One month in...

So we have been in Brunei as a family for one month now and we are getting slowly settled. At times it does feel more foreign than the Falklands, with cultural & language differences and what with being a whopping 8 hours ahead of the UK. But we are fortunate to have mostly sunny weather and some very good amenities to occupy our time whilst we are here.

On Sunday morning we drove to the beach, got drinks and snacks at a coffee shop and had a picnic under an umbrella beside the sand. Felt like cheating after all the hiking and the like involved in getting to the sea at the last place!

We then sat on the beach while Woozles built sand castles and paddled, then we spotted a jellyfish so we hastened out of the water and off for a jaunt down the sand.

At school last week W was involved in Tijar celebrations (as part of the Hindu faith observed by the Gurkha children) and we visited a temple to see Ganesh the elephant and other statues. She was amused to have to take her sandals off and wash her feet before entering the temple. Back at school W had a henna tattoo and made some chocolate and coconut treats as well as salt dough candle holders which seem to have the primary function of distributing glitter around the house.

Driving back from school today we saw the troop of monkeys (long-tailed macaques) grazing on the grass verge. They seem well adapted to the built-up environment, even able to cross the road safely in very busy traffic! Will try and get some photos of the monkeys, hornbills, and maybe even a monitor lizard (huge!) in the near future.

On the home front, we have bought a few knick knacks to make the place homely but the real settling in will hopefully occur later on this week or next, once our boxes arrive. Come on people, hurry up and find our container - the ship is in!!!

Wheels of steel

Took ownership of our new car today; a slate metallic grey Mazda saloon. 'When in Rome...' and all that. So once we adjust to the indicator being on the opposite side of the wheel and stop wiping the windscreen furiously at every junction, we will be sorted!

On the subject of wheels, it was decided between Woozles and myself that she is not ready for the school bus yet. I had thought 3 was a bit young but the minibus does cater for pre-school children (we live approx. 5 miles away from the site). She seemed keen to go on it and dashed on board with her chums and her backpack, but when the doors closed and the wheels started turning I could see her lip start to wobble and tears flowing. So I will be taking her for the school run, at least til the end of this term when we can review it.

We have had two quite severe storms since we arrived, with thunder, fork lightning and torrential rain. When we woke up on Sunday morning (I hadn't slept a wink anyway but miraculously Woozles had not even stirred) the road was covered with water, the drains were full and it had stopped just shy of our patio (phew). So maybe the next requirement for transport will be a dinghy!

***Warning - May cause bitterness if digested in the Falkland Islands***

Just back from a trip to the local market with some helpful neighbours and what a fantastic experience it was. A massive selection of fruit and vegetables at very reasonable prices and fresh and firm to boot!

I have decided to try a new fruit each week so yesterday we had had star fruit with our ice cream for pudding. Today I have bought some rambutans (red, spiky fruit the size of golf balls with fleshy inner part) for the next trial. I bought a bunch of celery for the first time in 2 years. I tasted things at stalls without a clue what they are. I got a quarter of a watermelon for the equivalent of £1.75. They had foods which seem extremely exotic such as bunches of ferns, dried fish and terrapins as well as all the run-of-the-mill produce like garlic, onion, ginger, apples, bananas, lettuce, peppers, chilli, aubergine and myriad other things I couldn't identify!

Next stop is the plant market to see if I can get chilli, pepper and thai basil plants to grow at home ...