Hujambo Sassy! (Sorry I drafted this post a while ago but internet difficulties prevented me from posting...)
I’m sitting in my room listening to the singing and drumming of the schoolchildren in the yard behind the house I’m staying in. I’m back in Nairobi after a whirlwind weekend in Cairo. Though I didn’t get to see the pyramids (must go back!) I feel I got to see the true city with the locals, and even was invited to dinner at the home of new colleagues. I’ll see more of Egypt the next time I go, and I’m sure I will, as the work meetings were very fruitful with lots of collaborations initiated.
Nice to hear the wedding went well…but, when did you stop eating red meat? I’ve missed an episode here. If you plan on coming to Greece with me I hope you start eating it again soon…LOL. Then again, I think you can survive on goat, lamb, chicken and fish, right? Not to mention all the feta cheese you can eat.
I’m so sleepy right now. We took the red-eye back to Nairobi, and although I managed to get some shut-eye on the plane, it wasn’t enough. Tonight we’re driving about 6 hours to reach a town near the Ugandan border, because we’ve been invited to the grand opening of a new research institute. Exciting! So glad I packed a business-casual dress. But one of my colleagues is making a playlist of music to play in the car…and I suspect it’s going to go something like the selection of radio stations you had to deal with on your drive to the wedding. Luckily, I’m not as lax as you on the iPod front, so I’ll sit in the back and sneakily listen to my mix of David Guetta, Greek pop and Latin beats (why can’t my colleagues appreciate my taste in music? Science people are so weird).
Yay for Christmas in NYC or somewhere tropical! That’s awesome. I can’t believe when I get back home, the Christmas decorations will be up already. We’ll be planning outings for NYE. Hmm…NYE in NYC…a possibility…
You are so right about international dancing being more fun that hometown dancing. It’s totally about being able to let loose and not feel insecure. Still, I was a bit guarded being with coworkers and all. I mean, a lot of the Kenyan team members are around my age, and we’re becoming more friends than coworkers, but I still want to maintain a (semi)-professional image. It’s weird, because for some reason they really want to see me drunk (it’s a common theme in my life; what people don’t realize is that I’m not that fun when I’m drunk, I just talk a lot, LOL) but I do not want to be drunk in front of my boss, no matter how cool she is.
You ask about flirting; well there were a few random guys who attempted to chat with me at the club, but it was too loud, and my Swahili really sucks. Plus I was heavily warned about the real stranger-danger, doctored drinks and such, so I stuck close to my team members.
Which came with its own issues. But it's a long story so it will have to wait.
In Cairo, flirting consists of staring so hard at the person you desire, such that eye-shaped burn marks appear on their flesh. When we walked around the research institute, the young men stared. I thought maybe my hair was messed up, or my blouse was too low. Then I thought it was because I wasn’t wearing a head scarf, but lots of Egyptian women don’t cover their heads. Then last night, the guy who organized the visit told me that a few of his coworkers inquired about me, thinking I was Egyptian, LOL. I’m so dense sometimes.
About your job insecurities - I feel I am to blame. You are following the same pattern as my sister, who I also advised during the job search; both of you started new jobs approximately the same time, and now are maybe not so satisfied…SORRY! Follow your gut, follow your heart. We are all on a journey, and life is too short not to do what you like. The rules we think we should follow (like how long we should stay at a new job for) don’t really apply. Who made these rules? I’ll tell you who: other people. So why do we let other people dictate our own lives? All the power to you. Live the life you want.
I can’t judge the non-exercise on your end, because I’m not getting much of it here. My boss commented on some of us getting pudgier (she’s a doc; she cares about people’s health, it wasn’t mean at all) so she instituted team exercise time. We went on a team building hike, and saw some wild giraffes. So cool. I mean, we’ve seen all the African animals in zoos at home, but wild? That’s different.
Next on my travels? Well, told you about the long drive tonight. Sunday I leave for India. Except I’m so comfortable here, I don’t really want to go now. It will be lonely at first I think. But I’m up for a new adventure.
I want more details about the trip and why you were whiny…and your plans for this upcoming weekend. I’ve lost track of time. What day is it anyway? I need a nap.
Sleepy…I mean, Smarty.
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