It was a bumpy landing as I arrived in Kupang just as the black clouds were rolling in. As we bounced down the runway I did think to myself how green the island looked and over the next few days I found out why. Every day we experienced very heavy rain and strong winds. In fact the wind was so strong one morning it was blowing the food off the plates of the hotel guests who had chosen to eat breakfast outside. I was very glad I had taken my umbrella! The committee arrived at the hotel about the same time as I did so we went over the plans for the next few days, before they left as some of them had to go off to work. That evening I met with Ana, a teacher from IALF, Bali who was based in Kupang for several weeks teaching. She had asked me to take over some books and even a cartridge of printer ink as that size was difficult to buy in Kupang.

The next day I went looking for the District Coordinator of AIBEP schools in Kupang. Ogi had several numbers for him but hadn't been successful contacting him. After waiting about 30 minutes for the rent car driver he arrived and we set off in a rattly old Kijang and visited the first office. No, he didn't work here, then to another office – no luck there either. Driving round the different offices in the pouring rain with no windscreen wipers was quite scary – it was hard to see where we were going! Finally at the fourth office we visited I was directed to the office in the corner. I walked all way around the crumbling building and entered a room, empty except for piles of folders stacked all over the floor and one man at a desk in the corner. I asked him if he knew where I could find Pak Buan and through puffs of smoke he told me the office was in the process of moving and Pak Buan now worked out at Naibonat several kilometers past the airport. However he did have a phone number for Pak Buan so I was able to call and make contact. Thankfully that evening I met Pak Buan at the hotel and we discussed holding a workshop for AIBEP teachers in Timor.

That afternoon I went to the ADS Development Series workshop which was being held in the hotel and did a 30 minute Kang Guru Activity with the participants – all Australia Awards alumni. It was lovely to meet five or six of my old students there and we caught up with all the news. That evening we all went up the road for a dinner at a local fish restaurant. We were joined by the Bupati of Kupang, Pak Ayub Titu Eki. The meal was delicious and Pak Ayub told some interesting stories. Each of us was presents with some locally woven cloth. Lovely.

The next day I waited in the lobby for almost forty minutes for the car and driver. It was embarrassing as two people from ADS were also coming along to watch the KGI workshop. Eventually the driver arrived in another old Kijang. This time we had to drive with the windows wide open as the car reeked of minyak tanah! Luckily it didn't rain too hard! The workshop was held at Universitas Kristen Artha Wacana about 15 minutes from the hotel. Because we were late leaving many of the participants had already arrived. I quickly unpacked my things and we began the workshop with a greeting and a prayer from the committee. The workshop participants were mostly teachers from around Kupang although one teacher had come all the way from Savu Island for the event! There was also a fluctuating group of students from the English department at the university who came along between lectures. They were very lively. About 100 teachers and students were there. The workshop continued till lunch time when we were all served a tasty lunch. Then there were a couple more hours of workshop, certificates and photographs! I had to finish quite promptly as we were going to visit a school. The students had been told to arrive at the school by 3:00. As we were waiting for the driver – again – it started to rain very heavily. Eventually the car came and we climbed in.

Theresia was going by motorcycle and was going to meet us at the school. Once again we had the smelly car – but at least it had windscreen wipers – absolutely necessary in that storm. But we weren't expecting it to run out of petrol! Luckily there was a small shop not too far away where the driver could buy petrol. We eventually arrived at the school at 4:15 aand had to run from the car to the classroom in the pouring rain – we got rather wet! The students had been waiting over an hour and they were very pleased to see us. They were great, they wanted to talk and practice their English and we had a fantastic time. We played some games , they asked lots of questions and before long I realized it was almost 6:00! I was supposed to go back to the hotel with Theresia but she hadn't come as she had got so wet on her bike so we ordered another driver to pick me up.

This idea of phoning for a car/taxi is new for me in Kupang. Before I always used the same older man who was always on time, usually early, knew the roads and was very reliable. Nowadays it appears young men hire/borrow cars and have a list of customers who phone when they require a driver. But these guys are not reliable. I could hear them answering calls as we are driving around and they always say – yes I'm on my way – but they are not! They are still driving me somewhere! So the customer is just waiting and waiting – and I'm the customer sometimes! I don't think it's a good way to run a business.

The next day was Saturday and I had asked the driver to pick me up at 12:00 to take me to the airport. I SMS'd and called several times between 11:00 and 12:00 but got no reply. Ana and her family were also in the lobby waiting for their driver who was supposed to pick them up at 11:00 – it appears to be a common problem. I waited until 12:30 then I asked the hotel if they had a car – yes, so I set off for the airport. I didn't want to miss my flight. Half way to the airport – at 12:40, I get a message from the original driver telling me he was on his way to the hotel to pick me up. Too late! The plane was delayed for about one hour because of strong wind and rain. I wanted to wait in the Garuda lounge as I have a Garuda frequent flier card, but it was very unpleasant as almost everyone in there was smoking. So I went over to the Trigana lounge and sat in there– very clean, non-smoking and they had lots of reading material.