Settling In...

Following popular demand, I’m once again changing tack on the levity of my blog – don’t worry plenty more fun microfinance ones to come later as required by Kiva!

So, what have I been up to in the last week? Good question. Good news is that I’ve not only moved, but as of yesterday I even have my own room, rather than sleeping on a mattress on the lounge floor, fully exposed to the security guard all night. Oh, and my room has AIRCON. But also a cold shower, which raises a great philosophical question: Is it better to turn the AC off and really appreciate the shower in the morning, or to have it on 16 degrees and then freeze in the shower? I don’t know. 

The Palace

 

My actual, proper room now!



The Lounge (and my temporary bed)

 

View to the sea from the rooftop terrace

New housemates are Patrick (Swiss) and Erica (Italian), both working at the UN for something or another…



More good news. There seems to be a string of ‘out of the blue’ bank holidays at the moment, quite nicely aligned to the run up to the presidential elections at the end of the month. Coincidence of course. So Tuesday, given it was Mohammed’s birthday (the prophet), I was able to go and sit on the beach all day, and make friends with some Lebanese surfers. It turns out that “surf chat” is pretty international, but I include the translation for completeness. 

My new surf bud


"Sup…"
Hello

"Pumping?"
Are there waves of a suitable standard for a beginner?

"No, it’s not like the lines at Hossegur…"
Unkown (I read this on a website once, think it’s ‘cool’)

"I remember this time in Morrocco…"
…I sat on the beach watching better people surf

"Massive triple overhead..."
One wave caught me on the shins while I was wading in the shallows

"Radical…"
It was quite thrilling

"Blah blah…"
More nonsense but I’m waiting for the right moment to ask…

"…Oh, can I borrow your board?"

And so I got to paddle out in the sort of rubbish you’d only expect in Devon, except that here you don’t need a wetsuit.



"Tearing it up"



Finally, a token mention of work: I’ve upped my hours recently, ever since I was stranded there till 20:30 in a torrential downpour and resulting blackout. My colleagues now think those are the hours I work and it’s awkward to explain that I didn’t actually want to be there but it was raining etc etc.
But I’m now out doing the rounds of all the branches, training the staff here how to do something new (a tip if you’re ever in sub-Saharan Africa being driven places on a scooter: wear sunscreen. 3 hours later, I was pretty fried. And don't repeat the same mistake the next day, even though you've already drafted such a warning as part of a blog). 

Included in these trips are the obligatory visits to some of their clients (they seem very keen on hairdressers), but that’s for another day…

Lastly, in an attempt to make this whole format more interactive: I’d like scores out of 10 on brevity, levity, and content. You might want to consider whether I’m likely to adjust with or completely against your suggestions…



It's not ginger. It's manly.