(Hello my lord, Nice to meet you)
Salama from Tamatave, Madagascar. I write from the deck after taking shots of the sunset, a week after arriving (I post a week later!). The view is of a popular beach in the city, and the main port in Madagascar, full of ships coming and going. The city stretches far beyond what you see, a vibrant bustling city.
Panorama of harbour from MV Africa Mercy
Panorama of beach from MV Africa Mercy
The MV Africa Mercy has been bustling this weekend too, with final preparations being made for the operating theaters to open on Tuesday and many of the wards looking ready to go.
We arrived last Sunday morning, 5 days late, welcomed by the stunning coastline of Tamatave. Unlike many cities the beaches are accessible and undeveloped with local fisherman still leaving their pirogues on the beach and the youth playing in the waves.
On departure from Durban we left and conducted successful sea trials. The mechanical issues with the port propeller and shaft have been solved, however there is still some work to do on the port propulsion system. However good progress has been made and our lady showed off her superior maneuvering capabilities upon arrival in Tamatave.
After a prayer for a safe journey over the tannoy, we took off, pitching and rolling gently. In the evening, watching Navy CSI in school we were repeatedly interrupted by our security officers searching the school. Later, somewhat spooked by NCSI and their frequent visits we saw 3 people running past the room followed shortly by our captain. Walking back to our cabins we saw two of the men, face down on the reception floor, two stowaways.
This meant we had to return to Durban, sit at anchor for a few days and return the men…they sure were lucky to be on board our ship!
Frustrated at the return to Durban, there were blessings…lots of time to get to know the crew who weren’t seasick, whales that were blowing and jumping wherever you look, and we were blessed by some beautiful time on the bow.
Eventually we were relived of our stowaways by the local police and set sail for Madagascar. The sail was great arriving ahead of schedule. I was pleasantly surprised to find my sea legs quickly despite our lady’s tub like qualities in the smallest of seas. We had some great celtic music sessions on the sail, with Chimney House music!
I teach in one of the most unique schools in the world. While sailing my classroom rolls up to 10o from horizontal (and my electric balances refuse to work – even in dock I can’t measure with a precision of 0.01g), fire drills involve ‘mustering’, putting on life jackets and emergency teams doing drills, and I have a chemistry lab on the dockside for any work involving flames or toxic gases. For my students this is normal life, some have lived their entire life on ship. They are great students who love the practical side of science and generally do well in the academics. I’m teaching Chemistry to final year students, at a level that feels like something like GCSE and AS level with a pace that is certainly AS level, Physics to GCSE/IGCSE level and science to younger students. We have some excellent resources, less than in previous schools but I have more opportunity to use them. I’m enjoying practical work as always, some of my favourites have been video motion analysis, strobe photography, chemistry and attempting to see Saturn through a telescope!
I’ll leave you with a few random thoughts about Madagascar:
- Local people are very friendly and will always welcome you with ‘Salama’ and take interest, though the language barrier is a problem.
- Pousse Pousse (cycle rickshaw, 50p/ride), walking and cycling are king in Tamatave…though tuk tuks, motos and 4x4s are common.
- A gorgeous zebu (local cow) steak lunch costs about 22000Ar (£4.50) in a western beachfront restaurant.
- I bought a new chain AND derailleur for my bike for 10500Ar (£2). Shame the quality isn’t quite Shimano…
- Local boats are beautiful, canoe style pirogues, one sided outriggers and gorgeous little sailing pirogues with a tarpaulin sail.
- The bank notes values range from 100Ar (2.5p) to 10000Ar (£2). A homemade coconut biscuit costs 100Ar, a coconut 1000Ar and new chain and derailleur (not quite shimano quality) 10000Ar, delicious zebu steak lunch in a ‘western’ style restaurant 20000Ar, and a solid ‘local’ bicycle 200,000Ar (£40!). Coins aren’t used much though I was given a 20Ar (0.5p) coin as change…
- Telecoms are really good here, would be great to chat sometime.
If you like to pray please pray for:
- A fruitful year in Madagascar
- Continued good health
- That my friendships on board continue to grow
- To get God’s balance in my life
My next blog will explore some of the tropical surroundings and the work we are doing here.
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