Little taste of home

Last weekend I had my first weekend out of Jos for some much needed rest and relaxation. After an intense few weeks of ministry, it was perfect timing and the week prior I was literally counting down the days. The journey to Abuja is not a particularly nice one, not just because of the huge stretches of pot-holed road that needs to be navigated and the multiple military check points, but the driving itself requires undivided attention, especially when overtaking enormous 18-wheeler trucks at regular intervals. Once in Abuja, trying to find our way around the unfamiliar city would have made the trip stressful rather than stress relieving, so in light of all these factors, we decided it would be wise to hire a driver for the weekend. Amos, a reliable and lovable SIM driver was only happy to oblige us, as the extra income for his family was always appreciated.

We arrived in Abuja Friday afternoon with minimal dramas along the way, although I did receive one marriage proposal and also an offer of a military escort to Abuja by two separate Police and Army officers. I politely declined both generous offers.  First stop once we arrived was to find espresso coffee (and yes this was my bright idea…much to Fiona’s disgust as she was eager to get into the pool!). We found a supermarket down the road that had a café of sorts at the back and I ordered my first latte in Africa. I’m positive that it would have tasted average when compared to the coffee back home, but in that moment, with only Nescafe with powdered milk as my immediate comparison, it was heaven! We perused the supermarket in search of treats we couldn’t find in Jos and excitedly discovered some cheapish breakfast cereal, tinned tuna and yoghurt (trust me, these staple items made us bizarrely happy!). SIM missionaries are very blessed to have an arrangement with one of the nicer hotels (by Nigerian standards) in Abuja where we get free accommodation during the weekend. Rooms cost about $300 USD a night, so obviously this would be out of the question as an option if the owner didn’t gift it to us. We found our room and realized there was one bed for all 3 of us. Just as well it was a Nigerian king sized bed and all 3 of us girls could quite easily fit on it without touching. Nigerian beds are also incredibly hard so there was no need to worry about ‘roll-together’ either.

Three in the bed and the little one said......

We spent the afternoon by the pool reading and swimming and then went out to dinner at a restaurant, which was recommended to us by a missionary in Jos. I had a Greek Salad, which actually had REAL feta cheese! Another very exciting experience, especially after ordering the same in Jos and getting grated cheddar soaked in mayonnaise! Mmmmm. Even watching cable TV that night back at the hotel room was a novelty, especially when you haven’t watched television for 5 months! The Nigerian soap operas are hilarious!

The next morning we attempted to start our morning early as to make the most of our time only to find that nothing was open until 12pm due to ‘sanitation’!!?? When I asked what they meant by ‘sanitation’ it was explained to me that once a month all retail shops take a morning to do a thorough clean. Who knew! Anyway on our second attempt to start the day we went to a big park in the middle of the city (meticulously manicured and quite beautiful) for a picnic. I found some fresh smoked salmon at one of the many supermarkets we visited and took it to the park and I ate it straight from the packet! Next stop was SilverBird mall (a large Westernised mall) for some window-shopping, another coffee and a movie. Walking out of the movie theatre I almost forgot where I was…..until I saw all the Nigerian youth milling around and looked out the window at the African landscape!  It was a really lovely little getaway and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed such simple everyday pleasures, which I completely take for granted back home. I thought perhaps the little taster of home comforts would make me home-sick and maybe more frustrated with life here and more aware of what I don’t have, but it’s only made me appreciative of the time I have left in Africa.

I got my first flat tyre the other day. It was lucky that I wasn’t in a hurry going anywhere at the time and that it happened when I was parked at the SIM/ECWA headquarters. Even with my confidence that I could change the puncture myself, five Nigerian men came to my rescue and insisted on taking over. Who was I to argue? I thanked them profusely 10 minutes later when my spare was safely in place and I was on my way. Flats happen so frequently here that Nigerians are real pros at changing them and take no time at all. The day after I went to get my puncture mended and stopped at the corner I’d been directed to where a young guy sat with two little boys who I presumed were his apprentices, and watched in amazement as they went about their work as I waited. It took all of 15 minutes before it was fixed and back on my car and cost a total of 300 Naira ($2 NZD) for their service. I felt a bit bad paying that much, but they will definitely have my custom in the future!

A few months ago I was put in touch with a Nigerian dentist called Ambrose who works for an American NGO called ProHealth. He expressed an interest to do some volunteer dentistry for our kids in the ministry. This Saturday we organized a session out at Gyero to assess the kids and do some extractions, filings and cleaning. I have come to the conclusion that dentistry is not for the faint hearted I’ll tell you that much! I thought I’d seen my fair share of gore, blood and guts as an Emergency nurse, but holding a child down while a dentist extracts a tooth was a new experience for me and one even I wouldn’t volunteer for again in a hurry! We saw a number of children and will schedule another clinic day to get through the rest. It really is such a blessing having Ambrose on board because dental is very expensive here, and unfortunately the ministry cannot afford regular check ups which means that I end up taking kids to see the dentist at the hospital when they get infected teeth well beyond saving or oral abscesses. Hardly ideal. 

This won't hurt a bit......!

Anyway, as I write this we are under curfew on the compound due to attacks in outer Jos by Fulani herders on indigene villagers. A Challenge pancake breakfast this morning was a nice start to the day but the disruption to normal routine is frustrating to say the least. Please pray that these tensions resolve and we can have a return to the relative peace Jos has seen for the last few weeks.