Cultural observations

Africa, lemme tell you, is quite a place. It's so different and there's always something new to see and learn. Then if you also take into account the many unique situations that result from putting so many cultures together on one ship, perhaps you can see how my life can be so . . . interesting sometimes! This a list of my favorite interesting/amusing culture moments I've had over the last weeks, both on and off the ship.


- Hanging out late at night in the dining room after work eating noodles. I've eaten more Korean noodles than I know what to do with, and practically set my mouth on fire in the process – but the best thing was seeing the stunned looks on the Korean's faces when I started making boxed macaroni and cheese in the microwave. Each step was more amazing than the last. :-)

- Seeing people walking out of the book fair carrying boxes of books on their heads – definitely a first for us! Talk about strong muscles there!!! I tried it once with a big basin of water and it was NOT EASY!!!!

- Also inside the book fair, one day we were visited by the chiefs from many local tribes, men regarded with great respect and treated as kings by most people in their culture. They are quite influential, but many are involved in the black magic/occultism that is prevalent in the area. For any of them to become a Christian could represent a great deal of change for their culture. We were privileged to be able to offer a special program for them, and afterward some of them came down to visit the book fair. They were a sight to behold in their traditional costumes, basically just draped in yards of stiff, brightly colored fabric. Definitely memorable!

- In my weekly fellowship group last week, each of us brought pictures of our family and were sharing a little bit about our lives back home – a topic that is usually barely discussed here on the ship, because, right or wrong, it sometimes seems irrelevant to us. I also showed a picture of our house, and then of the view in front of our house – a gorgeous shot of the valley and fields and mountains in the distance. But that picture met with loud exclamations from James, the Taiwanese in our group. “What?? WHAT?? Nothing??? It's nothing!!!” His shock was genuine – as evidenced by his eyes, which were so wide his eyeballs could almost have fallen out without anything to stop them. He explained me that the houses in Taiwan are so close and it would be unthinkable for there to be so much space – especially next to your house! :-)