Road to Indonesia---We're Here

 We are safely to Papua.  Definite answer to prayer for our luggage.  Two big ones checked through just fine. The wonderful man pushing my wheelchair looked at our carry on luggage and just gave us a baggage claim ticket and had our very over weight carry-on's put as baggage, at no charge!! Best 100,000 rupiyah ($7 USD) tip I ever gave!  Easy sailing after that. Even anti-climatical after all the worry about not getting on flights.  No one questioned us.  In fact the flights were quite full.  We arrived in Papua to hear that the government has just announced that all flights will be canceled from Auguat 1-28 and then be re-evaluated. We were scheduled to fly to Papua on August 5.  I am so so so glad we made it here. The government is also not letting the school (or anyone presumably) issue even visitor's visas, so at this point about 4 of the teachers are feet on the ground to start the school year.  Did I mention how extremely glad I am that God prompted us to move our flights

Road to Indonesia---flight delay

 Well, yesterday evening we were sent articles stating that because of Eid al-Adha no flights will be allowed.  This is to curb traveling for family get togethers. What I find just a little strange is that we were given this directive 2 days after it was to have begun.  Theoretically, we should have been able to fly out today to Papua.  Our 8 days of quarantine are done (Wednesday), we have a negative covid test, etc. Now, it appears that we will need to stay through Sunday or Monday.  However, our organization is writing a letter requesting an exception.  Will it work? Regardless, we should be able to move around a bit more freely: take a walk, use the fitness equipment in the hotel, etc. However, Jakarta is locked down pretty firmly as far as we can tell, so I don't know that moving around is realistic or desirable.  Another factor that needs prayer is that they say our carryon's can only be 7 kg (about 15 pounds).  Well, we got our big check through bags down to 44 pounds (2

Road to Indonesia--Eid al-Adha

 Today is Tabaski as we call it in Senegal, or Eid al-Adha for the rest of the Muslim world.  It is the remembrance of when Abraham was to sacrifice Ishmael. (You might remember the story a little differently.)  Even after 7+ years in Muslim countries, I have so many, many questions, and sometimes not a good source to get the answers.  In Dakar, Senegal for this holiday there were literally thousands of sheep and goats in every median or spare space leading up to this holiday.  They were bought, taken home, fattened a bit, slaughtered, and roasted today.  Then the whole extended family and neighbors and friends came to share the feast.  Now, Indonesia overall is supposedly a much more observant Muslim country, but as I look out my 10th floor hotel room window, I have not seen one single animal.  How can they celebrate Eid al-Adha without a sacrifice....and how do they participate in high rise apartments?  Part of it might be that Jakarta is locked down pretty severely I think because o

Road to Indonesia---China zoom conference, meals

 Just had a Zoom conference with the teachers from our China mission.  There will only be 4 left in China this fall, although another 6 or 7 of us will be teaching online still.  ONE member of our group has successfully received a return visa!! and it took tremendous work and money.  The 3 sets of covid tests that he needed to get, then had to have jpg pictures of the whole process downloaded to China website. I mean pictures of the man with his viles of blood, and the nurse who accompanied him, etc. etc. It cost about $500 and about 1 and a half hours to do these tests. The real shocker, though, is that his return ticket is costing $6000 oneway.  Can you imagine?  (Our return tickets one way to Jakarta, a little bit further as to distance cost us $480....but it was an exceptionally good price.)  As much as we would love to be back in China, I am so glad that the Lord has sent us to Indonesia, and as much hassle as it was to get here, it pales in comparison to China regs.   We are star

Road to Indonesia---Online school and visas

 Just to keep you up on current circumstances so you can pray.  At this point Papua is on lock down until August 14.  Our director told us this morning that we should anticipate online teaching for at least the first 3 days of school (classes are to begin August 11), but realistically the end of August for online seems feasible. Some families are indicating that they will homeschool rather than do online teaching because of financial difficulties if online is the only option. We need full enrollment participation to meet budget, we are told, although everyone  empathisizes with parents' dilemma.   It changes every day whether the Sentani Airport which is our town will be closed or not. Please pray that it is open when we are done with 8 days quarantine. Many people are also caught in the States right now becasue of the new dictate that children over 12 must be fully vaccinated. The parents were done with their vaccination, but now the wait for the completion of their children. Many

Road to Indonesia---Jakarta

 Here we are....in Jakarta.  It was a long, long trip, with uncomfortable 12 hour layover mostly in the baggage area of O'Hare Airport in Chicago, but we survived.  We slept alot on the plane.  The airport agents and immigration officials all accepted our visas, vaccination cards, and negative covid tests without any questions!!! (That is a real miracle.)  The hotel that I had booked with Holiday Inn rewards points wanted to deny that reservation and make us pay the quarantine package price which would have cost us about $700.  But I convinced them to accept the reward room rates and just add on payments for 2 meals a day.  They wanted to add on laundry as well, but I can spend the next 8 days in my jammies if I want, so we do not need laundry.  The room is nice: sitting room and bedroom. I have to figure out how to get enough exercise in this space so that I can sleep at night, and to help overcome jetlag, even 2 tv's.  They decide the menu, which is going to not really be som

Road to Indonesia: Flying Tomorrow, Monday

  So we fly out tomorrow (Monday, July 12) at 5:00 a.m.   We were able to get pretty much everything done (China bank request,   a year’s worth of meds purchased,   tax records almost complete, rv usage verified, etc. etc.), and also even had enough time to go swimming with the fam, and visit dear, dear friends. ….not enough sleep though.   Our biggest prayer request as I lie here in the early morning is that the covid testing results work out.   The specific kind of test (PCR) needs to be done within 72 hours of departure, but sometimes it takes 72 hours to get the test back from the lab, which renders it useless.   We will wait today anxiously for the paperwork.   I also just received 2 notifications from mission groups in Indonesia that as of Monday (our departure date) they are restricting the labs that can be used to provide covid tests (742 Labs, and I do not even know what that means).   So besides prayers that we get the tests back, we also need prayers that it is from an accep

Road to Indonesia-- Here we go again!

  Back to being as flexible as we need to be. I got up Monday morning to the news that hotel quarantine in Jakarta has been extended from 5 days to 8 days.(Ugh----do you know how long 8 days confined to a hotel room is?)   Also, that covid cases in Jakarta are spiking drastically. Although no official word has been shared, they have the history of suddenly closing airports (January / February and May for Ramadan). We are concerned about that. Therefore I just changed our July 26 tickets to July 12.   The only thing besides hurried preparations that are being affected is the FL portion of our trip to be with Peace. We were with her for a week in PA and VA the end of June, so we have seen her. Sorry not to make that portion, but she is being very understanding. We just drove the two days necessary to get from MA to SC.   Now I am trying to prep all the paperwork necessary and will get up tomorrow morning early to start the foot work.   I want to be clear that this trip is not the neces