Here we are in warm Niger! The trip was without incident and went very smoothly. We had to fly around the volcanic ash cloud from Atlanta to Paris which added about 2 hours of flight time. But I actually preferred that because it gave us a little more time to sleep (in between all the food they kept serving us).
Once in Paris, we discovered that the construction on the airport had been completed. I would now say that it's a pleasure flying into Charles de Gaulle. But, we didn't have to change terminals so it might be a different story on the way home.
In the airport, we were able to get some more sleep on the benches. I laid down near a Jewish man who was praying and reading what I assume was the Torah. He was a serious Jew. He had the box dealy that went on his forehead and he had the leather strap around his arm and a shawl over his head. After he completed his prayers and reading, he kissed the Torah a couple of times. I thought this was cool. We should treat the Bible that way.
After reading and praying he ate an apple and I was off to dream land. I was evidently so out of it that Marcia couldn't wake me. This put my bags at considerable risk. I was surprised at how deeply I was sleeping. But, all was well and we boarded the next plane to Niamey.
Upon arriving in Niamey, there were at least 100 people here to greet us. It's always so welcoming and kind of everyone to come out to greet us. It's also a little uncomfortable...kinda like showing up at your surprise party when everyone is looking at you and you're not quite sure what to say. But, thankfully Marcia did the talking and I just stood by.
I'm not sure exactly what we'll do today, but it won't be much. Probably just dinner with Ali's family and then to bed. Then we'll hit it hard with planning for the mission trip in October, visiting Peniel, catching up on other projects, visiting the Cure hospital, etc.
Thanks for reading my blog. Hope each of you is well!
