Bob's Foreign Service

From Nairobi Kenya

I am writing this update from a hotel in Nairobi, Kenya.  I arrived this morning for the annual financial management workshop.  This is where the Financial Management officers from the African bureau finalized their budget and are briefed on new budgeting procedures for the coming fiscal year.   I’ll be here 10 days.  The workshop only lasts 5 days but flights from Chad only schedule on certain days and still must transit through Addis ABaba, Ethiopia.   It really is nice to be somewhere with real restaurants and hotel service.   I couldn’t decide what to order for my first lunch here; club sandwich or lasagna.  I went with the club sandwich and for dessert a shot of Jack Daniels with two scoops of chocolate ice cream.  It seemed like a good idea at the time.  The Kenyans seem to be a genuinely friendly people and most to speak English very well.  I was told this is because Kenya was a former British colony.  If anyone wanted to visit Africa for the first time I would suggest Kenya as a starter trip.  They really push the safari experience.  It is actually a little cool here in the evenings.  But there are still a lot of security concerns.  It is the first hotel I have seen with metal detectors at the front entrance.   After all, this was the site of the 1998 U.S. Embassy bombing, caused by a truck bomb.  After this bombing all new Embassies are required to have a 100 foot setback.  This means embassy and consular buildings must have 100 feet from the exterior perimeter wall.

It is hard to believe it has been so long since I sent out an update of the happenings in Chad.

We had a near evacuation last May.  We received credible information that a force of 1,000 Chadian rebels mounted on a bevy of Toyota battle wagons had left western Darfur to try to overthrow Chad’s government.  We actually got as far as preparing travel orders for the American staff and pay advances for our Chadian employees; and I moved personal pictures and my DVD collection to my office at the Embassy for safekeeping. I was also looking for just the right bag to transport the Embassy cash to where ever we would be sent.   The “rebel” column headed into Chad was destroyed by what we have been told was air attacks by Chadian pilots.   There was some speculation that those pilots flying the missions may have been Russian.   The fact I heard  a few days later, a couple of guys next to me in a restaurant speaking with a noticeable Russian accent makes me wonder if that was more than just speculation.  And speaking of Russians……

The big news is that I know where I am going for my next assignment.   I am headed to Moscow next summer for a two year assignment.   I’ll wrap up my assignment in Chad, probably in July and come back home for month of home leave; and to shop for winter clothes.   I have been hearing war stories about the winters in Moscow.

Just prior to me leaving for this conference I am at, I received a message to meet with the Ambassador to go over some questions about the budget I was presenting.  This is was odd because he had never asked for specific questions before.   When I walked into his office, almost all the Americans at post were there.  It was a surprise birthday party for me.

Most of the job is routine now.  There are moments that highlight the contrast of cultures at times.   I was in the Chez Wu snack bar eating lunch.  All around were UN folk and other organizations; all speaking French.  The music playing was a mixture of Chinese and European collections.  But then Billy Ray Cyrus’ “Achy Breaky Heart” came on.  I cannot even begin to imagine how that got into the selection.

There is an aspect of being in the Foreign Service that I did not expect.   Almost everyone that I met when I first arrived have all rotated out to other posts.  And the last few will be leaving in the next month.  Maybe it is being at a small post, but you do become close to the people you meet and work with and I will miss them.

My Christmas Blog 2008

Christmas 2008

My first Christmas in the Foreign Service has come and gone.  There were some decorations up at few of local restaurants frequented by Westerners, but generally there was no real way to know it was Christmas in Chad.   The Ambassador and his wife hosted a Christmas Eve party for all the Americans assigned to the Embassy; then right after that party there was another Christmas Eve party at Maj. Edwards’s house, which was a little more informal.   On Christmas Day Sgt. Banks and wife hosted a brunch with real bacon being served.  I have no idea where they got the bacon from, maybe I don’t want to know, but I’ve notice the Army DAO guys seem to locate the hard to find items.   On New Year’s Day, the Ambassador hosted an Open House for the other Embassies and the Americans; again at the Official Residence.   More food that included smoked ham, beef brochettes, pizza and chocolate chip cookies.

I’ve also found a new favorite restaurant.   It is in the parking lot of the Shanghai Restaurant and Hotel.  (See picture)  It is owned by the same family that runs the main Chinese restaurant, but the menu is similar to an American bar and grill.   Spaghetti, hamburgers, fish, barbeque pork etc.   They show movies on the wall on the weekends.  There is always a UN vehicle parked outside.   I think the hotel is used as an R&R stop for those personnel in the East.  

They don’t have what I would call sandwich bread here, so I sent away for a bread making machine.   I was a little uncertain that these bread makers really worked.  The “Emeril” bread maker I ordered from the AAFES center works great.  Who knew I would be baking my own bread, grinding my own meat and giving myself haircuts.  The secret is using masking tape to get the neckline just right.

My car finally arrived, a 2004 4-Runner, and from what I hear, I am pretty lucky it only took three months.  It is common to take 5-6 months for personnel to get their autos delivered.   I have been driving my own car, no more motor pool, for about three weeks.   Must admit I was pretty stressed my first few times on the road on my own.   There are precious few traffic laws in the city.   I’ve counted only two so far: The person on the right has the right of way in the Roundabouts, and no turning right on the traffic light.   (The only red light in the city)    The big problem driving your own car is you are target for every street person in town.   When you stop at the market; you are identified as a rich Westerner by the bright green diplomatic plates and in turn will be swarmed by kids wanting money, people in wheelchairs and others selling phone cards. 

A little about my finance staff.  There are only 35 Americans here at post.  The rest of the employees are locally hired.  We have about 400.   Most are perimeter and residence guards; the rest of gardeners, mechanics, procurement and drivers.   In my department I have two voucher examiners, two budget analysts, a cashier and a finance specialist.   Five are Chadian and Muslim, the sixth is Canadian; she is the finance specialist.   She and her husband have lived in Chad for 30 years.  Her home also doubles as the Canadian Consulate in N’Djamena.   The two of them have adopted 17 Chadian orphans over the last 30 years; and they run an elementary school in their free time.

We had a surprise assembly drill last Sunday morning.   It is an exercise to see how long it takes for all the Americans to assemble at a designated point in an emergency.   We have had to change security procedures since the Mumbai attack.   At 9:30am the call went out over the radio for all Americans to head to the American Compound.   I was in the middle of my morning waffle.   Yes, waffles have become a morning staple.    It’s syrup that is a bitch to get.    I can only order one plastic bottle at a time through the pouch and it must be under 16 ounces; no glass.   But anyway, we all made it to the assembly location in less than 30 minutes.   The plan calls for the Marines to secure the perimeter of the residence compound.   This is a group of six residences that is surrounded by a common wall.   My residence is a couple of blocks away.   It was odd seeing the marines with their flak jackets and ammo belts over their surfer shorts and tennis shoes.  Obviously they did not know about the drill either.  But they took their positions while the rest of us were briefed on the use of the satellite phone uplink and the medical supplies stored in the compound.      

Security procedures are becoming second nature now.   One of the procedures is taking a different route to the embassy each morning.   Sometimes that is problematic.   There is a lot of work being done on the roads before the next rainy season begins.  I believe the Chinese are funding most of the construction.  The government does not give any notice when a street is closed for construction and the entire block can be completely shutdown.   On more than one occasion I’ve had to back track and find a different way to the Embassy, using roads I am not familiar with.

We had a new security threat that required another change to our procedures.  Seems some idiot is sending envelopes filled with whiter powder to embassies in Europe.   So far nothing hazardous, but it causes the embassy to be shutdown while the contents are checked.   So now we must open all letters and packages outside.   What a pain.   It is fine while the weather is dry, but I am wondering what we are going to do during the rainy season.

The next season we have here is the dust season.    January and February are supposed to be heavy dust storm weather.   I am already feeling some of it.  I constantly smell dust and my sinuses are forever clogged.  I have sent away for dust masks to wear outside and when driving.   Also, my air purifier arrived which I use at home.

I discovered my little camera also takes video.   I’ve been taking video from my truck as I drive through town; trying to give a little flavor of the day to day conditions.   Taking any kind of pictures is a little dicey.   The government here is very paranoid; you do not want to be caught taking photos around the palace or of any Chadian military units.   I am told they have no sense of humor.   And the individual citizens also are very suspicious when a camera comes out.  

I’ve had a few friends ask me what we are doing here in Chad.  We are a small mission, but because of our proximity to Darfur; our most important task is assisting Chad to provide a safe haven for refugees from Darfur and the Central African Republic; and the displaced Chadians who are being forced away from the Eastern border because of the attacks on the camps and the humanitarian missions.    We are also assisting the government to reestablish stability in the region.  The United States has been the major force in pressuring European countries (and Russia), through the UN, to step up and supply military assets to guard the camps and supply routes.   I think this fact is finally being mention in the news back home, even though it has been going on for several years.  It was the current administration that raised the alarm about the atrocities in Darfur and organized massive humanitarian relief efforts in the region.

This fact is something the news media in the United States will never tell the full story on.  Because of this, the United States enjoys an 80 percent approval rating in many African countries; some of these have large Muslim populations.   In Darfur many families are naming their newborn sons after George Bush.  This administration will never get the credit it’s due for the work it has done in Africa.

I’m also making final preparations to come home for a “Rest and Recuperation” visit.  Looking forward to real pizza and burgers.   Also, hoping to miss the dust storm season in February and March.   It looks like I will be home sometime at the end of February.   Can we say “happy hour”?

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