We were honored to be invited to the weekend home of Prof Tih Pius Muffih with a group of our Mbingo friends for a mountain hike and picnic. Prof Tih is the head of the CBC (Cameroon Baptist Convention) Health care system. His "village" home of Babenka is an area of about 20,000 people and a rich agricultural area. Fourteen of us left in two vehicles on a Saturday morning for our adventure. We drove about 20 minutes on paved roads and then 25 minutes on rough, pot hole, rutted country roads, ascending and winding up and up. After a warm welcome, we loaded up the picnic food and drove 30 minutes upward on more rough roads. Our friend Dr. Andrew Kim and Joe Sparks had the fun of riding up on the roof rack during the last leg up! We reached the end of the road and repacked our hiking bags for the trek. The scenery was beautiful and filled with mountain views and acres of well tended gardens filled with jama jama(small leafed greens), onion, leek, and cabbage in various stages of their growth. We walked on cattle trails, through bush grass, and on rocky climbs for about one hour. Chuck Barrier's watch-altimeter read 7300 feet; Mbingo base is 4700 feet. Our picnic spot beneath the only tree in sight overlooked a beautiful mountain lake rimmed with water lilies. Down below we could see dozens of school children who had come for some lake fun! Prof Tih served us a wonderful picnic of "country chop" or local food. We enjoyed jama jama and fufu made of corn, a blackeyed pea mixture steamed inside banana leaf (like an African tamale),fried fish, mango and the best pineapple we have ever experienced.....what a feast! By 2 pm it was time to clean up, pack up and head down the mountain to our cars that carried us back to Prof Tih's home. We were so thankful to enjoy some of the beauty of Cameroon and to fellowship with our new brothers and sisters.
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| Partway up, overlooking the valley below |
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| Andrew Kim, peds resident and Joe Sparks take the "high road" |
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| On the trek! |
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| What a garden!! |
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| Prof Tih starts the picnic ! |
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| Enjoying lunch, overlooking the lake. |
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| Better view of the mountain lake. |
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The Samaritan's Purse Post-Residency docs:
Lindsay and JR Young with Cathen
Chuck and Angela Barrier with Isaac |
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| With a new friend |
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