Sailing and Arrival

So, we are back in Liberia! I had plans to write about Christmas and Tenerife, but it seems as though I need to move forward or I will be catching up forever. As I sit to write about this, I realize that it only was a week and a half ago that we sailed back into Freeport, Monrovia. It is one of those things that feels like forver ago and yesterday at the same time. Christmas and Germany seem like a lifetime away.

The sail back to Liberia was pretty much uneventful and calm, which was nice. We had some excitment during a fire drill, but everything turned out OK, it just meant we stood longer outside in our lifejackets :) Every night it was calm enough for people to go out onto the bow, which is a pretty special thing. Expect when we are sailing in calm weather, the bow is closed for safety reasons. One night we were out there and a school of dolphins came to show off. We had had occassional dolphin sightings before, but it seemed as though they were quick and the dolphins did not stick around for long. This night, though, there were dolphins jumping out of the water for about 15 minutes. They are so amazing - sleak and shiny, playful, and beautiful swimming along the boat. Everyone was clapping and cheering :)

The morning we arrived in Liberia, I woke up to the 'smell of Liberia' in the passage. We were still about an hour from the harbor, but you could smell the coal fires from land burning all over the ship because the air con brings in air from outside. It was very foggy that morning, so you could not see too much until we were almost into the harbor and even then you did not have the view to central Monrovia that there usually is. People all gathered on decks 7 and 8 to watch us come in and dock. Many people were dressed up in African outfits and emotions were running high. Sailing in the harbor itself is a tricky because there are several old underwater wrecks that need to be avoided. We also turned around before docking so that we can get out quickly if we ever need to. I don't think Mercy Ships has had too much trouble with civil unrest in countries, but it is always on people's minds in West Africa with all the conflict that has happened here in the last 10 to 20 years. If something happens, we need to be able to leave quickly. Anyhow, the arrival was exciting and took most of the day - from sailing within sight of the harbor to watching the approach to the dock to the dancing and singing of the Africans greeting us to the arrival ceremony after the gangway had been lowered. It was an exciting time and somehow felt like coming home. After 6 months here last year, this is familiar. I know that by June I will probably be more than ready for a break, but right now, it feels good.