Saturday update from South Sudan

Ajok, chef master extraordinaire in her element
















Rain = mud and flooding; this area is a lot of wetland















Boys at the Secondary School















Road construction at the market in Kuajok















There are a suprising number of bikes around here. They must have been donated by another organization.
















Saturday, 3:35 pm


Location: Juba

Spent my first night in a "luxury" tent. Although I wasn't super comfortable when I first got into bed last night before 10 pm, it must have been too bad because I woke up at 10 am this morning. It was dark and stormy all night. The rain started soon after I got into bed, which was good because I was worried the sound from the camp bar would keep me awake. Who would think disco music is appropriate? Apparently camp management.

Of course I have pictures of the rain and tent, but I haven't transferred them to the computer yet. The only pictures I have are still from Kuajok, hence the above. Remember I said our office was in the middle of a corn field? Turns out it is sorghum. Sorghum looks like corn that has gone to seed. I'm sure agronomists and biologists will have something to say about that. Mom?

Did I mention it rained all night Thursday when we were in Kuajok? The lightening preceding the storm is beautiful, as are the stars. Did you know there are a gazillion stars in the sky? And planets too? You can see them all here. Even the furthest, tiniest star will probably appear in a telescope because there is no light polution. Sudan is the largest country in Africa. That is a lot of night darkness to increase night sky visibility!

And since so few roads (I've seen 3, including the airport runway in Juba) are paved, when it rains, this place becomes MUDDY. Thick, red mud that sticks to your shoes, your pants bottoms and everything else it comes into contact with.

My stomach was feeling a little sensitive yesterday so I starved it. Today is better and the beans, rice and boiled cabbage - YUM! I am skipping the chicken just to be safe. There is no junk food to be had - except for what I brought for the office. And since I'm not exercising I'm trying to be judicious in what I eat. I'm pretty sure I'll end up losing weight on this trip, but it's still early.