March 28: In the air - it is Africa again!

For a change it is a Monday night that I am in Vienna airport waiting to set off on another mision. This time it is a double header to Zambia and Tanzania. The first flight was with Austrian to Munich with a late depasrtur and a slow tarnsfer which left no spare time for the trek across Munich Aiport tro get the South African flight to Johansburg. The SA flight was OK but average wuth the food in Business Class less than exceptional and another remote stand and a bus ride for our arrival at Jo'berg. The transfer at Jo'berg was the shortest ever with no queues for the first time ever. This was just as well as I walked at a smart pace the length of the airport to get my onward flight to Ndola in Zambia which was already  boarding!
Another 2.5 hours and I was in Ndola.  A small and very basic airport but the immigration system worked well and I was soon meeting the mission counterpart and heading off to the Savoy Hotel Ndola.

March 11-13: A french diversion

One of the joys in life with modern communications is the relative ease and speed with which one can track down old friends and get back in contact after a period of lost time. So it was recently with one of my oldest childhood chums. We had been in touch over years on and off despite  our lives going separate ways  after school - he went off into business and I ended up in the environmental industry- and we met  from time to time when we were both in the same country at the same time Then about 5 or 6 years ago we lost touch. But  as chance would have it earlier this year I met my mate's cousin and there was an email address so within seconds we were back in touch. The explanation for the loss of contact was simple, my friend and his wife had retired to France. Turns out they are living not too far from Bergerac in the Dordogne and it would be great to get together again.
So I am on a plane again.hradky week since the last time it seems and I was in the Vienna Airport waiting for the early morning Austrian flight to  CDG Airport Paris (not one of my favourite airports) then a short change time (but a long walk)  and an Air France flight  to Bordeaux then a Hertz car to the village on the main road to where my friends live near Bergerac.  It is a super area,  if you are into wine especially, as  the  route went through Bordeaux and St. Emillion and Bergerac  amongst other famous names of "Appellations controlles".
I met up with my mate at a late luch time and we then drove in convoy to the house. A smart new bungalow  with a lot of land and superb views of rolling vineyards and farms  on the outskirts of a very small village - really wonderful.  

We lunched on red wine (local of course) and bread and pate then a walk around the area to see more of the countryside, all the time reminiscing about the missed years and what all our respective families and mutual friends had been doing. It was great!  Unfortunately my chum's wife was away visiting their daughter in UK so we  were two old fat grey farts alone in the countryside - and we really enjoyed it!
 and celebrated with the local red wine of course. A fine dinner of local pork fillets
Saturday was a rather grey and damp day so we started at a leisurely pace, did a bit of shopping which was fun; then headed off to see a few of the local sites including some old chateaux,

"bastide" villages

and  the stone that marks the starting point for the 100 years war!

Of course the poor weather meant we headed home early-just in time to watch the 6 nations rugby on TV - what a coincidence!  We saw the memorable victory of Italy over France and then the Welsh beat Ireland.
Then John cooked a fine dinner of local pork fillets, we had another bottle of a localish red wine which was  and lots more chat.
Sunday was an early rise to enjoy more chat on a morning that was  a bit overcast and blustery but dry; a bacon sandwich breakfast was very much enjoyed before it was sadly time for me to head off back to Bordeaux.   .....after a final photograph.......

The drive was OK as it was Sunday morning but I still managed to get lost twice on the trip to the airport - the  problem is the signposting on the ring road, absolutely appalling!
Hertz were OK, Bordeaux airport is small but efficient and basic but actually quite nice.  I was impressed  by the Air France self service automatic check-in which not only worked well but also printed only one boarding pass for two sectors of travel,  a real first.  The journeys were OK - Air France and Austrian again.   and home just in time to realise I had missed the England  versus Scotland  Calcutta Cup match but I was told pretty quickly that England had won and were still on line for the Grand Slam if they beat Ireland  on  19 March.

It was really good to meet up with one of my oldest friends again after such a long time and we will both be sure to keep in better touch from now on!

I -4 March: Back to Africa

Early on Tuesday morning  and again I was in the lounge at Vienna Airport waiting for a flight.This time it was the Austrian flight to Paris for the onward Air France connection to  Niamey in Niger.  I was part of a party of three from work - we were on a mission to gather data and hold discussions with our counterparts and then help draft the early stages of the next Techncial Cooperation programme.
The journey was fine and all in daylight for once. Our arrival in Niamey was unspectacular and the weather was hot, very different to the sub-zero temperatures we had left behind in Vienna.
We were met by our host and taken to the Hotel Gaweye, one of the best in town1 A little tired and  and surrounded bby guards the hotel has seen better days one feels. The sign over the lifts said it all.....

..........................needless to say we used the stairs throughout or stay!

The hotel is on the banks of the Niger, one of the great rivers of Africa. Last year I saw the source of the Nile and so this was another one ticked of the list! Thew view from the room was overlooking the bridge - the only bridge until they open a new one and the traffic is consequently continuous.

The river is quite wide and seemed to be high and flowing fast

We were working at the Ministry of Mines not far from the hotel and  spent all day in the office aprt from odd sorties out to check on visasa and airline tickets and visit other Departments. Whilst out we stopped for a quick cup of tea with our counterpart...

 

Our work days ended with a beer at the poolside bar before dinner, a Niger beer of course.................

My two colleagues enjoying a beer at the end of the day. We could also watch the fishermen on the river in their small boats

.
All too soon the work was done and we had a short outing to the Zoo and a craft centre to look for souvenirs

The lads bargaining for a few local handicrafts........................

That evening we were away again  for the overnight flight back to Paris and Vienna . Again it was Air France and Austrian  who transported us and we were back in Vienna by 1000 on Saturday morning.