Things to hate about Windhoek

Of course it's changed ... but for the better?

Well the price of houses has risen astronomically in certain areas - not in others (where we have ours!) There is evidence of Chinese businesses everywhere - including the huge new hotel being built on Independence Avenue .... many, many Chinese shops selling cheap, worthless goods that last only a few weeks. We were greeted at the airport by an Air China 747! Is that positive or negative ? I don't know but they bring in cheap labour and locals believe it is putting them out of work. Unemployment is 38%.

Crime levels seem to be escalating, as does corruption. The hotel where I stayed (where I first met John - you know the story) has deteriorated and is very expensive but the service is lousy ... and the place is surrounded by 'ladies of the night' - who were never so evident before. Don't get me wrong - I'm not singling Namibia out - it's just that these negative social aspects didn't used to affect this beautiful country not so many years ago. I guess it was just a matter of time.

One thing I won't miss - today it is month end AND Easter break and the crowds in town were phenomenal! The queues for the ATM were hundreds of metres long! I had to fight to get out of the hotel to my taxi (not helped by the fact that a large number of rather strapping young lads from a sports team had just disgorged from their coach and were trying to get into the hotel!!)

The times they are a-changing! (but we still have fantastic sunsets!)

Leaving Windhoek

I picked up a foul African cold on my way here so I've been pretty crook for the whole trip - unfortunately. However, it was great to catch up with old friends and colleagues and see how much they have progressed and achieved since I last worked with them. I've got several potential projects here - so that is wonderful.

Also enjoyed catching up with my friend Rachel who was the first person I met when I came to Namibia in 1996. We nattered a couple of evenings away and I'm going to miss her ... again!

Busy filling suitcases and sorting out the ton of paper I've picked up on this trip. Looking forward to seeing that nice guy in Vancouver - what was his name? Ah yes, John! It seems like I've been away for months.

And in 3 weeks I have to do it all over again ... assuming I get a new passport in London on my way home tomorrow - but that's another story!

good times

I had a lovely last night in Nairobi - meeting up with old friends. First I caught up with Tony and Flora Okuku who we worked with at the technical college in Botswana. They are Kenyan and returned home just before we left. We didn't have long together but learning of their hectic life in Nairobi made me very grateful to be living in Vancouver. They are both very talented artist/graphic designers and are great fun to be with.

Then I met Harvey and Helga - Harvey was my TeaM Leader in Rwanda and we've kept in touch for years. We had such a good time catching up on news of old freinds and colleagues. Helga has had breast cancer since I last saw her and she looks fantastic. She has really recovered well - she puts it all down to her great treatment at the Marsden Hospital. It was weird - like we'd only seen each other last week. But then, we were a pretty close team in Rwanda - spent a lot of social time together ... and Harvey is a great team leader.

Got to go and catch a plane now - on my way to Windhoek - yay!!

I've just realised

I like Vancouver ... but I LOVE Africa. This trip has made me really homesick.

Driving for hours through Kenya has been hot and uncomfortable - but I've seen so many interesting places and people. It was hot and sunny in Nairobi today and then it rained cats and dogs! Meeting some old colleagues from past projects in Botswana and Rwanda tomorrow.

More news on Meru and the work we're doing in nurse education soon ... it's exciting stuff - upgrading for community nurses by distance learning.

Did I say 2 hours?

SIX hours later after first being told - the plane is coming from Harare – you must go down to the gate ... go through security, take your shoes off ... sit and wait ... they bring cool drinks. “It’s coming” ... “There’s a technical problem, no, the President of Zimbabwe has delayed the plane ... it’s 10 minutes away, we are in constant touch with them ... no, it’s not coming – go back upstairs.

We waited in the bar area because it was the only place to get power for the laptop and iPod. The guys in the bar drank beer and had a good time. I met a very nice Rwandese called Sam Kanyarukiga who used to be DG of CIPEX in MINECOFIN and now works for COMESA in Lusaka. Spent some happy time gossiping about people we both knew in Kigali.

They brought food – a bad sign, and bad food – we couldn’t eat it. The airport was hot and humid. The guys in the bar drank more beer and got very loud and annoying. The sky darkened and the rain came and I was reminded how much I love the sound of a deluge on a tin roof – the guys in the bar drank more beer and got louder. An Ethiopian Airlines plane had to abort a take-off because of the weather – very scary to watch. “The plane can’t come now because of the rain!”

Eventually, we go downstairs again – through security, take your shoes off – no sign of the plane. We wait again. We finally took off at 19.00 and landed at 22.00 – I was hoping that the driver sent from the hotel to meet me would still be there. My bags came through first – and joy – they had not been tampered with! I cleared the airport at 23.00 – and joy again – the driver was there! I was very grateful. Moving to the hotel would have been easier by boat – the rain had come so hard and so quickly that the floods were knee height. And it’s scary driving in Nairobi at night because no one stops at the robots for fear of being car-jacked .... eish!

Finally got to bed at midnight ... a little bit weary.

Nasty shock!

So we’re driving from the hotel in Lusaka to the airport – having spent the whole morning rushing around, packing, filling in stolen baggage claim forms, getting photocopies, paying the hotel bill – when suddenly I screamed to the driver “STOP THE CAR!” I’d just realised that I didn’t have my little envelope of US dollars. I searched through all my bags and the nightmare was real – the envelope was not there. “We have to go back” I said and the obliging chap raced back to the hotel. I rushed in and found the porter who helped with my bags and we took the lift up to the top floor – it went so slow! I ran down the corridor and entered the room – and sure enough, up against the inside wall of the safe was my envelope of dollars – PHEW!! I don’t know how I missed it – but I did. Can you imagine how stuck I would be without those?

I was now seriously late for the airport and I still had to submit my baggage claim to SAA as their horrible pilfering staff in Jo’burg cut the lock on my new suitcase and stole my clothes and perfume! Brand new bag which John told me not to buy for this very reason – don’t you just hate it when men are right? Especially when it means you lose your new Chanel!!!

The driver drove like Jensen Button to get me to the airport – the lady at SAA said “go and check in while I process your claim” – I dashed through security and when I checked in the assistant told me the KQ flight was delayed by 2 hours!

How was your day?

On my way ...

... again - back to Africa this time. I have a stopover in London where I'm meeting with the Girl Guides Association - I'm hoping that we can work together to develop elearning materials for leadership training. I may even manage to meet Naomi & Johan who recently moved to London to work at the South African High Commission - hope so.

Then it's on to Zambia where we are looking at national policy for introducing technical and vocational education (TVET). I am only there for 2.5 days and the team there had a plan to drive me all the way up to the Copperbelt but I hope I've persuaded them to stay in Lusaka. I would have met my friends Richard and Trish - but Richard has just taken a job in Sudan and Trish is now back in Scotland.

Next I go to Kenya where I have meetings in Nairobi before driving for about 4 hours to Meru where am supporting a materials development workshop to create a distance degree programme for community health nurses. Back to Nairobi for more meetings and I hope to catch up with Flora and Tony Okuku who used to live in Botswana and also my Team leader from Rwanda, Harvey and his wife Helga, who now live in Nairobi.

Finally, I'm going home ... home to Namibia that is. I've got a week there meeting lots of different organisations and it will be great to see old friends and colleagues. My only sadness is that Sharon will be on a school field trip to the desert so I shall miss her - but especially looking forward to seeing Rachel and her little lad Ben.

I'm back in Vancouver on Good Friday and planning to eat a lot of chocolate!