Wednesday 29th June

Today was my first day in Traiskirchen Austria. It's smaller than I expected. A lot smaller. And it's rural, more rural than Kabeza. Where the heck am I?

The house I’m staying in is massive, but it's not in Traiskirchen, it's just outside in a little hamlet. My way to work is cycling through vineyards and sunflower fields, past the foothills and churches that this part of Austria is famous for. But I can't see any beauty in it. My heart is sad and my eyes are spoilt. Rwanda was so beautiful. Every hill cultivated right to its peak, every banana tree swaying in the calm, balmy breeze, every white light flickering on the hilltops like stars fallen from the sky. I’ve never seen anything like it. Nor do I imagine I’ll see anything like it again. And now everything else pales in comparison. The flower fields and foothills of Austria do not look beautiful to me. The rocky Greek coastline with its ancient white temples and azure blue seas did not strike a chord in my heart. My eyes are sad, for the land of a thousand hills is not set before them any more and they have no beauty to feast on.

But we get on with our lives.

I went to meet the team today at the Oasis. There are about 6 people that I’ll be working with on a regular basis. It's a much smaller team than -wot- I became accustomed to in Athens (I tried something slightly more grammatically elegant but became confused by all the thats, whiches, withs and bys, so went with the sure Maidstonian wot, a happy conjunction for use in all circumstances. If in doubt, use 'wot'). Then I made the 7 minute journey home on my new set of wheels. I’ve traded a taxi moto for a dutch style ladies bicyle, a decision my buttocks have rued ever since. But it's better for the environment and will help to burn off some of those dreaded calories, plus I don't really have much choice in the matter.