For some mission, the NGO provide a 'mission house': all the expats are living together and this can be funny, if there are some teen volunteers, and less funny when you want to have some times to go around in underwear and read loudly old Rimbaud poems completely drunk.
This may happens whit good NGO's deeply rooted in the country, and also whit small NGO which cannot pay you a good salary but at least give you accommodation.
Sometimes you have a building or an apartment which is both office and house. This is good to sleep up to the very last minute, and very bad when on Sunday you have to finish a report and mechanic is repairing the car in the courtyard and he's popping in your office showing you greasy item that supposed to be broken breaks or who-cares-just-change-it, and in the meanwhile the others are fixing a dinner to celebrate some Hindu festival listening to Abba and playing whit flour.
And is very bad too when you are living with your Shostakovite head of mission who do not cares about any kind of social relationship because he's accomplishing a celestial mission.
And very bad when one of your colleagues has been working for some UN office and he's used to have cleaners wiping out every footprint. these guys really lost their path. They never cook, never care about who is using toilet after them, always finishing the Italian imported Parmesan, and at work they are sure they'have seen the light of wisdom while you are a Neanderthal as you'll always be.
This happens always if the NGO has enough project to have at least two expats.
Sometimes, especially for security reasons, there is a house or a compound for the office, the expats and the local staff.
In this case everybody knows how much you are taking care of your personal hygiene, if you have a good relationship with your intestine, which kind of movie you like to see in bad. And forget about burp, farts and exciting secret love affairs.
This happens in those countries everybody must start from to have a curriculum. Nobody whit some curriculum wants to go there and so NGOs are giving assignment to unexperienced young. Even if these are the Countries in which more experience is needed: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Congo, Haiti and so on. Out of lonely planet circuits. In these cases, a good organisation use to give you come days of R&R before you burned out and start to shoot your colleagues.
Sometimes happens you have a house for your own. This may happens because:
1) You are the only expat
2) The rent are so cheap that you can afford it
3) You are planning to have an intimate relationship whit that girl of Oxfam you've met in the plane (and you'll end up with a beautiful chill out room full of dust and unused candles)
4) You are tired to live whit teen volunteers, ex UN pricks and you really love Rimbaud, especially when you are naked and drunk
In this case you are lucky if you are in Nepal (150 USD/month for a nice apartment), not so if you are in Angola (2,000 USD/month minimum to reach what in the western countries is considered minimum hygienic standards and add other 500 USD for the minimum required heavy armed security).
Somehow, whatever it will be, that will be your home sweet home.
And you will abandon it whit no regrets as soon as you finish your mission.
Whit a deep and satisfactory breath.
This may happens whit good NGO's deeply rooted in the country, and also whit small NGO which cannot pay you a good salary but at least give you accommodation.
Sometimes you have a building or an apartment which is both office and house. This is good to sleep up to the very last minute, and very bad when on Sunday you have to finish a report and mechanic is repairing the car in the courtyard and he's popping in your office showing you greasy item that supposed to be broken breaks or who-cares-just-change-it, and in the meanwhile the others are fixing a dinner to celebrate some Hindu festival listening to Abba and playing whit flour.
And is very bad too when you are living with your Shostakovite head of mission who do not cares about any kind of social relationship because he's accomplishing a celestial mission.
And very bad when one of your colleagues has been working for some UN office and he's used to have cleaners wiping out every footprint. these guys really lost their path. They never cook, never care about who is using toilet after them, always finishing the Italian imported Parmesan, and at work they are sure they'have seen the light of wisdom while you are a Neanderthal as you'll always be.
This happens always if the NGO has enough project to have at least two expats.
Sometimes, especially for security reasons, there is a house or a compound for the office, the expats and the local staff.
In this case everybody knows how much you are taking care of your personal hygiene, if you have a good relationship with your intestine, which kind of movie you like to see in bad. And forget about burp, farts and exciting secret love affairs.
This happens in those countries everybody must start from to have a curriculum. Nobody whit some curriculum wants to go there and so NGOs are giving assignment to unexperienced young. Even if these are the Countries in which more experience is needed: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Congo, Haiti and so on. Out of lonely planet circuits. In these cases, a good organisation use to give you come days of R&R before you burned out and start to shoot your colleagues.
Sometimes happens you have a house for your own. This may happens because:
1) You are the only expat
2) The rent are so cheap that you can afford it
3) You are planning to have an intimate relationship whit that girl of Oxfam you've met in the plane (and you'll end up with a beautiful chill out room full of dust and unused candles)
4) You are tired to live whit teen volunteers, ex UN pricks and you really love Rimbaud, especially when you are naked and drunk
In this case you are lucky if you are in Nepal (150 USD/month for a nice apartment), not so if you are in Angola (2,000 USD/month minimum to reach what in the western countries is considered minimum hygienic standards and add other 500 USD for the minimum required heavy armed security).
Somehow, whatever it will be, that will be your home sweet home.
And you will abandon it whit no regrets as soon as you finish your mission.
Whit a deep and satisfactory breath.
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| The most amazing house I've ever lived in: ginger bread style in Haiti. Sometimes we were 7 people. Excluding my one years old girl. |
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