Transition

July 28, 2009 from Mike

I am sitting in the living room of our apartment, waiting for the moving truck to arrive. Packers have been here the past two days, carefully wrapping every item in paper, waterproofing plastic and multi-layered corrugated board to protect it during its upcoming journey. We are making our next move with the State Department, the second of probably 4-6 moves in the coming decade. It’s been an eventful summer, so this entry will simply catch interested friends and family up on what has been going on in the Morris family. We have not been diligent in describing the many fascinating experiences we have enjoyed, but more reflections on those things later…

I am transferring to Kabul, Afghanistan to become the first Regional Medical Officer at the U.S. Embassy there. With Afghanistan now a central focus of President Obama’s and Secretary Clinton’s initiative for stability in the Middle East and Near-East Asia, the unfolding events in Kabul have led to a quick and dramatic increase in the number of Americans serving there in the military, State Department, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), other agencies, along with additional American contractors. The goal is to provide a stable and safe environment in Afghanistan for a prolonged time period to allow democracy to take deeper root and to promote much-needed development in areas of education and infrastructure -- all while denying space to terrorists. There has been a health unit at the embassy in Kabul staffed by two nurse practitioners but the need has arisen to bring a physician on board. I am pleased to have been offered the chance to serve in this capacity. I will be working to expand health care services at the embassy and in the region, including developing health service access to the Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) and several new consulates opening in Afghanistan. I will be in Kabul for one year.

So what does mean for Laura? Kabul, Islamabad and Baghdad are unaccompanied posts, meaning family members are not allowed to come with government employees unless they, too, have a job. Laura has elected to spend the year in Minneapolis at our townhome, being more available to her parents and other family members, doing volunteer work, and studying Spanish. Why Spanish? Well, with an assignment to an unaccompanied post comes the opportunity to “lock in” the following assignment, with “first pick” of posts that are available fall, 2010. We have chosen Santiago, Chile. We are looking forward to settling in there for 2-3 years after one year in Bangladesh and one year for me in Afghanistan. Santiago will be the perfect place for our Minnesota friends to come for a visit during the middle of January!

I am granted four vacation leaves while in Kabul, either returning to the States or meeting Laura somewhere interesting, relaxing and fun between Afghanistan and Minnesota. We are glad to have become frequent Skype communicators over the past year and will continue that very frequently. It has been a great way to stay connected to family and friends.

We are headed back to Minnesota on August 5-6. We are eager to catch up with our families, do a little camping in the beautiful state of Minnesota, and – most important – attend the wedding celebration of our son, Paul and his fiancée Carly. The three weeks I have free will pass quickly. On August 30 I head to Washington, D.C. for some additional training. Then off to Kabul in mid-September.

So that is a quick summary of what is coming our way. We have had a very nice summer here in Dhaka. The monsoon arrived quite late so the weather has been warm and humid without much rain. Bangladesh is a lush, green country, and we enjoyed several trips out of Dhaka to appreciate this. We spent a wonderful day at a country villa with a Bangladeshi physician friend followed by a hike at one of Bangladesh’s few national parks. Dr. Wahab trained in internal medicine in Germany and serves a large number of expatriates in the diplomatic enclave. He serves as our embassy local medical advisor. He also continues to volunteer his services to people from the small, indigent village where he grew up, often brokering deals with specialists to serve his patients or even paying out of his own pocket for patients to have much-needed surgery. His stories of adventure and service have been inspiring to hear throughout our year working together.

On Memorial Day weekend, Laura and I took a long weekend trip to Singapore. This was a great break from the usually chaotic life in Dhaka. Singapore is a comfortable, orderly and beautiful tropical city that is welcoming to visitors, tourists and shoppers. We enjoyed lounging by the pool, finding some good (safe) restaurants and sightseeing at the world-renowned botanical garden and the Singapore Zoo.

Just after that weekend, Mary arrived in Bangladesh after finishing her sophomore year at St. Olaf College. She worked in the Summer Hire program for college-age children of embassy employees and did a great job as an assistant in the financial management office of USAID. As always, it is fun when Mary is around and we have been delighted to have her here for a great summer adventure.

All work and no play would not be healthy, so we spent five days in Nepal together over a long 4^th of July weekend. After exploring Kathmandu with a private guide, we forewent an 8-hour drive by taking a 25-minute plane ride to Pokhara, one of the most scenic spots in Nepal, at the base of the Anapurna Range of the Himalayas. Here we spent three idyllic days with clean air, beautiful scenery, great dining, a little shopping and a bike ride along a scenic mountain lake.

Laura really enjoyed arising at 4 am to drive with our guide up to the top of a local mountain to view the sunrise over the Himalayans. She recalls it as the only time since arriving in Bangladesh that she actually felt cool enough to huddle under a blanket! These mountains are truly spectacular as they literally thrust their way to the heavens. We vowed our next trip to Nepal would need to include a “trek” – which is a hike with at least one night camping or staying at a mountain hostel, termed “teahouse”in Nepal.

During our last month in Bangladesh we have been busy socializing with friends and associates in Dhaka. The group I play tennis with each week hosted a "formal" dinner that involved wearing a tux on the top and something pink on the bottom. I "went local," wearing a pink lungi that I got at the market for $2. This is a tradition that has a long history you don't really want to know. But it is a great group of friends that serve in embassies and NGOs in many capacities.

I also enjoyed a very nice breakfast with others at the home of Ambassador and Mrs. Moriarty. That breakfast was highlighted by stepping outside after coffee to clearly view the solar eclipse together from the backyard.

One special item exported from Bangladesh throughout the world is china. They manufacture porcelain and fine bone china for many major world labels. Through an embassy contact we were hosted at the Beximco industrial park by the CEO of this, the largest private corporation in Bangladesh. We enjoyed a great lunch and fascinating conversation about business growth in the global market with our host. This was followed by a private tour of the manufacturing plant of Shinepukur China. It was fascinating to see the combination of raw material “from the earth,” many intricate machines, and lots of careful human attention that goes into making and decorating each piece. Did you know that despite being translucent and lighter in weight, bone china is much stronger than stoneware or porcelain? Fortunately, Laura had done some research on all of the Shinepukur patterns prior to the tour at local retail shops. Following the tour, Laura bought the set of china we’ve never invested in before, along with a set for Mary (consider this the first item in her “hope chest”). This can all be shipped back to the U.S. with our household shipment, and – best news of all – a full set for 12 costs the same here as only 1-2 place settings in the U.S.

My work at the U.S. Embassy in the past year has been very rewarding personally and professionally. Ambassador Moriarty is well known for his “3 D’s” of our purpose here in Bangladesh – Democracy, Development and Denial of space to terrorists. When I think about the people I have come to value in Dhaka I think of “4 C’s” -- Challenge, Commitment, Cooperation and Community. I am proud of these values which I witness daily in the many brave American employees who leave the comforting, orderly, safe and abundant society we come from to lend a helping hand in Bangladesh. The people who call this land home are industrious, friendly, respectful and very appreciative of U.S. efforts to assist this relatively young democracy. It has been an honor to get to know them and to serve them by supporting the embassy community in their important work.

If readers would like to continue to follow a diplomat’s perspective of life in Bangladesh, check out monestelfamily.blogspot.com. That is the family blog of my successor here, Dr. Robert Monestel. Enjoy!

Now, on to the next opportunity and challenge.