Bouchi

Sorry about cutting the last post off, i had to save it before the power shut off...
so after dropping the team off at Jos, the final team headed to Bouchi. The driver told us that it would be a 45 minute drive, we were all very happy when we arrived 2 and a half hours later! It was super dark and late when we arrived, so we got into our new digs and settle in for the night. We are currently staying in a hotel owned by a military general. Out side of the compound there are ten armed gaurds who watch over for protection, the neighbourhood we are in is known to be sketchy, so there presence makes us feel very safe, nothing to worry about! We went to the village for the first time yesterday, and it was a life changing experience for all of us. We have never felt so welcome and taken care of. The people here are in awe when they first see you, for a lot of the villagers, they have never seen a westerner. The chief in one of villages we were at said that they had not had a westerner there since 1989. The children go absolutely crazy with us. They are so excited over the littlest things and we have been playing tonnes of games with them. We showed them their first frisbee yesterday, and Matt started a very comical game of What Time is it Mr. Wolf, which just ended in everyone chasing each other around. Our days have been filled with too much excitment to even put into words. After the villages yesterday we were invited to a nigerian wedding. After driving in the back of a truck for about 10 mins, the driver dropped us off right in the middle of the wedding, and a crowd of over 300 people surrounded us. It was one of the most awkward and exciting experiences of our lives. We jumped right into the ceremony and threw money at the bride and groom while dancing with them, a very popular nigerian tradition. We stayed there for a while, then had to leave to go to another city to meet the king. In this country, the king has the highest power, with the authority to do anything he wants, in some cases banish people or even put them to death. It was an honor and priviledge to meet the king, but it was also very intimidating. He was very welcoming to us and made us feel great, allowing us to sit in his royal chairs only reserved for the highest honor. Going to the palace was an incredible experience. After that we drove home in the back of the truck eating sugar cane, a very popular nigerian treat that can make you go a little crazy if you eat to much, which of course we all did. When we arrived home it was still light, so we pumped a soccer ball and played soccer in a field by the guards. We encouraged the neighbors to join in, and by the time it was dark we were playing a wild game of football with the nigerians while the neighborhood watched, again, it was such an amazing experience. Nights at the hotel are great, we have to stay in the compound but we are enjoying ourselves none the less. Matty and Terence played a joke on Jesse and Richard as they slept last night, waking them up at 1 in the morning, telling them to get ready for church, after almost taking his malaria pill, Richard wasnt to happy when he figured out the real time.
Church was amazing today, we were the special guests at a church of about 1000 people, it was incredible to see how the people came together on Sunday morning. After that we headed to the market, where a bunch of us picked out some fabric to make the traditional clothes. It is going to take us a couple days to get them tailored, but be on the look out for some sharp dressed men when we get back!!!

It has been so crazy here, i am going to try to get some photos up for you soon, words just dont do justice to the unbelievable things that are going on.
Things you must know about Nigeria..
1. The people are the nicest on Earth, they are so happy to meet and greet you.
2. The food is amazing! Seriously, best food we have tasted
3. Don't use the public bathrooms!
4. It is hot!!!! We're all getting pretty worn down in the evenings, the afternoon sun drains you pretty good.
We'll write again soon....
Make sure to check out the news website, at www.medicinehatnews.com to keep updated on what's going on, James Neely will be posting stories asap, and the photos will be great.
Now we're going to play soccer, so i'm out of here..

Nigeria!!

It's been a crazy last couple of days, and i'm glad to say that we made it safe and sound to our destination of Nigeria. I have to write quick, as we're sitting in an internet cafe and the power keeps going out..so here's what has went down so far...
Day 1 was a travel day, we left Medicine Hat and flew out of Calgary to London. When we arrived in London we had an 8 hour layover. A few of us went on the tube into the city and found some skate spots and parks for when we return, London is definetly going to be amazing!
After that we boarded a plane to Abuja, and we flew about 6 hours to get there. We arrived at 5 in the morning in the city, and we were greeted by the customs officers. We made it through with no problems, the baggage was a bit of a hassle, but luckily one of our team members gave the head baggage clerk some toys for her children and she hurried us through. Everyone was so happy to be in Nigeria! As soon as we left the airport we all had a chance to experience the craziest driving in the world! All i can say is that there are definetly no road rules here, and i would be very surprised if 10% of the population held a driver's lisence. The whole team went together to the base that the Abuja team would be staying at before we split up. After a couple hours nap, two teams left, while the Abuja team got comfortable in their new home. We headed to Jos where we left one team at their base, the drive from Abuja to Jos was about 3 hours, and for some of us it fealt like eternity, as we prayed that we wouldn't crash...but don't worry, we're all getting used to it..