Another year passes......

Hi

So the year ends and another beckons – and I only have around 7 months to go, amazing really how time seems to have speeded up recently!

Project wise things continue to go well, I now have all 3 branches in Bafoussam in parallel run mode, and hope that by the end of January we will go fully live. There is a little reluctance to do away with the manual system – it’s a comfort blanket thing, RIC have been using the cardboard account cards since the very beginning and to file them away for ever is a big leap of faith I guess. Once we take that step then its full steam ahead to implement the system in the remaining 5 branches which are spread around West Cameroon.

Xmas was really nice as I had a couple of VSO colleagues staying at my place over the period. We managed to generate (and consume) a fair bit of festive spirit – and I stayed healthy this time, as opposed to last year when you may recall I was ill all over the holidays – so I suppose my system is now fully acclimatised to the vagaries of Cameroon cuisine.

New Year will be celebrated with an end of year party at work, then probably a quiet whisky on my “terrace” to bring 2008 in – I will be thinking about home I’m sure, as I am getting a little bit homesick now - combination of the time of year plus the end is in sight – but hey ho, lots still to do, lots of Cameroon still to see – the Far North for example – so onwards and upwards!

Wherever you are, hope 2008 goes well for you!

Born House for Esme

Pictures from yet another celebration – they do like a good party here – this time to celebrate the fact that that I have become a grandfather!

Its called a “Born House” and the idea is that all your friends come to your house (in my case the local bar was substituted) and you give them drinks and food. Two of my colleagues volunteered to do the cooking, I just put up the money – which was not much, as there is a social fund in operation that everyone contributes too, which subsidies events like this - so we had a grand spread – that’s fou fou corn (the white stuff) and ndole (the brown stuff) – both of which are delicious albeit presentationally poor! The other great delicacy is the (whole) gizzard of a chicken which as the “big man” in this case I should have eaten – luckily they know I am vegetarian so did not pursue the point.

The other pictures - me and Mr Tata having a beer, and me with the very tasteful picture I was presented with to honour the occasion – I am sure Esme will be happy to display this in her bedroom! There is also a traditional child’s outfit being made, which I will get later.

Hope the Xmas season not proving too stressful, a bientot!

Bafoussam Bash

I was sitting on my balcony the other night when I heard some drumming and singing wafting up from the chefferie (kings compound) which I overlook.

Being a nosy bugger I wandered down to have a look and discovered a very big celebration in progress, to honour some visiting dignitaries. Luckily, I spotted the guide to the compound, who I have got to know, and he put me in a front row seat. Some excellent dancing and music ensued, plus several speeches by the Fon (king) himself!

It’s a funny mix here – something like this, which is totally traditional and stretches back hundreds of years – alongside folk wandering around chatting into mobile phones – and the two systems seem to coexist quite happily – strange.

Some light music

I thought you might like this flavour of one of the bands that were serenading us at the Cry Die last weekend.

I know its not De Niro, not even Blair Witch standard, but hey I have to start somewhere! Next episode should be my Xmas message to the world - well if the Queen can do it......

Almost there!

Hi

Well the title tells it all as far as I am concerned this month – I am almost there in terms of the project and Scotland were almost there in terms of Euro 08!

As far as the project goes, we implemented Loans and Current Accounts over the course of a very busy 10 days in the middle of last month. It actually went a lot better than I had hoped, no major bugs surfaced and so we now have all the business of Head Office running in the system.

All that remains to be proved before we start the rollout to the other branches is some aspects of General Ledger reporting and the small matter of proper savings interest accrual – this is very different here in Cameroon (quite like what Common System had to do in France for those of you who can remember that far back) and the software supplier is due to deliver that in the next few weeks. So I remain firmly on track to start travelling around to all the other branches early in the New Year, probably spend between a week and two weeks in each, installing the system and training the staff. I hope by about end March I can start to take a back seat and just be available for emergencies – this is all part of the sustainability bit – it would be no good if the whole thing collapsed the moment I left!

Matters cultural carry on much as before – yet again I have been to several celebrations – one for a new child – this is called a “Born House” – bit like a baby shower in the US - and was the usual mega eating and drinking plus handing over of gifts for the baby. The other was yet another “Cry Die” – but again after some sombre speeches, the remainder of the evening was all rather jolly – if just a bit too relentlessly Christian for my liking – although I am becoming very fond of the gospel type singing, with much audience participation demanded both singing and dancing! And then just yesterday, another Cry Die, but this was a much more elaborate affair, as you can see from the photoes – several brass bands in attendance, traditional music and dancing and a gang of guys with ancient old blunderbusses which they fired off all day, much smoke and noise. Of course I had to try this, almost broke my arm with the recoil, plus had a nice bunch of powder debris embed itself in my arm – not really a nice experience.

Another improvement in project management this year – the calendar! It is almost ready, as opposed to last year when it was not even thought about until mid December. This is a big deal here, every business that is anything at all puts out its own calendar. This year I only feature in one picture thank goodness (Susan and Bob – you are in there!).

As mentioned at the top, I had great hopes that I could have gone as part of the Tartan Army to Switzerland next year – alas not to be – but I have now agreed my exit plan – which is that I will be leaving a few weeks before the end of the two years – at the end of July 08 – and will be spending August in a gite in France getting to know my family again – so a really nice end to things I hope.