between then and now

From our blog silence you may have thought that between Ghana and now we have sat at home moping. We have a bit, but we have also been busy now and then, but just feeling too bleurgh to getting round to posting a blog about it


OEA meal at Hotel Ricardo - a huge paella dinner for 25 of us

Fundraiser at ICCV - a library project for in Ouaga

Lon learnt how to put out fires with the rest of the embassy as part of a team building day

Nev went to the vet a few more times to deal with an infection in his claw

we got the dining room table refinished - as the water damage was so bad from the last leak (plus ten years of general abuse had left it looking a bit sad)

slight panic when he started sanding!

all shiny again

we taught the cats the art of synchronised snoozing

I successfully made alloco - Lons favourite fried plantain

we had a ladies dhosa brunch courtesy of Geeta

Nev turned 4!

 

Sint and the Piets came to get ready to celebrate for Sinterklaas at our house

and last night we went to celebrate St Lucia with our neighbouring Swedes

my hair is getting long!

I went to Bobo and I bought...

Back in October we planned a weekend away in Bobo, and despite the fact that Ouaga was jumping with parties, food (fairs) and dinners we still went anyway.

We wandered round, shopped, ate and drank beer - all helped by the changing weather (it doesn't hit 30+ until midday, and is down to 16 at night)

So on Saturday night we sat at a maquis in front of the train station for a beer and to window shop

any number of sellers walked past us and offered their wares, over the course of two beers we were shown:

Kora –a local guitar/lute
Surge protector
Extension cord
Belt
Vest (undershirt)
Iron
Clothes pegs
Garden hose
Headphones
Phone credit
Sim card
Dvds
Inflatable plane
Inflatable horse
Scrabble
Tissues
Chewing gum
Tea strainer
Cigarettes
Dried meat
Slip on shoes
Underpants
Kola nuts
Peanuts
Radio
Socks
Gloves
Melamine plates
Tinsel
Christmas tree
3 in one exercisers
kids football kit / dress
football
sweets
biscuits
lock and keys
padlock
brush
scissors
comb
tuareg leather box / dagger

all of which we managed to turn down (I began writing stuff down after a while!)

we did buy an inflatable santa though!  he has a squeaker in his foot, and if you are in Bobo the poulet televise (rotisserie chicken) is pretty good (too dark to photo by then)

we came back with a haul of treasures to remind us of our stay.

On the way back from Bobo, we stopped for lunch - and picked up a grilled funky chicken (guinea fowl) - complete with its feet and head intact!

List

The long awaited list is there. We will not mention it was due 35 days before. We wonder why we both got a headache at the news it finally arrived. It has been difficult not knowing anything about our future.

Short background. In the Dutch foreign service there is a yearly change of posts, normally everyone changes every four years, because of the closure of the embassy the next 'round' means a change of post for us as well. We get to give our preferences around November, headoffice will judge them all and than gives the outcome in March/April.

The options for me this time are limited.

Two postings of the same job; in Dhaka (Bangladesh) and Kampala (Uganda).
A few with more general and consular affairs added to the development work I do now, but that includes Iraq and Syria. Budapest and Madrid are an option.
And there are a couple of postings in The Hague, but we really prefer to go abroad.

In two weeks time we know how many people reacted to which post, that might give an indication of our changes.

To be honest we probably will still be tense until the we get the decision, it can go any way. 4 long months.