Thursday, November 16, 2006

1st day back

We gave up, for the time being at least. Elizabeth text'ed my phone while I was strolling through Little India telling me just to get on the next flight to Medan and on to Banda Aceh and get the "tourist visa on arrival". Which is only good for 30 days. Yep, got to leave the country and come back with in the next month. This visa problem is so annoying.

I was able to fly out of Singapore the next morning and even worked out my connecting Medan-Banda Aceh flight that same day. As the plane descended over Banda Aceh and poked below the clouds, it was apparent that we were in the wet season. A different landscape than it was back in August. The rice paddy fields were full of water; everything was green and dark clouds hanging over the mountains flashing with lightning.

Build Change's driver picked me up at the airport and drove me straight to the office where Cici and Elizabeth came out and greeted me. We then walked over to where I'm staying. It's the guesthouse for Mercy Corp. which is just down the street from the office. It's alright, it's clean — I have the whole mezzanine to myself, but it's a little stuffy. I still have to look for a place for long term, I understand I can only be here for a month.

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