It has to be said that my departure from Zambia did not go well. I started the morning by waking up with stomach cramps again. Fearing a repeat from the previous week I flung antibiotics and Imodium down my throat with gay abandon, the latter in excessive quantities. Having arranged to have my breakfast delivered to the room early, thereby allowing me to have time to eat it, I discovered that despite it being already included in the excessive rate I was paying for the Sunday night, I had to pay for the breakfast in entirety all over again! Now a charge for delivering it to the room I could accept, but paying for something twice does not sit well with me!! An argument was had at reception, but due to time constraints, I had to give in and pay for the darn thing (which, incidentally, I ate very little off).
However, unbeknown to me worse was yet to come. Having made it to the airport without having to ask the taxi driver to stop at the nearest bush, I sailed through the BA check in, probably because everyone else had checked in at a much earlier (more sensible) hour than me. I duly filled up my departure form and headed for the immigration desk, which is where the proverbial really began to hit the fan!! Immigration insisted I had outstayed my visa, based on the fact that they (not me) had written the date of 9/3/10 on my arrival stamp. This apparently was when they said I should have left and as I hadn’t left on that day I would have to pay a fine that was well in excess of £200. I pointed out that I was never leaving on that date and that I was more than confident I had put the correct dates on my landing /arrival forms. However when I suggested they should check said forms they informed me they couldn’t because that was in arrivals and this was departures. This in an airport you can jog round in 5 minutes!! I showed them my original booking confirmation with my flight dates on it, which they chose to ignore. Some more dialogue ensued, by which time, unlike my normal belligerent self I began to get quite upset, not to mention a tad panicky. More people were brought over who kept telling me it was my fault for not checking my passport (that would be the passport they handed back to me closed after I had a conversation with the lady processing my arrival that 3 weeks + was quite a long time to be in Zambia). They told me on several occasions I would have to pay the fine and on several occasions I told them I couldn’t as I had no money on me and had spent all my kwacha. Eventually I was marched off to a different part of the airport, well ok, not exactly marched as that would imply speed, shuffled would be more accurate. I then had to sit in a room with 3 people talking and laughing over me in Bemba having no idea what was going on with the clock moving rapidly towards my boarding time. In the end they handed me a form to sign which seemed to be an immediate deportation order and told me that they weren’t going to fine me as I had no money but that I had to leave immediately – like that wasn’t gong to happen!!
I have to say I felt a huge relief when those BA wheels left Zambian soil – with me on the plane!! But what a sad and unpleasant end to my stay and what a huge kick in the teeth considering I was there trying to help them. Lots of people asked if I would be coming back to Zambia to visit them again, and up until that point I always thought I might. Now – no chance!! The world is a big place, why would I want to go back to somewhere that treated me like a criminal after helping them!!
General opinion here back in the UK was that it was a deliberate scam to try and get money out of me, and considering they never once gave me the option to pay the fine by credit card that is quite possible. Who knows!!
Several days have past and I know one day I will look back and laugh about my departure debacle, but at the moment I am still not laughing!!
Thank you Zambia!!!
Thursday, 25 March 2010
Thursday, 18 March 2010
The last post! At least from Kitwe
Well I am back at the hotel for my last night, working on the PC in reception, feeling like my right arm has been cut off without the laptop!
It was quite hard saying goodbye to everyone and I really did feel quite sad, almost tearful. It has been quite an intense time at points for a variety of reasons, so saying farewell, for what might be the last time ever did seem quite sad. And off course I had to leave the laptop behind - we have grown very fond of each other over the last month or so. :-)
Walking home I couldn't help but wonder if I had made enough of it, could I have done more, did I get the best out of my experience. I think I did, but it's hard to know. My one little regret is that we never socialised as a team. I know a few of us were meant to go out on Wednesday but my stomach put paid to that, but there was never any suggestion of us going out for a 'team' drink. Something which we would have done back home had we had a 'guest' worker with us. Not sure if it is just a cultural thing, either just something they don't do, or even was it up to me to suggest it. Whatever, its too late now to have that team night out!! Unless they all want to pop down to Lusaka at the weekend, as I might have some time on my hands to spare.
I believe BA are back in talks again, but the lack of information at my end and confusion is so annoying. I have tried and failed to get back through to BA in Zambia again for the last two days with the calls just going dead on me. That was until just after 6 pm tonight when I got through and got a message telling me the office was shut!! Excellent, BA is in chaos but the telephone lines still go down at 6 pm!! Why they refused to address my questions by e-mail is beyond me. I quite simply have no way of contacting BA in the UK - howe ridiculous is that!! A very stroppy letter will have to be written when I get back - assuming I do get back eventually.
Well I am off to do my packing - having searched my room for frogs first of all. Could end up finding one squished in beside all my dirty washing when I get home. And boy do I have a lot of laundry to do when I get home!!! I am almost, but not quite, running out of clothes!!!
\I am sure I will manage to find PC in Lusaka, unless BA call off the strike and I have no time.
Have a nice Friday at work everyone - whatever I am doing it won't be work!!
It was quite hard saying goodbye to everyone and I really did feel quite sad, almost tearful. It has been quite an intense time at points for a variety of reasons, so saying farewell, for what might be the last time ever did seem quite sad. And off course I had to leave the laptop behind - we have grown very fond of each other over the last month or so. :-)
Walking home I couldn't help but wonder if I had made enough of it, could I have done more, did I get the best out of my experience. I think I did, but it's hard to know. My one little regret is that we never socialised as a team. I know a few of us were meant to go out on Wednesday but my stomach put paid to that, but there was never any suggestion of us going out for a 'team' drink. Something which we would have done back home had we had a 'guest' worker with us. Not sure if it is just a cultural thing, either just something they don't do, or even was it up to me to suggest it. Whatever, its too late now to have that team night out!! Unless they all want to pop down to Lusaka at the weekend, as I might have some time on my hands to spare.
I believe BA are back in talks again, but the lack of information at my end and confusion is so annoying. I have tried and failed to get back through to BA in Zambia again for the last two days with the calls just going dead on me. That was until just after 6 pm tonight when I got through and got a message telling me the office was shut!! Excellent, BA is in chaos but the telephone lines still go down at 6 pm!! Why they refused to address my questions by e-mail is beyond me. I quite simply have no way of contacting BA in the UK - howe ridiculous is that!! A very stroppy letter will have to be written when I get back - assuming I do get back eventually.
Well I am off to do my packing - having searched my room for frogs first of all. Could end up finding one squished in beside all my dirty washing when I get home. And boy do I have a lot of laundry to do when I get home!!! I am almost, but not quite, running out of clothes!!!
\I am sure I will manage to find PC in Lusaka, unless BA call off the strike and I have no time.
Have a nice Friday at work everyone - whatever I am doing it won't be work!!
The final few hours
So the final meeting is over. I ran through what I had done my findings on existing systems and processes and the spreadsheets I had set up for control and reporting. It all was very well received and everyone seems pleased and enthusiastic to implement them. The only real immediate gap is the balance sheet and fixed asset ledger which I have not really tackled. Due in part to lack of time but also because I just don’t know what assets they have and how they have managed or recorded them in the past. They do have someone that comes in once a quarter to pull together so called Management Accounts and that does have a balance sheet on it and depreciation, but nobody is very sure where he gets the numbers from. In fact, given what I found on the accounts so far and the difficulty I had getting to the bottom of 3 months worth of expenditure, I am not sure where he gets any of the numbers and I am pretty sure he is not reflecting the cash that the guys donate themselves ‘unofficially’. I have suggested that Vivian is perfectly capable of producing the management accounts. Which just leaves us to sort out the balance sheet – I am hoping I can wrap that one up remotely once I get back home.
Jedone said he was very pleased and that I had obviously approached it like an audit, which I can assure you, was entirely unintentional as I had never done an audit in my accounting life!!! I had to say as I ran through my findings and all the spreadsheets I had set up I did for the first time actually think I had done not bad after all and, yes I do believe I have helped move them forward. Only the first little step, but we got there.
I had my little gift giving ceremony after that. I had bought a selection of items over from Scotland, all with a Scottish theme, and all wrapped up in tartan paper. It was like Christmas, with everyone opening up their presents and having fun. Especially asking me how you said some of the Scottish dialect written on some of the items – like the ‘Things tae dae’ notepad!! I had tartan ties for both Jedone and Gideon which they seemed well pleased with. And I gave Vivian the little teddy bear dressed up in a kilt with bagpipes that play a tinny version of Scotland the Brave, which seemed appropriate given we have had several conversations about men in kilts. I don’t think they get the concept over here, so I guess I just need to get a bunch of Scottish guys in their kilts over to convert them!! Although I don’t think either Scotland or Zambia are ever going to qualify in any major sporting event that will bring the guys and kilts out in force!!
Must get back to my last few hours of form filling and work. Can’t believe I won’t be here in this office tomorrow. It is raining really heavily again, so I may get flooded in for one final time.
Oh, gave the ladies at the reception desk in the office where I used their facilities every day one of the gifts - some Scottish fudge. It was the least I could do under the circumstances. Think they were pleased, but then they hadn’t tasted the fudge yet!!
Jedone said he was very pleased and that I had obviously approached it like an audit, which I can assure you, was entirely unintentional as I had never done an audit in my accounting life!!! I had to say as I ran through my findings and all the spreadsheets I had set up I did for the first time actually think I had done not bad after all and, yes I do believe I have helped move them forward. Only the first little step, but we got there.
I had my little gift giving ceremony after that. I had bought a selection of items over from Scotland, all with a Scottish theme, and all wrapped up in tartan paper. It was like Christmas, with everyone opening up their presents and having fun. Especially asking me how you said some of the Scottish dialect written on some of the items – like the ‘Things tae dae’ notepad!! I had tartan ties for both Jedone and Gideon which they seemed well pleased with. And I gave Vivian the little teddy bear dressed up in a kilt with bagpipes that play a tinny version of Scotland the Brave, which seemed appropriate given we have had several conversations about men in kilts. I don’t think they get the concept over here, so I guess I just need to get a bunch of Scottish guys in their kilts over to convert them!! Although I don’t think either Scotland or Zambia are ever going to qualify in any major sporting event that will bring the guys and kilts out in force!!
Must get back to my last few hours of form filling and work. Can’t believe I won’t be here in this office tomorrow. It is raining really heavily again, so I may get flooded in for one final time.
Oh, gave the ladies at the reception desk in the office where I used their facilities every day one of the gifts - some Scottish fudge. It was the least I could do under the circumstances. Think they were pleased, but then they hadn’t tasted the fudge yet!!
The uninvited guest!
Now I know I sometimes get a bit bored round the hotel at night – but that doesn’t mean I want uninvited guests in my room. I was sure I felt something brush past my foot when I got in and saw the flicker of something moving out of my eye – mouse was the first thing that leapt in to my mind. Silly me, it’s Zambia, not sure if you get mice in Zambia, but you do get frogs!! There it was jumping around my room like it owned the place. I opened the door in the hope of shooing it out, but it just hid behind the couch. Cleary not of high intelligence. I briefly contemplated just leaving it there for the night, but then I was unsure how high frogs can jump - could it jump on to my bed at night while I slept!!! Ok, so it would have to jump through a mosquito net, which I am sure would be beyond it, but still even if there was the slightest outside chance of this happening.......!! There was only one thing a girl could do – phone reception!! Well you didn’t seriously expect me to run round the room after it in my delicate state – and then pick it up!!!
A young boy was quickly despatched to my room – complete with a large broom, much to my horror. Now I hadn’t expected them to come along and try and employ animal psychology and coach it out of the room, but the sight of the boy whacking the broom around behind my couch was slightly distressing. And as ever, I am sure my screeches of ‘oh you’re not going to kill it are you’ in my best Scottish accent were incomprehensible to the said young Zambian boy, and most likely even more unfathomable to the now distressed frog!! Anyway the little frog (yes I was making a fuss over a fairly small frog, which I may have thought cute if viewed in its natural outdoor habitat) was eventually whacked out of my room, but I’m pretty sure it was still alive and aiding its evacuation by jumping. Order and calm was once more restored to my room.
All said it probably better than being a mouse!!
A young boy was quickly despatched to my room – complete with a large broom, much to my horror. Now I hadn’t expected them to come along and try and employ animal psychology and coach it out of the room, but the sight of the boy whacking the broom around behind my couch was slightly distressing. And as ever, I am sure my screeches of ‘oh you’re not going to kill it are you’ in my best Scottish accent were incomprehensible to the said young Zambian boy, and most likely even more unfathomable to the now distressed frog!! Anyway the little frog (yes I was making a fuss over a fairly small frog, which I may have thought cute if viewed in its natural outdoor habitat) was eventually whacked out of my room, but I’m pretty sure it was still alive and aiding its evacuation by jumping. Order and calm was once more restored to my room.
All said it probably better than being a mouse!!
Wednesday, 17 March 2010
One day left to change the world - well CwFiZ's accounts at least!
A slightly dodgy start to the day again, meant I had to spend the morning working from the hotel once more, but after 3 Imodium and another couple of antibiotics I felt brave enough to venture in to the office for a few hours.
It was after all my second last day and Vivian and I still had the budget to do. Can’t believe tomorrow will be my last day in the office here in Zambia. I would have to say I will miss the people but sure as heck won’t miss the office itself!!
I have a lot to go over with Jedone and Gideon tomorrow – but particularly the new processes I have introduced for tracking expenditure, reconciliations, monthly reporting and off course the budget we have just about finished! (Tell you what it is the first time I have done a budget in half a day, will try and do the 4+8 forecast in the same timescale when I get back!)
Jedone was in the office for the first time in ages today – looking healthier than last time I saw him but decidedly thin! It felt almost strange talking to him as obviously we haven’t really had the opportunity to build up a relationship as I don’t think he has been well since I got here. Anyway, he should be in tomorrow so I can at least do a wrap up with him. Having said that I unearthed a form tonight that I was meant to fill in at the start of the assessment and agree objectives – oops!! I’ll be in trouble with AfID!! :-)
In truth I am not sure I have achieved everything I wanted to but then I guess I was coming in blind so not sure what I actually expected to achieve. I think I have moved them forward but I may never know for sure!! Not unless I come back and check up on them – and I will certainly leave them with that threat!! That said I have already told Vivian feel free to contact me if she needs to ask anything. If she does it when I am in the office I might be able to find someone who knows what they are talking about!! :-)
I was meant to be going out tonight for a few drinks with some of the people I have met since I got here, but decided it wasn’t a good idea under the circumstances. Might manage a quick one or two before I come back to pack tomorrow.
This is the last time I will be sitting typing away at the bar on this PC as I will become permanently detached from it tomorrow. I have grown rather fond of it so they may need to forcibly remove it from my grasp. And I just know it is going to miss me!!
I almost saw some Zambian firemen today – but didn’t quite get close enough to, what I think, was a fire truck. Mind you the state of the truck I wouldn’t give it good odds on getting to a fire without breaking down!!
BA are still driving me nuts. They promised to send me an e-mail detailing my changed itinery but haven’t and I can’t seem to get through to them here in Zambia today. At the moment they still seem to have me on two flights out of Zambia and one out of City. So somehow I need to fly out on the 20th and then come back and fly out on the 22nd!! I’ve been told I am meant to be on the one on the 22nd but...........!! I’m sure I will get home sometime, somehow!!! I know you are all dying to see me again!!!
It was after all my second last day and Vivian and I still had the budget to do. Can’t believe tomorrow will be my last day in the office here in Zambia. I would have to say I will miss the people but sure as heck won’t miss the office itself!!
I have a lot to go over with Jedone and Gideon tomorrow – but particularly the new processes I have introduced for tracking expenditure, reconciliations, monthly reporting and off course the budget we have just about finished! (Tell you what it is the first time I have done a budget in half a day, will try and do the 4+8 forecast in the same timescale when I get back!)
Jedone was in the office for the first time in ages today – looking healthier than last time I saw him but decidedly thin! It felt almost strange talking to him as obviously we haven’t really had the opportunity to build up a relationship as I don’t think he has been well since I got here. Anyway, he should be in tomorrow so I can at least do a wrap up with him. Having said that I unearthed a form tonight that I was meant to fill in at the start of the assessment and agree objectives – oops!! I’ll be in trouble with AfID!! :-)
In truth I am not sure I have achieved everything I wanted to but then I guess I was coming in blind so not sure what I actually expected to achieve. I think I have moved them forward but I may never know for sure!! Not unless I come back and check up on them – and I will certainly leave them with that threat!! That said I have already told Vivian feel free to contact me if she needs to ask anything. If she does it when I am in the office I might be able to find someone who knows what they are talking about!! :-)
I was meant to be going out tonight for a few drinks with some of the people I have met since I got here, but decided it wasn’t a good idea under the circumstances. Might manage a quick one or two before I come back to pack tomorrow.
This is the last time I will be sitting typing away at the bar on this PC as I will become permanently detached from it tomorrow. I have grown rather fond of it so they may need to forcibly remove it from my grasp. And I just know it is going to miss me!!
I almost saw some Zambian firemen today – but didn’t quite get close enough to, what I think, was a fire truck. Mind you the state of the truck I wouldn’t give it good odds on getting to a fire without breaking down!!
BA are still driving me nuts. They promised to send me an e-mail detailing my changed itinery but haven’t and I can’t seem to get through to them here in Zambia today. At the moment they still seem to have me on two flights out of Zambia and one out of City. So somehow I need to fly out on the 20th and then come back and fly out on the 22nd!! I’ve been told I am meant to be on the one on the 22nd but...........!! I’m sure I will get home sometime, somehow!!! I know you are all dying to see me again!!!
Tuesday, 16 March 2010
Nobody said it would be easy!
Another test of my resilience today – between upset stomachs and BA and I did not have the best of mornings. I will save you the details of the stomach upset – suffice to say it was quite sudden and very embarrassing. The staff were very sweet though and the maids must have told reception who turned up with some sort of medicine for me, which they said was for diarrhoea. But decided to stick to my own and the antibiotics I was given by the Doctor to take in just such an event. It was either the ice in my G&T or the salad I had last night, especially if the latter was washed in tap water. Needless to say I did not go in to my toilet-less office today. Stuck very close to my room. Strangely though, apart from having some stomach cramps I didn’t actually fell ill as such, and the antibiotics seem to have worked. So I guess I did pick up a bacterial infection. Clearly the answer is more alcohol and less mixers! (Though perhaps not tonight!)
So while staying within a short gallop of my toilet I attempted to get in touch with BA. I have to say the UK end so far have been useless, and I have felt very deserted by them! All I knew yesterday was that the London to Edinburgh flight had been cancelled but nothing more. When I e-mailed BA in the UK previously I was told to call the UK office. Which if you have ever looked closely at the BA UK numbers, they very clearly state they can only be dialled from the UK – slight problem there then!! So clutching my stomach (ok so I’m milking it a bit) I made several attempts to call BA in Zambia – but ran out of credit on my Zambian sim just being kept on hold. Which, incidently, was the second lot of credit I had bought this morning, but I guess I can’t blame BA for the fact that instead of gently scraping away to reveal the validation number on the little card you buy, I used a key and made some of the numbers illegible!! Duh!!
Anyway I eventually managed to get an answer from BA in Zambia and to be fair the woman was very helpful and had very good English. She informed me that my flight out of Zambia had already been moved to the Monday (22nd) with my connection back to Edinburgh being from City. Visions of Bank tube station and all the steps you go up and down get to the DLR swarmed in to my mind. So I told her that there was no way I could get me and two bags of luggage across London on my own but she assured me that it was BA’s responsibility to get me and my bags there. That remains to be seen – but if worse comes to worse I will leave my bags for them to send later! I know I took a lot of stuff with me but I am sure I have left enough at home to survive!!
I am in my hotel room right now and we are in the midst of yet another absolutely horrendous storm. I can not believe how loud the cracks of thunder are or how bright the lightening. I would never have said I was scared of storms, but I have jumped on several occasions and when I see the huge big flashes of lightening I do actual tense and crouch down – entirely involuntary. The freakiest thing was that after one huge flash of lightening and big crack of thunder my bedside light switched itself on. It does work by touch – but trust me it was really freaky!! I hope the weather improves again for those days I am stranded in Lusaka!
So while staying within a short gallop of my toilet I attempted to get in touch with BA. I have to say the UK end so far have been useless, and I have felt very deserted by them! All I knew yesterday was that the London to Edinburgh flight had been cancelled but nothing more. When I e-mailed BA in the UK previously I was told to call the UK office. Which if you have ever looked closely at the BA UK numbers, they very clearly state they can only be dialled from the UK – slight problem there then!! So clutching my stomach (ok so I’m milking it a bit) I made several attempts to call BA in Zambia – but ran out of credit on my Zambian sim just being kept on hold. Which, incidently, was the second lot of credit I had bought this morning, but I guess I can’t blame BA for the fact that instead of gently scraping away to reveal the validation number on the little card you buy, I used a key and made some of the numbers illegible!! Duh!!
Anyway I eventually managed to get an answer from BA in Zambia and to be fair the woman was very helpful and had very good English. She informed me that my flight out of Zambia had already been moved to the Monday (22nd) with my connection back to Edinburgh being from City. Visions of Bank tube station and all the steps you go up and down get to the DLR swarmed in to my mind. So I told her that there was no way I could get me and two bags of luggage across London on my own but she assured me that it was BA’s responsibility to get me and my bags there. That remains to be seen – but if worse comes to worse I will leave my bags for them to send later! I know I took a lot of stuff with me but I am sure I have left enough at home to survive!!
I am in my hotel room right now and we are in the midst of yet another absolutely horrendous storm. I can not believe how loud the cracks of thunder are or how bright the lightening. I would never have said I was scared of storms, but I have jumped on several occasions and when I see the huge big flashes of lightening I do actual tense and crouch down – entirely involuntary. The freakiest thing was that after one huge flash of lightening and big crack of thunder my bedside light switched itself on. It does work by touch – but trust me it was really freaky!! I hope the weather improves again for those days I am stranded in Lusaka!
Monday, 15 March 2010
Aother plumbing crisis averted at the 11th hour!!
I am quite pleased with myself today as I got quite a few things ticked off on my ‘to do’ list. Although I would have to admit as the day progressed my work level got closer and closer to Zambian speed. It is so warm again today and there is not a breath of air moving in the office, it is so tiring just sitting in it!!
On the way in to work today I saw what was either the army or police all gathering, some in full riot gear (well helmets anyway, which is probably as far as the riot gear budget will stretch here). I assumed they were doing a practice, but apparently there was the threat of a protest in the town following the arrest of a catholic priest who had upset the Government. As was explained to me, he was arrested before for something similar, which then resulted in protests and riots in the street as this priest has quite a following here. Unfortunately, none of this was explained to me until I needed my first comfort break of the day. By which time all the shops had put up their shutters and offices had closed their doors – including the office where I avail myself of their functioning facilities! Never mind rioting in Kitwe town centre, I was having my own full blown crisis!! It had actually got to the point where I was thinking of going back to the hotel, which is either a 20 minute walk (may have been slightly shorter if I was forced to break in to a run) or a short taxi ride. I was actually on the verge of calling Kandu to come in his taxi and take me back to the hotel when I decided to venture out in the direction of the office. What a relief, the priest had been released on minimal bail and the town was open for business again, including the office that is my salvation at least twice a day!! Crisis averted (well at least for the next few hours).
Not sure which of my limited choices I will be having for dinner tonight. I was presented with a special Sunday night menu yesterday, which was a list of meat which could be flung on the barbeque they had set up earlier that day. When I said to the waitress I was vegetarian she asked if I could not eat the chicken, to which I pointed out that chicken was in fact meat. Undaunted, and eager to please, she obviously thought she had the answer when she suggested that perhaps I could try the Pig on a Stick. Even thinking of it today still conjures up the image of being proudly presented with a full sized pig skewered on a (very large) stick at my table. Ok, so granted it was probably only going to be part of a pig, but I was still obliged, yet again, to politely decline and point out that the said pig would once upon a time have been alive and kicking and therefore classed as meat. (Unless off course it was a soya substitute pig – but I didn’t go there!!!). They eventually agreed they could give me the vegetable casserole off the usual menu! I may be tempted to get a carry out Pizza on my way home one night.
On the way in to work today I saw what was either the army or police all gathering, some in full riot gear (well helmets anyway, which is probably as far as the riot gear budget will stretch here). I assumed they were doing a practice, but apparently there was the threat of a protest in the town following the arrest of a catholic priest who had upset the Government. As was explained to me, he was arrested before for something similar, which then resulted in protests and riots in the street as this priest has quite a following here. Unfortunately, none of this was explained to me until I needed my first comfort break of the day. By which time all the shops had put up their shutters and offices had closed their doors – including the office where I avail myself of their functioning facilities! Never mind rioting in Kitwe town centre, I was having my own full blown crisis!! It had actually got to the point where I was thinking of going back to the hotel, which is either a 20 minute walk (may have been slightly shorter if I was forced to break in to a run) or a short taxi ride. I was actually on the verge of calling Kandu to come in his taxi and take me back to the hotel when I decided to venture out in the direction of the office. What a relief, the priest had been released on minimal bail and the town was open for business again, including the office that is my salvation at least twice a day!! Crisis averted (well at least for the next few hours).
Not sure which of my limited choices I will be having for dinner tonight. I was presented with a special Sunday night menu yesterday, which was a list of meat which could be flung on the barbeque they had set up earlier that day. When I said to the waitress I was vegetarian she asked if I could not eat the chicken, to which I pointed out that chicken was in fact meat. Undaunted, and eager to please, she obviously thought she had the answer when she suggested that perhaps I could try the Pig on a Stick. Even thinking of it today still conjures up the image of being proudly presented with a full sized pig skewered on a (very large) stick at my table. Ok, so granted it was probably only going to be part of a pig, but I was still obliged, yet again, to politely decline and point out that the said pig would once upon a time have been alive and kicking and therefore classed as meat. (Unless off course it was a soya substitute pig – but I didn’t go there!!!). They eventually agreed they could give me the vegetable casserole off the usual menu! I may be tempted to get a carry out Pizza on my way home one night.
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