Brent is in Lusaka, Zambia

Zam wih the Fam

2008-07-28T12:36:00.002-01:00

Well work wise its been a fairly non-illustrious couple of months, but the summers been going at a steady clip. Mostly because of its kick-start with the France break, and a few weeks back a visit from my Mom and Dad. Adventurous enough to tackle �The Real Africa� heh. Decided on an itinerary highlighting the two major draws, animals and Victoria falls, and that�s about it on the tourist path here.

So for wild-life, splurged a bit and headed to the South Luangwa National Park under the auspices of the Robin Pope Safari Company (RPS). Located in Eastern province, the park borders the Luangwa river and is teeming with endemic wildlife. Spent a week out there among RPS�s three camps, Nkwali, Nsefu, and Tena Tena. Each camp, spectacular in its setting , was perched in subtle luxury on the banks of the river. Loved the vibe of the open air-architecture where lazing around your room or the bar could observe elephant crossing, spook a puku tranquilly drinking, chuckle at the hippos grunts, or sense the rustle of the trees as a herd off giraffe passes. Daily life started at sunrise, then a morning drive, lunch feast, siesta time, tea, sun-downer and evening drive, then dinner feast. Recycle and repeat with options for walking safaris with a heavily armed Zambian Wildlife Authority scout, or catered lunch in the bush for maximum enjoyment. In brief�

-Game viewing saw most of the biggies of the region�Warthog, Elephant, Buffalo, Monkey, Baboon, Zebra, Thornicraft Giraffe, Bushbuck, Puku, Eland, Porcupine, Kudu, Genet, Mongoose, Civet, (sparring) Impala, Hyena, Lion, Crocodile, fleeting glimpses of Leopard, and tons and tons of Hippos. O and the scenery�.amazing variety/diversity, EPIC!

-Most of the food was imported from Lusaka but I sure didn�t recognize it after the cooks worked their magic. I grabbed some of my favorites from the shelves when I returned to Lusaka�mango pickle chutney mmmm.

-Who knew birding could be so addicting? By day 4 was staring hopefully at the water hole for a plover sighting, raptor, egret, stork, or other colorful plumage. Anybody got a copy of Birds of Southern Africa I could borrow?

-So with the drives/walks being just my folks and the guides, got spoiled silly, individualized safari experience. From vivid, humorous, interpretation of the sights and sounds to bonafide tracking. On our final day the guide honed in on a buffalo kill by triangulating the position using perching vultures. Plunged off-road into the thickets and boom there is was being devoured by a lioness, with hyena waiting in the shadows. Came back at sunset at the buffalo was stripped to the bones. Amazing.

Impossible to top all that, but we were going to try anyway with one of the natural wonders of the world, the smoke that thunders, where angels fly, etc etc, Victoria Falls. Regrettably the bus ride down there was more brutal than expected, the stretch from Zimba having been completely torn up by the last rainy season. Still made it with a relatively good sense of humor, and was informal rehearsal for the challenging return journey. Least we saved some money heh. On the return my brave folks also got to experience bus-preaching, awful loud Nigerian films, and admire the docility of Zambian toddlers. The Falls were pleasant as always, July , not too full, not too empty. Partook in a lovely river cruise as well on the Lady Livingstone, had the boat to ourselves, saw a herd off elephants paddle over to terrorize Livingstone, and waved at the other packed vessels. Closed things off the next day with the Livingstone museum and very much under construction Railway Museum. Brilliant trip, awesome my folks made it over, now to power through these final two months in the Zambia.

Oo la la

2008-06-23T09:27:00.003-01:00

Took a mini Spring break back to the first-world a few weeks back. The agenda was initial set by a wedding in the Gex region of France, but got scaled back to a normal vacation, after some visa issues postponed that ceremony for American soil. Not really gung ho on Europe, especially with the craptacularly weak dollar, but paging through the LP it seemed like France was still a worthy time. OK it was mostly reading about the food that convinced me.

Always fun connections in Africa, Lusaka linked through Addis Ababa, overnight to CDG on Ethiopian Airways. No baggage or logistical adventures, but becoming oriented to new country on 3 hours of sleep is always fun. Plopped my stuff down at the Eldorado, and wandered around the clouded drizzling morning. I was fairly useless that first day but managed to get scammed by a gypsy, figure out the subway, and feast on some orange-glazed duck downed with the first of many glasses of fine French wine.

By day 2 was relatively adjusted. Going into highlight mode�

-Paris, museum and art mania. Had to love the sheer density and variety, culture oozing from every boulevard. A few of the many, the Musee d� Orsay, Musee Rodin and the Centre Pompidou were tops in my book. For its architecture the Quai Branley. The Paris Musuem Pass helped save the bucks. Sure the big touristed sites like the Louvre, Eiffel Tower etc were cool, but I found just chillaxing to the view of Paris from the top of Montmartre, or having a beer at a local caf� next to my hotel, put me more in touch with the feel of the city.

-Annecy, quaint mountain town, thankfully not yet over-run by tourists. Took some pleasant lakeside strolls, explored the twisty canal-truncated old town, and dined on tasty budget food at Chez Barnabe. Not a ton to see or do, but Alpine.

-Gex, the mini-reception for the rescheduled wedding. Met up with folks in Geneva, and then drove over to the bride�s family house, beautifully situated in the traditional countryside and bedecked with African crafts (her father had worked on the Continent before his passing). Hiked up to the mini-reception at a converted farmhouse (le Ferme du Mont Mussy) overlooking the Geneva valley. No electricity, appetized with regional dishes until a thunderstorm rolled and the dinner commenced. Ate more wonderful things, while finally the clouds cleared for a stunning mountain vista, and even a brief glimpse of Mont Blanc. Despite the postponement a lot of people had still made the trip, and it was awesome to hang with the gang, with France, Britain, and Alaska represented.

-Nice, vibrant colors of the Mediterranean. Passed down from Gex with a scenic train-ride cutting through the Alps/Bellegarde. Felt like I was back on the Pacific Surfliner as we hugged the coast over to Nice. More interesting budget accommodation was provided at Hotel Wilson, a Frida Kahlo themed room, with a balcony, score. The vibe of Nice was wonderful, more great art (modern, Chagall and Matisse), pebbly beach but crystal blue water, relaxed parks and plazas, and another twisty old town to lose oneself in. And of course obscenely good food, deals off the daily �menus� offered full course goodness inclusive of wine, appetizer, main course, and dessert. Also day-tripped to Monte Carlo, Monaco, big-bwana style, beautiful views, beautiful aquarium.

-Avignon, polished the trip off behind medieval walls, and stumbled upon an Aikido dojo. Avignon was the seat of Papal power for a brief schism, and is home to the grand Palais des Papes. The city is also a cultural center of the region and was crammed chock-full of smaller wonders. My brain was getting ready for home, but did my duty and swung around to the majors, and downed some final gastronomical indulgences. Au revoir France, avoided a crazy shouting man in the Avignon TGV station, and whisked up to CDG where Ethiopian airlines awaited the haul back to Lusaka. Spectacular trip...will be back.

Solwezi and the wild Northwest

2008-04-30T07:25:00.003-01:00

em breve Things picking up a little bit in Smartcareland. Got a chance to see more of the country a few weeks back, by assisting one of our provincial trainings up in Solwezi, way way way up in Northwestern province. A long haul by bus, but luckily not so bad in our CDC SUV. Big bwana style. Even though in what I know of Zambia there is not huge variance in scenery (read American Midwest), the trip was pleasant. The strip-mining gorges (Copperbelt), road-side fruit vendors, suicidal goats and scrappy pine forests (Copperbelt) kept us travelers from catatonia

Our deployment methodology focuses around these provincial trainings, where the system is taught to local health officials/managers/information officers etc. The idea is then they will deploy the equipment to their localities, training those under them in Smartcare 101. Of course at training as the usual logistical fun and brushfires, but went very well with a very sharp group. The touchscreen technology indeed makes the system mais rapido to pickup.

So that was a nice change of pace, from the office roll. The project has one more training in Eastern Province, and I hope to assist at that as well. Indeed, our PCV clump here is still organizing for direct field support/collaboration in the field, so as the "big" trainings wind down we can focus more on "monitoring and evaluation" activities to see how everyones faring.

Ndi li tulo

2008-03-20T12:34:00.002-01:00

In Chechewa/Nyanja that means "I have been having a problem staying awake". Awake enough to update this blog. Anyway nice lull, rest, flakiness. The web is very distracting.

Onward to the update. Surprisingly enough nearly half-way through the whole Zambia stint. True to the saying, once your finally adjusted its going to be time to hit the road again. Doh. Work is rolling along in SmartCareLand, albeit on Africa time. Still fairly scattered in daily activities, Training, Testing, and odds and ends. The PC presence has also swelled, another PCV has joined the project, with one more in the pipeline. So how many PCVs does it take to change a light-bulb? They could teach someone to build a solar still though.

Back when I first came to Zambia I had a vision of my job. Living not in the bush, but in a provincial capital, fanning out from there to directly support SmartCare in surrounding villages and clinics. The system is meant to be a nation-wide thing, everyone with a Smartcard holding their health history. Much like my vision for youth center in CV this ideal has undergone revision. Currently its in our collective strategy to do something similar, but mobilize PCVs already in the field to "Monitor and Evaluate". Picture one day a strange black box appears in the village. The clinician remembers their district boss mentioning something about computers at a training six months back, but the deployment was delayed by 4 months, due to roads being washed out, and the computer being "lost" and found half-way back to the capital. The clinic has electricity (solar panels) but the voltage needs to be changed for the computer to work. In fact how do you turn the computer on? The user manual was eaten by a goat, or used as toilet paper. Fortunately a PCV (or their trained Zambian counter-part/friend) bikes in to get some mealie-meal, and utilizes the magical power of "skills-transfer" to teach how to power on the machine. Repeat visits, training, and support ensue until the community is comfortable with the tech and kicking solitaire playing youth off the computer. The volunteer/counterpart reports success and disasters back to the SmartCare mother-ship in Lusaka, and metrics are weighed and pondered.

Thats the grand plan how we can be most effective here. The SmartCare PCVs been attempting to get things organized and formalized in between our other miscellaneous tasks and Lusaka living. I'll blab a bit more about the motivation/philosophy behind the above proposal after this 4 day weekend. Happy Easter. They do have Cadbury cream eggs at the Spar here. Thank God.

Lull

2008-01-17T05:58:00.000-01:00

Been quiet around here. Like really quiet. Office jobs are office jobs and Lusaka more typical expat life then "atypical" Peace Corps. All going good though.

Not a Desert

2007-11-28T07:36:00.000-01:00

Well not much to write about�daily and weekly routines forming up in a boring, but relaxed, city. The job with CDC/SmartCare is definitely a full work day type of thing, so doing the 9-5, more or less, testing/hacking software for bugs, gaining knowledge of the Smartcare system, building on training and deployment practices, learning about the Zambian health care system and helping on any number other miscellaneous items that come up. So there is definite flow and professionalism to the position, God be praised, unlike some, ahem, previous engagements. The project is situated in a very comfortable office environment; we have high speed internet, and AC, among other amenities foreign to most PC volunteers in Zambia. Who can complain? Awesome team of colleagues as well, got to know them a little better on a retreat out to �the bush� about a week back. Went out to a lodge a short distance from Lusaka and had an intense, but groovy three days discussing issues, full board feasting, and wildlife viewing from our porches. Getting away from Lusaka keeps the energy level up. After the rainy season going to try and schedule more short getaways/camping to escape. There are a couple of tranquil options for weekend relaxation within striking distance, like Kafue National Park.

Clearly, this past month, the rainy season has hit, and kill me for constant comparisons the Cape Verde, but wow. Thunder, lightning, and violent downpours so I�ve got that checkmark in my �experience the real Africa� column. I�m loving it, except when the afternoon thunderstorms coincide with my 40 minute walk from work to my home. Other waypoints like learning Nyanja, the local language, proceeding much more slowly�but fun. However I have been eating local with the ubiquitous staple nshima (sorta grits/mashed potato), like a pro, utensil-free. Method being forming a nshima ball with your hands and then using it to scoop up the fish, chicken, cabbage, boiled spinach or whatnot that�s hanging out on your plate. Tasty.

Looking forward to some Christmas plans, going to be heading down to Botswana to visit my friend, who also extended from Cape Verde. We�ll be bumming around the Okavango Delta, then up to Victoria Falls. Until then�got a wedding coming up for one of my colleagues.

The Past Few Weeks

2007-10-31T06:45:00.000-01:00

So a busy start here in Lusaka now calming down to a more normal pace. Despite not having to participate in a Peace Corps "Pre-Service Training", still had meetings and introductions galore to get the ball rolling, and keep it rolling on logistical and policy issues. Actually missing some of the integrative stuff PST equipped us with in CV. Then it was up to Kasama (very long drive to the North) for 5 days for a CDC (Center for Disease Control) SmartCare deployment. As I have previously mentioned, this is my primary project here, involving an electronic medical records system, and SmartCards. Though initially focusing on AIDS, and ARV (Anti-retro Viral treatments)it is a complete system, and encompasses various other health-care areas. It was nice getting out of Lusaka in my first week in country, though we were limited to the conference center the entire time. So the North (which I hear has stunning hiking and waterfalls) will have to be explored at some future juncture.

Also upon arrival in Zambia my housing had not been settled, now three weeks later I have a ridiculously nice pad. Two-story, furnished, three bedroom, back-yard garden, full kitchen, and random useful stuff left by previously tenants. I probably will be getting a room-mate eventually but still. So thats good. However, as expected, Lusaka is taking some major adjustments to get used to. Given I generally dislike big cities. Vila da Ribeira Brava had 2,000 folks; Lusaka has around 2 million. Secondly Lusaka has a funky (lack of) urban planning(?)and a fortified vibe to it. Most everything, businesses, restaurants and homes are gated off behind imposing walls. Which is odd, because most of the major core areas feel tame with friendly welcoming Zambians. Transport around this sprawl is also a major headache, as taxis are expensive ($5), and the informal bus system only hits the major roads. Undoubtedly, I'm in mental gridlock comparing things to the easy flow of life in Cape Verde. Not to mention a wonderful California "home leave". Giving it a little time before the final verdict heh, still getting my bearings.

Bwanji Lusaka

2007-10-12T06:49:00.000-01:00

Well I arrived in Lusaka, Zambia this past Wednesday, intact with all my luggage. The flight was rather turbulent from ATL-JHB , and no inseat entertainment for the 18 hour leg, but entering a zombie-like state helped get through that. Zambia so far so good. Turns out I am going to be based here with folks from the Center for Disease Control in Lusaka. Huzzah to burning through my stipend on all the "luxuries" available in the capital. Also unlike CV training/worklife things are moving rather rapidly, had orientation this week, will be starting work Monday at the CDC, and then off on a "field trip" to Northern Zambia Tuesday. Rock and roll.

Fierce Invalids back to Hot Climates

2007-10-05T15:41:00.000-01:00

Well the 30 day home leave went by turbo-style, as was expected in the manic frenzy of Americana. Ok well lounging by the pool day after day to the tunes of my iPod Nano wasn't exactly manic, but still heh. Now all rested up on good food, good culture, and good folks, ready to hit the airways back to Zambia. Land of Victoria Falls and.....hmmm not sure what else. Address info will be updated shortly, not sure of the internet/cell situation yet, probably will be rougher then Cape Verde. Thankfully were there are computers (my assignment) there is probably electricity. Run by hamster wheels.

Americano

2007-09-13T14:44:00.000-01:00

Well back in the homeland. Besides the 30+ hours of travel to get back and the subsequent jetlag, doing good. Got a lot on so I'll check in a bit later.

Zamboozled

2007-08-31T12:19:00.000-01:00

Briefly, in Praia right now semi-COSing. Problems with some flights (full), final logistics and whatnot, so probably wont make it back to Cali until sometime next week. Arg. O yeah and the other thing, long story short PC Zambia accepted me for one year into their program. Yeehah! I get a 30 day "home leave" then its off to Zambia. Heres what they have lined up for me...

"The position is with CDC and Ministry of Health under the PEPFAR program. Activity will be to help support a national training program for existing Ministry of Health clinical staff, to enable them to begin to use a new clinical software tool. This tool is called SmartCare and has been identified as the national clinical tool for deployment in clinics that have the capacity to operate a computer. There iscurrently initiated a national training push, with over 400 clinics identified as targets for the system in the next 6-12 months. SmartCare is an innovative system, designed for a developing context where telecommunications may not be available and most people don't yet type. The system uses a touch screen for data entry, and provides the client with a smart card holding their medical record. This smart card hold a health record in confidence, but is easily carried and can be presented at the next point of service in order to obtain Continuity of Care. The Volunteers attached to the program will assist in the trainings and provide rotating on-site user support (and feedback to the developers) in multiple facilities during the implementation period while the District Health Information Officers 's and District Health Management Team's gradually build their own skills in parallel to manage and support this system."

Telecentro Faja

2007-08-05T14:52:00.000-01:00

Unexpectedly eventful week as a significant government delegation landed on our island, for various meetings and whatnot. First up was a conference on Agricultural Development for the Faja valley, missed it except for the octopus snacks at the after-party on the final day. Reason being, not really into sitting through hours and hours of Portuguese on farming techniques, and I was busy sitting around the CEJ for hours, waiting for the magic signal to haul our truckload of new equipment up to Faja to prepare a new telecenter. Nothing like a visit by politicians to grease the wheels of progress�well some of the time. So spent most of the week in Faja with the other youth volunteers (from Campinho, my current crop of students), advertising, hauling, making chairs, assembling desks, eating cookies, and making sure the computers hadn�t died on the cobblestone rollercoaster over. All that eventually culminated in the grand opening Friday around noon, and we were graced by the presence of the government delegation, including the Prime Minister of Cape Verde, his Excellency Jose Maria Neves. Shook his hand, and some other ministers, wonder if they remembered me from our PC swearing-in, probably not. A little bit of celebrity for our little telecenter, it was actually a Peace Corps Moment (trademark), the news filming the revealing of the inaugural plaque, the happy townsfolk applauding, and the kids wildly rushing in to play Solitaire. Between the CEJ, and the new telecenters in Campinho and Faja, my potential replacement may actually be busy. Ha.

One more month to Go

2007-07-29T16:38:00.000-01:00

Well a close of service date more or less finalized, August 29th, will be on a plane flight back to SF, California then or shortly thereafter. Plan is still to settle in Berkeley or Santa Cruz for a bit. Yeah the whole one year extension thing to another PC country has not been working out. For policy reasons or just �luck of the draw� for this year most countries are accepted only two year transfers, tempting but no. Waiting for one last response from PC Namibia, but not overly hopeful there. But who knows, will probably take it if it comes through. Its actually a position very similar to my �role� here, could provide some interesting contrasts and comparisons. Hopefully less barking dogs, roosters. The reflection on two years in CV entry will be forthcoming.

So not having to rush back to the States mid-July before being whisked off somewhere else been able to enjoy a slow wind-down to Sao Nicolau. Redhawk initially thwarted by a potential transfer-exit date, also managed to throw in a final series of computer classes, once we figured I was staying put till the end of the summer. While Redhawk is also teaching a computer class of his own, who needs a PCV computer teacher? My class is way out at the Tele-center in Campinho, which feels like exile because of problems of transport, but I�m allegedly teaching the center�s new crop of youth �volunteers�, so it�s a worthwhile time. Youngish group of dudes, they learn fast even if raucous at times. Home base the same old same old, got another shipment of new equipment, desks, and whatnot from Praia at the beginning of the month, so perhaps another Tele-center will be popping up somewhere, but a tightly guarded secret, my colleagues and I�s inquiries met with the usual CV brush-off. Qualquer, Whatever. Also trying to get a web-site together for the Monte Gordo project but we�ll see if that gets up before I leave.

The torch is almost ready to be passed to the next entering group of PC trainee volunteers, who arrived at the beginning of July for Pre-Service Training. The admin, wisely following about 5 years of CV PCV advice also finally implemented site visits, termed �Demystification�(?!). Sao Nicolau, though we hypothesize getting 3 new volunteers (1 Community Dev, 2 Environmental Education), received a CD tech volunteer for the visit. Good times showing him around the island, sampling a slice of the work/life situation here, such as it is. I can only imagine how invaluable such a visit would have been after my first two weeks in country. Probably would not have changed that much, I was a zombie for the first month or so heh.

Somewhere in there I turned 29 as well. No big party or anything, enough of those happening every other day. Huzzah.

Ireland Highlights

2007-06-20T18:41:00.000-01:00

All right, I am going to go into highlight mode in order to get this finished up, got other things to write about. June�s been a lazy, dull, festa-filled and preoccupied month.

-So Galway, salty seaside town, a little more bohemian and relaxed in feel then Dublin. Nice bus journey there as well, idyllic lamb-speckled greenery, which would become a recurring theme on my inter-city transfers. I stayed again in the relative thick of things, at the Quay Street Barnacles, but not as manic as the Temple Bar district. Nice being in a couple hundred meters of food (heart attack fish and chips at McDonagh�s), shopping, transportation and pubs (the cozy and friendly Neachtain�s). Spending most of Dublin indoors at various museums, focused in Galway on day-trips via Bus �ireann. First was up to the Burren region, with a stop at the Cliffs of Moher, and breezing through a couple other notable spots like Doolin. The Burren was spectacular, fulfilling dramatic landscape checkmark in my touring schedule, gray rock hillocks meshing with greenery and azul sky. The Cliffs were a major tourist magnet, impressive enough, if not incredibly awe-inspiring. In my opinion I think the cliffs and ribeiras of Santo Antao here in CV are more aesthetically stunning. Next day was up to the rugged Connemara region and Kylemore Abbey. Unfortunately the weather didn�t hold very well, so clouds and rain obscured some of the more impressive vistas, but did get to see some of the famous ponies. 3 days or so, on to Killarney.

-Killarney got on the just-in-time agenda randomly for one reason; people were saying good things about hiking in the national park, even if the city was somewhat polished tourism. Always a sucker for national parks, and all of Ireland so far being fairly polished, I was game. Hostel choice was the Sugan, awesome place, for other reasons then the Oasis in Lisbon. 2nd best accommodation on the trip it would be hard not to warm up to its Hobbit-hole vibe, and Martin the UberManager. The rambling opportunities in the national park were top notch as well, with radiant sunshine my first day. Hiked over from the hostel to Ross Castle, communed with nature around Ross Island for a couple hours, and then settled back for a late afternoon tea across from Saint Mary�s Cathedral. Day two hiked down to Muckross House, Gardens, Abbey and surrounds. A little bit of an urban walk along the freeway to start (no public transport) but once in the park proper, again as beautiful as ever. I should have taken a jaunting car (horse-drawn carriage) like the oldsters heh. Roamed around for a while (10km or so), said no to climbing Torc Mountain, got spit on by the rain gods, then ambled back to the Sugan to overdose on dried apricots, but fortunately not incapacitated before catching Spiderman 3 at the local cinema. 2 days, on to Cork.

-Cork the relaxed and fitting last call to Ireland, not that the Bru hostel/bar were I stayed ever had one. Nice enough place, friendly staff, but I think one of my roommates had the Black Plague. Cork was not really bristling with sites and sounds just checked off a few things, including; a wonderful exhibit of Chinese art (from the �Sigg Collection�) in the Lewis Glucksman Gallery at finals crazed Cork University, freaked out at the frozen meal selection of Marks and Spencer grocery store, enjoyed the Chelsea/Manchester United final(?) game at a pub, searched for Mexican food in the �Latin quarter� (nope not even a damn tortilla anywhere in site), had a few pints with a classical dancer from Kansas at Sin E, was a tourist for a half-day trip to Blarney to smooch the stone, stumbled upon a random Andy Warhol exhibition at the Cork Public museum, and confirmed its impossible to buy a good fitting pair of jeans in Ireland. 2 days in Cork back to Dublin to catch an incredibly annoying early morning flight, Lisbon to Praia the same day. Whoop back home in civilization�oops I mean Cape Verde. Time for some cachupa.

Around Dublin

2007-06-19T16:07:00.000-01:00

A relatively pleasant flight from Lisbon to Dublin on Aer Lingus, konked out for most of it. No need to stay awake for in-flight snacks for 3 Euro a piece. Touched down without my jacket, so got a nice brisk introduction to the transient, but now dour Irish spring, a gray drizzling mess, walking across the tarmac. Expected though, and at that particular moment a novelty to someone who hadn�t seen rain in about 7 months. Immediately began drawing architectural parallels to London as the bus made its way into the city, brick and mortar, and decidedly less vivid than Lisbon. Arrived at my hostel, Globetrottters a little drenched but ready to settle in. Globetrotters was considerably more functional, and less fun, then the Oasis but it served its purpose more or less. I blame its quirks that it wasn�t a �fulltime� hostel but rather an extension to a more mid-budget place. Plus the fact that you couldn�t control the room lights, no hot water (OK in CV, NOT in Ireland), and some other strangeness, was somewhat disturbing, they did have a killer breakfast though. The arrival bummers continued as ATM problems plus a frozen credit card cast a grey cloud of anxiety over my head, so I was in a scattershot mood that first night. Still managed to find some tasty Lebanese food to spend my last 10 Euro on though.

The following day was looking up as the wonders of instant chat and cash advances finally filled my coffers, and the sun peeked in out between the clouds. Dublin easily manageable on foot was open for exploration. Small problem was no set itinerary. Some travellers have a knack for landing in a foreign place and tapping right into the coolest sites and tastes. That isn�t me�I research and plan. No Ireland guidebooks in Cape Verde, so for most of this trip was winging it. Turned out OK. I first wandered south down to Trinity College to visit its studious environs, and its frenzied finals taking student throngs. Checked out the slightly over-hyped Book of Kells and settled down for a cricket match that materialized on the campus green. Next I mosied over to the National Gallery, with some stunning historical art, then the National Museum of Archaeology and History. Notable there was an excellent exhibit on ancient remains pulled up from the bogs of Ireland. It was a little eerie looking at the thousand year old preserved bodies of a human sacrifice, but vastly interesting. The Museum also held a captivating collection of artefacts, reflecting the ancient pagan and Christian traditions of Ireland�s past. Re-fuelled for dinner with a 8 dollar �Super Value Meal�, eeg, and then hit �The Celt�, conveniently next door to for some wonderful live Irish music with a very local scene.

On the boards, I had heard that doing Ireland without a car was a pain, indeed it was, and so there was dependence on bus day-tours (Bus Eireann) to get me to some of the farther flung places throughout my trip. One option was all-inclusive �party� wagons (Paddy Wagon, Shamrocker) that went on 5 day lightning tours, but I think I wisely decided to control my own fate. Lots to see and do in striking distance of Dublin, so I decided first on a foray out to Powerscourt Gardens, the Wicklow Gap and the Glendalough Monastary. Had a genial driver, who kept the commentary flowing, on just about everything from local politics, historical highlights, to rock and roll. Powerscourt was your typical country manor with some lovely gardens, even among leaden skies, and an amusing pet cemetery. The rain was incoming though, and began to pound down on our approach to Glendelough. Not deterred still got our walking tour in, and the crazy (that would be me and a friend from the Globetrotter) hiked up to the upper lake for stunning misty peaks. Cleared up a little for the peat bogs of the Wicklow gap, then it was back to Dublin, for better valued grub at the international food court stylings of Epicurean Food Hall , then back over to �the Celt� for more live music.

Next couple days finally seemed to get into the (expensive) Dublin rhythm, but began running out of notable sites, so just rambled around a lot on some suggested walking tours and dropped into a few more places of interest, 3 days in town would have probably been enough. I also relocated to the more centrally located Barnacles Temple Bar hostel, which had a better feel to it than the Globetrotter. Was a little noiser, being in the heart of the Temple Bar district, but on the whole more comfortable, with a huge communal kitchen and lounge space with Satellite TV. Where I was exposed to the 1st time to the wonderful horror that is the Eurovision 2007 music competition, made mostly bearable by hilarious BBC commentary. Stuff to question western civilization to. Other things that passed the time were the Museum of Modern Art; its Georgia O� Keefe exhibit, and Calder sculptures; the Chester-Beatty Library around Dublin Castle; The Guinness Storehouse, just a peak couldn�t afford the exorbitant entry; St Patrick�s Cathedral, unfortunately under rehab; Christ Church Cathedral; and many pints watching the world go by in Temple Bar. Exhausting the city, and fairly exhausted it was time to move on north-west to salty Galway.

Around Lisbon

2007-06-18T11:16:00.000-01:00

Well sort of a random vacation but felt the itch so had to go, despite some fairly ridiculous prices from Sal, Cape Verde to Lisbon, but more reasonable from Lisbon up to Ireland. Not sure if it�s the growing tourism here or whatever but prices had jumped from my London trip last summer. O well, so it goes. Before heading up to Dublin I pencilled in a couple days in Lisbon to do justice to a city that I got a very positive impression of on a 6 hour layover last year. Cape Verde having very strong influences from Portuguese culture, it was an active education. Reverse culture shock was fun too, at times I felt more comfortable in Lisbon, then in some parts of Ireland. So began things in Sal, our hopping international hub heh. Hung out a bit with PCVs Kyle, Caryn and Nick to see how things were going, seemingly well. Sal might just be a dust-ball to some (or beach-ball), but I still really like the island, it has a funky cross-roads, cosmopolitan vibe, along with the usual zaniness of CV culture. In fact ran into an Irish ex-pat running a pizza joint on the beach, and garnered some opinions on Dublin. Who would have thunk it.

Jumped on a plane to Lisbon the next afternoon and 4 or something hours later was back in the land of the colonial oppressors, and the slowest passport control line ever. Ridiculous, but I was soon hauling gear over to my hostel for the next couple days the Oasis. I never really had a �backpacker� hostel stage of my life travels, but finances dictated cheap accommodation this time around. The Oasis turned out to be the perfect hostel choice, eclipsing most of my other Ireland accommodation along the axis of quality, coolness, and comfort. Hip, IKEA bohemian common areas, well laid-out dorms, full kitchens, nightly tasty meals prepared by Portuguese matrons, impressive water pressure, free internet, a laid-back bar, diverse travellers, and very friendly and helpful staff got Lisbon off to a very good start. Expecting a quiet settling in, the staff and fellow travellers would have none of that, extended a warm Sangria fuelled welcome, and dragged me off into a typical Saturday night in the Western world. First hung out en mass at a styling little bar called Left, drinks accompanied by an excellent retro-techno fueled DJ team, which had my ears in a very happy place. The group then broke up a bit and then migrated over to Lux, allegedly owned by John Malkovich, with more awesome music, and tri-level super-club craziness.

Surprisingly not that exhausted the next beautiful day (the shower was like a scorching tropical waterfall of wakefulness, better then coffee), it was time to soak in some of culture of Lisboa, first in the district of Belem. A laundry list of historical sites there, got a tasty pasteis, visited the Monument to the Discoveries, its world tile map including beloved Cape Verde, the Belem Cultural Center, the underwhelming Tower of Belem (hey we have one of those in Mindelo heh!), the Monastery of Jeronimos, its famous church and the tomb of Vasco de Gama, a stroll through a flea-market full of historical bric-a-brac, and the National Coach museum, with some ridiculous but impressive carriages. Tromping around all day it was time to hitch up the horses back to the Oasis and some relaxing caiparuskas. Got talking with the bartender about how Lisbon reminded me of San Francisco back in California. Turns out he actually had lived in San Francisco for a while, and explained the city design was based on Lisbon, hills and cable-cars and all. That explained a lot. Next day ventured over via rumbling cable-car to the Alfama district, a maze of winding streets ascending up to the Castle of Saint George and its impressive panorama�s of the city. Other highlights of the district included the Cathedral of Se, wandering around Alfama, and some serious vegging out at a quasi-caf� perched on a beautiful overlook. Eventually meandered back over the Archaeology museum of Carmo. Though a little small, it was spectacularly set in the ruins of the Cathedral of Carmo, and had some interesting pieces inside.

Two days, and a good sampling of Lisbons sites, sounds and tastes, later, I headed on a day trip over to the town of Sintra, chock-full of tourists (relatively speaking), but still mountain hamlet charming. Actually had my first travel disaster on my way there, and got on the wrong train, but my really bad Portuguese availed me, and eventually sorted things out. A ton of things to see, began at the extremely bizarre Quinta da Regaleira. A mansion and gardens constructed a Portuguese millionaire Carvalho Monteiro, it was �his cosmological vision, a synthesis of the spiritual nature of mankind, deeply rooted in the universal and Portuguese mythic traditions�In this symphony of stone, crafted by the hands of temple builders, driven by a true spirit of tradition, the poetic and prophetical dimension of a Portuguese philosophical mansion is revealed.� Ahhh yeah. There was an incredible array of strangeness to explore, including an outdoor aquarium, visual trickery, sculpture, hidden caves and rooms, a �initiation well�, and tennis court, among other weirdness. Also ran into a friend from the Oasis, Keara, to help seek out mysteries of the Terrace of the Celestial Worlds/Reservoir. Probably could have spent the entire afternoon there, but more to see bused up into the surrounding wooded hills to the Pena National Palace. Constructed by Prince Ferdinand II, consort to Queen Maria III, its Romantic-Moorish style architecture at first got me humming under my breath �it�s a small world after all.� It all ended up being rather impressive though, especially the luxurious decorative arts of the interior. Back down to the historical center, explored for a while longer, and got on the right train for the return journey.

The entire time in Lisbon and Ireland, I always got a kick out of telling folks that I was a Peace Corps volunteer, and then seeing if they had heard of Cape Verde. If nothing else we get a few bragging rights with this whole two year thing. In Ireland, folks mostly had, not surprisingly, never heard of CV. In Lisbon, if they were Portuguese, they usually had. There are also many Cape Verdeans in Lisbon, so I would be walking around and occasionally spy the CV flag apparel that is ubiquitous on the islands, or hear snippets of Kriolu being spoken, leading to a building curiosity if I could somehow swing finding a expat �hangout� here in Lisbon, just to see whats up. Cue in the helpful staff of the Oasis yet again, and voila, turns out there was a CV music venue/club within walking distance of the hostel. After wonderful traditional Portuguese fare at Casa de India, jaunted over there my final night in Lisbon. It was unfortunately dead as a doornail (week night), but still an interesting cultural juxtapose. Whiled the night away, chatted with a few folks, who turned out to be from Praia, got overcharged for entry (strange European entry/drink ticketing system), tried to translate the Kriolu poetry on the wall and listened to booming zouk music with the sparse crowd. A few Portuguese folks were there as well, who knew anyone but Cape Verdeans could stand listening to zouk. Heh. A great way to finish Lisbon off, onward to Ireland the next day.

Close of Service Conference 2007

2007-06-03T16:33:00.000-01:00

Wow, where�d two years go�or the month of May for that matter heh. Seeing the end of PC approaching (perhaps, more about that later), decided to hop on a last-minute vacation to Lisbon and Ireland, details to follow. Peace Corps policy states that you can�t travel in your final three months of service and so it was a good final breather before that clamped down. So went gallivanting around up there for a bit, got rained on significantly, and then came back to heat and dust of Praia for our gangs ultimate meeting, Close of Service Conference 2007. The concluding administrative festa of our time here in Cape Verde, had tie-up sessions covering re-adjustment to the States, summing up our experience here in Cape Verde, job advice through a panel of ex-pats, final preparation of paper-work and feedback to PC staff about strengths and improvements to the program here in Cape Verde. Mainly due to some excellent facilitation, the conference was actually quite enjoyable with a surprisingly positive vibe through out. Ironically probably some of the better training received during the time here. Since we had all just seen each other a few months back at AVC, it didn�t seem like a mad dash to say good-bye to everyone, thus a relaxed, though of course a little melancholy, parting of ways. With all the free time to sit around on our respective sites and over-analyze things, think about the future, and be bitter at the hardships, COS conference was also surprisingly un-nostalgic. Most of us seem to have our plans, or not, and are more then ready to move on to something different, whatever that may be. The final word is the 14 of us survived.

In the Peace Corps COS manual it states that the acronym COS has a second meaning, Continuation of Service. This ties figuratively into the Third Goal of Peace Corps of increasing awareness and understanding of Cape Verdean culture in the United States, as well as what you learned here, when you return. For me this second meaning of COS has more literal connotations, as I am actively exploring a one-year extension to another Peace Corps country, doing more work in Information Technology. The reasons for this decision are fairly varied, if not particularly profound or complicated, like accepting the job in CV, it�s a good thing to do at this particular junction. So possibilities for my second country might be Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, Tanzania, and South Africa. As much certainty as there is in PC, the cards seem to be leaning towards South Africa, but who knows other then the country staff. The Gambia also tentatively accepted me into there program, but I�m thinking no, as the staging is starting too soon, not allowing me enough time to wrap things up in Cape Verde or the required 30 day return visit to the USA. Note there is also the chance something may go hay-wire administratively or health-wise nixing this whole extension plan, but like I�ve been telling folks, returning to life in California is a not too shabby consolation prize.

While You were Out

2007-04-25T11:52:00.000-01:00

Big whoop, the internets back. According to mesh-mesh our fibre-optic line had an anchor dropped on it, cutting off access for the entire country for about a week. Now, the hamster wheel has fired back up (powering a temporary satellite connection), and we are back in action. Thank God.

It�s funny how much stuff it seems I miss while out on official PC functions, say medical or trainings. For example while stuck in Praia for All Volunteer Conference and other things, my town finally re-opened its famous and old �cathedral�, which has been under construction since well before I arrived here. Major community event and I was stuck watching it on Jornal de Noite, seeing the backs of my fellow site-mates heads nodding off in the 7 hour opening Mass. Other big event falta�ed this time around was the 4 year anniversary of my �beloved� place of employment, the Centro de Juventude of Ribeira Brava. Not sure what activities commenced there, as they did NOT make the evening news, but it would have been nice to get some tasty cous-cous, of which there probably was abundance, and show solidarity. Coinciding with the anniversary we also seemed to have opened new CEJ in Tarrafal (as reported by a site-mate, I got a free t-shirt) and a tele-center over in Campinho (Redhawk�s home town). These tele-centers were an idea I was excited about, o a year and a half ago, when I first saw them mentioned on the CEJ�s yearly plan and at NOSI (CV�s national IT organization) headquarters in Praia. The idea being to spread internet access and computer services to the far flung zona�s of the islands. A project I would have loved to embrace, given a little community interest, but the challenge of course, the execution, in the resource scarce, highly politicized landscape here. Anyway fast-forward to now, we somehow got equipment from the higher-ups in Praia (this was the shipment I previously thought was going to the Ribeira Brava youth center), and bingo a new tele-center. So what�s the moral of the story for CD volunteers?

All Volunteer Conference 2007

2007-04-06T17:12:00.000-01:00

No Harmattan dust-storms canceling out flights this time around, had another late-season In-Service Training (for the 1st years) or All Volunteer Conference as they call it for our gang of ruffians (the 2nd years and a 3rd year). Praia remains slightly annoying as always, but luckily the training was held again beach-side up at Tarrafal. Logistics were more or less the same as last year, with some administrative sessions, and lots of information about the new �Community Based Training� model the new trainees will be using in late June. Instead of a large centralized clump of volunteers in one town, people will be off in towns, separated by sector. Seems fairly cool, but of course will probably have a few rough spots going in. I won�t be helping this year, as things will be finishing off here in Sao Nicolau during those months. Another item of interest was a financial session on PC CV expenses and whatnot. Illuminating. As well as the final push to get our �Living Allowance Surveys� in. This is a survey that is theoretically supposed to be filled out each year where you list prices on various items on ones island. When a certain percentage of surveys is turned in, our financial officer can then after a process, raise our monthly living allowance. Despite the pull of more money, the last time this process was fully completed was 2001! See PCV�s really are un-materialistic, or just don�t like surveys and paperwork heh. We are very close so will probably get it going for a raise for next years volunteers.

Got a sense of what everyone was up to work-wise more informally, as at the actual scheduled share session for CD, most seemed fairly dialed-out and tired. All in all seems like the problems we 2nd years grind our teeth at aren�t exclusive to whatever. Attempting development work in a �2nd level� country is funky. No real take-away on how to polish things off here at the CEJ either. In my opinion a lot of the 2nd years are already on the way out of CV mentally (and early COS-ing), if the conference had been held back in January might have been a bit more incentive to brain-storm on final ideas for site, rather then future plans for the States, and Close of Service, but its all good.

A few more observations on Praia this time around, as mentioned annoying, but a source of good variety of food, items not available at site (new super-market Fenicia/Leader Price�like heaven), free internet, and volunteers to hang out with. But we seriously need the PC transit house back, for the kitchen, for the washing of clothes, for the easy access to cheap restaurants, for the movies, for the books, for the hang out/common space. Hotel life has only one plus, hot water, and I got over that about two years ago heh. So again RIP beloved transit house. Not sure what the deal was either but the city was absolutely swarming with tourists. I remembered the days when you spotted a branco is was usually a PCV, or visiting PCV. Bring in those Dollars and Euros, but darn-it now I have to argue in Kriolu with taxi drivers to get the normal price. I did however run into some interesting non-PC folks, including a South African globe-trotter who had caught a boat from Dakar, and an American family working at the US Embassy in Senegal consulting on some Coast Guard stuff here. Always interesting chatting with folks �on the road� hearing their impressions of this little string of rocks rising out of the Atlantic.

Waiting for Green Bananas to Ripen

2007-03-24T15:45:00.000-01:00

Ahhh a nice intervalo with computer classes right now. Finally off to our much delayed In-service training/All Volunteer Conference. Woot. Will be good to see the rest of the gang.

In other miraculous events the CEJ got a whole Hilux (Toyota truck) of new equipment from Praia the other day(I assume from the ministry that runs the CEJ's), including new desks, chairs, tables, a dvd player, another television (?), high-power attenna, computers and monitors. Needless to say I was fairly stoked, as if and when all this got set up, it would increase the centers capacity substantially for computer classes, and more seating/tables for youth to come in and do whatever. Not sure what we are going to do with two televisions though. Additionally I lost my bet, and the "upwelled" tile has also been repaired, so the sala de jogos has reopened. Its odd the little things that make a person happy here.

Carnaval 2007

2007-03-04T20:05:00.001-01:00

Wow, March already. Not that February went particularly quickly, but there go the months ticking down. Notable events another round of computer classes done, I�d say best ever, with the normal caveats. Had the entire gang make it through, not one falta (missed class) by anyone, with diploma in hand (distribution a problem in the past because of �Redhawk�), and tasty pizza lanxi (snacks) to send them on their way.

Got more classes starting tomorrow (a week delayed), and one more new computer sitting in my bosses office. The last new computers took three months to make the 50m into the computer room, we�ll see how this one fairs. In other business news, we had an �upwelling� in one of the CEJ�s rooms early in the month, smashing a bunch of floor tiles. Apparently this happens quite often here, as a vocational education volunteer explained, the tiles aren�t properly set so after a small amount of moisture (that thunderstorm), they rise up and break. Not a huge deal, but it does cut our real estate by 1/3, and kids can�t really come in and play board games/watch TV (not that they did that often before but heck the concept is important), as the room is completely closed off. I have money on that it might be fixed before I leave this summer. From initial investigations by the staff it seems there are no replacement tiles available on Sao Nicolau. What?

More pertinent topics, Carnaval was again a blast this year. 4 nights of music, floats, costumes, dancing in the streets, and yes, a little bit of drinking. Bit of a wild time getting tickets this year, as organization was fast and loose. This isn�t the USA where there would be one place that would serve your Carnaval ticketing needs. Instead it�s a moving target, like an amusement park shooting gallery. Tickets not ready here? Try the plaza. He�s just left? Try the float construction area. You didn�t get my money? It�s in that envelope. Who has the envelope? It�s back at her house? Who actually has the drink tickets? Get them at the practice. The guy wasn�t at the practice? Heh, you get the idea. All was eventually resolved though, tickets finally in hand late Saturday afternoon shortly before activities commenced. Jon and I planted ourselves in the float construction area for Copa Cabana, and were amused with grog, bottle rockets, and paint fumes until the ticket guy finally showed. It was also cool seeing them put the final touches on the floats, spray-painting like mad to get them done in time. CV=last minute prep. Interesting too, saw the ideas that the floats were based on, computer print-outs of floats from Rio de Janeiro. Of course ours a little smaller.

Going to try and do this whole thing justice in description, it�s all a wonderful blur, but perhaps the best way to get the vibe is to check out the photos. So not surprisingly the first major desfile (parade) started much, much later then last year (not counting the children�s parade earlier in the day Saturday, which was darn adorable). The first group from Calejao hit things off at around 3:30am Sunday morning, with Copa Cabana eventually making it to the main plaza around, 5:30am, with the sun coming up. All part of the Carnaval madness though, as people woke up from their cat-naps, thronged to the street, to the after-parties, and then some sleep. The second night, the energy level continued to build. I knew last years Copa Cabana�s pirate ship float was going to be hard to beat, but group Estrela Azul captured my heart instantly with their replica Space Shuttle, landing lights and car alarm blaring, attached to a amusement park �rocket-ship� ride, manned by freaked out toddlers. Their second float was some sort of gigantic squash/globe with weird stuff like a tram coming out of it? Yeah it was strange. Copa wasn�t too shabby either, with a large Roman senator on one, then a Valentine, serpent/apple (the apple spun!) theme going on the other. Eclectic as usual. The group costumes be-feathered and sequined up had a Heaven and Hell thing going on. Estrela�s costumes, along the same lines, and the mini-umbrellas were a funny touch. The music in the street lasted quite a bit longer as the groups rolled through their four theme songs, then it was off to the after-parties round two. Monday allegedly the day of rest, not this year as Rhett from Praia arrived, and there was another mini-parade, put on by mini-group �Mete e Mete�. Even less organization from this group, more a whimsical hodgepodge of costumes, but a definitely catchy theme song. Didn�t have the inside track on tickets for their party, but still had a good time watching the procession then chilling with folks outside. One more go at things, and Tuesday the final desfile arrived at dusk. The town plaza was crammed with folks coming in from out of town, with lots of people dressed up in a bizarre mishmash of costumes, for example my friends in silver body paint. With all the people and all three groups processing in it was general mayhem. But good mayhem. More dancing in the streets, thenafter-party, made it to the selection of next years King and Queen of Copa Cabana before conking out. Overall, an incredible Carnaval, better then last year simply for the fact that I felt more in the thick of it, even though I didn�t participate in the parades. Nothing better then an epic small town party.

Thunderstorms?

2007-02-06T21:00:00.000-01:00

Ok first the arbitrary comment about the weird weather we have been having. An afternoon of fairly intense thunderstorms a while back, and periodic sprinkles this past week along with gray gloom. This is a desert, rainy season ended back in September. A rather dissappointing one, I might add, so I say heavens let forth your fury! Turn that brown, green!

As long as it lets up before Carnaval 2007 that is, quickly approaching around the 17th through the 20th or therabouts. Looking forward to a good time again, though will not be with one of the organized "samba" groups dancing in our processions. Its great being a lazy introvert. But will probably still be doing a little shuffle as I will be assuming the job of photographer/videoagrapher for our other PCVs here. Also despite some peer pressure from nice girls, will still be affiliated with the Copacabana group, as is tradition for PCVs. No loss though, probably going to smuggle my way into Estrela's party too, as I know one of the organizers, and he's super friendly. Themes this year are "Fantasies and Wonders of Copacabana" for Copa, and get this, something along the lines of "Together in the Space and the Protection of the Environment " for Estrela. I swear I had nothing to do with that. Talk about a coup d'�tat for environmental development here heh. 500 Escuedo says their float is going to be a huge tree, or mini replica of Monte Gordo heh!

Anyway. In other news, work is work. Computer night classes are a pain, but better than nothing. Probably as some final "monument building" at the CEJ going to finally overhaul our computer class cirriculam as well. We shall see.

RSS...ARG

2007-01-22T21:07:00.000-01:00

Just a quick logistical note my current RSS feed has been a little jacked up for awhile. Things like accent marks, apostrophes, and well...words...are causing errors that make it unreadable. Might eventually have it figured out, might not. Then again I could go through several years worth of blogging and remove every single punctuation mark. On Sao Nicolau I do have copious amounts of free time hehe. Anyway, sorry for the inconvenience.

When Burros Attack

2007-01-19T13:33:00.000-01:00

Fairly typical week here in Sao Nicolau. Soccer games, loud zouk music late into the night, a burro kicking me, just a glancing blow on my thigh and nice bruise (I was lucky my friend said that one usually bites), lots of sleep, computer classes starting again after about 3 months of nada, finishing the book NO LOGO, getting all amped about anti-branding/marketing stuff, then realizing I'm in Cape Verde with no sweatshops and near zil advertising, but the youth walking around in tracksuits and BoomBoxes perched on their shoulders NYE.

Still in thinking mode what to do with myself after this is all over. More important, deciding on a final vacation destination to use up like 25 days with. Any ideas?

Carnaval 2007 approaches also. Apparantly no PCV visitors coming this year from the other islands. Their loss heh.

Volcanic Christmas

2007-01-09T19:06:00.000-01:00

Headed out Friday the 22, as there were no direct connections to Fogo from Sao Nicolau, and so had to spend a night in Praia. Arrived to find out my hotel room had been overbooked to someone else (arg I miss the PC transit house), but fortunately they had placed me at another local. It was not quite as nice, but cheaper, plus had an awesome view off the edge of the Plato out over Praia. In fact it was so clear, that I could see the Pico (peak) of Fogo rising above downtown/the peaks of Santiago, a stunning view during sunset. My flight was very early 6:45am so called an early night, after some lamb pitas, schwarma.

Caught my flight with no problems, though annoyed at the early morning (there were going to be a lot of these this trip unfortunately). The descent into Fogo was not quite as dramatic as the Bradt described it, but the touchdown was fairly rough. Had some time to kill before Hiace's left for Mosteiros (on the other side of the island), so had breakfast with Mike, and his Nigerian friend "Myguy". Mike arranged a Hiace for me, and they were off, while I began the waiting game. One hour of sitting, one hour of driving around Sao Felipe, one hour of waiting around the airport for a late flight, and then half an hour more driving around the town, we were finally off around 1:30pm. Incredibly scenic drive but I was a little too tired and hungry to enjoy it, plus the Hiace was crammed full.

Jende and Mikes town of Mosteiros (Igreja) was pleasant. Ocean on one side, the mountains of the crater wall rising on the other. Spent the time just relaxing, catching up on news, eating out a lot, and going on a few short hikes. Christmas day, nothing special, though did go to an evening festa the town threw. Wednesday it was time to move on, heading back to Sao Felipe to catch a ride up to the crater. Unfortunately this involved more sleep deprivation, as all the Hiace's left for Sao Felipe around 5:30am. We manage to catch a bigger motor-bus service that had apparently just started, so the drive back was quite comfortable. Said farewell to Jende and met up with Sam, the environmental PC volunteer who lives in the crater, or "Tchon" (Kriolu for floor). Eventually got a free ride up with his boss, but that involved a bit of waiting as well.

The drive into the crater was impressive, we gradually ascended steep roads through scrubland reminiscent of central California with yellowing drying grass and acacia, dotted with various small towns. Got to the top and, surrounded by an encircling wall of mountains, a huge blasted plain opened up before us. Darkest black, dotted with cinder cones, and the tortured sculpture of dried lava, it was much more desolate and foreboding then anything I had seen in Hawaii. And of course rising above it all the dark peak of the volcano, palpably intimidating. Settled into Sam's place, a "true" PC house. Just one room cinderblock construction (no windows), with no running water or electricity. Two more PC volunteers were also on a "surprise" visit Brittany (from south OC) and Callie, so we waiting for them, checked out the surreal touristy winery (they grow grapes up there, major draw), and then went on short hike to the Volcaozinho (small volcano), the site of the 1995 eruption. Nice introduction to the volcano, saw some impressive scenery, felt the heat from the vents, and smelled the sulfur. Night falling and no electricity anywhere we then whiled the evening away at the "Cooperativa" listening to the band play, dancing with the tourists and their CV guides, meeting Sam's community, and drinking strong homemade wine called "manicon", before Sam made us all pizza and we tried to get some sleep in the high elevation cold.

The manicon gave me some bizarre dreams, so I was a little sleep deprived and iffy about climbing the Pico the next morning. Not to mention preoccupied with the difficulty of getting a Hiace back to Sao Felipe in the afternoon (though we had made some loose arrangements the night before). Sam (who also had not slept well and was spotted reading Noam Chomsky by flashlight at 3am) and the ladies (who would not climb today as they had to head home for meetings) however insisted so I succumbed to peer pressure. Up we headed about 7:30am, following a road and gradual ascent to the trailhead. So far so good, the first part of the trail up was fairly easy, though the loose volcanic soil was definitely an energy sucker, Sam was setting a fairly fast clip as well, and over the course of the hike we ended up passing several other groups of tourist hikers (Belgium, French, German), to the head of the line, first on top, though always stopping to greet/chat a bit in Kriolu with the guides, all friends of Sam. The second phase of the trail was a little more grueling, up a rock spine with a ton of switch-backing, on a barely visible path. Then came the final scramble to the summit over more sheer rocks, with no real path. And we made it, gazing down into the summits caldera and seeing...well climb it and find out. It was REALLY cold at the top so rested a bit, and started the descent. First back down those sheer rocks and then a different route over to a long slope of shale that would aid us going down. Like the Bradt describes you are basically running/skiing down this final stretch, shale coming up to your knees, brakeing you when you want it. It was really fun, and with a wonderful view of the entire "Tchon" laid out below you. All told took about 4 hours, 3 up, 1 down, quite fast as I needed to meet my return Hiace. No problems there though, ran into an employee from the US embassy, visiting with her American boyfriend, so got a free ride. Nice. Hung out in Sao Felipe a bit more and then back to Sao Nicolau with no layover on the 29th.