Movin' on up...

I'm in the midst of packing up all my current belongings, because I am going to move into my permanent housing tomorrow! It is official (I wasn't believing it until the day ended and they hadn't cancelled on me) finally. I had dinner outside with my two best hotel friends, other embassy employees who are also staying here. It'll be a pretty sudden change of pace not to be around them all the time, so we've made a pact to make sure we get together outside of work. It's really been nice to have the opportunity to get to know them so well right off the bat.

Now, sentimentality aside, I can't wait to have my apartment! It will be nice to know that I don't have to pack up and move again for the next year and 10 months now, after having moved 3 times in the last 5 months. My first shipment of things (sent from Washington) has arrived in Venezuela. We are required to send an official request from the embassy asking that our things be given to us before they will consider giving them to us, then letting them sit in customs for 3 weeks, and then finally let someone from the embassy pick them up for us. So, I'll be enjoying the welcome kit for the next few weeks, which includes all the essentials. I've heard the welcome kits here in Caracas are some of the best in the state department (probably due to the fact that we are without our own things for longer than anyone else).

Wayne will be coming next weekend, so the timing on things is good. I don't know how long it will be until I have an internet connection in my apartment, but my location will be within walking distance from the embassy, so if push comes to shove I can stay late at work to use the internet there.

Long Short week

Wow, this past week was the longest 3-day week I think I've ever worked! The NIV consular workday usually goes 8-5, and we're usually "on the line" from approximately 8:15-3:30 or 4:00 with a lunch break at 12 or 1. When we're on the line, we are not at our desks, but at the interview window, interviewing non-immigrant visa applicants one after another.

The Wednesday we returned from vacation, we started the day with a staff meeting, not allowing us to even sit down at our desks at all before getting on the line. For whatever reason, our interviews lasted clear up until after 5:00, when I had to race up to catch my shuttle home. Thursday was also completely full, and ended with hurrying to finish the last interview in time to run up to the shuttle. Friday we had a little respite, finishing by 4:30 and having a few minutes to try to catch up on the important e-mails from the rest of the week.

During the course of the business of the week, I did get the great news that I should be able to move into my new apartment next week, hopefully on Wednesday. My household effects have arrived in Venezuela, but I will most likely still have to wait a few weeks before they're allowed into the country. As our move-out dates from the hotel draw near, we decided we needed to try the 5-star restaurant here before moving out. So, Friday night we changed out of our casual Friday duds and put on our jacket-only attire, and had a truly gourmet meal.

One of my new friends and coworkers had a birthday yesterday, the same day as her boss, so they had a joint birthday party at his house, with a bunch of people from the embassy and the international expat community. Several of our soccer playing friends were there. It was a lot of fun to get together away from the work environment. I'm looking forward to church this afternoon, as I missed last week, being in PR.

4 day weekend

Wow, it's been too long since I've written--sorry to anyone who's checking often and I haven't been updating the blog! It's been a busy life lately, but these last 4 days have been a nice chance to relax. Besides Columbus day, today is a Venezuelan holiday. It used to be called "dia de todas las razas," celebrating unity of races. Post-Chavez, it is now officially called "dia de la resistencia indigena," or day of indigenous resistance. Most people I've heard from don't exactly agree that it was a good idea to change it. They've pointed out that the indigenous population did not resist at all when Columbus came to Venezuela. The change is just another part of Chavez' efforts to inculcate the population with his way of thinking.

I got away with 2 co-workers to San Juan, PR, which has a direct flight from Caracas. The Caracas airport always provides an interesting traveling experience, but we were fortunate to have relatively uneventful flights both ways.

We had a lot of good food, both Puertorican and traditional "american" food (ie. Cheeseburgers, fries, breakfast buffets, steaks, Coldstone, and Burger King for breakfast one day!). One of the best things was being able to walk through the city at night without feeling any threat of danger. We also really enjoyed the Walgreen's, the fully-stocked grocery store, and the mall Plaza de Las Americas. It was great to use credit cards and debit cards with no fear of them being copied and used after we were gone.

Additionally, we spent one afternoon walking through Old San Juan and up to El Morro, which is an old Spanish fort on the northeast coast of the island, still mostly in its original form. It is 5 stories high, and was originally started in the 1500s, though construction on it lasted over 250 years. Another small highlight was that we rented a car, so we were able drive around in some random neighborhoods and out to see a few different areas. It was my first time driving since August 15th!

Coming back, I'm hoping that I'll get some good news this week regarding my housing situation. My shipment of belongings was supposed to arrive at the port here in Venezuela on the 10th. The average time that people are waiting these days for their things to be allowed through the port is 3 weeks, so my wait time is slowly ticking down. It'll be nice to have just a 3-day week! This vacation was truly relaxing, and helped give us a much needed break from the harshness of Caracas. Now I'm recharged and ready to go again :)

October

It's so hard to believe it's October already! For one thing, the weather here seems more like May. Also, it's hard to believe I've already been here for a month and a half. I called Mom and Dad yesterday on Mom's birthday, and it was great to talk to them. Today I finally got to talk to Joanna on skype for the first time since she got engaged 2 weeks ago! It's fun to talk wedding plans and catch up.

I finally got around to posting some pics I've taken over the past few weeks on my picasa web album. I'm posting the link, so feel free to take a look. Today I went up into the Avila with about 9 co-workers, the mountain that separates Caracas from the coast. We hired drivers to drive us up about 30 minutes to where there is a Mexican restaurant and posada. We called in advance and they had the meal just about ready when we got there. There are beautifuls views of the city and of the ocean, plus of farther up the mountain. I got several good pics up there, which I'll post sometime in the future.

It was such a relaxing day today, great to discover a quiet respite not far from the city. I'm slowly discovering more things to do and places to go around the city. I'm really ready to get my car so I can get out and do these things a little more independently. It's great, though, to have a couple of friends staying at the hotel at the same time, so we can get out and eat together in the evenings and explore the area on the weekends.

http://picasaweb.google.com/sarah.cranston/Caracas#