In how many languages can I say this?

Joyeux Noël, Feliz Navidad, Merry Christmas, C Pождеством Xристовом, Buon Natale, Bon Nadal, Срећан Божић, Shnorhavor Surb tsnund, Djoyeus Noyé, Zalig Kerstmis, Gesëende Kersfees, Maligayan Pasko!, God Jul or Gledelig Jul, Idah Saidan Wa Sanah Jadidah...

Zimbabbel/Zimbavardage

This Saturday 27th, Thomas and me organised a short testimony on how our life in Zimbabwe has been going. It'll be in Vilvoorde, from 14h to 17h.

For more info, check out the invitation.

Dubai

We spend five days in Dubai, as a stopover with Emirates Airlines. Expensive, massive, impressive, some of the words that come to mind.

We spend a couple of nights at the youth hostel (with a swimming pool that we never approached), met with a friend of mine from Tunisia who is teaching there at the American University, and spend the last night with friends of Thomas, Belgians working there.

Though interesting and glad that I have been there, not my kid of city. Seems like what they're lacking in culture and nature, they're making up for with money, lots of it. Quite the contrast when you're coming from Zim.

They have the highest building in the world, some 700 meters high (which Thomas is crocking into here), artificial islands in front of the coast plastered with commercial centers and theme parks, each competing to be bigger then the others. Construction sites everywhere, traffic all the time and nothing cheap, that seemed most of Dubai. Though I'm sure that to live there can be interesting, and allow you to live quite confortably and pleasantly. Would have a preference though for one of the other Arab countries, like Oman or Yemen (btw, we actually drove through Oman for a couple of hours, without noticing much of a difference). Plans for the future...

Landed in Dubai

We just arrived safely in Dubai. Because the plane was full and we had been patiently waiting to go in as last, we got upgraded from Jo'burg to business class, which was splendid! Salmon, champagne, massaging chairs... Never had a flight so pleasant. Venom is in the tail though, and turned out while we were sipping Kirr Royal, our luggage was left behind. Hopefully it will still turn up though.... Now here at the airport in Dubai. Everything sounds like Eurodisney, grand, commercial and expensive. No Couchsurfer to host us, but a couple of contacts of people that can take us around, which'll be nice to try and get out of the touristy circuit. Anyway, it won't be for very long, since 4 nights from now, we're off again, to freezing Paris. Hope we'll have our warm sweaters by then ;-)

We'll probably stay at the Dubai Youth Hostel in Al Qusais. Thomas bought a SIM card, so should you need to reach us: +971 502898375.

Riddles...

Wednesday is our graduation from Shona’s second term (and level, though it certainly doesn’t feel that way). That also includes a little ceremony, and with our group, we choose to do a type of quiz, rather than a boring little presentation. So, we’re asking riddles, mostly from the tradional shona here but also a couple of ours.

My favourite from the Shona one is this one:
Pota neko tisangani, chii? - iBandi
You go this way, I go that way, and we’ll meet somewhere else. What is it? – A belt.

The one I added from our culture was this one, a classic I like:
“What can run, but never walks?
What has a mouth, but never speaks,
What has a bed, but never sleeps?
What has a head, but never weeps?”

Attempts are welcome as a comment, after three tries, I’ll put up the correct one, okay ;-)