CAMEROON 2015!

Our Incarnation Lutheran group of five spent the first few days in Cameroon recovering from our long travels. Having arrived in Yaounde, we rested, reacquainted ourselves with the delicious pastries and instant coffee, and visited a lovely chicken farm a little ways out of the city. Then we packed up and started on our way to Ngaoundere--we only hit a few bumps throughout our travels (two travelers with the same boarding pass, having to avoid questionable airplane sandwiches, being ushered off the airplane in Douala only to be ushered back on to the same plane after a long, and probably unneeded wait, surviving the sweltering heat of the unnecessarily long preflight preparations, etc). But we eventually made it. 

We arrived on the mission station to find some friendly faces, including our old friend Manu, who is now fifteen years old and much taller than we're comfortable admitting, and Sophie, who is just as lovely as ever. We are settled in nicely into a house across the street from Pastor Luther, who the children now call Papa (in reference to  his being a grandfatherly figure, which distresses him very much), and enjoying the surprisingly speedy wifi. 

Our big project for this week will be to clean up the "dispensary" (waiting room area) of the Protestant Hospital, just outside the station. Our plans are to paint the entire area--a task which we have a good portion of completed--and to lay more gravel around the sitting area's benches. It is quite an adjustment for all of us to be working in such a small group in comparison to years past, but though we are small, we are mighty, and wield our paint rollers with the strength of an entire congregation. We have been lucky enough to make friends with some delightful staff at the hospital, including an extremely cheery surgeon who has  generously shared his consultation room with us, so that we might have a place to store our paint/supplies.  

Our days here so far have been very productive, and we have a lot of exciting things  to look forward to on our schedules in the next week, including a visit to the pig farm, Saturday morning crepes with our quirky Canadian neighbors, and more! 

But for now, we are all very thankful that after our long days of work, we can return to our house, tired and very much in need of a shower, but so happy to be home. 

With love, hugs, and a cup of Necafe,

Catie, Elias, Scott, and Maria

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