Arrivals

We Boarded the Ferry From this Beach, You can see the lights of Freetown in the background.

What a week. Going from Europe to Sierra Leone. From Cool to Hot, White to Black, Neat and orderly to sprawling squalor, from punctual to it happens when it happens. Freetown is something else. In the time leading up to arrival I made a point of trying not to form preconceived expectations in an attempt to not be disapointed. I suppose despite my best effort, I still formed pre-conseptions of what I was going to experience, and as predicted these pre-conseptions were wrong.


Flying High
So starting up where I left off. After an uneventful trek across Brussels, grift wrapping my luggage in clingwrap and happily checking in my two bags which I had been hauling across Europe, I boarded my flight to Freetown. In the duration of boarding and disembarking I met a group of Baptist missionaries heading out to Bo to install solar panels to refrigerate vacines, a Swiss girl heading out to a family mission in Gambia and two fellow Mercy Shippers. Three of the five different groups I spoke to were missionaries. I also sat next to a surgeon working in the Freetown Conaught Hospital. Devine appointment? I don't know, however I made a point of getting his information. He also offered me a lift up to Bo on a week end some time. Great!


Touch Down

Waiting for the bus to take us to the water taxi outside the airport terminal in  the rain.

You could tell we were in Africa before we had even disembarked. The terminal building looks like Jan Smuts must have looked 50 years ago. The one firetruck was standing on the tarmac, engine running and lights flashing in anticipation. It was probably the only comercial flight they had had all day. After passing through the chaotic border control, I picked up my bags, hurriedly unpacked my mosquito spray and joined the rest of the Mercy Shippers. We pushed our way through the crouds, faught off porters and headed to the water taxi depot. Mercy Ships had sent somebody to pick us up and guide us through the process. What a blessing, I would not have liked to have pushed my way through that croud by myself.


Pelican Water Taxi
The airport is located across the bay from Sierra Leone. To drive back takes about 5 hours, so you take a water taxi. To get to the water taxi we had to jump on a bakkie because the bus never came. It was quite fun riding on the back sitting ontop of all our luggage. We boarded at a beautifulo beach and headed across the bay in the dark. This was a bit of a pitty because I would have liked to have seen all the scenery. I would also like to see where we were going and that we weren’t about to cruise into a dug out canoe with no lights. The taxi dropped us off at the docks where we were picked up by a couple Landies which then dodged giant fork lifts and insane truck drivers and dropped us off at the Ship.


First Impressions

Town Center with a Starbucks, shop, wifi and couches. A great place to escape  from the manic bustle of Freetown

On the flight in I spotted the ship from the air. It stuck out like a white square jewel against a background of the sprawling dirty city. It is really out of place and is a first world living in a third world country. As you walk in you see trash and smell the stench of raw sewerage, you are dripping with sweat and caked in dust. You step into a cool clean fresh atmosphere where people aren’t pushing and shoving and hooting. Some people hardly leave the ship, which I think kind of defeats the purpose of coming out here, but it is nice to be able to escape to. The people on board are a lot of fun and it is a nice tight nit community, however it is possible to get lost in the crouds and every now and again I feel quite lonely.


My House

The Off Ship Projects Team House, We have a tennis court (its too hot to play though) and a swimming pool.

I Have been slotted into the Off Ship Projects team. The group is great and the people are a lot of fun. We cover agriculture training, construction projects, seminars and conferences and all facilities which are off the ship. My team consists of about fifteen people and consists of a number of married couples and several singles. We stay in our own house about 6km from the ship in the Swiss Embassy’s compound. The house is nice and spacious and has a tennis court and a great pool. The only draw back is it normally takes about 45minute to an hour to get to the ship. Yup that’s just a bit faster than walking speed.

View from our house (with razor wire and mosquito netting in between)

My Job
I have taken over the maintenance co-ordination for the off ships programs. We have three containers full of equipment, tools and supplies for our programs, but they are all an extraordinary mess. I have spent the last few days trying to get these cleaned out and organised. This is really hot work because the containers are like a massive oven  and I often come out looking like I have been for a swim.

One of my three tool box containers that I must organise before I can effectively work

Prayer Support
There is a stack more that I could write down, but I will leave that for another day. In the meen time please pray for the following things:

• Inter-denomination church leaders conference. About three hundred of Free Towns church leaders are meeting this week for a conference hosted by Mercy Ships. Please pray for unity and guidance of the Spirit.
• Smooth integration. Pray that I will continue to integrate with the community smoothly. 

All in all free Town is manic and is a major culture shock, but I am really enjoying it here.