we've arrived!

Hi Everyone,
We have arrived safely in Mvumi!
It was a 10 hour flight from Heathrow (good job we left when we did - thanks for the update Warner!), followed by a 6 hour bus ride from Dar es Salam to Dodoma and then an hour in a landrover to Mvumi.
The bus broke down half way to Dodoma, but Trevor and John got stuck into the general discussion over what was wrong with the engine - something blew up and disturbed our rather broken sleep! Think it turned out to be something serious with the clutch and it was resolved by trying a piece of string around a metal thing, and we were on our way within an hour and a half. John very wisely didn't tell me about the string until we arrived!

Mollie and Julie are staying with Peter & Alison and Mandy, Jenny, Trevor, John and Jack are next door, with 2 dogs and a cow! and a cockerel that crows very loudly at 4 am.

peter took us on a guided tour of mvumi hospital this morning, the hospital has an HIV/aids clinic and we learnt that although antiretroviral drugs are available for treatment, they have to be taken with food and this means because of the shortage of food situation, some people are unable to take their drugs. although the hospital and enough money to afford proper incubators for the maternity ward, they found that they were too complicated for the mothers to ba able to get to their babies, and they were too difficult to maintain, and so they babies are now left in washing baskets with towels over them, in a heated room. it works just as well!

this afternoon we went briefly into town and looked around mvumi market, before going to tea at Raheli's house. Raheli is a neighbour of peter and alison's, and she wanted to play host to all of us, and so made mandazes and chai. while we were there, she asked us to pray for her and her family as the harvest hadnt had a lot of rain, and she passes on her blessings to all of you. she also gave us a gift for the Church that we can all make use of!
Raheli is a christian. she is a 'first-wife'. this menas that she is married but because she couldnt have children, her husband took a second wife.

tomorrow we are going into a school to make finger puppets with 50 children. thank you Angela for cutting up all the card!

please pray that everybody stays well and drinks enough water.

thank you heather for your big brother update!

greetings to mission prayer group and Valerie's home group, love Mollie

lots of love from
Julie, John, Jenny, Jack, Mollie, Trevor and Mandy xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx