly, we stayed safe driving (in spite of Es-via's steering wheel wiggling :), there were no vehicle problems, no one was hurt or got seriously ill, and we cousins had a grand time together with Kuni and Es-via (and later on the farm, Amrie's sister Joreth). I enjoyed being with other Christian young people, talking, working, laughing. The Lord's presence met with me several times, a couple times when I was just alone in the tent. God is great, and He is still working. I'm so grateful that I was able to go.
On Sunday after a Bible study by Uncle Piet, Amaris and Candace made french toast.
The second week, we sold Bibles in a village called Ondangwa. I'm sorry I don't have any pictures of us there on my camera. Again, we walked through shopping centers and also had a couple tables set up. We had run out of the cheapest Bibles, so we didn't sell as many. But we did our best. It was in Ondangwa that Neinke saw a black man getting into a Chinese man's car. The Chinese man was on the phone at the back of the car and didn't see the thief. Neinke sneaked up behind the thief, smacked him and yelled. "He's stealing!" she told the Chinese man, who immediately ran around the car and kicked at the man, who was insisting,"I'm your friend! I'm your friend!" It looked as if they were going to have a fight, but thankfully the would-be thief ran off without stealing anything.
I already told how the Lord worked everything out, so I'll just close by repeating how glad I am that I went. I'm so thankful the Lord gave me this opportunity, and we would like to go again next year!
