Today we moved on again, this time heading south to Shyogwe Diocese where we were to meet Bishop Louie Pasteur for the first time following the retirement of Bishop Jered who had been our partner and friend for many years. We were due to be picked up at 8.30 by Leonard, our main contact, and a driver. As we sat finishing our breakfast a very smart car pulled into the compound, Leonard jumped out to greet us followed by ‘the driver’ none other than Bishop Louis Pasteur himself

Day 7 and we are blessed with a day off, it would be inappropriate to ask our partners to transport us on a Sunday and so we have enjoyed a relaxing day in Kigali. There is an English service at St Etienne’s Cathedral at 8.15am. We are staying in their guest house, so after a breakfast of samosa, boiled egg and fruit, we wandered over to the Cathedral and joined the worship, a little late, although as church filled up slowly during the first half hour we realised we were actu

Ready before breakfast with cases packed, we went in search of the beautiful singing we could hear floating across the hills. It didn’t take long to find choir practice underway in the Cathedral, we spent a lovely half hour sat in the church just enjoying the music, it is hard to imagine why the government would wish to try and muffle such a wonderful sound. What a lovely start to the day. Heading off for breakfast, we were a little surprised to find the dining hall locked u

Today started with the largest omelette we have ever seen and half a loaf of bread….. each, they seem to think we need feeding up, delicious as it was we just could not finish it all. It was a morning of meetings today, all of which start and end with a time of prayer. After a brief meeting with the Bishop we joined the diocesan accountant, the headmasters who oversee the sponsored children, and some of the diocesan team. Increasing accountability requirements which we have a

For anyone who might have been concerned, yes, we did get our omelettes last night. The lights did not come back on but with a torch balanced on the table our faces must have looked scarily white as we ate. There is a fair sized group staying here at the moment, and they joined us in the restaurant, sadly, as we could not see them there was no socialising to be done. We awoke this morning to a bright sunny day, and the electricity was back on, prayers answered. We learned lat

A change of plans this morning allowed some time for reflection. The city of Kigali is changing at an alarming rate, unrecognisable from the Kigali of 10 years ago, Tarmac roads now serve vast areas which once required long journeys on rough murram roads, public transport has improved and bus lanes have been added during the busy periods. New hospitals have been built, slums have been replaced with blocks of flats, and a huge amount of construction continues. The city would n

When you've been up for 36 hours!!! If you couldn't find the blog post from yesterday we're sorry, a technical hitch (old people and technology) saw it posted in the wrong place. All rectified now so do catch up. We left Heathrow at 9.20pm last night, right on time, a direct flight, on a clean and well maintained aircraft. An almost 9 hour flight is never fun, but top marks to RwandAir who looked after us very well, not just efficiently but with smiles and good humour. Cleari

Well actually only 4095 miles. Our cases are packed and our goodbyes said, as we embark on the now familiar journey from Heathrow to Kigali. This time however we are flying overnight, we're not missing the 3am start, but conscious that we will hit the ground running when we land at 7am tomorrow morning. Delays on the Elizabeth Line caused a change of plan as our 5 minute lift to the station ended up being a 2 1/2 hr round trip, thank you Kevin for saving the day. Security cle

We are now back in the UK and reunited with our families. We give thanks to God for all we have seen, the conversations we have had, the...

Up, packed and a leisurely breakfast eaten, we were collected by Patrick for our last day in Uganda. We must leave Kijjabwemi at 3pm....

This morning we awoke to a deluge of ‘blessings’, shorter dresses and waterproof sandals were definitely the order of the day. When it...

Today is a public holiday in Uganda, Martyrs Day marks the killing of 45 Christians executed for their faith between 1885 & 1887. Patrick...

With Eriab at the wheel this morning we headed off once again on the long and dusty road to Rakai. We were looking forward to seeing Rev...

A fairly early start this morning saw us on the road to Rakai, where we have a new sponsorship project, a youth income generation...

Today we had the joy of spending the entire day at the KOP Saturday Project, worshiping, eating and playing with the sponsored children....

Oh, the joy of a hot, powerful shower to start the day. Banda Lodge is definitely geared for western visitors. A leisurely breakfast this...

Today we were packed and ready to go by 8am. Breakfast of battered boiled eggs was certainly different. We had discovered last night that...

A tasty breakfast today of chicken, omelette, mandazi and fruit, we did our best but that is a lot of food first thing in the morning....

It’s a long way to Giheta Parish along the dancing roads, but the scenery is breath taking, and we cannot help but be in awe of God’s...

The Kigali Guest House is in the grounds of the Cathedral and as we headed to the café for breakfast we were surprised to see a number of...

A quick breakfast overlooking the lake and it was time to bid a sad farewell to this beautiful place. Our overriding impression is one of...

We were woken early today by the very vocal wildlife. Having arrived after dark last night we were unaware of the beauty of this...

A frustrating start to the day when our breakfast, available from 7am we had been told, arrived at 8.25, the same time as Bp Nathan...

A predictable breakfast of bread, egg and banana has us feeling very much 'back in Rwanda'. Google maps told us the Cathedral was over...

A 2.30 am start has made for a long day but thankfully we are safely arrived in Kigali, Rwanda's bustling capital. The flights were...

The need for funding for so many projects in Rwanda and Uganda never slows down; Pastor training, church repairs, bikes and motorbikes...

And so our visit has come to an end. After a short detour by some of the team to visit the local wildlife, we have all returned safely...

Our final full day in Kijjabwemi and once again we set off in the rain. Slipping and sliding along the murram roads we arrived in...

Torrential rain, thunder and lightning since 5am delayed our start today. We were so looking forward to another day at KOP with the...

The road to Kabwami is well travelled, today we went back to see the school refurbished during lockdown. You may remember our magazine...