It must be the routine...

... as there hasn't been too much to report over the last few days.

I've met with a couple more potential clients, and today's prospect in particular looks promising.  I'm still waiting to find out if I'll be doing the sizeable project in Lilongwe during July - I really hope it comes off, but we're hanging on news from the bid team in Edinburgh.  I should know in the next couple of days.

I'm taking advantage of my time here to try and adjust my diet and weight, by eating breakfast (required for the malaria tablets), eating smaller meals, and ramping up my fruit intake.  So far all is well, with none of the negative side effects that one might expect from such a radical new regimen.  If I can return home a leaner Pryde, that will be a good thing.  Wish me luck.

I will be posting in due course about the food in Malawi, but my early impressions are that it can be very nice, but not overly healthy.  There's a tendency towards meat with rice or chips (quite often rice AND chips), and they don't go a bundle on veg.  But with a bit of careful dish selection, one can lean towards meals that at least nod in the direction of the healthier option.

I got a very nice Fathers' Day email from David, which perked me up enormously.  This week he's started his training programme at the new bar where he's going to be working over the summer, and I'm looking forward to hearing how he gets on.

The other good news is that the weather is looking good for the rest of the week, even though I took my umbrella in to work today, having been assured by Abraham that it would definitely rain.  I forgive him, though!

A Busy Day....

It's been quite a day today.  Firstly I had my final jabs and the approval of Nurse Tina for the sterile medical kit I've got (thank goodness).

Then Jan ran me to Epping to get the tube into London, where I met with Tim Heath from the East London Small Business Centre (ELSBC) where my former boss Adrian Stewart used to be a Board member.  Tim was very generous with his time, and I came away with some useful insights into the issues facing fledgling and small businesses, particularly in the ethnic minority communities.  Thanks, Tim, and thanks Adrian for putting me in touch with him.

Then on to Chancery Lane for a meeting hosted by Daliah and Sarah from Challenges Worldwide, primarily intended to be an initial briefing for consultants lined up for Malawi in the future, and for some who are still considering it as an option.  We heard from Alastair Byres who was out in Blantyre at the start of the project, and who is going back later.  Alastair regaled us with tales and pictures of his experiences, and I certainly felt that I had a better feel for what I'll find when I get out there, as well as things I must do whilst in the country.

And then I met up with my boy David for a beer and a pizza before getting on the tube back to Epping.  So it's been a very useful and fun day, and another step towards next Monday.

The Boy Now Knows....

I've just got back from London where I met up with Dave (my son and heir) to tell him about all this.  Dave is in the middle of his 2nd Year exams at LSE, so I wanted to wait until there was a gap in his schedule to let him know.  Thankfully he was really pleased.  We had a meal at wahaca, a Mexican restaurant just south west of Covent Garden - very good indeed.