Changes

I've been away from Chad for six months and inevitably some things have changed in that time. Some of the more obvious changes that have struck me in my first week include:

• Major road repair to the streets around our compound. What used to be pot-holed dirt roads are slowly being transformed in to smooth tarmac (although the tarmac has not yet appeared). No-one is quite sure why these side roads have been singled out for this improvement and although it's quite disruptive now, with lots of diversions in place, it will make a huge difference when it is finished.

• Increased security around the airport. Since the Chadian army and the French military based in Chad became involved in the situation in Mali security in N'Djamena has been tightened up. There are three roads that lead to the airport and you used to be able to drive freely on any of them. Now two of them have been blocked off and all access to the airport is through a police checkpoint about 200 metres away from the main terminal building. As the MAF hangar and office is at the airport this means that I have to pass through this checkpoint each day to get to work. This involves slowing down enough to show the policeman my MAF ID and I am then waved through.

• A reversal of the law, passed last year that required motorcycle users and their passengers to wear a helmet. It is now against the law to wear a helmet - a measure introduced so that any members of Boko Haram who may try and cross the border from Nigeria can be easily identified.

• A second branch of the most popular 'import shop' (think small neighbourhood mini-market like Spar) called Modern Market has opened on the main street. This is very exciting to an ex-pat in a city where the number of such shops can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

And some things have not changed - it is still as hot as ever, the driving is still as crazy, the internet is still painfully slow and the supply of electricity and water is still erratic. Welcome back!

Back to Chad with a bump!

My return to Chad last Sunday evening was something I won't forget in a hurry. Once on board the Air France flight from Paris to N'Djamena the Captain came on the public address with the usual introductions and information. He said that the weather in N'Djamena was currently 33C and stormy. I thought this was unusual as May is the height of the hot season so I was expecting it to be warmer and without any storms.

I thought no more of it until the turbulence started about 30 minutes away from N'Djamena. This must be the storm! The bumpy ride continued as the cabin crew prepared for landing and the wheels went down. I suffer from motion sickness on bumpy flights so by this point I had my eyes closed and was focusing on retaining my in-flight meal. We were about to land when suddenly the descent turned into a rapid ascent - it felt like being on a roller-coaster and some of the passengers screamed out in a mixture of surprise and fear.

A few minutes later one of the cabin crew came on the public address to say that the Captain would make a announcement soon as to the reason for the aborted landing. However, it would seem that talking to the passengers was not the primary concern of the Captain at this stage as he attempted another landing, only to pull up again. This second attempt again elicited more screams from the nervous passengers and shouts of 'Signeur' ('Lord').

The Captain now made his promised announcement. The quality of the PA system was not great and he spoke English with a heavy French accent but I thought he said there was an obstruction on the runway. In retrospect I don't think this can be the case (maybe I was hearing what I wanted to hear - an obstruction can be managed and moved, a storm cannot!). He explained that we were now going to land using a different runway. This didn't reassure me as it might have done at a larger airport as I was pretty sure there is only one runway at N'Djamena!

If anything the third attempt was even bumpier than the previous two and equally as unsuccessful. By this time all I could think about was the Air France flight that plummeted into the Atlantic Ocean a few years ago and whether or not I was ready to meet my Maker! The cries from the passengers were even louder and I put the quality and strength of the airline's sick bag to the test...

The Captain now informed us that we were going to circle for a while to allow the storm to pass and tried to assure us that when we eventually landed 'it will be safe'. We circled for about half an hour during which time the cabin crew tried to reassure the passengers that all would be well and everyone seemed much calmer as we started our fourth descent.

It wasn't quite as turbulent, although you could still feel the tension in the air, and when the wheels finally hit the tarmac there was clapping and cheering!

News of the dramatic landing seems to have spread throughout N'Djamena and I have been asked about it several times. It rates as one of my least favourite experiences but it seems to make a good story now...

Back to Chad

It is just over a year since I first went to Chad and this coming Sunday (26^th May) I am returning there again. I have been back in the UK since the end of November waiting for, undergoing and recovering from some surgery. The waiting was a bit frustrating but the surgery went well and although the recovery seemed long and slow I am now feeling well enough to return to Africa.

I shall be taking up the role I was doing last year – that of Interim Programme Manager for Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) in Chad. Finding a long-term manager for the programme has proved harder than was originally anticipated so there is still a gap that needs to be filled and I have agreed to cover the job until just before Christmas.

It is an unusual situation for me to be going back to a place I have been before and it is nice to think that I already know most of my team mates (although there have been some new staff whilst I was away), can picture where I will be living, have already experienced the sweltering heat and can find my way around the city. However, it also means that I know about all the things you can’t get in N’Djamena and consequently I seem to have gathered a lot of ‘stuff’ to take with me. I’m anticipating that when I pack on Saturday I will have to make some decisions about what is really important…

Where I'll be

I'm also hoping to return to more regular blogging so watch this space...

World Immunisation Week

This week is World Immunisation Week - an initiative of the World Health Organisation, which aims to promote vaccines as one of the most powerful tools available for good health.

I have yet to see this featured in the mainstream UK media, in contrast to the widespread coverage that has been given to the on-going measles outbreak in South Wales. To date there have been over 800 reported cases of measles with 77 people requiring hospital treatment. Special clinics are now being held to vaccinate those children whose parents had previously decided not to have them immunised and there is much debate about the pros and cons of childhood vaccinations.

The reality is that vaccines save lives and I have been privileged to work for two organisations that are involved, in different ways, in delivering this life-saving health care in Africa.

MAF frequently fly vaccines and health workers into remote areas, which would otherwise take days to reach by road. This is a crucial part of the 'cold-chain' as it is necessary for the vaccines to be kept cold, if they are to be usable when they reach their destination. Keeping anything cold in the heat of countries like Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo or South Sudan is a huge challenge and so speed of delivery is key.

Medair send the health workers to the remote communities with the vaccines, where they train local people to travel from village to village where they ensure as many children as possible are vaccinated. It requires dedication and perseverance to reach some of these people but the effort is well worth the reward of lives saved.

To read the story of just one of these vaccination campaigns click here. 

What do you do all day?

This is a question I have often been asked whilst I have been recovering from surgery. So here are some of the more memorable TV programmes, movies and books I have enjoyed over the last couple of months.

Homeland (Series 2). A gripping story of America's 'war on terror' with many unexpected twists and turns. It keeps you on the edge of your seat right to the very end (provided you can get through the bad language and 'scenes of a sexual nature').

Borgen (Series 1). You have to concentrate on this subtitled Danish-language political drama but it's worth the effort. A fascinating depiction of coalition government, the relationship between politicians and the media and the impact of power (and the pursuit of power) on someone's personal life.

Miranda (Series 1 - 3). Daft but fun sitcom from Miranda Hart that makes me laugh out loud.

The Help. I'm usually reluctant to watch a film of a book I have enjoyed but this is a good adaptation of the novel by Kathryn Stockett. The main characters (and particularly the help) are portrayed with dignity and humanity.

The Artist. An easy to watch film (no complex dialogue to follow!) as a star of the silent screen tries to come to terms with the change that the new talking movies are bringing.

Beasts of the Southern Wild. Fantasy drama about a little girl struggling to survive in the harsh conditions of poverty-stricken southern USA.

The Descendants. It's a George Clooney film - what's not to like...?!!

Life of Pi by Yann Martel. I read this after I had seen the film and both are great in different ways. The film is visually stunning in the same way that the book beautifully describes the story of a teenage boy ship-wrecked with just a Bengal tiger for company. 

Swahili for the Broken-Hearted by Peter Moore. This story of one man's journey from Cape Town to Cairo is not the best travel book I've ever read but it did take me back to Africa for a short while.

The 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson. A fun story of one man's long and event-filled life told in a series of flashbacks after he goes on the run from his own 100th birthday party.

If you haven't already seen or read any of these it's worth finding some time for them. Enjoy!

Snow

I awoke this morning to find that it had snowed overnight. I shouldn't have been surprised as the weather forecasters have been predicting this for the last few days. However, over the last couple of weeks there have been definite signs of spring - daffodils appearing, lambs in the fields and slightly warmer temperatures -   so it does seem like a dramatic turnaround.

The view from my kitchen this morning.

There is something quite magical about snow and the fact that we get a relatively small amount of snow in the UK each year means we tend to overreact as soon as the flakes start to fall. People will stay home from work, the trains will stop running, roads will be impassable, schools will be closed and those who venture out will do so in order to start panic buying. Sales of sledges will increase dramatically and snowmen will appear in many gardens. 

People who live in countries that get a lot of snow every year watch the British response to it with wry amusement, whilst those who live in countries who never get snow cannot comprehend what it is like. In March 2009, after an unusually long period of cold weather where the snow had lain on the ground for many weeks, I went to work in South Sudan. I still had the photos I had taken of the snow on my digital camera and I showed them to some of my South Sudanese colleagues. It was clear that they could not imagine what this very different weather must be like - it was totally outside their sphere of reference, as to them it is 'cold' when the temperature drops to around 25C.

Today in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, it is 37C (and the forecast is that it will be over 40C by the end of the week), whereas in Carlisle it is currently -1C. As much as I enjoy the snow I have no doubt about which of those temperatures I prefer...

...and emerging on the other side

It is just over 5 weeks since my operation and in that time my 'world' has been confined largely to the four walls of my house. After what was described by the surgeon as 'successful' surgery and three days in hospital, I was discharged home and have been gradually recovering.

It has been a slow process and I still have some way to go. I have occupied my time by resting, watching DVDs (I've successfully resisted the lure of daytime TV!), reading (although the effort of concentration required is surprisingly tiring...) and idly surfing the internet. I am starting to consciously have times in the day when I feel normal again, which reminds me just how 'abnormal' I have been feeling these last few weeks.

Today is a crisp, clear, sunny, winter's day and for the first time in weeks I felt like I just had to be outside for a while. I walked the short distance down the lane from my house and stood in the sunshine, leaning against a gate. I looked across the fields to the northern Pennine hills, listened to the birds sing, felt the warmth of the sun on my face and thought of Africa.