MV Doulos in Manila

Oh I know, I should try to post events on this blog as soon as they happened and not like three weeks later. No excuses, just pure absent-mindedness. Anyways, MV Doulos is a ship that has already traveled around the world for almost half century bringing books and charity to the most impoverished countries in the world. It is said to be the oldest floating bookstore and oldest active passenger ship according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

When you go on board, there are numerous framed posters chronicling the history of the ship. Of course, you will also find their famous bookstore where they sell different kinds of books from kids story books to cookbooks. What’s interesting is it started as a passenger vessel bringing potatoes to and fro Texas. Later in 1977, it was salvaged from a shipyard by a German non-profit organization GBA (Good Books for All) and transformed into something that it is today. It is registered in Malta and Doulos should mean “servant” in Greek.

But more than it’s commendable history and it’s astonishing record of receiving 2 million visitors on board to date, the heart of Doulos is its continuous mission to bring education and hope to places that is it most lacking. While they were in Pier 13 of South Harbour they did charity work in the most depressed areas in Manila. The ship was also able to travel in other locations in Cebu and Mindanao.The MV Doulos organization is also a channel where people can volunteer to help other people. It is a melting pot of many nations and backgrounds, in the hope that the assimilation of many cultures on board will create a sense of tolerance, understanding and friendships. To read more about them and their work, you can visit their website.