1 of 7 billion

Since we soon will be 7 billion people on this planet, a website har been opend - http://7billionactions.org/ - here people also can post stories, and thats what we are going to do to. We will not put it on the 7 billion website, but here on the blog. I'm going to tell about my trip to Mali in Africa, with one of the churches I was active in.

The trip that opend my eyes

One of the three churches I was singing in have a well project going on in Mali. They collect money for this cause, since Mali is one of the countries in Africa that don't have coastal. The church organize a trip to Mali every five years, and I signed up. Only five people would get sponsored, and we were six people that signed up, so I was the one that didn't get picked for the sponsoredship, but I payed the whole trip my self. We also hade teen that lived in Mali in their childhood and leaders from the church.

We took the plain from Norway january 1st of 2009, and came home january 12th of 2009. It was a long trip, but so worth it. We traveled from Bamako to Timbouctou, and down again. We stoped a lot of places, and visited a lot of people and villages. Me and to ofters got to visit a little family, and eat dinner with them. They served all the food they had, and were so happy to shear all they had, just for a happy moment and worry about tomorrow later. I was so special and moving to be a part of that, even though they don't have a lot they were so happy. We took a walk around in their village, and everyone was so happy, lauhing and greating each other. The kids ran around, playing with sticks of wood and stones, making their own fun. Wery different from home, when kids sit in front of the television, palying playstation.

We also visited a huge well that we are helping to build, the well is so deep that you need a camel to drag the water up. It is a long way to the closest village, so people often have to walk the whole day to get there. And if your family don't have a camel, you can't get the clean water. The people that were there were so greatful for the work that we are doing to help them, so they gave us a sheep and a bag with sigarets. After the trip to the well we visited the family I got to eat with earlier, and gave them the sheep. I have never seen happier people, that is a moment I'll never forget.

The trip to Mali has been the most educational and special trip I have been on so far. I got to see a lot and meet a lot of wonderful people. It was such a eye opener to see how they live and what makes them happy. The kids had so much fun when we took pictures of them and showed them the picture on the screen on the camera afterwards. We took a lot of pictures on the trip, but the pictures of the kids are the one i like the most. It is som mush contrast between being happy of the smalest things, and the people at home that takes a lot of things for granted. I'm so happy that I got the oppotunity to go on that trip and would not hesitate to go again if I got the chanse!

Here are some of the many pictures I took. The two last pictures are from one of the other girls, Marie Svendsen Nerheim.