AOK's blog

Food machines

2012-02-17T18:52:00.001-05:00

Bad news: the bread maker (on the left) isn't working.

Good news: the soft serve ice cream maker (on the right) is doing well.

I'm sure there's some hidden message in this...

Answers!

2012-02-13T21:18:00.001-05:00

I like the information desk at the Cambridge Public Library.

Photo: in-flight

2012-01-21T00:14:00.000-05:00

This is a photo from my Iberia flight back to JFK. I had never seen this before: a video camera positioned on the tail of the plane broadcast the view during our taxi, takeoff, and first ten minutes of flight. It was cool.

Photo: Getxo

2012-01-19T00:11:00.000-05:00

Another one from Getxo, Spain, just outside Bilbao. The suburb is set on a hill. There were moving walkways on this particular street (uphill direction only) and it totally blew my mind.

Photo: Bayonne

2012-01-18T00:07:00.000-05:00

Bayonne, France, another cool city. The Basque influence here was similar to what I saw in Spain, but also very unique. I visited here in December 2003 and it's mostly unchanged since then: beautiful city, lots of chocolate shops.

Photo: Luz-Saint-Sauveur

2012-01-16T09:00:00.000-05:00

Sleepy little Luz-Saint-Sauveur, France. The town is set in the Pyrenees, right at the base of the mountains. There wasn't nearly enough snow yet: it looks more like springtime than December 29th.

Photo: San Sebastian

2012-01-15T23:55:00.001-05:00

This was a very neat town on the border with France.

Photo: Getxo

2012-01-08T08:56:00.003-05:00

This is the fisherman's village in a town just outside Bilbao.

Photo: Bilbao

2012-01-06T09:30:00.001-05:00

I think it's pretty much required to snap a photo of the Guggenheim.
Here's the flower-covered puppy out front with his "doghouse" behind,
as it's called affectionately.

Photo: Barcelona

2011-12-21T05:54:00.002-05:00

I visited Barcelona over the weekend. I really loved the city. I got to see all the big sites, have some really good food, and meet some really great people. And there were these giant pasta shells around the city. I didn't get a great photo of them, but I snapped this one.

The pasta, called galets, were there because of a traditional Catalan soup with this type of pasta which is served around Christmas. There's also a tradition of kids beating a Christmas log with a stick to get their presents. I only half-understood that custom as it was explained to me in Spanish and broken English.

Photo: Madrid

2011-12-16T07:52:00.000-05:00

Pork delivery at the local meat and cheese shop.

Photo: New York

2011-12-12T20:16:00.000-05:00

I unexpectedly had a day to kill in New York thanks to flight issues. In Union Square I came across The Andy (Warhol) Monument. A sign nearby says it's only temporary. Is it possible to have a temporary monument?

Photo: Boston

2011-12-11T10:07:00.000-05:00

Being done with classes means there's time for a quick trip to Boston.
The good old Red Line.

Photo: New Haven

2011-12-10T10:26:00.000-05:00

I'm done with exams and off for a few weeks away from campus. See you
soon, New Haven.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-23T18:50:00.000-05:00

I just trekked back to CA in what was easily the longest trip I've
made in a while. It was more or less just like "Planes, Trains, and
Automobiles" except without Steve Martin.

But I'm thankful I'm here now. And for lunch I was treated to some
fried catfish, onion rings, and fried okra at a place called Big
Skinnys. Here's to food!

And hello SFO! (this is the departure hall)

Wear your corduroy Friday

2011-11-10T21:32:00.001-05:00

Along with being Veterans Day and a big, pretty palindrome (11-11-11),
Friday is also apparently a big day for the Corduroy Appreciation Club
(www.corduroyclub.com).

Every year on January 11th and November 11th the Club holds a Grand
Meeting to celebrate corduroy (all those ones in the date look like
corduroy fabric, of course). I'm not clear how one celebrates corduroy
exactly... Regardless, this year they're calling it The Grandest
Meeting because it's just so grand.

Locally grown

2011-10-08T11:27:00.000-04:00

I was just at a conference in NY where they served locally grown Pepsi.

Hmm.

Buying a baseball team

2011-09-21T15:32:00.000-04:00

Both the Mets and the Dodgers are in a mess financially. I haven't really followed either story in detail, but I gather that the Mets ownership is trying to sell a minority stake in the team while the Dodgers are sort of up for sale, but sort of not because of a divorce. Or something.

Anyways, it occurred to me that we could solve all of this with a Kickstarter project to take over the teams. Kickstarter is a site that allows people to pool money for cool projects (like buying a baseball team, perhaps?) sort of the way Kiva pools money for loans.

Teams owned by tons of fans who've each thrown in some money would be a pretty cool thing.

End of a GREAT summer

2011-08-24T11:55:00.003-04:00

It's truly been a fantastic summer away from school. I worked at a really cool internship and learned a lot. I got to live in Boston and see more places and old friends than I expected. And I got to travel, travel, travel. I feel truly lucky to have had many great experiences this summer.

There are a few more days until classes start up again and I have a bit more time in California to hang out and sleep in. But there's one thing that signifies school's about to start up in a crazy way: my school email inbox is blowing up... it must be time for class again.

Bday

2011-08-02T22:18:00.004-04:00

I recently received an email about an upcoming political organizing meeting that's timed to coincide with Barack Obama's birthday.

My first thought was that this is a clever way to get his supporters together. I understand that the grassroots type of involvement his reelection campaign is trying to engender is based on small get-togethers like this one and it must be nice to have a theme on which to base it. It's cute, but not over-the-top.

But my second thought was that it's kind of weird. In my mind, celebrating the president's birthday happens in despotic, undemocratic states.

Again, I grasp the idea behind the event, but I think it's slightly off.

Harry Potter

2011-07-17T21:50:00.000-04:00

Along with many others, I saw the final Harry Potter film this
weekend. It was very good, and despite not having seen any of the
other films OR having read any of the books, I still appreciated and
understood (I think) all of it.

The friends with whom I saw it were slightly incredulous that I was so
out of the loop. I may have to start reading the books...

Cambridge!

2011-06-07T20:27:00.000-04:00

I'm in Boston for the summer and quickly settling back in. Among other
things that come with the move, I'm discovering new lunch spots,
cafes, shops, etc. that have shown up downtown and in Cambridge since
I left a year ago. Here's a new storefront in Central Square. I have
no idea what it sells, but I'm intrigued.

Summer reading

2011-05-15T10:20:00.002-04:00

Be warned: these are guaranteed to waste a TON of time.

First is a list of 100 good non-fiction articles from 2010. It includes newspaper articles and online writers with categories like crime, sports, the media, food, and business.

Second is a list of great magazine articles. The titles alone are fantastic: "Consider the Lobster," "Federer as a Religious Experience," and "Wall Street on the Tundra."

Syrup

2011-05-07T12:04:00.001-04:00

In my book, it's the most important part of a successful brunch. I'm
thankful this diner labeled the maple syrup.

Taxes

2011-04-18T18:44:00.003-04:00

Today (which of course happens to be the deadline for filing taxes) I happened to stop and chat with the woman at school who is in charge of tuition/billing/finances. Among other things we talked about, she was griping about not yet being finished with her own taxes. Somehow it doesn't inspire confidence.

For the record, I finished mine last month.

Quidditch

2011-04-03T12:10:00.002-04:00

The good news is it's sunny out. The bad news is I'm heading to the library to study. And undergrads have set up hoops and a broomstick on the grass in front of the library for a game of Quidditch (from Harry Potter fame).

Productivity

2011-03-29T15:37:00.002-04:00

I'm fairly certain that the main reason The New York Times elected to roll out their so-called "paywall" this week was to help me improve my productivity.

It's working, thanks guys.

Mumbai

2011-03-15T09:37:00.002-04:00

I saw the Taj Mahal over the weekend. It lived up to expectations. Words and pictures don't do it justice.

I'm in Mumbai now, a much more vertical and metropolitan city than Delhi. We've been hearing a lot about the "two Indias" (meaning the poor India and the booming white collar workers and upper class who make up the other India). That difference is in much starker contrast here, with more fancy cars and luxury brands than I saw in Delhi.

I've followed a bit of the news from Japan, though not as much as I would like. A handful of my classmates have been there for the past two weeks. They cut their trip short and left the country safely on Monday.

Jodhpur to Delhi

2011-03-13T00:52:00.002-05:00

We saw Jodhpur for a few days (from where we get jodpur riding pants, apparently). There's another massive old fort there which was really impressive. We also stopped at a place that is said to have India's best lassi. It cost 5o cents, we were surprisingly the only gringos there, and it was amazing.

After seeing Jodhpur for a few days, we took an overnight train to Delhi, which was quite the experience. In Delhi, we met up with the rest of my classmates for the "official" part of my trip here. We had back-to-back meetings all day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. The meetings so far have been amazing: we met with company leadership at Indian companies and multinationals, we met with a handful of entrepreneurs, and we talked with cabinet members, all of whom had insightful things to say about where the country has come from and where it might be going.

It's been great and I feel so lucky to have this level of access.

The Good Luck Roadside Motorcycle Shrine

2011-03-08T12:52:00.006-05:00

After Udaipur, we (myself and two classmates) headed to Jodhpur by car. Our hotel in Udaipur helped us arrange a driver for the day. We set out a bit later than we had hoped, but the drive was fantastic. We saw amazing sites at Kumbhalgargh (a massive old stone fortress) and Ranakpur (a beautiful Jain temple). We held our collective breath as we swung around curvy, single lane roads up in the mountains and passed traffic on the flat highways.

The drive was quite long and our late start meant that we had several hours of driving left as it started to get dark. Despite the long day none of us passengers were sleepy: the perilous driving kept all of us awake. We were all slightly nervous and wanted to be at our destination.

And then at 7:02, with darkness falling, we came upon a minor commotion on the side of the highway. There was a small roadside shrine with a handful of people drumming before it and a small fire going. Our driver, Javni, quickly pulled over and chuckled that we were very, very lucky. I followed Javni towards the shrine with trucks whizzing by and honking (when I say "roadside shrine" I mean it was really right at the side of the road). I took of my shoes, (though the ground was just dirt) and walked with Javni around the shrine.

As we circled around the back, I saw an old, dusty motorcycle with a flat tire parked there under a fluorescent light. The motorcycle, Javni explained, was known to start all by itself and drive itself around and around the shrine. This ceremony we'd stopped at only happened at 7:00 each night, so we were lucky to have been passing at just the right time. Sure enough a dozen travelers were running from just-parked (or still moving) vehicles to kick off their shoes, say a quick prayer, and sprint back to their car/truck/bus.

As Javni and I headed back to our car, the drumming died down and the fire was put out. The crowd melted away. It was hectic and simple and beautiful all at once. Definitely a highlight of the trip so far.

Udaipur

2011-03-02T20:56:00.005-05:00

I'm just leaving Udaipur, Rajasthan. The city is right at the edge of a beautiful lake. There's lots of exploring to do and the streets are narrow, hilly, and often have cows roaming about. There are a handful of palaces and temples.

This is sunrise from the roof of my hotel, looking out towards a palace/hotel on an island in the lake. Apparently it was featured in a Bond film... Cool.

Uprisings

2011-02-23T20:19:00.004-05:00

Without the benefit of hindsight and admittedly without being very educated about everything that happened in 1968, I wonder if we're in the midst of something similar. Will we look back on 2011 in a similar way? The pundits have already written about this, I'm sure. But think about it: Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Bahrain, Iran, Yemen, Algeria, and to lesser degrees, Syria, Sudan, Iraq, Lebanon, the Palestinian Territories. Plus China. That last one, while minor, make one think about things on a global level...

In other news, I'm off to India for a couple weeks.

In case you missed it...

2011-02-11T16:16:00.004-05:00

... Happy 209 Day. (Blueberry, banana, and chocolate chip pancakes to celebrate).

No smartphone

2011-02-07T23:55:00.002-05:00

I spent a good part of last weekend not using my smartphone. Instead, I tried to focus on the people I was with.

It was great, it was a welcome break, and I highly recommend it. And it reaffirmed for me everything's that's written about how much we're slaves to our tech devices.

Ad from last summer

2011-01-20T22:41:00.000-05:00

I ran across this commercial from last summer and it brought me back to all the games I watched during the World Cup. It's a Coke commercial that shows a medley of different goal-scoring celebrations.

There were very few ads shown during the games while I was in Africa (perhaps a dozen in rotation in total) so I saw this ad several times each game. The song is catchy and given the continuous playing everyone knew it. Credit to the ad makers at Coke, I think they got me, as I wrote in July. Here's the ad.

I'm not clear on whether the video and/or song were played at all in the U.S. Did anyone here see them? Below is the full music video from the Somali-Canadian artist. Yes, it's pretty fluffy pop music, but like I said, I heard the song a lot.

Back to school

2011-01-09T07:02:00.004-05:00

I'm wrapping up a couple weeks break from school. The trip was great, I caught up on sleep, ate lots, and saw lots of people. Highlights included:

two birthday cakes!
a new year!
seeing lots of family!
seeing tons of friends!
dim sum!
tacos in the Mission!
a cool "I'm AOK" t-shirt!
visits to a ton of cool companies, including Tesla!

Now it's back to school, back to the snow, and back to work!

KC

2010-12-24T00:33:00.002-05:00

I'm off to California after a brief stay in Kansas City where I saw a cool museum, saw a great movie, and had some BBQ that was truly amazing. Thanks to my aunt and uncle for hosting me!

Done with exams

2010-12-17T12:42:00.000-05:00

The fall term is done!

I'm a quarter of the way through this thing. Does that mean I'm a sophomore now?

Thanksgiving

2010-11-29T23:45:00.004-05:00

I'm back from Thanksgiving in Paris. A couple close friends can count as family too.

...playing a game on a cold Saturday in a park

Done with the photos

2010-10-29T23:11:00.000-04:00

That's it for the photo-a-day. There were many more obviously. Dublin clearly had much more to see than just signs on walls. London included the requisite photos in a bright red phone booth, in front of Big Ben, Tower Bridge, etc. Sierra Leone was bigger than photos can show.

But that'll do for now.

Photo: Another sign

2010-10-28T22:38:00.002-04:00

From the side of an old stone building. Not sure what it's for.

Photo: More street art

2010-10-27T23:08:00.002-04:00

Some more street art from Dublin. "I'd rather trust a dealer on a badly lit street corner than a criminal in a three piece suit." Nice and anti-capitalist.

Photo: Dublin

2010-10-26T22:36:00.002-04:00

The last stop on my trip home was Dublin. I really loved the city and the countryside that I got to see. This was on an unassuming wall in a quiet part of the city.

Photo: Mini

2010-10-25T22:33:00.001-04:00

Awesome.

Photo: Art

2010-10-24T22:09:00.000-04:00

Some Warhol art from the Tate Modern in London. The space (in an old factory right on the Thames) is as cool as everyone says.

Photo: Stadium apartements

2010-10-22T22:14:00.001-04:00

I saw friends Kim and Rob in London. They live in an apartment at the old Arsenal soccer stadium. The apartments are literally built into the old stands. So cool. The slope of the old stands can be seen in the picture. There's red trim because that's the team's color. The new (amazing) stadium is down the street.

Photo: Railway memorial

2010-10-20T21:58:00.001-04:00

Two livestock railway cars and a stone monument at the train station in Compiegne, France commemorating 50,000 Jews who were deported from the town and sent to concentration camps outside the country. The cars are just beside the platforms where commuters wait for the trains to Paris each morning.

Photo: A French town hall

2010-10-18T21:48:00.002-04:00

I had a couple days in France with friends Danielle and Michel. Here's the hotel de ville of Pierrefonds, too quaint not to get a photo. We checked out the beautiful fairytale-like castle the town is known for. Apparently Michael Jackson wanted to buy it at some point (the castle).

Photo: Ads in Brussels

2010-10-17T17:35:00.000-04:00

After Africa, I had a few days in Europe. Here are two ads from a very brief stopover in Brussels. They both feature the Manneken Pis, a tourist attraction in Brussels that's a statue of a little boy peeing. Dumb and cute, but no big deal. But it strikes me as bizarre that Coke has decided to associated the peeing boy with it's beverages by using it on the front of a Coke machine and in a Vitamin Water ad (one of its brands).

Doesn't make me want a drink.

Photo: Stop in Dakar

2010-10-16T17:29:00.001-04:00

I think that's it for photos from SL. Here are a few photos from my long trip back to the states.

The flight out of Africa included an unexpected layover in Dakar when the plane had technical problems. The upside was that I had a day in Dakar and briefly got to check out the city. This is a recently completed statue (some would say boondoggle) that the president of Senegal commissioned. It was built by a North Korean company, perhaps because they have experience with massive bronze statues...

Photo: Leaving Freetown

2010-10-14T17:25:00.001-04:00

A self-portrait from the tarmac leaving Freetown for good.

Photo: Stove

2010-10-13T17:18:00.003-04:00

This is the stove used to prepare dinner each night at the home where I lived. It's made from two metal pails lined with clay. Meals were generally rice with a stew. Everything was made on this one stove, which was fed with wood charcoal. The plastic bucket on the right has the greens (cassava leaves on this day) that will be cooked.

Photo: Treats

2010-10-12T17:07:00.001-04:00

A sampling of my favorite snacks from street vendors. All were very good and very cheap (usually 2 cents). From left to right:

kanya - made with peanuts, rice, and sugar
peanuts with honey
benni cakes - sesame
peanut brittle

Photo: Connaught Hospital

2010-10-11T17:04:00.000-04:00

A plaque from Connaught Hospital in downtown Freetown. It's dated 1817 and reads "Royal Hospital and Asylum for Africans rescued from slavery by British valour and philanthropy." OK...

Photo: Imports

2010-10-09T22:59:00.001-04:00

Rice is a staple in local cooking. It's eaten at every meal and was once grown in huge quantities in the provinces. Somehow the industry collapsed in the past thirty years and now it's imported from India, Thailand, and Vietnam. Here are 100 pound bags. Multiple times I saw a mama carrying a baby on her back and one of these balanced on her head.

Photo: More smoke

2010-10-08T22:50:00.001-04:00

Freetown's dump. It was smoldering on most days. Better not to think about what you might be breathing in. You can just make out some people in the smoke. Those are people who scavenged for things of value.

Photo: Sleepy town

2010-10-07T22:46:00.001-04:00

In downtown Makeni, after a rain. The town saw serious fighting during the civil war. Visited some borrowers there.

Photo: Cloth market

2010-10-06T22:40:00.001-04:00

A hazy day at one of the cloth markets in town. I heard some expats call Freetown "the Big Smoke" though apparently that name generally refers to London.

Photo: I'm on a boat

2010-10-05T00:52:00.000-04:00

Riding the ferry across the bay to the airport. It took about two hours and cost $1.25. As the boat pulls away from the dock, the hills above Freetown are clearly visible in the background, crowded with houses.

Photo: My room

2010-10-04T00:48:00.000-04:00

This was my place for three months. I truly loved my accomodations (and it only leaked when it rained!)

Photo: A pig

2010-10-03T00:41:00.000-04:00

A spotted pig in Sierra Leone. He helps with trash collection. Seriously.

Photo: Ice truck

2010-10-02T00:39:00.000-04:00

The biggest and maybe only ice company I saw in Freetown. Nice pop culture reference, guys.

Photo: Goods for sale

2010-10-01T00:37:00.000-04:00

Goods sold at a food stand by one of the clients I went to visit during a loan audit. Stacks of dried pasta are in the back, garlic and bags of spices are on the right, bullion packets are in the center. The women who owns the stand is reaching in to grab an item.

Photo: Chimps

2010-09-30T00:21:00.000-04:00

A chimp from a sanctuary in the hills above Freetown.

Photos from the summer

2010-09-29T00:12:00.003-04:00

I realized I have a ton of pictures from this summer that never got shared. I've been asked about them by several people. I suppose it's old news at this point, but I'll post a handful and aim for a photo a day for a little while. I should mention this includes a bit of inspiration from a friend sharing photos from Shanghai.

A photo from my first day in Sierra Leone: the national stadium (and the only stadium) in Freetown. Homes are in the foreground, as is a river that floods the homes when it rains heavily (most of July and August).

New car!

2010-09-22T00:28:00.002-04:00

For the first time ever (ever) I've got a car. I picked it up this weekend and I'm pretty excited about it. Thanks to the car's prior owners for taking such good care of it.

I have decided that anyone riding in the car is required to wear a pair of sunglasses from Sierra Leone (conveniently stored in the glove box). Passengers' options include Ralph Laurens, Lacostes, or Ray Bans.

Assets = Liabilities + Equity

2010-09-10T00:00:00.002-04:00

Working on accounting. It turns out that jazz music and t-accounts go together like peanut butter and jelly.

An old Giant

2010-08-18T00:36:00.003-04:00

I read today about the death of Bobby Thompson, who played for the Giants back when they were in New York and whose homer in the bottom of the ninth during the third game of a three game playoff won the pennant for the Giants.

The video here is a bit hard to hear. The only important part for me is the announcer yelling "The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!..." and everyone from the coaches to the fans going nuts.

RIP. And Go Giants.

Transition

2010-08-09T17:41:00.005-04:00

It feels a bit like I've been in motion constantly for the past four months: leaving my job, working abroad, traveling. Since my return to the States I've kept this inertia and moved lots of stuff to New Haven. I'm about to jump into the next big thing and for the first time in a very long time I have a moment to catch my breath.

I also have a quick moment to look back at my experience in Sierra Leone. It's still exciting to think about what I learned and accomplished there. I feel the work was beneficial to all parties involved, including Kiva, the local microfinance where I worked, the borrowers I met, and myself. And on a totally selfish note, I'm really glad I had the chance to be a part of it.

Next I get to transition to student life. I am continuing on my trajectory from working professional to volunteer to traveler to student. I'm trading the mostly brick buildings of Boston's Back Bay and Cambridge's Harvard Yard for the Gothic stone buildings of New Haven.

It remains to be seen how my experiences abroad (and for that matter, all my experiences during the years since graduating from college) will contribute to my time in graduate school. But somehow they'll all be part of the picture whether I realize it or not.

I'm ready and excited to be a student again.

Ireland

2010-07-27T13:25:00.003-04:00

My trip home from Africa includes time in Europe staying with friends. It's been a lot of fun so far and feels like I'm adding some vacation to the end of my time working overseas. My vacation:

A couple days in France last week to see some friends, relax, and have some great food (chocolate, lots of it).
London last weekend hanging out, seeing markets, eating curry.
This week it's a couple days in Ireland. More relaxing.

Next it's back to the real world.

Europe

2010-07-21T17:56:00.002-04:00

Made it out of Sierra Leone (Freetown-Dakar-Gran Canaria-Brussels-Paris) and I'm so happy to be able to drink water from the tap.

It's the little things.

Too much to record

2010-07-17T12:56:00.001-04:00

As I get towards the end of my work here in "Salone," I see that there's so much I want to record and remember. Everything about my daily experiences -- the walk to work, the street corners I know so well, the people I recognize, the greetings I've learned, the shortcuts I use, the bread vendors and peanut vendors and snack vendors I've met, the coworkers I greet, and on and on -- all these are things that I want to be able to remember and capture but that I know I won't be able to. It's frankly made me a bit frantic in these last few days as I know that some of the details of this amazing experience will slowly but surely begin to fade in my memory.

I want to write about all of it and take pictures of everything but I know that this won't be enough.

It's not all glum here, by any means! But as I reflect on the unique opportunity that I've had, I realize that the one thing I'll miss the most is simply living in a very different reality. And no amount of recording can capture that.

Flying out Monday, then several days in Europe.

Favorite picture

2010-07-14T07:41:00.004-04:00

Self-portrait on ocada.

Some notes

2010-07-12T10:33:00.002-04:00

Men here sometimes hold hands with their friends out on the street. It's a scene that takes getting used to given the implications this would have in the U.S., and it's really quite nice to see, in my opinion. Women do it as well, though less frequently. I gather that one sees this in other countries on the continent as well, even very homophobic ones. This says something about perception / customs across cultures.
I don't think there are any traffic lights in the whole country. I've been all over Freetown, the capital, and haven't seen any. I've traveled to the 2nd largest and 4th largest cities and saw none in either of those nor en route. Given electricity is only periodic, I guess this makes a lot of sense. And it's something for police officers to do.
One of the microfinance institutions I'm working with gathers in a circle each morning and sings the group's mission statement. Singing about "delivering a financial product efficiently and effectively to meet our clients needs" is a great way to start the day, no? I think Citigroup, B of A, et al. should consider starting their days in a similar manner.

More on drinks

2010-07-09T09:56:00.002-04:00

Part of the reason grabbing a Coke is so great and so rewarding is that alternatives for getting a drink aren't great. Water is sold in restaurants and on the street in packets, like the one here.

The packets are the size and shape of a large bean bag, they're completely sealed, and they cost about three cents. To drink them, one bites off the corner and squeezes/slurps. It's mildly amusing the first few times.

However just like in the States, packaged water isn't necessarily spring water. It can simply be taken from the tap and bottled up. And that poses a problem here in SL. There are dozens and dozens of brands for sale on the street and I've only come to know a couple of them.

Which brings me back to my options for a cold drink on a hot day. Often a soft drink is a beautiful thing.

Coke bottles

2010-07-06T10:39:00.002-04:00

On really hot days here, like Monday, this is truly the most beautiful sight:

I'm not a huge soda drinker at home, but a cold drink at lunchtime here is the greatest thing ever. Seriously. I'll leave it to someone else to discuss the power of brands and so forth.

Ghana out of the World Cup

2010-07-04T06:51:00.001-04:00

Last weekend after watching most of the people here (and from what I've heard, everywhere in Africa) root for Ghana to beat the U.S., I was a little sore. For one, it was no fun losing and it was lonely to be so outnumbered. Additionally, it felt a little to me like everyone was just a "bandwagon" fan. I was grumpy and I convinced myself that few in Sierra Leone actually had feelings for Ghana, they were simply cheering because the U.S. had been beat. Like I said, I was a bit of a sore loser.

But this weekend when Ghana lost a painful quarterfinal match and get knocked out of the tournament, I saw things differently. The celebrations last week felt opportunistic to me. But the disappointment this week was deep and genuine. I saw how let down scores of Sierra Leoneans, as well as some Guinean and Kenyan acquaintances here really were. They were truly crushed.

Plenty has been written about Ghana carrying the hopes of an entire continent. Seeing the reactions here after the loss showed me this statement was more than a cliché. There was truth to it. So many people here want to see their countries rise in stature and there was real hope that this tournament would provide tangible proof that African nations belonged.

That Ghana got as far as they did is admirable in my opinion. But I can see from the widespread feeling of disappointment here that everyone hoped for something more.

Rain

2010-07-01T05:40:00.003-04:00

It's raining more these days. This generally means waves of heavy showers throughout the day. Business slows down a bit as more people just opt to stay at home. The rains will increase throughout July and August, when the capital usually receives one seven day stretch of continuous, unabated rain. Everyone talks about that week.

Away from the main streets there are lots

of unpaved roads. This combined with the fact that Freetown is very hilly means there's considerable erosion each time it rains. I live on a steep dirt road with massive ruts that require constant maintenance. This happens from time to time thanks to unemployed men who live nearby. The main roads have deep drainage systems on each sides, as seen in this photo. These quickly fill up with all the eroded dirt so despite some being a meter deep, they're constantly being emptied by hand.

The rain tends to be heaviest at night. Imagine the hardest rain you can think of, with water just dumping from the sky. Then double it. That's what it's like when it rains hard here at night. Additionally there's more lightening than I'm used to, with the sky sometimes pulsing like a strobe light for several seconds. But the rain cools things off and despite the thunder it can be a calming sound to fall asleep to.

Being asked to pay. A long story.

2010-06-28T18:22:00.003-04:00

I've read a good amount about corruption at the highest levels here as well as lower level corruption in the form of bribes, though I've never experienced that. This week I had two encounters that didn't quite feel like bribery, but still angered me.

In the first incident a friend with a car was driving me and another passenger back into town from the outskirts. We passed a soldier on the road asking for a ride. As it was dark and raining we gave him a ride for the half hour drive to town. My friend had plans so he let me and the soldier off at an area where we were parting ways. The soldier told me he was heading my way and we hailed the next taxi that came by. (One always shares taxis in Freetown, so this was normal.) I didn't pay attention to the soldier's conversation with the taxi driver but he apparently indicated I would be paying for him and then hopped out at his stop and I proceeded to my stop. As I tried to leave, the driver asked for the soldier's fare as well and I quickly realized what had happened. I refused to pay. We argued for a while but in the end I paid my fare only and then left.

The fare was small. And in retrospect, I felt bad that the driver was missing out on what he was owed. But it was about the principle. I shouldn't have had to pay for the soldier. Additionally, my friend had just given him a ride through the rain which was a very significant favor, making the offense seem worse in my mind.

The second incident was a bit more direct. I was on my morning walk to my office downtown and a police officer walked towards me, heading in the opposite direction. He waved and, with a smile, greeted me with his hand outstretched for a handshake. Plenty of strangers say hi to me but few want to shake my hand. We exchanged "good mornings" in Krio and he asked where I was heading. I told him to work downtown and he explained that he was headed out to his post in the next neighborhood. We were still holding hands in a long handshake and he leaned in to tell me his problem: he needed money to take a taxi to his post. I had just passed the spot on foot where he was heading and I wasn't about to pay for him. I told him that I didn't have money for a taxi and that's why I myself was walking and quickly left him there in the middle of the street. I didn't want to wait for a response.

Again, I was angered about the principle, not the money. I can afford to give someone change for a ride. I get asked for money plenty and I give out change or buy someone food frequently. But I'm really not OK being asked to pay for two grown men, both employed and paid by the government. (The government fails on a lot of fronts but its instincts of self-preservation are good enough to see that the military gets paid).

Both incidents were very frustrating. I do wonder if I my internal reaction was overblown. Some people are bound to look at me and just see dollar signs and I almost feel as if I can't blame them. I think my patience for small issues like this might have just worn out.

All that being said, these incidents have been the exception and I'm still glad to be here!

Group run

2010-06-23T08:16:00.005-04:00

I've been running a couple times a week here and recently ran into a group of runners who invited me to the weekly meeting of the Hash House Harriers. This page gives a good overview of who they are, but basically it's a very informal running club with chapters all over the world. (If they've got a presence in Freetown then you know they're pretty well global.)

It was nice to run with a big group. There was terminology and customs to

learn, as well as a couple songs. I'm looking forward to meeting up again next week.

This is entirely unrelated, but here's a picture from the edge of the Kroo Town slum near downtown. I was trying to get a shot of the water's edge and the buildings of downtown in the background. Now it just looks like a picture of trash. This area will flood to ankle-level when the rains come, as the shacks in this area have all been built in the floodplain of a river. Apparently the government has told people to relocate, but there isn't ample support/will to make that happen.

At work this week

2010-06-21T09:52:00.003-04:00

There's some staff turnover at the MFI where I'm working. Last Friday, the colleague I've been working with the most left. I'm now bringing his replacement up to speed. I think the replacement is competent, honest, and a good guy, but I'm not clear he can type. Additionally, the operations manager (essentially the managing director for the entire microfinance institution) is leaving this week.

Departures such as this could be a sign of bad things for the MFI: finding replacements could be a challenge and turnover could imply other issues. I think the former is true, as both departing employees were great. However, I think the fact that there's turnover doesn't necessarily signal problems here. Instead, I think it's encouraging that both these guys are leaving to do other things. As an outsider at least, I'm glad to see they were able to find opportunities elsewhere as it signals prospects in the broader market.

Separately, the U.S. match is happening Wednesday at the same time as the England match. I'm nervous about being able to watch the U.S. as I think the England match will get top billing here.

World Cup anywhere

2010-06-17T05:31:00.003-04:00

I'm loving the fact that I can catch the World Cup matches just about anywhere and that I can catch any game for a quarter. (Sometimes the morning game costs half that... it's the matinee showing, I guess.) Countless businesses have a TV set up in the main room or out back. Little roadside cell phone shacks set them up in the shade. Families will even just invite people in to the living room.

So that means there's no excuse not to catch every game. Except if the power goes out, which actually happens just about every day.

In this picture from downtown Freetown there's a chalkboard in the foreground announcing the day's games. In the background is the Cotton Tree, the center of downtown and an important landmark.

Chimps

2010-06-14T11:13:00.005-04:00

Sierra Leone is home to a dwindling number of wild animals, including the chimpanzee. Chimp populations face serious decline in the country for a variety of reasons: habitat loss, being hunted for bush meat, being captured for pets. In the hills right above Freetown, a local couple established Tacugama Chimp Sanctuary as a haven for the chimps they found kept as pets throughout the area. The program started with just a handful of young chimps and now has around one hundred at the center.

I heard a bit about the challenges of trying to keep their chimps alive and safe during the civil war, about a chimp escape a few years back, and about the center running out of resources to care for any more chimps that might come their way.

It was really neat to see the chimps up close and learn about the great things they do there. (There was even a sign with instructions on how to "speak" chimp.) Just sitting and watching them was the best part. At the same time it was tough to know the limits to what the center could do. I shot a video of the chimps snacking but it's too big to share given my internet connection. But a search might provide something similar.

On being offered drugs

2010-06-09T10:15:00.004-04:00

No, not those kinds of drugs.

Some semi-official folks came by my street and asked if I wanted a free dose of medicine that would help to eradicate infections. They mentioned swollen feet, elephantiasis, and I think malaria as well. The bottle said albendazole which I looked up later. I told them no thanks, I didn't want to take their limited amount of free medicine. From what I subsequently read, it sounds like important stuff. But definitely took me by surprise at the time.

Unrelated, but here's a couple pictures of Freetown. The first is from a hill above town in the evening. You can see the town sits on a wide bay. The land across the bay is where the airport is located. The national stadium is visible in the lower right. The main downtown area -- including a couple buildings around ten stories tall and all the government offices -- can be seen in the middle of the photo. Homes and shacks fill in all the other areas.

The Freetown evening commute, taken from a second story restaurant window. My office is a block from here. The tallish building cut off on the right side is the old American Embassy. The Embassy now sits on a massive compound in the hills above town.

A soccer field (or "football pitch") at a school near my home on the west side of town. Downtown is waaay off in the distance. The hills in the background show how Freetown is right on the water yet surrounded by hills. You can see a storm rolling in. I was soaked a few minutes after taking this.

Jobs and Prospects

2010-06-06T13:29:00.001-04:00

I've been asked for jobs a lot. All sorts of young men who I meet ask politely but firmly if I can help them find work. On the one hand I can see this as an encouraging thing: they're looking for work, not simply a handout, right? But at the same time, it reflects their feeling that there are so few opportunities for young men here. As a white foreigner, I represent an obvious first step for them in making their lives better. It's inspiring and depressing all at once.

The jobs conversation typically progresses from me asking about their education and where they've looked to me explaining my work here and how I don't actually have any jobs to give or connections I could make for them. If the conversation continues long enough, they might ask for help getting to the U.S. They are certain that if I can help them get established, they'll be able to find a job. I don't deny for a second that my own prospects are much, much better than theirs. But I want them to believe they have opportunity here.

Saturday night I saw a film that relates to this issue, that many young Sierra Leoneans only see hope when they look overseas. The film was a documentary called "Babylon Illusion" that addresses the inflated perception many young Sierra Leoneans have of life in the west. It was made by a Sierra Leonean who studied in the U.K. for a few years and compares the perceptions of the youth living in Freetown with accounts from Sierra Leoneans who moved to London. The youth interviewed for the film in Freetown believe they'll make it big and have an easy life if they can just get to the west. Those already in the U.K. tell of the difficult lives they have abroad.

As the filmmaker explained, he wanted to show the youth that life abroad isn't a gilded Eden. He was creating a sort of public service announcement. I can't say whether it will be effective in helping the youth refocus on their prospects here, but I'm left wondering what good alternatives there are for the young men here in Sierra Leone.

NBA Finals

2010-06-03T08:23:00.005-04:00

The NBA Finals start tonight! I'm really excited that the Celtics made it again. It's been weird to have missed all the games up to this point. I found out last week that a South African satellite sports channel that reaches Sierra Leone may be showing the Finals. However, the game starts at 6pm in LA, meaning 1am here. I think the chances of being able to catch the games are pretty low, but we'll see.

On an unrelated note, here's a picture of the beaches that I mentioned a while back. The dugout boats on the left are from the fishing village of Tokeh. The water is incredibly warm.

More notes

2010-05-26T05:46:00.005-04:00

A few more scattered thoughts:

It's very humid here. To give an example, I bought a package of tea biscuits (basically animal crackers) at lunch. I ate a bunch and saved some for later. By dinner time what remained was entirely soft from the humidity. The moral is eat your biscuits all at once.
The word "ministries" is only one letter away from "miniseries". Because of the considerable missionary presence here, the word can be found everywhere. This is kind of funny when you think you see a sign for "The Holy Shepherd Miniseries" or something along those lines.
There's a local hip hop song on the radio hear that uses "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" as it's chorus. And they're totally serious.

From my short trip

2010-05-24T05:56:00.002-04:00

A couple things I learned on my trip to the provinces last week:

You pay for a spot in a taxi or minibus. You don't pay for a seat, you pay for a spot. So that might mean space for one butt cheek on a shared cushion or a plank of wood.

One of the loan officers at the microfinance branch office I visited in Makeni didn't know what a sunburn was. I had to explain why I was putting sunscreen on as we sat and had a soda and waited for a client to come meet us.

Meeting Borrowers

2010-05-20T05:57:00.005-04:00

One of the tasks I'm performing while I'm working here is to physically verify that the information about borrowers posted on Kiva's site is accurate and truthful. This involves randomly selecting ten borrowers and going to see them and ask them questions. Kiva's goal is to perform these verifications with all of their partners around the world (using Fellows like myself) at least once each year. I find this both impressive and admirable as it means mobilizing a lot of volunteers to a lot of remote places. I'm also admittedly biased.

And as mundane as the process sounds, it's the thing I've been most excited for so far. I get to meet borrowers and see their businesses. Providing credit to these people is at the core of what Kiva is trying to do.

Among the ten randomly selected borrowers, a bunch were in the city of Bo, Sierra Leone's second largest city, and Makeni, its fourth city. The cities are a couple hours inland from Freetown, "upcountry" as the inland areas are called. The travel was long and uncomfortable, but that's pretty much the bus from Boston to New York most of the time.

For each borrower visit, I went with the local loan officer who helped me find the borrower and then translate to Krio when needed. At first I think I just made the borrowers nervous -- I can only guess that when they saw their loan officer arriving with me, a "witeboi", it was a worrisome thing. The questions I had were really simple (their name, basic biographical info, loan amount, loan date, loan purpose) and I'll soon compare the borrowers' responses to the info supplied by the loaning institution. The biggest reason for these visits is for me to confirm that the people exist and that the loan amounts are correct. If not, a loaning institutions might make up names or amounts and fraudulently use the funds from Kiva for institutional operating costs.

But the best, "warm and fuzzy" part of the visits was showing the borrowers print outs of their borrower profile pages. In each instance I was greeted with huge smiles when I showed them their photo from the Kiva website and explained that a dozen people had helped fund their loan. Most of them sort of understood what Kiva meant before, but after seeing pictures of the people from around the world who contributed to their loans, each borrower was impressed, if not really touched.

++ Shameless plug: if you haven't made a loan on Kiva and have questions, send me a note. I'll tell you more about it. ++

Beaches

2010-05-12T05:19:00.001-04:00

Over the weekend I traveled south down the peninsula that Freetown's perched atop to visit one of the many beaches along the coast. The trip was less than 25 miles but took a couple hours: two packed minibuses, some lost wandering about, a bunch of haggling, and a ride on the back of a motorbike. And despite the physical proximity, it really felt a world away. The beach had fine white sand and was almost entirely deserted. I walked past old, wildly-painted canoes where men were organizing their fishing nets. The water was clean and clear and bathwater warm. Locals from the nearby village approached me at midday and I bought lunch from them consisting of freshly caught and cooked fish and fried plantains.

Yes, I'm absolutely bragging, but it was AMAZING. I'm still shocked by how nice it was and that I felt like I was in a movie. I can't believe it exists so close to Freetown.

If I could post a picture I would. I'm going back to the beaches another time (several times?) because apparently there are many different ones that stretch for miles and each has something slightly different to offer.

Boarding House Living in Freetown

2010-05-08T07:09:00.001-04:00

I'm living in a family's home on the west side of Freetown. The home is owned by Mummy K, the grandmother of the family, and her granddaughter Vickie is the one who runs the boarding house side of things. A friend of a friend of mine who lives in Freetown suggested I connect with Vickie for a place to stay. Along with Vickie and Mummy K, there are another two or three aunts and seven or eight cousins who live here or in the connected house and are in and out all the time. I've got my own room which locks and has mosquito netting, and there's power. Sometimes there's power.

I really like the place as it provides me with people to talk with and some local wisdom that I don't think I'd get if I stayed in one of the longterm hotels downtown. For example on my first day in Freetown, one of the cousins gave me advice on catching a taxi and finding a mobile phone.

First Day at Work

2010-05-04T05:10:00.002-04:00

I had to wear a suit today. This is terrifying stuff... forget the the other things I ought to be worrying about. I guess I've been spoiled by a lax dress code at my former job in the States, huh?

Here's me grimacing because I had to get dressed up.

So, first day at the office. Lots of handshakes and introductions and formalities. I got to meet most of the staff at the headquarters of LAPO Sierra Leone, one of the two microfinance institutions (MFIs) I'll work with. I met two "Kiva Coordinators" who work on all the Kiva loans as well as the guy who runs the books, the branch auditor, and two directors. While working here at LAPO, I'll be sharing an office with the two staff responsible for the Kiva loans.

No clients come to the MFI headquarters. Instead, all the "action" happens at the branch offices. These are located throughout the Freetown with a few in other cities. I got the chance to visit a branch office and see loans being dispersed. In one case three women received loans for their small roadside businesses. They received a type of loan product that gives each of them funds for their own businesses, but they also form a sort of assurance group that makes them share responsibility for repayment. After they each completed paperwork and the credit officer presented them with three checks, everyone bowed their heads for the loudest of the women to say a prayer for everyone's health and for blessing of the loans.

Good first day.

Arrival

2010-05-01T19:42:00.004-04:00

Freetown!

My arrival reminded me of a passage from a novel I read last year, You Shall Know Our Velocity, by David Eggers. The characters in the book wake up as they're landing:

The light was screaming through the windows, intent and wild, and I opened my portal's eyelid a quick few inches and we were coming at Africa at 300 mph, the ocean below striking the coast of Dakar with desperation. The neat shadow of the plane jumbled over the city's shoreline, the buildings glowing in tan and white and standing still as the water and wind came to them with all the world's fury-and then died. We were somewhere else. What were we doing here? ...
"How did we get to Africa?" he said. "Already I don't want to leave. Did you feel that air? It's different. It's African air. It's like mixed with the sun more. Like our air isn't mixed as well with the sun. Here they mix it perfectly. The sun's in the wind, the sun's in your breaths."

See the full passage here or get it here. It's a great book. It's a long quote and explicitly about Dakar but I like it and it lets you know I'm excited to be here.

When we finally made it to Freetown, I was greeted on the tarmac by a woman who would help expedite my arrival. (She's the wife of someone at one of the microfinance institutions (MFI) where I'll be working.) The reason the MFI sent someone to help me out is that I had several laptops in my carry on that were purchased in the States on their behalf. And when I say the woman (Aba) expedited things, she really went all out. She hustled me past passport control and past the yellow fever checkpoint. When my bags were slow she used her mobile to call the baggage dudes to find my duffel. And most importantly she helped me with the customs guys who had some questions about the multiple laptops.

The very final leg of my trip was by speedboat. Yep. The airport's located across a wide bay from town, so I hopped a boat and crossed over to town where I met a couple employees of the MFI. I'm really not sure who was happier about the laptop handoff (they were freakin' heavy). Anyways, they took the laptops and helped me find the boarding house where I'll be staying.

That's the arrival. More on other stuff later.

Up, up, and away

2010-04-29T16:49:00.000-04:00

In Chicago on a long layover.

Here's the obligatory shot of The Bean downtown.

Ice Cream

2010-04-26T13:52:00.001-04:00

A little over-the-top ice cream before I go. This is Sam's Sundae
from Bi-Rite Creamery in the Mission... chocolate and sea salt ice
cream, whipped cream, and bergamot-infused olive oil.

Crazy. But crazy good. The line that extended around the corner at the
creamery was worth it.

Lingering in SF

2010-04-23T14:44:00.002-04:00

Last week I completed an incredibly packed week of training at Kiva's headquarters in San Francisco's Mission District. I learned a lot each day about the organization, its partners, the tools they use, the challenges they face, and the huge community that I'm now a part of.

This week I've got some down time to relax a bit and catch up on sleep (after a crazy schedule last week). I'm excited to finally make the trip to Sierra Leone.

Here we go.

Out of Boston

2010-04-11T22:56:00.002-04:00

This past week was all about packing up in Boston and getting the last things ready to go. I finished up at work (after four and a half years there) packed up most of my stuff (after about eight and a half years in Boston) and saw lots of friends one last time (which was really great.)

Sunday was a beautiful day and I'm pretty sure Boston did this on purpose so that I'd remember the city that way (and feel like I'm missing out on the great weather!) And on the way to the airport we stopped for one more great meal: Santarpio's pizza in East Boston.

Thanks Boston!

Weekend in Newport

2010-03-24T10:43:00.004-04:00

We went away for the weekend as my time here in Boston is dwindling. We headed to Newport, Rhode Island which is about 90 minute south. The weather was great and with our bikes we got to ride and see some of the huge mansions that Newport is known for. I definitely got that sense that the city is nuts during the summer months.

We also stumbled upon a brand new restaurant (opened ten days prior) that was fantastic. I had the best Egg In A Hole imaginable. Yes, it was that good.

Where I'm off to...

2010-03-22T15:10:00.004-04:00

Now that I've given my notice at work (see last week's note), I start to move towards some exciting new happenings. In the fall it'll be grad school. But first I'm off to Africa to work for the non-profit Kiva for three months.

Kiva is involved with microfinance and lets anyone loan $25 to people in the developing world. Their website explains it in much better detail. And if you've got ten minutes, the video below walks through the process. (And it was made by a Kiva Fellow, someone in the role I'll soon be assuming!)

p.s. Just found out I'll be working in Sierra Leone in west Africa. Awesome!

Giving notice

2010-03-15T18:28:00.002-04:00

I had the scary/exciting experience of letting my boss know I'd be leaving the company. It was scary only because I put so much thought into it. In the end the conversation was pretty easy. But given that I've been here for years, the finality of it seems dramatic.

Despite this, or maybe because of it, the clean break is really a great thing! How often will I get the chance to so clearly draw a line between what I've been doing up to now and what I'll be doing next.

I can't wait!