MercyShipVolunteer-AllCrewOffShip/TiltingExperiment

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On Monday, the tilting experiment took place. The name is a little misleading, but that is what it is called. It is a required test to measure the ship’s stability. On Sunday, there was an inspection to determine the weight off everything on ship including crew cabins. Then on Monday, all but 15 crew members were required to be off so the experiment could take place.

Four buses were rented for us and we had a day at Parque Loro in Puerte de la Cruz which is about 40 minutes away on the northwest side of the island of Tenerife. In addition to the largest parrot collection in the world (so they claim), there were sea lion, dolphin and orca shows. I also saw meer cats, penguins, turtles and many other small animals (no lions or elephants here). The park was very jungle-like with plants and trees. The area around Puerto de la Cruz is greener than in Tenerife which is desert except for the plants/trees that get irrigated. As we got nearer to the park there were some crops. From the bus, I recognized banana trees, corn, and grapes.

In the afternoon, I walked into town. The beach had black sand. The plaza center has a church as all the cities/town do here and some stone walls and walkways made from volcanic rock. The city is hilly which makes for some nice views of the landscape and ocean.

Yesterday was a long work day in the dining room on board Mercy Ships. We worked until 20:30. Many people were busy unloading cargo containers that were carrying most of the food we will be eating for the next three months. So dinner time was extended. This morning there was a muster drill. Our numbers are about 200 now and 32 countries are represented on board.

Anyone who is interested in finding out more about Mercy Ships or in volunteering can get more information by going to MercyShips.org Nurses are especially needed all the time.

My next blog will probably be under Guinea, Africa since we will be sailing next week.

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