17 days at sea is over...

This morning we reached Durban after a long sail from Togo. For the first time in Africa Mercy history the pilot (Norwegian: "los") came onboard by helicopter. We don't have a photographer on the ship at the moment and unfortunately I had to climb the funnel to take pictures :-) Dag

a-ha concert for Mercy Ships

In the midst of their final world tour, a-ha is putting up a special benefit concert for Mercy Ships. They announced yesterday that they will do an additional Hunting High and Low concert
on October 4th in Oslo Concert Hall. The amazing thing is that is all done as a charity concert for Mercy Ships :-) Ticket onsale information has yet not been announced. More on the Official Website of a-ha. Dag

Cape of Good Hope

We recently passed by Cape of Good Hope. The cape is just outside Cape Town and is known to be the southern point of Africa. That is not correct though - Cape Agulhas is. Our destination is Durban (up north on the eastern coast) so even though we have reached South Africa, we still have several days to sail. Dag

Cape of Good Hope

Sunshine and rough sea

Over the weekend we have hit some rough seas. The sky is pretty clear but the wind has picked up. Apparently we tilt up to 18 degrees to the side. That doesn`t tell me too much but I can feel that we are definitely rolling over the ocean... Dag

Movie night at deck 8

As we are sailing on the Atlantic Ocean it was fun to watch the movie "Titanic". We just crossed the equator though so the chance of icebergs is pretty slim... Dag

Left behind in Togo.... I hope...

Here are some of our partners from Port of Lome. Rats and cockroaches were all over the dock. Not the nicest creatures but from a distance they were fun company :-) Dag

Farewell, Togo!

A few hours ago we departed Togo. Overt the last 6 months we have established a very good relationship with the people of this country and the Togolese Navy honored us by escorting us to sea. Next stop is Durban, South Africa - a sail that is scheduled to take about 14 days. Dag

Preparing for sail

The ship is getting ready to sail. An obvious sign of that is the lift of our 25 vehicles to deck 8. Dag

Back in school

The Academy has started up again after the vacation and the kids are back in school. It was an earlier start than normal (started August 2nd) since the school is moving ashore once we get to South Africa. The move will take about a week. We still don`t know too much about our time in South Africa but it seems like the school will have good facilities close to where we`ll stay. Dag

Wages

I find it easy to forget how tough the situation is for people in Togo - even for those with a job. Last night I had a chat with a couple of the soldiers working at the front gate of the port. Apparently their monthly wage is 35.000 CEFA (about 70 USD). That is similar to what our Security Guards at the dental clinic have told me - their wage is 30.000 CEFA (about 60 UDS) a month. It is hard to grasp, living on $ 2 a day. And these are young, healthy men with a job. Imagine life for the less privileged ones without a job... Dag

John, one of the Security Guards at the dental clinic. He works 12 hour shifts 5 days a week.

Friends!

At the end of our time in Togo, we had some friends from Norway joining a Mercy Team on board. It was so much fun to show them a little glimpse of our life here!
Espen watching Dag work

Hugo, Benjamin, Espen and CF ready to leave for the airport

Visit at the Dental Clinic

One of the great things about visiting the Dental Clinic, is that we get to look after the babies when their mothers get treatment! Jorid:-)

Photosafari in Lome

I am back on the ship while the family is enjoying summer a little longer in Norway. Last weekend I went together with a couple of guys on a photosafari in Lome. Basically we drove through the market and tried to catch some of the atmosphere on film. Here are some glimpses... Dag

Celebrating the confirmand

Linde was confirmed on the ship but we wanted to celebrate the confirmand with family and friends in Norway. Close to 80 people were gathered on Jun 19th and according to tradition many came dressed in their national costume (the bunad). Linde's bunad is a refit of the same bunad that Jorid's mam made for Jorid's confirmation. Dag

Summer in Norway!

We have had wonderful weeks in Norway this summer, spending time with family and friends. Some days were spent in the town we live, just outside Oslo. One of the best things with our town is the closeness to the Oslofjord, so is a great place to be in the summer! The kids enjoyed fishing crabs with blueshells as bait. Jorid:-)

Confirmation

On Saturday June 5th we celebrated Linde's confirmation on board. For the last 12 weeks she has met with Marty and Catherine (two of our chaplains) to talk about and to be challenged on her faith. Marty facilitated the ceremony in the International Lounge before we met for refreshments in the Queens Lounge. It was a blessing to witness our oldest daughter proclaim her faith in Jesus Christ. Dag

England

I am currently in Manchester to attend the BAOMS (British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons) Annual Scientific Meeting. The reason for the participation is twofold; presentation of a case study, and recruitment for Mercy Ships. Hopefully I am able to raise awareness for both. The days are long but I enjoy the fresh spring air and the freedom of walking around in a western city :-) Dag

Our poster on osteomyelitis (presented by Dr.Shelley and myself)

Together with Dr.Shelley and Dr.Leo (both short term Mercy Ship'ers) in front of the Mercy Ships stand

17th of May

To most people 17th of May is just another day, but not to Norwegians. It is our independence day and at home it is celebrated more than Christmas. The Norwegians on board met to enjoy "grøt" and "vafler". We had great fellowship and did our best to tune in the emotions even though we are far away... Dag

17th of May on the Africa Mercy

17th of May in Oslo, Norway

Across the street

Our clinic is located just across the street from Lome Central Prison. Today we brought our dental chairs, anesthetics and tools over to visit the neighbors. Despite the fact that our dayvolunteers/translators were quite concerned about going into the prison, we had a great day and were able to relieve a lot of toothache. Dag