Trip To Mahadaga

January 7, 2009

Our trip to Mahadaga was quite an adventure. We planned to get an early start, but ended up leaving Ouaga an hour and a half later, due to our van drivers being on "Africa time." The van was very loaded down, with all of our luggage, plus the thirteen of us and the two drivers. We drove for about three hours and arrived in Fada, which is halfway to Mahadaga, at lunchtime. We ate the sandwiches and apples that we had packed ahead of time. Then we got back into the van for the second, and significantly longer, leg of our journey.

Along the way, we got a good feel for the landscape in Burkina. It is composed of dry grasses, scrubby bushes, and a variety of trees, all of which are growing in dry red soil. We saw lots of small huts, and we drove through small towns from time to time. We saw many interesting sights: women effortlessly carrying baskets on their heads; little boys herding cattle, which are all scrawny and have humps on their backs; children selling food along the road; a man riding a bike with chickens hanging upside down from the handlebars; trucks hauling large numbers of animals, with people riding on top; donkeys and goats walking across the road in front of us; piles of cotton that had just been harvested. A couple of us were even lucky enough to see a lion!

After we left Fada, we drove for about two more hours, and then we left the paved road and began to bump along the dusty dirt road that would complete our journey to Mahadaga. The road was not too bad at first, but it became more and more full of potholes as we continued, which caused us to have to go slower and slower. Considering the weight that the van was carrying, it was amazing that we didn't blow out a tire. Despite our slow pace, the jolting was not terribly comfortable, so we decided to sing to pass the time. We sang through all of the Bible school songs that we could think of and then started on hymns and other songs.

After ten hours of driving, we finally arrived in Mahadaga. We were covered in red dust and rather tired and sore from the long bumpy ride. We were greeted by missionaries Matt and Julie, Dale and Florence, Jason and Shannon, and Betty. Dale had prepared a wonderful dinner of chili, rice, and tortillas, with chocolate cake and homemade ice-cream (thanks to Betty) for dessert. We got settled into our houses (we are staying in four different houses) and were able to take a refreshing shower, after which we felt much better and looked several shades lighter! --Julie