Spiders and Sinks,
It has been a rainy week here. March is proving its reputation as height of the rainy season and although most mornings are clear and sunny, by the afternoon you are battling flash floods and mudslides to get into the grocery store. So, I've worked and played squash at night as exercise and felt like I could be back in the States being boring (no offense). Even the recreation has been long and wet. I went to a wedding yesterday which was FIVE hours of people going up to the bride and groom throwing money at their feet while they did a little jig for them and wished them well. For my part, I sang a verse of "Crimson and Clover" told everyone at the wedding it was a very important song and then snuck out.
Alright, I promised I would mention last weekend's excursion when I zipped up to this ruby producing area. Two clarifications: zip is the wrong word, I drove an hour, hiked two hours stayed for three repeated steps one and two and then ate a whole jar of nutella as reward for my hard work and 2) its more like a jungle where a homeless looking guy occasionally stumbles out of the jungle with some rocks and a combination of vicious hangover and still stoned look on his face. From my conversations with them and local leaders, it sounds like their mining expeditions are similar to a Native American vision quest, but with no fine intentions.
Anyways, it was really in the middle of nowhere, but I had a fun time casually talking to occasional miners, bartering with them, showing off my chicken butchering skills. I'm like the Harlem Globetrotter of defeathering chickens now. Also, I might have bought some rubies: next stop Idar-Oberstein.
This week the house I live in is finally a buzz of activity. I've got two new housemates from the UK who are lovely young ladies from the fashion industry working with an NGO here that makes luxury handbags and such. Their accents ring through the halls and we have tea time and biscuits. They are not down for my suggestion of recreating the Battles of Lexington and Concord which I am very familiar with. With four full rooms in the main house (Malawi,UK and AMERICA represented), the annex of illegal Indian immigrants and the Chinese palace in the back, its the freaking model United Nations. It turns out a few of the Indian chaps living next door are illegal immigrants, which explains why they hide in their house and smoke hookah a lot.
As for my LOST-obsessed, English-learning neighbor. I introduced her this week to Lord of The Rings. Which she didn't understand at all, even after she switched it to Chinese subtitles. "Stupid, for babies." She and I almost came to blows after that little snippet. On the other hand she loves Star Wars. She could not be more excited by Darth Vader even though when she imitates him it is just through growling sounds: not sure she is getting all the dialogue down. Furthermore, I am no longer "Jack Chep-bird." Instead, I have been promoted (in my opinion) to "Chewbacca" which she can pronounce really well.
Updates from the road this coming week, I'm headed out of town in search of suppliers etc.Cherio,
Steven
It has been a rainy week here. March is proving its reputation as height of the rainy season and although most mornings are clear and sunny, by the afternoon you are battling flash floods and mudslides to get into the grocery store. So, I've worked and played squash at night as exercise and felt like I could be back in the States being boring (no offense). Even the recreation has been long and wet. I went to a wedding yesterday which was FIVE hours of people going up to the bride and groom throwing money at their feet while they did a little jig for them and wished them well. For my part, I sang a verse of "Crimson and Clover" told everyone at the wedding it was a very important song and then snuck out.
Alright, I promised I would mention last weekend's excursion when I zipped up to this ruby producing area. Two clarifications: zip is the wrong word, I drove an hour, hiked two hours stayed for three repeated steps one and two and then ate a whole jar of nutella as reward for my hard work and 2) its more like a jungle where a homeless looking guy occasionally stumbles out of the jungle with some rocks and a combination of vicious hangover and still stoned look on his face. From my conversations with them and local leaders, it sounds like their mining expeditions are similar to a Native American vision quest, but with no fine intentions.
Anyways, it was really in the middle of nowhere, but I had a fun time casually talking to occasional miners, bartering with them, showing off my chicken butchering skills. I'm like the Harlem Globetrotter of defeathering chickens now. Also, I might have bought some rubies: next stop Idar-Oberstein.
This week the house I live in is finally a buzz of activity. I've got two new housemates from the UK who are lovely young ladies from the fashion industry working with an NGO here that makes luxury handbags and such. Their accents ring through the halls and we have tea time and biscuits. They are not down for my suggestion of recreating the Battles of Lexington and Concord which I am very familiar with. With four full rooms in the main house (Malawi,UK and AMERICA represented), the annex of illegal Indian immigrants and the Chinese palace in the back, its the freaking model United Nations. It turns out a few of the Indian chaps living next door are illegal immigrants, which explains why they hide in their house and smoke hookah a lot.
As for my LOST-obsessed, English-learning neighbor. I introduced her this week to Lord of The Rings. Which she didn't understand at all, even after she switched it to Chinese subtitles. "Stupid, for babies." She and I almost came to blows after that little snippet. On the other hand she loves Star Wars. She could not be more excited by Darth Vader even though when she imitates him it is just through growling sounds: not sure she is getting all the dialogue down. Furthermore, I am no longer "Jack Chep-bird." Instead, I have been promoted (in my opinion) to "Chewbacca" which she can pronounce really well.
Updates from the road this coming week, I'm headed out of town in search of suppliers etc.Cherio,
Steven
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