Congo Adventures Day 2--arriving in Congo!

Monday, October 22:

We had very short layovers the entire trip to Africa. Once we landed in Brussels we quickly rushed to our next gate, as boarding was supposed to start before we got off our previous plane. We quickly found our travel companion, A, as she was one of few other white people in the room. This was my first taste of the language barrier (why I felt no need to cram with Rosetta Stone the weeks before travel still urks me a bit!) and we sat back and waited to board for a good 45 minutes (also our first taste of Congolese time?!??!?!).

<<Brussels to Kinshasa (long, yet refreshing)
As we walked down the walkway to our plane, we ran into a missionary S and her son.  It was such a sweet moment as she was very willing to chat with us, make us feel comfortable, and very positive about our adoptions.  A few minutes into the converstaion we found out she was the worship director at a church just blocks from our hotel...and she offered to come pick us up for church on Sunday (one thing I had really wanted to do while in Congo but thought there was no way it would be possible)!--you'll hear more about S and her family on Day 8:)

We were blown away by the service on Brussels Air! They served us enough food (and free drinks of your choice) to fill our bellies for the next couple of days. The only bummer about the top notch service was the lack of sleep after a restless night. Watching the screens in the seats in front of us, inching our way across Africa was such a uplifting feeling. It was our last flight to Congo and I had finally accepted the fact that we were not going to crash, and would soon be on Congolese soil!

Our flight was about 45 minutes late landing, which was a huge bummer as the sun set just minutes before we reached Kinshasa. As much as we wanted to see the city from above, the sunset was AMAZING (and we're from ND where sunsets aren't easily beat). We twisted and turned along the Congo River with the radiant golden yellow sky slowing turning to black, finally landing---on the African ground, feeling sooooo close to our Addy!

The sunset we flew over was identical to this photo of the Congo River

We had a great travel resource from our agency explaining what to expect at the airport. We were told to go to a certain check in line...that ended up not existing (at least for that day!). So we started off looking like foreigners (as if it weren't obvious enough) scrambling to find "THE LINE" we were supposed to be in. We finally settled for a line.  The man who grabbed our passports decided he wanted to see certain paperwork before he'd let us enter (even though A had just been let in without any look at her paperwork). After he let us through, our next step was another booth where we had to show our immunization cards...and then we entered the big wooden doors that led us into the chaos!

We were told to look for the big signs from our agency, so as I led the three of us into a yelling mob of people, I walked right past a man obviously trying to get our attention--I quickly realized that even though he didn't have a sign, he was saying OUR names. After another glance I recognized "M" from the photos we were given and he quickly took off motioning for us to follow him. After grabbing a few luggage carts, we went to wait for our luggage. We sat at the carousel for a good hour waiting for all the pieces of our luggage to come through. During this hour A and I were approached by many people, trying to get our business. One "police" came up to me and conversed back and forth with me for a good 5 minutes (he in French, me in English) trying to get me to understand that he was asking for my cart and he would return it shortly (I only figured this out when another man looking for our business noticed the struggle we were having and came over to translate for us)--I never saw that cart again.   

We were some of the last people standing, waiting for our luggage to come (as M was jumping back and forth between the outside area--looking for our luggage---and inside to keep tabs on Bobby). FINALLY all our luggage was on our carts, ready to be hauled outside. As soon as we started carting away, we were approached by numerous people who grabbed our carts, and insisted on pushing them for us---another time I wish I understood French so I could know what M and them were saying to each other (but it was obvious M was not happy these men would not leave us alone). As we started walking toward the doors there were some men yelling and screaming, pushing each other around....we walked wearily right between their argument and outside to the humid Kinshasa air.

Walking along the beat up concrete path, following as close to M as I possibly could, I believe my heart stopped beating. The men (many with guns), all the yelling--which of course we couldn't understand, the people staring, the darkness of the night---the whole scene was overwhelming (all the while M and the men pushing our carts were still arguing). We walked a ways until we finally came to the car in which our incountry coordinator, D, was waiting for us. Giving him a great big hug was such a comforting feeling during this time of commotion and uneasiness!

M and D did some more bickering with the men for awhile as we got cozy in the car.  Eventually they agreed on a price for their business, then D hopped in and the car ride I'll NEVER forget began...

Driving in Congo is chaos to say the least. There are no (well, hardly ANY) street signs, no painted lines to tell you where your area of the road is, and no street lights. The roads are some paved, some dirt....but all filled with pot holes that seem like humongous black holes that could take you to another planet. I had read about these car rides from other people that have visited Congo---but I thought their description was probably a bit exaggerated-----NNNNOOOOTTT!

Driving down these roads in the dark of night (with very few lights outside other than the candles that people used to congregate around after nightfall) with cars flying around you---or I should say AT you. Every time I'd look up at the dim lights leading our path, I'd see a shadow running across the street---a mother, a few kids, or an elderly man crossing the 5 lanes of traffic (that were by no means coordinated).

Every minute or so our driver would lay on the horn and go flying by a slower car....of course with another car coming at us face on RIGHT IN FRONT OF US--swerving quickly back into his "lane".
Then right in the middle of the chaos we'd feel a huge jerk and
SMACK
we'd hit our hands on the back of the seats or ram our bodies into each other as the jeep would abruptly slow down for another black hole lying in front of us.

We flew this way and that, dodging people and cars for a good hour (once going EIGHTY MPH). This was our first time since arriving that we had the opportunity to converse with a Congolese who knew English (D) so we spent the "Hour of Shock" asking him about the country, the poverty we were driving by, what to expect this week, and of course---HOW WAS OUR ADDY!?!??!

D shared with us that we were driving through the most populated area of Kinshasa. It wasn't hard to believe--I did not see one bare spot of land the entire hour-long drive. There were people EVERYWHERE. It was amazing to see boys running along the street playing football in the dark. There were bunches and bunches of people huddled together around their makeshift candlelit tables talking and laughing with one another. The poverty was overwhelming, but the sense of community was unbelievable. We in America shut our doors and live our lives so secretly behind closed doors while they band together--sharing their lives in a way that touched my heart.

Street after street we saw people lined up, getting ready for a night of life on the streets of Kinshasa.  It was like we were driving through a never-ending tunnel of people....right next to a group of congregating people would be a mother and her children coiled up on the side of the road, nestled together for a night of sleep.  There were kids, at almost 10pm at night walking alone together---ages as young as 2 and 4. 

And then we made a few turns this way and that and it was obvious we were in a different area of the city.  We had now entered Gombe, the business "wealthy" area of Kinshasa.  Although the tone had changed a bit, there were still hundreds of people outside singing, talking, and doing business--and many people sleeping on the streets right next to the hotel.

To drive through what we had just experienced and pull up in front of an "American Standard" hotel was very strange and almost uneasy.  We were welcomed right away by the doorman and quickly got checked in and brought to our room.  We opened the door, unpacked our bags, and ordered some room service (which I had actually never done at a hotel before---and doing so in Congo just seemed wrong)! 

Bobby called and ordered a hamburger and a plate of spaghetti.  Somehow the lady misunderstood and brought us a hamburger and an espresso.  As soon as she came in the room, she asked if it was correct, and we could tell she wasn't certain of the order she took.  Once we told her we had ordered spaghetti, she closed her eyes and looked like she was about to cry.  She turned back to us and asked if we would please keep the espresso in our room because she would loose her job if she brought it back down because she couldn't understand us correctly.  We not only kept the espresso, but we paid for it AND gave this poor girl a nice tip to show her we appreciated her service (we didn't order room service again---we were pampered enough in this hotel, and just felt the extra service was unnecessary and much preferred going down to the restaurant to visit with the locals as much as possible). 

By the time the spaghetti came up, I was pretty beat and ready for some bed---of course DYING for the morning to come so we could FINALLY HAVE ADDY IN OUR ARMS!!!!  EEEEEKKK!
We laid down and let out a big sigh---a sense of relief, a hope for what tomorrow would bring, and an unsaid understanding of "Thank you Lord for opening our eyes."

I made the realization that it was a good thing we arrived at night. I was already in complete shock at what I had seen, and we couldn't even see much. It was a nice, slow transition into what the daylight would bring in the morning.

Tomorrow....THE BEST DAY OF THE ADVENTURE---Addy's in our arms....