After losing my whole update just minutes before I was going to publish it, I am going to try again... The airplane ride was uneventful- just as we like it : ) Micaiah had a little trouble in security: he had something in his nail clipper set that was unacceptable, and his kindle had to be specially checked; but the rest of us went through very quickly both times. Even me! I usually get swabbed and patted and everything else they can think of doing. At Denver, we had a nice layover with time to enjoy our last "American" meal and to make some last-minute phone calls. I was excited to have a layover in Germany, but I must say that the airport there is unlike any I have ever been in before. Its layout is very confusing. As we watched several people miss their flights, we thanked the Lord we had enough time to get to our gate and to even have a short Sunday morning church service. Our Lufthansa flight to Accra was on a huge double-decker airplane. Although I still prefer Delta (James liked Lufthansa better), I did think this flight had very kind stewards and stewardesses. The one man paid Micaiah special attention giving him extra food and attention. Besides my having some stomach issues which required quick and tricky maneuvering by the stewardess during a meal (How embarrassing!), we all handled the flights well. Eighteen hours later, not counting layover hours, we were all very happy to land in Accra, the capital city of Ghana. We had arrived!
Exiting the plane, we were met by a blast of hot air. Friends, there is a little temperature difference between Ghana and South Dakota : ) Once inside, we waited in lines to get our passport stamped and to get all the necessary paperwork. Next, we were on to the luggage pick-up where to our relief everything was there. After another stop for paperwork, they passed us through customs without going through our suitcases or even asking any questions. Praise the Lord! In record time, we were headed outside to meet Martin, our friend and hired man. The regular group of taxi drivers waited outside each trying to get us to chose their taxi. To the left, a band was playing distinctly African music. Although we were wondering if we would be able to find Martin, he quickly found us. I wonder how? Although it was obvious we had a ride already, men appeared on all sides helping push our luggage and even load it into the van. We tried to tell them we had enough help, but they continued to help hoping to make some money. They weren't too happy when we only gave them a small amount for their unnecessary help.
Since we had paperwork to do at the Ministry of Interior, we headed to the Baptist Guest House where we were spending the next two nights. The Baptist Guest House is an oasis for missionaries. Run by Southern Baptists, it is very clean and the food is safe- two very important features on the foreign field. We will most likely be spending many nights there when we need to do paperwork, to pick up supplies, or to meet arriving friends and family...We are expecting some of you to come visit : ) Seriously, I know it is expensive, but if you want to take a missions trip, I can tell you of a good place! God blessed abundantly with our paperwork and we were ready to leave for Takoradi by Tuesday morning. We were about to see our new home. But that will have to wait for the next time because I have to leave for church.
No comments:
Post a Comment