Still calm on the Atlantic...

29th August

I awoke feeling hopeful of sunshine this morning...no such luck. Again thick fog, but no matter the sea is calm and there is a gentle warm breeze. Had a chatty breakfast with George, the 2 Brendas, Steve and Amy. Breakfasts at home always seem so dull after months of scintillating early morning discourse!

I fell asleep in the lounge while reading my homework for Rashna's class. It is a short memoir by a Moroccan writer, a woman of course, but a translation and quite different in content and mood from a Western writer. Embarrassingly I woke up with a start to find Rashna working at the next but one table....'It's a bit dense isn't it' she said! It was, but fascinating in its different way of remembering. Michael came over and we discussed Karoo Moose. He tends to agree with me that it might not be appreciated by the LLLs whom we really know so little about. It's difficult at the moment to think what will! I was happy to discover that this play will be on the student syllabus for 2 of his courses. I think the students will both appreciate it and learn alot from it. We discussed too the terrible incidence of rape of children and infants in South Africa....partly because it is believed to protect from HIV/AIDS! That's the subject matter of the play.

Later: Went to Michael's Acting 1 class this afternoon and he ended the session with the very first rehearsal of "Karoo Moose". The students got right into it and it was exciting to watch. His |FDPs are so interesting: this play will be put on for 700 school children in Cape Town: in Ghana he has invited his students to go with his family (and us) to watch an opera which he wrote "The Orphans of Kimbo", in Vietnam a "Shadowplay': in China Chinese Opera and on and on. Wonderful stuff.

Had great chat with Evelyn Hannon and others tonight in the Faculty lounge at 5 pm. Supper with Amy, the two Brendas(!), Steve and ourselves. Steve has threatened to shave his head as we cross the Equator and to support Brenda we spoke of the possibility of blistered and burned scalps and skin cancer. He listened having no idea what we were doing. We just might have dissuaded him but Brenda has doubts!

Apologies for dull blogs. I find that I fade fast in the evenings which is the best time to do it apart from 4 or 5am! Perhaps it will spice up after Morocco.

Kwa heri and a hundred thousand yawns...