We're gonna need a bigger boat!

(We are in the same size boat taking the photo of the other half of our group!)

This week has gone by rapidly.  We came into the clinic on Friday morning and a pipe had burst in the break room during the night filling the clinic with at least 3-4 inches of water.  Lucky for us the building is on a slight slant and the three offices on our side were spared.  They cancelled patients and brought in machines to suck up the water from the carpets.  Jemima, one of our Audiologists, said it was a blessing in disguise since she would never have been able to get permission to clean the carpets, but now she just had the workers add soap and Voila!  We stayed to work even though the electricity and Internet has been sporadic.  We could have used a boat!

 

(Clinic personnel waiting for the shop vacs to finish)

Last Thursday Dean Patrick F. Ayeh-Kumi invited us to a Brunch to meet the faculty of the School of Allied Health Science. It was held at his guest house and was quite delightful.  Everyone was very kind and graciously welcomed us.  The food was good, too!


(Dr. Sampong, John and the Dean)
(John speaking to the faculty)

Today (Saturday), we met early with a group of the Senior Missionaries to go on another adventure to the Volta Estuary at Ada Foah, about 2  and 1/2 to 3 hours away.  The Volta is the largest manmade lake in the world and where the Volta River runs from the lake into the Gulf of Guinea is the estuary area.  It is right near the border with Togo.  There are a series of little islands there with thatched roof fishing villages lining the shores.


We rented two (very LITTLE) boats and took an hour cruise out around the islands and down to where the river spills into the sea.  Fortunately they had outboard motors so the sailing was relatively
 smooth until we got to the swells near the ocean, but the dramamine worked well and I didn't get sick.

(Ann in new hat)

  We tried out our new video camera and got some nice shots especially of the men pulling up the fishing nets.   We then stopped by an old Danish fort that was near the beach.  This particular one is in danger of being washed into the ocean so they have brought in sand to widen the beach and protect it from erosion.

"The Estuary is an area of great scenic beauty. In the Estuary proper, where the river enters the sea (between Azizanya and Azizanu), extensive sand bars have formed and have become the nesting grounds of numerous sea birds.
Due to the abundance of plankton, the estuary is always teeming with fish. Anglers and fisher folk flock here on weekends and holidays to catch Large Mouth Bass, Barracuda, Tarpon and Horse Mackerel. Swimming, water skiing and yachting are also popular pastimes.

It is also an area with river and ocean beaches, and picnic spots shaded by palm trees. The sand bars are the nesting grounds for sea birds, and endangered species of turtle are still found here." (from our guidebook)

(The children love it when you take their photo and then show it to them)

(These children made 4 trips with containers full of water from the river just while we were waiting for the boat)

On the way home it began to sprinkle, then the rain began to get heavier, and by the time we reached Accra we were wishing we had brought our little boat with us!  We were driving in a torrential downpour!  The Kleins said it was even heavier than the rainy season.

Before the rain began and upon returning home we encountered a huge termite mound, by huge I mean probably 14-15 feet high. They are very hard and are hollowed out by the Africans who use them for kilns. They are commonly found out in the country areas.

We needed to stop at the Pit to pick up a carving and by then we had to walk through puddles up to our ankles to get to Thomas's shop.

(Intersection beginning to flood)

On our way back home we suddenly saw smoke and a bright light in the distance.  Small explosions, each changing color, was located at one of the electrical substations.  As we got closer, the smoke turned dark gray and we could see flames from the highway.  The traffic and crowds were growing rapidly, so we headed to the apartments.  The electricity, obviously, was out in our section of the city, but our apartment complex has a generator for just such emergencies.  So we are fine for now and only slightly damp.  It was a fun day.  I think we really enjoyed getting out of the city and talking and playing with some of the small children.  They really liked the bubble gum I brought.

Today we hitched a ride with the Scotts who are also assigned to the James Town Branch. We meet at 10:30 on the Church complex. The people come from several miles away. They live in a very very poor area of Accra-poor by any standard. (The guidebook calls it a shanty town)  We helped sing some prelude music with the young womens choir. We sang two songs during the meeting. The branch president asked us to bear our testimonies, which we did. We then helped do music in Primary. We were very crowded with the entire Primary in one small classroom. We took photos of each child and asked their name. There had been a conflict in room assignment because the full-time elders from another ward were holding a baptism in the same room scheduled for the branch primary. Fortunately Ann was well prepared, plus we found an app for our iPads, that had Primary Children’s Music with accompaniment and words sung by children and beautiful graphics in the background.

After Primary I went to Priesthood. Still have a hard time hearing the brethren speak in the chapel even though I sit up front because the windows are open and we get traffic noise, plus noise from the overhead fans and the fact that the brethren speak so softly. 

After Priesthood we stayed to help with the choir and I ended up conducting a hymn or two.  Then we stayed for a young women’s activity put on by Sister Scott and Ann.

(Making greeting cards with material and glue pictures)

There were a lot of younger siblings with nothing to do so I pulled out my trusty iPad and we watched church videos and looked at Church artwork. It was fun.

(For my sis...MJ)