Top 3

The 3 things at the top of my list that I would really really like right now are…

1. A Latte! Or any specialty coffee really – an Americano from Blondies on Queen West in Parkdale, even a regular coffee from White Squirrel by Trinity Bellwoods

2. To walk down the street without attracting any attention and to be able to go for an evening stroll

3. A hug

Hmmm now that I mention Trin Bell I also miss parks.

I’m not suffering by any stretch of the imagination but I had a dream about ordering a latte in London, England and not being understood. I realise this dream is tapping into both a desire for a latte/coffee shop and some of the communication challenges I encounter here. Many people speak English but you know, we all speak in different ways and use different words and expressions and one can never quite tell what percentage of the conversation has been mutually understood. This works both ways. I’ve come away from many a conversation and upon conferring with Tara, realises we understood completely different things in the exchange or nothing at all.

I haven’t been doing much, cough cough, any, exercise and I would really like to go for walks. Two main issues with this – 1 - it’s a small town so there aren’t that many places to go – there are 4 roads leading out of town and it’s advisable that you only walk so far out of Hlotse. 2 – I am still new here and therefore worth paying attention to. It is common in Basotho culture to greet men and women as you pass them on the street but not necessarily required that you say hello to everyone. Well it would seem that the rules are a little different for me. I have two choices – greet nearly everyone or keep my head down and try to ignore my surroundings entirely. I get a lot of attention from children and young men and women and I don’t yet feel comfortable ignoring them all. When I go for a walk I like to keep my head up and look around so it’s a tough balance to negotiate but I’ll keep working on it...from the confines of my home. Just kidding, I’ll get back out there.

Lastly, I’m a big fan of hugs and appreciate their importance. I can’t say I like hugs from strangers so this one will be tough to figure out. I did get a great hug from a co-worker yesterday after I teased her about shutting down her computer early on in the day. It was Friday and we were all hoping for a sudden change in the work week that allowed us to knock of early. But I digress. When I got that hug, I realised how much I miss them. Maybe I’ll just start asking my co-workers for end of day hugs but probably not.

Anyway, I’m off to the Basotho Girls Leadership Corps end of year party. There will be music, dancing, food and who knows what else. I expect to have to dance and subsequently be laughed at. Luckily I’m much less of a poor sport than I used to be.