Metropolitan Hotel Calabar

... n y a pas d electricite on a pas le droit d entree sans pay** les frais exorbitants du gen**ateur, etc... Je suis content j ai reussit en 1H a avoir a faire le visa pour le cam**oun et a recevoir un 3 mois multiple entree que l on ne donne pas normalenent mais la discussion est bien passÉ avec le vice-consul. Attraction majeur de calabar c est le centre de rehabilitation des mandrills. Un singe connu pour ses couleurs et son masque et qui a quasiment disparu.

... jumping and dancing uncontrollably. One of the locals at the school asked what a red pepp** was as he had nev** seen one before. We told him and advised they could be bought not 50km down the road. Amazing to think that even somewh**e so close is completely foreign to them. No wond** they w**e so fascinated with a truck load of white people cruising down their dirt back roads. Drove 30km in 3 hours - progress painfully slow. Finally managed ...

... oth** is Lagos, the *****ian capital city, not really an option because of the dang** involved in going th**e). Unfortunately, though, the consulate was closed the day we got th**e because it was Tabaski, the Muslim feast holiday commemorating Abraham's willingness to sacrifice is son on God's ord**s, so we had an extra day to wand** around Calabar, eat well, and catch up on Int**netting. With all the bad news that has come out of Africa ov** the last ...

... turn down their kind offer. The Dream In my dream I was a tour guide to some friends in China. First I took my friend Bob from Washington, DC on a tour of a Catholic church and Buddhist temple complex. The two were part of the same compound, and the Catholic church looked much like the famous ruins of the cathedral in Macau. I showed Bob all around and then met a tall maroon-robed monk who took ...

... zusammengeflickt hat. Danach w**den sie in Tanks mit ein** Wass**-Formalin-Mischung gelag**t, damit sie nicht "schlecht w**den". Od** man wickelt sie in Stoff und dann in Plastiksaecke, und dann liegen die halt so rum, bis die Be**digung vorb**eitet ist. Wenn sie ordentlich präpari**t sind, bleiben die auch bei Zimm**temp**atur frisch. Dau**t im Schnitt wohl so zwei Monate bis zur Be**digung; bei einem wichtigen Chief, od** wenn es irgendwelche Streit**eien um Kohle gibt ...

... two women, on separate occasions, had to be taken out as they started screaming and spinning around. I met the main preach** "Papa" aft**wards which was an event in itself. His office was und**ground and was beautiful. I impressed him with my limited Efik language skills and he gave me two signed books which was a nice gesture - his name is Emmah Isong for any hardcore Christians among you who may know him? We had ...

... of fundraising for the children. It's turning into a v**y exciting project - and I love doing it apart from having z**o free time compared to the oth** volunte**s. Trying to do anything h**e is vastly diff**ent from how it would be done in the UK - time management is non existent h**e eg. the headmast** has not turned up for work on time for a week and it is rare to start and finish anything on time - even formal meetings! I have spent the last three weeks explaining ...

... unhurt) and its driv** got up, did not so much as glance at the passeng** to check if they w**e ok, marched ov** to the taxi driv**, pulled him out and started throwing punches at him! Myself and Charlie, anoth** volunte**, decided to start Art classes at a Psychiatric Hospital in Calabar and do so ev**y Friday aft**noon. Last week we taught a drawing/painting class. It was v**y eye-opening for us. Before this, I had struggled ...

... h**e in Calabar) and is some kind of king also. We w**e required to p**form something for him and so we all decided to p**form a dance. It was half traditional Efik dancing (lots of should** rolling and shaking of hips - v**y funny watching the British males trying to do this!) and half English Country dancing (it was equally funny watching the *****ians trying to dance this). We think the Obong enjoyed it although I have a suspicion that he may have caught 40 winks during our ...

... to actually move along. The driv**s are mad and even worse than in Abuja - I've seen motorbikes drive right into taxis and just go off before the driv** has time to get out and shout at them! We "picked a bike" on Saturday (took a motorbike - public transport h**e is eith** a car taxi, a bus taxi or a motorbike taxi) and found ourselves going the wrong way down a busy highway... The locals have been v**y friendly towards us so far (apart from market hold**s who grab ...