Brief update from Luanda

I have been here for over a week now, not quite settled yet. I am living out of a suitcase sleeping at a place temporarily until I move to the new house coming weekend (hopefully). Nothing moves fast in Luanda. It reminds me of India.
Supposedly winter is here, but it still feels like summer. Sometimes fogs from the sea cover Ilha (Island) where our office is. My daily routine: get up at 5am, clean up-shower, have plain oatmeal cereal (oh! how I used to hate that) and cup of black tea (all w/o sugar as I have taken out hardly anything in anticipation of the move to the new house), get in the company van at 6:15, at work around 6:45, leave at 6pm, and get home around 7pm (coworkers say 1 hour commute in the evening has been really good). Then quickly fix something, eat, and go to sleep only to repeat this the next day.

However, on the brighter side, once a week we go to a sports bar after work, shoot pool, have a beer and eat pizza (costs generally around 3000 kwanza (75 to 80kz=1$) - not cheap for what you get, but it's worth it). Last Sunday I went for a walk w/ 2 coworkers for about 3.5 hours. Half way, by the ocean we sit at a place to take a break and have a coke or coffee. Yesterday, three of us went for a run with a large group of expats (Hash run - organized every 2nd Saturday). We ran almost 1.5 hours through traffic congested roads, dirty side walks w/ pot holes, back alleys, up/down hills - places one may never see. It was hot. For being out of my work out routine over a month, my body & legs could feel the pain, but I hung in. Once we returned, virgin Hashers (3 of us 1st timers) were inducted w/ 3 questions and pouring beer on our head. Nevertheless, it was fun. One can go crazy at this place if you do not socialize a little to unwind. After that we came to the house, showered, and four of us went to an Indian Restaurant. I had a frozen Margarita that was nothing like that in Houston (others had Eka and Cuca - Angolan beers). The meal was excellent (rice and chicken tikka masala and some delicious munchies). It was very expensive compared to that in any other countries - then again nothing is that inexpensive unless you want to eat the stuff cooked on the road side on an open grill that gets a layer of street dust as the vehicles pass by. Anyway, we got home late. It was the best day since I got here.

I immediately skyped with my wife and older daughter (as I had planned). Everyone appears to be fine. We talked about our future travel plans. I cannot wait for June 27 to get here. I head back home in Houston on that day and then go to Washington D.C. w/ my wife to meet both daughters and their husband/boy friend.
Today, I am taking it easy, read a little, checked email, and posting this. Luanda is where I work now and where I live is a house (no matter how fancy), not the home. I think Luanda will grow on me with a little time.

Luanda Bound

After returning from Luanda on April 30, after a whirlwind trip to San Francisco to see my niece’s new born twin and her parents this past weekend, I leave for Luanda, Angola again this Friday (May 15, 2009) for a one-year assignment for a project off the coast of Angola. I will be on a rotation (6-week on, 2-week off). Regardless, I will be living away from home, away from my wife, daughters, and friends. I will be living a single life again (at 60), cooking my own supper and keeping in touch with the world via my laptop. Luanda is not exactly America, the beautiful. However, the country has potential. I hope my work will someway contribute a little bit towards the betterment of that African country. Obviously, I would not say it is an unselfish motivation. I will be compensated for accepting such an assignment in the midst of mosquitoes, dirty streets, and horrendous traffic. Other than long workdays, there won’t be much social life. A bunch of strangers (a few Brits, a few Americans, and some natives) will come together as a team to build something that may help the poor country while giving us some extra cash. I hope to “post” from Luanda from time to time. Hopefully, a year will pass quickly and I will find everyone back home happy and healthy when I return.