I had forgotten how cold it gets sometimes in the UK!
When I left Hyde last Wednesday morning, dressed in my usually travelling shalwar kurta, I thought I was going to freeze to death as it was only 5 degrees celcius!!
After an extra week in the UK I was finally able to collect my new work visa from the Pakistani Consulate in Rusholme and so am once more legally resident in Karachi.
I had another interesting moment at the airport. After my travels in the summer I have become convinced that by travelling in shalwar kurta I am attracting further security attention. This was further underline by this trip. When I passed through Manchester airport on the way to the Isle of Man, wearing a jumper and trousers, I made my way 'without let or hinderance'. However, when I passed through a week later wearing shalwar kurta, I got to play in the new all over body scanner! I may just be being over sensitive, but I don't think so!
The journey back was fine and although the flight from Manchester was delay by an hour this only meant that I had a five hour lay over in Doha rather than a six hour one. Doha airport is not the most exciting place on earth but it does at least have one major advantage over Dubai, that is, that there is somewhere to sit down!
I was unable to connect my computer to the free WiFi, as whilst in the UK Mr Frost had 'improved' my computer and it had it's usually nervous breakdown after being under his careful ministrations!
This gave me the chance to sit quietly and listen to my iPod and take some time to pray for those people and situations most on my heart at this time. I also spent a lot of the time with my glasses off and it was an interesting situation to be in, surrounded by so many people and yet not be able to see any of them (without my glasses I can see less that three feet in front of me!).
I am now back at work full time though I can't say I am being stretched! The legal niceities still remain unresolved and so we are still not allowed to open or recruit staff or students, though we are hopeful that we might hear some news by the end of the week, Inshallah...
Monday, 18 October 2010
Saturday, 2 October 2010
Dy bannee diu as Failt royd...
Now if I have read it right, the above phrase should say, Hello and Welcome in Manx!
I have taken the opportunity of being back in the UK to pop over to the Isle of Man for a few days to visit my friend Simon. He is currently working for one of the local church as Youth Worker and is have a 'fantastic' time!
I have never been to the island before, though I have flown over it many times on my trips to Belfast. It really is a lovely place and so peaceful and relaxing. I arrived on Wednesday and we went straight back to the office so that Simon could finish off one or two things before going on leave for a couple for days.
The church buildings are amazing and are well used by a variety of ministries. The youth ministry has contact with between 50 and 70 young people every week in the church buliding and up to about 500 through the schools work.
From the office we came back to the cottage. This is a real blessing to Simon and his housemate Darren as it is newly fitted holiday cottage which members of the church have allowed them to rent on a permanant basis. Both bedrooms are en suite and they have Sky television and internet included in their rent!
Thursday we hired a car and made a tour around the island. The island is much bigger than you think and is very beautiful and peaceful. The weather was cool but clear and it was a strange feeling to be wearing both a jumper and a coat!
In the evening we went along to The Key which is the youth group for 14-18 year olds and I was asked to contribute to the discussion they were having about being an Ambassador for Christ. The young people were great and I even received the gift of a Urdu bible from one of them!
Friday was a more gentle day with coffee and cheese on toast at the Velvet Lobster in the morning and a trip to the National Sports Centre in the afternoon for a swim and lounge in the jacuzzi!
This was followed by dinner at Alessandro where the food was delicious, particularly, the Duck and Orange Pate to start and the Lemon Sorbet with Limoncello for dessert!
I will be flying back to the mainland this evening and it has been wonderful to spend these few days with Simon. It has been great to catch up, talk and just to be together. It has also been great seeing Simon so happy and enjoying his life and work here so much. We have also been making plans for Simon to come out and visit me next Easter, Inshallah!
So for now I will say goodbye, Slane lhiat...
I have taken the opportunity of being back in the UK to pop over to the Isle of Man for a few days to visit my friend Simon. He is currently working for one of the local church as Youth Worker and is have a 'fantastic' time!
I have never been to the island before, though I have flown over it many times on my trips to Belfast. It really is a lovely place and so peaceful and relaxing. I arrived on Wednesday and we went straight back to the office so that Simon could finish off one or two things before going on leave for a couple for days.
The church buildings are amazing and are well used by a variety of ministries. The youth ministry has contact with between 50 and 70 young people every week in the church buliding and up to about 500 through the schools work.
From the office we came back to the cottage. This is a real blessing to Simon and his housemate Darren as it is newly fitted holiday cottage which members of the church have allowed them to rent on a permanant basis. Both bedrooms are en suite and they have Sky television and internet included in their rent!
Thursday we hired a car and made a tour around the island. The island is much bigger than you think and is very beautiful and peaceful. The weather was cool but clear and it was a strange feeling to be wearing both a jumper and a coat!
In the evening we went along to The Key which is the youth group for 14-18 year olds and I was asked to contribute to the discussion they were having about being an Ambassador for Christ. The young people were great and I even received the gift of a Urdu bible from one of them!
Friday was a more gentle day with coffee and cheese on toast at the Velvet Lobster in the morning and a trip to the National Sports Centre in the afternoon for a swim and lounge in the jacuzzi!
This was followed by dinner at Alessandro where the food was delicious, particularly, the Duck and Orange Pate to start and the Lemon Sorbet with Limoncello for dessert!
I will be flying back to the mainland this evening and it has been wonderful to spend these few days with Simon. It has been great to catch up, talk and just to be together. It has also been great seeing Simon so happy and enjoying his life and work here so much. We have also been making plans for Simon to come out and visit me next Easter, Inshallah!
So for now I will say goodbye, Slane lhiat...
Friday, 24 September 2010
Here we go again...
In about six hours I will be making the journey to Jinnah International Airport once more. This time I will be boarding an aircraft to take me to Doha and then on to Manchester.
It's going to be a bit of a shock to my system to be in the UK during the autumn, and the news of the cold and wet don't fill me with much enthusiasm! The reason for trip is to renew my work visa. For reasons I don't fully understand why I have to leave the country in order for this process to be completed but mine is not to reason why, mine is but to get on the plane and fly!!
Things are still a little uncertain here. We are still awaiting the final legal permissions so that we can begin advertising for pupils. We are hoping that all the paperwork can be completed soon and that we will be able to open in January.
We have had some constructive meetings this week and are making all the plans so that we will be ready to go as soon as we are given the go ahead. After so many weeks of inactivity it has been good to get back to a sort of working week, and have have something positive to do. The challenge before us is considerable but I am really looking forward to what we are going to be able to achieve here...
It's going to be a bit of a shock to my system to be in the UK during the autumn, and the news of the cold and wet don't fill me with much enthusiasm! The reason for trip is to renew my work visa. For reasons I don't fully understand why I have to leave the country in order for this process to be completed but mine is not to reason why, mine is but to get on the plane and fly!!
Things are still a little uncertain here. We are still awaiting the final legal permissions so that we can begin advertising for pupils. We are hoping that all the paperwork can be completed soon and that we will be able to open in January.
We have had some constructive meetings this week and are making all the plans so that we will be ready to go as soon as we are given the go ahead. After so many weeks of inactivity it has been good to get back to a sort of working week, and have have something positive to do. The challenge before us is considerable but I am really looking forward to what we are going to be able to achieve here...
Friday, 10 September 2010
Alone again, naturally...
(with thanks to Gilbert O'Sullivan).
I am once more home alone, having delivered Thomas to the airport at 3.30am this morning. The journey was made all the more interesting as there had been rain about 8 hours earlier and certain parts of the roads were underwater!
We have had a lovely fortnight and have really done very little, apart from going out for some delicious meals including, Pakistani, Chinese, Italian and Japanese cuisine!!
We did make the trip out to the beach for the day last Tuesday which was well worth it. The road is getting worse and in parts it really is a liberty to call it a road!! Thomas did all the driving which was really blessing for me and a challenge for him, though he rose to the challenge extremely well and we made it there and back in one piece.
We also did a fair amount of TV as well whilst he was here, including both seasons of Life on Mars, which we enjoyed enormously and is the cause of this postings title.
Today marks the beginning of Eid for us here in Pakistan, though the rest of the world celebrated yesterday. This means that tomorrow the whole city will be closed and on holiday and I will be having a quiet day at home.
I found out last week that I will have return to the UK so that my work visa can be issued. This means I will be on a plane on the 25th September and will be there for at least two weeks. Sadly, as the company are paying, I will be travelling economy class rather than my usual business class, I suppose I'll cope...
I am once more home alone, having delivered Thomas to the airport at 3.30am this morning. The journey was made all the more interesting as there had been rain about 8 hours earlier and certain parts of the roads were underwater!
We have had a lovely fortnight and have really done very little, apart from going out for some delicious meals including, Pakistani, Chinese, Italian and Japanese cuisine!!
We did make the trip out to the beach for the day last Tuesday which was well worth it. The road is getting worse and in parts it really is a liberty to call it a road!! Thomas did all the driving which was really blessing for me and a challenge for him, though he rose to the challenge extremely well and we made it there and back in one piece.
We also did a fair amount of TV as well whilst he was here, including both seasons of Life on Mars, which we enjoyed enormously and is the cause of this postings title.
Today marks the beginning of Eid for us here in Pakistan, though the rest of the world celebrated yesterday. This means that tomorrow the whole city will be closed and on holiday and I will be having a quiet day at home.
I found out last week that I will have return to the UK so that my work visa can be issued. This means I will be on a plane on the 25th September and will be there for at least two weeks. Sadly, as the company are paying, I will be travelling economy class rather than my usual business class, I suppose I'll cope...
Wednesday, 1 September 2010
We're now entering extra time...
The original plan was that I would return to Karachi on the 23rd July and start work on the following Monday. This was the plan when school was set to open on 2nd August, however, due to various legal problems, school has been unable to open and so I decided to stay in the UK for a couple more weeks.
I had two reasons for doing this, one, my mum and here husband were celebrating their Silver Wedding anniversary on the 7th August and I wanted to be there to celebrate with them. Secondly, the Scripture Union Camp I have been involved with since 1991 was happening between 23rd and 31st July.
When I first realised that my summer holiday was to be cut short by my change of job I was too worried. After all, four weeks off is all some people get in total and this was just one of my holidays. However, the thought of not being able to go to SUbmerge was really upsetting me. So I was 'up the moon' when I was told that I won't have to return to Karachi until the 8th August.
So on Friday 23rd July rather than heading got Manchester Airport, I fill the car with boxes and equipment and headed of to Salisbury for SUbmerge 2010!
The whole week was amazing and I am so grateful that I was able to be part of it. The them for the week was 'Meeting God in...' and we looked at different ways in which we meet with God, eg in prayer, in tiredness, in adversity, etc.
It was the usual mixture of teaching, praise, fun and just the right amount of gunk!!
The highlight for me was our Prayer Room which we had open for 36 hours continuously with at least two people praying during each hour, sometimes as many as 6 were there. There were a variety of prayer installations in the room ranging from guided liturgical prayer to pray dough!
Alongside our focus on prayer we also enjoy lots of games, time in the pool and on the last day a village fete with inflatable slides and assault course, a space Hopper football tournament and two chocolate fountains!
I love being part of the team and we have become a real family, that is routed in our love of God and each other. Like any family we have our ups and downs and squabbles, but we know in the end we are always there for each other when needed and I am very grateful to God for each and every one of them.
After camp I headed north again and stopped off in Derby for a couple of days to catch up with two of my university friends. I stayed with Dan and we had a proper catch up on the the past year. We also popped round to spend a couple of hours with Siobhan. The three of us shared a house for 2 years when we were at university (though Dan and I shared for 4 yeas in total) and we shared lots of fun and silliness in that time!
We all trained as teachers but I am the only one left teaching. Siobhan is now a theatre sister at Derby Royal Infirmary and Dan is Production Manager at a company that makes incendiary devices.
From Derby it was time to head to Scotland. My other godson Alasdair and his family were visiting the UK from Kenya. So I popped up to meet them in Aberfeldy. It was a long drive but worth it as I get to see them all so infrequently. Ali's older brother, Alban, is starting his first year at Aberdeen this October and so is slowly getting used to the change in temperature, though after 18 years of living in Africa, I'm not sure anything will preparing him for an Aberdonian winter!
After an over night stay it was time to move south again and drop in again on Meg. On the Thursday we had a day out and went first to Hartlepool, hoping to get a sightofthe Tall Ships coming in to harbour. Sadly the tides were against us and we could just make out some of the ships on the horizon. We then went further up the coast to visit the Holy Island of Lindesfarne. This was my first visit and I was surprised to find that it is quite a large island. I had in my mind that there was the abbey and not much else, whereas, there is a whole community there including a school and library.
My last port of call was back in Stalybridge when I appear at my mum's party as a surprise guest! I have to sayit is one of the few times in my life that my mum was lost for words! It was lovely to be there and celebrate with family and friends.
So that brings me back to Karachi. The job situation is still somewhat unknown, but I sure that God has it all in hand and am I learning to trust and rest in God. It's not always easy but with practice it is getting easier...
I had two reasons for doing this, one, my mum and here husband were celebrating their Silver Wedding anniversary on the 7th August and I wanted to be there to celebrate with them. Secondly, the Scripture Union Camp I have been involved with since 1991 was happening between 23rd and 31st July.
When I first realised that my summer holiday was to be cut short by my change of job I was too worried. After all, four weeks off is all some people get in total and this was just one of my holidays. However, the thought of not being able to go to SUbmerge was really upsetting me. So I was 'up the moon' when I was told that I won't have to return to Karachi until the 8th August.
So on Friday 23rd July rather than heading got Manchester Airport, I fill the car with boxes and equipment and headed of to Salisbury for SUbmerge 2010!
The whole week was amazing and I am so grateful that I was able to be part of it. The them for the week was 'Meeting God in...' and we looked at different ways in which we meet with God, eg in prayer, in tiredness, in adversity, etc.
It was the usual mixture of teaching, praise, fun and just the right amount of gunk!!
The highlight for me was our Prayer Room which we had open for 36 hours continuously with at least two people praying during each hour, sometimes as many as 6 were there. There were a variety of prayer installations in the room ranging from guided liturgical prayer to pray dough!
Alongside our focus on prayer we also enjoy lots of games, time in the pool and on the last day a village fete with inflatable slides and assault course, a space Hopper football tournament and two chocolate fountains!
I love being part of the team and we have become a real family, that is routed in our love of God and each other. Like any family we have our ups and downs and squabbles, but we know in the end we are always there for each other when needed and I am very grateful to God for each and every one of them.
After camp I headed north again and stopped off in Derby for a couple of days to catch up with two of my university friends. I stayed with Dan and we had a proper catch up on the the past year. We also popped round to spend a couple of hours with Siobhan. The three of us shared a house for 2 years when we were at university (though Dan and I shared for 4 yeas in total) and we shared lots of fun and silliness in that time!
We all trained as teachers but I am the only one left teaching. Siobhan is now a theatre sister at Derby Royal Infirmary and Dan is Production Manager at a company that makes incendiary devices.
From Derby it was time to head to Scotland. My other godson Alasdair and his family were visiting the UK from Kenya. So I popped up to meet them in Aberfeldy. It was a long drive but worth it as I get to see them all so infrequently. Ali's older brother, Alban, is starting his first year at Aberdeen this October and so is slowly getting used to the change in temperature, though after 18 years of living in Africa, I'm not sure anything will preparing him for an Aberdonian winter!
After an over night stay it was time to move south again and drop in again on Meg. On the Thursday we had a day out and went first to Hartlepool, hoping to get a sightofthe Tall Ships coming in to harbour. Sadly the tides were against us and we could just make out some of the ships on the horizon. We then went further up the coast to visit the Holy Island of Lindesfarne. This was my first visit and I was surprised to find that it is quite a large island. I had in my mind that there was the abbey and not much else, whereas, there is a whole community there including a school and library.
My last port of call was back in Stalybridge when I appear at my mum's party as a surprise guest! I have to sayit is one of the few times in my life that my mum was lost for words! It was lovely to be there and celebrate with family and friends.
So that brings me back to Karachi. The job situation is still somewhat unknown, but I sure that God has it all in hand and am I learning to trust and rest in God. It's not always easy but with practice it is getting easier...
Sunday, 29 August 2010
Forty years on...
Today marks the fortieth anniversary of my arrival on planet Earth. I have had a wonderful weekend celebrating.
Early on Saturday morning, Thomas arrived safely from Cairo and he will be here for two weeks. I left him resting and I went off for a meeting with the school founder. There is no real news about the school's future at the moment we are still waiting on the outcome of a court case, and things do seem to move slowly!
After collecting Thomas we headed of to Clippers for a couple of hours of relaxation and beautifying. Then we called in on Kathy to finalise arrangements for the evening's festivities.
Kathy and Zulfi had very kindly agreed to hosting a dinner in my honour, with Zulfi creating all the food. To say that Zulfi is a good cook is something of an understatement!! So later that evening 12 of us gathered at their house and enjoyed a delicious array of dishes, with cake provided by Pie in the Sky.
My actual birthday was spent very quietly. After church, Thomas and I retired to the apartment and just enjoyed each others company. We ate very little as we were still stuffed from the day before, but we did enjoy a game of Super Scrabble, with all the honours going to the birthday boy!
We toasted the event with some Lindsfarne Mead, which I had bought on my birthday trip with Meg, just before I left the UK. All in all a very enjoyable and relaxing day.
Life begins at Forty or so the saying goes, so I say, let it begin...
Early on Saturday morning, Thomas arrived safely from Cairo and he will be here for two weeks. I left him resting and I went off for a meeting with the school founder. There is no real news about the school's future at the moment we are still waiting on the outcome of a court case, and things do seem to move slowly!
After collecting Thomas we headed of to Clippers for a couple of hours of relaxation and beautifying. Then we called in on Kathy to finalise arrangements for the evening's festivities.
Kathy and Zulfi had very kindly agreed to hosting a dinner in my honour, with Zulfi creating all the food. To say that Zulfi is a good cook is something of an understatement!! So later that evening 12 of us gathered at their house and enjoyed a delicious array of dishes, with cake provided by Pie in the Sky.
My actual birthday was spent very quietly. After church, Thomas and I retired to the apartment and just enjoyed each others company. We ate very little as we were still stuffed from the day before, but we did enjoy a game of Super Scrabble, with all the honours going to the birthday boy!
We toasted the event with some Lindsfarne Mead, which I had bought on my birthday trip with Meg, just before I left the UK. All in all a very enjoyable and relaxing day.
Life begins at Forty or so the saying goes, so I say, let it begin...
Monday, 23 August 2010
Capital ideas...
From Belfast I left for my annual pilgramage to the Capital.
Thanks to Airmiles, my journey was once again without cost! Though my travels did give me something to think about.
I have taken to flying in shalwar kameez, traditional Pakiatani dress, as it is very comfortable and contains no metal or belts that need removing at security. However, it has made me more noticable to security staff. On each of my last 6 flights I have been stopped at least once for extra security checks! I may be being paranoid, but I suspect my attire is what is causing the extra interest! I wonder what would happen if I travelled in my dog collar?
I stayed at the Highbury Centre whilst I was in London, which is a Christian Centre set up to provide accommodation for missionaries on furlough. They also let rooms to others when they have spare capacity. It provides a nice place to stay at a very reasonable cost.
Friday I made my way to the British Museum to met my friend James for lunch. We ate in the museum restuarant which was superb, expensive, but superb. It was great to catch up with all his news, as James lives one of the most interesting lives of anyone I know!
He is currently working as a Manny (a male nanny) whilst at the same time running a stall at Brick Lane Market at the weekends. In his spare time he is a food critic and has a couple of other sidelines as well!! In fact the day after we met he was drive a dog to the South of France, but that's James!
Friday evening was my fourth and finally trip to the theatre when along with Kirsten I went to see Sister Act. It was a fantastic production, very similar plot to the film but with all new music. The sets were fantastic and the cast superb. Also it was apparent during the final number, how suitable the vestments of the Church of Rome are for decoration with sequins!
Saturday was a trip out on the train up to High Wycombe to see Rob, Elizabeth and Emily. It was amazing to see how much Emily had grown in just the few short weeks since she had left Karachi. It was good to catch up and hear their plans for the future.
Saturday evening I was back in the West End for dinner with David. David is one of my former pupils who is now living and working in London designing, 'spaces'! This can be sets for theatrical performances or spaces at festivals like Greenbelt. As coincidence would have it, David's latest project is preparing the sets of Sister Act for its UK tour and transfer to Broadway!
Sunday it was once more to the airport for a flight back to Manchester and to collect another hire car. I have never been particularly bothered by cars, but I have to confess I really did enjoy driving two very new cars whilst in the UK. They were nothing special just very new and a pleasure to drive.
My fourth week in the UK started with another lunch to catch up with a friend. This time it was Jane and we met up in the Trafford centre for a bite to eat and a little light retail therapy.
The following day I met up with my mum and her friend Barbara for our 'last' lunch before I returned to Karachi. You see although I had been able to extend my summer holiday by two weeks, I hadn't mentioned this to mother. My reason being that she and her husband were celebrating their Silver Wedding anniversity on 7th August. I had already told her that I wouldn't be able to be there, so I decided to let her carry on thinking that so that I could surprise her, but more of that later...
Thanks to Airmiles, my journey was once again without cost! Though my travels did give me something to think about.
I have taken to flying in shalwar kameez, traditional Pakiatani dress, as it is very comfortable and contains no metal or belts that need removing at security. However, it has made me more noticable to security staff. On each of my last 6 flights I have been stopped at least once for extra security checks! I may be being paranoid, but I suspect my attire is what is causing the extra interest! I wonder what would happen if I travelled in my dog collar?
I stayed at the Highbury Centre whilst I was in London, which is a Christian Centre set up to provide accommodation for missionaries on furlough. They also let rooms to others when they have spare capacity. It provides a nice place to stay at a very reasonable cost.
Friday I made my way to the British Museum to met my friend James for lunch. We ate in the museum restuarant which was superb, expensive, but superb. It was great to catch up with all his news, as James lives one of the most interesting lives of anyone I know!
He is currently working as a Manny (a male nanny) whilst at the same time running a stall at Brick Lane Market at the weekends. In his spare time he is a food critic and has a couple of other sidelines as well!! In fact the day after we met he was drive a dog to the South of France, but that's James!
Friday evening was my fourth and finally trip to the theatre when along with Kirsten I went to see Sister Act. It was a fantastic production, very similar plot to the film but with all new music. The sets were fantastic and the cast superb. Also it was apparent during the final number, how suitable the vestments of the Church of Rome are for decoration with sequins!
Saturday was a trip out on the train up to High Wycombe to see Rob, Elizabeth and Emily. It was amazing to see how much Emily had grown in just the few short weeks since she had left Karachi. It was good to catch up and hear their plans for the future.
Saturday evening I was back in the West End for dinner with David. David is one of my former pupils who is now living and working in London designing, 'spaces'! This can be sets for theatrical performances or spaces at festivals like Greenbelt. As coincidence would have it, David's latest project is preparing the sets of Sister Act for its UK tour and transfer to Broadway!
Sunday it was once more to the airport for a flight back to Manchester and to collect another hire car. I have never been particularly bothered by cars, but I have to confess I really did enjoy driving two very new cars whilst in the UK. They were nothing special just very new and a pleasure to drive.
My fourth week in the UK started with another lunch to catch up with a friend. This time it was Jane and we met up in the Trafford centre for a bite to eat and a little light retail therapy.
The following day I met up with my mum and her friend Barbara for our 'last' lunch before I returned to Karachi. You see although I had been able to extend my summer holiday by two weeks, I hadn't mentioned this to mother. My reason being that she and her husband were celebrating their Silver Wedding anniversity on 7th August. I had already told her that I wouldn't be able to be there, so I decided to let her carry on thinking that so that I could surprise her, but more of that later...
Monday, 16 August 2010
And there's more...
We are now into my second week in the UK and you find me back in Hyde. After a couple of meals out catching up with friends the main events of the week were focused around my mother.
On the Thursday I went round to mum's house to help her prepare for her talk to the church social the following Saturday. She had been invited to talk about her visit to Karachi and she had asked me to help. We put together a Powerpoint presentation and decided what we would talk about. Then in the evening it was time for my third theatre trip of the holiday when mum and I went to see 'Oh What a lovely War' at the Guide Bridge Theatre.
Friday evening found me back at Holy Trinity for a Street Pastors Commissioning Service. Street Pastors is an inter-denominational Church response to urban problems, engaging with people on the streets to care, listen and dialogue.
It was pioneered in London in January 2003 by Rev Les Isaac, Director of the Ascension Trust, and has seen some remarkable results, including drops in crime in areas where teams have been working. There are now over 100 teams around the United Kingdom.
Each city project is set up by Ascension Trust and run by a local coordinator with support from Ascension Trust and local churches and community groups, in partnership with Police, Council and other statutory agencies.http://www.streetpastors.co.uk
My godson Thomas' parents have both been commissioned as Street Pastors along with 12 others, with Angela (Thoams' mum) being the overall co-ordinator.
It was great to be there to see all these people sent out in Jesus' name to be his hands and feet to the people of Stalybridge. It was also great to see four churches in Stalybridge all working together to proclaim the gospel in such a practical way.
Saturday evening Mum and I went along to Stalybridge Congreagational Church for their Cheese and Wine Evening which included Mum's presentation on her trip to Karachi. I 'interfered' a couple of times to add a little more detail and explanation and the evening went very well indeed with everyone enjoying the presentation.
I was back there on Sunday morning to lead and preach at their morning service. It's always a pleasure to go back to the church where I grew up as a child and this was the first time I was able to attend wearing my dog collar. If I was ever in the market for a pastorate, I know they would welcome me with open arms, though for the time being I know that is not what God is calling me to.
The afternoon was spent celebrating my 40th birthday with my family and some friends at mum's house. Mum had put on a barbeque and a running buffet a variety of relatives and friends were in attendance. It was a lovely afternoon and one of the many events being held this year to celebrate my 40 years on the earth!
Monday saw the start of my 'holiday' week courtsey of my accumulated Airmiles. I was able to book flights from Manchester to Belfast and Manchester to London all for the princely sum of £0.00, including taxes and fees! This meant I able to pop over to Belfast to see David and Katey. When I arrived the house was full of all Katey's siblings and spouses and KIrsten and Philip, their children. This was because they had spent the weekend celebrating David's 65th and Katey's 60th birthday.
Most of the assembled throng disappeared on various flights during the afternoon leaving David, Katey, Martin, Ali and me. The following day the whole group went off to spend my accumulated birthday money. We popped out to Currys to buy myself a Sony e-reader. Unfortunately, both Currys and PC only offer the aforementioned device on their websites and not in their stores. Thankfully, there was a Sony store in Newtonards so our quest was successful. The eReader is a fantastic little device, about the size and weight of a paperback, with the capacity to conatain about 600 books. There only draw back is as they are powered by a battery, you cannot use them during take off and landing, I kid you not...
On the Thursday I went round to mum's house to help her prepare for her talk to the church social the following Saturday. She had been invited to talk about her visit to Karachi and she had asked me to help. We put together a Powerpoint presentation and decided what we would talk about. Then in the evening it was time for my third theatre trip of the holiday when mum and I went to see 'Oh What a lovely War' at the Guide Bridge Theatre.
Friday evening found me back at Holy Trinity for a Street Pastors Commissioning Service. Street Pastors is an inter-denominational Church response to urban problems, engaging with people on the streets to care, listen and dialogue.
It was pioneered in London in January 2003 by Rev Les Isaac, Director of the Ascension Trust, and has seen some remarkable results, including drops in crime in areas where teams have been working. There are now over 100 teams around the United Kingdom.
Each city project is set up by Ascension Trust and run by a local coordinator with support from Ascension Trust and local churches and community groups, in partnership with Police, Council and other statutory agencies.http://www.streetpastors.co.uk
My godson Thomas' parents have both been commissioned as Street Pastors along with 12 others, with Angela (Thoams' mum) being the overall co-ordinator.
It was great to be there to see all these people sent out in Jesus' name to be his hands and feet to the people of Stalybridge. It was also great to see four churches in Stalybridge all working together to proclaim the gospel in such a practical way.
Saturday evening Mum and I went along to Stalybridge Congreagational Church for their Cheese and Wine Evening which included Mum's presentation on her trip to Karachi. I 'interfered' a couple of times to add a little more detail and explanation and the evening went very well indeed with everyone enjoying the presentation.
I was back there on Sunday morning to lead and preach at their morning service. It's always a pleasure to go back to the church where I grew up as a child and this was the first time I was able to attend wearing my dog collar. If I was ever in the market for a pastorate, I know they would welcome me with open arms, though for the time being I know that is not what God is calling me to.
The afternoon was spent celebrating my 40th birthday with my family and some friends at mum's house. Mum had put on a barbeque and a running buffet a variety of relatives and friends were in attendance. It was a lovely afternoon and one of the many events being held this year to celebrate my 40 years on the earth!
Monday saw the start of my 'holiday' week courtsey of my accumulated Airmiles. I was able to book flights from Manchester to Belfast and Manchester to London all for the princely sum of £0.00, including taxes and fees! This meant I able to pop over to Belfast to see David and Katey. When I arrived the house was full of all Katey's siblings and spouses and KIrsten and Philip, their children. This was because they had spent the weekend celebrating David's 65th and Katey's 60th birthday.
Most of the assembled throng disappeared on various flights during the afternoon leaving David, Katey, Martin, Ali and me. The following day the whole group went off to spend my accumulated birthday money. We popped out to Currys to buy myself a Sony e-reader. Unfortunately, both Currys and PC only offer the aforementioned device on their websites and not in their stores. Thankfully, there was a Sony store in Newtonards so our quest was successful. The eReader is a fantastic little device, about the size and weight of a paperback, with the capacity to conatain about 600 books. There only draw back is as they are powered by a battery, you cannot use them during take off and landing, I kid you not...
Monday, 9 August 2010
It's been a while...
Apologies for my absence from this pages over the last six weeks, but my time in the UK has passed in something of a blur. I have managed to fit an incredible amount into my time at home and have caught up with nearly everyone I wanted to see.
I arrived after a very pleasant flight and settled myself into my temporary home with my friends Bill and Gwen. In the past I have had use of the flat over their music shop, but this year I was upgraded to a room in the house! I am very grateful to both Bill and Gwen for allowing just to come and go, in fact at times I was the only one resisdent as they were off having adventures in their little camper van!
My first port of call was to Kong's the chippy on Market Street in Hyde. I had been dreaming about the place for about the last month in Karachi and I was desperate to taste their products. I can honestly say that I was salivating by the time it was my turn to be served and meat and potato pie, chips and gravy tasted absolutely divine! This was accompanied by a butter muffin and a glass of ice cold cider, I was a very happy man once I had that lot inside me!
I also went round to see my mum and say hello and then headed off round the corner to my sister's apartment. I told her that my holiday had been extended and that I hadn't yet told mum. We decided together that we would keep it secret and so that I could surprise mum at her Silver Wedding anniversary party.
Sunday morning I made my way to my home church of Holy Trinity and Christ Church, Stalybridge, where it was lovely to catch up with old friends and also see so many new faces as part of the congregation. It is over 5 years now since I left HTCC to go to Barnsley but I still consider it my spiritual home.
In the afternoon it was off to Darlington to catch up with Meg and put the finishing touches to the programme for SUbmerge 2010. Admist all the work we were able to fit in the first of my 4 theatre trips as we went to see an amatuer production of My Fair Lady at Yarm. The girl playing Eliza was excellent but the production as a whole lack pace which meant that what is always a long show, seemed to go on for ever!
Thursday took me to Redcar to see james and his parents and we headed off to Middleborough to see Waiting for Gateux starring LIsa Riley. The play was set in a slimming club and was really funny, the best lines being the rewritten lyrics of My Favourite things from The Sound of Music. Their lyrics went 'Mars bars and Kit Kats, Yorkies and Snickers, Bags of Malteasers I hide in my knickers, big bowls of trifle with lashings of cream, these are a few of my favourite things"!
I popped back to Stalybridge on the Friday evening to support a jazz night that was being held at HTCC. I only managed to stay until the interval when through a combination of the rather bland nature of the music and the call of Kong's Chippy I made my way to Bill and Gwen's armed with another portion of my favourite meal!
Saturday morning It was over the hills and far away to Finningley where my good friend and former boss is now Rector of Finningley and Chaplain to Doncaster Sheffield airport. Neil and Catherine are also originally from HTCC though they left back in 1998 to train fof the Anglican Ministry. Along with their three children they move to Finningley a couple of years ago and are very settled in to life in the villages and the churches. The congregations are growing and it was a pleasure to join both churches for their services. We were also able to have a celebration of my 40th birthday with a delicious Chinese Banquet.
The end of my first week found me in South Kirby in Yorkshire staying with my friends Susan and Daniel where there was more catching up and delicious food, including their world famous roast lamb and bacon and eggs for breakfast!
On that note I will leave you for now, to be continued...
I arrived after a very pleasant flight and settled myself into my temporary home with my friends Bill and Gwen. In the past I have had use of the flat over their music shop, but this year I was upgraded to a room in the house! I am very grateful to both Bill and Gwen for allowing just to come and go, in fact at times I was the only one resisdent as they were off having adventures in their little camper van!
My first port of call was to Kong's the chippy on Market Street in Hyde. I had been dreaming about the place for about the last month in Karachi and I was desperate to taste their products. I can honestly say that I was salivating by the time it was my turn to be served and meat and potato pie, chips and gravy tasted absolutely divine! This was accompanied by a butter muffin and a glass of ice cold cider, I was a very happy man once I had that lot inside me!
I also went round to see my mum and say hello and then headed off round the corner to my sister's apartment. I told her that my holiday had been extended and that I hadn't yet told mum. We decided together that we would keep it secret and so that I could surprise mum at her Silver Wedding anniversary party.
Sunday morning I made my way to my home church of Holy Trinity and Christ Church, Stalybridge, where it was lovely to catch up with old friends and also see so many new faces as part of the congregation. It is over 5 years now since I left HTCC to go to Barnsley but I still consider it my spiritual home.
In the afternoon it was off to Darlington to catch up with Meg and put the finishing touches to the programme for SUbmerge 2010. Admist all the work we were able to fit in the first of my 4 theatre trips as we went to see an amatuer production of My Fair Lady at Yarm. The girl playing Eliza was excellent but the production as a whole lack pace which meant that what is always a long show, seemed to go on for ever!
Thursday took me to Redcar to see james and his parents and we headed off to Middleborough to see Waiting for Gateux starring LIsa Riley. The play was set in a slimming club and was really funny, the best lines being the rewritten lyrics of My Favourite things from The Sound of Music. Their lyrics went 'Mars bars and Kit Kats, Yorkies and Snickers, Bags of Malteasers I hide in my knickers, big bowls of trifle with lashings of cream, these are a few of my favourite things"!
I popped back to Stalybridge on the Friday evening to support a jazz night that was being held at HTCC. I only managed to stay until the interval when through a combination of the rather bland nature of the music and the call of Kong's Chippy I made my way to Bill and Gwen's armed with another portion of my favourite meal!
Saturday morning It was over the hills and far away to Finningley where my good friend and former boss is now Rector of Finningley and Chaplain to Doncaster Sheffield airport. Neil and Catherine are also originally from HTCC though they left back in 1998 to train fof the Anglican Ministry. Along with their three children they move to Finningley a couple of years ago and are very settled in to life in the villages and the churches. The congregations are growing and it was a pleasure to join both churches for their services. We were also able to have a celebration of my 40th birthday with a delicious Chinese Banquet.
The end of my first week found me in South Kirby in Yorkshire staying with my friends Susan and Daniel where there was more catching up and delicious food, including their world famous roast lamb and bacon and eggs for breakfast!
On that note I will leave you for now, to be continued...
Sunday, 20 June 2010
I hate moving house...
There are many things in life that are unpleasant but one of the worst, as far as I am concerned, is moving house.
By the age of 18 I had only moved house 4 times. Between 18 an 24 I move house 6 times, on average once every 12 months! 24 to 35 was my most stable period as I remained in the same house for that entire period. On leaving Stalybridge in 2005, I started my nomadic lifestyle once more having moved 4 times in the last five years!
So I find myself once again on the move. I have already moved most of my furniture to the new apartment so this weekend we have been concentrating on the kitchen and bedrooms. The ever wonderful Rex has been here for several hours helping and most things are now ready for the move on Wednesday. I will miss living here on 8th Street, the neighbours, both below and to the sides are great and it is handy for all the things I need.
The new place is great, a little smaller than here with only two bedrooms and no dining room but that isn't really a problem as I never used the dining room when I had it! Also the apartment is full of only my stuff which makes it feel a lot more homely.
Andrew, Tamkeen and I went around last Saturday to put up al the pictures and other various wall hangings. This included my UK and Pakistan flags, which despite Mr Ryan declaring them 'common', are now displayed in my hallway!!
There are just 4 and half days left at BOS, and most of the hard work is over for us in the Secondary school. Reports went out last Friday so we just have the Interhouse competition to go on Friday and then it will all be over!
I am booked on the 6am flight on Saturday and will be back in Manchester at 13.15 In'shallah. I did have some good news this week, in that I am now not required to return until 9th August, which means I get to spend another couple of weeks in the UK which is great. It also means that I will be able to be part of SUbmerge 2010 which I am delighted about.
Things at the new school are still a little up in the air, but after six weeks on holiday I am sure I will be able to cope with whatever comes my way...
By the age of 18 I had only moved house 4 times. Between 18 an 24 I move house 6 times, on average once every 12 months! 24 to 35 was my most stable period as I remained in the same house for that entire period. On leaving Stalybridge in 2005, I started my nomadic lifestyle once more having moved 4 times in the last five years!
So I find myself once again on the move. I have already moved most of my furniture to the new apartment so this weekend we have been concentrating on the kitchen and bedrooms. The ever wonderful Rex has been here for several hours helping and most things are now ready for the move on Wednesday. I will miss living here on 8th Street, the neighbours, both below and to the sides are great and it is handy for all the things I need.
The new place is great, a little smaller than here with only two bedrooms and no dining room but that isn't really a problem as I never used the dining room when I had it! Also the apartment is full of only my stuff which makes it feel a lot more homely.
Andrew, Tamkeen and I went around last Saturday to put up al the pictures and other various wall hangings. This included my UK and Pakistan flags, which despite Mr Ryan declaring them 'common', are now displayed in my hallway!!
There are just 4 and half days left at BOS, and most of the hard work is over for us in the Secondary school. Reports went out last Friday so we just have the Interhouse competition to go on Friday and then it will all be over!
I am booked on the 6am flight on Saturday and will be back in Manchester at 13.15 In'shallah. I did have some good news this week, in that I am now not required to return until 9th August, which means I get to spend another couple of weeks in the UK which is great. It also means that I will be able to be part of SUbmerge 2010 which I am delighted about.
Things at the new school are still a little up in the air, but after six weeks on holiday I am sure I will be able to cope with whatever comes my way...
Sunday, 6 June 2010
And the rains came...
The population of Karachi have been tracking the progress of Tropical Storm Phet for the last week, as it's been brewing just of the coast in the Arabian Sea.
It made landfall in Oman on Thursday and cause disruption to oil and gas production and killing two people.
Phet then headed back out to sea and made landfall here in Karachi in the early hours of this morning. This has meant heavy rains on and off all day and for me no electricity since 2am this morning!
The rain and standing water made the journey to church, this morning, slightly more difficult than usual. It also meant that the congregation was significantly reduced. The first service, whilst never heaving, had only 2 members in the congregration. The following service had only about 20 people as opposed to usual 150 or so. We were also without a musician, so as well as preaching, I was appointed cantor for the service!!! Apparently, me leading the singing is bettter than nothing, I'm not so sure!
The public exams start again tomorrow and 'come hell or high water' we will be open to allow our students to sit the papers...
It made landfall in Oman on Thursday and cause disruption to oil and gas production and killing two people.
Phet then headed back out to sea and made landfall here in Karachi in the early hours of this morning. This has meant heavy rains on and off all day and for me no electricity since 2am this morning!
The rain and standing water made the journey to church, this morning, slightly more difficult than usual. It also meant that the congregation was significantly reduced. The first service, whilst never heaving, had only 2 members in the congregration. The following service had only about 20 people as opposed to usual 150 or so. We were also without a musician, so as well as preaching, I was appointed cantor for the service!!! Apparently, me leading the singing is bettter than nothing, I'm not so sure!
The public exams start again tomorrow and 'come hell or high water' we will be open to allow our students to sit the papers...
Thursday, 6 May 2010
Looking back, looking forward...
I start this posting with a couple of quotes from earlier entries
"One of the most challenging parts of the Christmas Story, for me, are the words above, spoken by Mary to Gabriel, after being told she would be the mother of Jesus.
Mary was probably no more than 14 years old when the angel came to her. She lived in a society where an unmarried mother faced being stoned. Yet when Gabriel outlined God's plan to her, her response was, 'I am the servant of the Lord. May it be to me as you have said.'
I have to be honest, this has not always been my response. There have been times when I have struggled to accept God's will and even time when I have actively worked against. However, every time I hear Mary's words, I am challenged once again.
My prayer for 2010 is that I might be the servant of the Lord, and be as willing as Mary to accept God's direction of my life."
"As to what else this year may hold, I am happy to say 'I don't know'! But this I do know, that as I go out into the darkness I can put my hand into the hand of God and that shall be better to me than light and safer than a known way..."
My reason for quoting these passages, is that this year has not quite panned out as I was expecting. When I wrote those words at the beginning of the year, I thought that I knew where I would be living and working and also what the year would bring.
However, all my plans have been thrown up in the air and now I am certain of very little. The reason for this turmoil is that I made some decisions back in March that have change almost everything that I had planned.
Following discussions with the Principal at BOS I decided that I would resign and move on from the school. My main reason for this was that I wished to spend more time in the classroom and less time in administration and paper pushing. Whilst I have enjoyed some of the aspects of being Head, I have missed the more direct contact with the students.
My decision to leave now left me needing to find a new job. I knew that I did not want to return to the UK, it's a nice place to visit, but I don't want to live there! I also really wanted to stay here in Pakistan if that were possible. I can't quite explain why I love this place so much but I do!
I started to look through job adverts on line and began applying for jobs in a variety of locations including Zambia, Malawi and Egypt. I then had a coversation with a returning member of the congregation at the cathedral. Colin had returned to Karachi to be founding Principal of a brand new school.
I arranged to go and met him the following day and a few days later I was offered the position of Head of Science at Barrett Hodgeson International School, which I was happy to accept.
Although, this new post gives me exactly what I wanted, to stay here in Karachi, there are aspects of the job that are difficult.
One is that that the new school year will start for me on the 26th July, which will only give me a four week summer holiday. Now I know for many of you, that you haven't had long summer holiday since you left school, for me this will be the shortest I have ever had in 40 years!
It also means that for the first time since 1991 I will be unable to serve as part of a Scripture Union team. Submerge 2010 starts on July 24th, the day I will be flying back to Karachi.
Also my plan to visit Thomas in Cairo to celebrate my 40th birthday has also had to be cancelled. There just isn't enough time in four weeks to visit England and Egypt. Though I am hoping to get there later in the year, but that will depend on when my holidays fall.
So the future is not what I thought it would be. God has taken me at my word and taken me by the hand and is leading down the path He would like me to tread. And how do I feel about this? Excited and terrified at the same time! I am excited by the opportunity to influence the setting up a school. Excited at having access to a brand new building that is fully equipped, including a swimming pool and gym. Terrified by the number of questions that only have the answer, 'I don't know'!
As I said to a friend in an email a few weeks ago, 'it's hard when God asks you to live out all those sermons on trust that I have preached over the years'! But of this I am convinced, God can be trusted and I know that whatever He calls me to do, He will be there with me. It doesn't mean it will always be easy, but it does mean that I will not be alone.
I would very much value your prayers, as I put my hand into the hand of God and step out into the unknown...
"One of the most challenging parts of the Christmas Story, for me, are the words above, spoken by Mary to Gabriel, after being told she would be the mother of Jesus.
Mary was probably no more than 14 years old when the angel came to her. She lived in a society where an unmarried mother faced being stoned. Yet when Gabriel outlined God's plan to her, her response was, 'I am the servant of the Lord. May it be to me as you have said.'
I have to be honest, this has not always been my response. There have been times when I have struggled to accept God's will and even time when I have actively worked against. However, every time I hear Mary's words, I am challenged once again.
My prayer for 2010 is that I might be the servant of the Lord, and be as willing as Mary to accept God's direction of my life."
My reason for quoting these passages, is that this year has not quite panned out as I was expecting. When I wrote those words at the beginning of the year, I thought that I knew where I would be living and working and also what the year would bring.
However, all my plans have been thrown up in the air and now I am certain of very little. The reason for this turmoil is that I made some decisions back in March that have change almost everything that I had planned.
Following discussions with the Principal at BOS I decided that I would resign and move on from the school. My main reason for this was that I wished to spend more time in the classroom and less time in administration and paper pushing. Whilst I have enjoyed some of the aspects of being Head, I have missed the more direct contact with the students.
My decision to leave now left me needing to find a new job. I knew that I did not want to return to the UK, it's a nice place to visit, but I don't want to live there! I also really wanted to stay here in Pakistan if that were possible. I can't quite explain why I love this place so much but I do!
I started to look through job adverts on line and began applying for jobs in a variety of locations including Zambia, Malawi and Egypt. I then had a coversation with a returning member of the congregation at the cathedral. Colin had returned to Karachi to be founding Principal of a brand new school.
I arranged to go and met him the following day and a few days later I was offered the position of Head of Science at Barrett Hodgeson International School, which I was happy to accept.
Although, this new post gives me exactly what I wanted, to stay here in Karachi, there are aspects of the job that are difficult.
One is that that the new school year will start for me on the 26th July, which will only give me a four week summer holiday. Now I know for many of you, that you haven't had long summer holiday since you left school, for me this will be the shortest I have ever had in 40 years!
It also means that for the first time since 1991 I will be unable to serve as part of a Scripture Union team. Submerge 2010 starts on July 24th, the day I will be flying back to Karachi.
Also my plan to visit Thomas in Cairo to celebrate my 40th birthday has also had to be cancelled. There just isn't enough time in four weeks to visit England and Egypt. Though I am hoping to get there later in the year, but that will depend on when my holidays fall.
So the future is not what I thought it would be. God has taken me at my word and taken me by the hand and is leading down the path He would like me to tread. And how do I feel about this? Excited and terrified at the same time! I am excited by the opportunity to influence the setting up a school. Excited at having access to a brand new building that is fully equipped, including a swimming pool and gym. Terrified by the number of questions that only have the answer, 'I don't know'!
As I said to a friend in an email a few weeks ago, 'it's hard when God asks you to live out all those sermons on trust that I have preached over the years'! But of this I am convinced, God can be trusted and I know that whatever He calls me to do, He will be there with me. It doesn't mean it will always be easy, but it does mean that I will not be alone.
I would very much value your prayers, as I put my hand into the hand of God and step out into the unknown...
Monday, 29 March 2010
Ode to a Grecian Urn...
I am pleased to report that the school trip to Greece was a remarkable success and that we all arrived safely back in Karachi in the early hours of last Friday morning.
We had a great time in the 'cradle of civilisation' amd we saw all the sights.
We started by driving out to Sounion and saw the Temple of Poseiden and this was followed by the tour around Athens to see the Acropolis and Parthenon. We also saw the Temple of Zeus and observed the preparations for National Day on 25th March.
We also visited the New Acropolis Museum to see the many relics of the acropolis are now housed. Some, however, are still in the British Museum in London thanks to the 19th century dealings of one Lord Elgin!
On the Tuesday we had a whole out on a boat on the Aegean Sea visiting three islands, Poros, Hydra and Aegina. The only way to describe them is beautiful, looking just as you expect Greek Islands to look with ttheir blue and white houses and cafes.
We had a great time in the 'cradle of civilisation' amd we saw all the sights.
We started by driving out to Sounion and saw the Temple of Poseiden and this was followed by the tour around Athens to see the Acropolis and Parthenon. We also saw the Temple of Zeus and observed the preparations for National Day on 25th March.
We also visited the New Acropolis Museum to see the many relics of the acropolis are now housed. Some, however, are still in the British Museum in London thanks to the 19th century dealings of one Lord Elgin!
On the Tuesday we had a whole out on a boat on the Aegean Sea visiting three islands, Poros, Hydra and Aegina. The only way to describe them is beautiful, looking just as you expect Greek Islands to look with ttheir blue and white houses and cafes. The following day we set off across the country to Olympia to set the birth place of the original Olympic Games. On the way we passed over the Corinth Canal and the Epidarus Theatre. On the Thursday we were able to see the remains of the Temple of Zeus, which once housed the Statue of Zeus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient world which are
- Hanging Gardens of Babylon
- Statue of Zeus at Olympia
- Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
- Mausoleum of Maussollos at Halicarnassus
- Colossus of Rhodes
- Lighthouse of Alexandria
- Great Pyramid of Giza
Friday, 19 March 2010
Don't anyone touch the marbles...
It's twenty to midnight on a school night and I am still sat at the computer. This is because I am waiting to be picked up and taken back to school so that we can head off for the school visit to Athens.
As ever in this country, the organisation of the trip has not been completely plain sailing!! A week last Wednesday I received a call to say that the Pakistani half of the group had had their visas refused!! This was not good news!
Thus started 6 days of stress and consternation for all involved. I could go through the whole story, but really I haven't got the energy at this time night. Suffice to say, the whole thing was a complete farce, in fact at one point I thought I should put on my dog collar, take of my trousers and run round with a standard lamp!! Finally, thanks to the help of one of our parents, and the diplomatic staff of three countries, and that didn't include Pakistan, the visas were finally issued last Tuesday.
Therefore, 40 students and 6 staff will be meeting at school in just over an hour and heading off to the airport to begin our big adventure. We are going to see all the sights and sounds of the Greek capital and will spend one day cruising around some of the islands.
There will definitely be an educational aspect to the trip, not least as no-one seemed to understand the references to 'not stealing the marbles' made by the Head of Maths today. Time to reintroduce Classics me thinks...
As ever in this country, the organisation of the trip has not been completely plain sailing!! A week last Wednesday I received a call to say that the Pakistani half of the group had had their visas refused!! This was not good news!
Thus started 6 days of stress and consternation for all involved. I could go through the whole story, but really I haven't got the energy at this time night. Suffice to say, the whole thing was a complete farce, in fact at one point I thought I should put on my dog collar, take of my trousers and run round with a standard lamp!! Finally, thanks to the help of one of our parents, and the diplomatic staff of three countries, and that didn't include Pakistan, the visas were finally issued last Tuesday.
Therefore, 40 students and 6 staff will be meeting at school in just over an hour and heading off to the airport to begin our big adventure. We are going to see all the sights and sounds of the Greek capital and will spend one day cruising around some of the islands.
There will definitely be an educational aspect to the trip, not least as no-one seemed to understand the references to 'not stealing the marbles' made by the Head of Maths today. Time to reintroduce Classics me thinks...
Sunday, 7 March 2010
Howzat...
I know this might take some believing, but last Friday I actually went out to watch some live cricket! Dave Watson has some tickets and so we had a boy's night out watching the Islamabad Leopards versus Faisalabad Wolves in the domestic 20/20 Cricket. This was the first time that I have seen cricket live and the first time I have watched live sport in Pakistan, so I have managed to tick two boxes for the price of one!!
Sadly, my first exposure to cricket was not the finest example of the noble game. The Leopards were 103 for their 20 overs, which is not a particularly good score. The Wolves came out, and after a little nifty bowling by the Leopards in the opening over, which dismissed the first batsman, they made relatively short work of achieving their goal. They manage to score the only 6 of the match on their last ball which took them to 106 and won them the game.
After our sporting fixture, Dave and I headed off towards Tariq Road and to nice little Chinese restaurant and indulged in some very tasty food. When I dropped Dave off I was able to collect a couple of items that he had brought back from his recent trip to the UK, namely Angel Delight and Carmelised Red Onion Chutney!
This last month has been a very busy one with the School Arts Week, including the performances of 'Hobson's Choice'. I am pleased to report that the whole week went very well. The opening night was 'An Evening of Poetry, Music and Drama' Year 7 gave a recital of an Urdu poem, Year 8 were the Crazy Chefs which would probably have started a dipolmatic incident had been seen outside of school!! Year 9 gave an excellent rendition of Act 1 of Macbeth. Mixed in between these bigger pieces were performances by the choir, who presented three songs by the Beatles.
Thursday and Friday saw two fantastic performances of Hobson's Choice. We were using an updated version which turned the Hobson family from an 1880's Lancashire family into a modern day family of Pakistani immigrants. The cast were brilliant and pulled off the comedy to great effect. The audience were very impressed and everyone enjoyed it enormously.
The rest of the month became a rather large headache, as we were trying to organise a Geography Field Trip to Muscat in Oman. The problem is that Pakistanis need to have their visas approved before travel and for one reason or another they didn't come through on time. Unfortunately, this meant that the trip had to be cancelled.
There are now just two weeks until the end of term, which will see about 50 staff and students head off to Athens for a week of culture and fun. This of course depends on the Italian Consulate issuing the Schegen visas in time. We have been assured that this will happen, though the assurance was followed by, Inshallah...
Sadly, my first exposure to cricket was not the finest example of the noble game. The Leopards were 103 for their 20 overs, which is not a particularly good score. The Wolves came out, and after a little nifty bowling by the Leopards in the opening over, which dismissed the first batsman, they made relatively short work of achieving their goal. They manage to score the only 6 of the match on their last ball which took them to 106 and won them the game.
After our sporting fixture, Dave and I headed off towards Tariq Road and to nice little Chinese restaurant and indulged in some very tasty food. When I dropped Dave off I was able to collect a couple of items that he had brought back from his recent trip to the UK, namely Angel Delight and Carmelised Red Onion Chutney!
This last month has been a very busy one with the School Arts Week, including the performances of 'Hobson's Choice'. I am pleased to report that the whole week went very well. The opening night was 'An Evening of Poetry, Music and Drama' Year 7 gave a recital of an Urdu poem, Year 8 were the Crazy Chefs which would probably have started a dipolmatic incident had been seen outside of school!! Year 9 gave an excellent rendition of Act 1 of Macbeth. Mixed in between these bigger pieces were performances by the choir, who presented three songs by the Beatles.
Thursday and Friday saw two fantastic performances of Hobson's Choice. We were using an updated version which turned the Hobson family from an 1880's Lancashire family into a modern day family of Pakistani immigrants. The cast were brilliant and pulled off the comedy to great effect. The audience were very impressed and everyone enjoyed it enormously.
The rest of the month became a rather large headache, as we were trying to organise a Geography Field Trip to Muscat in Oman. The problem is that Pakistanis need to have their visas approved before travel and for one reason or another they didn't come through on time. Unfortunately, this meant that the trip had to be cancelled.
There are now just two weeks until the end of term, which will see about 50 staff and students head off to Athens for a week of culture and fun. This of course depends on the Italian Consulate issuing the Schegen visas in time. We have been assured that this will happen, though the assurance was followed by, Inshallah...
Friday, 5 February 2010
Stop the world, I want to get off...
I can't quite believe January has passed and we are into the second month of 2010 already!
Since arriving back from Egypt my feet have barely touched the ground. School has been very busy with lots of things to do, both during the day and in the evenings.
Year 11 have had their mock exams, followed by Parent Teacher Consultations. They have also had information evenings regarding Sixth Form Studies at the BOS and Further Education in both the UK and North America.
January also saw the Secondary Prize Giving Ceremony. This had originally been planned for June of last year, but when we came to organising the Shamiana the company wanted about £1000 just for the AC. So we decided that that was totally unacceptable at so many different level and that we would postpone until the weather cooled down in the autumn. Sadly, the security situation in November meant that we couldn't hold it then, which brought us to January.
The evening went extremely well, and it was my pleasure to be MC for the evening. The students were allowed to dress in 'mufty', but were instructed to 'dress up' and they did us proud. They all looked amazing and everyone, staff, parents and students had a fantastic evening.
This was followed on the Monday, by the whole school Sports Day (Yes Sports Day on 1st February, and we had left it a little late as it was quite warm!!). This was another fantastic day for the school. An early disaster was averted by a very brave girl in Year 5. The CD with the national anthem malfunctioned and the youngster stepped forward and volunteered to sing unaccompanied in front of about 600 people! She was fantastic and has now set a new school tradition!!
Alongside all these events there have been rehearsals for this year's production of 'Hobson's Choice' by Harold Brighouse. We have choosen a modern adaptation by Tanika Gupta, which updates it to modern Salford and sets it in a tailor's shop run by an immigrant Asian family. The issues addressed in Hobson's Choice fit very well to it's new setting and the comedy is starting to come together.
Our first performance is in 10 days and during today's rehearsals the leading lady was still clutching her script, but I am sure 'it'll be alright on the night' Inshallah!
Next weekend will see the school Valentine's Ball hosted by the PTA and being held in the grounds of the British Deputy High Commission. It will a lovely evening and nice excuse to dress up. I will however, be going 'sans partner' before anyone gets too excited!
I am also trying to arrange the Year 11 Geography fieldwork trip to Oman from February 28th-March 2th. We have looked at trips within Pakistan, but sadly security concerns have meant that we have been unable to take advantage of fabulous opportunities that are available here. This is one of the saddest parts of all the violence and threats of violence within Pakistan. It means that the tourist opportunities here are lost, which is such a shame. As a country we can offer nearly every type holiday you could want, from beaches to city breaks, diving to skiing and mountaineering.
Once the production is over and the temperature has risen a couple more degrees, we will back to swimming training. We have an inter school compettion on 10th April, here in Karachi, and then an international competition, once more in Oman, on 28th April. After a winter of inactivity we will need to put in a lot of effort to get back up to speed.
I have also managed to find time to book my flights home for the summer and this year I will be taking a slightly circuitous route. I will leave Karachi and fly first to Dubai and then on to Cairo, where I will have 10 hour layover. This will give enough time to have dinner with Thomas before flying on to Amsterdam and then finally back to Manchester. Then about 7 weeks later I will make the reverse journey, only this time spending a week in Egypt.
The reason for these elaborate travel arrangements is the fact that am 40 this year! I will be spending the week in Egypt celebrating my birthday with a trip to the Red Sea. However, at this moment I cannot give you more details of exactly what we will be doing, as I have handed over the organisation of the trip to Thomas. This is a major step forward for me, to actually reliquish control to someone else. I have, however, complete trust in my godson's abilities to put together a package that I will enjoy! And just in case, I will have my credit card handy...
Since arriving back from Egypt my feet have barely touched the ground. School has been very busy with lots of things to do, both during the day and in the evenings.
Year 11 have had their mock exams, followed by Parent Teacher Consultations. They have also had information evenings regarding Sixth Form Studies at the BOS and Further Education in both the UK and North America.
January also saw the Secondary Prize Giving Ceremony. This had originally been planned for June of last year, but when we came to organising the Shamiana the company wanted about £1000 just for the AC. So we decided that that was totally unacceptable at so many different level and that we would postpone until the weather cooled down in the autumn. Sadly, the security situation in November meant that we couldn't hold it then, which brought us to January.
The evening went extremely well, and it was my pleasure to be MC for the evening. The students were allowed to dress in 'mufty', but were instructed to 'dress up' and they did us proud. They all looked amazing and everyone, staff, parents and students had a fantastic evening.
This was followed on the Monday, by the whole school Sports Day (Yes Sports Day on 1st February, and we had left it a little late as it was quite warm!!). This was another fantastic day for the school. An early disaster was averted by a very brave girl in Year 5. The CD with the national anthem malfunctioned and the youngster stepped forward and volunteered to sing unaccompanied in front of about 600 people! She was fantastic and has now set a new school tradition!!
Alongside all these events there have been rehearsals for this year's production of 'Hobson's Choice' by Harold Brighouse. We have choosen a modern adaptation by Tanika Gupta, which updates it to modern Salford and sets it in a tailor's shop run by an immigrant Asian family. The issues addressed in Hobson's Choice fit very well to it's new setting and the comedy is starting to come together.
Our first performance is in 10 days and during today's rehearsals the leading lady was still clutching her script, but I am sure 'it'll be alright on the night' Inshallah!
Next weekend will see the school Valentine's Ball hosted by the PTA and being held in the grounds of the British Deputy High Commission. It will a lovely evening and nice excuse to dress up. I will however, be going 'sans partner' before anyone gets too excited!
I am also trying to arrange the Year 11 Geography fieldwork trip to Oman from February 28th-March 2th. We have looked at trips within Pakistan, but sadly security concerns have meant that we have been unable to take advantage of fabulous opportunities that are available here. This is one of the saddest parts of all the violence and threats of violence within Pakistan. It means that the tourist opportunities here are lost, which is such a shame. As a country we can offer nearly every type holiday you could want, from beaches to city breaks, diving to skiing and mountaineering.
Once the production is over and the temperature has risen a couple more degrees, we will back to swimming training. We have an inter school compettion on 10th April, here in Karachi, and then an international competition, once more in Oman, on 28th April. After a winter of inactivity we will need to put in a lot of effort to get back up to speed.
I have also managed to find time to book my flights home for the summer and this year I will be taking a slightly circuitous route. I will leave Karachi and fly first to Dubai and then on to Cairo, where I will have 10 hour layover. This will give enough time to have dinner with Thomas before flying on to Amsterdam and then finally back to Manchester. Then about 7 weeks later I will make the reverse journey, only this time spending a week in Egypt.
The reason for these elaborate travel arrangements is the fact that am 40 this year! I will be spending the week in Egypt celebrating my birthday with a trip to the Red Sea. However, at this moment I cannot give you more details of exactly what we will be doing, as I have handed over the organisation of the trip to Thomas. This is a major step forward for me, to actually reliquish control to someone else. I have, however, complete trust in my godson's abilities to put together a package that I will enjoy! And just in case, I will have my credit card handy...
Saturday, 2 January 2010
Here we go again...
For the fourth time in seven days, I find myself in an airport. This time I am flying to Muscat, Oman and then on to Karachi in time to go back to work on Monday.
I have had a wonderful time in Egypt and it has been wonderful to spend the last few days with Thomas. The airlines were good to us both and we arrived in Cairo on time and after a night in the airport hotel we went back to his apartment.
The apartment is best described as 'compact and bijou', but it's adequate for their needs at the moment. The location is good in Downtown and means that they are near to everything they need, including being about 200 yards from the main building of the American University Cairo, where Andrea is studying. Sadly, Andrea's course is taught at the brand new campus which is a 90 minute bus ride away!!
Thomas is more fortunate as the apartment is only a couple of minutes from the Metro and his new office is only 3 or 4 stops away.
After an evening in Cairo with some delicious Lebanese food, Tuesday morning was spent getting ready for our trip to Luxor. This required a trip to the barbers so that we could get a shave and a mini facial! Now it was only a pale comparison for the services provide by the marvellous Mavis, of Clippers fame. But it did only cost about a tenth of what it does when I go to Clippers.
Back at the apartment we were able to play our first game of Super Scrabble, which I manged to win!
Later on, looking absolutely stunning, as always, we set of for the airport and I was able to surprise Thomas with fact that we were booked into Business Class. Now compared to other airlines I have travelled with, EgyptAir Business Class from Cairo to Luxor is no great shakes but it was nice to have just a little bit of luxury on our way.
We were booked into a locally owned hotel, El Gezira Gardens on the quieter East Bank of the Nile, which had been recommended by Mr Ryan. It was a lovely little hotel, in which we had an apartment. The main benefit of this was separate bedrooms, which is a blessing at two levels. One I am always hot (Thomas suggested that I am 'on the change'!! Thankfully, his lingustic abilities are beeter than his biological ones!) so I could have the AC on. Two, Thomas alledges that I snore, so he was spared the trauma of trying to sleep in the same room as 'a rhino with nasal problems!' (and I'm quoting).
Wednesday morning was spent on the West bank wandering around the Souk and getting our bearings. We then went back to the hotel and had a swim in their heated pool. After which, got ready for Dinner across at the Japanese restaurant, in the Sonesta St George. This was not my first visit, having celebrated my 33rd birthday there back in 2003, when staying at the Sonesta with Will Drain. It was nice to be back and I am pleased to say the food did not disappoint.
From there we headed down to Karnak Temple in a caleche (horse drawn carriage) and after a heated argument with the driver (he tried to double the charge we had agreed and then wanted something for the horse as well!!) we watched the Sound and Light show at Karnak.
New Year's Eve had an early start for us as we were in the hotel reception by 5am in order to meet the car taking us the hot air balloon launch site. Unfortunately, due to some miscommunication we had arrived 50 minutes early!! When we finally got to the balloon the early start was well worth it, as we were high above Luxor as we watched the sunrise. This is a sight I have been fortunate to see twice before, but an awesome (in the true sense of that word) sight every time.
After our early start it was back to bed for a couple hours and then some brunch in the hotel. Whilst waiting for the food we engaged in a few games of Backgammon and I have to declare that I was well and truely beaten in an
8 - 0 defeat. We retired to our balcony for another game of Super Scrabble in which I was once again the victor!
We then made ourselves ready for the 'complusory' New Year's Eve party! We were fashionably late and after a very pleasant buffet, and not so pleasant belly 'dancer' (and I use that word reluctantly) we were unable to contain our excitement any further and returned to the apartment to see the New Year in together in the company of Messers Hislop and Merton and their various guests.
The first day of 2010 was spent lazing around the hotel with more Backgamon (with honours more evenly spread this time) and Super Scrabble (where a late spurt from me just pipped Thomas to the post by only 4 points).
After which we headed back to Luxor airport. Sadly, our journey home was not as smooth as we would have liked. The business class lounge at Luxor is still to be built and EgyptAir's idea of a replacement is to offer 'one soft drink' in the cafeteria! Unfortunately for them, this did not met with my expectations and so the airport manager ended up with an ear bashing in both Arabic and English pointing out the need for better customer care. This manged to get us upgraded to a slice of pizza and a soft drink, but there will still be a strongly worded email sent to EgyptAir early next week!
Today's main event was buying cheese, which was interupted by a robbery in the shop. The biggest problem being that calling the police was not an option, as it was the police that were carrying ut the robbery! I was in Thomas' apartment brewing the coffee when this happened but the experience had obviously upset and angered Thomas.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with Thomas and we spent sometime looking back over the last 10 years and reflecting that neither of us would have seen ourselves in the places that we are, in 2000. We also both acknowledged how fortunate and bleesed we were to be able to live the lives that we do. We are both very grateful to God, for his mercy and grace poured out into our lives and blessings that he gives to us.
In my own mind I have also been looking forward, as 2010 (should that be said 'Twenty Ten', or 'Two Thousand and Ten'?) will be my 40th year. Now am sure there are some of you out there saying 'only 40!', but I can assure that regardless of how I look I will be 40 at the end of August. Being my mother's son, I already have somethings planned including a meal with my family, in early August, a visit to Cairo to see Thomas in mid August and a party with my friends in Karachi actually on the big day.
As to what else this year may hold, I am happy to say 'I don't know'! But this I do know, that as I go out into the darkness I can put my hand into the hand of God and that shall be better to me than light and safer than a known way...
I have had a wonderful time in Egypt and it has been wonderful to spend the last few days with Thomas. The airlines were good to us both and we arrived in Cairo on time and after a night in the airport hotel we went back to his apartment.
The apartment is best described as 'compact and bijou', but it's adequate for their needs at the moment. The location is good in Downtown and means that they are near to everything they need, including being about 200 yards from the main building of the American University Cairo, where Andrea is studying. Sadly, Andrea's course is taught at the brand new campus which is a 90 minute bus ride away!!
Thomas is more fortunate as the apartment is only a couple of minutes from the Metro and his new office is only 3 or 4 stops away.
After an evening in Cairo with some delicious Lebanese food, Tuesday morning was spent getting ready for our trip to Luxor. This required a trip to the barbers so that we could get a shave and a mini facial! Now it was only a pale comparison for the services provide by the marvellous Mavis, of Clippers fame. But it did only cost about a tenth of what it does when I go to Clippers.
Back at the apartment we were able to play our first game of Super Scrabble, which I manged to win!
Later on, looking absolutely stunning, as always, we set of for the airport and I was able to surprise Thomas with fact that we were booked into Business Class. Now compared to other airlines I have travelled with, EgyptAir Business Class from Cairo to Luxor is no great shakes but it was nice to have just a little bit of luxury on our way.
We were booked into a locally owned hotel, El Gezira Gardens on the quieter East Bank of the Nile, which had been recommended by Mr Ryan. It was a lovely little hotel, in which we had an apartment. The main benefit of this was separate bedrooms, which is a blessing at two levels. One I am always hot (Thomas suggested that I am 'on the change'!! Thankfully, his lingustic abilities are beeter than his biological ones!) so I could have the AC on. Two, Thomas alledges that I snore, so he was spared the trauma of trying to sleep in the same room as 'a rhino with nasal problems!' (and I'm quoting).
Wednesday morning was spent on the West bank wandering around the Souk and getting our bearings. We then went back to the hotel and had a swim in their heated pool. After which, got ready for Dinner across at the Japanese restaurant, in the Sonesta St George. This was not my first visit, having celebrated my 33rd birthday there back in 2003, when staying at the Sonesta with Will Drain. It was nice to be back and I am pleased to say the food did not disappoint.
From there we headed down to Karnak Temple in a caleche (horse drawn carriage) and after a heated argument with the driver (he tried to double the charge we had agreed and then wanted something for the horse as well!!) we watched the Sound and Light show at Karnak.
New Year's Eve had an early start for us as we were in the hotel reception by 5am in order to meet the car taking us the hot air balloon launch site. Unfortunately, due to some miscommunication we had arrived 50 minutes early!! When we finally got to the balloon the early start was well worth it, as we were high above Luxor as we watched the sunrise. This is a sight I have been fortunate to see twice before, but an awesome (in the true sense of that word) sight every time.
After our early start it was back to bed for a couple hours and then some brunch in the hotel. Whilst waiting for the food we engaged in a few games of Backgammon and I have to declare that I was well and truely beaten in an
8 - 0 defeat. We retired to our balcony for another game of Super Scrabble in which I was once again the victor!
We then made ourselves ready for the 'complusory' New Year's Eve party! We were fashionably late and after a very pleasant buffet, and not so pleasant belly 'dancer' (and I use that word reluctantly) we were unable to contain our excitement any further and returned to the apartment to see the New Year in together in the company of Messers Hislop and Merton and their various guests.
The first day of 2010 was spent lazing around the hotel with more Backgamon (with honours more evenly spread this time) and Super Scrabble (where a late spurt from me just pipped Thomas to the post by only 4 points).
After which we headed back to Luxor airport. Sadly, our journey home was not as smooth as we would have liked. The business class lounge at Luxor is still to be built and EgyptAir's idea of a replacement is to offer 'one soft drink' in the cafeteria! Unfortunately for them, this did not met with my expectations and so the airport manager ended up with an ear bashing in both Arabic and English pointing out the need for better customer care. This manged to get us upgraded to a slice of pizza and a soft drink, but there will still be a strongly worded email sent to EgyptAir early next week!
Today's main event was buying cheese, which was interupted by a robbery in the shop. The biggest problem being that calling the police was not an option, as it was the police that were carrying ut the robbery! I was in Thomas' apartment brewing the coffee when this happened but the experience had obviously upset and angered Thomas.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with Thomas and we spent sometime looking back over the last 10 years and reflecting that neither of us would have seen ourselves in the places that we are, in 2000. We also both acknowledged how fortunate and bleesed we were to be able to live the lives that we do. We are both very grateful to God, for his mercy and grace poured out into our lives and blessings that he gives to us.
In my own mind I have also been looking forward, as 2010 (should that be said 'Twenty Ten', or 'Two Thousand and Ten'?) will be my 40th year. Now am sure there are some of you out there saying 'only 40!', but I can assure that regardless of how I look I will be 40 at the end of August. Being my mother's son, I already have somethings planned including a meal with my family, in early August, a visit to Cairo to see Thomas in mid August and a party with my friends in Karachi actually on the big day.
As to what else this year may hold, I am happy to say 'I don't know'! But this I do know, that as I go out into the darkness I can put my hand into the hand of God and that shall be better to me than light and safer than a known way...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
