Right, much to tell

Finally i can access my blog again. And this time i do have much to tell. First of all, all Kyaw Kyaw's stuff has been submitted at the embassy. Hopefully this week we'll get a 'yes'. Since we have handed in every possible paper i assume that it'll be ok. Kyaw Kyaw is quite positive since apparently 2 seperate fortune-tellers have told his sister that he is going to make a trip to a country very very far away (and without his sister telling them that KK's girlfriend was western). Sandra thinks it should be ok. For one, since they have handed in everything possible (including the much awaited licence which finally came through last week!). Secondly, because she thinks that since the apartment is kind of falling apart, it is high time to move. The washing machine works, sort of. It refuses to budge on normal washing-cycles so she has to do everything step-by-step. Which drives her nuts. The aircon in the bedroom isn't working the way it should either and the lock of the door is behaving strange of late. Not to mention that th elights in both bathrooms have stopped working. The power keeps being cut as well. Often at around 5 in the morning and then lasting most of the day. And this after a heavy rainy season so the reservoirs should still be full enough for a more normal electricity supply. The fact that it already starts now doesn't bode well for the summer (march-may). They had also just bought some really yummy icecream (Sandra got a tip from a fellow teacher a while ago). But now, with the freezer being cut of daily, she has to eat a lot of icecream. Of course i sacrifice myself and help as much as i can but my skunk stomach isn't that big. Sandra likes the strawberry flavour most. KK and i do the chocolate one. Though KK isn't much help. When he comes back in the evenings he doesn't want to eat icecream anymore. But we can't leave it for too long since it is being refrozen every day...

What else, KK's younger brother is already in hospital for about 2 weeks. He's got malaria. The kind that is life-threatening. He worked as a manager on a rubber-plantation in the jungle. And he was visiting Yangon when he started to feel bad. He's got his kidneys flushed (or something like that) now since this kind of malaria can affect the kidneys. And now they're going to test his liver. But he seems much better Kyaw Kyaw tells us. Sandra and I are not allowed into this hospital. Not even as visitors. That is at least what we've been told. And Sandra, being 7 months pregnant, doesn't really feel the need to put it to the test. Besides, the conditions in the hospital aren't that good either we figure from the info we get. Kyaw Kyaw's family basically takes care of his brother. A friend's mother has been supplying soup for the first week and a half (now the brother can eat more normal food). There are no chairs or stools anywhere in the wards so that visitors and care-takers sit and sleep on the floor but they aren't even allowed to roll out a mat there. Finally, after about 2 weeks, his boss has shown up (he was away or so) and he's now taking care of a bit of the expenses of the hospital. Everybody's pitching in since insurance doesn't really exist around here. And Kyaw Kyaw's parents can't afford the bills. His brother doesn't have much money either even though he got paid fairly well for Burmese standards (up to $100 a month which is way above average) but he sent most of that money home to provide for his mother and older sister. So half the family divide their time between the theashop and the hospital. Kyaw Kyaw's older (not oldest) sister has come over from Mandalay to help with the care-taking but i think everybody is hoping that he can leave the hospital soon and recover in the teashop. He wants to leave as well but he can't until he's been thoroughly checked of course.

For the rest, Sandra's still fairly bored. It is still quite hot but it seems a little bit cooler of late. She's still doing a bit of studying though with burmese she's as far as she was 3 weeks ago. Somehow that doesn't seem to go anywhere. She went to the school last week just to have a nice chat. It took her most of the day since people kept detaining her when she wanted to go home. She also got an invitation for the picknick that was held the day after with the 3rd graders. She went of course, and it was loads of fun. I 'll look if i can upload some of the pictures of that later. Let's see if i can get this online first.