It's Official: Tchau Angola!

As some of you might already know, I am leaving Angola on 19 April. I applied for a job with my organization's office in the Dominican Republic and was lucky enough to be chosen for the position.

I'll have a similar position there: I'll manage a portfolio of projects covering HIV/AIDS, education and peacebuilding. I'll also be managing our emergency response to natural disasters, which will be different and exciting. But the most exciting thing of all is that the majority of my projects will be in Jamaica, so I'll have to travel there frequently. I know, I know, I lead a rough life.

I have mixed feelings about leaving. Overall, I must say that I am thrilled to be moving onwards and upwards. The move will be good for my career and good for me personally. Latin America has always been my region of interest, so I'll be getting back to an area I love. I've never been to the DR before, so it's a great opportunity.

I will say that in spite of the tremendous challenges I've faced here, I will miss Angola in many ways. To leave on a positive note, I'll try and address them over the next few days. One of the things I'll miss the most, of course, is my cat, Willie. He's been a great companion to me and there have been many a weekend when he is the only living being I talk to! I had hoped to bring him with me, but with all the traveling I'll be doing it's not really a good idea. Luckily, my colleague has offered to take him and give him a loving home.

Willie's Gender Crisis

I'm no vet. (Surprise.) I'm not familiar with the feline anatomy and I've only ever had female cats.

I have some friends staying with me while they are in between apartments. It's nice to have the company around. My friend Mark asked if my cat was a boy or a girl. I said, "I'm pretty sure she's a girl." And with perfect comic timing, he replied, "We'll, I'm pretty sure those are gonads. She's a boy."

Sure enough, I looked a little closer, and Willie is indeed a boy cat! I feel a bit dumb, and now really glad that I gave her/him a masculine name.

Here he is doing is latest trick. When he's crazy and biting, I put him out on my veranda and shut the door. He really hates it so it usually calms him down. During Thanksgiving preparations I got tired of him nipping at my feet so I put him out there and went back into the kitchen. 20 seconds later he strolls in like nothing happened. Then I discovered that he can now use his claws and climb through the (formerly) slight gap between the mosquito screens on my veranda doors.

Willie and the Whale

One of the biggest surprises coming back to Angola was to see just how big my cat, Willie, has grown! She's still a little terror- loves to bite and scratch in spite of my efforts to train her not to- but she has calmed down a bit and seems to really enjoy just sitting on my veranda watching cars go by. Here she is in action with her favorite toy:

Hard to believe she was ever this tiny! (And calm...)

In other exciting animal news, I finally saw my first whale in Lobito! Everyone kept telling me about all the whales and dolphins they have seen- mostly in the ocean but even in the bay upon occasion. For some reason, I've just missed seeing whales and dolphins many times.

But last Sunday, Stella, Sergey, baby Aram, Bernie and I went to Gama Beach (seaside restaurant with good caipirnhas) in Compão. Suddenly there was lots of excited shouting and pointing on the beach. We asked the waiter what all the commotion was, and he said, "Baleia (whale)! Big fish!" It was hard to see with the white caps, but I finally caught a glimpse of a tail hitting the waves, soon followed by spray from a blowhole. I didn't see the tail again, but I did see the spray several times. I have no idea what type of whale it was, but it was exciting nonetheless!

My best friend in Lobito

Willie is growing up. She’s in her biting phase, which appears to be somewhat permanent. I’m trying to train her not to turn her teeth on me, but it’s a challenge. She just really likes to bite, and my hands are too tempting. She gets mad that I leave her alone during the day. I hate to think what she'll do when I'm on my home leave! However, when she’s not biting she’s the sweetest kitty in the world!

She doesn't have blue eyes anymore, so her name makes less sense than it did before. I mostly call her "bandida" (bandit) because she's usually biting me or not using her litter box like she's supposed to.