I have now been onboard the Global Mercy for just over 1 month. It has been a busy, overwhelming but amazing month.
I arrived in Ghana around the middle of the day on a Sunday. After a long wait for visas and luggage we met the ship’s drivers and started the 1 hour drive to the ship. Once I arrived on ship, I got settled and started wandering around the ship. I got to catch up with one of my friends I met when I was in Texas in 2024. She showed me around the ship and some of her favourite places.
The Ghana/Tema port is very different to the port in Madagascar. In Madagascar it was a quieter port with much more pedestrian accessibility. The Tema port is much busier and not as accessible to pedestrians. Even the local area is less accessible for pedestrians and we have to use the ship vehicles or Uber.
My first week on board was not as expected. I was thrown into the deep end a little bit. As someone described it yesterday, it was like drinking from a firehouse. I went straight into safety training, dealing with interpersonal team issues, and learning new systems. It was a lot to get my head around, but I got there. The following weekend I was on shift due to sickness in the team.
I slowly got my head around the job. Every day is completely different even if some of the tasks are the same, the people are different and the results are different. As part of the deck and technical department of the ship, it has been really fun to be part of meetings and conversations about the running of the ship. There is so much that happens that I had no idea about. It feels a bit fancy to be regularly in meetings with the Captain and other officers.
My second weekend on ship was a long weekend and I finally had the chance to get off ship and into the local area. I was able to go for a walk to the local supermarket. It was nice to just get off ship for a couple of hours. On Saturday I travelled with some ladies into the city of Accra and went went to the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park which is includes a museum, mausoleum and memorial gardens for former Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah. We also visited the Black Star Square and Osu Castle. It was very interesting hearing about the history of Ghana particularly in relation to the slave trade and Ghana’s independence.
The following weekend I was able to visit the Hope Centre for its opening. The Hope Centre is where our patients live before and after their surgeries. They live in dormitory style living and are brought to the ship for pre-op appointments and rehab appointments after their surgery, before being discharged home. We had a great worship and opening service and prayer walk preparing for a full field service.
Life on board has been a lot of fun. I’ve made friends with people all over the world, going running, playing board games and just having some great conversations. I’ve been able to lead a worship night and am getting ready to start up the choir
The work of Reception and the Purser’s office is never ending, but I am really enjoying everything I get to do.
Enjoy some pictures of life on board and feel free to ask any questions.
