Blogs from Centre, Burkina Faso, Africa - page 13

Heya everyone I hope everyone is doing super. Things here are getting busier and busier. No May 2-4 here so I was back to work today after a relatively relaxing weekend. I played a little hookie from work on Sunday afternoon to take a long walk in the local forest/park with the interns. It was nice to get out and explore and take in some fresh air. I got horribly sunburned, but it was worth it. After that I hung out around the guest house for a bit and then went out for quite a nice supper with our VP Exploration at a Vietnamese place in town. I tried duck for the first time, which it turns out is RED MEAT (?!), and it was really tasty. At the restaurant, we bumped into a human resources ... read more

So it's Saturday night, and I'm in the mood to drink heavily. If I were in Ottawa right now, the LK and I and the girls from the team would all be over at our place having a few drinks, getting ready, and probably watching the hockey game. We'd get our game on at some bar, and end up really sloppy, and stop off at the diner on the way home at 4am for some poutine. (sigh). Those were the days... As it is now, I am sitting in the office ready to poke out my eyeballs wondering what the hell ever possessed me to leave everyone I love and screw off to Africa for a year. Especially right before rugby season! So there you have it, fans. A moment of desperation. ...(imagine this next bit ... read more

Hey everybody I hope you're all doing super. Things here are good, and getting better all the time. My eyes seem to ahve recovered from whatever crazy burning there was, but I'm still not convinced it had anything to do with what the doctor gave me... but whatever! So I've been eating a lot of good food here, as I have already mentioned. Something I never brought up though, was the kebabs or "brochettes" that they have here, and are pretty much the equivalent of street meat. People sell them all over the place, along with other breads and stuff, like hot dog vendors. But SO MUCH BETTER! Anyway, if anyone is looking for a clever opportunity in entrepreneurship, I suggest a kebab stand! It's tasty! In other news, I've attached some pics of the villa ... read more

Hey everyone I hope Ottawa is treating you all well. Things here in Burkina Faso are moving along. Hard to believe I've only been here just over a week. Seems like months... I'm almost entirely over my sickness now, which is good because bolting through the office to the bathroom is not something I consider very dignified! Last night I managed to eat some good dinner, and wow, was it EVER GOOD. I don't know if I've talked about Burkinabe food yet, but those of you who know me well know that I would never dare live in a country where there wasn't good eats. Burkinabe food (and west African cooking in general) happens to be fantastic. Most of it consists of rice or couscous with some sort of sauce on it, and it never disappoints. ... read more

Hey everyone So there's the peacock that lives across the street from us, and it meows. No word of a lie, it seriously meows. I was getting out of the truck one evening at the guest house, and I heard this really loud "ME-OW" sound, but it was so clear it sounded like a person immitating an animal rather than a real animal. So I asked the watchman "What is that sound?" and he said "It's the peacock, he lives across the street. Haven't you ever heard a peacock before????". Of course having never heard any animal other than a cat make a meowing sound, I had to confess I hadn't. "We don't have many peacocks in Canada", I said. "I've only seen them at the zoo". To which he was astounded that Canada was not ... read more