Heading back to Fasher

With the recent threats of attack against the city relegated to little more than rumor, I head back to Fasher to resume our programming. I do so after many checks with resident organizations that it is safe to return to the area.

The most important barometer of relative stability, the city's marketplace, is bustling with people and so I return cautiously optimistic that I will have the right environment in which to get our work done.

It has been interesting to see that Sudan barely registers in the international press especially against such headliners like the Chinese earthquake, Myamar typhoon, and Beirut clashses, but that is to be expected I supposed. Everything seem far more news worthy when you are in middle of the events as they unfold.

The city of Fasher is engaged in an ambitious rewiring project to compensate for the sharp increase in residents needing power. My neighborhood is close to the firing range as I mentioned in previous posts. That is because the city is expanding exponentially. The firing range had been built nearly a mile from the city center. It is the city that has come to rest on its perimeter and not the result of bad planning or indifference on the part of the military. Just thought I should make that note for balance.

While the rewiring process continues, our office and many others have been affected. No power for four days. I hope that five days is the charm. Still no generator and I do not anticipate that we will get one for another month at the rate at which my organization is moving. Temperatures are now averaging 100 degrees each day. My dad would probably say that is nothing compared to his desert abode where temperatures linger at 107 for months, but without air conditioning, swamp coolers, or even an operating fan, it can make sleep a pretty elusive thing. And 100 degrees is only the beginning. I have been told that 115 is not uncommon in Khartoum. I am hoping that Darfur is a tad cooler. In the meantime, it is all about keeping focus on the mind and letting go of any resistance to my new environment. Embracing the heat as it were.

More later when I get settled in.