Blog 6 - To find a home, a place to sleep, and something to eat.

So the last couple weeks have been interesting, the heat has come, the rain has come and gone and come again. We moved to a new house just outside of town in the “neighbourhoods”. I met the move with mixed emotions as I enjoyed the convenience of the old place, but did not enjoy the life in a fishbowl experience of having the owner and his extended family inhabiting the dependencies surrounding the house.
The new house is entirely out of place in a neighbourhood of otherwise traditional construction, but is newly built and has secure parking which means easier access to a vehicle. So far my favorite aspect is that the front fence is at the perfect height to create the illusion of floating firewood, coolers, and assorted packages making there way along the street in typical African “handsfree” fashion.
I had another opportunity to visit the field earlier this week, this time to the southern extent of operations about 3 hours south from Inhambane. I really enjoy these trips for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the quiet of the camp at night and finally getting a full nights sleep, even if it means getting up with the sun. Working with the crew and gaining insights into the reality of operations also helps to understand the difficulties faced. It is hot, dirty and painfully slow work which really makes you enjoy the little perks, like salad on a bun, a broken Portuguese heart to heart with a coworker over evenings dinner, or the hospitality of the people you meet along the way. With out fail, in my experience, if you make the effort to get to know the people of Mozambique you get all your efforts back in full.
This post again comes with another set of pictures which is more descriptive than I will ever be so I will again keep it short. Note that while they are the same photos as the micro slide show, if you visit the link to Picasa they come with short descriptions to help explain what you are looking at. Have also posted some highlights from some snorkeling a while back, enjoy!