We safely arrived at Bongolo Hospital without much hassle, including our six checked suitcases. The bags just arrived tonight, as they had to go by road due to the Cessna's limited cargo capacity. Their arrival is much appreciated as they have many of our clothes and most of my tools.

The almost 2-hour flight from Libreville to Bongolo (actually the nearby town of Lebamba) was more interesting than usual because we could see the ground most of the way instead of being above the clouds.

The town of Lambarene, made famous by Dr. Albert Schweitzer.

For most of the flight, it was mostly an endless tropical jungle, but at about halfway, we passed near Lambarene, where Dr Albert Schweitzer established a hospital in 1913. (He did some amazing work there for about 20 years, but his theology was slightly off, as he thought of Jesus as only a good man).

Just before we landed, we had a view of the nearby town of Lebamba, a few buildings from the hospital, and the nearby river.

The hospital's location was the junction point of the territories of 4 or 5 local tribes, so it was considered neutral.

Not visible are Bongolo Falls (more like a very large rapid) and the small 5MW hydro plant that normally provides power to the surrounding area and the hospital. Unfortunately, late last year, there was a flood on the river, and the hydro was damaged, so the power is much less reliable, and the hospital's generator has to run much more. If the generator runs for 24 hours, that's $500 for the diesel. Because the hydro is on the mission's property, the power from the hydro is free, so an extra $500 per day was NOT in the budget.

We are housed in a different location every time we visit, depending on what is available.

This time, we "hit the jackpot," the very nice apartment in the so-called Quad. We will have lots of room to ourselves most of the time. And we got a portable air conditioner for the bedroom. PTL.

Most days, the temperature is near 90F / 32C but with moderately high humidity (70-80%), so it feels more like 105F. The air-con, while not as good as a window type, definitely drops the temperature and humidity just enough to make sleeping quite OK.

Yesterday (Sunday), we went to the on-campus church. Fortunately, one of the longer-term missionaries translated for us, as it was all in French and a local language. One of the elders gave quite a good sermon on prayer (if maybe a tad too long).

It's amazing to think that just 80 years ago, this area was all about witchcraft and cannibalism. This is the "mother church" for many other smaller village churches.

For Pat, it is always exciting to be back in action, and it was nice that some of the staff remembered her from previous visits. Many of the staff are headed to Greece in the next few days for a once-yearly retreat cum conference, and some will also tack on some vacation time. That means Pat will likely be the ONLY fully qualified surgeon for the southern quarter of the country, serving about 600k people. But as this is a training hospital, the 5-year program has one doctor in training to be a surgeon each year, whereas the 4th and 5th-year docs can handle most of the required surgeries. But still, pray for her.

This is my 5th time here, and all the other times, there has either been a Westerner officially overseeing the maintenance on campus or a doctor doing that on a part-time basis. They have a staff of perhaps 8 "technicians" taking care of all the electrical / water/plumbing/structural issues, so it is those guys (yes, all guys) that do all the work. This time, they have a local man, a civil engineer, heading up all the maintenance and planning for future construction projects. I met Mr."M" for the first time this afternoon, and he seems to appreciate any help I can provide, as he has a lot on his plate.

Three of the missionary families at Bongolo have been here since about 2008. It is their commitment to be here for the long haul that makes any contribution we might bring have lasting value.

That's about all for now,

Blessings to all,

Fenton & Pat