Thoughts From A Ministry Building

Ok, so I have now been to the Ministry of Foreign affairs building so often that I am known by all the security and reception staff who keep saying “Again? Again?” every time I go in. I STILL only have a one month tourist VISA and think that is the way it is going to have to stay that way until we are a but further along work-wise.

My beloved Ministry of Foreign Affairs building. Ahhh how I will NOT miss you.

I have been to several different offices and spoken with countless people, all of whom are more than friendly and less than helpful. Today, Tuesday, the language barrier really became a bit too much and having tried to make myself understood for about half an hour in this one office with no luck I really began to feel very frustrated and upset and was in danger of bursting into tears. That is when I decided that for the rest of the day I was going to be on holiday properly and not even think about VISAs, or orphanages or paperwork and that I would pay for the rest of the day myself and not think about being sensible for expenses. So that is exactly what I did.

After going back to Sakamanga to dump my bag I headed off to a restaurant I had heard of that specialises in fusion Malagasy and creole cuisine called Chez Suchett. It was delicious and I had a wonderful lunch, but I have to say that eating on my own in getting old pretty quick. I had my book, and it isn’t that I get bored, it’s more that the meal passes so fast and I feel like both staff and patrons alike are watching me pretty unashamedly. It’s a little disconcerting; especially when you are trying to disguise the drips of juice running down your chin or recover a forkful you’ve dropped on the floor.

But nevertheless the food was a delight. I was offered complementary dips and bread to start and was delighted to find a fresh and varies assortment of flavours on offer; there was a green chilli killer, which I delicately avoided, a tomato salsa, a tart grated mango and shallot mixture, a peanut mixture with a warm afterglow, a smoky aubergine dip and a little bowl of missed crispy veg strands. Having navigated the 6 dips with crusty French bread without a plate I settled into myself a bit so by the time my garlic zebu steak and ‘aromatic rice’ arrived I was much more relaxed and the lump in my throat which had formed gradually over the hours spent in the Ministry had largely dissipated. The smells coming off my plate were totally indescribable and the zebu marinade tasted so much like the BBQ beef you got on the roadside in Phnom Penh that the lump threatened to return. For afters I had flambé bananas, done at my table attracting even more attention to the lone eccentric with the chef at her table with flaming bananas everywhere. Between the alcohol on my bananas and my glass of wine with lunch I was by this time feeling very merry and on my way back to the hotel I stopped at a small hideaway I had been recommended for a massage. Bliss.

My massage room at La Medina... mmmmmm

That concludes my day and now you will find me lying prostrate on the bed watching the first series of friends and Skyping family. I am enjoying my last evening alone because tomorrow (SO EXCITING) I will have company. But more on that later. For now the process of writing this blog is somewhat detracting from my post massage glow. So bye for now.

Scabby cat outside bedroom window. It looks like Mr July...

OH PS- Here are some scabby cats for Kate Wittering to add to our 2013 calendar (an international one this year Kate with cats from Egypt, Malta and now Madagascar!)

Scabby cat outside bathroom window, maybe a halloween Ms October?