So once again...no pictures. My apologies! I'm trying to figure out how to get them onto the computer...because I forgot an adapter to charge my computer with...and I can't seem to get my card to work on the card readers here. ?? Oh-well, I'll figure it out soon!

Things have been good here though! I had the weekend off, which was really nice! I joined a group going to a local orphanage on Saturday morning, which was lots of fun!! We read them a story (I acted as the elephant), sang songs and then just played outside. They had a parachute, soccer balls, balloons, jenga and memory card games. There were about 35 kids there and all were fighting for attention, so it was fun to just be able to play with them!! There is a family here on the ship that goes there every weekend, and they were able to take a few pictures...so hopefully I'll be able to snag a couple of those! The tricky part about photographs here, is that you aren't really supposed to take pictures anywhere. We couldn't take them to the orphange, we can't take pictures in the wards, etc. A camera is a sign of wealth and you have to be careful where you take it out in public! But there are a couple photographers here on the ship that take pictures of the patients, which we have full access to...so hopefully soon, once the patients start healing...I can post some before/after pictures of patients I've taken care of! It's a pretty crazy thing, to see their before picture (with a large tumor on their face/head/neck or a foot turned completely backward)...and then to see them in bed, with a simple gauze dressing or cast. The patients here are so very appreciative and grateful here. I've never heard anyone complain...not that I can understand them anyway, lol...but still - its pretty amazing. Another thing, is how tough they are. These patients have a very high pain-threshold...not that American's don't...its just interesting to see the difference in pain med requirements after surgery here, compared to at home. I've noticed a few other difference in the nursing too...like how much we waste at home. There's a small supply of stuff here, so its pretty amazing how resourceful they are! They re-use lots of stuff...for example, they wash/re-use med cups (you know...the little plastic cup that the nurses bring medications in with). At home I would go through tons of those in one shift...but here, they just wash/re-use. Crazy! It's also interesting the different terms that other countries use for things...for example, in the UK - vital signs are called obs. Anyway, this paragraph has enough rambling for now...but its been fun to hear about how nursing is done all over the world!

So to continue with the weekend...Saturday afternoon, a group of us went to a little African Artisan Village (an art market). It was sweet! There are two markets here in town (that I know of), this one...and the 'big one'. I guess the big one, is your typical crazy market, where people hassle you to buy their things, follow you around, etc. But this one a little more laid back...and the prices are pretty set. My problem was trying to decide what I want to bring back for people!! There were several things I fell in love with...so I'm going to have to decide on just a couple favorites. :)

Yesterday, I went to a local church in the fishing village thats pretty close to the ship (~10mins). It was really neat....really, really HOT and slightly long...but really neat! They do so much dancing with their worship! It looks like quite the workout! But it was really neat to see how see a different form of church/worship. The speaker was from Benin (a bordering country to Togo) and spoke a great message, so that was nice! However, it was kinda funny....because at the beginning the pastor made the Africans all give us their seats in front. He said "you guys have different skin...skin that changes...we don't....so you sit in the shade...we'll sit in the sun". haha...I just loved that he said you have skin that changes (i.e. sunburn central...). Anyway, then in the afternoon we went to the beach nearby! It was really fun! The water is so warm and you know me...I love to swim!! So I definitely will not be passing up any opportunity to go. Overall, it was a great weekend! It was so nice to be able to get off the ship and see some of Lome!!

The nursing and life on a ship has been going well. My roommates are all extremely nice! Well, actually...everyone on the ship has been super nice!! Which makes a huge difference. I don't remember if I've written about the ship life or not yet. But I'm in a 6-person cabin (sharing a small amt of space with lots of people is definitely not a problem for me)! haha! You can only take 2 min showers, d/t limited amt of water here - which has actually gone quite well! I was worried at first, but its not really that bad. The food has been really good, which is another blessing! And there are lots of random little meetings/devotions you can go to if you want. Oh! And there's a starbucks on the ship too (everything is super cheap)! I'm not a huge coffee fan...but I just found out that they have a popcorn maker too!!! Which absolutely made my day...beyond words actually. :)

Well, if you're still reading at this point...pat yourself on the back. This was a rather looong post. But there's so much more I feel I could write about!! I'll try and space it out...maybe write again tomorrow. Hope all is going well for you!

Today's love: having a little girl come wrap her arms around me at work today...