Yeah, I live

Apologies for being a horrible friend who doesn't keep in touch. Seriously.

Wow. I haven't updated here in about a couple million years. I think I need to write something, just to prove that I'm still able to. Seriously. I just haven't been keeping up with Facebook, or my own blog for a bit. Call it a thinking hiatus.

I realize that I didn’t write anything since my European trip - mostly, I got absorbed in the offline world and in Madrid - in Paris - in Luxembourg - in England. It was fantastic, and I moved on just in time to go to Aceh for my next assignment.

Aceh was alright - there were some pleasant moments with my team - I did manage to blog some then, thankfully so.

And then there was the summer leave during which I went to a family bash in France and got in trouble in England for being a bad packer. (Not a backpacker, though it could have been that too.) People, that swiss knife? Just leave it at home.

Then there was Haiti, again, otherwise known as Hell. I spent weeks and weeks locked up at work or in my room, waiting for it to be over - and still sort of traumatized by my English experience. I didn't update - I honestly had little to say or to tell. It was just a waiting time. Jachere. It was a good thing I had a long leave of absence planned after that.

So I had a long vaca - it wasn't lost, though. I made some decisions - mostly about ending my current gig, and going on to uni. I need to be in the world of Academia again. When I see those dorky professors and musty classrooms, I get all emo. So. Instead of going on like an idiot about how I need to change my life, I did.

I quit. I'm going back to school in January. One last gig, and I'm done with this slave trader of a boss. I admit, I'm going to miss my friends at work, though it's only a matter of time before they move on too - it always is in this business.

It's a big deal - it's my second degree, I know. I just need to be intellectually stimulated again. I want to think of Edgar Allan Poe's translations of Baudelaire. I want to reflect on the contruction of Finwean linguistics. I want to take time to write essays about how Jane Austen was repressed and how she is just like Madame de Cleves.

I'm going to be a lit professor.

Fuck joining the corporate world. It was never a life for me. It doesn't work for me, it never did.

And I also say, blah to trying to change the world. It's impossible - even the best intentions get twarped by politics. It's time to face the fact : I want to do things I feel like doing - not things that I have to do because I should fit in a mold.

I don't want a white picket fence.

I don't want 2.5 kids.

I don't want to give up my freedom just because it's a condition of being like everyone else.

I don't want to be like everyone. I want to be me.

In the meantime, I’m in Rwanda for another month and a half. I’ll live.

The Beaver

My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

So. I suck.

I’d be hard pressed to give a reasonable explanation for this long silence. I like blogging. Only thing is, I’ve once again become disengaged, as it’s happened to me regularly over these past few months.

I suppose I should own the fact that I am becoming blasee. The wonders of the world no longer phase me. I turn my mind to other things – to my inner universe and the stories I want to write, the imaginary people screaming to be born of my mind.

Yet, my pen is sterile and it is a blissful torture to be so inhabited by unborn phantoms.

Perhaps it would be kind of me to describe the setting in which this rant is born. It is on a boat, a small ferry that reeks of lake water and market smells, a place so full of the chatter of old Indonesian ladies, it is a wonder I can write at all. There are six bullays on this ship: yours truly, Spade, Vee, a man with too much belly and very bad skin, another with stunning blue eyes, and a girl who has backpacker stamped on her forehead.

The ship leaves, to the sound, very alien, for this setting, of La Lambada. It takes me a moment to recognize it. Destination: Samosir, on Lake Toba, North Sumatera. It is my second tourist outing in Indonesia, an they are only a week apart.

I was last weekend in Sabang, on the island of Palau Weh, off the coast of Aceh. A much needed breath of fresh air, with highlights including roast beef and snorkeling. I didn’t find Nemo, but maybe I wasn’t looking hard enough. I suppose getting sunstroke might also be a partial explanation as to why my efforts were hampered.

Also, hammocks rock. If I ever stop being a gypsy, I want one in my home. Another highlight: waiting for the night to crash on me as I belt out Yeats, Edith Piaf and Streisand to myself.

I guess I’m not so unphazed, after all. Just lazy. Aaaargh. Must be productive. Must must must.

Oh, a hammock.

ZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.


The Beaver
My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Unkept promises

I still own the Euro-Trip stories, I'm sorry. They're coming, eventually.

I'm not quite sure what I'm supposed to be writing about. It's crunch time, and I don't feel like working. And blah to me, because I know I'm going to pay for it, big time, very soon. Oh well.

I've recently developed a fascination for hardboiled PI characters. I'm not sure where that comes from. And my new favorite word is hardboiled. Which I like to think I am.

The worst part is, I think Snape-Dragon (SD) is actually a hardboiled type - the only reason I'm not quite able to refer to him as Spade, and not at Snape-Dragon, is that he's not... I don't know. Anyway. Since this realization boomed on me, I've found his company much more pleasant. Bear witness : 7 sushi-bar staff members who heard me laugh all night yesterday over his antics.

Then again, SD does have amazing, funny stories about all the places he's been - including the one dish in the world he was never able to eat, a green radioactive stew with suspicious, unidentified brownie-things. He can even be charming. Disturbing. Anyway.

I had a blast again - even after I'd left SD and gone almost home. Yeah. Almost home. Because there's a club downstairs where they have live cover bands every night - and good stuff, even if they don't do any Janice. I'd promised the barman I'd pop by - he's a bud - and ended up belting some John Lennon to a crowd of befuddled Malaysians. Such is my life.

Oh, and I'm in Medan. And there til next Monday. Mucho better, thank you.

The Beaver
My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Troglodyte

I'm not sure exactly when it happened, but I became a troglodyte during the weekend. So I have nothing to say, save for the fact that:
1) I'm thankful there is Internet at the hotel ;
2) Golf on TV is boring ;
3) Thanks to the Dragon, at least I had a glass of wine on saturday night. That was the high point of my weekend.

So...

Bene moved. Pesky illegal booze sellers, always on the move. Thankfully, from one dark alley to another, they were unearthed and booze was obtained.

All is well.

On another note, I'd somewhate lost my groove at work, but it seems to be returning. I'm very pleased to be safe from short timer's disease.

The Beaver
My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

I don't get this

So I blogged about my ordeal. Here’s the deal. My luggage NEVER left the airport of initial departure. Aaaaaargh. Good news is, I get my clothes tomorrow. Me happy.

Today… nothing of note happened. I did have eggplant juice a lunch, with spicy mango salad. Does that count? Since in Indonesia, the variety of available juices is mind boggling, I’ve resolved to try them all while I’m here.

So far I’ve had:
- Carrot juice (yummy) ;
- Avocado juice (delicious, seriously, there’s chocolate in there, it’s sinful) ;
- Starfruit juice (a bit bland, but whatever) ;
- Eggplant juice (dutch eggplant. It’s surprisingly pleasant).

I’m still struggling to put up the pics of my trip to Europe. My connection sucks. I’m sorry for the delays, really.

The Beaver
My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Big UFO Landing pad

I was presented with a map of the town today... some indications on it are pretty "tongue-in-cheek" as the yankees say... for example:Road names include Pizza House road, Stadium road, Some road, Some bigger road, Some other road, Some main road... And landmarks include two "Secret beer shops", Some weird building, Crappy bridge, Big flaming pink [insert NGO name] guesthouse, Malaria Swamps, Puke green house, Governor's Pimp pad, Retarded intersection and my favorite, Big UFO Landing pad.

All restaurants have indicated "Beer!!!" under their pin, when they serve it, and directions out of the city include: "To north of Banda Aceh via crappy road and tsunami wastelands", "To west coast beaches, that wood fired pizza place and Meulaboh", and "To Medan and the free world, a hell of a long way."This goes to say, they haven't figured out street names and addresses in this country yet.

Also, yesterday went down in history as the day where we managed to find a cab (a becak, mind you, it's a motorcycle with a side care, and the most common form of transportation), which knew to take us to the expat restaurant with beer.

The Beaver

My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Once upon a night in Banda

On TV, for background noise, I put on the only occidental channel available, Star World, and right now, they are showing Friends. I've never followed the series assiduously, and so my understanding of the storyline is very limited, but I like the fact that it is almost every where I go. Consistency in a world such as mine, where everything is ephemeral, is much appreciated. I just got off work, a second day of a 6 week long assignment. My team and I are sitting in a place which we call the Fishbowl, because it is surrounded with glass windows, and I spent the day idly revising documentation, trying to find gaps in the system.

Indonesia is a strange place to be, and for all the painful memories it holds, I do like it. The language is exotic, the people are smiling, the architecture is alien and elegant, the food burns my pallet exquisitely, the smells assail me everywhere. Even cigarettes smell differently here: the Indonesians smoke Kretek sticks, and they contain clove. Some people don't like it, but I do – I find it spicy and pleasant, contrary to the ordinary stuff.

I've opted to skip dinner out tonight. For that, I have a lot of good reasons. One of them is, I'm running out of cash, and I can't go to the ATM until tomorrow. The other is, since my luggage got lost on the way here, I have few clothes, and it's so hot and humid outside, my scant reserves are going to dwindle much too fast if I go out again. And… well… my boss is moody tonight, and that means unpleasant company – so I'm skipping. Best to be alone then poorly escorted. I'm alright, though. Now, if only my room had more natural light, I'd be happy.

I'm not particularly depressed... but this inspires me with a poem that echoes of the darkness surrounding my sleepless state.

My name is solitude, in a cave of darkness I dwell.
Arpeggios and songs fill my mind, treasures unshared, unkept.

My name is longing. I seek warmth and only find the chill
Of all that is lonely and sullen, of all night’s obscurities accept.

My name is ugliness. Nothing beholds that which will
Seduce or ensnare, but all that is monstrous, in the lottery, I swept.

My name is solitude, and I wish to be broken.
My name is longing, and I wish to be sated.
My name is ugliness, and I wish to be reclaimed.

Oh, lotus-eater, where art thou?

The Beaver
My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

A commute…

So I’m back…. And I’m blogging, and blogging about sunny and exotic Indonesia rather than about medieval and mind-boggling Europe. I’m so unpredictable, I should get an award. So after a whirlwind passage home in Canada, which followed my gipsy vacation touring Europe, I had to once more traverse the world to go to work. This is my commute. It starts on a Friday night, and ends on a Sunday evening. It lasts over 36 hours, before I can lie down and collapse in Morpheus’ arms. It brings me to the brink of fainting, to seizures in an airplane, before I can rest. It makes me lose patience with annoying officials, and it deprives me of my personal belongings.

Flippin’ air control
Travel time: 0h
Cigarettes: 1 (before boarding)
Annoyed and concerned Beaver: 1
Phone calls to travel service: 1
SMS to mum: 0
Comment: Flight no. 1 was late, because air control didn’t give it the go-ahead. There is no other connecting flight this day – so I’d have to sleep there at my expense and fly the next day if I miss it. I take a gamble and fly anyway.

G*ddam security goon
Travel time: 3h
Cigarettes: 0
Free Bacardi and coke: 1
Phone calls to travel service: ½ (Line is cut and plane takes off)
SMS to mum: 1
Comment: Because of this, I almost missed flight n. 2, and might still have, even though through sheer power of running I made it to the security checkpoint 20 minutes before take-off. Indeed, a security guard at the gate in JFK airport didn’t like the logo on my boarding pass. I had to perform a “stand in”, a standing up version of Martin Luther King’s “sit-in” for them to call the airline and get me on board.

The moron next-door
Travel time: 21h
Cigarettes: 0
Free Bacardi and coke: 1, plus 2 wines, dinner and breakfast.
Phone calls to travel service: 0
SMS to mum: 1
Frustrating stops in Germany: 1
Comment: But I made flight n. 2, and it lasted a painful 21 hours, with a neighbour more inclined for conversation than for sleep, or watching movies. But I survived….

Foot worship
Travel time: 4 h standby, 2 hours flight
Cigarettes: 3
Free Bacardi and coke: 0. I get coffee instead
Phone calls to travel service: 0
SMS to mum: 1
Comment: Flight n. 3 was fine, and waiting for it was lovely. I bought expensive shoes and got a free foot rub while chatting with another passenger.

Stripped
Travel time: 3.5 h standby, 4 hours flight
Cigarettes: 0
Free Bacardi and coke: 0. I could really use one though.
Phone calls to travel service: 0
SMS to mum: 1 (very late, after I arrived and dug up my charger and spare phone from my carry-on.)
Comment: Upon getting off, I had to collect my luggage and recheck it into Flight n. 4. Lo and behold, my 16 kgs (yes, I travel light) of luggage never made it past JFK. So I file my complaint and walk over to the domestic flight counter to find that I had to stay on standby and maybe not be allowed to fly… due to a mess-up on my travel agent’s side.

Anyway, so here I am, in Banda, working and blogging instead of working. It’s kind of nice to be back, in an odd way. My “sister” has lent me clothes until my luggage reappears… Singapore airlines does not know where it is in the world. Me… in the meantime, I enjoy my nasi goreng and much deserved sleep. I work, effectively do work. I teach French to the Professor, and I bide my time. After lunch at the Chinese place, I bought a pack of kretek.

I had dinner at the Pizza House (an imitation of Pizza Hut, yes yes) and after a walk back home in the putrid and strange smells of Banda Aceh, amidst the loudness of the becaks I sit to write this.

With every whiff of the clove-scented tobacco, I find inspiration. (See below post on Week 1, day 1.)

I am zen.

The Beaver
My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Coming soon, Week 4 (Part 2)

Last set of notes... I'll be putting up some stories very soon, AND some pictures !

• A multi-lingual day ;
• A second home-coming ;
• Running errands in conquered territory ;
• Meeting the Lily ;
• Boot sales ;
• Fleeting ghosts ;
• Home at last.

There, you have it, all in a nut shell. I'm going to work on putting the stories up in the upcoming weeks, plus the current developments. I'm home, now, but traveling again, for work, this time, back to Aceh. There will be much to say on the matter as well.

Peace,

The Beaver
My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Tagged by the Frog.... (WHERE was I, I wonder...)

Ok - so I've been horrible and promissing an update - and instead I am playing tag. Sorry. I do what I like. I am tired and my brain is fried. This is easier then to write up the last 2 weeks. So lazy it is.

(And YES, I will post an update soon - over the weekend, I promise !)

_________________________

So here is FROGALINO's introduction to this funky tag game :

Isn’t it weird how everybody remembers exactly what they were doing when a dramatic or really happy events in world history took place? I’d really like to know what was happening to you and where you were when you first heard about the various events below. Plus that I’m bored to tears tonight. So I invented a meme. And you’re all tagged, so you’d better start working now. If you feel like it, answer in the comment box or on your blog.

By the way, the last question is optional and could be changed to whichever you like.

1) Where were you when Armstrong first walked on the Moon?

Probably frolicking in a green pasture, floating in space, or in Gehenna, waiting my turn to explore the world! (Or maybe on another planet, what do i know?)

2) Where were you when you heard Princess Di had died?

Montreal, Quebec. On my way to university. I remember vaguely not beleiving it. Then beleiving and not caring too much.

3) Where were you on New Year’s Eve of 1999/2000?

In a lost cabin in the neck of the woods in the Laurentiens of Canada. I don't remember much. I think I was (again) dealing with a heartbreak. It felt like an very ordinary new year's eve.

4) Where were you on Sept.11, 2001?

At work in Montreal. I was a receptionnist at a Hassidim-owned company. I heard the news rather late and as I remember, I found by hearing somebody in the hallway say "They got the pentagon." It was surreal!

5) Where were you when you first heard about the big 2004 Tsunami?

In Dakar, Senegal. A friend called me frantically to ask if I thought the tsunami would have an effect on the island of Madagascar, where we had a mutual friend vacationning (of course, it didn't). I spent the following 2 weeks reading the news on the internet. Little did I know I would be helping out in Banda Aceh 18 months later.

6) Where were you when you first heard that Madonna would go on tour last year?

Huh? I just heard of it now. I'm in Kolkata (India.) This says a lot about how disconnected I am.

The Beaver

My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Introspective Post and Season's wishes

It’s a Tuesday afternoon, and I am not working. I just made eggs and toast for myself, jazz is playing in the kitchen, and the sun room where I am sitting is filled with the Toronto grey skies. It’s the first time I have in about a month to really sit down and reflect. It’s a scary thing. Last time it happened, I wrote a post called Cul-de-sac – and it was so very depressing and somewhat tragic.

This time – I am at peace. So much has happened between Cul de Sac and now. Last time I took the time to write an introspective post, I was in Haiti, sequestered, lonely, bored and depressed. This time, I am in Toronto, in one of my homes away from home, Pgwrox’s lovely townhouse where I have now been enough times to know my way around and feel at home. I am rested, sated, and somewhat content.

Christmas is coming round and I feel no fear, for the first time in a long time. Dad won’t be there, of course. CQFD will not be there either. My mum, PG and I will be celebrating the family thing together, as the tightly knit family that we are, despite distances.

My mum and I will be the 2 widows that we are, her in her own right, me…. in my own way. Last year, at this time, we were decorating the Christmas tree, CQFD and I, at his parents’ house. I was at peace, happy, in love. I felt like it was a day of days. I felt like that moment was immortal.

But all moments are immortal. And so while my 4 years with CQFD are suspended in time, so are my memories of my Yankee lover immortal, his warmth, and how I felt happy and at home in his arms, though I may never see him again.

And so timeless are the memories of my friend Naya, grilling red peppers while chatting with her sister at the other end of the world, and so are those of the Peacekeepers of Haiti, whom I may never see again but carry forever in my heart.

The Belgian crew in Bujumbura and the Philippinos in Aceh, and of course the orphans in Sierra Leone, the staff in Liberia and CMR & Princess, whom I met in Pakistan, now scattered in Zambia and Australia, my family in France and Canada, all of you will stay in my heart for ever.

All of my fellow officers are immortal. They are all unique and special and beautiful in their own way. And I love them all, in a way that is unique to them. I will miss them during this month of rest, and I will miss some of them more until I work with them again, sometimes 6 or 7 months from now.

This year has been a busy and eventful year. I have been ill. I have had my heart broken. I have also learned much and grown in wisdom and confidence through it all. Friends have died, and babies were conceived. Love was lost and friendships were found, built and nourished. Decisions were made, lessons were learned and through it all, the wheel of life kept turning, inexorably and timelessly.





So on the eve of Christmas 2006, may your time with your loved ones be rich, filled with love and may it remain suspended in time, shimmering and bright for you to remember, should hardship befall you. We are all immortal, timeless, evanescent. And all of you readers, may you find in this holiday season the power to love, forgive and to remember.

The Beaver

Indonesian Hand on a Burundi Sky

Before I start blogging about Burundi, I wanted to share my last weekend in Banda. I've uploaded all the pics on Flickr - we visited some reconstruction sites and met some orphans. We also saw a boat which was carried into town by the tsunami.

And of course, there are some more beautiful sunrises taken from the top of the guesthouse.


Enjoy the pics of Last weekend in Banda Aceh !

Cheers,

The Beaver

A quickie by the water cooler

Wow. Today I got a quickie by the water cooler.

No. Joking.

There is no water cooler where I work.

And noone to give me a quickie. Or a cookie. Or a hicky. Or a key. Or anything that rhymes with quickie, for that matter.

I have never had a quickie by the water cooler or by anyother work located item, so why am i even talking about that?

Oh - I get it. I must be crazy.

Anyways, I got the next best thing : I got back to Jakarta, and tomorrow I'm off to (successively in the next 48 hours) Dubai, Nairobi and Bujumbura. I calculated that between this morning and my landing in Bujumbura on the 23rd, I will have taken 5 flights and been on 3 continents. It's a broken record.

I'm excited to be out of Aceh. At last, I can have something better than wine in a box. And I won't even need to hide ! I get to have a bit of FUN. (I spent the last 6 weeks claiming that in Aceh, they (don't ask who) took the UN out of FUN. You're welcome to figure out what the F stands for.

I also got a new referral : thank you AIDWORKERS.NET for blogrolling me ! (Although I wonder - does being a compliance pest for the humanitarian sector really make me an AID worker?)

Anyway, I dedicate this pointless post to all AID workers in the world. I see their work daily. Koudos to you guys. I know I pester you with rules and procedures, but I understand and hereby acknowledge the value of your work and the constraints you have to deal with.

I also dedicate this pointless post to all the national staff who strive to support the AID efforts. Without you, we would be nothing, and my life would be boring.

(Can you tell? I already miss Aceh, sincerely, I do.)

The Beaver

This post NOT to be interpreted as a sign that I am no longer depressed. It merely means I am still alive. IN FACT, I'M KINDA LONELY, PEOPLE! Drop me a line.... that'd be nice (except you - you know who you are.)

Earthquakes

We had an earthquake today. Nothing was destroyed to my knowledge, aside from my sense of equilibrium.

Very strange to fell the world shaking. It didn't trigger a tsunami on Banda though, so everyone is safe.

Life is SO weird sometimes.

The Beaver


My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

More pictures

I've uploaded a new set. Click on the picture to see them all.




The Beaver

My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

More about operating constraints in Aceh

I've been extremely busy with work. If you are wondering what's going on in Aceh, you can feast on this excellent article published by a friend of mine for a Montreal publication.

Most of it is in French but hopefully I will have time to translate it eventually.

(Quotes are in English though).

_____________________________________

Reconstruire apres le Tsunami – audela du reve, la triste realite

Travailler dans la province d’Aceh n’est pas une tache facile. Le 26 décembre 2004, un tremblement de terre de 9.2 a l’échelle de Richter a cause environ 128,790 décès, 37,063 disparitions et laissait un demi million d’Acehnais sans résidence. Les dommages structurels sont estimes à 4.5 milliards de dollars. 21 mois plus tard, malgré les efforts de reconstruction de la population locale et des expatriés, et un budget multilatéral de 525 million de dollars US, il beaucoup reste à faire. Le gouvernement indonésien estime les besoin à 120,000[1] logis. Les humanitaires ont jusqu'à Décembre 2007 pour atteindre cet objectif conjoint malgré les différentes contraintes rencontrées sur le terrain.

A la défense des ONG presentes à Aceh, le terrain n’est guère propice aux grandes entreprises de construction de par son histoire. Plus de 30 ans de conflits entre les rebelles du Gerakan Aceh Merdeka (GAM) et l’État Indonésien ont laisse Aceh dans un état de non-droit jusqu'à l’imposition de la loi martiale en 2003. Depuis le tsunami, un cessez-le-feu est en place et le processus de paix est enclenche, mais rien ne garantie la fin permanente des hostilités. Le développement de la region s’en est ressenti, et les chaînes d’approvisionnement limitées et affaiblies par le tsunami sont débordées par la demande soudaine de l’effort de reconstruction. De même, les organisations humanitaires et le gouvernement indonésien s’arrachent le personnel local qualifié, hélas insuffisant.

Depuis le cessez-le-feu, le contexte politique d’Aceh en 2006 ne facilite guère la tache aux humanitaires. Le pacte de paix entre le GAM et les autorités a permis l’adoption référendaire de la loi islamique le 15 août 2005. Le port du voile n’est plus réservé uniquement aux musulmanes pratiquantes. S’y soustraire, tout comme la possession et la consommation d’alcool, sont passibles de châtiment corporel, une mesure appliquée sans réserve. Ce qui décourage l’établissement a Aceh de personnel qualifié originaire des autres îles de l’archipel. Ce mouvement semble en debut d’expansion vers les expatriés selon les propos de Muntasir Hamid, chef de la législature provinciale a Banda Aceh, publies dans le Rakyat Aceh le 7 août dernier: “We did not want the Veranda of Mecca to be contaminated by the presence of NGOs in Banda Aceh as this territory is under the enforcement of Syariah Law. We will ask in this case, the Dinas of Syariah to do search/raid on houses that are occupied by NGOs especially during the evening”.

De plus, Transparency International classe l’Indonésie à 2.2/10 sur l’échelle de la corruption (0 représentant le taux de corruption absolue). A titre d’exemple, la mésaventure d’Oxfam-Australie dont plusieurs employés auraient détourné un montant équivalent a 22,000$US par l’entremise d’activités frauduleuses centrées sur le processus d’achat. Les conditions d’opérations sont propices a de telles combines: dans un communiqué de presse du 4 mai 2006, Oxfam rapportait que la supervision et le processus de suivi était insuffisants. Surtout, le roulement de personnel et la rareté de la main d’œuvre créent les conditions idéales d’une fraude classique. Pourtant, les processus de gestion d’Oxfam ne sont pas en cause – ce sont ces même processus qui ont permis l’identification du problème. Un rapport conjoint produit en juillet 2006 pour le Centre Ulstein et ses partenaires faisait état des risques inhérents au projet: « High-profile emergencies create particular corruption challenges, often with a large number of international relief agencies and corresponding difficulties with coordination and possibly competition between agencies.[2]»

De quoi donner du pain sur la planche aux humanitaires, la clé étant de bien déterminer ses priorités, comme le rappelle le Secrétaire General de l’Agence Indonésienne de Réhabilitation et de Reconstruction, Teuku Kamaruzzaman, en conférence de presse le 28 août dernier: "I ask all parties to focus on efforts being made to rebuild the region devastated by the December 2004 tsunami and to help those affected re-establish a normal life. At the same time, we must remain vigilant and highly critical with respect to irregularities and corruption."


[1] http://www.e-aceh-nias.org/
[2] Mapping the Risks of Corruption in Humanitarian Action, publie sur www.u4.no.

New pictures

I guess life goes on.

Boy... I think it's going on without me, but anyway.

Here are some pictures of the wonders of the world.

Click here to see the whole set of new pictures

The Beaver

My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Beaver's 1st production !

My first movie ! Pictures and editing by yours truly !


The Beaver

My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Bilingue... Catch up !

Lundi, le 7 aout 2006, j'ai encore vecu un moment barbare. Quoique avec le decalage horaire, c'est beaucoup moins douloureux, m'enfin, debout a 3:30 AM pour prendre un vol, ouchie !

Monday, August 7, 2006, I lived a barbarian moment. Though with the jetlag, it was much less painful, but really, being up at 3:30 AM to take a flight, ouchie!

A Banda Aceh tôt le mardi matin, le muezzin me maintient éveillée. Des hordes de moustiques attendent que je sorte de la moustiquaire pour me vider de mon sang et m'injecter leurs cochonneries. J'ai la trouille de la dengue - je te dis que je dors sous mon moustiquaire, et avec mon anti-bibittes !!!

In Banda Aceh early Tuesday morning, the muezzin keeps me awake up. Hordes of mosquitos wait until I leave the mosquito net to empty me of my blood and to inject me their crap. I 's scared out of my wits of getting (again) the dengue - I tell you, I sleep under my mosquito net, and with my anti-sting!!!

Le lendemain, je quitte Banda car j'ai ete assignée à une mission en solo. Je pars pour Meulaboh (en helicoptere de l'ONU, encore) dans l'Aceh du Sud. Toute seule, cette fois-ci ! Ca m'inquiete et m'excite tout a la fois. Il parait que l'Internet marche bien las-bas. C'est une opportunite pour prendre des photos a vue d'oiseau par contre !

The next day, I left Banda because I have been assigned on a solo mission. I leave for Meulaboh (by helicopter of UNO, again) for South Aceh. All alone, this time! It worries me and excites me all the same time. It appears that the Internet works well there. It's an opportunity for some good skyshots though !

Je suis encore sur decallage horaire - je me leve avant le lever de soleil que j'observe du 2eme etage de la maison depassage. I am still on jetlag, so I wake up before the sunrise which I observe from the 2nd floor of the guesthouse.


Parfois, le Bon Dieu a des manières inattendues d'apaiser un coeur sensible. La beaute du monde est toujours un baume pour mon coeur. Sometimes, Good God has unexpected manners to alleviate a sensitive heart. The beauty of the world is always a balm for my heart.

Arrivee a Meulaboh, je ne suis pas tout a fait atterrie, mais l'est-on jamais? 2 jours a Jakarta, 3 jours a Banda, et maintenant une semaine a Meulaboh... Pas tres stable comme mode de vie...

Arrivee Meulaboh, I am not completely landed, but is one ever? 2 days Jakarta, 3 days in Banda, and now one week in Meulaboh... Not a very stable way of life...

Mais je trouve tranquillement des mecanismes d'adaptation. Je vis en ce moment dans une maison de passage ou les collegues sont tres sympatiques - 2 Philippins et un Croate particulierement me font un peu l'effet d'une famille quand je rentre le soir, apres un long 13 h de travail.... J'ai ete assignee a la verification d'inventaire, une HORREUR de tache qui va me prendre 2 semaines. Pour l'occasion, j'ai ete autorisee a engage 5 manoeuvres indonesiens, on m'a assigne un interprete et on a prolonge mon sejour a Meulaboh.

But I find adaptive mechanisms quickly. I live in this moment in a guesthouse where the colleagues are very pleasant - 2 Filipinos and a Croat particularly have a bit on me the effect of a family when I return there in the evening, after a lengthy 13 hour work-day hour.... I have been assignee to the checking of inventory, a HORROR of job which will take 2 weeks to me. For the occasion, I have been autorized to hire 5 indonesian laborers, an interpreter and my stay in Meulaboh is extended.

La verification d'inventaire ce n'est pas drole surtout dans la chaleur torride et humide de l'Indonesie. Heureusement, le personnel local est tres agreable, et surtout les manoeuvres sont aux anges de travailler avec une "Bulle" (prononce Boulee), rient beaucoup et ont souvent la simplicite de grands enfants. Grace a eux je fais des progres immenses en Bahasa - je sais maintenant compter jusqu'a 10 et formuler des demandes de bases (manger, dormir, se deplacer...)

Checking an inventory is not a fun gig, especially in the torrid and wet heat of Indonesia. Fortunately, the local personnel is very pleasant, and especially the laborers are elated to work with a "Bulle" (pronouncec Boolay), they laugh much and often have the simplicity of big kids. Thanks to them I make immense progress in Bahasa - I can now count until A 10 and formulate requests for bases (to eat, sleep, deplacer...)

C'est difficile de travailler ici. Sur l'echelle mondiale de la corruption (de 0 a 10, ou 10 presente l'absence totalle de corruptio), l'Indonesie est a 2.2. C'est dire que travailler ici est souvent synonime de paranoia... Oui, il fait chaud, oui, les choix culinaires sont limites... mais les couchers de soleils sont magnifiques...

It is difficult to work here. On the world scale of the corruption (of 0 A 10, or 10 represents the totalle absence of corruption), Indonesie is at 2.2. It is to say that to work here often rhymes with paranoia... Yes, the weather is hot, yes, the culinary choices are limiting... but the sunsets are splendid...

Pendant la semaine, je recoit des nouvelles un peu deprimantes. Je n'irai pas au Burundi, mais au Congo (ex-Zaire) a la place. Oh well. Je me depeche de faire les demarches necessaires pour un visa. En ce qui concerne Kinshasa, le changement etait motive par la possible embauche d'un nouvel employe - c'est mieux de commencer avec le Burundi plutot qu'avec la RDC.... Mais cette personne a change d'avis hier et je suis de nouveau assignee au Burundi. Ouf ! Les commentaires de 007 ne m'encourageaient pas a y aller... Toujours l'urgence d'obtenir un visa aupres d'embassade aux regles juridictionnelles strictes: je dois appliquer au Canada et non aux Etats-Unis...

During the week, I receive slightly depressing news. I will not go to Burundi, but in Congo (ex-Zaire) instead. Oh well. I hurry up to make the necessary arrangements for a visa. With regard to Kinshasa, the change was justified by the possible recruiting of a new employee - it's better to start with Burundi rather than with DRC.... But this person changed their opinion yesterday and I am again assigned to Burundi. Ouf! (With 007's feedback I must admit I wasn't too excited to go there...) Again the rush to obtain a visa with the embassy with strict jurisdictional rules: I must apply in Canada and not in the United States...

Ceux qui ont vu les nouvelles savent que maintenant il est interdit de prendre des baggages de cabines a la suite de l'incident de Londres. La joie. Faire ce travail devient de plus en plus difficile. Oh well. Je paierai les extras necessaires, c'est tout. Heureusement les consignes de securites semblent revenir presque a la normale. Heureusement, je ne voyage pas avec du Chanel No. 5 dans mon bagage a main ! Tant que je peux continuer d'utiliser les bagages a main, le reste ne me derange pas trop...

Those who saw the news know that now it is forbidden to take cabin luggages following the incident in London. Joy. To do this work becomes increasingly difficult. Oh well. I will pay extras if necessary, that's all. Fortunately the security regulations seem to return almost to normal. Fortunately, I do not travel with Chanel No 5 in my hand luggage! As long as I can continue to use hand luggage, I don't care much...

Il parait qu'il y a eu un tremblement de terre a Sumatra, mais nous ne l'avons meme pas senti ici. On a appris la nouvelle en meme temps que tout le monde, en ecoutant BBC.... De toutes facons, nous avons des mesures de securite pour ca, et je ne travaille ni ne dors au bord de la plage....

It appears that there was an earthquake on Sumatra, but nobody felt it here. We learned the news at the same time as everyone, on BBC.... Anyways, we have safety measures for that, and I do not work nor do I sleep at the edge of the beach....

D'ailleurs je devrais quitter Meulaboh pour quelques jours pour travailler a Medan (bien enfonce dans les terres) et retourner a Banda pour les 3 dernieres semaines de mon sejour. Il me reste au total 5 semaines a passer en Indonesie, dont 1 1/2 a Meulaboh, 1/2 a Medan, 4 a Banda Aceh et 1 a Jakarta. Je ne crains pas trop pour ma securite mais je suis prudente.

Moreover I should leave Meulaboh for a few days to work in Medan (well inserted inland) and return over to Banda for the 3 last weeks of my stay. I have a total of 5 weeks left in Indonesia, including 1 1/2 in Meulaboh, 1/2 in Medan, 4 in Banda Aceh and 1 in Jakarta. I do not fear too much for my safety but I am careful.

J'ai tout de meme pris le temps de gouter a la cuisine locale, qu'on appelle le Padang. Une orgie de plats auxquels on se sert... Apres le repas, on vous donne la douloureuse. C'est bon, le service et rapide et surtout, pas de probleme avec un menu qui est probablement en bahasa de toutes facon...

I did take the time to taste some local cuisine, which one calls Padang. An orgy of dishes to which one is expected to help themselves... After the meal, you are presented with the damage. It is good, the service is rapid and especially, there is no problem with a menu which would probably be in bahasa anyway...

On goute aussi au fruit qui pue: le DURIAN. Ouais, n'en parlons pas, du Durian, une HORREUR si vous voulez mon avis. J'ai essaye 2 fois, histoire de prouver aux Indonesiens et aux Philippins present que la blanchette n'etait pas pleutre... mais je le jure sur la tete de tous les gens que j'aime de ne jamais y etre reprise. M'enfin, au moins j'ai essaye...

One should also taste the stinky fruit: the DURIAN. Ouais, let us not speak about it, of Durian, a HORROR if you want my opinion. I tried it 2 times, just to prove the Indonesians and the Filipinos present that the whitey was no wuss... but I swear it on the head of all people whom I love never not to be taken again at this game... Well, at least I tried...

Hier j'ai ete au marche achete un peu de nourriture car nous avions un souper communautaire. Pour la premiere fois, j'ai ete dans un marche public ou on ne vous invective pas tous les 5 secondes. Les vendeurs etaient heureux de poser pour moi et j'ai prise quelques bonne photos dont celle-ci:

Yesterday I went to the Market to buy a little food because we had a Community supper. For the first time, I was in a public market where no-one jumps at you every 5 seconds. The salesmen were happy to pose for me so I took some good photographs, such as this one:

The Beaver

My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !

Pix !

Here, I've uploaded some pics of Indonesia:


Click HERE to see the full set.

I also uploaded pictures of a trip I made in July to Toronto:


Click HERE to see the full set.


The Beaver

My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !