Foreign Service Girl

I’ve been in Mali almost a year now and figured I should probably write something. Beyond the terrible internet speeds, I’m rather at a lost as to how to explain this place and life here.

Maybe the best place to start is just with some general comments on the Foreign Service. As much as I knew starting out I didn’t fully realize how much more of a lifestyle this is than a job. In many ways life is inherently more difficult. All of life feels a little like work.

A few months ago I came across this gem of a 1959 publication.

I found this passage an apt description. I shared it with the Diplomat and he agreed.

“What do you think of the Foreign Service now, Francine?”

“There’s no word for it,” she said slowly. “It’s a queer mixture – of loneliness and companionship, of touches of melodrama and stretches of everyday living, of strange sights and sounds and customs and people with different backgrounds from ours – and of an 8:30 to 5:00 job like any other – or about like any other.”

My only edit would be to those work hours, more like 7:30 – 6:30 (at the earliest). But that is the basic mix of life. The job is just a job. Granted one where I’ve sat and had tea with the President of Mali. But you fall into a pattern of normality because at the end of the day it is just life. Then there are days where every five minutes you are reminded that you are the foreign thing and nothing works the way you wish it would.

You have to ask for help in order to survive. Something I’m learning – painfully at times.

As my one-year mark approaches in a few weeks I’ve been trying to work out what I want to accomplish over the next year. Already thinking about departure and what it is that I want to be taking with me when I go – both in terms of experiences and things.

Because in case you haven’t heard – my next post is Paris.

Bamako

I've reached my 10th day in Bamako. Yesterday I finally met my boss, so life is as settled as it will be until I move into my house. Which will be sometime mid-September. Until then I am living in a local hotel. Where I am grateful to have wifi. 

Don't ask about the light over the bed. I don't know. I pretend it's not there. 

View from the hotel. 

The clouds have been pretty fantastic. 

It is rainy season, so everything is lush and green at the moment. 

The Niger River separates the town into two parts. There are three bridges that connect the two sides - the old bridge, the new bridge, and the Chinese bridge. Guess who built the last one? 

Fields near my future home. 

The city is a interesting mix of urban and rural. Heavy on the rural. The donkeys munching on the side of the road and the horse drawn carts in the capital city will clue you in real quick. Half constructed buildings pepper the landscape. Some have remained unfinished so long moss is covering them like paint. 

Only the main roads are paved. Traffic is crazy. The motos (motorbikes) are everywhere. And they have no fear. They careen down the streets inches from cars and people. Last weekend, while walking along the side of the road, one came close enough that the knees of both riders slammed into my leg as they flew by. They grazed the woman behind me as well. Besides the road hazards Bamako has felt very safe. And thankfully no one seems to drive fast enough for a serious accident. 

All the expats here seem to love it. People who have worked all over Africa attest to how much they love to come back here. Everyone I meet tells me how much I'm going to enjoy living here. Since they all have been doing it for a while I'm trusting they know what they are talking about. 

For now I'm learning my job and trying to get settled. Harder to do when I'm not moving into my housing for several weeks, but so far so good.

Though the hotel room may be full of packages from Amazon by the time I leave here. You really can buy almost anything on there. Hallelujah. 

More to come...

The Stop of Rest

If the distance/duration of travel is long enough one may take a rest stop on the way to post. In hope of lessening the jetlag effect I requested to extend my layover in Paris. I intended to take it easy, but ended up walking so much I gave myself blisters. Worth it.

During the taxi ride from the airport to my hotel we drove past the very hotel I stayed in my first night in Paris during study abroad. I'd missed the shuttle at the airport. Well, missed because I couldn't even find it, and had a horrific time figuring out where I was going. I remember stepping off the shuttle just as my professor and his wife were walking down the street. It was perfect timing. One of those moments you feel like you've never been so glad to see a familiar face in your life. 

A lovely place...

Naturally, I started reflecting on what that arrival had been like. An interesting comparison to my current situation. At that point I had as much of an idea of what my arrival in Bamako would be, as I did of Paris when I arrived at that hotel almost ten years ago. ...I can't believe it's been almost ten years.

I do love Paris. It was wonderful to take one of my favorite routes and think about how different my life has been each time I've visited Paris. The city changes too, though it's always beautiful. 

The brief stop was a good break to help with the mental adjustment. Being away someplace I felt comfortable made my final destination seem less terrifying. Though the hope that it would aid with jetlag was too optimistic. 

Bring on the vaccines

"In 2012, US Embassy Bamako had more malaria cases than any Embassy in the world". This is great news. It means someplace else earned that title in 2013!

My arms are permanently sore from all my shots. 

C & B Wed

My summer began and will end with a wedding. An excellent way to get the most out of your last summer in the U.S. is to have multiple friends throw parties and get themselves hitched. A perfect excuse to see friends and family when there are more important things to talk about than your looming departure. Especially when C is the one being wed. Her wedding a few weekends ago was perfection. Yes, it was beautiful. Yes, she was beautiful. But I most loved the looks on their faces as they knelt across from each other and then later as they exchanged vows. I have high expectations of the great things they will do, and I'm certain B will take good care of C while I'm off trekking around Africa.

 Mr. & Mrs. B

T & I happy to be bridesmaiding in CA.

I could eat this cake every day. No joke.

 First dance.

Coordinating fake tattoos.

Sadly, not everyone was thrilled about C & B. My poor 5-year-old nephew J had the following reaction when his mother (also J) informed him he had missed his chance. Though he did make C a lovely Angry Birds wedding picture/card that I stuck on her fridge.

The Black Passport

Things are getting quite official. There is nothing like having multiple passports to put things in perspective. This is real, I'm moving to Africa, and it's a thrill.

What is working for the Department of State like? Honestly, I have no idea. Let's talk about the fact that I've been sitting in a classroom for the last few months. Granted, I like classrooms more than the average person, but there are many days I wish I had some work to do. Productivity would be much more measurable.

Thankfully, there have been a spattering of days when I've had a break.

 A snowy day lunch at the top of the Harry S. Truman building.

 It's almost completely thanks to Colin Powell that I did not quit during the first few horrific weeks of training.

 And yes, stalking my boss in hallways also helped put things in perspective.

 

Once winter ended life improved drastically. I thoroughly enjoy DC. Though the tug of the black passport is always there, reminding me the days here are winding down and it will soon transport me to foreign soil.

You're Shocked, I Know

I posted something!

I'm certain you've all been distraught over my lack of rambling blog posts, rest assured, I don't intend drop the blog. Once I've left the English speaking world you're probably going to wish I posted less. Especially if I start going back through the last 8 months and finishing off the 36 (yes, 36) drafted blog posts I started and never finished.

Where to begin....

If you have not heard I'm headed to Bamako, Mali in August. I've been buying up books on Africa like crazy. Naturally I arrived in DC certain there was no way I was going to Africa by myself. Perhaps, someday, family in tow I'd be happy to go. But alone, no way. Then the short list of options was handed out.

Before receiving said list I'd outlined my priorities for exactly what I wanted, in the hope that I wouldn't be swayed and pick post that I might not be happy with due to things I'd be giving up for a "name". Turns out Mali was the single option that gave me every one of my priorities (at least in part). I can honestly say I'm headed to my first choice of the options I was given. So what were the requirements that have me heading off to Timbuktu (which currently I will not be able to visit as it's considered too dangerous)?

1. There are several different offices I had the option to work in, this job will put me in the office I wanted to be in.

2. Language training. I wanted language training, and it's even better that I'll be taking three months of French so I can build on what I already know.

3. Church. This is the one I fudged a little. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not actually organized in Mali. There are no meeting houses, no wards - but there are members and they do meet informally on at least a semi-regular basis.

4. D&N's wedding. I'm part of the wedding party for D&N's wedding in August and if possible I wanted to stay long enough to be able to participate. Not only because I adore them and want to be there for them, but because of everyone who will be attending. I won't have the opportunity to see friends frequently in the future so being in attendance seemed especially valuable.

5. Student loans. The State Dept has a program where they provide a supplemental student loan payment to employees serving at hardship posts of more than 20% hardship. Mali meets that requirement.

6. R&R time. Mali has 2 R&Rs. Meaning that once a year I can fly home without having to pay for the plane ticket myself. Or I can apply the amount the ticket would cost to a trip elsewhere.

7. Weather. No snow. At some point it will happen. There are plenty of places I'd be happy to go that reach frigid temperatures. This time I wanted somewhere warm.

Those I've talked to who have been posted or lived there love Bamako, and have had nothing to say but good things about working there. I'm grateful it worked out the way it did.

I'm almost halfway through my training and now that winter has finally relented (how did I live in Provo for four winters?) I'm enjoying DC. Virginia is beautiful. Half my days here have passed and there are many unchecked items on my list of things to see and do. I also have a horrendously long list of things to buy, and tasks to complete before I leave. I'm doubly grateful to have time for everything I need and want to do.

You still have three months to come visit in DC. If not, you'll have to come to Mali. Which you can actually do! Just be sure to get your shots, take malaria medication, and don't drink the water.

It will be an adventure.

The Foreign Circus

Most commonly heard/repeated/groaned at phrase: "It depends"

Training for the foreign circus is a surreal experience. One week you are "learning" how to send emails, the next finds you running through a forest. Seriously...running through a forest, ask me about it sometime! You spend several days in a windowless basement room completing Microsoft trainings. Another day you are giving a presentation on immigration, in French. You want to talk about ANYTHING but work, yet it's the only thing you are capable of talking about.

The result is that your conversation is either fascinating (briefly to those who know nothing about your job or where you are going and your colleagues who are equally interested in talking about work) or you have become a total bore. I am capable of talking for hours about the cafeteria at the training center, the logistics of packing and shipment overseas, household issues in foreign countries, if I do or do not plan to hire a cook, gardener, house cleaner, etc. But the number of people capable, let alone interested in listening to such a discourse is limited.

Thankfully, when you join the foreign circus you suddenly find yourself in a weird carny-esque tribe. Every last one of your colleagues has also signed up for this crazy deal. So despite the fact you almost never receive a direct answer to a question and everyone has disparate experiences following processes that are supposedly the same, it does feel like home. In a strange, you can't wait to get out of here, but are glad to have met everyone sort of way.

The training center is a much nicer place without snow!

Au Revoir Pacifica

Today might be Christmas Eve, but it's also the day I move back home after 3 months living with my father's parents. I don't finish work until January 9th, but there is not a single free weekend left before the movers arrive at my folks to pack all my possessions. Thus, after the family holiday party this evening we'll load up my car, my parent's car, with all I have in the basement. And that will be it. It will likely be the last time I'll see my grandparents before I leave. Strange realization. Goodbye goodbyes.

I have loved living by the ocean these past few months. Before darkness took over the evening it was always the highlight of my day driving down from the top of the hill into Pacifica with the Pacific ocean stretching out infinitely.

No filters here, no Photoshop - it's simply perfect. 

After I received my formal offer and invite to DC, I tried to make a point to stop here in the mornings and afternoons when I got off early. Though I'm sure I'll live by other oceans, in other places, I don't want to have taken this one for granted.

Thankfully I've got one or two more ocean related excursions planned before I depart (one which might give me my fill of oceans for a long time) so today isn't really goodbye. But there is something about the beach you've been acquainted with your entire life (even when your father would yell when you got more than a few inches into the sea foam) and a city that will forever and always be associated with both sets of grandparents who lived there and memories of the brief years you lived there yourself as a child.

I'll remember the eucalyptus trees, the golf course with my Shirley Temples at the bar, the wooden playground down the street, picking flowers in the front yard for crowns, playing dress-up, doll house parts, classic movies, countless holidays. Hopefully today won't be the last one. 

Through The Years

Judy Garland has been absolutely reducing me to tears and small sobs when she comes on the radio.

I don't think this is just me, but I have several favorite Christmas movies which aren't Christmas movies at all. Little Women is one. Meet Me in St. Louis is another. Almost purely for the scene where Esther sings, "...have yourself a merry little Christmas" to Tootie. This year, more than any previous, I'm sympathizing with them and their sadness over leaving so much of what they love.

Someday soon, we all will be together

If the Fates allow

Until then, we'll have to muddle through somehow

So have yourself a merry little Christmas now

I suppose I've got to make it as merry as possible now, while I can. But maybe I'll be lucky and manage to get home from country X every year for Christmas. I'd take every other year. Or even some years. 10-20 years seems like a long time to miss Christmas. Lots of muddling. 

Note - I am thrilled about the new job, and leaving - but that doesn't mean it isn't tinged with sorrow.

Maps at SFO

When I fly out of SFO and I find myself in Terminal 2 there is always a incredible exhibit just after security. Earlier this year it was vintage board games. This past weekend it was a collection of maps of San Francisco from the David Rumsey collection. It's pretty fantastic.

One of my favorite taglines from the description is: "San Francisco was at once improbable and inevitable."

Or the following: 

"The water is so scarce that it is scarcely sufficient for the few families that reside at the Presidio...timber is found at a distance of twelve or fourteen leagues, and pasturage for the little stock of the garrison is only found at a distance of five or six leagues. Therefore, I am convinced that the worst place or situation in California is that of San Francisco for the establishment of such a villa...:
- Don Pedro de Alberni, in his report to the Viceroy on July 1st, 1796. 

Contrasted with:

"Few cities int he world can vie with San Francisco either in beauty or in the natural advantages of her situation; indeed there are only two places in Europe--Constantinople and Gibraltar--that combine an equally perfect landscape with what may be called an equally imperial position."
- James Bryce, writing in American Commonwealth, 1889.

The bay looks chaotic.

This one is an insurance map breaking down the entire city block by block and noting the sizes and make-up of each building on the block. It'd be pretty interesting to peruse.

Love the title on this one Paradise Found.

I'm pretty certain one of those red brick buildings by the docks is the building I currently work in. Located right below the hill (not quite a cliff anymore) in one of the old ice houses that used to sit on the edge of the docks before the peninsula was built out. 

LA trip and BF Weds

Admission - I had not planned to go to my lovely friend BFs wedding. Despite all those months when he let me use his washer and dryer weekly, along with feeding and entertaining me. Add the fact that there was an invitation mix up. 

Then last week BF sent an email out to A, J, and I persuasively making the case for our attendance. Plane tickets were purchased soon thereafter. 

Piggybacking the trip with a visit to my friend H's made for a more relaxing weekend than I've had in a long time.

H & I at the beach.

Perfect Pine-cone ornament favors.

The venue was lovely - all the arches. 

Hot chocolate!!!! 

J, N, me, B, & A. 

The expression on L's face! 

Flying never gets old.

Returning marked the beginning of the end, this week I'll book my flight to DC as well as schedule the movers who will come pack all my belongings and ship them away.