Showing posts with label USA 2011. Show all posts
Showing posts with label USA 2011. Show all posts
Friday, March 18, 2011
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Sunday, February 20, 2011
20 02 2011
This past week has been amazing in a whole lot of ways
Getting over jet lag- i keep waking up at random hours , just because! And then i cant sleep again!
then there's work ...yep we hit the ground running and work , training , living all started as the plane doors spat us out in this foreign land.
In-between all the formalities , there were workshop tours , discussions about the differences and similarities between our employers and trainers and briefing on what to expect of our projects.
We've also had some (failed) attempts at team building. Paintball , bowling(i dont know if this was offficial) and lunch of which we haven't managed one as yet! We wil have to try harder. Last night we made it to a get-together which was not my scene but at least a beginning.
some other unusual things strange to the SA eye:
Snow melts very fast
When we arrived here last week , snow covered almost everything. Over the week , snow turned parking lots into quicksand mud grounds, gutters have been really full even though the rain hasn't come as yet.
so i looked out my window today and would you belive it, it turns out theres a basketball court down in that snow covered area! Not an icicle left in that clearing.
And the fountain to the left of that is even visible now.
Michelle Obama is on a mission to make Americans more health concious. So Feb= "heart month" and in a flash mob style fashion happy shoppers in malls start dancing in unison to get their daily exercise.
anyway , I was hoping to go to New York City this weekend but low and behold there isnt a bus that can get me there in good time to actually expereince the city. I still had a fab day yesterday because Aunty Rookiya and Uncle Goolam (My Grandads brother and sister-in-law) drove from Canada to spend the day with me :-D
how cool is that ??? They're super awesome. Uncle Goolam is just like my late Grandad and Aunty Rookiya has to be the youngest , most active grandma around. Im going to see them next week .
I off course have to concentrate on work and training and ReDineo aswell. But I almost feel like a tourist now...:-)
Getting over jet lag- i keep waking up at random hours , just because! And then i cant sleep again!
then there's work ...yep we hit the ground running and work , training , living all started as the plane doors spat us out in this foreign land.
- Monday morning we pitched up at the training facility and went through the motions of getting settled.
- Tuesday we got an induction
- Wednesday we had lectures
- Thursday we were assigned projects
- Friday we got access cards
In-between all the formalities , there were workshop tours , discussions about the differences and similarities between our employers and trainers and briefing on what to expect of our projects.
We've also had some (failed) attempts at team building. Paintball , bowling(i dont know if this was offficial) and lunch of which we haven't managed one as yet! We wil have to try harder. Last night we made it to a get-together which was not my scene but at least a beginning.
some other unusual things strange to the SA eye:
Snow melts very fast
When we arrived here last week , snow covered almost everything. Over the week , snow turned parking lots into quicksand mud grounds, gutters have been really full even though the rain hasn't come as yet.
so i looked out my window today and would you belive it, it turns out theres a basketball court down in that snow covered area! Not an icicle left in that clearing.
And the fountain to the left of that is even visible now.
This train locomotive in a workshop is what I call a Monster Loco. The SA loco's below can fit quite comfortably inside this Monster with space for a person to pass. I was completely wowed with the size of these. SA is definitely the petit kind.
finally (only because im running outr of pictures) Pennsylvania is essentially landlocked but I found the strangest vehicle out here...
uhuh, thats a ship. These guys build ships in the local ship yard!I dont think this pic does justice to the size of this ship...its ENORMOUS. how they get it to sea is beyond me!
anyway , I was hoping to go to New York City this weekend but low and behold there isnt a bus that can get me there in good time to actually expereince the city. I still had a fab day yesterday because Aunty Rookiya and Uncle Goolam (My Grandads brother and sister-in-law) drove from Canada to spend the day with me :-D
how cool is that ??? They're super awesome. Uncle Goolam is just like my late Grandad and Aunty Rookiya has to be the youngest , most active grandma around. Im going to see them next week .
I off course have to concentrate on work and training and ReDineo aswell. But I almost feel like a tourist now...:-)
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Valentines Day in a white washed city
The Learning Centre is all kitted out for the occasion
This is the Residence Inn(below)...my home for the next 3 months ...pretty looking hey :-)
There is beautiful , soft snow all over the place...its cold outside and people dress like eskimo's
A school, I think, on the way to the Training facility ...its like a picture out of Dead Poets Society
Charlottes Webb connecting the wooden homes
Snow outside the window incidentally of the swimming pool area
Typical house in Erie
Monday, February 14, 2011
11 02 2011
I woke up yesterday morning with a start enough to scare the accents off the air hostesses who were walking up and down the isle as American air hostesses usually do, using words like trash and lavatory instead of dirt and toilet. I finally realised that I was on my way to America!!! The day before, much like the 3 months preceding the flight in question, had been a gas(erm I'm converting too...i meant petrol) guzzling, traffic enduring, last minute packing, visa collecting, double checking race to get everything done. And then almost shell-shocked , i boarded the plane ...
and at 8am South Africa time, 1am America time ( i have no idea what time it was in the area that I was in at that specific moment), there I was discovering what actually happened!
Shock and horror aside, at 6 am (US time) I arrived in Atlanta where true to their hospitality non-Americans were ushered into long queues with documents and forms in hand. "special" people , like myself found themselves in the "ssss" office for the second time in one trip having to validate the need to travel to the USA. *SSSS- some sort of special security check which singles out individuals and subjects them to frisking , verbal information confirmation, scans and gunpowder detection (yes i was subjected to these)
When flying into Johannesburg (or out of JHB for that matter) the world seems to be painted green with random spots of blue and brown adding depth and detail to the picture. Flying over the Miswest here in the USA , the shapes landscapes look very similar. The landscapes are covered in white with paths carved to depict roads.Its a different kind of beauty with little perception but rather flawless tranquility.
on a closer look , or perhaps a close encounter when driving on a different side of the road with a differently operated car one quickly realises that Its not flawless. driving on snow and ice is tricky and wheels quickly skid. Driving on the wrong side of the road , or right side as it may be, is mind boggling. we often follow force of habit and change to the left side which is verry dangerous. My first "driving lesson" in the vehicle went very well though. Yay. Thanks Walter for letting me drive to WalMart
Walmart is my newest fav mall/store/supermarket thing-a-ma-jig. It sells everything and its in the next street so im already planning my next trip.Its also open 24/7 so its very convenient. I think Im gonna get shopper of the month award, Ive been ther twice(nearly thrice) in the matter of 20 hours.
The accommodation Im in is the biggest surprise of all. I though that I was a bit crazy when i entered the lobby and a few nasty looking kids came bouncing by in "bathing suits". The swimming pool next to reception was actually full of people enjoying themselves. So what hey, we swim in winter in SA. Besides, i figured it was a warmed pool. It turns out that the hotel is linked to a water theme park adjacent to it. The kids that i saw were only a handful of hundreds of little people and their parents enjoying the slides and splashes of the park. Also linked to the hotel-theme park arrangement are a host of restaurants and more accommodation.
It looks like the valley of the waved with a roof. might just be losing my mind.
Perhaps its all just a weird dream. When I wake up, It will all be very normal and I'll go build a snowman.
cheerios ;-)
and at 8am South Africa time, 1am America time ( i have no idea what time it was in the area that I was in at that specific moment), there I was discovering what actually happened!
Shock and horror aside, at 6 am (US time) I arrived in Atlanta where true to their hospitality non-Americans were ushered into long queues with documents and forms in hand. "special" people , like myself found themselves in the "ssss" office for the second time in one trip having to validate the need to travel to the USA. *SSSS- some sort of special security check which singles out individuals and subjects them to frisking , verbal information confirmation, scans and gunpowder detection (yes i was subjected to these)
When flying into Johannesburg (or out of JHB for that matter) the world seems to be painted green with random spots of blue and brown adding depth and detail to the picture. Flying over the Miswest here in the USA , the shapes landscapes look very similar. The landscapes are covered in white with paths carved to depict roads.Its a different kind of beauty with little perception but rather flawless tranquility.
on a closer look , or perhaps a close encounter when driving on a different side of the road with a differently operated car one quickly realises that Its not flawless. driving on snow and ice is tricky and wheels quickly skid. Driving on the wrong side of the road , or right side as it may be, is mind boggling. we often follow force of habit and change to the left side which is verry dangerous. My first "driving lesson" in the vehicle went very well though. Yay. Thanks Walter for letting me drive to WalMart
Walmart is my newest fav mall/store/supermarket thing-a-ma-jig. It sells everything and its in the next street so im already planning my next trip.Its also open 24/7 so its very convenient. I think Im gonna get shopper of the month award, Ive been ther twice(nearly thrice) in the matter of 20 hours.
The accommodation Im in is the biggest surprise of all. I though that I was a bit crazy when i entered the lobby and a few nasty looking kids came bouncing by in "bathing suits". The swimming pool next to reception was actually full of people enjoying themselves. So what hey, we swim in winter in SA. Besides, i figured it was a warmed pool. It turns out that the hotel is linked to a water theme park adjacent to it. The kids that i saw were only a handful of hundreds of little people and their parents enjoying the slides and splashes of the park. Also linked to the hotel-theme park arrangement are a host of restaurants and more accommodation.
It looks like the valley of the waved with a roof. might just be losing my mind.
Perhaps its all just a weird dream. When I wake up, It will all be very normal and I'll go build a snowman.
cheerios ;-)
Thursday, February 10, 2011
D-day has dawned
Yesterday I had my US visa interview. After all the stress and planning and checklist ticking , i almost forgot my passport in the car. Yes, rather blond I am.
Anyways, the interview wasn't bad but it was really nothing like the interview that I had imagined. It took a few check points and scans and so on just to enter the embassy. The actual interview was through a glass window , sort of like the bank tellers in JHB town crossed with a high security prison visit. Despite the effect of the place to make even the most honest child feel like a wanted criminal, the efficiency of the place could teach our home affairs departments a thing or two.
The interview ended on a happy note, with the consol officer agreeing to process my Visa. Yayness to that.
So D-Day (Departure Day) is tomorrow. My bags are packed , my papers in order and now , finally, I'm beginning to look forward to the trip.
My next post will be from the USA.
Adieu
Anyways, the interview wasn't bad but it was really nothing like the interview that I had imagined. It took a few check points and scans and so on just to enter the embassy. The actual interview was through a glass window , sort of like the bank tellers in JHB town crossed with a high security prison visit. Despite the effect of the place to make even the most honest child feel like a wanted criminal, the efficiency of the place could teach our home affairs departments a thing or two.
The interview ended on a happy note, with the consol officer agreeing to process my Visa. Yayness to that.
So D-Day (Departure Day) is tomorrow. My bags are packed , my papers in order and now , finally, I'm beginning to look forward to the trip.
My next post will be from the USA.
Adieu
Thursday, February 03, 2011
Shiver me Whiskers
I must have done something seriously bad for karma to be sending me to such dangerous territory. The effects of the blizzard include no electricity in many of the 20 american states affected, closed roads and airports. In other words there will be sub zero temperatures to deal with - without heaters - and limited access to food. Oh dear , what chill we will feel being so close to the banks of Lake Erie!!!The pictures that I have seen so far from Missouri and Chicago are making me shiver here in the humid office in Germiston. (perhaps the Aircon is assisting a bit)
But I also wonder about the programme i'm meant to be attending. If schools and businesses are closed and people are "hermitising" will it really be worth their while for the comapny to send us?
I'm so over being excited to play in snow. This snowfall looks scary and all weather service warnings seem to be telling me is to stay in sunny SA and shy away from the cold.
Well I guess i'll go and soak up as much vitamin D in the mean time. I need all the happiness food i can manage.
But I also wonder about the programme i'm meant to be attending. If schools and businesses are closed and people are "hermitising" will it really be worth their while for the comapny to send us?
I'm so over being excited to play in snow. This snowfall looks scary and all weather service warnings seem to be telling me is to stay in sunny SA and shy away from the cold.
Well I guess i'll go and soak up as much vitamin D in the mean time. I need all the happiness food i can manage.
Tuesday, February 01, 2011
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Shopping in The USA
Being in SA a wee bit longer has made my shopping list a whole lot longer. You see, everyone who knows me and some acquintences and their pets, suddenly want the strangest array of gifts from the USA.
I've been asked to buy electronic equipment, fish, beer mugs, clothing and even jewellery!
I can see that lot getting past customs.
Customs officer: "Ma'am , do you have anything to declare?"
Me:" Err, declare??? Is that English . We don't eat that in South Africa! Sorry Sir, maybe next time."
Its all quite strange to me because we get everything in SA. The electronics may be delayed a bit , but we'll get it soon enough. Our networks arent even fast enough to appreciate most of the latest gizmos so whats the point?
Fish...okay so Salmon is more readily available in USA but its a rare fish so I skeem that we let the Americans have the extinction of Salmon on their conscience.
Beer mugs...hahaha, I dont even consume alcohol. So the old customs officer wil be rather confused when he sees that. Nah , cant carry a beer mug. I wonder if a beer mug from a different country will make a diference to the taste of the drink. Seriously , will a German mug make the beer taste like its from Germany? #just wondering
Clothing requests have come in the form of name brands. Obviously from people who dont know me at all because anyone who know me will know that my fashion sense doesnt follow a particular trend or brand or anything particular. It all depends on my mood and hence I can look like a hobo in a track suit (and safety boots) or majorly confused in a power outfit ( and Bova's- ugliest safety boots known). So y'all hu wants some "nice" clothes. Y'all will get what ever tickles my fancy ...if i remember you
And then the Jewellery. Cummon, have i EVER worn jewellery other than my watch??? And dont we produce gold in SA? Why should i buy items made from SA gold in a foreign land. Do you want the gold to return to its home. Ag shame julle, I'll make a purchase or 2 if I feel like it maar honestly, are material things that important ?
This of course doesnt mean that I will forget all of the people that I value; I plan to do some shopping. It may not be as per request but I aint a pro shopper and at least i know that for those who are on my list it will be well received as small as it may get.#ifIevergetthere
I've been asked to buy electronic equipment, fish, beer mugs, clothing and even jewellery!
I can see that lot getting past customs.
Customs officer: "Ma'am , do you have anything to declare?"
Me:" Err, declare??? Is that English . We don't eat that in South Africa! Sorry Sir, maybe next time."
Its all quite strange to me because we get everything in SA. The electronics may be delayed a bit , but we'll get it soon enough. Our networks arent even fast enough to appreciate most of the latest gizmos so whats the point?
Fish...okay so Salmon is more readily available in USA but its a rare fish so I skeem that we let the Americans have the extinction of Salmon on their conscience.
Beer mugs...hahaha, I dont even consume alcohol. So the old customs officer wil be rather confused when he sees that. Nah , cant carry a beer mug. I wonder if a beer mug from a different country will make a diference to the taste of the drink. Seriously , will a German mug make the beer taste like its from Germany? #just wondering
Clothing requests have come in the form of name brands. Obviously from people who dont know me at all because anyone who know me will know that my fashion sense doesnt follow a particular trend or brand or anything particular. It all depends on my mood and hence I can look like a hobo in a track suit (and safety boots) or majorly confused in a power outfit ( and Bova's- ugliest safety boots known). So y'all hu wants some "nice" clothes. Y'all will get what ever tickles my fancy ...if i remember you
And then the Jewellery. Cummon, have i EVER worn jewellery other than my watch??? And dont we produce gold in SA? Why should i buy items made from SA gold in a foreign land. Do you want the gold to return to its home. Ag shame julle, I'll make a purchase or 2 if I feel like it maar honestly, are material things that important ?
This of course doesnt mean that I will forget all of the people that I value; I plan to do some shopping. It may not be as per request but I aint a pro shopper and at least i know that for those who are on my list it will be well received as small as it may get.#ifIevergetthere
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
two days + a few
So the visa shenanigans are continuing ...
what about a visa you ask. Well, ideally the lot of us should depart on Thursday . We then got moved to Friday . Still fine because it the programme in the US begins on the 1st Feb so we'd have a bit of time to recover from jet lag.
But that wasn't the end of the alterations and altercations. A few more changes to flights and other bookings have had to be made since then. We now may only leave SA on the 7th!(again I write this with bated breath as the word visa crosses my mind). The unlucky persons that just finally completed all their paperwork over and above their normal assignments have to re-do it all! So altercations it has been and shall be.
whats the delay? Well, to put it plainly , overnight delivery isn't quite overnight. Its takes a few days. in our case that's about 4 working days that we don't have. The embassy wants to see original documents for everything so until then ...we wait
what about a visa you ask. Well, ideally the lot of us should depart on Thursday . We then got moved to Friday . Still fine because it the programme in the US begins on the 1st Feb so we'd have a bit of time to recover from jet lag.
But that wasn't the end of the alterations and altercations. A few more changes to flights and other bookings have had to be made since then. We now may only leave SA on the 7th!(again I write this with bated breath as the word visa crosses my mind). The unlucky persons that just finally completed all their paperwork over and above their normal assignments have to re-do it all! So altercations it has been and shall be.
whats the delay? Well, to put it plainly , overnight delivery isn't quite overnight. Its takes a few days. in our case that's about 4 working days that we don't have. The embassy wants to see original documents for everything so until then ...we wait
Thursday, January 20, 2011
When the world offers you Lemons...
So Im drenched in lemonade...
Today was the day that our pre-arrival letters finaly made it (on over night mail) to us after 4 working days roaming the world.Thats actually 6 days! So the intention is to accept delivery , sign and return so that our Visa aplications , of wat ook al , can be processed on the other end of the world. Sounds simple , right?
Thats again what us optimists thought. Until packages were delivered to places other that the agreed pick up points, wrong things were delivered, signatures were missing! Oh my gosh!
The delivery services really offerred us a bag of fresh lemons today. Sadly , only 3 of the 6 participants are making lemonade. The other 3 seem rather oblivious of the sour situation and are carrying on their lives quite normally. Quite frustrating to think that we are all going to attend this programme and that other people would die to be a part of it!
Latest state of affairs: pre-arrival letters must be received by training company so that they can mail us the rest.
Appointment with the embassy is on the Wednesday ...early
Programme briefing happens on Thursday morning
Fly out ...Thursady night.
My dilemma...Strat session in PTA from Mon -Wednesday
Wednesday Morning -be in Sandton at embassy , Wednesday afternoon, be in PTA
Thursday Morning - be in PTA , Thurday afternoon,-JHB, evening airport!!!
Im not sure when we recieve Visa's in all of this !
But I guess it has much to do with the offer of lemons.
Today was the day that our pre-arrival letters finaly made it (on over night mail) to us after 4 working days roaming the world.Thats actually 6 days! So the intention is to accept delivery , sign and return so that our Visa aplications , of wat ook al , can be processed on the other end of the world. Sounds simple , right?
Thats again what us optimists thought. Until packages were delivered to places other that the agreed pick up points, wrong things were delivered, signatures were missing! Oh my gosh!
The delivery services really offerred us a bag of fresh lemons today. Sadly , only 3 of the 6 participants are making lemonade. The other 3 seem rather oblivious of the sour situation and are carrying on their lives quite normally. Quite frustrating to think that we are all going to attend this programme and that other people would die to be a part of it!
Latest state of affairs: pre-arrival letters must be received by training company so that they can mail us the rest.
Appointment with the embassy is on the Wednesday ...early
Programme briefing happens on Thursday morning
Fly out ...Thursady night.
My dilemma...Strat session in PTA from Mon -Wednesday
Wednesday Morning -be in Sandton at embassy , Wednesday afternoon, be in PTA
Thursday Morning - be in PTA , Thurday afternoon,-JHB, evening airport!!!
Im not sure when we recieve Visa's in all of this !
But I guess it has much to do with the offer of lemons.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Counting down 2 a chilly few months
I guess as things stand right now,that's considered optimistic:-)
In 8 days the six of us selected for a once in a lifetime learning opportunity are meant 2 board planes headed 4 the USA.
we are still,however, tangled in red tape sufficient 2 suffocate us all!
So 4 of the participants fall under a different structure within the company than the other two, different structure means diff rules and diff avenues for assistance! In our case it means that while Walter & I sit in our usual meetings with few (thats just an email every hour or so and a phone call every other hour) worries about travelling, Winsley and his buddies r doing all the paperwork from tickets for flights to accommodation 2 forex n liaising with the training centre in America 4 visas.
Visa's ! None of us have them yet! Thanks 2 the back n forth bouncing of more legal documents...we must wait to get an appointment with the embassy. Off course I am even more burdened by my impression on the consol officer...I wear Hijaab( the picture of the perceived terrorist!)
So here's the bleak sketch-if all goes as planned, interview on Wednesday, by magic -visa on Thursday, fly on Thursday night!
The adventures are only just beginning :-)
I guess as things stand right now,that's considered optimistic:-)
In 8 days the six of us selected for a once in a lifetime learning opportunity are meant 2 board planes headed 4 the USA.
we are still,however, tangled in red tape sufficient 2 suffocate us all!
So 4 of the participants fall under a different structure within the company than the other two, different structure means diff rules and diff avenues for assistance! In our case it means that while Walter & I sit in our usual meetings with few (thats just an email every hour or so and a phone call every other hour) worries about travelling, Winsley and his buddies r doing all the paperwork from tickets for flights to accommodation 2 forex n liaising with the training centre in America 4 visas.
Visa's ! None of us have them yet! Thanks 2 the back n forth bouncing of more legal documents...we must wait to get an appointment with the embassy. Off course I am even more burdened by my impression on the consol officer...I wear Hijaab( the picture of the perceived terrorist!)
So here's the bleak sketch-if all goes as planned, interview on Wednesday, by magic -visa on Thursday, fly on Thursday night!
The adventures are only just beginning :-)
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