Ouagadougou - Try to Say that 3 Times Really Fast!

It's been a week since my last update and I'm going to try my best to update at least once a week. A little difficult at the moment though, I must admit. As you may have guessed from the title of this entry, I am currently in Ouagadougou! I'm typing this from the hotel at 6:58a.m. and will be posting this entry as soon as I get internet connection here. Ouagadougou is not in Mali... it's in Burkina Faso!!! So how and why am I in Burkina Faso? Long story short - head of the public relations department was scheduled to go to a couple neighboring countries for administrative business that I'm not really privy to... I'm just an intern so I don't get too many details. BUT, his secretary got sick with typhoid fever over the weekend and he needed someone who could type fast in French and English, and other languages if possible, who could be a quick replacement and who would essentially be the office bitch by doing all the work that no one wants to do. So, that replacement was me since even at work, I basically go or do whatever they tell me to do since my work here isn't permanent and I have no real "specific" duties or projects that I'm concretely bound to. My coworkers have actual permanent or semi-permanent posts, so they have set deadlines to meet or certain projects they need to work on daily while I merely do whatever my program adviser tells me to do. This time, my program adviser just told me to go to Ouagadougou and a couple other cities outside of Mali along with the PR rep. Visas? Oh, no problem! All you have to do is bribe the customs officers at the border and pay the visa fees along with quickly drafted documents at the office procured an hour before I was due to leave! That was pretty crazy though... crossing the border over to Burkina Faso. I'll explain why later but anyway, it worked. So here I am!

Actually, I was secretly elated to get a chance to travel to other countries!!! I mean come on! I still have a good 90-some-odd countries to visit before I die! That's a lot of countries, might as well go to as many as I can while I'm in Africa. So we're scheduled to be in Burkina Faso for a day or two longer, then we're off to Ghana (!!! yay!!!). I wasn't sure if I overhead a conversation between my superiors correctly (I wasn't eavesdropping...they just didn't realize I was there) but I think we may go to Côte d'Ivoire as well! How exciting! If only I could go to Bénin and visit my old Bénoise roommate along the way... that would be awesome. But I realize Porto Novo is quite far and I didn't hear them talking about Bénin so that's just a wish that will go unfulfilled for now. If you haven't noticed yet, I love saying Ouagadougou. It's so freaking fun to say! Try it!!! You might catch on ;)

That was the good news =) Not-so-good news... I'm suffering from insomnia again. I haven't slept for the past 2 days. Ugh. I'm hoping I'll get to sleep tonight. I think the insomnia might only be because I'm in a strange/different environment. I usually sleep well when I travel... I could even sleep in a car in the desert in Mali... Maybe I need to drink some hard alcohol like that time in the desert to sleep. Yeah, I think I'll try that because I really need some sleep. I don't want to risk staying awake for 7 days again! That was not cool and hallucinating wasn't great either. Seriously, I forget who said it but if I hallucinated giant spiders with wings.. I really might commit suicide because giant spiders that fly is probably the scariest thought... ever. If you haven't noticed yet (those who know me really well will probably have already caught on by now) I'm kind of pumped with caffeine and sleep deprivation combined! My writing style tends to fluctuate a little based on how many hours I sleep and how many cups of coffee I drink. Since I have a full day ahead of me, I drank a couple cups of coffee this morning. Ah yes, coffee... I would probably die without it. well, it's almost time for me to see if the PR rep is awake. He was saying something about transcribing a lecture or something or other yesterday. Meanwhile, I wonder where I can buy some hard liquor... whiskey, vodka, rum, whatever... I have to sleep tonight... I don't want to be awake for more than 3 days in a row. Love you guys, and really, try saying Ouagadougou 3 times really fast! It'll make you laugh, or at least smile... unless you don't have a sense of humor then...fie! Fie on you!

Today's Random Quiz:

Your Inner Child Is Surprised

\\You see many things through the eyes of a child. Meaning, you're rarely cynical or jaded. You cherish all of the details in life. Easily fascinated, you enjoy experiencing new things.

How Is Your Inner Child?