Here it is! My first Voice of America video that I wrote, directed, produced, shot and edited myself. It is about the Keely's District Boxing and Youth Center in Washington DC. The center was started by former World Champion Boxer Keely Thompson. The goal is to get at-risk youth off the streets, teach them discipline and help with their schoolwork.

Christmas with Emily's family was great! They must be the most organized group of people I have ever seen. For example, the family Olympics (game day) was carefully planned out. Each of the teams were chosen in advance. It was all laid out on an Excel spreadsheet telling everyone which game they were playing, who they were playing against and when. Each game station was clearly labeled and came with a detailed set of instructions telling how to play and how to score. Afterward, there was a chart for each team to write the score from every game and calculate the team's total. Rebbecca, Rob and I won!

The highlight of the game day, as well as much of the week, was Kat's Wii. That thing is great. Everyone created their own Mii character and played the sports games non-stop. By the way, thanks everyone for the nice gifts.

Check out the videos Emily and I have been making for The Economist!

We do "Politics This Week" and "Business This Week".

Hey everyone... Happy birthday to me!!

Check out my Tim Russert interview on Washingtonpost.com

It's snowing in DC! Emily and I probably have not seen snow since we went to Denver two years ago (not much snow in Florida and Sudan).

The 'Divine Impulses' videos that Malcolm and I have been working on have gone live! The Desmond Tutu videos are the first ones; you can see them here.

I did the shooting (wide camera), editing, motion graphics, color correction, etc.

About this British woman jailed in Sudan for naming a teddy bear 'Mohamed'...

I just did a phone interview for the FSN radio feed with a friend from Sudan. He said that he had not heard people calling for her death (like the news has been reporting). Some people are hurt by what she did, but many feel that she should not be jailed. Unfortunately, those who oppose her incarceration can not openly express their feelings.

Sudan is a very religious country, and naming anything besides a person is offensive to them. But it was the students who named the bear, not the teacher. Even the people who put her in jail must realize that it was an honest mistake. Mohamed is by far the most common name in the country. I think it has more to do with a general anti-western sentiment over the deployment of UN troops in Darfur, than wanting to punish her for this "crime".

In live news production, everything is done at the last minute. Simon and Dennis are in Pakistan producing and shooting for the NewsHour. Apparently the correspondent was making changes until the very last minute. The piece was suppose to be in by 4:00 pm, but we didn't get it until 5:00. I converted it and exported it to a Beta tape as quickly as I could. Helen waited outside the building with her car running and Malcolm stood next to me cussing at the TV (because the piece was so long). The second it finished he ran down, jumped in the car with Helen and raced to NewsHour headquarters.

When I got home, I turned on the TV just as it was airing. It was neat to see the video go from my computer at work straight to my living room.

Today I did an interview with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Look for the videos on the Washington Post website in the next few weeks. And check out my intimate moment with the Archbishop!

Daniel and I covered the TransAfrica Lifetime Achievement Award Gala tonight. As members of the press, we were allowed access to the VIP cocktail event. Danny Glover is the head of the TransAfrica board, so we got an exclusive interview with him. Check out the finished package.

I had a terribly frustrating day. It was fine until about 6:30pm, when I got a call from the office that I had to come back. Apparently (un-named reporter) had been working on his one page script all day. Not only did he wait until I got home to finish the script, he thought it was acceptable to turn in a script at 6:30pm! Everyone else can write their stories in a matter of hours, but he took literally all day to write one page.

When I got back to the office, he was still tweaking the script and didn't give it to me until after 7:00. I quickly edited the video and showed it to him. He decided that half the pictures didn't work and asked me re-edit them. I gritted my teeth and made the changes. Then he came back into the edit suite and asked me to change the other half of the pictures. I resisted the urge to strangle him, as I made the changes. Finally he watched the piece for the third time and decided to re-write the entire script. I was pissed. I told him that I would either send it the way it was, or he could finish it himself. He stumbled over his words and explained that it wasn't 'broadcast ready', so I left.

After 30 minutes talking to Emily, she convinced me to go back and finish the edit. The boss said that his behavior was unacceptable and would never happen again. I begrudgingly went back and made his final round of changes.

Yesterday I filmed Bush at the White House. It wasn't the first time I have filmed there, but it was the first time President Bush was in attendance. I arrived at 7:30am for an 8:30 pre-set. All of the camera-people waited in the Press Briefing Room (between the West Wing and the main White House building). We were led into the East Room and given about 15 minutes to set up. Then we had to wait in the Press Briefing Room for another hour. The Medal of Freedom ceremony, which I was there to film, started at 10:00. The award recipients were announced and they each took the stage. I was shooting for SABC, so our main subject was Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf (the president of Liberia). Of course, she sat right behind the podium where I could not get a good shot of her. George and Laura Bush walked in to 'Hail to the Chief'. He spoke briefly about each award recipient and handed out the awards. After the ceremony, the guests were invited to brunch with the president. I thought about taking off my press passes and sneaking in, but I decided that the Secret Service wouldn't be that easily fooled.

Emily and I had a great Halloween! This is probably the only holiday that I will celebrate. We bought candy, got costumes for the dogs and were all ready for the kids. Unfortunately, we were caught up at work until 7:15. When we got home, we dressed up the dogs and sat on the front porch with a big bowl of candy. Turtle loved running around in his little peacock costume. We had more Trick or Treaters than candy, so we had to dip into our personal stash. Most of the kids came dressed as rappers or gangsters (we live in north east DC). It was weird being the one handing out the candy not getting it. I felt old.

Myanmar's state run news agency continues to attack our VOA stories. Now they are starting to make personal threats! Check it out...

Emily have been extremely busy at work. It is unrelenting. We were shooting and editing IMF / World Bank footage all weekend and we won't have a break until sometime next week. This week I am working on fake news stories for Securing America's Future Energy (SAFE), which will be used in their oil supply catastrophe simulations. At the end of the week, the Economist videos are suppose to start. Things have been continually up in the air though, so who knows if it will actually happen.

We are starting an exciting new project next month. The Washington Post wants us to make online videos for them, the first of which will an interview with Desmond Tutu.

For two days in a row, the videos I edited for Malcolm Brown have been "Video of the Day" on the Voice of America Website! Check out 'Child Soldier Turned Rapper' and 'Ordinary People Doing Evil'.

This is a very interesting piece I edited for Malcolm about a Nazi photo album which was donated to the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC.

This morning I filmed the Americans for Prosperity Foundation meeting. Among the speakers were Ron Paul, Rudy Guiliani, and Fred Thompson. The group is mainly concerned with ending pork barrel spending and reducing the size of the government. I certainly agree with their principals, but I could never fit in with their members. I have never seen so many cowboy hats or heard so many God Bless America's since I have been in DC. I enjoyed hearing Ron Paul speak. I may not agree with him on all of the issues, he seems like the most honest and consistent presidential candidate in the race.

The Nigerian Foreign Minister was in town yesterday, so I asked him to respond to Biafra's declaration of independence. Here is what he had to say...

We must be doing something right with these VOA stories about the protests in Myanmar (Burma). Check out what their Government run news station had to say about us.

Yesterday, Simon (the boss), Jessica (the intern) and I took a trip out to Lancaster Virginia to shoot an interview for A&E Biography. We got a little lost on the way down there and were starving by the time we approached the interview location. So we stopped at the only nearby gas station to ask about restaurants. The closest one was "11 miles down the road, turn right on the dirt road and go 5 more miles". Luckily they had a grill in the back of the gas station, where we purchased some amazingly tasty burgers.

The interview was with Brian Latell, the author of a book about Fidel and Raul Castro, for the A&E Biography of Raul Castro. I was so afraid that after driving 3 hours to get there, I would be missing something crucial to the shoot and we would have to drive back without the interview. I ended up having all the necessary gear, so the interview went smoothly.

On the way home Simon wanted coffee, but he refused to stop for gas station coffee. I reminded him that there are no Starbucks in the boonies. Just around the next corner, there was a small independent coffee shop, which was closing as we drove up. The owner was nice enough to unlock the door for us and we picked up some delicious coffee and pastries.

Last night we went to a restaurant called Marrakesh to celebrate Matt's birthday. I dropped everyone off near the restaurant, then went to find a parking spot. Across the street, someone waived me into the lot and directed me to a parking spot. He told me that it would be $7.00 to park. I gave him a $20 bill and he handed me a receipt, before running off to get change. He did not work in the parking lot and never returned with my change. I got pissed off and yelled at the parking lot attendant for allowing thieves to operate in his lot. He was unapologetic, so I flagged down a passing cop. They laughed at my story and promptly left.

I haven't had much time to post lately. My shoot schedule has been incredibly hectic lately. Since I posted the story on Biafra, the ambassadors from the fledgling country have been calling me non-stop. They want me to provide copies of the story in every conceivable format. It reminds me of Sudan, when my students or random people I met on the street would constantly call.

Today Emily and I are shooting and editing four different TV packages. It will be another late night.

I covered a couple interesting stories so far this week. The first was the resignation of Alberto Gonzales. The room at the Department of Justice was packed with reporters. He spoke for just over a minute and a half before bolting out of the room. Everyone stood around in confusion for a few minutes, waiting for him to come back to answer questions. But he never did. I barely had time to grab my shots before he was gone.

Today I covered the independence of Biafra, a small region of Nigeria. The press conference was scheduled to start at 9:00. On the way to the National Press Club, I realized that I had forgotten to bring a tape. I rushed to find a nearby CVS. Luckily there was one a block down from the Press Club. When I arrived for the conference, I was the first one there. An official of the new country of Biafra introduced me to the members of the government, including the President. I had plenty of time to set up my equipment and speak with the officials, before other people arrived. The President gave a passionate and rousing speech about the mistreatment of his people by the Nigerian government and outlined his plan for the country. Biafra has been under Nigerian control since they lost the country's civil war. For the past 30 years, the Nigerian government has looted oil from Biafra and waged a brutal campaign against its citizens. Hopefully now this will begin to change. However, few took notice of the Provisional Government of Biafra's announcement of independence. I hope that this story will begin to change that.

Here is a photo of me at the office.

Emily, Matt, Neetha and I signed a lease for our new house! It is located on 3rd St. NE in a transitional neighborhood. For many years DC has been completely segregated between white and black. Now the eastern sections of the city are beginning to be gentrified. Our house is in one such area. We have the entire row house to ourselves; it is three stories including the basement. There is a ton of space and even room to park four cars in the back. Our lease starts today, so I can't wait to move in. Emily and I are close enough to work that we could walk.

Check out what I found on the AP feed.

My British friends will be excited to hear that I filmed your new Prime Minister yesterday. Gordon Brown was in the states for a visit. He stopped by Congress to meet Senator Reid and company. The British Pool videographer and I were the first to arrive. We leisurely set up our cameras and tripods. Soon the Congress Press Agent showed up and told us that there were 5 or 6 more photographers who would be joining us. Brown's Press Agent told him that there was no room for additional photographers. After a short argument, the additional photographers were allowed. Next Senator Reid's Press Agent came in and told us that we could not use tripods. The British Press Agent argued with her and won, allowing us to keep our tripods.

When we were all ready for the shoot, a few photographers entered and crouched in front. Then a few more. And a few more. Then an entire hoard of photographers and videographers piled in. No one else was allowed to use a tripod and they were not happy that we were. The room was packed. I had to push away the camera next to me to prevent it from entering my shot. Brown entered a few minutes later and the room lit up with flash bulbs. We were allowed to film for two minutes, before we were all shuffled out of the room.

My first shoot yesterday started at 9:00. I drove into the city and made it to the office at 8:30, when I was suppose to begin setting up for the shoot. I quickly grabbed the heavy bags of gear and started my trek on foot. On 17th street, someone yelled after me and handed me the small notebook that had fallen out of my back pocket. Apparently the gear bag had pushed out the notebook. I immediately checked my other pocket and found that my wallet was missing.

I asked a few street sweepers, but they hadn't seen it. There was no time to keep looking, so I went straight to the shoot. The Prime Minister of Lesotho was giving a speech. I arrived sweaty and disheveled. I could not even shake hands with the other media people covering the even, because my hands were all sweaty. I got there just in time to set up my camera and catch the speech.

Afterward, I lugged my equipment back to the office and went searching for my wallet. No one had seen turned it in. I needed an ID to get into the afternoon shoot, so I had to find the wallet. Finally I searched my car and there it was!

The afternoon shoot was at the State Department. The Prime Minister was signing an agreement with the Millennium Challenge Corporation to receive a development grant. Condoleezza Rice was there to give a speech. The shoot went easily and I was able to edit both the English version and the Nguni version in a total of 45 minutes. We have to do two versions of everything we shoot for the South African Broadcasting Corporation.

Today I was sent to the White House to cover Ban Ki Moon's visit with President Bush. I attended the White House press briefing, which was quite interesting. Ban Ki Moon (the head of the UN) was suppose to arrive at 1:00. So I waited outside the with cameramen from other news agencies to cover his arrival. I was going to bring my copy of the Koran to keep me entertained while I waited, but decided that it would not be the best reading material for the White House.

After a hot and sweaty hour and a half of waiting, we found out that he had snuck in the side door, met with Bush and left. I had to wait until 5:00 to record the footage from the AP feed. It took until 9:30 pm to edit and upload the story to SABC.

I've been doing some interesting interviews for my new job. Yesterday I was at the CATO Institute, a Libertarian think-tank. Today I was interviewing William Howard Taft IV, the great-grandson of president Taft. He was the chief legal advisor for the Department of Defense under George HW Bush and the Deputy Secretary of Defense under George W Bush. Normally this would not be a person with whom I would want to spend my time, however he was an outspoken critic of Guantanamo. The interview went well. It will be shown on France 24 sometime soon.

Friday my new job sent me to New York to cover a concert in Brooklyn. They put me on the fancy all business class train from Union Station in DC to Penn Station in NYC. The train was not as luxurious as you would expect, slightly larger seats, but no food service. The Feature Story News office in New York is in the UN building, so my first stop was the credentials office. One of the guys from my office had already started filling out the form, so it didn't take long to get my badge.

The media offices at the UN (at least the ones I saw) were packed into a small area behind the womans bathroom, which looks like it was designed for storage. I met the South African Broadcasting corespondent, with whom I was working on the story, and we caught a cab to Brooklyn.

The first guy to perform didn't allow any media coverage whatsoever. All of the cameras had to be turned away from the stage. I heard he even tried to ban cell phone cameras in the audience. It didn't matter though, because we were there to cover the main performance. It was a huge production, consisting of a 100 piece choir, a string section, 4 opera singers and a video instillation. The concert set music to the words of Apartheid survivors. It was great, and I wish I could have stayed longer.

After the concert, we immediately returned to the office to edit the video and upload it to the news station in South Africa. I finished around 3:00 am. The company owns an apartment in lower Manhattan. I took a cab downtown and easily found the building. Unfortunately, when I tried my key in the lock, it didn't work. I called everyone I could in the office, but no one answered. I spent the next few hours walking all across Manhattan, through Greenwich Village, Chelsea, Times Square, and up to Rockefeller Center. Finally at 7:00 am, I got a call from someone at work. When I got the information about the apartment, I thought the note said apartment 5D, but it was actually 5P. I took the subway back downtown and fell asleep on the couch.

I woke up a few hours later and met Kat for lunch at the first pizzeria in the country, before catching the train back home.

I got the job I wanted! I will be working at Feature Story News doing all kinds of video production and editing for international news stations. Thanks for hooking me up Aaron! My main job will be to produce the online videos for The Economist magazine.

Yesterday was my first day of work. I started creating the opening motion graphics for The Economist. They are coming along well. I've been using Motion, cool new program to do motion graphics. It is like After Effects, but much easier to use. Without even looking at the manual, I was able to create some nice 3D graphics sequences. Look for my work at www.economist.com in the next few months.

I had a second interview at Feature Story News, a company who makes news stories for 24 hour news stations around the world. The interview went well and the boss said that it was "extremely likely" that I would receive a job offer next week! Originally I thought that I would be doing half of my friend Aaron's job. He was the one who set me up with the interview. He often works 12 hour days, so they wanted someone to take over half of his responsibilities. Instead, they just got a contract to do the online videos for The Economist magazine; I would be in charge of these videos.

I was in the kitchen a minute ago and saw a strange looking spider on the floor. It looked like a wolf spider, but the back end was much bigger. I thought to myself, what a strange looking spider; I should kill it.

So, I took a napkin and slapped it down on top of the spider. It was like hitting a pinata, but instead of being filled with candy, it was filled with baby spiders. There must have been hundreds of them! The still-born spiders were writhing on the ground for a minute, before I finished them off.

I have not heard back from the Middle East Broadcasting Network about the job yet, but I have gone on a few more interviews. Yesterday was a particularly strange one...

The job was shooting school yearbook portraits and the like. At first the interview was fairly normal, just me and three managers. After the usual barrage of questions, they drew an overhead diagram of a photo-studio and asked me to draw how I would set up various "looks". Then it got weird. During a short break in the interview, they asked me to sing children's songs. I thought they were kidding, but it soon became clear that they weren't. I sang "row, row, row your boat", but messed up the lyrics. They corrected me and I sang it again. Then it was picture time. The three managers lined up in front of a studio background and acted like elementary school children, while I tried to pose and photograph them. One made a huge fake smile, one sat backwards from the camera and one only smiled for a brief instant at a time. Then it was my turn to be photographed. Needless to say, I was too embarrassed to act like a child.

I got a second interview with the Middle East Broadcasting Network. This time I met with the head of the department and the head of the Media Library (where I want to work). It went well, so hopefully I will get some good news.

I also interviewed with a broadcast news company who works independently with major news channels around the world. My friend Aaron, who I've known since college, got me the interview. He has been working there for a couple years, but he there all day and night, so they want to split his job in two.

The apartment search is not going very well. Everything is so expensive in DC! We might end up in another basement apartment.

I met with my academic adviser at UMD. She gave me some great news - I can take two classes at once (because each class leads into the next) and I will get in-state tuition regardless of where I live.

I had a job interview this afternoon at the Middle East Broadcasting Network. The guy I was meeting said that the network was located on Boston Ave. When I looked up the street name on Google Maps, it gave me the location of Boston Avenue in Silver Springs, Maryland. So I followed the directions, but could not find the building. When I called, he informed me that it was in Springfield, Virginia (only 15 minutes from where I started). Emily mapped out my arduous journey back to Virginia. I finally showed up for the interview one and a half hours late.

Grant stopped by DC on his way to (a location which will remain nameless). It was nice to get a chance to see him again after so many months. He got us tickets to the Nationals game. I was shocked how many people showed up on a Thursday afternoon!

Afterward, we stopped by the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, because I wanted to see SpaceShipOne. When Burt Rutan's team (who built SpaceShipOne) were launching their two sub-orbital flights, I was glued to the TV. It was amazing to see the ship in person. Grant enjoyed seeing the Spirit of St. Louis, because he is from St. Louis and has seen the replica a million times at the airport.

My parents came in for the weekend. Originally they were just planning on coming for my dad's 30th dental school reunion, but they were excited to find out that we would be back a week before they arrived.

Yesterday, Emily and I went on the tour of the new University of Maryland dental school with my dad. I was fascinated by how technologically advanced it has become. Even the dental chairs had computers in them (no joke).

Today Emily, Lindsey and I went to Grandma Mitzi's house for brunch. She is a fantastic cook all around, but her brisket is exquisit. I ate at least three or four servings.

It has been weird being home. It doesn't even seem like home. Strangely enough, Sudan seems normal and the US is like a foreign country. It is hard to get use to everyone speaking English, the food and the modern conviences. Emily's sisters Sara and Kat came to welcome us back to DC. They have been helpful in our transition to the 21st century.

Emily and I still miss Sudan and all the people very much, but it has been nice to see our dogs! At least no one here would throw rocks at them. Now begins the arduous process of finding jobs, apartments, car insurance, cell phones, friends, stability, normalcy, etc.

Our flight home was routed through Zurich, Switzerland, which is in the opposite direction we needed to go. Upon arrival in Zurich, we learned that our flight home was cancelled. The airline put us up in the Hilton and paid for all of our meals.

We got to spend the day exploring the city (without a guided tour this time). I liked the contrast of the traditional buildings next to the modern architecture. Emily found it depressing. Part of the day was spent looking at the same chain stores we saw in DC, London, Madrid, Athens, Rome, Paris, etc. European cities seem thouroughly homoginized. It is almost pointless to even visit them.

Aside from the depressing congruency to other cities, the archetectural contrasts kept me interested. And the Hilton food was decent.

The rest of our time in Tarifa was spent lounging on the beach or by the pool. Almost every night, we ate fantastic pizza at our favorite restaurant in the old part of the city. Yesterday, we rode the hotel's horses on the beach. I don't know how to ride a horse, but of course I was given the most stubborn one. They gave me a whip to make him move. Emily's horse thought it was on a cullinary tour of the beach. It stopped to eat every little patch of weeds we passed.

Today Emily and I took a boat to Tangier, Morrocco. We had only one day in the city, so we (or I) made the mistake of thinking that a guided tour would allow us to see more than exploring on our own. My decision was bolstered by the fact that the tour tickets (including the boat to Morrocco) cost less than buying the boat tickets independently.

The boat was a bit neauseating, but our food was still in our stomaches when we arrived. The tour groups were seperated by language and driven to a parking lot where we could pay 1 Euro to sit on a camel. Bad start. From there, we were taken through the fancy part of the city and dropped off in the market. The tour guide led us through narrow, winding streets and past beautifly decorated doors and tile murals. We stopped to watch a snake charmer, who looked like he was straight out of the movie Aladin, before eating at a terrible excuse for a restaurant.

From there, we walked into the main part of the souq and stopped at a large carpet dealer's shop. Everyone was told to sit around the outside of the room and listen to his 30 minute sales pitch. As soon as it was finished, we bolted for the door.

The next stop was a spice dealer's shop for a similar sales pitch. Emily and I refused to go in, so did many of the other members of the tour group. It was nice to finally get some time to explore the city on our own. Not that we got too far from the spice shop. I practiced my Arabic with some local merchants and learned some of the differences between Sudanese Arabic and Morroccan Arabic. Overall, Tangier was a beautiful city, but I wish we had time to explore on our own.

While we were booking train tickets to Cadiz, an obnoxious American (who looked hispanic but spoke no Spanish) kept trying to cut people off in line. The woman in front of us yelled at him in Spanish, looking at me after every few lines. I understood most of it, nodded my head in agreement and said "si". Finally he went to the back of the line.

Of course when we got on the train, every other row of seats were facing backward and the obnoxious guy sat across from us. During the entire five hour ride to Cadiz he blasted his iPod at full volume. We could hear the music from his earphones over the noise of the train.

From Cadiz, we took a bus to Tarifa. Thankfully the obnoxious guy wasn't on the bus. I was sure he would be staying in the hotel room next to ours.

Tarifa is a beautiful beach town filled with kite-surfers and pregnant hippies. It is still a bit chilly, but it is warm enough to sit in the sun by the pool or on the beach. It is strange being in such a completely different culture. In Sudan, the women were covered from head to toe; i'm sure you can imagine what the women in Spain wear (or don't wear) on the beach.

I don't think we could have gone more completely from one cultural extreme to another. We got into our hotel in Madrid around 10 pm. After bringing our luggage into the room, I went out onto the balcony and saw two guys making out across the street.

Madrid is quite a nice city, but it is not nearly as interesting as Sudan. It is like being in any other Western city. We spent most of our time visiting the typical array of Western chain stores and some boring museum (the Prado).

My high school Spanish is quickly coming back, but I am still mixing Spanish and Arabic. Nevertheless, it is much easier to speak Spanish than it was to speak Arabic.

I have been constantly amazed at the amount of pornography and liquor on sale here. We visited an ice cream shop, which seemed to be the favorite of local Elementary school children. Porn and booze were on sale right next to the ice cream.

The last couple days have been hectic and sad. Saturday Neetha organized a lovely farewell party at our house and Sunday was the police breakfast.

Monday John and I woke up relatively early and went for a swim in the Nile. It has been raining down south, so the river level has begun to rise. We had to walk through about 100 feet of knee high water before getting to the main part of the river. When we got there, John unexpectedly fell off the shallow flood plane and into the current. He almost got carried away, but caught his footing. We stayed in the shallow water and relaxed in the gentile current.

The area around the river is beautiful, surrounded by fields of farm-land, goats, and actual greenery!

There is a lot that I will miss about Sudan. The people are some of the most friendly and generous I have ever met (sometimes too much so), the food is fresh and tasty (I have never had such good produce in my life) and life is simple. I am sad to have to leave.

Emily, Matt, Neetha, Peter and I went to the Police Station for my farewell breakfast. They served chicken, everyone´s favorite and a real delicacy in Sudan. This was the second farewell dinner, because we were not properly invited to the first. After breakfast, we were presented with an astonishing array of presents. Everyone got snakeskin shoes, the girls got snakeskin purses, I got a new Jelabia (the traditional Sudanese men´s wear), carved wooden statues, three huge boxes of fruit, and a ton of other things. I marveled at the number of endangered species that were killed for our gifts. Aren´t the "Wildlife Police" suppose to be stopping poaching? Malesh.

For my last day of class with my Zoology students, they wanted to take me to Jebalolia Dam. It is located an hour outside the city, so the class was going to take three hours longer than usual. I had set aside time after class to get tea or ful with my students, but not that long. They were very upset, because they had planned this big event for me. Finally I agreed to change my plans and go to the dam.

The area around the dam is very beautiful; a variety of interesting trees grow on the Nile flood plane. We talked, drank tea and played chess, but I was afraid to bring up the topic I wanted to discuss for the last class.

Finally I took Hajer (one of my best students) aside and asked her about the topic. I wanted to discuss my Jewish heritage. At first she acted surprised, but soon admitted that she already knew I was born Jewish. She said that the topic will not be a problem, the students are very open-minded. I was still a bit skeptical (I am living in a Sharia Law governed Islamic dictatorship, after all), so we pulled over a teaching assistant and he also said that it would be ok.

I was still nervous and stalled while the students prayed and cleaned up from our picnic. Finally in the van on the way home, I told them. Most of them had never met a Jew (or at least Jew by birth). It must have created a great conflict in their minds, because they like me, but they were taught to hate Jews. I explained that not all Jews support Israel (I certainly don´t) and that there is no such thing as a Jewish conspiracy.

They were actually accepting. Ahmed explained that he is from the Nubian tribe, who were Christian before they were Muslim and Jewish before they were Christian. The conversation went very well. I hope that I was able to dispel some of the myths that they have been taught. They have certainly helped me dispel some of the myths about Muslims.

We are back from Wad Medani. It was a nice and relaxing after living in the chaos of Khartoum. Last night we ate Turkish food, then went to a local amusement park. This was not like any amusement park in the West though. It cost 100 Dinars ($.50) to get in and all of the rides were free. We went on two rides. The first was hanging swings that spun in a circle and the second was a merry-go-round that Matt and I had to push. Afterward, we were swamped by Sudanese asking for money.

They said, "All Americans are rich, so you must give us money."
I pointed at my stomach and asked, "Look at me. Do you really think I am rich?" I was referring to my dirty clothes, but they looked at my thin waist. Being fat was (and I guess still is) a sign of your wealth. When they realized that we did not have money, they accused me of being a spy for the American Government. I explained that American spies have better things to do than ride the horsey rides at the park. They agreed and invited us for tea.

Emily does not drink tea after dinner (because it keeps her up) and Neetha does not like tea, so Matt and I had to drink it all (without the Sudanese noticing, or it would have been rude). They put a pound of sugar and a pound of powdered milk in each cup. Finishing it was not easy. I staggered back to the hotel feeling nauseas.

Emily, Matt, Neetha and I are in Wad Medani (a city south-west of Khartoum). We came here yesterday, just to get out of Khartoum for a couple days. The bus was air conditioned and they played a Jacky Chan movie. When we got here, we went to a hotel recommended by the guide book. Bad idea. It was a dirty hallway lined with beds. Next stop was the Nile Hotel. The guy at the desk quoted a price of 5,000 Dinars per night, but we got him down to 3,000. The room is small, but at least it has an air-cooler (not as good as an air conditioner). The bathroom at the end of the hall is a hole in the ground, but that is standard for Sudan.

We walked into the souq and found a restaurant called "The Pizza" for lunch. It was quite good and the owner spoke decent English. We asked him what there was to do here and he gave us a blank look, like that was the strangest question he had ever heard.
We have spent most of our time looking for food, smoking sheesha (hooka) and sleeping. Not much different than in Khartoum, but without classes to teach. The people here are very friendly, but they act like they have never seen white people before. Everywhere we go we get strange looks and people yell their few English phrases (like "Where are you going") at us.

They really need to do something about the money in this country. I've probably written about it before, but here is a short recap.

There are three currencies that people deal with here: Old Pounds (1000=$.50), Dinars (100=$.50), and New Pounds (1=$.50). Most prices are quoted in Old Pounds, but they are no longer in circulation. The Dinar is being phased out and the New Pound is being phased in.

Today I tried to get paid at the newspaper, because it was my last day of work. I make 30,000 Dinars for four days of work per month. This month I have worked three days, so I am owed 22,500. For us, it is simple, for the Sudanese it is very complicated.

I have called the Managing Editor all week to make sure my payment would be ready today. When I got there to collect the money, he had no idea what I was talking about and said that I could not get paid because the accountant is out of the office. I told him that I need to get paid, because I am leaving the country. So he and the other accountant (who doesn't control the money) sat down to figure out how much I am owed. After about 15 minutes they came up with a sum of 30,000 Dinars. I explained that I wasn't owed that much, but they were sure that it was correct. The Managing Editor proceeded to hand me 3,000 Dinars.

"No," I said, "I need 19 and a half more of these notes."
"But you make 1,000 Dinars a day."
"No, I work four days a month and make 30,000 Dinars - 7,500 per shift."
They started the calculations again and came up with the same number. I was getting a bit frustrated at this point, so I drew a very simple diagram to explain how much I was owed. Another person walked into the office and all three carefully studied my diagram. Again they handed me 3,000 Dinars. I explained the diagram again and wrote out the amount I was owed in each of the three currencies. Finally they seemed to understand.

The Managing Editor asked me to write a letter explaining the payment to the Editor in Chief. Three handwritten copies and one typed copies later (they kept wanting me to add, remove and change the letters), I was finally paid.

The worst thing about sudan is that the power goes out anytime it gets too hot, which is exactly when we need it. The country is powered by hydroelectricity from the Nile. When the river drops because of evaporation, we will not have power for hours. This is when we usually take a shower with our clothes on or dump water from the freezer over our heads to keep cool. It is really quite miserable. The temperture has been averaging around 110 to 115 in the hottest part of the day.

Today I went to Khartoum University to attend a zoology lab taught by one of my students. After leaving the lab, I saw a large group of students running away from the front of the campus and smelled a sickly / sweet smell. As I got closer, my eyes and nose started to burn. There was a large group of police in full riot gear standing in the road just outside of the campus. The students were throwing rocks at them and they were shooting tear gas at the students.

They were just going back and forth. First the students would throw rocks. Then the police would shoot tear gas and the students would run. When the gas cleared, the students started throwing rocks again. The canisters landed near me a few times. It felt like having flaming pepper blown in your face.

A couple of students tried to go through the front gate, close to where the police were standing. The police shot at them with live ammunition and hit one of them in the leg. He was carried off by a group of students.

The conflict started because the students were protesting the arrest of fellow students (most likely for political reasons). Khartoum University is know as the most liberal campus in Sudan. There are always political demonstrations on campus against the government, but they usually do not go this far.

Last night we were hit by an enormous haboob (sand storm). Emily, Neetha, John and I were hanging out in the living room, when all of a sudden John yelled, "look outside!" An enormous cloud of sand was heading right for us. It came incredibly fast. I barely had time to snap a couple photos. We rushed to close the windows, but we were too late. Within minutes the wind picked up and the entire sky had gone black. Sand poured through the slits in the windows, covering everything. John and I went up on the roof, where we were pelted with sand and blown about. You could literally chew the air. My eyes, nose, mouth and clothes were filled with sand.

In the middle of the storm, Liam came home with a new skin color. Most people stay inside, but he decided to walk home from his University. The Sudanese people acted like it was nothing out of the ordinary. There was a guy sitting across the street drinking a Coke and smoking a cigarette as the storm raged. It lasted about an hour.

Afterward, we all went to Agfad University to attend a dinner for the national English language debate tournament. Many of the volunteers (encluding Emily, Neetha and Liam) are coaching teams at their Universities. I am not coaching, because my main placement is at the Police Department. The dinner was catered by the Hilton. I have not eaten that much, or that well, since I have been here! We all gorged ourselves.

Peter and I visited Souq Lybia, which is also known as the camel market. They don't sell camels, but they sell plenty of camel meat. Beef, chicken, fish, lamb and goat are much more popular, but camel meat is still eaten. It took us a while to figure out the arabic word for camel (we should have looked it up before coming), but we figured it out and got a reccomendation for a good meat stall. The "restaurant" had only three walls, which were lined with chairs, and a small coal fire for cooking. An old Sudanese woman cooked the camel meat in a large saucepan with holes in the bottom. She served it with bread and hot sauce. The meat tasted like goat, but it was not nearly as tender. It took awhile to chew each fatty piece. After we ate, we walked around the souq and stopped for some hot, sweet tea, which is served in abundance everywhere you go.

Before coming here, I had very little expectations. Never the less, many things have surprised me about Sudan. Here's a short list:

-Everyone (except the very poor) take great care in their personal appearance. The men wear either western style button down shirts with slacks or the traditional Jelabia. Their clothes are always exceptionally clean and ironed.
-The woman do not feel oppressed at all. They wear the head scarves by choice and feel like they are free to do as they please.
-They LOVE sugar. People here drink sugary drinks like soda and fresh fruit juice all day long. It is necessary to consume sugar to keep your energy up during this heat.
-The food is incredibly fresh and tasty. I can never get this quality of fruits and vegetables in the States.
-They love watching English football (soccer), American Professional Wrestling, Oprah, Dr. Phil, Bollywood films, and bad American films.

We visited another IDP camp. This one was worse off than the last one, because there are no NGOs there to help.

Here are some photos from Souq Omderman, a photo of the Khartoum University Library, and one of Reem and Nuha at their graduation ceremony.

I went to a big football (soccer) match between Hillel (a local team) and a team from Nigeria. Most games cost 500 Dinars, so I only brought 1000 Dinars. This game cost 2000 Dinars, because it was a big match. I walked up a ramp leading to the expensive seats (the ramp is taller than the stadium wall) and watched the beginning of the game from there. The view was not very good, though, so I went across the street where many people were watching from a rooftop. The view was a little better, but you could only see one goal. At half time I decided to invoke Hawaja Privilege (taking advantage of the fact that white people are rare and well respected) and got in for free. Inside the stadium, I met some Sudanese fans who spoke decent English and watched the game with them.

The place was absolutely packed. It was the deciding game for entrance into the African League Semi-Finals. Sudan lost 3-0 in Nigeria, so they had to win by more than 4 points. No one thought it could be done. Hillel scored one goal after another. Each time, the fans lit newspapers on fire, shot off Roman Candles (fireworks) and danced around hugging each other. It came down to an exciting sudden-death shootout and Hillel won! I the whole city of Omderman (and probably the rest of the country) celebrated for hours.

At the police station where I teach, they serve a huge breakfast everyday at 10:00. Meat, ful, chicken, taimia, cheese, salad, dessert and three or four types of drinks. Today they slaughtered a goat (probably the one that was tied up in front of the building yesterday), which is pretty common for a big meal here in Sudan. They don't waste a thing. The head is a delicacy. The stomach and intestines are cooked in a special sauce. The liver is eaten raw. The rest of the meat is served with a spicy sauce. I tried everything except the head, but could not enjoy it because I had met the goat yesterday.

We all went to the Khartoum University graduation celebration today. I had trouble getting there, because I thought it was in Buri at the Police Home, but it was actually in Khartoum Two at the Police Club. The party was not like any stuffy graduation celebration in the US. It was held at a large amphitheater. A live band played Sudanese music on stage and everyone danced (which is usually not allowed in this overly modest, religious society). The wealthy families had tables full of food, which they generously shared.

By the time I got there, I was starving. I have to leave at 7:30am to teach the police officers. I got to the party 14 hours later and had not eaten since breakfast. Yes, even in Sudan you sometimes get too busy to eat. The party ended at 11:00, as all parties do, because amplified music is not allowed after that time.

I went to Souq Omderman to take photos, but I forgot to bring my photo-permit. You need a permit for everything here. Most people were excited about getting their photo taken. Often a small crowd would gather and each person would wait their turn to be photographed. I always asked before taking a picture, but some people got upset about me even asking. The real problem didn't start until I took a picture of a homeless family. I was approached by an undercover police officer and questioned. "Why are you taking pictures of these people," he said. I replied, "It is to show my friends and family the people of Sudan." "Why show them this?" he said, "it is illegal to photograph negative aspects of the country."

The conversation went on like this for a while. I tried to leave, but he kept me there while he called his office. Eventually he let me go, but said that I should bring my permit next time.

Ok Todd, you want it, you got it. Here are directions to Khartoum University (The police station was too hard):

Start at Tuti Island (the crescent shaped island between Khartoum and Omderman). This time look for the South East corner of the island (it is gray). The tip of the island points East, along the Blue Nile river. Zoom as much as you can and follow the river East. Just South East of the tip of the island, you will see a white boat. South of the boat is the Presidential Palace. Keep following the shoreline to the East and you will see the Sailing Club (where I often go). Look for the road which runs East-West; it is just South of the sailing club. Follow that road East for a couple blocks. You will see a large dirt field (South of the road) with a shape that looks like an electric guitar in the upper right corner. You are now on the campus of Khartoum University. Look for the bright white building in the center of campus. That is where tests are held. North of that building is the Library, built by General Gordon. The buildings East of the library are where I hold class.

Emily and I visited an IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) camp outside of Khartoum. We went with Al Adeen, who runs a NGO to help the camp. It was much different than I expected. The camp has been around for 20 years, helping people from the war torn South and now from Darfur. It houses 40,000 people and has been built up like a small city. The houses are all made of mud and they are in great need of repair. Most had crumbling walls and no ceiling. We visited one family's homes within the camp. Thirteen people lived there, but it was little more than some crumbling walls, which use to delineate rooms. There was a piece of cloth over two rooms, where the ceiling should have been, to provide some shade. Al Adeen brought a bag of clothing to hand out and the house was soon full of neighboring children and parents. They fought desperately for the clothing. I was amazed at the sheer size of the camp. With 40,000 people, it was like a small city.

I found our house on maps.google.com - here's how you can find it too:

Start by searching for Khartoum, Sudan. Zoom in until everything looks brown and dusty. Look for the crescent shaped island between Khartoum and Omderman. That is Tuti Island. On the left side of the island, near the top of the curve and just across the river, you will see a bridge that goes between Khartoum and Omderman (it crosses another small island). Follow that bridge to the left (Omderman side) and curve right when the road splits. The road should now be following the Nile. Take a left at the next split. There will be a football field on the right and a large empty field just past the football field. The road seems to end at the top left corner of the larger field. The small silver dome to the right of the large field is the Mahdi's tomb. This is where it gets tricky. Head north on the street between the dome and the large field and turn left at the big intersection. You will now be going north west. The road ends next to a large mosque (which will be on your right). Look for the street that sticks out on the eastern corner of the mosque (you are now north of the street you were just on). At the first intersection there will be a building with a green roof. At the second intersection are some houses with white roofs. That is next to our house. The building on the north east corner of the intersection (south of the white roofs) is ours! Good luck!

Emily, some friends and I went to an art opening at the restored site of an old bar in Khartoum. The building was very nice, bohemian looking with a mosaic floor and a large outdoor seating area. The bar was still there, but it only served soda and juice now. Outside there were well groomed trees old columns, relief paintings and a live band. Inside were three rooms, each one displaying the paintings of a different artist. It reminded me of what a beautiful city Khartoum had been before it was overtaken by religious fundamentalists.

My police officer class took me to the zoo. The conditions were pretty appalling, but the animals were beautiful. Many of the cages were falling apart and held closed by chicken-wire. They gave me unrestricted access to the cages, because I was with the police. Instead of staying a few feet away from the lion's cage, I was able to go right up to it and sit face to face with the lion (from 6" away). The female police officers acted like they had never been to the zoo before. While they were looking nervously at the lion, I jumped toward them and roared. They ran away screaming. There was also a chimp who spoke Arabic. They would give her a few different objects, then ask for one; the monkey knew which one to bring.

I was helping my friend Mohamed (yes, they are all named Mohamed, but this is the ex-SVP one) translate some interviews about beauty from college aged women. Their idea of beauty is very different from the Western view. For example, fat is beautiful. Many of the women complained about not being able to gain wait and some admitted to taking medicine to help them accomplish their goal. Additionally, while Western woman go to the tanning salon to darken their skin, Sudanese women use creams to lighten thiers.

I went to a football game (soccer) with Peter, Matt, Neetha, Mongo, John and Mohamed. We got there two hours before the game started and the stadium quickly began to fill up. The Sudanese were surprised and excited to see so many foreigners at their stadium, so they bought us hats and vests with the team name. When we put on our new gear, many people croweded around us and took photos with their cell phones. Before the game started I had some juice from a questionable source. I was soon overcome with the urge to use the bathroom. The problem was that the stadium did not have any bathrooms. I hurried out and across the street to a neighborhood. I noticed the front door of someone's house open and a bathroom just inside the door. No one was around, so I slid through the door and into their bathroom. When I was done, I snuck out without anyone noticing. The game was exciting, but Marich (the team we were rooting for) lost. The opposing team's supporters started a fire in the stadium before chanting and paradeing around the stadium. Outside, the police were armed with long sticks and electric shock shields. When the fans got outside, the police knocked one over the head with his stick. As the man laid on the ground clutching his head, the crowd threw rocks at the police. They threatened the fans with tear gas, before charging the crowd. Everyone ran and the police stopped chasing when we got to the main road.

I got a job at an English language newspaper here in Khartoum; I am the copy editor. The job pays well, but it's very difficult. The articles by these Sudanese "journalists" don't make any sense! They couldn't write a correct sentence in English if they were about to be beheaded (which one recently was). My job is to make sense out of their long, incoherent rants. I say "rants" because they wouldn't know objective journalism if it slapped them in the face. The newspaper is one big opinion page. It's like Fox news - in print form.

We went on a boat party with many of our friends and fellow volunteers. The boat was managed and paid for by some rich Sudanese people who like hanging out with hawajas. It sounds fancy, but was actually pretty ghetto (like everything here). The boat consisted of two pontoon boats tied together with rope. One had a motor, the other didn't. They brought some large speakers on the boat and a lot of food. We went up and down the Nile, stopping briefly at a small island where we got stuck. Well, we weren't really stuck, but that's what they told us. People waved and danced to our music from the shores of the river. The ride lasted six hours, which I though would be way too long, but ended up being nice.

I started a new class with just the Police Chiefs. There is only four people in the class, and their English is already quite good (which makes my job much easier). The Major General is referred to as "Your Majesty" or "Your Highness".

Yesterday I was talking to them about careers and asked what they would do if they did not become Police Officers. One of them gazed far into the distance and said that he always dreamed of being an actor. He went on to recount his days as an amateur theater actor and singer. His eyes started to tear up as he sung, in a deep baritone, a song from the theater.

I asked my female students about thier feelings toward the headscarves. They were surprised that most Westerners view it as oppressive. They insisted that they wear the headscarf by choice, not because it is forced. Their religion tells them to cover all parts of their body except their face and hands. Not an easy feat in this weather. But they take the religion seriously and willingly adapt this style of dress. I also asked them about how they would feel if thier daughter wanted to either not wear the headscarf or to wear a full Burka (which covers everything except a thin slit for the eyes). The women were opposed to their daughters wearing either. They said that not wearing the headscarf would be immodest and disrespectful toward their religion, but wearing a Burka would be taking it too far. In most cases they said that they would not stop their daughter from wearing either; they would let them make thier own decision.

We went to a party at the German Embassy yesterday. It was strange, because the place was filled with hawajas (white people). I didn't know that many white people lived in Khartoum! Most of them work for NGOs, so they don't ride the buses or hang out on our side of town. It was even stranger, because everyone was drinking alcohol (prohibited under Sharia Law, but allowed on foreign soil). We had a good time after we got over the initial shock.

The Sudanese people ingest a tremendous amount of sugar. I am just starting to get use to the ultra-sweet drinks and the abundance of sweet snacks. My dad will be happy to hear, though, that they diligently brush their teeth.

The personal hygiene in this country continues to amaze me. Except for the complete lack of toilet paper, they take great pride in their appearance. I don't know how they keep their clothes so clean and nicely pressed in this treacherous environment.

Emily, Neetha, Matt, Nick, Peter and I took a trip to Tuti Island yesterday. The island is located at the confluence of the White Nile and the Blue Nile. People have been living there for a very long time and enjoy keeping the island as their own private haven. There is no bridge to the island (yet), so there are few cars and a quiet and relaxed environment not found in Khartoum. The island has a residential section, a small shop lined street and an abundance of farm land. I saw more plants on the island than I've seen the entire time I've been in Sudan!

We arrived to the island as early as possible, which wasn't too early because no one wanted to miss Rachel's pancake breakfast. Spent a few hours wandering around the island and sitting in the shade. It was a very relaxing Friday and a good break from the commotion of the city.

Here is another photo of our friendly neighborhood trash dump (aka the public restroom) and a photo I shot out the window during a sand storm.

My discussion group today at Khartoum University focused on women's role in society. It was very interesting to hear about the traditional way women lived. For example, most women married their cousins. The men and the women are always separate at family gatherings, so before the marriage they would have had almost no contact with their spouse. After the marriage, the woman would not speak until the first child was born. It was considered rude for her to speak. Even after the first child, the husband and wife would rarely talk and they would never speak each other's names. They address each other as "the Mother / Father of Mohamed" or whatever the first child is named.

Now women are not expected to marry their cousins (although some still do) and they are allowed to speak to and get to know their future husband. However, men are allowed to marry up to four wives, so I am often asked if Emily is my only wife.

Today, instead of the usual sail boat race, we took a long trip to Crocodile Island. The journey took through were the Blue Nile meets the White Nile, which was very interesting to see. The island had a very nice beach, covered with trees. We sat around in the shade waiting for the big meal to be served. Finally they brought out an entire lamb on a bed of rice. No part of the animal was spared. The men immediately began ripping it apart (with their bare hands, of course). The head and tail went first, but the entire lamb was devoured in five minutes!

I can't get use to the hospitality and friendliness of the Sudanese people. I met a Sudanese guy who is my age on the bus. We were talking about our jobs and he mentioned that he works at Omderman Hospital (very close to my house). He invited me to come visit him there, so yesterday I went. He kept saying things like:

"It is a dream come true to have you come here."

"I pray to God that our friendship will last the rest of our lives."

"I pray that your wife will become pregant and have many children."

"I have always loved the White Man."

Despite the weird phrases, he was incredibly friendly and I enjoyed spending some time at the hospital (for once in my life).

I have been eatin' good for the last couple days. There was a big SVP party last night, in honor of David Walton's visit. He is the SVP organizer from London. All of the volunteers who are teaching in Khartoum were there, as well as many of the SVP board members.

Today I went to Grizelda's home for lunch. She has been in Sudan for 40 years and was married to one of Sudan's most famous authors. Anna and her husband came with me. Lunch was delicious. Unfortunately, Emily couldn't come because she was busy teaching. Next time we will visit Grizelda's farm outside of the city.