Friday, June 7, 2013

Las Palmas

After five days at sea, the Africa Mercy pulled into shipyard in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. Almost immediately, it seemed, the maintenance projects were underway. The jackhammers pounded down in the hospital as the old floors were torn up. The dust is tracked everywhere on the ship, a great source of trial for the housekeeping team, of which I am a part of while the hospital is closed. Every day we clean the bathrooms, the walls, the doors, and the stairways. Not five minutes after the stairs have been cleaned, there is the frustrating white dust, tracked up the stairs by the workers boots. Such is the burden of the housekeeping team. Still we soldier on and every day we scrub the ship clean.
Arriving in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria


The Boardwalk


Enjoying the Boardwalk


Sunset in Las Palmas
Las Palmas is beautiful. The boardwalk is a half hour walk from the ship, and is a favorite place for most of the crew. Here the building are beautiful, as are the pristine beaches and beautiful blue water. Add to this the deliciousness of gelato, and Las Palmas could very well be paradise. For me the most unusual and unexpected thing has been the culture shock I have experienced being in a place with all of the "moderness" . There are working street signals and the streets are free from trash, drivers must abide by certain rules of the road, everything is clean and sparkling, with no layer of dust and I can buy anything I need or desire at the local mall. Most unusual for me, I no longer draw attention wherever I go, there is no staring because my white skin does not stand out at all here. All in all it has left me feeling very out of place. I look at all that surrounds me and though it is beautiful, and I am happy to be here for a time, and sometimes I have even though I might like to live here, but at the end of the day, I am looking forward to being back in Africa again.

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

A Sailin' We Will Go

In My Lifejacket for Abandon Ship Drill
Guinea has been lost over the horizon. After ten months in port, we on the Africa Mercy sailed away from Conakry, amidst the cheers and whistles of the dock workers. The tugboats blew their horns long and loud in farewell, in a way that I have never heard them do with any other ship. The sound of those horns brought tears to my eyes, to think of the difference that Mercy Ships has made, not just in the lives of our patients, but in the lives of the many other people of Guinea that we have interacted with in the ten months that the ship was in port. And then we were to far away to hear them and the land slowly shrunk on the horizon, until we were surrounded by nothing but the vastness of the blue ocean.
Pulling up the Gangway

Tugboat Coming in to Guide Us Out to Sea


With an Africa Mercy Life Ring, Ready to Sail

Dockhands Waving Goodbye


Waving Goodbye as the Tugboats Blow Their Horns in Farewell

Sailing Away from Guinea

Posing with Esther

Goodbye Guinea

Testing the Lifeboats

I must confess myself grateful to learn that I do not get seasick. With my tendencies towards getting sick on amusement park rides, I had feared that I might be prone to seasickness. I still cannot walk in a straight line after three days at sea, but this seems to be the same for everyone else on board.
Our second day at sea was a Sunday, and I had the opportunity to experience worshiping on the bow with the entire crew as we watched the sun set.

Worshiping on the Bow



Captain Tim Joining in Worship from the



Sunset at Sea

I love the sea. Standing on the bow is one of my favorite activities, and I spend most of my free time there, watching the ship cutting through the waves, watching the flying fish, and hoping for a glimpse of dolphins.




Flying Fish

Dolphins off the Bow (photo credit Reuben Plomp)

Gran Canaria here we come!