Before coming to Namibia at the beginning of 2010 I had a preparation course back in Switzerland. One of the things we had been warned of is that at some point during the assignment one would experience different cycles during the three years. Closer to the end time would run fast. But you would most likely also experience stretches where things would be quite sticky and days only pass by in slow motion.
Looking back I realize that I luckily never had those days. The three years had been flying by at the speed of light. However this is not the reason that my last blog post was published half a year ago. This is because the things you do at work and in your free time become normality after a while. Regardless where you are – routine takes over. So you start to think that they are not worth to be mentioned on any blog. Another reason will be explained in a following post on the tightrope walk of a development worker embedded within a large government institution.
So how does it feel to leave in a few weeks? To be honest this is not easy to answer. At work I had a smooth start from the first day. On the other hand the time off had been rough at the beginning. Compared to other parts of Namibia the 4-O-Region makes it tough in many regards (lack of cultural & culinary choice, dead nature, limited shopping facilities – to name a few). I always referred Outapi as the place to work – not the place to be. Although still going to Oshakati, which is 100km away, almost every weekend I refer Outapi as home by now. The reason for that is NOT that the town and Omusati has become more attractive in any of the above mentioned departments (to be honest shopping has improved also here). It is the amount of people you know after a while and friends you have up here. Your network. For work this is crucial to get things done. For your free time and emergencies like having your head stitched at midnight it is everything. And it is everything but easy to leave all those people back after three years. Happy new year!
What applies to blog posts also applies to taking pictures. At some point you stop doing it. Nonetheless a random selection of pictures taken in 2012.
