Not going to bed really distorts your perspective. Even if you feel fine the next day after not having slept, you just lose track a bit, and you think you've had a really productive day just because it was actually two, with no separation in between. Flying red-eye is about the same, except you are stuck in airport purgatory with its recycled air, its constant, desturbing announcements and only a hard surface to rest on, followed by a couple of hours of cramped half-sleep on the plane before you are rudely shoved into your destination. So we began our trip.
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If I hear the phrase, "[Country name here] moves to set the speaker's time to 1:30" one more time I might have to scream, or else go on a homocidal rampage armed only with a placard and my ID badge. Formerly an independent kingdom, Madagascar became a French colony in 1896, but regained its independence in 1960. During 1992-93, free presidential and National Assembly elections were held, ending 17 years of single-party rule. Not only is it dilatory and disrupting, it's also utterly pointless and does not make anyone like you.
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In 1997, in the second presidential race, Didier RATSIRAKA, the leader during the 1970s and 1980s, was returned to the presidency. The 2001 presidential election was contested between the followers of Didier RATSIRAKA and Marc RAVALOMANANA, nearly causing secession of half of the country. It's amazing that at any hour of the day or night something will be open; you can get pastrami sandwiches at 4 AM and bagels for dinner, there's live music in every subway at all times, coffee is cheap and everything else is expensive, and only tourists wait for the light to turn before crossing. In April 2002, the High Constitutional Court announced RAVALOMANANA the winner. RAVALOMANANA is now in his second term following a landslide victory in the generally free and fair presidential elections of 2006. On top of that, we saw two parades in a week.
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Avenue Q. Is. Amazing.
Brian:
Cool.
Christmas Eve:
BRIAN! Come back here!
You take out lecycuraburs!
Princeton:
What's that mean?
Brian:
Um, recyclables.
Hey, don't laugh at her!
How many languages do you speak?
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Five days of hiking in heels made the calves of both legs completely cramp up. Now I can't even walk up or down stairs in flats without noticing it... And dancing until 2:30 AM in said shoes did not help.
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This is the second time I had been in the African Union committee, and both times, something strange happened. Our topic was peacekeeping, and we were a report writing committee, which meant we were intended to highlight faults, recognize progress, and suggest future action. By means of a self-organized and -moderated formal caucus we determined to divide up the topic into six areas (Responsibility to Protect, Mediation/Prevention, African Standby Force, Demobilization Disarmament and Reintegration, Refugees/IDPs, and Funding) each addressed by a specific committee with the ultimate intention of combining them. Our report segment, describing DDR--which, I might add, is not Dance Dance Revolution--was about five pages single spaced. The final report, after a minor diplomatic crisis involving Chad and the Sudan, included all component parts and was supported by all but two countries. Yeah!
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UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon spoke at our opening ceremony. And that took the entire afternoon, between security and lines.
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