Friday, April 10
Really no news for this day. Ja was still very sick with pneumonia. Ja's wife, Rachel, wasn't feeling well. My hip was hurting to the point that I couldn't walk very much. Just sitting in a chair was painful. So we laid low that day. Walter visited some families with Kristoff but other than that we didn't do anything.
I forgot to mention that we picked up the sign from the paint shop for Walter's creation class on Thursday. We put the sign up across the street from the church and the Pritchards' house. The Pritchards' built the church/learning center on the lot next to their house. Very handy I must say!Below is a picture of the sign.
Really no news for this day. Ja was still very sick with pneumonia. Ja's wife, Rachel, wasn't feeling well. My hip was hurting to the point that I couldn't walk very much. Just sitting in a chair was painful. So we laid low that day. Walter visited some families with Kristoff but other than that we didn't do anything.
I forgot to mention that we picked up the sign from the paint shop for Walter's creation class on Thursday. We put the sign up across the street from the church and the Pritchards' house. The Pritchards' built the church/learning center on the lot next to their house. Very handy I must say!Below is a picture of the sign.
Saturday, April 11
It was the day before Walter's creation class was to start. We had 500 copies made of a flyer advertising the class. We attached a Gospel tracht to each one of them and we set out to pass them out. There are only a few roads/highways that go either the length or width of Madagascar. The Pritchards' live right off one of the roads. And it's a busy road, too! So we decided to just walk to that road. We took one of Ja's sons, Joel, with us. We passed out half in the morning and half after lunch. It didn't take very long to pass them out.
The Malagasy people are very different from Americans (as if I hadn't said that before). It's been our experience that Americans don't want what we have. It doesn't even have to be from a church. You can be advertising anything and Americans won't take a flyer. But....in Madagascar if you are passing out anything, they will take it! They say "thank you" after you give it to them. They are very gracious. The people don't rip it up; they don't throw it down; they actually READ what you give to them. We saw person after person stop what they were doing and read the flyer and tracht.
We started out standing on the side of the road. People walking by would take one. Pousse drivers and their riders would take them. We held our hands out for bicyclists and motorcyclists and they would take them. There were even a few cars that stopped to get what we were handing out! Now it was very dangerous for the cars to stop alongside a busy highway like that! There are big semi trucks, cars, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles, pousse drivers, men pulling carts, etc. all using the same narrow road and for the cars to stop could have caused an accident or two!
Once people saw we were handing out something they came to us. We didn't have to go to them. There were even a few people running to us!
It was the day before Walter's creation class was to start. We had 500 copies made of a flyer advertising the class. We attached a Gospel tracht to each one of them and we set out to pass them out. There are only a few roads/highways that go either the length or width of Madagascar. The Pritchards' live right off one of the roads. And it's a busy road, too! So we decided to just walk to that road. We took one of Ja's sons, Joel, with us. We passed out half in the morning and half after lunch. It didn't take very long to pass them out.
Once people saw we were handing out something they came to us. We didn't have to go to them. There were even a few people running to us!
We walked past this man as he was reading one of the flyers we handed to him.
The Pritchards house is right next door to their church/learning center. As we passed by the street the church faces we saw the following scene.
All I have to say is who needs a lawn mower when you've got herds of cows passing by to cut the grass for you! Ha ha!
I thought this sight was so hilarious I had to get pictures!
That's the church sign.
I thought this sight was so hilarious I had to get pictures!
That's the church sign.
Another missionary couple, Richard and Charity Jertberg, took us sightseeing. We started out at a paper factory. It is very different. Not really to be used for writing with. The owners showed us how they make it (very involved and I didn't get pictures of everything so I won't bore you with those details). It is completely made from plants and flowers.
When the decorating is done, it's put out in the sun to dry.
When the decorating is done, it's put out in the sun to dry.
The owner told us that he had a contract selling his paper to a company in Ohio last year. Wow!
From there we went to a lamba (silk scarf) factory. Lambas are traditional Malagasy clothing worn by the women. We got a tour of the factory and it was truly a "sweat shop." We aren't sure about the other factories in the country (Nike, Gap, Old Navy, Liz Claiborne) but we know this one definitely was. These scarves were made out of 100% silk.
From there we went to a lamba (silk scarf) factory. Lambas are traditional Malagasy clothing worn by the women. We got a tour of the factory and it was truly a "sweat shop." We aren't sure about the other factories in the country (Nike, Gap, Old Navy, Liz Claiborne) but we know this one definitely was. These scarves were made out of 100% silk.
The next pictures were taken in the village where the lamba factory was.
If you enlarge the picture you can see the police station better. It was the size of maybe a 6'X 6' room.
If you enlarge the picture you can see the police station better. It was the size of maybe a 6'X 6' room.
The side of the little shop was made out of the top and bottom of 55 gallon drums. They don't throw anything away! Pretty ingenius!
This is public transportation. The people enter thru the back of the van. There's no limit on the number of people they will haul. We saw them full to overflowing!
Picture of an impending storm
Pictures of the lake. It was absolutely gorgeous up there!
Looking on a remote village from the volcano
Rice fields from the volcano
More views from the volcano
We stopped for dinner after the volcano. It was a fancy shmancy place for Madagascar. This restaurant actually had menus in English. The menu was very funny because the translation was odd. For example, you could order 2 balls of ice cream or mushed potatoes. You could also order what we think was chili (kidney beans and duck breast cooked for a long moment). Or a steak cooked Henry IV way (in a butter sauce). I really wanted to ask the waiter if I could have one of the menus to bring home but I didn't. We got so tickled over that menu. What ended up being even more funny was that another missionary couple, Jason and Kelli Sigmun, took us to the same restaurant the next day (they had no idea we had been there the day before). We got to look at the menu again and just laugh.
Picture of an impending storm
From the lamba factory we went way up into the hills to an extinct volcano. The crater of the volcano now has a lake in it. It's called Lake Tachevah (not sure on the spelling). It was a loooooong bumpy ride. Charity told us to expect "sellers" to hound us when we got out of the car. And hound us they did! They have a plan to get you to buy their souvenirs. First they ask you your name (and then they call you by your name the whole time you are there). Then they offer you a handmade straw bracelet as a "free gift." If you take the bracelet you must buy their merchandise. Even if you don't take the bracelet they don't take "no" for an answer! And if you say "no" to one thing they will put it back in their basket and get something else out and beg you to buy it. The cycle just keeps going and going like that from the time you get out of your car until you leave. They even follow you alongside your car while you're driving down the mountain.
Pictures of the lake. It was absolutely gorgeous up there!
Looking on a remote village from the volcano
Rice fields from the volcano
More views from the volcano
We stopped for dinner after the volcano. It was a fancy shmancy place for Madagascar. This restaurant actually had menus in English. The menu was very funny because the translation was odd. For example, you could order 2 balls of ice cream or mushed potatoes. You could also order what we think was chili (kidney beans and duck breast cooked for a long moment). Or a steak cooked Henry IV way (in a butter sauce). I really wanted to ask the waiter if I could have one of the menus to bring home but I didn't. We got so tickled over that menu. What ended up being even more funny was that another missionary couple, Jason and Kelli Sigmun, took us to the same restaurant the next day (they had no idea we had been there the day before). We got to look at the menu again and just laugh.
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