In the Field

The drivers didn't make it all the way to Rumbek that first day.  They had to stop in Tonj for rest and get up early the day of our departure.  They arrived at 0900 ready to pack us out, but we noticed a flat tire which needed attention.  Luckily, two spares are carried on each of the two vehicles.  We loaded up and took off.  The drive was about nine hours of four wheeling over difficult roads filled with potholes at next to breakneck speeds.  We needed to move fast in order to get to Gogrial before night fall.  The military was on the move, and we feared multiple roadblocks once evening came.
There were soldiers along most of the road.  Some were real soldiers, and others were guys with AKs and no uniform.  It was difficult to tell who they sided with.  We saw many AK47s, SKSs, and Chinese copies.  There were soldiers from Libya who had been either hired or had chosen to help.  I wasn't sure who's side they were on.  We knew that we didn't want to get stopped.  So we kept moving.  Fast.  And hard.  And we made it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyzCIPjY5uU

This is a brief shot at the ride.  What I later found out, was that this was the good part of the road.

A Kenyan, a Zimbabwean, and an Ethiopian Walk into a Bar

There are four of us here in Rumbek.  It is easy to recognize me.  I'm the white guy.  The rest of the team includes our Kenyan logistician, a Zimbabwean nurse, and an Ethiopian nutritional nurse specialist.  We sat at the small bar in Rumbek sipping on Tusker beer.  It was cold and good.  The meal that we just had was roast lamb, some sort of beef, and pieces of chicken grilled over an open fire.  There was also rice, and some sort of local tuber.  We can't complain about the food, at least not yet.  It sounds like the meat in Gogrial is primarily goat.  I should have thought to pack some of Lynch's famous Butt Rub spice mix.  There are very few vegetables available.  Dominic tried to buy some spinach seeds, but was not successful.  He would like to start a small garden for some greens.

Road Warrior

Because the UN helicopter could not deliver us to Alek to picked up by the MSF vehicles, we are now preparing to drive by road to Gogrial.  It is a long way.  The roads are very poor.  Because they are poor, it is routine to send two vehicles, in case one would get stuck.  I have been chosen to ride shotgun in one of the vehicles, while Dominic, our Kenyan logistician, will be in the other.  The plan is to try to get to Gogrial by nightfall.  I sure hope that we make it there.  If not, it will mean a night in the bush, which could be quite the experience.  If the rains don't come too hard, and the road isn't too washed, and the gas tank isn't too empty ... if, if, if.  But I trust in the LandCruiser.  I do get this vision in my head of old MSF photos; of LandCruisers being pushed and pulled by MSF workers, trying to get them out of the mud.  Of ropes around trees, and of people on the roofs of the vehicles giving directions to the drivers who can barely see through the splashing mud.  I want to have a bandana wrapped around my leg, a black leather jacket with a shoulder pad sewn into it.  And a limping dog next to me.  Mel Gibson, you got nothing on us.

Packing the Car

In the MSF Belgium compound, getting ready to move out.  The Toyota Land Cruiser is the vehicle of choice.  Note the nice snorkel for those rainy days and high rivers.

The Next Leg of the Trip

The situation in South Sudan is very interesting, very difficult, very confusing, and basically overwhelming.  I will try to go into some of those aspects of things in the future.
For right now, I want to tell about my limited travels.  I have been in Juba for several days as we get organized for the projects.  There are several projects going on, and two new emergency projects just getting started, as you can imagine, the place is crazy busy at MSF.  Today was the day that I was to leave Juba for Gogrial, my ultimate destination.  There are four of us traveling, but I am the only one going to Gogrial.  The others are going to projects in the near vicinity of Gogrial.
We boarded a UN plane at the now famous Juba International FUBAR Airport.  The plane is operated by the World Food Project through the UN.  We landed after a several hour trip in Rumbek, South Sudan.  The schedule was arranged so that we would catch a UN helicopter to get into Gogrial.  However, the weather in Alek, the town where the helicopter would land, was not friendly, and they cancelled the flight.  That left us with several strange options.  The UN flight coordinator thought that we may be able to get back to Juba, however, because of the upcoming Independence Day (for South Sudan), the next flight out would be late next week.  Or we could stay here in Rumbek, which didn't really sound very nice either.  So we called the Field Coordinator, and after a few minutes of discussion, told us to stay in Rumbek, and they would send a car (land rover.)  The trip by car is about 9 hours.  That meant that the driver would need to rest, and we needed to find a hotel.  So here I am now in Rumbek.  I have a tent to myself, a cot-like bed, a fan, and a shower.  The pleasant surprise is that I have a toilet that actually flushes.  Now to many of you that may sound like a strange thing to celebrate, but toilets in this part of the world are about as common as Bentleys are in Decorah.  How's that for a mixed metaphor.  The other nice thing about my tent, is that there is wireless internet, hence the update.  I have never heard of Rumbek, but a toilet and internet -- wow!!!  A cold beer and I will have the whole trifecta!

Into Africa

It is July 6th.  My journey started several days ago.  I flew from Madison to Chicago, then on to Brussels, where I had MSF briefings for several hours to help understand the context of the project, then on to Addis Ababa later that day.  There I met a fellow traveler named Lazarus, who was actually going to Juba, the capital of South Sudan.  I found out that he works with MSF Belgium, and we were going to the same office.  We flew from Addis to Juba.  Once at Juba International Airport, which makes it sound like an impressive place (its not!), I had the opportunity to pay $100 for a visa.  And please, the one hundred dollar bill (that's all they take) must be 2006 or newer.  I had heard this before setting out, and went to 2 local banks in town, neither of which had newer bills.  Luckily, I got through with a nearly perfect 2006 Ben Franklin.
And then the adventure started.

What Comes Next

On the 9th of July, 2011, South Sudan became a country.  It wasn't clean, although the proposed lines had been drawn up years ago by the British.  But those are just lines on a map, not on the earth.  It reminds me of what Arthur said to Merlin as he was allowed to see with the eyes of a hawk.  Merlin had asked him 'what do you see?'  and Arthur replied, 'I don't see any borders.'   These borders are just as difficult for  nomadic peoples to recognize.  So they argue about them, and sometimes fight about them.

There are oil reserves in South Sudan.  But there is no port.  To get the oil out of the country to be sold, requires a pipeline, and this pipeline goes through Sudan to the Port of Sudan.  Sudan has told South Sudan that it is OK to use the pipeline as long as they are willing to pay for its use.  Most pipelines in the area ask for about 1 dollar per barrel.  Sudan is asking for 38 dollars per barrel.  South Sudan thinks that is a bit too much, so to save money, they have stopped shipping oil.  However, oil is the primary means for South Sudan to make any money.  As a result, they don't have much money.  Which is not good for infrastructure.
About two weeks ago I was asked to go to South Sudan with Doctors Without Borders, to help with taking care of war wounded and others needing medical and surgical help.  So I will go.  It is tough.  The operating room is in a tent.  There are no real bathrooms.  There are latrine pits that require squatting over a hole.  The temperature is 120 to 130 degrees.  I'm afraid that it will make the heat of Sri Lanka seem like the north shore of Lake Superior.

Remember hearing of Darfur?  The Lost Boys of Darfur?  The genocide in Sudan?  2 million people dead?  4 million people displaced?  So here I go...