So to
update you - I did get to SKWID ... eventually, having had to re-schedule my
flight as the passport didn't arrive in time. After my harassing the VSO Travel
Unit - their quick investigation with Royal Mail got to the bottom of it. When
asked to confirm the delivery address for the passport, I had given VSO my
street address and my father's postcode. How was I so stupid? Two options to
answer that question: (a) I'm simply stupid (b) Lariam - known to be a mind
altering drug. Although I have been pretty blissfully free of the psychotic
side-effects Lariam can produce, I hate to think that I am simply that dumb. So
I blame the Lariam.
As a
result of my stupidity a.k.a. Lariam, I did have an unexpected free morning in
London which I used to complete my 'PrintWeek Profile' (not coming soon to a
newsstand near you) and roped neighbour, friend and photographer Scottie into a
suitable picture to accompany the article, should they decide to print it. Once
fired off to the editor of that august magazine, I ran to catch my re-scheduled
flight. I love London City Airport! From walking out of my front door at RHP to
sitting in the departure lounge, having checked in my luggage - 35 minutes.
Where else in the world can you do that?
Once
there - the training was (as usual) invaluable. Our cultural mix (trainers and
2 delegates from the UK, 5 delegates from Holland) gave us a greater
appreciation of the challenges you would face... Starting with the the
mayonnaise v. ketchup with chips debate.. However in the role plays we
struggled equally to garner information effectively from 'Nicky Villager',
choosing direct interrogation rather than good old fashioned conversation, and
had varying degrees of success persuading tight-fisted 'Nicky Trustee' to allow
colleagues to attend the British Council's participation workshop. I learnt a
great deal although it became clear to me that my former corporate career would
have also benefited from a bit more training on facilitation, participation and
conflict resolution....
SKWID Group Photo, Boxtel NL
With
SKWID completed in just three days - the UK contingent took a day out to sample
Amsterdam and I planned to spend the day with my good IMD friend Reshmi who's
based there, only to be partially foiled by Holland's railway engineering work
necessitating a bus replacement service. And you thought it was only the UK! A
1.5 hour journey morphed into 3 hours giving me precious few moments to spend
with Reshmi however enough to catch up, have a quick lunch and take a picture
(expected in my Inbox any day now..!) in the pouring rain.
Once back
it was up to Keswick in the Lakes with my father where the breathaking scenery
was challenged by the wonders of the 'Cumberland Pencil Museum', and
Wordsworth's house 'Dove Cottage' where he was living when he wrote "I
wondered lonely as a cloud".... However the highlight was my father's 24
year old monster Volvo attacking the gradient and 1:3 hairpin bends of the
Hardknott Pass like it was straight off the assembly line. 
And straight after coming back from the Lakes, Jared and I were off to Beccles to visit Sian and Colin (Sian of the wellington boots of the previous post) for some real Suffolk fish and chips. And so it came to pass in the Bear and Bells in Beccles, we toasted the 'this time next week I'll be on a plane to Abuja' and it all hit home.
The suitcase is sitting on the bed, with the helmet inside, preparing to be re-packed three times as I struggle to fit the contents into both it and the luggage allowance. I have my wind-up radio, four varieties of Schwarz spices (on special at Sainsburys...) and, for the first time, nerves. No more comfy beds, simple travel, electricity when you want it and food how you like it. However so much more that I can't wait to experience. So where are the nerves coming from....? Well... I blame the Lariam...
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