Blogs from Seychelles, Africa - page 17

It’s been two weeks since I wrote an entry for this blog, and tomorrow will be six weeks since I left Canada. I have an excuse for the absence of blogs - too much non-blog writing over the past two weeks. Four sermons, two lectures, and a letter for the Anglican Church people back home - it’s almost like being back at school. I’ve moved from the mountains in La Misere back to the town of Victoria. I’m happy to be back. The mountains were cooler, but where I was living was very isolated, and I was getting tired of taking the bus back and forth to town, often standing because the buses are packed during peak hours. The old college at La Misere is great for a retreat because it’s so quiet, but after ... read more

It’s moving week for me here. Last Sunday I preached at the main service at the Cathedral, and the service was also broadcast on the radio by the Seychelles Broadcasting Corporation (SBC). I happened to use a coconut as one of my illustrations during the homily. Throughout this week people who were there or who listened on the radio have been coming up to tell me that they liked the coconut. Note to self: people are much more likely to remember the image you use than the words you say! On Monday, Bishop Santosh got back from his travels. There were two immediate impacts on me. The first was that all planning that had been done became tentative and to be confirmed by the Bishop. The second was that I had to move! I’ve been ... read more

url='/Videos/3440.html' onclick='dialog("/Videos/3440.html?popped=1","tbvideo",600,600);return false;'Revival It’s been almost two weeks since I arrived in the Seychelles, and I’m sure some of you are wondering to yourselves, “is Mark actually doing anything while he’s there?” So to reassure you that I’m keeping busy, here are few days in my life in the Seychelles. On Friday, which normally is supposed to be my day off, Christine and I went to the airport to celebrate a service with the firefighters to kick off their celebration of International Firefighters Day. Christine had prepared a wonderful liturgy with prayers and blessings specially selected for firefighters. There were about 60 people who attended, both firefighters and others from the airport supporting them. You could tell that the blessing was well appreciated by those attending, and many commented afterwards that i... read more

One of the remarkable things about the Seychelles is the diversity and uniqueness of the flora and fauna. There are a huge number of plant and animal species that are found only in these islands. It is in this way a lot like the Galapagos Islands, those remote islands in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Peru which were the inspiration for Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. It could easily have been the Seychelles that served as the catalyst for Darwin’s theories. On these 100 plus islands are found flightless birds, bug eating plants, the mythical Coco de Mer palm tree and giant Aldabra land tortoises which can weigh up to 150 kg and live for up to 200 years. Before the arrival of humans, the Seychelles was an archipelago dominated by reptiles, birds ... read more

Yes that’s me in the picture with Vice-President Belmont of the Seychelles. We were two of the guests at the inauguration of the new high speed boat, the Cat Cocos II, which will run twice daily between Mahe and Praslin Islands. As part of the festivities, a selection of Seychellois high society was taken for a sunset cruise this evening around the north end of the island. How, you might ask, have I managed so quickly to infiltrate myself into the upper strata of Seychellois society a mere five days since my arrival? The answer is my not so secret weapon: the Rev. Christine Benoit, my supervisor for the internship, who was called upon to stand in for the Bishop and bless the Cat Cocos II before its launch. I, the Canadian seminarian, as I ... read more