A visit to Nzara's textile factory of yesteryear

Outside the factory

This machine separated and cleaned the cotton

At least spiders still weave here

The factory holds several hundred machines

Retired insignia

Outside the factory's power plant

Some signs of life

Yesterday afternoon, I visited a closed textile factory, located only a few minutes away from the cathedral here in Nzara.  Founded in 1949, the English owners employed hundreds who emigrated from around the country and region.  Indeed, the managers originally established the town's Anglican church.  The workers lived in company homes and grew cotton to be processed.

In 1990, the factory permanently shut its doors.

Planting rice and harvesting peanuts

Rice farming: dig, toss seeds, cover with dirt. No fertilizer or pesticide necessary.

Bishop Samuel among dozens of pineapples, Western Equatoria's signature fruit

Bishop Samuel (after a change of shirts) and I carry some lumber

All Saints Cathedral parishioners planting rice

Apparently, one parishioner and I have a similar taste in hats

Ever wonder where peanuts come from? Those plants to the left

Last Tuesday, over forty parishioners of All Saints Cathedral in Nzara traveled to Bishop Samuel's farm, where they planted rice and harvested peanuts (known here as groundnuts). They allowed me to farm beside them-- a kind gesture given my lack of experience.

I look forward to posting a full recap of the past two weeks in the coming days!