NO SITE RATS HERE

Technical difficulties have prevented posting (this is Swaziland), so I’m behind the times and need to bring you up to date on our travels.
In an effort to not become site rats, we’ve ventured out away from our palace for some trips. The first was to celebrate Mo’s birthday with a day trip to Manzini which included a new experience: We traveled by bus rather than Khumbi. Buses are scheduled, and if two people find a seat for two, you’re pretty sure nobody else will sit with you because the excess will stand in the aisle. So as the bus filled up, I did have a chicken riding next to my elbow for a while. And BONUS: There was no painfully loud music. (Did the driver forget or was the system broken?) Everyone was well-dressed, the kids were well behaved and got up to offer their seats to adults when necessary, just like in the 1940s. (Some of you might remember that.) Mo and I were comfortably dressed in tech running shirts, while numerous people were in winter coats, wool caps, scarves, etc. But spring is coming, and the fields were turning green and the jacaranda were in bloom. (Never mind the guys relieving themselves along side of the road.) Our excuse for going to Manzini (justifying the birthday trip) was to broaden our shopping experience with things we can’t find here. We were rewarded by finding spices, mixes, condiments, and pastries. And with a celebratory lunch, it was a pleasant day. (I’ll tell you about travelling and Swazi music in another post: part 2.)
We had an NGO meeting to attend in Mbabane, so we tacked on an over-night and celebrated our anniversary at a B&B known as Gloria’s. The PC uses Gloria’s for PCVs on medical leave so we met two from Group 8 who were staying there and we all shared Happy Hour. (I finally found a RSA wine that was decent—perhaps suggesting that you need to spend a little more than $3 to get a pleasant wine. We splurged for the occasion on our PC budget.) Gloria has a beautiful house and garden (reminiscent of southern California) and I took lots of pictures which I promise you will see eventually if they aren’t attached to this posting. The road between Mbabane and Manzini is through the Ezulwini valley and is very scenic. I can’t promise pictures of that, though, because it’s not possible from the bus. We enjoyed the trip, and it was good to get away.
A week ago, we were invited by two other PCV couples to join them at the Country Club in Simunye for lunch and a swim. Entry is free for PCVs. It was a warm, clear day and only a 45 minute Khumbi ride away, so we had another pleasant day off site. Simunye is a clean, modern, plaza-type shopping center created by sugar cane money—a nice divergence from Siteki. We enjoyed the day so much (and the best pizza we’ve had in five months) that we plan on returning to use the pool during the next few months of summer.
By the way, realize that we are at least twice as old as some of the PCVs and much older than most. It is very gratifying to be invited and visited by them. I’m sure they value our warmth, wit, and wisdom (or could it be our shower, pantry and kitchen?)
We will now be burning this keyboard by preparing our community assessment report, so there is the possibility that you will not hear from us again for the next three weeks. Duty calls.
I wrote the above a couple of days ago. Since then we have been without electricity, without water, and without ‘phone connection. Life in Swaziland. We’ll talk more later.