Five days in Calgary

Ok, I had 5 days and so far 5 night (one more to go) in Calgary. Pretty much a lot of running around and not really any chance to finish all I wanted to do. I haven't filed my taxes! Monday (tomorrow) is the last day to do it and have it done in time.

My computer crashed very badly (window was totally trashed and had to be re-installed) friday late afternoon -of course- and all software was lost...but very little data and no photo or music were lost...as far as I can tell apart from all work software etc the worst is actually the fact that I have lost all my playlists!!

On the subject of loosing: My cell phone was stolen somewhere along my journey in either South Africa or Mozambique (since I cannot use it there I can't say that I kept track and I do not know exactly when it went missing) SO I have lost ALL phone numbers!!! Of course they weren't written anywhere else because that would be too logical!!
I cannot call: Pat and Steph, Per and Jane etc etc etc...all lost lost lost lost...
I do have a new cell phone so if you happen to read this as soon as I post it you have 12 hours when you can call me after this I will be in the plane going to work.

Flying in I had absolutely no jet lag at all... I hope the return is as smooth. I have to spend 11 hours in Frankfurt (yaakkkss!!) I think I may take a room and try to sleep...I have to decide whether I want to run myself rugged and basically miss one sleep to get back with South African time, or if I want to try to squeeze one more sleep in...squeezing in one more sleep is practically impossible, BUT missing a sleep is really tiring obviously.

Anyway I am spending my last evening home trying to see how much of my computer troubles I can solve.

the bushman rain makers

I mention that I would say more about the bushmen stories.
This one is not something I am getting form a book, but something I remember from one of the movies at at the museum.
I couldn't find a good picture of it!
Bushmen believed that water where special places where not only the different animals of the physical world would meet but also the the creature of other world could meet. Rain makers, people gifted as rain maker, when in a trance were able to see those creature and one of the ??? I forget his name... The rain maker would catch him with a lasso and take him to the place where they wanted the rain. At this point it body would dissolve into rain that would fall onto the land.
I like this story...I like the idea of water holes as special places, and also the fact, and I guess that I should explain this better, that the rain maker in his trance would go the the water hole and bring back hte beast regardless of how far their physical body was from the actual water hole.


as an aside: these two photos are not mine

How can I be so bored...... I bearely have the time!?!?

I think maybe I am starting a mid life crisis.
I am bored out of my tree. Incredibly bored! I cannot even start to describe it.
I am running around the planet working too much, flying home for 6 days and back etc etc...and yet I am bored.
I visit great places (like the one in the photo which I thought at the time might be the most beautiful place I have ever seen) and I am bored.
The more I do and the more I get bored.
It makes no sense!

two from Mozambique

I love this cow-crossing sign..hand made and so artistic. I am actually tempted to steal it!!



I don't like to take pictures of people but I asked them and they were quite happy about it. I shop for fabric by looking at what the women wear and then I look for it in the "stands" by the side of the road. I still haven't found this one.

more photos

finally some photos

Two impalas fighting
Right after this one the elephant "demanded" that I get out of its path. The photo is taken without a zoom so the elephant would fit.
The African version of the Buffalo..Cool creatures actually.
Elephants in hteir homes...they are so nice just waking around in their own space.This guy was crossing the road pretty fast actually.

No cable ... no photos

Today I meant to download pix from my camera and post some of the photos...and I have been taking very very few for unknown reasons...but I cannot find my cable. It must be in the bag I left at the rig. So no photos!

Tomorrow is it. I am supposed to drive north. I sure hope that the weather is more like Mozambique than like Jo'burg up there. It is down right cool in Jo'burg rightn ow. I am not even going to try to guess temperature because my sense of what is warm and what is cool is seriously screwed up.
I have a road atlas, a car rental which should be sorted out and reservation near hot springs (not that I have a bathing suit!!!!) for the first three days. It should be the land of baobabs... but I already saw quite a few baobabs in Mozambique.

I am really looking forward to this break.

Tomorrow I fly back to Jo'burg

This is it I am flying out tomorrow.
As luck would I have I came down with a very bad cold yesterday. Today is better after a really rough night. Thank goodness Mozambique is very humid, it does make a difference when you are all stuffed up.
Either way I am still going on my holidays if I can swing it...I just sent an email today (thursday) for a car and reservations for the first 3 nights starting Sunday....I am working in the office tomorrow afternoon and Saturday.

Mozambique finally

As planned I flew to Mozambique last Tuesday.
I am stil in Mozambique working away but we are not drilling yet.
Mozambique is warm and very humid, very green and the people are beautiful.
In the countryside most people live in huts.

In between work I managed to put my feet in hte Indian Ocean once and the water is amazingly warm. It had to be at least 24C. It felt like a warm bath!

I think I will really like Mozambique. It is hard to imagine how those people could have been involved in a civil war for so long.

One good thing to know in Mozambique: spots of red apint on trees, or anything means that somebody was killed or injured by a land mine in that spot.

Photos to come later.

I am supposed to fly to Jo'burg on friday 13th!!! good job I am not superstitious!

tomorrow

This is it I am going to Mozambique tomorrow morning..or at least I am supposed to.

then 10 days in Mozambique.
2 days working back in the office.
10 days or so traveling to the north part of South Africa (renting a car)
traveling back home for a week.
Back to work..this time just about straight to Mozambique!