Only in Africa

Ah, time for some news - this time no kids, no work, no vacation. Life in full and fun.

Those of my age (OMG) will still remember those old Coke and Fanta cans. At some time in the 80s (?) they changed the opening clip of those cans from "pull it off" to "push it in", didn't they? Obviously for environmental reasons, since those clips had become an inherent and yucky part of any street, park or picnic area. I thought they had died out - but not at all! They are still around and growing strong. Actually, there is no real meaning to what I am writing here, but it just filled my heart with so much nostalgia... do you remember when we took them apart and used to shoot the ring with the small clip? Haha, what a ball!


And on another, a somewhat more serious note... Did you ever have a high voltage power line in your garden? It's one of the many goodies you may get 4 free. A recent storm took it down, sparks were flying and staff reported "there is fire coming out of the cable!". Unfortunately, the cable also came down in front of the entrance gate of the compound so there was no way the metal gate could be opened and hence, no car could neither enter nor leave the compound. One of the many absolutely unexpected obstacles you can encounter here ;-)

The braids are off, but...

Time to go! After 2 months with braids and without washing the hair, its now time for them to go! What took 5 hours to twist and roll, took only one hour and eight hands to get undone.

The scrubby look is purposely, since Leona features the next day as...

...queen Boudicca of the Celtic Iceni tribe. It's Rainbow School's Roman Day and everybody comes in togas, armour, sandals, brings roman food, or comes as one of the Celts who challenged the Romans!

BIG lies - largely promoted

Money transfer is definitively a great service - important and very convenient... but isn't this association going a bit far?

"Bell" is a Ugandan beer. What the poster actually says is: get drunk and you'll do just fine. Unfortunately, experience has taught us quite the opposite. We had to dismiss already three staff because they came to work after having taken several bottles of confidence...

Just can't help it... but this defies any basic business logic.

Ahhh, I've seen too many joints like this. The pretty signpost consumed all the money that should have been invested in new kitchen tools, a clean utility sink and proper water supply. Nope, rather some muchomo from Kabalagala - the exhaust fumes have most certainly killed any potential germs and bacteria on the meat ;-)

In between times: a quick surgery

A simple routine check revealed what I had been suspecting for a year already. Adrian sometimes not only doesn't want to hear what I'm saying, he also cannot hear what I am saying unless I almost shout at him. The E.N.T. specialist confirmed that his ears are again congested with thickened mucus behind the ear drum (otitis media). Hooray, and off we go for a spontaneous surgery during our home leave. Fortunately, Adrian doesn't feel sick. But soon I realise there's nothing worse than being hospitalised with a kid which is not really sick ;-)


Next morning, the surgery waits for him... It is heart-breaking to see your child with an infusion being rolled away on a bed to the operating theatre. Finally, it all goes well and though he feels weary after the anesthesia he recovers quickly and the ensuing skiing holiday is not endangered. Double phew!!

Back home - or stranger in a strange land?

Heading home with the kids! The usual hectic to finish everything just before we go... but I manage to pack everything just a minute before the special hire hoots outside the gate. Reaching the airport around midnight with two kids who are just as excited as they are tired. After dinner at 2 a.m. they "only" watch for an hour until my two sweet ones finally close their eyes... just to be woken up only five hours later :-/

But they are just great! No whining, lamenting or fighting, even after changing at Amsterdam and reaching our final destination at 11 a.m. - really great kids.

Then, one of the first things we see: a big, yellow "M". What's cool? Nope, it's not only the weather...

But the weather is definitively also cool - even very cool. Even down to -8°C. What a killer! The kids are excited, Leona still recalls all the details regarding how to deal with snow and cold weather...

...for Adrian it seems to be a bit more difficult to adapt. A cap and a warm jacket should do, shouldn't they? Well, maybe not. He was back inside in less than 5 minutes ;-)

Last night I asked the kids what they liked most in their first week back home and both of them said: IT SNOWED! ...with a beaming smile on their face.

And for everyone else? Everybody is curious about life in the "wilderness" and it is certainly not me telling all the stories.


However, I have to apologise to my African friends... I had always trivialised their stories when they told me how they were freezing and their skin was aching when visiting Europe during winter. Ridiculous, I thought. But boy! How my skin is aching! And I haven't even been skiing in the sun! Just walking through town a bit. My feet are cold, my lips are dried up, and my skin is itching and peeling. Good heavens, how much European is still left in me?