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We were up at 5 am. We got some tea and bread and eggs and were on our way from Arusha to the ngoagora crater. Our driver sistey was very experienced and friendly. We saw baboons climb on safari vehicles while waiting to register. Then we descended into the crater. It was drizzly and overcast above the crater, however once inside it brightened up considerably. We saw lions,  all kinds of birds. Zebra, impala, water buffalo, boars, hyenas, jackals, and even a few elephants in the distance. Theresa and Lanee were our photography experts, with their state of the art cameras. Linda could remember every detail about each animal and immediately find it in the safari book. Donilyn although tired faithfully wrote each animal that we saw along the way. Carter provided endless entertainment to the group and took lots of pics and videos. Shay besides being amazing at randomly screaming and not taking pills. Was a great spotter for us always seeing the animals before the rest of us. Kristina gave us laughter at her witty comments and observations about wildlife. I guess it comes with the territory of an equestrian.   We headed back up the crater. We saw huge piles of Elephant dung on the one way trail. Kristina commented what would we do if we ran into a elephant up here. Well we did. Five feet in front of us was a large elephant eating the shrubs in solitude. We took pics and videos, as we tried to pass, it slammed its large head towards our car. We sped away from danger, only to run into another elephant and her baby. They were so amazing, but also dangerous. We spent the night at the rotia tent lodge. It was quaint and off the beaten path. Tomorrow we head off on our last day of safari before heading home!! 

We woke up in the untouched area of rotia. Our lodging was very nice, a large tented area that had bedrooms, bathroom and a sitting area. We left to go to lake manyara, or according to Carter lake  Myanmar. It was a pretty quiet day at the start. We saw some baboons and other smaller monkeys, blue and velvet. We also saw gazelle and hippos. We saw an elephant far away. No giraffes were to be found. Disappointed, we headed out of the park. Suddenly there were 3 -6 masai giraffe, one really close to us was eating from the trees. We were happy to be able to see some giraffe at last. On our way back to Imara, we saw about 15 elephants eating from trees on the side of the road. Our driver explained that was why we had not seen more, all the elephants had left the park searching for better food. After Imara, carter stayed behind to climb mt. Kilimajaro with his dad, but the rest of the team headed off for the journey home. Thank you for your prayers and support.  Carter returns home on June 18th, so please continue to pray for his safety, as well as the rest of the team as they travel home. Asante Sana. Bwana Asifiwe. Thank you, praise God.

We visited children at the Imara centre. 22 children with aids came to have some fun and forget about their disease for a few hours. Carter  sang them some songs in swahili, we also sang a song called hey baba that we learned in karanse.  The kids sang to us also in swahili. We had them make a craft, which was the gospel necklace with black, red, white, purple,blue, green, yellow. They loved it.  Kristina showed them what each color stood for and its importance.  Donilyn showed them how to make it step by step. Afterwards, Carter wrestled and sang some more swahili songs. The kids then told us their individual stories. Which were heartbreaking and encouraging at the same time.   Later we had lunch, Linda was such a  servant  bringing all the kids  water and juice, which she learned to say in Swahili. Next we handed out frisbees to the kids, which they loved. Lanee next passed out backpacks for each student that she had helped buy and organize. This was a huge deal to them, they never stopped smiling. Theresa then explained why we were here, and that we loved the kids and were so happy to be able to spend the day with them. Before we left, Carter, Shay and Kristina taught them red light green light. Or simama and twende. Shay also taught them simon says, or simon sema, they loved the games. We are next headed on Safari!!  More to come

Donilyn, Kristina, Theresa and Shay have all arrived home safely! (Just ask any team member the significance of that.) Praise the Lord from whom all blessings flow!  

Linda and Lanee are still in Amsterdam for a few days and Carter will begin his trip to the top of Kilimanjaro in a few days! Please continue to lift them up in prayer until their safe return as well.

OVERVIEW:

I'm sure any team member would love to tell you all the details of their experiences (besides what's already in the previous blogs), but I think it's safe to say that the trip was very successful! Our blessings started in ATL with miracles including the 2 over-size bags (not over weight) that were not charged the required $175, (did I mention that all 12 bags weighed either exactly 50 pounds or 1-2 pounds less? We made optimal use of all the ministry bags!) Next was in Kilimanjaro where we were all allowed to pass freely through customs without a single bag being checked! 21 bags in all (28 including backpacks!) That was not the case for anyone else we saw. We were again blessed with travel mercy there and only suffered minor sniffles and sinus troubles!

In Karanse I think the kids, their families, the teachers, Pastor W, the widows, and ourselves were all blessed by our visits in the village. They make us feel so welcome and it's very sad to stay such a short time! I think we all would have liked to have another full week just in Karanse! It's also true how wonderful the praise and worship is! 3 and a half hours pass in a flash!

The visits in Arusha were also a great blessing! We felt as encouraged as the clients we were visiting! (We were constantly reminded of God's faithfulness!) And we had such a wonderful time with the kids at the HIV center that they practically had to drag us out and lock us in the car. It was also hard to say good bye and we would have loved to repeat that day again with another group of affected children!

I won't repeat the details of each day, but be sure and ask us about some of the specific blessings that we saw each day! The team members included Lanee Reed, Donilyn and Kristina Hodge, Theresa and Shay Stanley, Linda Hodges, and last, but certainly not least, Carter Rhea.

Thank you for your faithful prayers and support! We would not have been enabled without you!

We woke up and got breakfast. The beds felt sooo good. Theresa, shay and carter went off to one area, and lanee, linda, donilyn and kristina went with elijah to see other aids clients. the first team saw 4 aids clients ,with lyndall and adel.   It was so sad, to see them in such a helpless state. But it was also inspiring to see their faith and reliance on God if medicine was scarce.  Team two saw four clients. Their first visit was very powerful. Rosie was so sick, she could hardly sit up.  Along w having aids, she also had tuberculosis. Each team read verses to the aids clients, and we prayed for them. We also gave them food and vitamins.   After we were done visiting the aids clients, we took isack and elijah, our guides and part of their families out to dinner at Pepes, a great pizza and indian place. The pizza was so delicious. We were treated to some acrobatics while we ate. We were happy to see our guides families, and show them how greatful we were for their dedication and patience.  After dinner, we went back to the outpost, and slept soundly, despite the rain.

Day 3 we visited compassion children and were blessed by meeting and praying with the families. We also visited the punchmi/karanse school classes and they asked us questions and laughed when carter sang swahili songs with them.

Day 4- we visited 4 widows in karanse and 1 compassion child. Each of them welcomed us with open arms and open hearts. We prayed with them and gave them gifts from the team. carter stayed at the school for the day and helped teach english class 3 and civics class 6. Later we took a tour of the angaza women centre and saw goats, pigs, donkeys, dogs, and banana trees and got to see how our food was made. After dinner we sang songs with them. We loved their songs in swahili, and we sang some songs in english.

Day 5 - we were up and ate breakfast packed up and travel led  to arusha. We went by the IMARA offices. Tomorrow we will be doing HIV visits.

Carter Rhea