Things Aren't Boring

Just when you might think things in Nigeria are a bit boring or uneventful, something new happens. Last week, we had a VIP visit from DC. That kept me super busy and also taught me that I never want to be an events coordinator when I grow up. At the beginning of the week, there were endless meetings. On Tuesday, our delegates arrived. I got to ride out to the airport to welcome them. I came to the realization that going to the airport but not being able to get on a plane makes it a little depressing. 

On Wednesday, the visitors went to meet the First Lady. I wasn't important enough to go along, which was just fine with me. However, I hung out in an armored SUV for 4 hours waiting for the meeting to be over with the desperate need to go to the bathroom. But there was no bathroom to use. That was not exactly fun. That night (after I finally was able to use a restroom), I got to go to the US Ambassador's house for the first time to help with an event. It would have been much more fun if I had gone to just enjoy myself, but I was there to work. Less fun to be had.

Thursday turned out to be an interesting day. I got to go visit the UN building that got bombed by Boko Haram in August. It's structurally damaged so the building is just empty now. I got to see the crater the car created when it exploded and the remnants of the exploded vehicle. There was a wreath-laying ceremony to commemorate those who lost their lives in the tragic bombing. It was really sad. Then we were told to go back to the embassy rather than move forward with our planned agenda because there were reports of a bombing in Abuja. So off to the embassy we went. We ended up sitting there on lock down for several hours. Turns out that ThisDay newspaper in Abuja and Kano (a city in Northern Nigeria) were bombed. I believe 7 people died. Another tragedy that Boko Haram claims responsibility for. The bombing changed much of the final events we had planned for the VIP visit, but nothing could be done about that.

Then lucky for me, I proceeded to get violently ill Thursday night. That was unpleasant on so many levels. I did experience having a fever for the first time in a really long time. I'm happy to report that it wasn't malaria, but knocked me out all weekend. Not cool.

And if you don't follow Nigerian news, Boko Haram attacked a university in Kano (bomb and guns) on Sunday morning. Then they also attacked a church in the north-eastern city of Maduiguri on Sunday. Nigeria is not exactly the most stable or safe country as of late, however I don't really feel that afraid for myself. Oh and don't forget, on Monday, a bomb blast hit a police convoy in Eastern Nigeria that killed 11 (according to reports).

Yesterday was May Day aka Worker's Day and we were given the day off here in Abuja. That was a nice little break since I didn't get to do much over the weekend. On top of the relaxation though, there was a bomb threat in my neighborhood by a grocery store I sometimes go to... so that wasn't exactly the most comforting thing to hear. I used to say TIA a lot (this is Africa), but more and more, we use TIN (this is Nigeria). There are things that happen in Nigeria that I don't think we can generalize to the rest of the continent. If nothing else, my time in Nigeria has definitely been... interesting.

Work and stuff

Part of my responsibilities at the office include holding a public health lecture every other Tuesday. It's a short (supposed to be half an hour but always lasts an hour with questions) presentation on a health topic. Yesterday's was on sickle cell anemia. Interesting things I learned from my lecture:

• Approximately 25% of Nigeria's adult population is a carrier of the sickle cell gene
• Approximately 150,000 children are born every year with sickle cell anemia
• There is a belief that if you live with sickle cell anemia beyond 39 years, you will lead a normal life and not have sickle cell anemia anymore (obviously this is untrue).

Lectures and meetings are interesting in Nigeria. I don't think I've ever gone to a meeting where when the presenter/speaker asks if there are any questions, no questions are asked. The Nigerian staff here will always ask questions. Even if they know the answer to their question, they will still ask. I know this because staff have come up to me after meetings and told me. They want to provide "open discussion". Also sometimes the questions take 3 minutes to ask. People have a very round-about... beating around the bush way of asking questions where they talk for a long time before actually asking the question. In other words, meetings in Nigeria never end on time and can last for... well forever. Sometimes it's a bit painful to sit through. 

My other work recently has centered around a lot of administrative work- creating a comprehensive new employee packet for new hires and standard operating procedures for the office. Nothing too thrilling there.

In other news, Teresa is officially gone and I am all by my lonesome. I have this giant apartment and can't really do anything with the space. I'm debating turning my hallway into a slip-and-slide. Could be extremely messy, but also very fun. I don't think I'll become as crazy here as I did in Sembabule because there are still tons of people to interact and socialize with. I have been a bit of a hermit the last few days and have been watching GCB, the new ABC show. Trashy but hilarious.

It's pretty unbelievable that it's coming to the end of April... It just seems like yesterday I was coming back to Abuja from Christmas with my family. Some days the time seems to pass unbelievably slowly, but I am starting to think ahead to what's next. Move back to the States? Find another job somewhere else? Try to pursue my dream of working for a while in Southeast Asia? Find a job in a place where electricity is consistent and internet doesn't depend on some magical being? Who knows where life will take me next...

Rains Down in Africa (Nigeria version)

The rainy season is upon us! It's actually a nice reprieve from the humidity and heat we've been having lately. When it rains, it pours here. The sky gets dark pretty quickly, winds pick up, and the clouds just dump. It's pretty intense. I kind of love it.

Easter was pretty quiet for me. I've been fighting a cold since last Friday, so I've essentially been a giant blob for the most part. I have managed to finish the last 3 books of the Harry Potter series and all of the Hunger Games trilogy. Now I wish I was in the US so I could watch the movie!

I like to try to make friends with my taxis drivers and have a couple who I can call regularly to help me out. The guy who usually takes me to work is Silas. He has a daughter named Jennifer and lives on the outskirts of the city. He knows all the shortcuts throughout Abuja and is just all-together awesome because he never honks unless out of necessity and is always super helpful. He had another child who died of cholera not too long ago. It's so easy to forget that cholera is still a problem throughout the world. Even here in Abuja where I live a pretty Western-like, comfortable life, there are still people who are affected by this preventable disease.

At work, I've been working on standard operating procedures for the office and developing materials for new employee orientations. Pretty dry stuff, so nothing too spectacular to report there.

My counterpart is leaving me- Teresa's heading back to the US on Monday. So it'll just be me left here. Anyone want to visit Nigeria??

Chop My Money!

The title of this post is the title of the song that has been stuck in my head for approximately 2 days. I've heard this song all over the place in Abuja- in taxis on their radios, at the market blaring from stereos, in restaurants/bars... just about everywhere. For the longest time, I could have sworn the chorus went something like this: "Chuck my money, chuck my money, chuck my money cuz I don't care cuz I get plenty." Turns out they say "CHOP my money." The difference between chuck and chop? Not sure. And I have yet to figure out the true meaning of this song, but it's really catchy. If you're curious and want a little taste, look it up on Youtube (Chop My Money by P-Square, it's not the one with Akon). It's just a little taste of Naija music.

As for life in Abuja, I don't have anything super special to report. It's getting warmer and warmer here; the humidity has sky-rocketed. So air conditioning is heaven-sent. Problem is the electricity supply isn't the most consistent. Our apartment complex hasn't always been running the generator when the electricity stops, so sometimes our apartment becomes a stifling oven of heat. Trying to sleep in this heat is rather difficult, to say the least. It doesn't happen too often though, so I guess I shouldn't be complaining too much. At least I HAVE a/c.

Work is work. It was pretty quiet at the end of March because most of the higher level people were in Atlanta for the annual Global AIDS Conference. I've been working on finalizing the office's standard operating procedures and this week I've been pulled in to help plan a visit from a high profile person in the HIV/AIDS world. It's going to be a lot of work to plan, but hopefully everything will get worked out before the visit.

IT'S MANGO SEASON!!! And they are delicious. Here in Abuja, I've found different sized mangoes- small, medium, large. My assessment goes something like Goldilocks and the 3 Bears:

• Small = fibery but good. Good snack size, but not ideal.
• Medium = These are green in color. They're okay. Too fibery for me. And not quite the right taste.
• Large = Delicious! I like that it's not an overpowering mango flavor. Not very fibery. Perfect! 

In other news, I started playing Ultimate Frisbee here. And it's so fun! I'm terrible at catching... and throwing the frisbee. However, it's definitely something fun to do and I've met a few new people I hadn't met before, which is always nice. The expat community is small in Abuja, but there are still a decent number of people here (diplomats, people in the NGO realm, teachers, military personnel, etc). 

Slacking a bit, but here's an update

Hello! I apologize for slacking on updating this blog. I could try giving you several excuses, but in the end, I have just been neglectful. I know it's been over a month since I last wrote. I promise to start being better about writing. What has happened in my life lately...

• Teresa and I flew back to the US on February 9th for some SAS training in Atlanta. I was able to spend a weekend back home with family before starting the class, so that was pretty nice. We spent a little over 2 weeks in the US. I brushed up on all my biostatistics and SAS skills. I ate lots of delicious food and indulged in some Lean Pockets and pizza... turns out I really just enjoy processed frozen foods. Then we arrived back in Abuja on the 27th. 
• Jet lag is incredibly hard to get over. I seem to have more of a problem with it coming back to Nigeria. The fact that I had a whole row of 4 seats on the Frankfurt-Abuja leg of the flight probably didn't help. I slept the whole way down, but it was daytime in Abuja. So by the time I got back into the city, I was wide awake. It took me almost a week to actually be back on a normal-feeling sleep schedule. 
• The first full week of March was a busy time at the office. We had a visit from some Atlanta consultants to help the office develop a business continuity plan aka if something terrible happens, how do we keep things running plan. At the same time, we had a 2 day visit from Dr. Tom Frieden, the Director of CDC. Very important man, very important visit. He's much shorter than I thought he'd be. I don't know why I thought he'd be super tall, but he's not. I think the feeling is equivalent to seeing the Mona Lisa. Very important, hear about it all the time- much smaller than you thought it would be. I think the visit went well... I'm not important enough to actually know what's going on.
• Other work things... not much to report. Doing a few things here and there, but no main project to report about. 
• I've started playing Ultimate Frisbee and have come to realize what a fun game it is! It gives me something else to do and I've met quite a few new people through playing. I also like to believe it helps me stay in shape, however I think I'm counteracting any calories I'm burning by eating way too many cookies and lots of candy. 
• I'm slowly trying to think about my next steps after my contract ends here in Nigeria. I have to look for a new job! I may apply for a second year with the fellowship, but would like to try to be placed elsewhere. Africa has been great, but I think I want to try Southeast Asia. Also because then I'll be closer to family. And I think it'd be an awesome new adventure.

To be very honest, I don't have too much to report. It's starting to get warmer and warmer here. The rainy season is coming, I've heard. So we'll see what Abuja is like then. Mango season has arrived, so I've been trying to enjoy that as much as possible. However, we have learned that mango juice definitely stains clothing. That's all I have for now, but I swear to write more and do so more often. Sorry for the neglect!

Happy Year of the Dragon!

To recap the past month:

The strike ended after a week and things pretty much went back to normal. Fuel prices went up a little bit and has made riding taxis a little more expensive, but not anything staggering. Now I just have to haggle with the taxi drivers a little more. That's nothing too special.

One day, Teresa and I took a very fun cab ride in the morning to work. It turns out he had no idea where he was going so we drove all around the Wuse and Maitama neighborhoods. One might have guessed that we were being kidnapped, but don't worry. We weren't. He just was a little clueless. And I'm not even sure he was a taxi driver since he went down a one-way ramp to get onto the highway. Then we proceeded to drive in the wrong direction on this highway. It was both comical and terrifying. He then couldn't find a way to get onto a ramp to get us OFF the highway. To put it mildly, I did not keep his number to call him again for his services.

Chinese New Year in Nigeria was great! We went to a gathering for the Taiwan Trade Commission. (Taiwan does not have an embassy since it's not recognized as an independent country here.) They had HOT POT, nian gao and tang yuan! It was delicious. We pretty much ate ourselves into a food coma. An amazing way to ring in the Year of the Dragon. I never expected to eat so much good food in Nigeria! I wish I could have celebrated with my family (Dad, I'm still waiting for my red envelope) but it was nice to have other Chinese people and new friends to celebrate it with.

Other than that, I don't have anything extremely exciting to report. The weather is getting hotter and hotter, which means I keep the a/c on a lot more and turn it down. I'm going to miss Harmattan weather with its cool nights. For those readers who don't know, I'll be heading to Atlanta for 2 weeks of statistical analysis software training this month. Exciting! Just a little something to break up the time I have left in Nigeria.

Starting 2012 off with Some Excitement

Greetings! I am back in Nigeria and made it back into the country just in time to be part of history. If you haven’t read the news yet, Nigeria is currently having a National Strike in protest against the fuel subsidy removal. We are just about wrapping up Day 4 of the strike. What does that mean? You should probably Google it because my explanation will be limited, totally inadequate, and probably convoluted. You could try http://tmaettig.wordpress.com/2012/01/10/strike/ for an explanation from someone who understands what is going on much better than I do. 

As for me, it means life in Nigeria is just a little more challenging. There are barely any taxis operating, so I’ve had trouble getting to work every day. There’s a complicated explanation but what it comes down to is- work cannot transport me to and from the office. So that makes life a little difficult. Teresa and I have been getting rides from different people, which is extremely kind of them to help us out. We were finally able to buy a little produce, milk and eggs today, so our house now has something beyond crackers and ramen to sustain us. For the most part, I can say I don’t feel unsafe. Maybe this is naïve of me to think, but I haven’t felt at all threatened. The streets are quieter (thus making it hard to get around and meaning I’m essentially under house arrest when I’m not at work), but other than that, I haven’t seen very much with my own eyes. That might also be due to the fact that I’ve been at a training while at work during the day, so I’m not sitting in front of a computer getting news updates on what is going on around Nigeria. I know the strike has affected flights coming in and out of Nigeria. I guess if people aren’t working at the airport, you can’t exactly have normal air traffic. Essentially all domestic flights have been cancelled and very limited international flights have been able to make it in and out of the country. It’s probably a blessing I arrived last week before all this chaos started.

To add to all the fun, the country (or at least certain areas) is under a state of emergency after all of the Boko Haram business since the Christmas bombing. Well.. Life is never dull. TIA! Nigeria is an incredibly interesting place to learn about. I’ve learned a lot in the last few days. No wahala for the most part, but please keep us and everyone here in Nigeria in your thoughts and prayers. Hope for the best!

And as always: It’s not a hardship, it’s an adventure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Special shout out to my traveling chicken in Belize!)