1. Good car insurance is not a need-- it is a must
2. In South Africa, even cheap wine is delicious
3. Sun burns in February are always a good thing-- always
4. There will be big probs if the government ever tries to impose a smoking ban here-- soooo many smokers
5. Talking about the weather is not as cool as it is in Canada
6. Giant cheap bags of basil are always on my grocery list-- always
7. One needs a gym membership here; otherwise you never exercise--- security issues demand that you drive EVERYWHERE
8. When producing soup thermoses or playing cards or shot glasses or pretty much anything, branding them with "The Big 5" is always the right decision-- always
9. Rubber boots can be used for much more than rain protection
10. A Braai is not a piece of women's underwear
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
Belated update
So it seems my previous blog entry that I posted on Sunday did not take. Strange. Ahhh... love those sketchy internet connections.
So here is a summary, from what I can remember: As those of you on facebook may have seen, I have posted pics of a 10k hike I did with some friends in a national reserve about an hour outside of Joburg, on Saturday. It was beautiful, super hot, and there actually some wild animals roaming around which was surreal. Saw some baboons, antelope and zebra (though nothing close enough to get good pics). Other highlights from the previous week included an anti-valentine’s day party at a co-workers house on Thursday, getting my movie card and being able to go to cheap night at the movies Tuesday nights for 20R, or about 3$ (sweet!), making a communal supper on Friday night and eating in the moonlight out on the patio, dancing a jig with the housekeepers delicious little 2 year old Andrea (who I will have to get some pics of--- she is going to be a star!), and generally going to work and being busy. Frankly, I feel like I am living with this constant state of elevated adrenaline—between work stress (soooo much to do-- we are totally understaffed), general security on-edge-ed-ness, and just not having a lot of down time to reflect, regroup or stop, you know? Again, I keep flagging this, but I wonder how it will affect me down the road re: burnout and/or stress-induced stupidness. We shall see.
As for this week’s update, things have been relatively quiet all things said and done. Work continues to pick up even more, while the learning curve feels like it is slowly starting to level off and I am feeling more confident about what I am doing. Went to an African craft market on Sunday afternoon—neat to see what is out there. Of course there are the requisite masks, etc… but also interesting and ingenious things like little toy cars made from recycled pop cans, and bags made out of bottle caps, and some amazing beading. Otherwise, have been up to little things here are there—went out to a movie on Tuesday, cooked a chicken with some gals from the house on Wednesday, complete with stuffing—although it took way longer than expected and we didn’t eat till almost 10pm. Whoops!
Upcoming plans: Myself and two friends, Anu and Yosi, have been making plans for an Easter trip, and have finally booked a few things to go to Cape Town at the end of March. I take 4 days off, but get 10 days vacation--- pretty good! Will probably rent a car and do some of the Garden Route as well while we are down there, which I am really looking forward to. Will be in Scotland in June for the World Assembly, and there is a possibility of attending a conference in Spain in July, so may have a few weeks to bum in Europe (makes more sense to stay up there than flying back down to South Africa, just to come up again 2 weeks later). If anyone will be in the area at that time, let me know!
Am off to Limpopo, a state in the north, bordering Mozambique and Zimbabwe, for the weekend, and will post some pictures on Facebook of that adventure when I get back. Happy trails to all, and keep in touch!
So here is a summary, from what I can remember: As those of you on facebook may have seen, I have posted pics of a 10k hike I did with some friends in a national reserve about an hour outside of Joburg, on Saturday. It was beautiful, super hot, and there actually some wild animals roaming around which was surreal. Saw some baboons, antelope and zebra (though nothing close enough to get good pics). Other highlights from the previous week included an anti-valentine’s day party at a co-workers house on Thursday, getting my movie card and being able to go to cheap night at the movies Tuesday nights for 20R, or about 3$ (sweet!), making a communal supper on Friday night and eating in the moonlight out on the patio, dancing a jig with the housekeepers delicious little 2 year old Andrea (who I will have to get some pics of--- she is going to be a star!), and generally going to work and being busy. Frankly, I feel like I am living with this constant state of elevated adrenaline—between work stress (soooo much to do-- we are totally understaffed), general security on-edge-ed-ness, and just not having a lot of down time to reflect, regroup or stop, you know? Again, I keep flagging this, but I wonder how it will affect me down the road re: burnout and/or stress-induced stupidness. We shall see.
As for this week’s update, things have been relatively quiet all things said and done. Work continues to pick up even more, while the learning curve feels like it is slowly starting to level off and I am feeling more confident about what I am doing. Went to an African craft market on Sunday afternoon—neat to see what is out there. Of course there are the requisite masks, etc… but also interesting and ingenious things like little toy cars made from recycled pop cans, and bags made out of bottle caps, and some amazing beading. Otherwise, have been up to little things here are there—went out to a movie on Tuesday, cooked a chicken with some gals from the house on Wednesday, complete with stuffing—although it took way longer than expected and we didn’t eat till almost 10pm. Whoops!
Upcoming plans: Myself and two friends, Anu and Yosi, have been making plans for an Easter trip, and have finally booked a few things to go to Cape Town at the end of March. I take 4 days off, but get 10 days vacation--- pretty good! Will probably rent a car and do some of the Garden Route as well while we are down there, which I am really looking forward to. Will be in Scotland in June for the World Assembly, and there is a possibility of attending a conference in Spain in July, so may have a few weeks to bum in Europe (makes more sense to stay up there than flying back down to South Africa, just to come up again 2 weeks later). If anyone will be in the area at that time, let me know!
Am off to Limpopo, a state in the north, bordering Mozambique and Zimbabwe, for the weekend, and will post some pictures on Facebook of that adventure when I get back. Happy trails to all, and keep in touch!
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Contrats
Things have been good of late, though bad things always seem to be happening-- seems to be a daily occurance that something is damaged or stolen.
For example, on Friday, after a long week me and two roommates piled into her car for the drive home, only to find that someone had broken in and tried to start the car with a screwdriver, totally destroying the ignition. Lucky the car was not stolen, but it has been out of commission for a week, and we were stranded for a short time in a sketchy part of town at night, and if we had lef tthe car as it was it definitely would have been stolen. Security continues to be an ever-present concern. Luckily, nothing is very physical-- it's all about stealing stuff.
Saturday was fun--- went to a mall with friends to get a few things (still trying to set up my apartment), and then went to a coworker's place for a braai (BBQ) that night. After a lot of awesome South African wine, we thought it would be a brilliant idea to go to a dance club downtown, which was indeed brilliant. Except that another friend had her purse slashed and her cell phone stolen. Again, they didn't get her wallet--- could have been worse. But still. Uber irritating.
Sunday met up with the son of a friend of my mothers (random connection, i know) and his girlfriend, and we went out of the city to a beautiful botanical garden, complete with idyllic waterfall and winding paths. Had a little picnic in the shade and thoroughly enjoyed being out of the city for a few hours. Lovely.
This week has been, as usual, crazy busy at work. But continues to be interesting, independant and engrossing. Can't ask for much more. Went tuesday night to a movie--- keep pinching myself remembering I am not in Huancavelica anymore--- and will be going tomorrow night to a coworkers place for an anti-valentines party. Should be fun. So that is the update. Lots of social stuff and work and being busy, but also lots of security issues and the constant presence of theft threats. A funny limbo---- having fun but always on edge. I am sure it will get exhausting.
Anyway, that's my update! Will write more soon!!
For example, on Friday, after a long week me and two roommates piled into her car for the drive home, only to find that someone had broken in and tried to start the car with a screwdriver, totally destroying the ignition. Lucky the car was not stolen, but it has been out of commission for a week, and we were stranded for a short time in a sketchy part of town at night, and if we had lef tthe car as it was it definitely would have been stolen. Security continues to be an ever-present concern. Luckily, nothing is very physical-- it's all about stealing stuff.
Saturday was fun--- went to a mall with friends to get a few things (still trying to set up my apartment), and then went to a coworker's place for a braai (BBQ) that night. After a lot of awesome South African wine, we thought it would be a brilliant idea to go to a dance club downtown, which was indeed brilliant. Except that another friend had her purse slashed and her cell phone stolen. Again, they didn't get her wallet--- could have been worse. But still. Uber irritating.
Sunday met up with the son of a friend of my mothers (random connection, i know) and his girlfriend, and we went out of the city to a beautiful botanical garden, complete with idyllic waterfall and winding paths. Had a little picnic in the shade and thoroughly enjoyed being out of the city for a few hours. Lovely.
This week has been, as usual, crazy busy at work. But continues to be interesting, independant and engrossing. Can't ask for much more. Went tuesday night to a movie--- keep pinching myself remembering I am not in Huancavelica anymore--- and will be going tomorrow night to a coworkers place for an anti-valentines party. Should be fun. So that is the update. Lots of social stuff and work and being busy, but also lots of security issues and the constant presence of theft threats. A funny limbo---- having fun but always on edge. I am sure it will get exhausting.
Anyway, that's my update! Will write more soon!!
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
The work has started!
So am half way into my first week of work... but let me back up.
The workshop last week ended up well, and Friday, after an afternoon at the office trying to get my computer set up and get a few little admin things done, I moved into my new place in the neighbourhood of Greenside, about 20 mins from work. (I don't have the mailing address here right now--- will post it next time) I am staying in a little cottage at the back of a house, where there are 4 other housemates, including the landlord. It is a place that half of the CIVICUS staff has stayed at at one time or another. So lots of past tenants pop by for visits. I will be posting pics of my little cottage on facebook soon. It is adequate--- small, but comfortable and safe. I am lucky to be able to hitch rides with Karina, another CIVICUS staff member at the house, to and from work most days, and grab a taxi otherwise. I will stay there for now anyway, but will be looking to move somewhere else in a few months I imagine.
Part of my reason for wanting to move on eventually is that on Saturday there was a MASSIVE thunder storm, 40% of which ended up on my floor.... not the most rain-proof of roofs. But I went over to the main house and hung out wiith the posse there, we made some dinner, etc... Was nice. Also on Saturday, Michael, the landlord, took me to a grocery store and shopping centre to get some basics, including a phone! Yahoooo! So I have a cell now, in case anyone needs to contact me via phone. The number is: 078 047 0452
Monday was my first official full day of work at the office, and things have been nutsy busy all week!! So many planning meetings, getting caught up with the org as a whole, as well as team building and strategic planning as a CSI team. We are basically starting from scratch in this new phase of implementation, which is both exciting and stressful. But it is great to be able to put your mark on the upcoming processes, and I am so far loving the creativity, independence and variety of the work. Awesome!
Monday night was a surreal night. After work, some people in the office were going to a solidarity night to support the hostages taken in Colombia, and I decided to go with one of my housemates, Yozi (who is part colombian). So we tagged a ride with some other people, and ended up in the middle of Soweto, in what looked like a very sketchy part of a generally sketchy town, at a run-down youth centre. We were all a little confused and a little nervous, to be honest, but in the end it turned out to be an amazing evening. We walked into the dilapidated building, crawling with kids, and lit up a map of colombia traced on the ground with 700 candles, one for each of the hostages. Then the Colombian ambassador came (!) and there were some readings and poetry. Then the music started, and there was this crazy fusion of colombian guitar and south african drums---- wow. And then the kids started singing and dancing--- the boys did this amazing dance---- they all put big rubber boots on, and I didn't know what was going on. And then they started this coordinated dance of slaps of the boot and stomping and clapping---- it was incredible, especially in that small room. Blue man group could learn a thing or two. I learned later that this is an old form of dance that people used to use in the mines to relay messages back and forth, hence the rubber boots. But it was really cool, and I was so excited and thankful to have been there. And when we went back to the car, the tires were still on it--- bonus! :)
So things are moving along, I am slowly getting to know the city (via others... no car yet. Will be a few weeks yet i imagine), getting to know people, getting settled into work and generally getting my life here underway. Will be looking into choirs and the like, hoping to get a book club started, looking into a hiking club i read about, etc... But so far i am really enjoying everything. There are these pockets of stress, these pockets of intense specialness, moments of intense peace, moments of panic.... this is definately a place of extremes, from what I have seen thus far. But I am really enjoying it. I have heard that Joburg is one of those cities you either love or hate, and i have a feeling I am going to be one of those people who love it.
The workshop last week ended up well, and Friday, after an afternoon at the office trying to get my computer set up and get a few little admin things done, I moved into my new place in the neighbourhood of Greenside, about 20 mins from work. (I don't have the mailing address here right now--- will post it next time) I am staying in a little cottage at the back of a house, where there are 4 other housemates, including the landlord. It is a place that half of the CIVICUS staff has stayed at at one time or another. So lots of past tenants pop by for visits. I will be posting pics of my little cottage on facebook soon. It is adequate--- small, but comfortable and safe. I am lucky to be able to hitch rides with Karina, another CIVICUS staff member at the house, to and from work most days, and grab a taxi otherwise. I will stay there for now anyway, but will be looking to move somewhere else in a few months I imagine.
Part of my reason for wanting to move on eventually is that on Saturday there was a MASSIVE thunder storm, 40% of which ended up on my floor.... not the most rain-proof of roofs. But I went over to the main house and hung out wiith the posse there, we made some dinner, etc... Was nice. Also on Saturday, Michael, the landlord, took me to a grocery store and shopping centre to get some basics, including a phone! Yahoooo! So I have a cell now, in case anyone needs to contact me via phone. The number is: 078 047 0452
Monday was my first official full day of work at the office, and things have been nutsy busy all week!! So many planning meetings, getting caught up with the org as a whole, as well as team building and strategic planning as a CSI team. We are basically starting from scratch in this new phase of implementation, which is both exciting and stressful. But it is great to be able to put your mark on the upcoming processes, and I am so far loving the creativity, independence and variety of the work. Awesome!
Monday night was a surreal night. After work, some people in the office were going to a solidarity night to support the hostages taken in Colombia, and I decided to go with one of my housemates, Yozi (who is part colombian). So we tagged a ride with some other people, and ended up in the middle of Soweto, in what looked like a very sketchy part of a generally sketchy town, at a run-down youth centre. We were all a little confused and a little nervous, to be honest, but in the end it turned out to be an amazing evening. We walked into the dilapidated building, crawling with kids, and lit up a map of colombia traced on the ground with 700 candles, one for each of the hostages. Then the Colombian ambassador came (!) and there were some readings and poetry. Then the music started, and there was this crazy fusion of colombian guitar and south african drums---- wow. And then the kids started singing and dancing--- the boys did this amazing dance---- they all put big rubber boots on, and I didn't know what was going on. And then they started this coordinated dance of slaps of the boot and stomping and clapping---- it was incredible, especially in that small room. Blue man group could learn a thing or two. I learned later that this is an old form of dance that people used to use in the mines to relay messages back and forth, hence the rubber boots. But it was really cool, and I was so excited and thankful to have been there. And when we went back to the car, the tires were still on it--- bonus! :)
So things are moving along, I am slowly getting to know the city (via others... no car yet. Will be a few weeks yet i imagine), getting to know people, getting settled into work and generally getting my life here underway. Will be looking into choirs and the like, hoping to get a book club started, looking into a hiking club i read about, etc... But so far i am really enjoying everything. There are these pockets of stress, these pockets of intense specialness, moments of intense peace, moments of panic.... this is definately a place of extremes, from what I have seen thus far. But I am really enjoying it. I have heard that Joburg is one of those cities you either love or hate, and i have a feeling I am going to be one of those people who love it.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
First week update
Saturday was a fun day. After writing my last post, I had a nap, and then Ben and Frederico (two coworkers) and their partners Per and Ane, all went out for a night on the town. Went for an awesome meal (eating out here is super cheap--- even the good restaurants), then for drinks (had a weird shot of amarula and mint... ) and then went out dancing in a bar downtown. I think i was one of 4 white faces in the place. I get jolted every once and a while by how segregated this place feels sometimes. Lots of talk about balance and integration, but still many examples of seperateness. But it was a great night, and fun intro to the city! See--- you can be in downtown Joburg at night and not be robbed or killed. :)
Sunday, Ben and I headed over to the hotel to get ready for the workshops that have been going on all week. We are inducting 6 new african countries into the CSI project, so there were several logistical moments with planes and taxis and the like (had people coming in from Senegal, Rwanda, Tanzania, Kenya, Guinea and Botswana--- yeek!), but in the end everyone arrived in one piece, and the workshop has been going really well. Awesome people, and has been a great opportunity to really familiarize myself with the project, while at the same time getting to know my awesome work team. People are great, and I really look forward to working with them all!
So I have been been staying in this lush garden retreat all week.... life is so hard! And i have my own room, which is good since i am up all hours with a stupidly long case of jetlag. I am still only getting about 3-4 hours of sleep a night. Frustrating, but what can I do? Moving into my little cottage place on Friday, and hopefully getting a cell phone soon, as I have no way of being in touch with people otherwise. Will also look into getting a car soon. It is a must, it seems, if one is to get around. And I want to. Am already planning on looking for choirs with Frederico's partner Ane, and have seen many ads for karate dojos--- would love to get back into it. So must get a car. Phone first though... and learning how to drive on the other side of the road.... one step at a time.... :)
will update again this weekend!
Sunday, Ben and I headed over to the hotel to get ready for the workshops that have been going on all week. We are inducting 6 new african countries into the CSI project, so there were several logistical moments with planes and taxis and the like (had people coming in from Senegal, Rwanda, Tanzania, Kenya, Guinea and Botswana--- yeek!), but in the end everyone arrived in one piece, and the workshop has been going really well. Awesome people, and has been a great opportunity to really familiarize myself with the project, while at the same time getting to know my awesome work team. People are great, and I really look forward to working with them all!
So I have been been staying in this lush garden retreat all week.... life is so hard! And i have my own room, which is good since i am up all hours with a stupidly long case of jetlag. I am still only getting about 3-4 hours of sleep a night. Frustrating, but what can I do? Moving into my little cottage place on Friday, and hopefully getting a cell phone soon, as I have no way of being in touch with people otherwise. Will also look into getting a car soon. It is a must, it seems, if one is to get around. And I want to. Am already planning on looking for choirs with Frederico's partner Ane, and have seen many ads for karate dojos--- would love to get back into it. So must get a car. Phone first though... and learning how to drive on the other side of the road.... one step at a time.... :)
will update again this weekend!
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Arrived!
Just a quick note for those of those interested that I have arrived safe and sound in Joburg! It took an extra day to get here as I got stuck in Montreal due to snow, but I got here Friday (it took 4 days!) and have been getting oriented. Enjoying the sun (which is lucky because it is usually rainy this time of year), and have been thoroughly welcomed by CIVICUS, and especially my co-worker Ben and his partner Per. Ben has had to work a lot, in preparation for the big workshop we have all next week, so Per has been wonderful showing me around, treating me to the fresh fruit of the area, taking me on tours in the car and generally making me feel very welcome. I am staying with them now, but will be moving tomorrow to the hotel where we will be running next week's workshop. Busy busy! After that, on Friday of next week, I will move into my new place--- i went to see it today, and it looks good. I will write more about it when i have been there more than a few mins...
Basic first impressions of Joburg: extremes between rich and poor. Duh... i know. Not rocket science. But it is still distracting to notice such extremes, and in sich close proximity to each other. Accordingly, one does become very conscious of security. Everyone you meet has stories of having had things stolen--- and not just keys and money. Laptops and cars, etc... So I will be extra cautious until i learn the ropes a bit. Id rather be paranoid and safe for the first bit, than start off on the wrong foot and get robbed.
Also, I am struck by the flora. Apparently there is very little indigenous to the area, so most everything is imported. However, because the climate is so great, EVERYTHING thrives here! So you get oaks next to palm trees, passion fruits and lavender and carpets of thyme, you get bougainvillia and every kind of flowering bush and tree. And because the growing season is basically constant, there is always something flowering somewhere. Beautiful!
Anyway, everyone seems very friendly, and I have no reservations thus far. I am a bit nervous about eventually getting a car, etc... but I am assured that it is not a big deal with the driving on the wrong side of the road, and the bad traffic, etc... once you have started driving. Well perhaps, but it feels daunting after only your first few days here... But i will have to figure it out, so there you go!
So that is it for now. Will be quite busy this coming week at the workshop, so check back next weekend for a new post. Hope all is well with everyone, and keep in touch!
Basic first impressions of Joburg: extremes between rich and poor. Duh... i know. Not rocket science. But it is still distracting to notice such extremes, and in sich close proximity to each other. Accordingly, one does become very conscious of security. Everyone you meet has stories of having had things stolen--- and not just keys and money. Laptops and cars, etc... So I will be extra cautious until i learn the ropes a bit. Id rather be paranoid and safe for the first bit, than start off on the wrong foot and get robbed.
Also, I am struck by the flora. Apparently there is very little indigenous to the area, so most everything is imported. However, because the climate is so great, EVERYTHING thrives here! So you get oaks next to palm trees, passion fruits and lavender and carpets of thyme, you get bougainvillia and every kind of flowering bush and tree. And because the growing season is basically constant, there is always something flowering somewhere. Beautiful!
Anyway, everyone seems very friendly, and I have no reservations thus far. I am a bit nervous about eventually getting a car, etc... but I am assured that it is not a big deal with the driving on the wrong side of the road, and the bad traffic, etc... once you have started driving. Well perhaps, but it feels daunting after only your first few days here... But i will have to figure it out, so there you go!
So that is it for now. Will be quite busy this coming week at the workshop, so check back next weekend for a new post. Hope all is well with everyone, and keep in touch!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Welcome to my Joburg Blog!
Hello friends and family!
So, as you know, or have recently discovered, I am now off to Johannesburg, South Africa for the next step in my ever-varied career path, and have been advised/compelled/guilted into starting up another blog so that people can check up on me and what I am doing there. So enjoy!
A few words of introduction: I will be working in Joburg for an organization called CIVICUS, whose link you can find to the right of this posting, along with a link to the website dedicated to the project I will be working with: the Civil Society Index. Instead of trying to explain everything here, I thought it would be way easier (for me...) to provide the links to the websites, and those of you who are interested in learning more can check them out. Please feel free to let me know what you think, or if you have any questions! I cannot profess to be an expert yet, but I have been working as a consultant for them since September 2007 while waiting for my work visa (as many of you know) and so have a sense of what is going on and what I will be doing.
In a VERY small nutshell, CIVICUS is an international organization working to promote, develop and advance civil society around the globe. My project, the Civil Society Index (CSI) has several goals, including developing a database of civil society of every country, capacity building within civil society, etc... As the Spanish-speaker on the team, I will be in charge of Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as a variety of English-speaking countries. Thus, in addition to the desk work I will be doing from Joburg, I will get to travel around a bit to give workshops, etc... in various places around Latin America, Africa, and hopefully Asia. I will, of course, keep this blog updated with my trips and work and what is going on.
Thus, in short, I imagine this blog will be documenting my life in South Africa, which I am anticipating with great relish as I have heard many a wonderful thing about the country, but also my work-related travels around the world.
Just a note: I will not be posting many pics on this blog--- it will be pretty text heavy, unless Blogger.com can figure out a better and more efficient way of uploading and placing pics within a blog post. For those of you on Facebook, however, I will continue to post pics up there. So not to fear: there will be visuals available, if that is your bent. Just don't expect too many of them here.
So have fun, and check back every week or so. I will do my best to update regularly. You are welcome to nudge me if I get slack. And please don't be shy to post a reply, or drop me an email once in a while. I want to know what everyone is doing too!!!
And with that, i end my first posting on what I anticipate will be a great adventure. I will be leaving Saint John, NB on Tuesday, January 22nd, arriving in Joburg on 10am on Thursday, January 24th. From there, I hit the ground running, with a big CSI workshop being held in Joburg starting the next Monday, Jan 28th.... yikes! So wish me luck, and keep in touch!
So, as you know, or have recently discovered, I am now off to Johannesburg, South Africa for the next step in my ever-varied career path, and have been advised/compelled/guilted into starting up another blog so that people can check up on me and what I am doing there. So enjoy!
A few words of introduction: I will be working in Joburg for an organization called CIVICUS, whose link you can find to the right of this posting, along with a link to the website dedicated to the project I will be working with: the Civil Society Index. Instead of trying to explain everything here, I thought it would be way easier (for me...) to provide the links to the websites, and those of you who are interested in learning more can check them out. Please feel free to let me know what you think, or if you have any questions! I cannot profess to be an expert yet, but I have been working as a consultant for them since September 2007 while waiting for my work visa (as many of you know) and so have a sense of what is going on and what I will be doing.
In a VERY small nutshell, CIVICUS is an international organization working to promote, develop and advance civil society around the globe. My project, the Civil Society Index (CSI) has several goals, including developing a database of civil society of every country, capacity building within civil society, etc... As the Spanish-speaker on the team, I will be in charge of Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as a variety of English-speaking countries. Thus, in addition to the desk work I will be doing from Joburg, I will get to travel around a bit to give workshops, etc... in various places around Latin America, Africa, and hopefully Asia. I will, of course, keep this blog updated with my trips and work and what is going on.
Thus, in short, I imagine this blog will be documenting my life in South Africa, which I am anticipating with great relish as I have heard many a wonderful thing about the country, but also my work-related travels around the world.
Just a note: I will not be posting many pics on this blog--- it will be pretty text heavy, unless Blogger.com can figure out a better and more efficient way of uploading and placing pics within a blog post. For those of you on Facebook, however, I will continue to post pics up there. So not to fear: there will be visuals available, if that is your bent. Just don't expect too many of them here.
So have fun, and check back every week or so. I will do my best to update regularly. You are welcome to nudge me if I get slack. And please don't be shy to post a reply, or drop me an email once in a while. I want to know what everyone is doing too!!!
And with that, i end my first posting on what I anticipate will be a great adventure. I will be leaving Saint John, NB on Tuesday, January 22nd, arriving in Joburg on 10am on Thursday, January 24th. From there, I hit the ground running, with a big CSI workshop being held in Joburg starting the next Monday, Jan 28th.... yikes! So wish me luck, and keep in touch!
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