Thursday, February 21, 2008

Out and About Kinshasa!

Sunset on the Congo River. There is a lovely walk we usually take along the river next to all the Ambassadorial residences. (US, British, Belgian, Swedish & Chinese etc) You get to meet up with all the usual expats, new and old. The evenings are the busiest, but usually the time when the humidity is at it's highest.
Fin, the Dalmalli panting in the heat. He gets to spend most of his days indoors with the AC on full blast. Lucky dog, I suppose the locals must think he is " King of all Dogs" in Kinshasa. His new name should be "Fin Fin of the Congo" not Tin Tin.

Torden in the pool. Most days this is the best place to be. We have lots of play days, where there are about 8 kids that get together on a regular basis. This is great for our social network, as there are not many places for children to play.
An outlook of our long verandah ( stoep), which is where most of our social gatherings are held. Very colonial, sipping our G&T's. Although Paul is forbidden to touch any alcohol for the next year, due to his liver being severely abused, from the Malaria ( cerebral), no not alcohol poisoning!
A view of Kinshasa harbour from the boat.

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Fictitious Literature on DRC

1. Blood River - A Journey To Africa's Broken Heart, 2007. ISBN 0-701-17981-3
Wrong, Michela,
2. In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: Living on the Brink of Disaster in Mobutu's Congo
Hochschild, Adam,
3. King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa, 1998.
Renton, David; Seddon, David; Zeilig, Leo.
4. The Congo: Plunder and Resistance, 2007. ISBN 978-1-84277-485-4
Larémont, Ricardo René, ed. 2005.
5.Borders, nationalism and the African state. Boulder, Colorado and London: Lynne Rienner Publishers. Devlin, Larry (2007).
6. Chief of Station, Congo: A Memoir of 1960-67. New York: PublicAffairs. ISBN 9781586484057.
7. The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver

Saturday, February 16, 2008

The Housekeeper Diaries!

If you read this and have never been to the Congo, then you would probably say that I am fussy when it comes to "cleaning help" ( Politically correct)! The problem is that you really do need help. We barely have enough time in the mornings to do shopping, as you have to search 3 or 4 shops sometimes just to collect the ingredients required for certain meals. We really need help to have someone peel, wash and cut them. No "Woolies" for miles. With all the rains, it makes the soil quite damp, and the dog is constantly in and out the doors.
I am now on my 4th housekeeper in 4months. That makes it about 1 per month. Well it's just not like that. I never had a full-time maid in SA, I only had a char once every 2 weeks. Well, Nancy,did all the work in one day, that these cleaners do in one week, and she does a better job! The only problem was that she was not as reliable. At least these people come to work everyday.
The first one, was an old Pappa (an elderly man), who was probably very good in his younger days. But as the years passed on, he got slower and slower, until eventually he virtually stopped working. And he had no idea on anything I said in English, I also tried hand signals, but got very tired after the first week. He had to go. The 2nd was a lady, who I will not like to disclose any more info on the web, except the fact that she wanted to wash her feet in my bath. The 3rd was a young male, with lots of energy, and my house looked spotless after his hands had put a touch to it, as well as touching many other things that went into his bag everyday before leaving for home. After he had left, we found lots of consumables missing. Now the lovely young lady that is with us, Aimee, is such a sweetie pie. She enjoys playing with Torden, and has no clue on how to do a structured cleaning cycle, and that is with the help of my "schedule" which I have constructed in French. In one week, she has turned my beige colour cotton throw into a puke peach, and she's turned my crockery cupboard into one for Tupperware, so I have given up hope of every finding my perfect housekeeper. In the meantime I will just get by with a not so clean house, a happy son, washing that has been dyed automatically and cutlery with no real home. I am so tired of teaching "cleaning methods" that I think I shall open my own cleaning agency. " Congo Cleaners!

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Boat on the Congo River

On Sunday, we took the boat out to a little island about 20minutes down the River. It was arranged by 4 families, and we had a BBQ (braai) on the sand bank. We pitched tents and put up tables and chairs, and played games on the beach. It's quite weird, as it feels just like a beach with lovely soft sand, and the water was so shallow, the kids & a few adults splashed around. The water was so refreshing in the heat of the day, about 33degrees C which is quite normal. Luckily there was no rain. We decided that this was going to be a monthly visit, that is if we're lucky enough to find the same spot everytime. I can't believe how much we enjoyed ourselves out what felt like the middle of nowhere.
I was fascinated to find one or two reed homes that the fisherman lay claim to. How can anyone survive on this riverbank island, with no facilities whatsoever? Probably beats any life back on land in the Congo. ( if you're poor that is, which is half of the population) Our excitement of the day, was when we rescued a family, whose boat had siezed in the middle of the river, and took them back to Club Nautica.

Wednesday, February 06, 2008

How to live the life of an expat?


We had a guest over for dinner last night. She flew up from Cape Town for an audit at Paul's company for the week. I found myself talking mostly about our life as expats in Kinshasa, and never once felt homesick. A few months ago, I would've wanted to fly back home with her and neatly tucked myself into her suitcase! The way of life grows on you, and you soon realise that it's a good life! For instance, today I did my morning yoga, while looking onto the lush, green garden of our home. Our gardener had just mowed the lawn, and was busy sweeping it with a broom, yes he brushes the lawn, so it falls in one direction. Yesterday, I gave him some seeds to start a vegetable garden, and he says that it should start producing carrots, broccoli and lettuce (the broccoli and carrots are scarce) in no time. This afternoon, I took Torden for a tennis lesson, and even his coach was surprised at his keen interest and ability to connect with the ball. Thereafter we met up with a few South Africans at the river, where we walked and biked with 10 kids. There was no talk of crime,no stressing about what to cook for dinner, just a casual walk with idle chit chat. I am really enjoying that the South African wives really take the effort to meet up regularly with the children. We were supposed to meet up for pizza tonight, but was told to keep off the streets due to tension in the air. So that is the life. One minute you're up and the next you are just shoved into reality.

Saturday, February 02, 2008

Thieves, Vets & George Clooney!

What an eventful week! Firstly our spotted dog, Fin, the dalmation, had an infection in his neck, and we had to call the Vet, who does housecalls by the way. He put him on antibiotics and scraped the pus, if it didn't clear, he would have to cut it out on Friday. Due to the humidity, Fin, also has a skin allergy, and needed a antihistamine and a cortisone cream. Then on Wednesday evening, I got invited to dinner at Chez Gaby, a local Portuguese restuarant. The ladies dinner group meet once a month at a different venue, and was attended by about 20 women. We were told that George Clooney, was there for lunch that same afternoon. A few of us were determined to catch a glimpse of him, and were informed that he had also been spotted by the river. The next morning, a few of us decided to decend on the river front, but not a soul was to be seen. Maybe Next time! Then yesterday, our Driver, Lepauld, explained to me with the help of a French/ English dictionary that his entire month's wages was taken from him on the bus home the night before. I was devasted, and his pride was lost, as he sheepishly told me. I instantly called Paul, who informed the company, and they have helped him out. I also got him to write up a list of the groceries he may need for the month. All he really said he needed was transport money for work. And he asked how much a motorbike would cost him in SA. Lepauld is very much part of the family, and takes a lot of care of not only our driving needs, but also serves as a protection for us. He served in the army and knows a lot on the subject of security. Speaking of which, this week, we were informed of a march in town, and was advised to take care if a situation arises. All was peaceful and nothing happened!