Vanuit een luchtballon zijn zelfs de grootste mensen klein
Je ziet een stipje lopen en je denkt: wie zou dat zijn?
Misschien is het een zwerver of een statige meneer
Het stipje slaat de hoek om en verdwijnt in het verkeer
Vanuit de lucht gezien is niemand wit of bruin of geel
Je ziet alleen maar stipjes en het zijn er reuze veel
En zo blijf je fantaseren vanuit je luchtballon
Is het stipje nu de tuinman of de deftige baron?
Vanuit een luchtballon bestaat geen vreugde of verdriet
Je ziet de stipjes lopen maar hun tranen zie je niet
Hoe goed je ook blijft kijken, alle stipjes zijn gelijk
Vanuit de lucht bekeken is niemand arm of rijk
Daarom kun je heel je leven
Maar het beste blijven zweven
Je kunt uren blijven dromen
Als je vliegt over de bomen
Als je wolken aan kunt raken
Valt geen onderscheid te maken
Met een glimlach op je lippen
Denk je: mensen zijn maar stippen
Vanuit een luchtballon is niemand lelijk meer of knap
En niemand dik of dun of lang of kort dat is de grap
Vanuit de lucht bekijk je alles door een mooie bril
Zodra je weer geland bent, ja dan zie je het verschil
De wereld wordt steeds mooier hoe hoger je gaat
Toch kun je veel meer doen wanneer je op je benen staat
Al is het uitzicht prachtig en is vliegen reuze fijn
Dat elke stip gelijk is ja dat is helaas maar schijn
Daarom kun je heel je leven
Maar het beste blijven zweven
Je kunt uren blijven dromen
Als je vliegt over de bomen
En je kijkt over het randje
En je zwaait naar ieder landje
Met een glimlach op je lippen
Denk je: mensen zijn maar stippen
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Kinderen voor Kinderen : Stipjes
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Trouw- Marriage
Hoi hoi!
Zie dat ik misschien een kleine schokgolf teweeg heb gebracht met de blijde boodschap van onze trouw, en vooral het feit dat het niet op voorhand was aangekondigd geweest... Gewoon even deze email om uit te leggen waarom:
- Ten eerste waren we tot het gebeurd was, absoluut niet zeker dat het wel ging aanvaard worden (zuid afrikaanse administratie is niet zo efficient), en we hadden geen zin het aan te kondigen voordat we zeker waren dat het echt ging kunnen doorgaan. Zelfs de dag dat we hadden geprobeerd een afspraak te maken, zei de dame in kwestie dat ze van niets op de hoogte was....
- Ten tweede wouden we vermijden er iets te groots van te maken, of meer dan het was. Ja, het is een bevestiging dat we in een gezamelijke toekomst geloven, en dat we daarin investeren, maar het is geen grote trouw-trouw met beloftes voor tot de dood ons schiedt (we zijn tenslotte toch nog maar tien maanden samen). We willen het dus niet gelijkstellen aan de grote sprong maar meer aan een kleine stap naar een gezamelijke toekomst. Het hier in Zuid Afrika doen stelde ons in staat een papier te bekomen dat we kunnen gebruiken om samen te worden uitgezonden of later kinderen te adopteren (bv. in Zuid-Afrika), maar met een groot feest of plechtige ceremonie wachten we liever nog even.
Voel jullie dus zeker niet erbuiten geplaatst of aan de kant gezet, als het het groots ding was geweest zouden we het zeker hebben meegedeeld en jullie op voorhand gewaarschuwd of uitgenodigd hebben... Het blijft voor het moment een trouw die enkel hier erkend is en niet in Belgie, dus er veranderd praktisch voor ns niets, hoop dat dat voor jullie ook zo is ;-)
Hartelijke groetjes.
Oups, il me semble que j'ai provoqué un petit raz de maré avec l'annonce de notre marriage.... Ou surtout, avec le non avertissement au préalable de notre marriage. Juste pour vous expliquer pourquoi ceci, ce petit post.
- En effet, on l'avait pas annoncé avant, pour la bonne et simple raison que jusqu'à ce que c'était fait, on n'était pas du tout sûr qu'on allait pouvoir l'obtenir. L'administration de l'Afrique du Sud laisse encore à désirer point de vue efficacité et certitudes à des questions. Ainsi, qu'on ne voulait pas l'annoncer que ca allait avoir lieu la semaine prochaine, et puis devoir répondre que finalement, non, pas possible car on manquait tel papier ou tel autorisation.... Même l'après-midi qu'on s'est présenté, ca a été tout juste car la dame qui devait effectuer la cérémonie, n'avait rien entendu du rdv fixé par téléphone.
- Deuxièmement, on ne voit pas ce marriage comme "le grand saut", mais comm un petit pas en avant vers un avenir en commun, sinon, clair, on vous aurait averti et impliqué, et surtout invité! Pour le moment, c'est une question pratique pour pouvoir être envoyé comme couple, et on doit le faire reconnaître en Belgique avant que cela a quelque force que ce soit. D'ailleurs, vu les implications bureaucratiques que cela donnerait, on le fera en belle et due forme à ce moment là, avec j'espère votre participation! Donc, regardez ce marriage comme nous le faisons actuellement: de la confiance pour un futur ensemble et des projets en commun, mais juste un pas, pas un saut ;-) Et puis, c'est aussi agréable de pouvoir se dire "époux", et de faire tout cela sans tracas ou tralala... Mais du moment que c'est le grand saut, on le fêtera dignement, et ensemble, promis!!!
Zie dat ik misschien een kleine schokgolf teweeg heb gebracht met de blijde boodschap van onze trouw, en vooral het feit dat het niet op voorhand was aangekondigd geweest... Gewoon even deze email om uit te leggen waarom:
- Ten eerste waren we tot het gebeurd was, absoluut niet zeker dat het wel ging aanvaard worden (zuid afrikaanse administratie is niet zo efficient), en we hadden geen zin het aan te kondigen voordat we zeker waren dat het echt ging kunnen doorgaan. Zelfs de dag dat we hadden geprobeerd een afspraak te maken, zei de dame in kwestie dat ze van niets op de hoogte was....
- Ten tweede wouden we vermijden er iets te groots van te maken, of meer dan het was. Ja, het is een bevestiging dat we in een gezamelijke toekomst geloven, en dat we daarin investeren, maar het is geen grote trouw-trouw met beloftes voor tot de dood ons schiedt (we zijn tenslotte toch nog maar tien maanden samen). We willen het dus niet gelijkstellen aan de grote sprong maar meer aan een kleine stap naar een gezamelijke toekomst. Het hier in Zuid Afrika doen stelde ons in staat een papier te bekomen dat we kunnen gebruiken om samen te worden uitgezonden of later kinderen te adopteren (bv. in Zuid-Afrika), maar met een groot feest of plechtige ceremonie wachten we liever nog even.
Voel jullie dus zeker niet erbuiten geplaatst of aan de kant gezet, als het het groots ding was geweest zouden we het zeker hebben meegedeeld en jullie op voorhand gewaarschuwd of uitgenodigd hebben... Het blijft voor het moment een trouw die enkel hier erkend is en niet in Belgie, dus er veranderd praktisch voor ns niets, hoop dat dat voor jullie ook zo is ;-)
Hartelijke groetjes.
Oups, il me semble que j'ai provoqué un petit raz de maré avec l'annonce de notre marriage.... Ou surtout, avec le non avertissement au préalable de notre marriage. Juste pour vous expliquer pourquoi ceci, ce petit post.
- En effet, on l'avait pas annoncé avant, pour la bonne et simple raison que jusqu'à ce que c'était fait, on n'était pas du tout sûr qu'on allait pouvoir l'obtenir. L'administration de l'Afrique du Sud laisse encore à désirer point de vue efficacité et certitudes à des questions. Ainsi, qu'on ne voulait pas l'annoncer que ca allait avoir lieu la semaine prochaine, et puis devoir répondre que finalement, non, pas possible car on manquait tel papier ou tel autorisation.... Même l'après-midi qu'on s'est présenté, ca a été tout juste car la dame qui devait effectuer la cérémonie, n'avait rien entendu du rdv fixé par téléphone.
- Deuxièmement, on ne voit pas ce marriage comme "le grand saut", mais comm un petit pas en avant vers un avenir en commun, sinon, clair, on vous aurait averti et impliqué, et surtout invité! Pour le moment, c'est une question pratique pour pouvoir être envoyé comme couple, et on doit le faire reconnaître en Belgique avant que cela a quelque force que ce soit. D'ailleurs, vu les implications bureaucratiques que cela donnerait, on le fera en belle et due forme à ce moment là, avec j'espère votre participation! Donc, regardez ce marriage comme nous le faisons actuellement: de la confiance pour un futur ensemble et des projets en commun, mais juste un pas, pas un saut ;-) Et puis, c'est aussi agréable de pouvoir se dire "époux", et de faire tout cela sans tracas ou tralala... Mais du moment que c'est le grand saut, on le fêtera dignement, et ensemble, promis!!!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
When you meet someone who can cook and do housework--don't hesitate a minute--marry him.
Great news, everybody! We are a married couple!
Got over the first shock? Now let us explain this to you. South Africa is one of the 14 countries in the world, which allows same sex couples to get married or to sign for a civil partnership. Although we have been together for only a short period, we feel like we are going to walk side by side for a long time. So, in the first place, this marriage celebrates our relationship. Then, there are the practical reasons.
Adoption: at some point in the future,+small.JPG)
we both very much would like to have kids, and one of the ways to achieve this would be through adoption. Belgian adoption laws are pretty strict and couples need to prove certain things like the duration of their relationship. The paper we have now is a perfect proof of this, and the earlier we get it, the more time the paper will cover.
Development workers contracts: because we both want to continue working abroad, a marriage paper will make it easier to go live in other countries together. Future employers may want proof that we're indeed a "stable" couple before arranging the paperwork for both of us.
+small.JPG)
But so far, the marriage is only valid in South Africa, at least until we feel like having it homologated in Belgium. There are no changes in our civil status, no common residency obligations, no legal implications whatsoever. Which is why we see it more like an adventure than "the big thing" ;-)
So, after a lot of hassle (date, phone calls, inquiries, ...), we went to the South African Home Affairs office in George - Wednesday 19 September - with our roommates: Eugene and Goedele, our best (wo)men and Sander, serving as our "bruidsjongen/petit page".+small.JPG)
The appointment Bruno had set apparently didn't got through to the right person. She almost didn't want to perform the ceremony. But our charms worked and we got her to do it anyway.
Back in Plett, the gang fixed us a little party moment in Flashbacks, our regular "let's-have-a-drink-place", with cakes and balloons and one of our favourite slows, "als dat gebeurt" (Ingeborg) on the speakers, after which Bruno and I went for a romantic dinner.
Got over the first shock? Now let us explain this to you. South Africa is one of the 14 countries in the world, which allows same sex couples to get married or to sign for a civil partnership. Although we have been together for only a short period, we feel like we are going to walk side by side for a long time. So, in the first place, this marriage celebrates our relationship. Then, there are the practical reasons.
Adoption: at some point in the future,
+small.JPG)
we both very much would like to have kids, and one of the ways to achieve this would be through adoption. Belgian adoption laws are pretty strict and couples need to prove certain things like the duration of their relationship. The paper we have now is a perfect proof of this, and the earlier we get it, the more time the paper will cover.Development workers contracts: because we both want to continue working abroad, a marriage paper will make it easier to go live in other countries together. Future employers may want proof that we're indeed a "stable" couple before arranging the paperwork for both of us.
+small.JPG)
But so far, the marriage is only valid in South Africa, at least until we feel like having it homologated in Belgium. There are no changes in our civil status, no common residency obligations, no legal implications whatsoever. Which is why we see it more like an adventure than "the big thing" ;-)So, after a lot of hassle (date, phone calls, inquiries, ...), we went to the South African Home Affairs office in George - Wednesday 19 September - with our roommates: Eugene and Goedele, our best (wo)men and Sander, serving as our "bruidsjongen/petit page".
+small.JPG)
The appointment Bruno had set apparently didn't got through to the right person. She almost didn't want to perform the ceremony. But our charms worked and we got her to do it anyway.Back in Plett, the gang fixed us a little party moment in Flashbacks, our regular "let's-have-a-drink-place", with cakes and balloons and one of our favourite slows, "als dat gebeurt" (Ingeborg) on the speakers, after which Bruno and I went for a romantic dinner.
Whale watching
After nearly three months, we finally managed to Do It: we went whale watching! And it was quite spectacular: we saw about a dozen of them, and one on an average weighs 50 tons, so that would make 600 tons of whale flesh that we spotted! Currently, it is the mating season so Love was in the water ;-)
The Southern Right whale is between 11 to 18 metres long (our guide mentioned one that was 20m long) and its colour is grey. As an adult, it can weigh between 25 and 66 tons. It can swim about 5km per hour. You might think a whale could swallow a chair but reputedly it can't even swallow an orange. Good thing for Jonas, a Belgian student accompanying us on the trip.
As you can see from the pictures, they have got wart like things on their back. The warts never change and make different patterns from each other which make them recognizable. This whale's common name is the Southern Right whale because it lives in the southern hemisphere and at the time was the right whale to kill. Why? Because it was a slow swimmer and it had so much blubber it seldom sank. They are found along South Africa's coastline. They travel 2000 km from the Southern Ocean to the Antarctic for the rest of the year. They come and have their babies in South African coastal waters in spring and in 3 months they go back. The length of pregnancy is 6 months to a year. 4500 Southern Right whales live in the southern hemisphere, 270 of these have been found between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. 1500 of these whales come to this coastline. For pix and video, got to Thomas post or youtube
The Southern Right whale is between 11 to 18 metres long (our guide mentioned one that was 20m long) and its colour is grey. As an adult, it can weigh between 25 and 66 tons. It can swim about 5km per hour. You might think a whale could swallow a chair but reputedly it can't even swallow an orange. Good thing for Jonas, a Belgian student accompanying us on the trip.
As you can see from the pictures, they have got wart like things on their back. The warts never change and make different patterns from each other which make them recognizable. This whale's common name is the Southern Right whale because it lives in the southern hemisphere and at the time was the right whale to kill. Why? Because it was a slow swimmer and it had so much blubber it seldom sank. They are found along South Africa's coastline. They travel 2000 km from the Southern Ocean to the Antarctic for the rest of the year. They come and have their babies in South African coastal waters in spring and in 3 months they go back. The length of pregnancy is 6 months to a year. 4500 Southern Right whales live in the southern hemisphere, 270 of these have been found between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. 1500 of these whales come to this coastline. For pix and video, got to Thomas post or youtubeFriday, September 14, 2007
7 days of my Plettonian life: (7) Thursday 13th
Last day of this blogging experiment.
Since I spend so much time at our apartment, thought I would give you some pix of where we live. But first of all, the first thing we see in the morning, the view from our window on PLett's Bay and the Tsitsikamma mountains on the horizon, not to forget the Bowling Field just in front (not bowling as we know it, but more similar to petanque played by in white or blue dressed elderly people).
Quote of the day: "Nihil facimus sed id bene facimus" - We do nothing, but we do it well;-)
Since I spend so much time at our apartment, thought I would give you some pix of where we live. But first of all, the first thing we see in the morning, the view from our window on PLett's Bay and the Tsitsikamma mountains on the horizon, not to forget the Bowling Field just in front (not bowling as we know it, but more similar to petanque played by in white or blue dressed elderly people).
Next is our living room: spacious and with lots of light:
Just a sample of how our roommates live, Sander and Eugene's room:
And then finally, our room and little love nest:
Quote of the day: "Nihil facimus sed id bene facimus" - We do nothing, but we do it well;-)
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
7 days of my Plettonian life: (6) Wednesday 12th
Not too much motivation today to write, and not that much to tell either.
Got up in the morning and started by finishing the paperwork I still had left for the Field Band project from yesterday. That meant typing the minutes of the meeting (paying attention not to step on anybodies toes), drafting a letter that different officials like the mayor, municipality manager and such would sign confirming their support to the projects. Then I had the pleasant task to phone to the guy from the Field band in Port Elizabeth (the one we cancelled last minute with last week) but turned out to be fine. He actually preferred us coming next weekend, when they will be finished rehearsing for the national gathering in Jo'burg, have a gala dinner where they'll perform and the Saturday we'd assist in a festival of Arts&Culture where they do workshops. All sounds rather cool. On the visit to Jo'burg front however, news wasn't as good. Talked the the coordinator of the National Field band and I tried pushing her to just let us stay with the field bands, as to mingle and absorb as much as possible. She however said that with 1500 children there, of which 500 are from rural areas that have no experience using toilets, she wouldn't recommend it. Pushing it a little bit, cause I really think it would have been fun and the best way to have behind the scene glimpses, she politely insisted on us staying elsewhere. Organising was already hectic, and she claimed not to be able to deal with any additional people in the two big halls. Which would mean that we'll have to look for accommodation, rent a car and all that. Well, let's see what Tony thinks about all the extra expenses that would mean... Then surprise surprise, I received an email from my niece, Hanne, who is also studying law and wants to work abroad for a couple of months as well, doing volunteer work or something, and wanted some advice. Though it is always hard to give advice by email I feel, I still sort of tried to make the most out of it and sent her a couple of useful links.
I should have worked on my book after that, but must admit I got too distracted by the book I am currently reading (not that it is that special, but it doesn't take that much to keep me away from slaving away at my book ;-). The one I am currenlty reading is "Until I find you" by John Irving, not his best, but not his worst either. Seems that it has 117 characters, all named and to me, it seems like they are all flesh and blood and all have role to play. It is so nice to have time to read again, and devour books from the local library. I estimate I must have taken out like 30 books already.Other volunteers (amongst which Thomas seem to be lacking that time ;-).
Next, I helped Eugene, our roommate, with an application form so that he would be able to attend a leadership building course for two months in New York. It would be the first time that he would leave the country and is very eager to go. He's not very used to filling out such forms and making the necessary blahblah to impress that kind of people so I agreed to help him, which took quite some time.
Next, when Thomas & Co got home, Sander and Goedele went off to play squash, and Thomas and me went to the Beacon Island, a luxurious hotel/ressort here in Plett where we sometimes sneak into (not that their security is very tight) to enjoy the gym, jaccuzi and sauna. Afterwards we went to a Chinese restaurant we had never tried before, and had a quick (though spicy) dinner there. Back home, though it was only 9h30, everybody seemed to have turned in for the night (allthough we had talked about watching some DVD tonight), so, we'll just follow their example ;-)
Got up in the morning and started by finishing the paperwork I still had left for the Field Band project from yesterday. That meant typing the minutes of the meeting (paying attention not to step on anybodies toes), drafting a letter that different officials like the mayor, municipality manager and such would sign confirming their support to the projects. Then I had the pleasant task to phone to the guy from the Field band in Port Elizabeth (the one we cancelled last minute with last week) but turned out to be fine. He actually preferred us coming next weekend, when they will be finished rehearsing for the national gathering in Jo'burg, have a gala dinner where they'll perform and the Saturday we'd assist in a festival of Arts&Culture where they do workshops. All sounds rather cool. On the visit to Jo'burg front however, news wasn't as good. Talked the the coordinator of the National Field band and I tried pushing her to just let us stay with the field bands, as to mingle and absorb as much as possible. She however said that with 1500 children there, of which 500 are from rural areas that have no experience using toilets, she wouldn't recommend it. Pushing it a little bit, cause I really think it would have been fun and the best way to have behind the scene glimpses, she politely insisted on us staying elsewhere. Organising was already hectic, and she claimed not to be able to deal with any additional people in the two big halls. Which would mean that we'll have to look for accommodation, rent a car and all that. Well, let's see what Tony thinks about all the extra expenses that would mean... Then surprise surprise, I received an email from my niece, Hanne, who is also studying law and wants to work abroad for a couple of months as well, doing volunteer work or something, and wanted some advice. Though it is always hard to give advice by email I feel, I still sort of tried to make the most out of it and sent her a couple of useful links.
I should have worked on my book after that, but must admit I got too distracted by the book I am currently reading (not that it is that special, but it doesn't take that much to keep me away from slaving away at my book ;-). The one I am currenlty reading is "Until I find you" by John Irving, not his best, but not his worst either. Seems that it has 117 characters, all named and to me, it seems like they are all flesh and blood and all have role to play. It is so nice to have time to read again, and devour books from the local library. I estimate I must have taken out like 30 books already.Other volunteers (amongst which Thomas seem to be lacking that time ;-).
Next, I helped Eugene, our roommate, with an application form so that he would be able to attend a leadership building course for two months in New York. It would be the first time that he would leave the country and is very eager to go. He's not very used to filling out such forms and making the necessary blahblah to impress that kind of people so I agreed to help him, which took quite some time.
Next, when Thomas & Co got home, Sander and Goedele went off to play squash, and Thomas and me went to the Beacon Island, a luxurious hotel/ressort here in Plett where we sometimes sneak into (not that their security is very tight) to enjoy the gym, jaccuzi and sauna. Afterwards we went to a Chinese restaurant we had never tried before, and had a quick (though spicy) dinner there. Back home, though it was only 9h30, everybody seemed to have turned in for the night (allthough we had talked about watching some DVD tonight), so, we'll just follow their example ;-)
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
7 days of my Plettonian life : (5) Tuesday 11th
Réveil à 7h avec les autres comme d'hab, puis cette fois-ci tout le monde part travailler, sauf moi, donc je traîne un peu au lit.
Puis, j'ai une réunion à 10h avec les autres concernant le field band-projet, et bien sur, la moitié me téléphone dix minutes avant pour voir si ça tient toujours, malgré le fait que je les ai téléphoné hier pour confirmer (sans rappel le jour antérieur, personne serait venue, j'en suis sûr). Par contre, il n'y a personne de la municipalité, ce qui rend une engueulade difficile (pour le sacré lapin posé la semaine passée). Par contre, cela nous permet au moins d'en discuter avec un peu plus de franchise. C'est compliqué avec la municipalité, car avec tous les problèmes qu'ils ont actuellement, disons que certains sont plutôt controversés, et leur implication n'est pas très constante. On décide qu'il est quand même important de garder la municipalité impliquée, car il est nécessaire de disposer d'un soutien politique pour que ce projet fonctionne, et puisque nous voulons qu'ils nous subventionnent par la suite. Donc, mieux vaut ne pas trop heurter les susceptibilités sur les gaffes antérieures et continuer mais ne plus laisser dépendre les activités de leur soutien logistique. Ainsi on évitera des surprises de dernières minutes...
.
Puis, j'ai une réunion à 10h avec les autres concernant le field band-projet, et bien sur, la moitié me téléphone dix minutes avant pour voir si ça tient toujours, malgré le fait que je les ai téléphoné hier pour confirmer (sans rappel le jour antérieur, personne serait venue, j'en suis sûr). Par contre, il n'y a personne de la municipalité, ce qui rend une engueulade difficile (pour le sacré lapin posé la semaine passée). Par contre, cela nous permet au moins d'en discuter avec un peu plus de franchise. C'est compliqué avec la municipalité, car avec tous les problèmes qu'ils ont actuellement, disons que certains sont plutôt controversés, et leur implication n'est pas très constante. On décide qu'il est quand même important de garder la municipalité impliquée, car il est nécessaire de disposer d'un soutien politique pour que ce projet fonctionne, et puisque nous voulons qu'ils nous subventionnent par la suite. Donc, mieux vaut ne pas trop heurter les susceptibilités sur les gaffes antérieures et continuer mais ne plus laisser dépendre les activités de leur soutien logistique. Ainsi on évitera des surprises de dernières minutes...
Autre point de discussion: l'implication de nouvelles personnes dans l'équipe. Tony préfère avancer avec des petitd comitéd que nous avons composé actuellement, mais dont il n'y a personne qui est vraiment qualifié pour devenir coordinateur/trice. Moi, je préfère plutôt intégrer d'autres motivés, histoire de ne pas devoir faire tout tout seul comme c'est actuellement le cas, mais également pour déjà pouvoir évaluer les talents organisationnels des candidats. Finalement, on fait un compromis (à la belge), pour les activités qui coûtent beaucoup, on le garde petit comité, pour les activités moins couteuses, on élargit. Compréhensible, étant donné que c'est Tony qui avance de sa poche actuellement.
A la fin de la réunion, j'en profite pour m'offrir des pies du Pie Shop, goût poulet aigre-doux, une vrai délice. Retour à l'appart, pour travailler le compte rendu de la réunion et préparer une lettre que nous voulons soumettre aux autorités locales pour officialiser leur soutien au projet. Mais je me lasse un peu avec toute la chaleur, car bien que c'est le printemps ici seulement depuis 10 jours, aujourd'hui il fait 33°.
Donc, au retour des autres volontaires, dont Thomas et Goedele qui veulent faire une réunion dans notre chambre pour travailler un texte, je me casse à la piscine, rejoint par Sander. Eh oui, notre complexe dispose d'une petite piscine. Ca a l'air peut-être décadent, mais faut admettre que depuis notre arrivé, je n'ai passé qu'une fois 20 secondes dedans, tellement qu'il faisait frais auparavant. Mais aujourd'hui, trop belle une occasion pour laisser mon superbe short arc-en-ciel dans l'armoire.
.
Le mardi est devenu une soirée ciné traditionnelle pour nous les volontaires, car moitié prix (13Rand = 1,5€). Que deux salles, une proposant un film plutôt commercial, et l'autre un film soi-disant du circuit artistique. Pas des masses de choix donc mais cela nous change de nos petits écrans ordi pour regarder des trucs (plus de télé à l'appart, ce qui n'est pas plus mal). Ce soir, le choix entre Black Snake Moan avec Samuel Jackson et License to Wed avec Robin Williams. Choix vite fait car le trailer de Robin Williams avait l'air nulle à chier. Bref, pas mémorable, le Black Snake Moan, mais ça change les idées...
Et voilà, à dix heures, retour à l'appart, et vite ce blog pour le 5ème jour consécutif, cette fois-ci en français pour nos petits amis (et ça tombe bien car je suppose que certains trucs de la réunion auraient pu être délicats à poster en anglais). Ca passe quand même vite, sept jours de blogging, mais honnêtement tant mieux, car ça devient un peu lassant... Peut-être qu'avec plus de commentaires de votre part, je serai plus motivé ;-)
Par contre, je le trouve très amusant de comparer mes entrées avec celles de Thomas et de voir les différences et les ressemblances... .
Monday, September 10, 2007
7 days of my Plettonian life: (4) Monday 10th
It's hard to keep a blog everyday, cause I don't feel like I'm doing something interesting every day. But hey, but showing everyday life and not just the exciting bits is the goal of this experiment, right?
Let's see, as usual, I woke up with the Die Sterreweg people, around 7am, with a lot of energy which I usually use to make Thomas coffee (unfortunately not breakfast, I should work on that). Once the three of them leave, it is quiet time for me. Today that consisted of writing half a page of my book (actually, writing one page and a half and then erasing two thirds of it). I have been wondering if I should post some of it on this blog, but have decided against it for now, since too many of the characters still don't have their definite name yet and I just call them colours (Reservoir Dog style). Exceptionally, today the apartment was still rather busy. Eugene didn't go to work since he hardly slept at all and didn't feel like he was up for work, and Sander came back around 10am cause he hadn't been able to sleep either (having received multiple beestings yesterday which are troubling him). So, more company, but not much interaction.
Workwise, I called M Putco to confirm the meeting we're having tomorrow with them so that we can express our disappointment with how little municipality is taking the field band project seriously. Turns out that he has to appear in court, so we'll just meet with the different other interested parties, including some newly recruted people that I spoke to last week. We'll have to decide on who is going to go to Jo'burg at the end of this month though, when the national competition of all 25 field bands is going to take place. It would be a great event, and super to meet all the players involved.
When Thomas and Goedele got back at 2pm, we ate the lunch I'd made for the working people (this time it hadn't taken too much of an effort, just meat loaf, potatoes and defrosted spinach-fetta), but they expressed their usual thanks to coming home to a meal. Funny taking on the role of the houseman. I redecorated our room with the tissues that we have, very african style and with Boudha's, since we'd moved them to the living room for the party last Saturday and thought we'd rearrange it (pix'll follow soon).
+detail.jpg)
Thomas and me played a game of chess to kill time in the afternoon, which I have been getting back into. We've been playing chess a lot lately here in the house, since Belinda's neighbours lend as a set, and it is so nice to get back into the strategical thinking of it. At 8pm, we went to play squash, with from the Belgian House: Nienke (as a spectator), freshly released from hospital today, Pieter and Eric, and from our house Goedele and Sander. Always nice to get back active and sporty, especially since last week we didn't do much. I sort of twisted my ankle though but I'm sure it'll be fine.
Afterwards, Colleen, a collegue from Milady who lives just around the corner from our place, invited us for drinks, but only Pieter and me were motivated to go. I was glad to finally get a chance to talk a bit to him walking there. Sometimes the entire group atmosphere in these group activities are getting to me, and I feel as if we're just trying to fill space and time with superficial chatting. I miss the intensity of previous volunteer experiences, where we would chat spontaniously, sometimes all through the night about whatever.
Anyway, at Colleen's, short night, some domino, cigarettes and whine and then we called it a night. Thomas went off to have drinks with some other people at Nothando's backpacker, and I am posting this blog waiting for him to get home. It is nice to sometimes have a night each on our own side, but it'll be even nicer to afterwards crawl under the covers with him for the night...
Sweet dreams to you all!
Let's see, as usual, I woke up with the Die Sterreweg people, around 7am, with a lot of energy which I usually use to make Thomas coffee (unfortunately not breakfast, I should work on that). Once the three of them leave, it is quiet time for me. Today that consisted of writing half a page of my book (actually, writing one page and a half and then erasing two thirds of it). I have been wondering if I should post some of it on this blog, but have decided against it for now, since too many of the characters still don't have their definite name yet and I just call them colours (Reservoir Dog style). Exceptionally, today the apartment was still rather busy. Eugene didn't go to work since he hardly slept at all and didn't feel like he was up for work, and Sander came back around 10am cause he hadn't been able to sleep either (having received multiple beestings yesterday which are troubling him). So, more company, but not much interaction.
Workwise, I called M Putco to confirm the meeting we're having tomorrow with them so that we can express our disappointment with how little municipality is taking the field band project seriously. Turns out that he has to appear in court, so we'll just meet with the different other interested parties, including some newly recruted people that I spoke to last week. We'll have to decide on who is going to go to Jo'burg at the end of this month though, when the national competition of all 25 field bands is going to take place. It would be a great event, and super to meet all the players involved.
When Thomas and Goedele got back at 2pm, we ate the lunch I'd made for the working people (this time it hadn't taken too much of an effort, just meat loaf, potatoes and defrosted spinach-fetta), but they expressed their usual thanks to coming home to a meal. Funny taking on the role of the houseman. I redecorated our room with the tissues that we have, very african style and with Boudha's, since we'd moved them to the living room for the party last Saturday and thought we'd rearrange it (pix'll follow soon).
+detail.jpg)
Thomas and me played a game of chess to kill time in the afternoon, which I have been getting back into. We've been playing chess a lot lately here in the house, since Belinda's neighbours lend as a set, and it is so nice to get back into the strategical thinking of it. At 8pm, we went to play squash, with from the Belgian House: Nienke (as a spectator), freshly released from hospital today, Pieter and Eric, and from our house Goedele and Sander. Always nice to get back active and sporty, especially since last week we didn't do much. I sort of twisted my ankle though but I'm sure it'll be fine.Afterwards, Colleen, a collegue from Milady who lives just around the corner from our place, invited us for drinks, but only Pieter and me were motivated to go. I was glad to finally get a chance to talk a bit to him walking there. Sometimes the entire group atmosphere in these group activities are getting to me, and I feel as if we're just trying to fill space and time with superficial chatting. I miss the intensity of previous volunteer experiences, where we would chat spontaniously, sometimes all through the night about whatever.
Anyway, at Colleen's, short night, some domino, cigarettes and whine and then we called it a night. Thomas went off to have drinks with some other people at Nothando's backpacker, and I am posting this blog waiting for him to get home. It is nice to sometimes have a night each on our own side, but it'll be even nicer to afterwards crawl under the covers with him for the night...
Sweet dreams to you all!
7 days of my Plettonian life: (3) Sunday 9th
Sunday started off with the unavoidable after-party cleaning, and then off to the hospital in George (1h away), to check up on dear Nienke, 
our latest Dutch (but 1/4 of Belgian blood :-) volunteer who had problems with a blood cloth in her leg after the flight. After an initial diagnosis that was quite scary (having to stay for like two weeks in the hospital), swelling has diminished considerably and she might be back tomorrow. Sucks to have just arrived like that and after four days already having to stay in the hospital. But the moral seemed to be improving with the hope of being released soon, and with the company of chatty roommates (commenting on the numerous male volunteers visiting).
Next we picked up Eugene from the airport, our fifth roommate and the only remaining local. He had been absent for three weeks, first on a life skill training and then for health reasons in Cape Town.
To finish off the weekend, a braai (bbq) was planned at the Belgian house, but it turned into a quiet evening supper. Everybody seemed pretty exhausted from the weekend though, so glad that the week is coming again to rest ;-)
our latest Dutch (but 1/4 of Belgian blood :-) volunteer who had problems with a blood cloth in her leg after the flight. After an initial diagnosis that was quite scary (having to stay for like two weeks in the hospital), swelling has diminished considerably and she might be back tomorrow. Sucks to have just arrived like that and after four days already having to stay in the hospital. But the moral seemed to be improving with the hope of being released soon, and with the company of chatty roommates (commenting on the numerous male volunteers visiting).
Next we picked up Eugene from the airport, our fifth roommate and the only remaining local. He had been absent for three weeks, first on a life skill training and then for health reasons in Cape Town.
To finish off the weekend, a braai (bbq) was planned at the Belgian house, but it turned into a quiet evening supper. Everybody seemed pretty exhausted from the weekend though, so glad that the week is coming again to rest ;-)
7 days of my Plettonian life : (2) Saturday 8th
Late morning rising, and then we went to get a breath of fresh air in Nature's Valley, for a walk on the beach.
And, grande premiere, we saw a whale for the very first time in two and a half months time we've been here. Maybe I should need to elaborate a little bit on this, try Googling Plettenberg Bay, and you'll notice that the prime tourist attraction are the whales, here in abundance during the winter.
So, from far and near, people come to go whale watching, see them jump, mate and deliver baby whales. We've been on whale alert since day one, walking on the beach, staring at the sea, staring at the sand, staring at the whale, and never spotting any! You wouldn't say that it is a needle in a haystack, would you?! Though to find any other animal that should be easier to spot, I would have thought! And everyone seems to have seen one just last week, yesterday, or "just five minutes ago, shame, you just missed'em!" We have come to believe this whole whaling is just a myth, created to keep Belgian volunteers waiting and hoping, a devious way to ensure that we stay longer, and longer, and longer... Some even never leave... So, last Saturday, we finally Saw One! Though I must admit, I'd rather state that we caught glimpse of something black that was blowing water in the air... But, as long as there is hope, there is life here in Plett...
Saturday night, big night for us!+blowing+out+the+candles.JPG)
Milady, a Xhosa friend of ours, just turned 21, big thing here in SA, and we graciously let our apartment serve as a venue for her birthday party. Hard to sum it up in a couple of words. Speeches (she nominated me MC for the evening), gifts, lots of booze, lots of Xhosa music, talks about politics, random people, and lots of ass shaking in either stylish free dancing or elaborately orchestrated group dances.+partying.JPG)
Most of the guests were more your up-town kind of people, with a distinct family feeling to some ;-), till a bunch of Kwano's residents showed up.
Randomness that terminated when Goedele's camera went mysteriously lost+slippers.JPG)
as well as some of Milady's birthday gifts (including a pair of furry slippers I can't really picture in Kwano's surroundings :-). Sudden disappearing acts would have made Houdini blush. Shame for the loss of the camera and some of the pictures that would have otherwise illustrated this post, but these things happen... Take the bad with the good and all that.
And, grande premiere, we saw a whale for the very first time in two and a half months time we've been here. Maybe I should need to elaborate a little bit on this, try Googling Plettenberg Bay, and you'll notice that the prime tourist attraction are the whales, here in abundance during the winter.
So, from far and near, people come to go whale watching, see them jump, mate and deliver baby whales. We've been on whale alert since day one, walking on the beach, staring at the sea, staring at the sand, staring at the whale, and never spotting any! You wouldn't say that it is a needle in a haystack, would you?! Though to find any other animal that should be easier to spot, I would have thought! And everyone seems to have seen one just last week, yesterday, or "just five minutes ago, shame, you just missed'em!" We have come to believe this whole whaling is just a myth, created to keep Belgian volunteers waiting and hoping, a devious way to ensure that we stay longer, and longer, and longer... Some even never leave... So, last Saturday, we finally Saw One! Though I must admit, I'd rather state that we caught glimpse of something black that was blowing water in the air... But, as long as there is hope, there is life here in Plett...Saturday night, big night for us!
+blowing+out+the+candles.JPG)
Milady, a Xhosa friend of ours, just turned 21, big thing here in SA, and we graciously let our apartment serve as a venue for her birthday party. Hard to sum it up in a couple of words. Speeches (she nominated me MC for the evening), gifts, lots of booze, lots of Xhosa music, talks about politics, random people, and lots of ass shaking in either stylish free dancing or elaborately orchestrated group dances.
+partying.JPG)
Most of the guests were more your up-town kind of people, with a distinct family feeling to some ;-), till a bunch of Kwano's residents showed up.
Randomness that terminated when Goedele's camera went mysteriously lost
+slippers.JPG)
as well as some of Milady's birthday gifts (including a pair of furry slippers I can't really picture in Kwano's surroundings :-). Sudden disappearing acts would have made Houdini blush. Shame for the loss of the camera and some of the pictures that would have otherwise illustrated this post, but these things happen... Take the bad with the good and all that.
Sunday, September 9, 2007
7 days of my Plettonian life: (1) Friday 7th
For the next seven days, let me just try and do it the real blog way: instead of just posting from time to time, I'm going to try and give you a glimpse of everyday life here, and what we've all been up to. Thomas (his idea originally) is going to do the same, though not exactly for the same 7 days, so you'll get the two perspectives and lots of details.
Quiet end of the week since I was supposed to be in Port Elizabeth for two days. But once again we experienced it is not always the best idea to count on officials from municipality here.
Explaining: the project I am currently involved in is a Working Group which is trying to Build a Field Band in Plett. The idea is that through the schools offering an after school activity, we would gather children from the townships around Plett in a marching band, teach them music and dance skills and have them perform at big sportive or other public events. Sounds maybe funny to try and attack some serious problems like crime or drugs or lack of discipline through these American-style marching bands and cheerleaders, but it has had great results elsewhere in South Africa (there are now 25 bands nationwide).
The bands indeed make a good captivated audience for teaching about HIV, life skills and even offers to really talented youngsters bursaries to study abroad (in Norway, the Netherlands and the US). Also, because the town would use the Field Band as their crown jewel to show off, it would boost self esteem for the youngsters and their family and gain them access to a number of events they would not ordinarily be able to attend.
Anyway, it sounded like an interesting project without turning into a full-time job so I got involved.
Other players present in the Working Group are
- Kristien (the coordinator for Thomas' organisation, dREAMCATCHER)
- the Bitou municipality
- Tony Lubner, who’s a wealthy business man from Plett who supports a lot of charity and projects, and whose father is the founder of the National Field Band Foundation.
Now, officials are always hard to get to play an active role in projects like these, and Plett is no exception, especially with the current troubles (see previous post). The head guy in our Working Group from the municipality just spent two weeks in jail cause there are pictures of him beating up people circulating in Kwano ;-). Some are motivated, but a lot depends on superiors and goodwill... So, last Thursday, we were supposed to go visit a functioning Field Band in Port Elizabeth (4 hours driving away), and municipality was going to pick us up. Turned out to be a no-show. Result: I had to do some last minute cancelling and many apologies, leaving me feeling bad cause they'd gone to the trouble of setting up meetings with a number of stakeholders and such, and thus firing off an angry email to show my disappointment. Tony, as the local heavy weight, phones the Mayor, and I suppose the buck is going to have to stop somewhere down the line (probably with the lowest, pity cause he's still the most motivated). But, meant that my interesting field visit (got the punch?) was cancelled....
In the evening, we had a fund raising dinner to which the same Tony had invited us, for the Sabrina Love Foundation. Theme of the night was "sparkle" and you needn't say that twice to a bunch of creative, open minded but especially half drunk volunteers. While the entire Plett jet set was present in classy and distinguished outfits with the occasional sparkling (diamond of course) earring, we showed up à la Priscilla, Queen of Plett, with glitter make up and sparkling accessories (applied in the local bar, Flashbacks of course). They showed a moving video about Sabrina, Tony and Suzy's daughter that past away four years ago of a handicap, which sparked them to get involved in a lot of projects, amongst which Die Sterreweg, where Thomas is volunteering. But after some nice food, drinks and dancing, we felt like leaving the Plett's Bold and Beautiful outshining each other to head over to Kwano to shine amongst the township partygoers. From up-town class to down-town fun.
Quiet end of the week since I was supposed to be in Port Elizabeth for two days. But once again we experienced it is not always the best idea to count on officials from municipality here.
Explaining: the project I am currently involved in is a Working Group which is trying to Build a Field Band in Plett. The idea is that through the schools offering an after school activity, we would gather children from the townships around Plett in a marching band, teach them music and dance skills and have them perform at big sportive or other public events. Sounds maybe funny to try and attack some serious problems like crime or drugs or lack of discipline through these American-style marching bands and cheerleaders, but it has had great results elsewhere in South Africa (there are now 25 bands nationwide).
The bands indeed make a good captivated audience for teaching about HIV, life skills and even offers to really talented youngsters bursaries to study abroad (in Norway, the Netherlands and the US). Also, because the town would use the Field Band as their crown jewel to show off, it would boost self esteem for the youngsters and their family and gain them access to a number of events they would not ordinarily be able to attend.
Anyway, it sounded like an interesting project without turning into a full-time job so I got involved.
Other players present in the Working Group are
- Kristien (the coordinator for Thomas' organisation, dREAMCATCHER)
- the Bitou municipality
- Tony Lubner, who’s a wealthy business man from Plett who supports a lot of charity and projects, and whose father is the founder of the National Field Band Foundation.
Now, officials are always hard to get to play an active role in projects like these, and Plett is no exception, especially with the current troubles (see previous post). The head guy in our Working Group from the municipality just spent two weeks in jail cause there are pictures of him beating up people circulating in Kwano ;-). Some are motivated, but a lot depends on superiors and goodwill... So, last Thursday, we were supposed to go visit a functioning Field Band in Port Elizabeth (4 hours driving away), and municipality was going to pick us up. Turned out to be a no-show. Result: I had to do some last minute cancelling and many apologies, leaving me feeling bad cause they'd gone to the trouble of setting up meetings with a number of stakeholders and such, and thus firing off an angry email to show my disappointment. Tony, as the local heavy weight, phones the Mayor, and I suppose the buck is going to have to stop somewhere down the line (probably with the lowest, pity cause he's still the most motivated). But, meant that my interesting field visit (got the punch?) was cancelled....
In the evening, we had a fund raising dinner to which the same Tony had invited us, for the Sabrina Love Foundation. Theme of the night was "sparkle" and you needn't say that twice to a bunch of creative, open minded but especially half drunk volunteers. While the entire Plett jet set was present in classy and distinguished outfits with the occasional sparkling (diamond of course) earring, we showed up à la Priscilla, Queen of Plett, with glitter make up and sparkling accessories (applied in the local bar, Flashbacks of course). They showed a moving video about Sabrina, Tony and Suzy's daughter that past away four years ago of a handicap, which sparked them to get involved in a lot of projects, amongst which Die Sterreweg, where Thomas is volunteering. But after some nice food, drinks and dancing, we felt like leaving the Plett's Bold and Beautiful outshining each other to head over to Kwano to shine amongst the township partygoers. From up-town class to down-town fun.
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