Not too far from the city centre, across an inconspicuous bumpy dirt road, stretch the humble gates of
Fraternite Notre Dame, the home of 25 Mongolian orphans. (There are more than 40 such orphanages in Mongolia). Much has happened since we were last there but I am happy to report that despite Sister Marie Francoises' sudden departure after 7 years of service at the orphanage, that the children have adapted well and have been doubly blessed by two replacement Sisters who seem to be cut from the same extraordinary mould as Sister Marie Francoise.
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| The surrounding neighbourhood as seen from the window |
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Girls dorm below. Recreation room above.
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The purpose of our visit was to deliver a new organ donated by a Catholic parish in Brisbane who responded in kind when hearing about the needs of the children.
After the nights festivities, it's easy to see how much ongoing joy this donation will bring to the daily life of the orphanage.
We brought with us food, drinks, party hats, poppers and friends. After sharing a delicious meal we were treated to a medley of songs in English, Mongolian and French!
The national anthem is sung with such reverence!
...so angelic
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| Ole And Colin |
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| All the children signed a Thankyou. |
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"The Choir"
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| Julie Veloo and Sister |
Introducing Khushuur...
a very popular Mongolia snack food, similar to a fried meat pie. It's made from a simple mix of beef or mutton, flour and onion. Looks much like a pastie.
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| Moi! |
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| No one started until all food was dished out, drinks poured and prayers were said... such impeccable manners :D |
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| Cutie! |
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| Scrummy! |
And last but not least, a special guest,
The Most Reverend Bishop Jean Marie . When we arrived he (aka the picture!) was downstairs in the main building. Somebody cared enough to bring him up stairs to join in the celebrations!
The Bishop founded the Fraternite Notre Dame religious congregation in 1971 and now operates humanitarian missions on four continents.
