32 degrees in Cotonou

Hi all,

There is so much to tell from our 4 days or so here, that I don't know where to begin...
It is difficult to get it all down in writing.  As the kids have mentioned we had a great trip here.  The connections were all so good and everything went smoothly.  We were delayed in Frankfurt because of very low fog in Paris but it didn't affect our catching the Paris-Cotonou flight.
We were met at the airport by a Mark Palmer whose family so graciously hosted us for a couple days in their home here in Cotonou.  They are from Ontario and are/were homeschoolers too!  Their kids now attend the academy on the ship.  They were wonderful hosts and we slept and slept and ate and relaxed which was just what we needed.  They took us to a beautiful place on Sat. called Bab's dock which I won't talk about too much as I think the kids have blogged about it.  But it was wonderful and the kids really enjoyed it.  They keep asking if we can go back there again.
It was wonderful to have a family to bounce our questions off of and to give us a bit of background and information about Mercy ships etc.  I hope they didn't tire of explaining everything to us.  They were so helpful and I'm grateful that it worked out the way it did for us to stay with them instead of in a hotel.
They brought us to the ship on Sunday afternoon.  What an exciting experience for all of us, especially coming from SK - a little land locked you know!!
It is an amazing ship.  Even after watching the video tour of it before we came, we were surprised by what all there is to offer here on board and how nice everything is.
Our cabin is so beautiful and we have 3 large windows on two sides because we are on the far aft starboard corner of the ship.   Which means we have amazing views of the oceon, ships, the city, beaches, the dock etc.  The kids have been so entertained looking out the window at all the comings and goings.  My favourite is watching the African fishing boats going out in the early morning with their nets.
The food is very good and we are eating far too much!!  The snack shop and Starbucks is far too convenient for the kids.  They are becoming addicted to Frappucino's already!!!   I don't know if they have ever been to Starbucks before, - they didn't know what to order at first!  Neither did I for that matter!!   Imagine having to come all the way to Africa to experience Starbucks!
So we are definitely not "roughing it".
It is such a very different experience than any of our other mission trips....I am also noticing the difference in the kids as they are a bit older this time as well.  I am still processing alot of initial thoughts and am happy for the time to reflect and pray about certain matters.
Right now the boys are out on the side deck playing a rousing game of soccer with a bunch of other boys.  This afternoon we were up on deck 8 (the top deck) and they were in pool for a couple of hours.  They have set up an above ground pool up there covered with a canopy so it is shaded.   The boys have also been having great fun riding around on this bike of sorts (don't know what to call it) up on deck 8.
Our cabin is on deck 7 and the cafeteria is on deck 5.  The hospital is on deck 3.
Carly often has her nose in a book or is on the computer!
I hope Gary blogs for you.  He started work yesterday and I think things have been going well.
There are opportunities for us to go out to orphanages, children's homes, boys homes, deaf schools and communities.  They also show the Jesus film out at different places a couple times a week.  We can also "Adopt a Patient" on the ward.
The language on the ship is English, but I think they said there were 30 different countries represented in the crew here.  Out next door neighbors are from Oslo, Norway, so that has been fun to visit with them and "snakke Norsk" a bit.
The language here is otherwise French with some Fon and maybe some other dialects.  Did you know that Benin is the birthplace of Voodoo?
We've met quite a few Canadians on board.  Some from Alberta,  BC and ON.
Well I should probably let someone else use the computer and maybe see if I can post some more pictures on here.
Will try to update a little every day.
Lori