l very surreal, and the feeling that I'm just going on holiday isn't helped by the fact that it was about 30 degrees and beautiful sunshine when I arrived on Monday. It also wasn't helped by the fact that I was staying in a bed & breakfast for a couple of nights with a beautiful garden - sitting on the patio felt like being back in Australia. On Wednesday, I moved to the Skillshare guesthouse in the suburbs of Mbabane, the capital of Swaziland, where they'd been having some work done. Alas, the move was 
a little premature...I unpacked my suitcases and carefully arranged my books and other bits and pieces. Four hours later when the rains came and the workmen had unhelpfully taken the roof off, my room sprang a massive leak. All the books I had carefully chosen and lugged from the UK ruined...suddenly it wasn't so much like a holiday. Apart from that(!) the guesthouse is really nice, pretty basic but everything you could need (even cable TV and internet).
As you can imagine, at the moment I feel like a bit of a cheat. The outskirts of Mbabane are very quiet and Mbabane itself is relatively safe. It feels a bit like an Australian town with its shopping malls, though a quick look at the bus station dispels that one pretty quickly.
a little premature...I unpacked my suitcases and carefully arranged my books and other bits and pieces. Four hours later when the rains came and the workmen had unhelpfully taken the roof off, my room sprang a massive leak. All the books I had carefully chosen and lugged from the UK ruined...suddenly it wasn't so much like a holiday. Apart from that(!) the guesthouse is really nice, pretty basic but everything you could need (even cable TV and internet).As you can imagine, at the moment I feel like a bit of a cheat. The outskirts of Mbabane are very quiet and Mbabane itself is relatively safe. It feels a bit like an Australian town with its shopping malls, though a quick look at the bus station dispels that one pretty quickly.
The last three days have been settling in and getting organised. I've had sessions on local politics, culture and customs, a medical check and induction stuff like how I'll be paid. I can't apply for a work permit until my Criminal Records check is completed in the UK - submitted on 18 December but still no sign of it. I have 30 days in the country before I have to leave if it doesn't appear...
Despite the slight issue with a work permit, tomorrow is my first day at the office and in Manzini. I'm somewhat alarmed by the fact that FESBC - the Federation of Small (or Swazi, depending on which document you read) Businesses have said that they would like to get my arrival covered by the national newspaper. Apparently this is big news ...gulp. They want the members to see that something good is happening since they set up two years ago. Rest assured that I'll post the press cuttings if it happens...
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