Kids Alive: Beirut, Lebanon

It is always an amazing privilege and wonderful opportunity to visit children from all over the world in one central location; almost like a miniature, land-based Logos Hope. In Beirut I visited Kids Alive, which is an orphanage for about 70 boys, as well as a school for at risk boys and girls. My trip began when one of the friendly staff members (like the Logos Hope, all teachers and staff are volunteers) met me on the quayside in the port area. During our ride up the mountains, I learned that he was from Minnesota and has been serving with Kids Alive for a few years already. He heard about it through his father who actually grew up in one of their locations. He also informed me that the orphanage is for boys from Sri Lanka, Africa, Lebanon and everywhere between, and the school is for the boys as well as local kids whose families own next to nothing.
After arriving, I was impressed with not only the view of the city from being up so high, but also the well-kept grounds of the property. My team and I put on a program and spoke about our lives on the ship, why we joined for such a long time and the purpose of sailing from country to country. One ship person had a clever idea to bring a Logos Hope soccer ball, which when he asked during the end of the program if they wanted to play, caused a mad rush of a stampede out the doors to the adjacent playground where a larger-than-normal game quickly began. Not only did the children behave especially well inside (very quiet and always raising their hands for questions is rare for me to witness), but also interacted surprisingly nice with each other while playing a sport. People can learn a lot from children...learn not to judge others by ethnicity or disability. Learn to coexist peacefully. Which is why I'm thrilled to see organizations like Kids Alive thrive throughout the world.

Port Said, Egypt

For the second country visit in the Arab World, the Logos Hope is docked in downtown Port Said (sigh-eed) for two weeks before journeying onto Beirut, Lebanon. During our stay, we've had the help of many local volunteers for tasks such as: translating, welcome desk, crowd control, and promoting different ship events, which were all sold out rapidly. Our main attraction, "International Night", features an array of cultural costumes, dances, music and entertainment in the Hope Theatre and is a crowd favorite. Last Friday we were only open the second half of the day and still experienced over nine thousand visitors, which explains the need for crowd control. The next day, we were even more blessed with twelve and half thousand people, making it a record day for the Logs Hope. Ever since I left the engine dept. to pursue the new role as Hope Experience shift leader, I've had the opportunity to meet countless locals and learn that Egyptians are more friendly than I'd ever imagine. Their desire to know more about America and share thoughts on their own culture can be enjoyable, yet overwhelming at times. Working on the visitor deck is as far opposite as you can get from working in the engine room (and more challenging in a lot of ways), but I have absolutely no regrets on this decision, and look forward to even greater challenges in the upcoming ports.
Despite the busy, busy days on board, crew members also share wonderful stories off the ship from being involved in children programs (pictured) to handing out information flyers to people throughout Port Said. The next blog post will be from a wonderful trip to Cairo which made my time in Egypt feel complete. Ma'Salema for now!

Leptis Magna, Libya

While at all three ports in Libya, a local charity hosted the ship's community to many special outings. The first one I signed up for was the Roman ruins known as Leptis Magna (or Lepcis Magna). The city is believed to be founded by Phoenicians and restored around 1st and 2nd century. The intricate road system and beautiful structures are some of best preserved Roman ruins in the world. Don't be fooled by the pictures, this place is a small city! It was surprising to me that every inch was open (for walking or climbing) to tourists...there wasn't a single "no trespassing" sign to be seen.
Visit http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lepcis_Magna for more details!
After we left the ruins, our host treated us to a special lunch which included camel as the main dish and no, it doesn't taste like chicken...or anything else I've ever had.

Bible Baptist Church in Gżira, Malta

Sunday was my last Church visit while in Malta (and Europe for that matter). A group from Sweden visited the ship for a few days, and came along to do some singing. Other friends from Russia, Taiwan, and Australia also came which made quite an interesting array of represented countries. Since other groups from the ship already visited this church in past weeks (being largely Catholic, there are very few evangelical churches in Malta) , we decided to mix things up a bit and start off with a flag game. The idea is to have the audience realize we are holding the wrong one, and they have to match each person to their country after hearing small clues. This really helps people have a grasp on how multicultural it is on board. And you guessed it, the thick Russian, Asian, Aussie, and American accents gave it away too easily (it works better on children). After that, the team from Sweden sang (in Swedish) and I concluded with a Logos Hope quiz, handing out books as prizes. We say farewell to Malta on Tuesday morning after three wonderful weeks.

Arrival: Valletta, Malta at sunset

I like to think they lit up the city just for us.

Tenerife, Canary Islands

Everybody needs a break at some point. That is exactly the backbone of my experience in Santa Cruz. During the entire duration of our stay, my work schedule of 12am-8am hindered me from visiting and speaking at any churches, schools, prisons, etc. When news first came to me that I'd be working the night shift in the engine room, I was feeling a bit down because of my passion for getting involved in every way possible in every port we visit. But as the week went on, I found time for hiking, having dinner off the ship, and exploring the city with my closest friends. That was exactly what I needed to clear my mind and take a breather after the life-changing experience in West Africa. And although I'm one of the few who didn't get the African bug (Malaria) or ever have a dinner party for two (stomach worms), the overwhelming experience every time leaving the ship wiped out almost everyone. So what's next? Well, we have a week long sail to Valletta, Malta where I'm really excited to explore it's historic cities. Did you know that Malta is referenced in the book of Acts?

Las Palmas, Canary Islands arrival

The Cultural Melting Pot of Monrovia, Liberia

I spent Saturday afternoon on the visitor experience deck looking to chat with some Liberians before we leave for the Canary Islands next week. What I experienced was much different than what I expected...or should I say who I expected to see. It's not uncommon to have a small flock of people come aboard who aren't from the country we are visiting, but today was extraordinary. While speaking to some kiddos from Monrovia, a group of infectiously-smiling gentlemen from Pakistan approached me and introduced themselves with a handshake. We chatted for a bit and I learned they were UN reps here in Liberia. Now, I've seen their marked trucks all over the city but never knew from which country they originated. Shortly after we met, I ran into some very nice camera-crazy Chinese people with a friend of mine from Taiwan acting as translator. That is one of the many beauties of living on a ship with 50 different nationalities; we have a Wal-mart-assortment of languages clustered together in one spot! Then some guys from India ventured through the book fair who were dressed in blue camo and I walked over to meet them as well. Also being from the UN, they too were extremely friendly. As were the Nigerian men and the Chinese soldiers who came in surprisingly large groups. Before my time on the visitor deck came to an end, it seemed as if I spotted some people from the States, and after the kind of day I had, it only seemed logical. A man and his wife from Wisconsin, a girl from Montana, and a girl from Iowa! Funny, the thought of taking pictures with them never even hit me. But then again, they weren't wearing bright blue camouflage either.

Bethel Cathedral - Monrovia, Liberia

By far the biggest church I've been to in West Africa, Bethel has over 2,000 people every week. I was not involved with the main service at all; instead I spoke to the youth service (11-18yrs) who meet in a separate area of the church. Just two of us (the lady sitting to my left pictured above) were involved with that, while the two females on my right in the picture above did a children program, and Randy preached in the main service. My experiences at different churches in different countries every week are always memorable in their own respective ways and this was certainly no different. Because the Liberian Civil War only ceased recently, many people are still suffering mentally and definitely physically (large number of young amputees). There were about 60 youths who were gathered in a fairly large cement room under the main sanctuary for a time of worship and prayer. I'm not going to even try explaining what it's like to speak about "struggles" to people who regularly saw murder (especially their family members in front of them), rape, torture, constant warfare, and immense violence just a few years ago as a regular daily occurrence. Not to mention those in attendance who at one time were child soldiers themselves. Nonetheless, God worked as He always works so faithfully, and I was really able to connect with them and share my heart on a personal level. Their youth pastor asked me to return again next week to talk to the guys one-on-one about decisions, consequences, forgiveness and moving forward. Even though it is impossible for me to fathom the kind of hurt these Liberians are struggling with, I'm looking forward to spending another morning with them. Besides, I feel like they teach me more than they realize simply by their questions about life and personal desires and goals to transform Monrovia into a place of peace and harmony.