Hello
all,
Sorry
it's been a while, having issues uploading photos from my camera and feeling
that I can't write without visuals for some reason! Maybe because my memories
are blurred from all the whiskey...?!
The
holidays here were fab, we made mashed potatoes and chicken with garlic veggies
for Xmas dinner, and my pie went down a storm. We just lounged about watching
dvds and drinking wine, and the boys smoked cigars outside, which I found
hilarious. Since then things have been getting better and better out here, as
the long-term people come back from their holidays at home, and newbies
arrive.
We had a
cracking NYE at French Ben's, he procured a bit outdoor clay oven from
somewhere, and we all brought ingredients for a pizza party. The pizza was
delicious, and everyone indulged in lots of whiskey sodas, and some weird green
gunky drunk that we got from the Thai party opposite. Lots of appalling karaoke
was sung, and there were fireworks at midnight. Smashing stuff.
Since
then we've had numerous other parties, including a wedding/crepe party at
Ben's, where Carrie and Andy (who live near Dartmoor, lets hear it for the
southwest!) were 'married' by a very drunk, very Irish, and very unPriestlike
Daniel. It was a truly beautiful ceremony though, especially when Daniel
announced them husband and wife by 'The Power of Greyskull...'
Sooo the
holidays were good, but work's great now. I've written and edited a fair few
stories on next year's elections, the trafficking of Burmese women into China,
landmine victims in the refugee camps etc. It's all soooo interesting and I'm
definitely learning a lot. Right now I'm doing a piece on migrant workers in
Mae Sot and the effect of the economic crisis, and of the rumours we've heard
that there'll be a mass expulsion of migrant workers on February 28th.
It's not
always super-easy working in this environment with people that have such
different attitudes to deadlines and to time in general, but I'm sure it's good
for me to be in this position. You really have to be careful to know when you
should give someone space so that you don’t offend them, or put a bit of
pressure on to make sure it actually gets done. But a great woman from the
Netherlands called Cyrille works in the Documentary ‘Office’ (by office I mean
room with a table and power socket in it) next door so we make sure the other
doesn’t go nuts.
And the
reason I love Cyrille the most is that she asked me to housesit while she’s
away for a week, so I get a double bed, cable tv, internet, hot shower and
little kitchen area, and it’s really pretty. So I’m over the moon about that,
and it’s great to appreciate little things like that so much. Also not having
to eat the ‘food’ at the office for a week is good. Fat chunks in oil, fish
paste, and the only vegetable being one described as a ‘noxious weed’ on Wikipedia
do not a happy Polly make. It could be worse though, we’ve only had broiled
fish innards once, so I can’t complain that much.
Love to
you all xx
