Friday, January 04, 2008

leaving on a jet plane

no, i am not being evacuated. but i am not returning to my village for an undetermined amount of time. i am going to visit a friend i met in a training this past summer. she lives just over the kenyan border in arusha, tanzania.



i have been in contact with my friends in eldoret and plateau. plateau is still "calm" and "safe", however all local roads are blocked. the small hospital that has seen little action for months is now handling gunshot wounds and machete slashes. the teaching hospital in eldoret has 200 more patients than beds and have been running out of guaze and basic supplies.



they have begun escorting people out of eldoret now on busses, but under heavy police escort. no one is going in. hence, i will not be returning to my village any time soon.



so, early next week i will be leaving on a "jet plane" (probably something much smaller) to arusha, tanzania. a positive outcome is that i can see a friend, see somewhere new, learn about her work with HIV/AIDS, and add a new country to my facebook map.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Alida,

Glad to hear that you are still safe. I will say a prayer for the staff at Plateau hospital. I have said many prayers these past few days for you and your friends there.

I also wanted to say thanks for the christmas card which arrived a couple days ago. It was very thoughtful of you.

I have a letter to send to you so when you get settled in Tanzania, send me an email with your new address and I will send it there.


Sandy

Jen Wen Luoh said...

Alida,
You're coming to Tanzania! It's hard to imagine how neighboring countries could be in such a different state. Hope you have a good experience in Arusha. Karibu Tanzania! Here's my number +255763449725. You can text me anytime. You are welcomed in Iringa or Usolanga!
God bless,
Jen

rubyslipperlady said...

Glad to hear you made it safely. Have a great time! We all made it to the office and are all well. There is a lot of healing needed but the Holy Spirit is moving.