We hit the road early this morning, a 6AM start and there were many people walking and biking through the streets already at that hour. We crossed the mouth of Nile River, the bridge was protected by armed guards - apparently to prevent the possibility of someone blowing it up and cutting off a major truck route to the coast in Kenya. We stopped for breakfast at a gas station shortly beyond this point, where Julie had another encounter with a creature - a cockroach with a body the size of a tennis ball. Pieter chose to use the bathrooms, Kristin & Julie did not.

We continued on to Soroti where we were warmly greeted by Millie, Edward's wife and his son Jesse. We had a great meal at their home including potatoes, rice, peas, chicken, beef, atap (a mixture of cassave & sorghum) and chapati (a whole wheat pancake). Millie shared with us about her work at a pre-school and with an HIV/AIDS organisation, she also showed us the school she works at. Jesse had fun playing with the toys that we had brought for the pre-school. We then started the bumpy journey north to Lira. Edward was looking forward to a quick trip on a new highway, however the highway was not yet prepared for traffic and we had to take many detours on dirt roads, bouncing through the lush countryside. We arrived at our guesthouse in the late afternoon and after a time of rest and dinner are now sitting inside as the thunder crashes and the rain pours outside. Pieter and Edward are intently watching a soccer match on tv. Tomorrow we will meet Reverend Jacob in the town of Aduku and will be staying with host families in the evening. We will update again when we can.

Thank you for your continued prayer as we begin our week of visits and partnership discussions.