I have no photos to post this time since I think I left them on my laptop - I did have some nice ones from Tanzania of giraffes, zebras and monkeys - will maybe post next time but by then they would be old news. I went to Tanzania in late September for a continuing medical education conference that the Peace Corps has annually for the medical officers. They tend to be in interesting places but the conference itself is very time consuming with little time off so you can really only enjoy the place if you are staying for longer which I couldn't do this year since I'm going to be away for a month in November. But it would have been a great place to stay longer with access to the Serengetti, the Ngorongoro crater and Killimanjaro. Some other time, I hope. I did get to go on a minisafari close to the hotel (it was in Arusha) and see some pretty great giraffes, etc.
I'm very much anticipating coming home in 11 days - have a dentist appointment and will be visiting as many people as I can along with stocking up on things I can't get here (or at least can't get easily). There are no department stores in Lome so if you need something like a picture frame, a piece of luggage for a laptop or a sports bra (all of which I'm going to get in the US) it's kind of hard to know where to start. There's a store called Champion which is Lome's answer to Walmart (as we all say) but really it's a very poor substitute - it had a lot of some things (like all kinds of liquor and lots of household goods) but not much of other things you might want. It's easy to buy a bra in Lome - women sell them from piles on the tops of their heads - but they are all the same kind with molded cups in every imaginable color. And how do they get tried on? I have no idea. I guess you just hope it fits...
So I'll be in Washington for a training of new medical officers that takes place over 3 weeks and I'll be home for a bit before and after. I'll also be spending a weekend in Boston and another one in Chicago so it will be a pretty busy trip but I can't wait!
It's gotten very hot here again particularly at midday which is keeping me in my house as much as possible since it's always very comfortable there. It's tolerable outside in the morning before the sun gets too high. I've actually started running a few days a week - something I would have never imagined I'd do and I can't say I really like it but it does feel kind of good - but I have to go very early before it gets hot but after the sun comes up. There's maybe a half an hour that's good for that. Mostly I'm swimming late in the day at the ambassador's pool which is really great as always. It's still pretty nice in the evening - there's often a bit of a breeze so that sitting outside can be quite pleasant. There's been a little rain this week which is good because it's been way too dry here. My yard was frying till I finally figured out how to connect my hoses so they'd reach the front (I have to admit I didn't really try to figure it out till the grass was completely dead looking) but now it looks a lot better. I found another gardener (my previous one got sick and stopped coming) who is doing an excellent job. Looking forward to those cool autumn days in NY and DC...
We got a memo in the office yesterday which I found quite funny. It was about emergency procedures in the office. There was a part about what to do if there was a bomb threat which was that everyone should start looking around their area for anything suspicious and then tell the security officer or the general manager if we see anything. It just underscored so many things that are different here - there is no bomb squad that you could call so you just have to make do with what you have. I'm not even sure to what extent you could call the police and expect a response. I'm sure that procedure isn't Peace Corps sanctioned so I'm waiting to see if it gets revised since generally you would expect to evacuate the premises. But then what? Who's going to determine if the office is safe? Who would defuse a bomb if there was one? I have no idea...
And another thing - the whole length of the dirt road that runs outside the PC office was dug up by the Chinese (they are all over this continent digging things up, I think) to a depth of about 15 feet. A concrete gutter was laid in the bottom and then it was all covered up again in sand. The road cuts the neighborhood in 2 and the contruction has made travel very difficult. Additionally, large piles of sand have been left in the roads that intersect this road so that walking around the neighborhood is like walking on a beach. Supposedly, the road will be paved in 2 YEARS! So meanwhile, we're in a beach-like setting for that time. In the US we would be complaining, we would be wanting information. But in Togo there's no one to complain to nor can you get information most of the time. You really do have to just go with the flow. It's hard to learn to do that for me. I spend pointless time being angry about things I can't control. But it is a lesson...
Today is Friday - the half day that is the payoff for the long hours Monday through Thursday so I'm heading home now. I hope I'll see some of you soon.
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