Well, I arrived back in Medan today after a few days in Penang, Malaysia. I have fallen in love with the charm of that island city, beautiful, quiet, relaxing and modern. This can be added to Singapore and Boston as places Chris would like to live.
It was good to get away for a few days, and say goodbye to some close friends I won't see again. It was also good to have days off for sleeping, because I was up so late watching soccer. Late matches start at 2 or 3 am here.
On Monday I go back to Nias for the last time - I will be leaving for good on July 4. It's starting to begin the end - I was at my last manager meeting today. I have my ticket in hand. I'm spending my last days in Medan this weekend. I might begin to miss it soon!
That's all for now.
Friday, June 16, 2006
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Dearest Friends, another long period of time has passed, and with another holiday in Indonesia (it’s Pentacost), my office is quiet and I can write another post.
My eyes are better, although not quite right. I’m still not sure what the story is, but they’re really tired, and strained. After the last post, I was ready to go to Medan and get them checked when they cleared on Sunday and pain went away. I was able to spend some time with my replacements, who are currently working for another agency, and will come later at the end of June.
On Monday I received word that my good friend and country director Paul would be taking his leave immediately, and I flew out to Medan for his farewell on Tuesday, and to meet our regional director, who will be filling in. Also, David Chang, my boss from Vietnam arrived, he will, after his leave, be looking to move to Medan as assistant country director. This means he will focus on Aceh/Nias, and the head office will move to Jakarta to cover more of the country.
We had a staff retreat on Thursday to Sunday, and it was good to get together with other staff and see old friends, as well as hear some great motivation and training from our special guest speakers. The end of the retreat coincided with Tumpal’s R&R time, so he stayed in Medan, and I had a holiday for Memorial Day. As our project is moving well, we took the time to interact socially, and I showed him my favourite spots in Medan. Tumpal, who was raised there, decided that I know Medan better than him! (He moved away for school, and hasn’t lived there for some time.)
When I returned to Nias, it was with a new finance officer, Kristyn, and Rani the admin officer was ready for a break. So, Rani left last Friday for a week, leaving Kristyn, in fear and trepidation, alone with the boss. We had a great weekend relaxing at home, and she is (I think) less afraid of me.
The big news is that I am confirmed to leave Indonesia and end my contract on July 4, leaving just 29 days. With some holiday time due on Friday, and meetings scheduled in Medan, I have less than three weeks in the field, to effectively hand over the project. On Friday I will go to
Singapore to visit Duncan and his family, who are on holidays at home, and then we will be taking a 12 hour bus ride to Penang, Malaysia, to visit Paul and his family for a few days. This, of course, coincides with the opening of the World Cup, and a chance to watch matches at all hours, without work to interfere.
For those who are interested, click on the link to the right to jump to my other blog, where I have posted a new question, sure to spark some interest, and maybe debate…
My eyes are better, although not quite right. I’m still not sure what the story is, but they’re really tired, and strained. After the last post, I was ready to go to Medan and get them checked when they cleared on Sunday and pain went away. I was able to spend some time with my replacements, who are currently working for another agency, and will come later at the end of June.
On Monday I received word that my good friend and country director Paul would be taking his leave immediately, and I flew out to Medan for his farewell on Tuesday, and to meet our regional director, who will be filling in. Also, David Chang, my boss from Vietnam arrived, he will, after his leave, be looking to move to Medan as assistant country director. This means he will focus on Aceh/Nias, and the head office will move to Jakarta to cover more of the country.
We had a staff retreat on Thursday to Sunday, and it was good to get together with other staff and see old friends, as well as hear some great motivation and training from our special guest speakers. The end of the retreat coincided with Tumpal’s R&R time, so he stayed in Medan, and I had a holiday for Memorial Day. As our project is moving well, we took the time to interact socially, and I showed him my favourite spots in Medan. Tumpal, who was raised there, decided that I know Medan better than him! (He moved away for school, and hasn’t lived there for some time.)
When I returned to Nias, it was with a new finance officer, Kristyn, and Rani the admin officer was ready for a break. So, Rani left last Friday for a week, leaving Kristyn, in fear and trepidation, alone with the boss. We had a great weekend relaxing at home, and she is (I think) less afraid of me.
The big news is that I am confirmed to leave Indonesia and end my contract on July 4, leaving just 29 days. With some holiday time due on Friday, and meetings scheduled in Medan, I have less than three weeks in the field, to effectively hand over the project. On Friday I will go to
Singapore to visit Duncan and his family, who are on holidays at home, and then we will be taking a 12 hour bus ride to Penang, Malaysia, to visit Paul and his family for a few days. This, of course, coincides with the opening of the World Cup, and a chance to watch matches at all hours, without work to interfere.
For those who are interested, click on the link to the right to jump to my other blog, where I have posted a new question, sure to spark some interest, and maybe debate…
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