Lunch under the Chocolate Tree

Well, another Monday dawns on Flores and after another one day weekend (this business of having to turn up for work on a Saturday is a real nuisance), it’s time for another week. Life has been pretty uneventful since last week’s post, the week at work has settled into a fairly regular pattern and one day is much like another. I spent a chunk of last week working on an application for a grant for Health Care Worker (HCW) safety training from an Australian fund which promotes good clinical governance and am also trying to explore some avenues to see if we can get our hands on second hand bedsheets and blankets from some of the five star hotels in Bali.

Yesterday we again went with our friends Hartadi and Kristo from the hospital to visit a friend in a nearby village for her birthday lunch. The main dish was as per last Sunday’s lunch (no further details will be provided) but the music was a little different. Outside the family’s house, we were greeted by a bank of 8 enormous speakers which pumped out music at an ear-splitting volume for the duration of our visit. Add this to the language difficulty and let’s just say that, while we received a great welcome, once the music started communications were limited to non verbal ones ! While having lunch, I asked about the trees under which we were sitting. I know plenty of people who would love to have a “pohon coklat” (chocolate tree) outside their front door – we picked a cocoa pod and split it open to investigate and taste the seeds inside – not at all like Cadbury’s Dairy Milk !

I brought my pocket binoculars with me yesterday and these proved to be a great hit with adults and children alike. Most of the people there had never seen binoculars before and were amazed at the magic of being able to magnify far off objects ! I had to keep repeating warnings about not looking at the sun...

Last night, we had (another) sort of going away party for a volunteer who left Maumere this morning. The reason for it being a "sort of" going away party is that Joseph's situation is a little uncertain. Recent changes in visa requirements have meant that many volunteers are now in a sort of limbo. Joseph needs to leave Indonesia this week as his current visa has expired - however, at the moment it is very uncertain when he will be able to return (maybe not for three months). The uncertainty associated with this must be very unsettling, to say nothing of the practical difficulties involved in locking up your house not knowing when (or if) you will be coming back. Fortunately for me, this uncertainty only affects volunteers working for NGOs and those of us who are employed by government bodies are not affected - or not yet, anyway..