In Which We (Accidentally) Make A Taxi Driver Very Happy
on Zoe Page (Sierra Leone), 22/Sep/2010 06:33, 34 days ago
Air conditioning was clearly a first night treat, but luckily there is some electricity all night so my fan stays on. Despite Deeting myself, closing the bathroom door and burrowing under the sheets, I wake up to a new selection of bites. And so, my newly established (as of yesterday) morning routine now includes a new step: sun tan lotion, repellent and then an antihistamine with some Galaxy to make the swallowing easier. Breakfast is the same again, not just in menu (expected) but in preparation. Clearly they take their claim of‘Toast bread’ very seriously, providing 3 slices that are warm and a bit dry round the edges, but not what you would call toasted. I get precisely a third of the butter and marmalade the 3 of us got yesterday, which is less than a single pat’s worth, so not enough for 3 slices. I could order off the ‘extras’ menu, but tempting as ‘sausage 3 pieces’, ‘shrimps omelette’ and ‘plate chips’ sound, I resist. The rest of the menu is equally enticing. Later in the day you can order the ‘home salad’ which includes lettuce, cucumber, baked beans, luncheon meat and cocktail sauce. That would cost Le 20,000, a little over £3, whereas for a mere £7.50 you could upgrade to ‘Lobster in Love’. I assume it’s all prepared for you, but the ‘Boneless chicken, season well and barbeque grill’ sounds almost like DIY instructions.Back at the VSO office I go online and Facebook is alarmed that I am in an unfamiliar location, so offers me the chance to identify my friends from photos of them. If I get them right, I win entry to my account, but if even one is wrong things won’t be so rosy. It’s while doing this that it occurs to me (a) I need to do a cull, given that I really don’t know some of these people and (b) it’s is REALLY unhelpful when people tag babies, animals and inanimate objects as themselves...Carole starts the day with an uber-useful session on the health care system here, including the key facts on who has the money and who has the power (not always the same parties). Jo does a session on her research, then after lunch we have a rather random security briefing from an existing volunteer that includes how to travel (officially, not the way people really do), why you should make friends with the police but not get to friendly with locals unless you intend marrying them, how much it costs to get treated for Malaria and why it’s a bad idea to use a USB in the (evidently virus-riddled) VSO computer...Next comes an admin session, the liveliest of the day since it concerns money and paperwork. The main question on everyone’s minds is, what have VSO in London been doing with the (literal) dozens of passport photos we’ve sent them, if new ones are needed here in country?Alex, Tash and I head out for a walk to Lumley beach via the car dealership (as you do). The beach is lovely and soft in between the hypodermic needles, plastic rubbish and actual drowned rat. We have drinks at a beachside bar (Ray’s) and dinner at a place a little back up the road from there (Chez Nous) both of which are in our guide books, both of which serve diet coke (no embargo like in Banos which force fed me Coke Zero for the weekend). The ‘Olive platter’ is a dish of olives. I’m beginning to see how menus workhere. The garlic bread (come on, I HAD to order that) is, well, garlicy. I even live on the edge and have ice in my drink. Then we get a taxi home and seemingly succeed in talking the driver into taking MORE money for the trip than he was asking for. It’s day 2 of ICT and half my 5-day allowanceis gone already, but it’s gone in style.After we get back I Have Words with reception about the way my room is a breeding ground for all things biting (some little beetle thing ran across my back this morning, too, so it’s not just the mossies). A sceptical glance becomes a slight nod as I point out my bites (4 on each arm, one on my back, a nice one on my thumb plus a few on my legs I don’t display). He comes to inspect and berates me for having my door open (um, he said he’d be right along, so I left it ajar) and the window too – that would be because I can’t shut it, sir. Neither can he, but he ropes in another guy and they manage to get the glass shut (the mosquito nets behind clearly not being enough). Then they spray my room and evict me from it for a bit so we don’t suffocate on the fumes.I’m in Cheryl’s room at 8.30pm when her air con clicks on, so go and check mine, which is still not working, so wave the remote in the direction of Mr Manager Man who comes back and sorts that too. I can’t feel it, so he tells me to climb up (it’s high on the wall and I’m not as tall as heis). I take of my sandy sandals and clamber onto my bedside table at his direction. Safety conscious, this hotel is not. Then he leaves, switching on my hot water switch which is rather confusing since I’ve had 3 hot showers in 2 days, all the while with that switch off...The hotel wifi eventually lets me on, proving Alex, Tash and Cheryl were all telling the truth, and then, with the door and window firmly shut, but the air con and fan firmly on, I head for bed.