Another big day at the beach
Trip Start
Aug 01, 2008
1
36
63
Trip End
Jun 30, 2010
Pointe Noire,
Congo
Sunday, November 23, 2008
We got to spend time with some new folks -- Daniela and Gustavo from Brazil, and Dan and Pam from Texas. -- otherwise it was the familiar crowd. Everyone is coming over to our place next week to celebrate Oscar's birthday and have a feast in the spirit of Thanksgiving. Daniela over-ordered some beef tenderloins at the meat supplier, so we'll probably do up one or two of those instead of a turkey. The only turkey we could find was a "french" turkey -- maybe 8 pounds, and no guarantee that it would arrive here in time. So we ordered two geese instead, but they may not show up until Christmas.
Last night we had a few folks over to watch a movie. Have to admit that the weekends here are sweet and make the routine of the week feel complete. Friday afternoons usually finds us at LePyramide, walking the dog on the beach and letting the kids play at the playground while we socialize on the deck with a drink and a plate of peanuts. Saturdays are swimming lessons and gym classes in the morning. Oscar does his gym class solo, so we go up and have a coffee and croissant at the Naval Club restaurant. Usually we do a bit of shopping and hanging out, before a gathering of some sort at our house or one of our friends' houses. The holiday season officially begins next week with our faux Thanksgiving/Oscar b-day party, so I'm sure it'll be a stretch of socializing through the New Year.
Otherwise, the school rolls on. We've had three or four people in over the last two weeks checking us out as a possiblity for their kids, but still no new applications have come in. We did hear via e-mail from an English couple that came in last week that they will indeed move here, so that probably means their four-year-old will join us next year. Report cards go out at the end of the week, then three weeks until the winter break. We are trying to put together a trip to South Africa for the February break. Our friends have convinced us not to go all the way to June without getting out of town. It's hard to get anywhere from here, and South Africa seems like the most accessible place to have some R and R in a civilized English speaking environment. Cape Town has a great reputation for the good life, and kid-friendly places to boot.
We got to spend time with another friendly couple this week, Daphne and Peter from Holland, who wanted to check out the school as a possibility for their daughter. So without trying too hard our circle of friends is expanding and our need to speak French is diminishing. So much of the business that goes on here is conducted in English that it is not hard to find people who are completely comfortable with it.
This week's logisitical adventure was the washing machine on the blink (again). After one repair effort, the housekeeper spoke with the school secretary to suggest just replacing it (the previous repair cost about half the cost of a new one), and, voila!, a new one has appeared.
We've been through many weeks now of not needing to visit the clinic, and we are now hearing from friends that there is another better clinic that we should investigate for the next time we need medical care -- cleaner and more kid friendly is the word on the street. Guenin has done us pretty well, but NetCare supposedly is a bit better.
I did get over to the Gran Marche a couple of weeks ago, with someone who knows her way around the section where you don't see white people. We saw the traditional roots and medicines section and the bush meat section among other delights. She is a frequent visitor and so has some familiar vendors that she visits. It's kind of far from our house, so I'm content to continue going to the market right near us by the supermarket we favor. I'm planning to take my class there on a field trip next week as part of our study of community and our science unit focusing on seeds and plants.
We've also finally figured out that the absolute best way for us to receive mail is via the Schlumberger France address, listed earlier on the blog. We don't have to pay the excessive customs and bone charges that are otherwise part of the way of doing business here in the Congo. Speaking of which, we have finally had our requisite run-ins with the police while driving in town and minding our own business. The first time we were actually stopped in traffic when the cop waved us over to shake us down. He didn't like the paperwork on the car, and when we called our company contact (it's a company car), he argued with the cop and then told us to give him five thousand cfa, about ten bucks. The next time I talked my way out of the situation, but Ann-Mary had to kick down another five thousand yesterday to get on her way. We've learned to stay off the main roads whenever possible, which avoids us some traffic anyway. We'd had a nice run of three months without getting hassled, but now I guess the honeymoon period is over.
