Well, I made it! After 18 hours on 2 different planes and a 6 hour time change, I arrived in Cape Town yesterday (Friday) at around 4pm. Both flights were fine, watched several movies, slept, ate, read...anything and everything I could do to keep my self from going stir crazy! But I did sleep most of the second flight which helped a lot!
We landed in Dakar, Sengal for our connecting flight about 4am their time, and got off of the plane via a wheeled staircase and everyone staying in Dakar got on one shuttle bus, and everyone going to Cape Town got on another (everyone else was going on to Johannesburg and stayed on the plane.) My shuttle drove us a couple hundred yards to the airport door and dropped us off. From there we went into one airport door, did a big U around a wall where we then showed our boarding passes to someone, then walked straight out the adjacent door to the one we came in through, got back on the same shuttle which had just pulled up a few feet, which then drove us back to the tarmac to the plane parked right beside the plane we just got off of. We "boarded" that plane, sat down and then took off... all of which took less than 10 minutes. Kinda of a strange first Africa experience. But I am glad that I wasn't staying in Senegal, cause it might be the most muggy and humid place I've ever been!
South Africa is wonderful though! An amazingly beautiful country, even from what little I've seen so far! The volunteer house is a nice bed and breakfast type place where 2 other volunteers are staying. The town of Fish Hoek, where I live is located in between the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean on the southern peninsula about 30 minutes from Cape Town. My first meal was a delicious taco dinner at a Living Hope worker's house, where I met several of the people I will be working with, all wonderful people! I have my own room and am slowly getting unpacked! I took a trip to the nearby shopping mall today to get a few things, and discovered that shopping malls are pretty much the same in South Africa as their are in Dalton, GA...this one complete with McDonald's and a KFC!
Tomorrow, we will go to the morning church service at 9am, which I'm looking forward to, and then later on that day we begin setting up for the big Willow Creek, USAID, World Vision, etc conference. The focus of this conference is to unite NGOs, mostly faith-based organizations, some not, and form a coalition to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic and come up proposals on where to go from here as a united group rather than individual organizations. SA has more people living with HIV/AIDS than any where else in the world! The conference is Monday through Wednesday and should be a pretty interesting thing to be a part of! After the conference is over I will begin my ministry projects.
Thats all for now, but exciting things to come! Hope everyone back home is great and I miss you all!
PEACE
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4 comments:
I am so thankful you had a safe, if lengthy trip. I know it felt good to step on terra firma and know you will be staying there for a while.
I know you must be so excited about the work you will be doing..they're gonna love you!!
By the way, were you able to see any of the 2 hurricanes below you as you flew over them..just wondering..
Amazing that there is a KFC and McD's there..truly a small world, huh!!
Can't wait to hear more and see pictures.
You'll be in our thoughts and prayers.
Martha G
Glad you made it safely Ryan! I'm sure you are going to make a huge difference in the Fish Hoek Community. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and all that you touch during your stay.
The Poplin Family
Ryan, sounds good, man. As it is also in West Africa, even though still pretty far away, I'm hoping Togo's weather is not as unpleasant as Senegal's! Take care, and do good.
Good to hear you had a safe trip. Sounds like SA is a great place! Hope your ministry gets off to a super start. Be strong!
Bryan McA
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