Hash 400 runs x 2 – Diving into Piccadilly Circus – No right turn – Chilly bin + Yoga mats – Some optimism - ATMS again - Telkomcel

Blog ending Saturday 2^nd Feb 2013

Updated: Feb 3rd

Three weeks ago the Dili Hash visited Cameo Beach at Liquica for Tail light’s 400^th and last run in Timor. With runs only on once a week, this is an impressive number, spread over about 10 years. I cycled out there in about 90 minutes. Nice ride and good to be able to buy fresh bananas for $2 a bunch from roadside stalls to replace the energy stores. We started the run early and did some exploring up in the hills just out of town. Tough work to run uphill, but worth the views. Some of the seafront, not protected by gabions, had been washed away in recent high tides and the awning over the porch couch had to be temporarily taken down due to the seasonal north westerly winds, but the facilities at the beach ('Black Rock') are excellent and we 'beered', swam, wined and dined. After the run about 20 of us took a beer each into the sea to cool off; a pleasant ritual in such clean water. Next day was the cycle home, in about the same time. Kind of surprised me as I thought I’d have been faster with the back wind.

The next (last Sunday actually, Australia Day dominated Saturday) week was the GM’s (Daisy) 400^th run at the Beach Side Hotel. Another auspicious occasion with a giant banner with some great photos from the past few years. Daryl has and continues to do many great things for Dili and Timor under his Rotary role. One of the most high profile events is the 1^st Lady Run in November. Actually the first, ‘1^st Lady’ Kirsty Sword Gusmao. Very popular and the T-shirts are everywhere.

Last Sunday I went for my first scuba dive since 2006, also here. It was just a shore dive near Dili Rock and the water was fairly murky from the strong seasonal tides – OK, not the best time of the year. Eddy, Helen and I parked next to a Dive Timor van, their divers were already out. I’d bought a dive aide-memoire the previous day and discovered that no one uses the manual dive tables anymore – kind of like asking about the tape deck / CD player on a stereo system. A giant computer watch manages all the info about air and safety so we can just go and enjoy ourselves. I still feel uncomfortable about it all as I reckon it’s like school kids relying totally on calculators and not knowing their ‘times tables’ up to 12 x 12. Anyway, we wandered down the reef to about 28m and slowly cruised along and then back up. On the way back Eddie showed me the busy fish place known as ‘Piccadilly Circus’. Lots of wee fry and tentacle waving plants. There was one large groper-type fish, about  50-60cm long that didn’t hang around. Many lengths of old cord lying over the area from earlier fishing and a lot of damaged coral, possibly from Indonesian times when dynamite fishing was apparently popular. Visibility was about 4-5m. We stayed down about 45minutes and walked out onto the beach where Helen was reading her book after doing some snorkelling. She had some delicious Christmas cake and handed out about some bananas to eight local boys (aged 8-11) swimming nearby. They pounced on the food, so maybe they were very hungry.

The local intersection from hell (bridge by the President’s Palace and the bike shop) has undergone a big change. The police have changed the road rules by prohibiting any right turns, either entering or exiting the area. Since we drive on the left here, it is actually working quite well. I was dumb enough to fire off an email to the initial announcement by saying “This is warped and the locals will ignore it”. Happily I am quite wrong and it IS working. People haven’t learnt the trick of simply turning left to actually get into the traffic and then pull a U-turn within about 100m and go back in the direction they really want to go. 

A couple of UN people did a big house sale in Area Branca last week, so I cycled over to see what they had and I could actually remove with my bicycle. The loot consisted of: chilly bin (‘esky’ for Aussies) + 20 cooling pads. Item #2 was a large bag of interlocking mats used for a yoga room. Obviously succumbing to ‘buying stuff’ I now realise I haven’t done any yoga for about 18months and don’t actually have any floor space on which to place the mats. They are currently with a friend who might just have a use for them. Never the less, they were a bargain at only $20, OK?

Last night I took a break from building some laptop computers to do some grocery shopping at Lita + Kamanek then eat some nice Turkish at Tony’s. There I met Kim. She has been here about 13years and organises the annual sailing race to Dili from Darwin. She tells me that local Timorese have been repeatedly involved in the organising in recent years and several of them will be taking a higher management profile this year. The cruiser yachts have previously bought donated medical supplies for Bairo Pite clinic (about 500m from where I live), so that is great news – good karma. After dealing with my work challenges and wondering how to deal with how common theft is in the work environment, this ongoing success was a joy to hear. Apparently the yacht race was a revival. It was kicked off again after someone discovered the previous racing trophies, from Portuguese times, in the Darwin Archives(?).

This afternoon I will take my can of yellow spray paint & cycle part of the way to Liquica to mark that nasty dip in the road. It goes right across, like a subtle ditch that has apparently claimed a few car suspension systems over the past few years. Obviously someone should simply repair the road, but there is a long queue for that sort of thing and there is still the problem of ‘repairs’ failing within 12 months via washout or simply breaking up. Still, if major manufacturers can use ‘planned obsolescence’ with fridges, toasters, TVs etc, then the road repair companies here are successfully using their version

The two ATMs at the bank have now been working for the past two weeks. they will only dispense a maximum of $600 each.

Telkomcel have finally opened their office at Timor Plaza. No actual numbers being sold yet, just distribution of information. Since Telkomcel is the dominant telecomms company in Indonesia, most people think this is the beginning of the end for Timor Telecom (TT). No sympathy there, as the latter have made the most of their ten year monopoly. Recently, a friend bought back a Telkomcel phone from Bali and it works here in Dili! Slight problem with it requiring an international call to actually receive/send to TT and landline numbers here + no way to boost the credit. But it does show that the new cellphone network is actually functioning.

Something to make you boil – bike mirage – jandals/thongs + roads + speed – running in the cool rain – new picture theatre – faulty ATMs - cleanup

My legacy from swimming in the sea, just in front of a village, after the rain, during the recent Atauro Island visit, was a growing crop of sores that popped up, but neglected to get better, until I visited the local Dr.                

Antibiotics came first and then, five days later, a lie on the surgery couch while the boils were cleared with tweezers. Most uncomfortable and it felt like a series of metal bee stings that went on for about 30 seconds for each of the 15 locations needing attention. I coped by reminding myself that this was a lesson about not getting into water polluted by the rains, even if it does look OK.

On Saturday last, I went for a H3 run near Tibar and got rather sweaty. At the finish of the run, another hasher said he had the solution to a quicker and healthier recovery; using a ‘Mr Muscle’ squeezy bottle filled with iodine. I stripped my singlet off and got a good all-around spray (torso) and then spots on my elbows and legs. It stung, but kept everything clean and relatively dry – very important in the tropics.

One of my coworkers said he’d seen my stolen bicycle, so I made sure I (finally) reported the November theft to the local police (still without any computers since the UNPOL took them away just before Christmas). With a signed and stamped form in hand, I went to the car park where the bike had been seen and…. found an old clunker that had the same three basic colours as my lost bike, but no more than that. Very disappointing. “Oh, that wasn’t your bike then?” No it wasn’t and no points for observation skills.

On my way to the above Hash run, I rode my bicycle. Just past Dili Rock a local guy over took me on a scooter. It was a twisty ‘S’ bend section, between a vertical cliff and the sea. He went over the center line and lost control on the dirt and stones (also on the center of the road), before hitting an SUV behind it’s rear wheel arch. The SUV didn’t stop. The rider, still doing about 30km/h, put his jandal (thong footwear) down on the road, where it immediately gripped and the thong bit tore his foot open between the big toe and #2 toes. The rip was about 5-6 cm long. I had decided to carry my med kit with me, so I immediately moved him onto the verge before shock set in. Laid him down and put his foot up on his back pack. Out came two bandages and I pulled his foot back together and then sealed it from the air. By the time I’d finished, another four vehicles and 20 people had stopped. The onlookers picked the guy up and stuck him into a van before, presumably, taking him into town to the hospital. I continued on to my running event.

Wednesday night a bunch of us did ‘The Daisy Loop’ from Beachside Hotel, over the Ramos Horta road and then back around the coast before clambering up a trail to the Christo Rei steps and down the other side before running back to the hotel for drinks. It was overcast, raining and a fresh wind was blowing onshore. Such a nice change from the heat.

There is now a functioning movie theatre at Timor Plaza. They were showing ‘Life of Pi’ last week, four times a day. The main money spinner is meant to be masses of Bollywood stuff, but I think that the $5 ticket will be a problem with the local population and there are not enough Malae to make up the numbers.

For the past four-five months there have been problems with the ATMs that connect to the ANZ branch. Lita’s one hasn’t worked since August and Leaders has been out of action for at least four weeks. Last weekend, they took the whole thing away. There are two ATMs at the main ANZ branch, but the one on the right has no money to dispense, least ways it doesn’t give you anything when the final button is pressed. The staff haven’t fixed it, but it still appears to be OK. Those in the know, don’t bother, but queue for the other one, while a new person gets caught on the old one. Maybe I should tell them it is faulty and to fix it? Like I did some months ago. The new ANZ branch opened at Timor Plaza before Christmas, but the ATM has never worked there while the one at Tiger Fuel hasn’t accepted ANZ cards for weeks and the staff have no incentive to get  the fault fixed nor are they interested in the problem. So the only place I know of a working ATM now, is one of the hole-in-the-wall ones at the original ANZ branch. A coworker has just reported to me that the last ATM has stopped working - what does this mean? Should we panic, change banks or use the barter system?

UPDATE: I just heard Saturday 19th that, apparently, the ANZ manager looks after both Timor Leste and Papua New Guinea (PNG). Sooooooo, the Timorese are in control here right now. I'll have to find out what is going on this week and/or get all my money out and store it somewhere more accessible.

Last Friday was the first of the ‘Clean up’ mornings for Dili. This was publicized on radio, TV and newspaper and meant that everyone was to be out on the street from about 09:00 to 12:00 and clean up their area. Now we have large piles of rubbish on the sides of the road; waiting to be removed.

Cycle to Baucau, Christmas on the beach, Cycle back to Dili, Atauro Island, Local accommodation & walks, First paddle in local dugout-outrigger, Home again

2012-01-05 Blog ending Saturday 5^th Jan 2013

Christmas for myself and the other NZ volunteers was going to be in Baucau, so we traveled East on the 23^rd.  Nearly everyone, seven, went either via scooter or motorcycle, while I had a 122km journey on the bicycle. It is an interesting trip over rather steep roads, roads that are in various stages of repair. One rather wide hole managed to cause a buckle in my front wheel, despite the shocks working 100%. It was a very hot day. I started at 07:00 and met the others at ‘Dollar Beach’ about 35km & 2.5 hours later. My tan progressed on my legs and arms only. Before leaving home in Dili, I did some careful thinking & ditched the bicycle helmet in favour of a sun hat with a large brim. As the sun was a certainty while getting my head knocked was not. No cause for regret there! 

From Dili to Baucau I passed many nativity scenes created by local people. These are generally life-size with cut out figures inside a specially constructed shelter with lots of additional decoration. There is a sort of competition as to which location can make the best one. They become community gathering points in the evenings over the holiday break and that is where the parties happen. Recently lots of lights and large stereo systems have become popular accessories, I even saw one setup that had the stereo speakers 'front and centre', with no sign of Mary, Joseph, Jesus, the three magi nor various combinations of horses, cows and/or sheep. 

Everyone was very proud of their particular construction and I took photos of each and then showed them to the following groups; this meant my stops got progressively longer. I got into Baucau at 7pm, a 12 hour trip. I took the right turn at the gas station rather than the left, so it took me a long time to find my way to the Posada (old Portuguese building now converted to a restaurant) for dinner with the rest of the team. After dinner we all went down the ‘road’ to the beach – all downhill for about 4km. The guesthouse was just off the beach, by the old customs house. 

Next day the motorcyclists left for a big trip to Los Palos and then to the south coast before going to Viqueque. It is a challenging route with steep roads in very poor repair. The journey took about 14hours with bikes being walked at some stages. When they eventually got back to Dili three days later, there were some interesting scars and stories. I and Trisha stayed on at the guest house for Christmas Day and I used the opportunity to recover from the journy's effects of dehydration and too much sun. I didn't help matters by deciding to sun bathe and read a book on the beach. An intended delicate toasting unfortunately became a lobster job. For the next week I remembered that day and then the skin peeled off, hmmmm. 

I tried out some ‘Shin fins’ for snorkeling, but they didn’t work very well for me. Christmas day was nice and we went to the beach bar, but they’d kind of run out of beer, so we nursed two cans between three of us (we'd also been joined by bloke from Finland who was collecting stamps on his passport and was up to 42 countries). It was a casual bar setup with the barman asleep on the floor behind the bar and a volunteer, he didn’t actually work there, sitting beside the sleeper and playing a computer game.

On Boxing Day I headed off again for Dili by going up the steep road section from the beach to the upper area of Baucau. It wasn’t too bad as I paced myself and started drinking lots then and throughout the rest of the day. In fact I stopped at nearly every concession/shop for bottles of ‘Mizone’ isotonic drink (60 cents) and anything else I could get. After getting up to the plateau, I pedaled past the local airport (rather large, but virtually unused by anyone) on a straight road for an 8km journey across broken, rocky land. There was little evidence of anything being grown commercially, but there were still a few houses and a couple of nativity displays. The local water buffalo seemed to spend all their time in the wallows of mud.From the plateau, it was a neat downhill of about 8-9km, twisting and winding through villages and road side stalls. 

Going back was faster (11 hours), maybe I was fitter or just carrying less baggage. The heat was a challenge and despite the seat being well designed, I was, umm, uncomfortable before the halfway mark. Manatuto is halfway and I took my last photos there. I’d kept my digital camera in the top of a rear pannier bag for quick photos and video clips. So far, so good, except for the bumps in the road that caused the camera to part ways on a permanent basis by apparently bouncing out - it certainly didn’t end up on the road and I didn’t discover the loss until about 10 km later. Oh bum :-( 
Trisha was headed back to Dili on the same day and she had scored a car ride with some Australians and had also taken on of my bike bags. They caught up with me around 6pm on the last hill from Hera over into Becora and Dili itself.

We had two days of rest in Dili, then we headed off to Atauro Island for New Year’s Eve. Stephanie had organized a local outrigger (well, they are really a kind of tri-outrigger with bamboo extensions on both sides) that left at 08:00. The departure point was just along from the front of the Palacio (Parliament). We could see 2-3 of the police semi-rigid craft sitting on trailers, semi deflated in one case and another, on a trailer with a flat tire. Apparently there is no fuel to run them and they are not being maintained. Cost was $10 each to get to the island ($35 if by water taxi) and another $5 for my bicycle. It was about 28 km or so across the water and it took just over two hours. Two hours sitting on a bamboo mat. I found one of the backup paddles and jammed it into the gunnel for a back rest – very nice. The water was almost flat and a school of about 70-80 dolphins came by, right up to and around us; very exciting.

When we got to the Atauro beach it was very close to the ‘Bonecas’ (Bon-e-car) workshops where the cloth bags and dolls are made. We stayed at the accommodation area setup by some priests and now run by a local cooperative for about $12 a night. Only one 6km stretch of road to look after, so work is fairly quiet for the police and their SUV. Four locals run tuk-tuks (three-wheeled motorcycles with a small tray + seats on the back) for transporting locals and malae around for $2 a pop. The local shop was meant to open at 4:30pm but it didn’t so we left. Later in the evening, we discovered it opened at 5pm and then closed about an hour later. 
One of our party got some bad news from NZ - a sudden death in the family and so she had to leave early the next day for Dili and then fly out that night. Her New Year’s Eve was spent in Darwin airport…. We moved accommodation up the road to ‘Barry’s’ and while $40 a night, it is really nice and all the food is included. All one has to do is sit in a hammock outside the chalet entrance and enjoy the sun, sorry, I meant shade, before heading off for a nice feed or complimentary coffee. My bike was suffering from flat tires and so I got a new tube from the local shop for $2. New Year’s we had a mini-Olympics with about 8 events that covered luck, skill and physical prowess. I could only hold a handstand for about 25 seconds before ungracefully collapsing. The best event was running around a stick (one end stuck in the sand and one’s head on top of the other) ten times, on the beach and then trying to run a straight line after – no one can! Some fireworks to celebrate the changeover and it was done. Our location on the beach meant we could see all the fireworks going off in Dili as well. 
Next day three of us went back to Bonecas  to check out the dolls; I bought one for a present. It took a three hour wait and then repeated requests of local people to get the place opened up. Later that day I got hold of a single-sized fishing canoe with its dual bamboo outriggers. One other item I’d bought to the island was my outrigger paddle – all the way from NZ. I went for a paddle for 45 minutes and was satisfied. There just might be an option here for doing some racing in Dili harbor! Also, six months without paddling is darn hard on the muscles.

We found out that the locals celebrated New Year’s on the night of the 1^st. They certainly did and karaoke was going all night long. It didn’t stop until about 8am. The trip back to Dili was on the same craft as before but we stopped at a village along the Atauro coast and they piled another eight people plus a wee baby on board. There were now six crew, seven of us and eight locals – kind of packed with a 15HP motor. Still the free board was longer than the distance from my elbow to my fingertips. It was raining and overcast so no chance of sunburn. The dolphins dropped by again and there were frequent appearances of flying fish. Drammatic stuff as I reckon they can be airbourne for 5-10 seconds and the cover at least 100m. The sea conditions changed for a while and the waves came up a bit (‘twas a red sky that morning). I thought about us being unencumbered with things such as

• life jackets
• spare motor
• another nearby boat or 
• GPS. 

We did have four wooden paddles plus my outrigger beauty. The waves went down and there was no drama. We got back and out on the Dili beach. Someone had bought a load of firewood on the boat and they had ‘fitted’ it in beside my bike to the detriment of the derailleur. C’es la vie.

Now I am back at work and thinking once more about improving a server system and providing internet access to all the branches.

Wind down for staff – Christmas nativity - bike siting – one volunteer to Darwin then home – paying the price for no mudguards after rain – Christmas lights - Dinner

Blog ending Saturday 22^nd December 2012

This last week has seen the final exodus of expats to their country-of-importance and Friday saw the beginning of local people heading back to the districts. Many people need that ‘extra’ money for the Christmas break and they were lining up all week at various financial institutions for payouts. I saw one of them, right next to Tiger fuel and I thought it was a political gathering, an end-of-year get together or some other celebration/social occasion. Wrong on all counts. The ANZ money machines around town were not working including one  of the two at the main bank itself, so I joined the queue before the machine ran out. The ATM in Lita still has the software upgrade warning of late August covering the dead screen and the one at Leader is apparently out of action as well.

There are many small huts-cum-shelters going up- around town. They have wee fences and are variously ringed with lights, artificial grass and attendant watchers to make sure the statues/profiles that make up the Nativity scenes are not tampered with. I took some photos of one very large nativity scene erected in the Defence building compound. It was covered in lights and quite impressive, even from the road 250m away. Less than five days later it was gone – maybe not military enough?

One fellow volunteer had to go to Darwin, on Friday, for a blood test – something to do with blood sugar. Now they have been sent back to NZ for two weeks(!). A surprise Christmas back home. Hopefully it’ll be all sorted & they can return in January.

My bike now has a carrier, but that it is not good enough to keep the mud off me when I cycle. After work yesterday, I went, watched the afternoon rain shower then wore a nice white shirt to the Dili Beach Hotel – cycling. I nearly got there OK, before passing through a puddle and getting black spots all over my front :-(

While in Brisbane a couple of weeks ago, I bought some Christmas lights – not as good as the flashing ones here that also play Christmas carols with an Amercian accent, but nice lights anyway. They are now draped over the porch in front of my door and protected from the rain. Since I am cycling 122km to Baucau in a few hours time and won’t be here to turn them on at night, I bought an extension cable and threw the loose end upstairs to the land lord’s place so they could do the honours whenever they wished to.

Yesterday, we volunteers organised a Christmas dinner at one of the houses and had a suckling pig + a variety of goodies prepared by different people. Secret Santa involved swapping your present with others and I managed to get a magnifying glass and a mini pool set that I have given to the local children.

Merry Christmas (where did this ‘Happy holidays’ rubbish come from? Are people afraid to acknowledge the origin of this festive season?)

Hera loop reverse - bike paid for, finally - Wet roads and running - a week in Brisbane - expats to the rest of the world - Finding Santana and a clear piece of road - new digs - animals (reminds me of that Pink Floyd albumn)

Blog ending December 16^th 2012

This morning Helen and I cycled the Hera loop in reverse, a nice change from going via Becora. We passed a man and woman running the other way and I was impressed that they would be running 20+km in the heat. People were still walking along the road in Hera, dressed in their Sunday best – it was about 07:50.

Yesterday I finally paid the $500 for my new bike. The money had been moved from safe place to wallet and back again before I found out that the recipient, Tony, lived in a yellow house near ‘Beach Side’, down on the coast; so I cycled there after taking a morning coffee at the Darae café – a 50 minute cycle uphill. Tony was out, but someone else was there to take the cash. Later in the day I visited Obrigadu Barracks, where the UN was based, in Caicoli. They apparently had a notice board in the PX, with bikes, cars, motorcycles, electronics and other stuff for sale. They sure did but I couldn’t find the PX and then security sent me back for an ID check and a pass. Seeing as they had about 6 people + a metal detector there, doing nothing, it gave the place a little bit of life. Nearly all the UN have left for good and many of the remainder are out of Timor, so it is a bit of a ghost town.

Last week we had rain on the Wednesday afternoon and I was intrigued at the difficulties locals had driving in the wet afterwards. I was headed out to the Beach Hotel for a H3 evening run and observed motorcyclists riding with one foot hovering just above the wet road. Cars went a little more slowly and carefully. My bike is a mountain one and I know how to ride in the wet, so I went at full speed through slow train of vehicles while locals lined the side of the road to observe the results of their fellows’ efforts. I was cheered, but I didn’t work out why until later, as keeping a good line and braking in a straight line are kind of obvious. Apparently not to those who are used to driving any which-way in dry conditions. There were, apparently, several accidents. Not surprising as some of the younger guys insist on traveling at speed though the traffic as though they were skiing slalom. Results are predictable.

Yesterday's H3 run was near the Santa Cruz cemetery and went up the hills to the south east. Great views once the scrambling had finished. There was thunder and lightening, but only light rain on us. The coolness was really nice instead of the close humidity.

Two weeks ago, I and Richard spent a week in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane learning all about a product called ‘Abacus’. It is the financial system we are rolling out here in Dili and country-wide. It was nice to be in a different place for a while, as I’ve been here for 6 months now and really appreciated having a break, of sorts.  I’d ordered computer parts plus some snorkeling gear and had it delivered to the accommodation. Nearly everything arrived except for some RAM (PC memory) and even though I left a registered letter behind to forward it all onto Dili, the security here for mail actually ending up and staying in, a post box is flaky.

All the team at work have left for ‘home’ (Latvia, Philippines, England and Holland) in the past three days. There are people still here in town, but most have gone elsewhere for the annual celebrations. Some of us are planning on going to Atauro island and I haven’t been there for 6 years. Maybe a good time to take my outrigger paddle over and have a crack at a local canoe.

The traffic around town has been getting increasingly worse in the past weeks, with sections shut by the police for 'events', visiting dignitaries (Australian Bob Carr) or funerals. One, last Tuesday 10th, was for the exhumed remains of a resistance leader & fighter from the 1990s; Santana (see earlier blog about the book by Jill Joliffe). There was a big gathering in front of the Fretilin headquarters in Comoro road. The police simply closed the road while trucks loaded with people, some in traditional dress, parked outside, waiting for the official convoy to begin. I was on my bicycle, so I managed to get through everything and make my meeting at Gios, Timor Plaza

 I’m living in a new place in Bairo Pite and it's really nice, even though much smaller than before. I have two ceiling fans (I just had two small free-standing ones before) and two air conditioners. The settee + comfy chairs still are padded and not collapsed vinyl-covered ones that one might sit the subject on before interrogation began. I have excellent access to animal life; directly outside the front door is cage with a rooster with a morning clock beginning around 05:30 and a dovecote with residents that know to be fairly quiet and not poo around my entrance. Outside the living room window is the fence to neighbours and their 3-4 pigs. The latter are vocal most of the time; especially so in a terminal way, occasionally. I know I grew up on a farm, but it takes getting used to. We volunteers are going to share the cost of a suckling pig for a dinner around the 22^nd – just remember kids, your food has to come from somewhere and it isn’t merely from a foam tray at the supermarket!