Oh my goodness... so much time has passed me by... I don't know if I can catch up! I'm still within the rules though... so here we go:
LAST FRIDAY:
I've arrived. Keene is AWESOME as always :) I've gone around and said hi to as many people as possible in the bit of time I have here. Highlights:
-The momma was NOT surprised thanks to some mystery person (whom I suspect to be Tio Celso) revealing the surprise to her before I was able to arrive
-Seeing everyone again was SO wonderful, thank the Lord for His providence
-Vacation... need I say more?!?
-I had to fly Dina back up to Keene from Houston, because she was trying to run away from me my one weekend in Keene!
-So many things to do in so little time! It's rather overwhelming
-The Bryces had the most memorable reactions to seeing me... loved it! hahaha
-Really and Truly... There's no place like HOME!
Loving Every Minute Of It.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Friday, February 5, 2010
London Layover
Chilling in the London Heathrow airport.... got 45 seconds left of web browsing time and I'm using it well by posting a blog. Dude, I'm like, SOOO dedicated.
Update later, Ciao!
Update later, Ciao!
Off I Go!
THURSDAY'S POST:
Currently on a Plane headed to Johannesburg then to London for my layovers on my way to the great American continent. It feels so great to finally be on my way! It seemed like this day would never get here.
Yay for vacations!
Currently on a Plane headed to Johannesburg then to London for my layovers on my way to the great American continent. It feels so great to finally be on my way! It seemed like this day would never get here.
Yay for vacations!
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Roque Santeiro, you have my heart.
TUESDAY'S POST:
So I've mentioned more than a few times how EVERYTHING is expensive in Luanda, right? Well, I must be fair. Not everything is expensive... or to put it more accurately, not everywhere in Luanda is expensive. Stores, restaurants, boutiques, malls, etc, yes... very expensive. But there is a source of abundant retail goodness that I have yet to mention. A complete treasure chest of goodies galore at affordable prices. Where is this, you ask? Why, it's the outdoor markets. Yes, my friends. Ghetto, unkempt, and unhygienic as they may be, those outdoor markets are THE place to go when you're a pennypincher in need of a shopping spree. There are several markets that sell good stuff, depending on what you're looking for (clothes, produce, electronics, etc) but there's one market that is the KING of all outdoor markets in Luanda. In fact, legend has it that it is the biggest outdoor market in all of Africa. I don't doubt it. This place is a SEA of booths, tents, and rugs splayed over the landscape exhibiting all the goodies they have to sell.
And They. Sell. EVERYTHING. Seriously, there's nothing you can't find at this marketplace. You need it, they've got it. And for cheap. I love it. The only drawback is that since it is so accessible to the lower classes, it is also accessible to the criminals. That place is mugging central. If you go there with anything on - a nice watch, a necklace, bracelet, earrings, cellphone, wallet, ANYthing- it'll get snatched. So the way to go about it is to lock up everything in the car or at home, and just take the money you're gonna need in your bra or somewhere unreachable.
Today I went to Roque to get some shoes that are comfortable to walk in... After my last vacation, I realize how important it is to wear comfy shoes for all the walking one does when travelling. I ended getting some cute tennis shoes, kinda like chucks but not quite (they look like this but without the red and black lines: http://www.converse.com/#/products/collections/Chuck%20Taylor%20All%20Star%20Slim/113896F), that people buy at stores, malls, and boutiques for like 100 bucks. They cost me $9. Pretty stinkin' awesome.
So this post is dedicated to the awesome (and highly dangerous) market that will from now on be my mall of choice. Don't worry guys, I always go with one of my uncles or cousins or coworkers and I carry nothing of value with me so I wont get attacked.
Yay for ultra-bargains!
Name Game
MONDAY'S POST:
This morning I didn't go jogging... I was too tired from Saturday night's allnighter... so there goes one training session down the drain :(
Things at work were pretty busy, still finishing up any pendientes I had left within the contracts department and catching up on work emails and all that jazz.
Aside from that, I got home and just chilled with some family visiting from Benguela. Yes, Jessica and Sabrina and whomever else has wondered about this... this is REAL family, blood relatives. hahaha. We had to substitute them with fake ones over there in the Americas, lol.
One of them is Tio Alegria (you have my blessing to chuckle about his name...) and the last time he saw me I was a few months old, in Portugal, so he was pretty ecstatic about seeing me. Tio Celso also came by over the weekend, and apparently we may meet up in Mexico because he's planning on passing by there, as he usually does, around the same time that I'm gonna be there.
They also brought some kid cousins... Tia Raquel's (Tio Celso's sister) boys. One is Ravi, he's 11, one is Celsinho, and he's 6. They have been playing and running amuck all over the house and the yard with Eddy, which is SO good because this kid is usually so isolated from other kids that it's somewhat worrying. I would NOT want to raise my kids in this city, because in order to protect them from the dangers outside you end up isolating them... especially if they're an only child, like Eddy. Total sidenote: I've never met someone so named-after as Tio Celso. There's so many 2nd and 3rd generation Celsos in this family, it's crazy... hahaha
Anyways... off to bed now. Still counting down the days...
This morning I didn't go jogging... I was too tired from Saturday night's allnighter... so there goes one training session down the drain :(
Things at work were pretty busy, still finishing up any pendientes I had left within the contracts department and catching up on work emails and all that jazz.
Aside from that, I got home and just chilled with some family visiting from Benguela. Yes, Jessica and Sabrina and whomever else has wondered about this... this is REAL family, blood relatives. hahaha. We had to substitute them with fake ones over there in the Americas, lol.
One of them is Tio Alegria (you have my blessing to chuckle about his name...) and the last time he saw me I was a few months old, in Portugal, so he was pretty ecstatic about seeing me. Tio Celso also came by over the weekend, and apparently we may meet up in Mexico because he's planning on passing by there, as he usually does, around the same time that I'm gonna be there.
They also brought some kid cousins... Tia Raquel's (Tio Celso's sister) boys. One is Ravi, he's 11, one is Celsinho, and he's 6. They have been playing and running amuck all over the house and the yard with Eddy, which is SO good because this kid is usually so isolated from other kids that it's somewhat worrying. I would NOT want to raise my kids in this city, because in order to protect them from the dangers outside you end up isolating them... especially if they're an only child, like Eddy. Total sidenote: I've never met someone so named-after as Tio Celso. There's so many 2nd and 3rd generation Celsos in this family, it's crazy... hahaha
Anyways... off to bed now. Still counting down the days...
Monday, February 1, 2010
Long Nights, Longer Days
SUNDAY'S POST:
So I was right. I did end up staying up all night working on the books and lesson plans. Ugh, you'd think I was making money from all this work... lol. But I have faith that one day it will all pay off when I see my students performing top level music in front of large audiences. We'll get there! Keep the dream alive!
Ok, enough pep talk. So after the all-nighter, I went straight to church to teach the course and assign the several-week homework... and then I passed by Tio Terencio's to say bye to the fam where I received some African Championship shirts and a scarf that Tio T is sending to Papi as souvenirs of the Championship... I'm sure he's gonna love the stuff :) Such a sweet gesture from Tio...
So after that I went back home to eat something real quick and spent the rest of the day doing laundry. It was EXHAUSTING... I hadn't done laundry in a whole month or more because I've been so busy... so EVERYTHING was dirty, and I washed it all by hand. I know, very African of me. But anyhow, I got through it, and now it's late, I'm tired as tired can be (note to self: don't ever pull an all-nighter and do loads upon loads of laundry by hand within the same 24-hour period)... at least I feel a sense of accomplishment, it's been quite a productive couple of days :)
I'm going to bed... still counting down the days until I jet off. Can't wait!!!!
So I was right. I did end up staying up all night working on the books and lesson plans. Ugh, you'd think I was making money from all this work... lol. But I have faith that one day it will all pay off when I see my students performing top level music in front of large audiences. We'll get there! Keep the dream alive!
Ok, enough pep talk. So after the all-nighter, I went straight to church to teach the course and assign the several-week homework... and then I passed by Tio Terencio's to say bye to the fam where I received some African Championship shirts and a scarf that Tio T is sending to Papi as souvenirs of the Championship... I'm sure he's gonna love the stuff :) Such a sweet gesture from Tio...
So after that I went back home to eat something real quick and spent the rest of the day doing laundry. It was EXHAUSTING... I hadn't done laundry in a whole month or more because I've been so busy... so EVERYTHING was dirty, and I washed it all by hand. I know, very African of me. But anyhow, I got through it, and now it's late, I'm tired as tired can be (note to self: don't ever pull an all-nighter and do loads upon loads of laundry by hand within the same 24-hour period)... at least I feel a sense of accomplishment, it's been quite a productive couple of days :)
I'm going to bed... still counting down the days until I jet off. Can't wait!!!!
College Days Deja Vu
SATURDAY'S POST:
Today was a nice Sabbath. At church, the sermon was about living faith. The preacher talked about applying all the things we talk about and claim to believe to our daily walk. It's always good to receive a fresh reminder, because too often we can become trapped in a routine of 'cultural christianity' and not experience a vibrant, tangible faith as we should.
I had lunch at Tio Terencio's as usual, and then decided to attend a Sabbath afternoon program at a different church (Igreja do Palanca). It was a music program that I had been invited to, but I had declined because I was supposed to have a practice at my church, so I wouldn't be able to make it to both. However, the practice was cancelled at the last minute so I was able to dash to Palanca and attend their program instead. When I walked in, they choir and small groups were doing a final run-through before the actual program. Well, when the music director noticed I had brought my clarinet (since I was supposed to have a practice), he threw me into the program at the last minute. I was like, oh wow, what's with the impromptu request? lol But we went through some pieces that he wanted help with, and they came out just fine. He's a wonderful pianist, so it was easy to come up with some nice ad libs to add to the music.
The program was wonderful and inspirational, especially since it was themed 'Expressao da Minha Alma', a program in which every artist sang a song written and composed by him/herself.
It was really good.
After the program, I went home to change, and then came to Tio Sousa's (Moises, Gera, and Eugenia's dad) so I could finish printing MORE music guides and do lesson plans for the whole time I'm gonna be gone.
So here I sit, typing away while the printer chugs along with the thousands of pages it still has left to print. I can already tell this one's gonna be another allnighter. Geeze Louise, what is this, college all over again?
Today was a nice Sabbath. At church, the sermon was about living faith. The preacher talked about applying all the things we talk about and claim to believe to our daily walk. It's always good to receive a fresh reminder, because too often we can become trapped in a routine of 'cultural christianity' and not experience a vibrant, tangible faith as we should.
I had lunch at Tio Terencio's as usual, and then decided to attend a Sabbath afternoon program at a different church (Igreja do Palanca). It was a music program that I had been invited to, but I had declined because I was supposed to have a practice at my church, so I wouldn't be able to make it to both. However, the practice was cancelled at the last minute so I was able to dash to Palanca and attend their program instead. When I walked in, they choir and small groups were doing a final run-through before the actual program. Well, when the music director noticed I had brought my clarinet (since I was supposed to have a practice), he threw me into the program at the last minute. I was like, oh wow, what's with the impromptu request? lol But we went through some pieces that he wanted help with, and they came out just fine. He's a wonderful pianist, so it was easy to come up with some nice ad libs to add to the music.
The program was wonderful and inspirational, especially since it was themed 'Expressao da Minha Alma', a program in which every artist sang a song written and composed by him/herself.
It was really good.
After the program, I went home to change, and then came to Tio Sousa's (Moises, Gera, and Eugenia's dad) so I could finish printing MORE music guides and do lesson plans for the whole time I'm gonna be gone.
So here I sit, typing away while the printer chugs along with the thousands of pages it still has left to print. I can already tell this one's gonna be another allnighter. Geeze Louise, what is this, college all over again?
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