Thursday, December 26, 2013

Richard

The name of the camel we rode on in Grand Canaria was Richard.  He was an old camel. It was a terrible swing. I thought he had something wrong with his legs.  I remember that the driver's name whom we employed in Uganda was also Richard. When I finished riding, I said thank you to camel Richard.


Please step back from my trunk,Elsa!   I can't pack up.
  ↓
(video)

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Interview 2

---How is your life?
Michael: "Fine."

---What is your principle?
Michael: "Easy going."

---Do you have any dream?
Michael: "One day this blog gets thousands of pageviews and I want to become a famous cat like Bob in London."

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Interview

---What is your favorite food?
Elsa: "Whiskas anti-Hairball snacks."

---Who do you like best?
Elsa:" Nana."

---What is your principle?
Elsa: " Not to tell a lie."

---Are you satisfied with your life?
Elsa: " To tell about one's life is not simple. Don't ask me such a silly question."

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Advent

The Christmas season has come.  The Cristmas markets have been already opened   in Vienna.  They opened the markets at the middle of November this year. It's getting sooner and sooner. Also the streets are decorated .             

Michael:" Mummy, How long should I wear this Cristmas collar?"

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Pure blood

Michael: "Look at me.  My hands and tail are long, aren't they? I'm not sure but I'm not  pure blood.  Elsamama ( my owner )found me in Uganda when I was thrown away and strayed at the gate of her  house. So I don't know how my mother and father look like. But I'm more handsome than Asisi which is a pure blood american short hair bought at the price of 1,500 Euros!"

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Pantry


This apartment where we live in Vienna is the last period Renaissance style as I wrote before.
It has an elegant pantry.  My cats are curious about what are stocked . Michael mews and asks me to let him in.  When I open this peculiar shaped, old door, I slip back to the time 300 years ago.
Very fantastic !

Friday, November 8, 2013

Theft

Last week thieves entered our acquaintance's house and they stole jewelry, cash, bags and so on. I often hear the news like this in Vienna.  Just on the day I got the news a young man who wore in black like a chimny sweeper came to my house.He said he came in order to check the boiler. I let him enter without any doubt. He went into every room and counted all the doors and windows. After he went out, I noticed it was very strange!  I'm afraid that thieves including that youg man will come soon.


Elsa: " It's easy for me to get the key like this"

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Weekend

Elsa: "Are the guests still there?"
Nana: " Maybe."
Elsa: "Could you go and see if the party was over."
Nana:" Your turn,Elsa."

Sunday, October 20, 2013

School


Elsa: " Nana, Can I be in your school bag? I want to go to school with you today!  I can help you when you can't answer.  And I want to  meet your friends,too."

Hide and seek

Michael: " Who is it now,Elsa ?"
Elsa: "It's you!  I'm hiding myself like this."
Michael:"Let's take a break. I'm tired."

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Ugandan coffee

Coffee is an important sorce of income for Uganda. They produce both arabica and robusta of high quality. The yield is the second in Africa which is next to Ethiopia.  But in the restaurant in Uganda they sometimes serve Nescafe instant coffee.  Maybe most of coffee beans are exported.
My husband made an official trip to Uganda last month. He brought some products from Uganda.



Elsa sniffs: " It smells something like Uganda."

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Michael's weighty issue

Please compare with the page "Michael" I wrote on 26th April in these blogs. Michael sleeps in the same bed. Recently he realized that this bed is too small for him now.
At night he sleeps around my feet.  So I can't sleep straight.

Saturday, September 28, 2013

mischievous

Elsa !  Please give me back my pincushion and all needles and marking pins.
I know you were playing with them while I was shopping.

I found the pincushion after all. But there are no pins with it.
How can I sew accessory cases for the bazaar without needles?

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

About Giulio

Giulio came in order to repair the electrical equipments of my house.  He inspected and told me to
come again .I have to wait for several days to get some parts we need. He smiled and said,"This is Austria."  He himslf is from Slovenia and his wife is from Croatia. So he speaks three languages every day.  I seemed to Giulio to stay indoors all day. He recommended me to go out. " There are a lot of things to see in Vienna."  He is  really a  nice guy .

Monday, September 9, 2013

Breach

Elsa  :  "I won't lick you any more."

Michael :  "I won't lend you my toys any more."

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Homework

Elsa: "It's better to use this one."
Nana: "I'm trying."
Elsa: "And how about using another color?"
Nana: "I want to use this blue."
Elsa:" You have to finish it today,OK?"
Nana:"Don't hurry me."

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

In the bag

It was just like this when Elsa came to me for the first time.  Peter -the guard-took her and showed her, hanging the bag from his neck at that time.  When I looked at Elsa, showing only her face from the bag,I have accepted to keep her immediately. It was a big meeting for Elsa. Fortunately or unfortunately she lives in Vienna now.

I remember the encounter three years ago in Uganda, looking at this picture of Elsa playing in Nana's bag.

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Climate

Uganda is a country on the equator,but it was not too hot because it's located 1300m above sea level.  It has the rainy season and the dry season, and the temperature was between 20 degrees and 30 degrees through the year.  Last week in Vienna it was about 40 degrees. Such a heat wave hits Europe recent years.  In Nagoya -Japan-where I'm staying now , it's very hot and humid around 38 degrees. Now I miss the mild climate of Uganda.

Elsa loves the towel of freshly washed.  She is good at dropping the towel from the clothesline.
Now she is enjoying the touch of her dry towel with satisfaction.

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Disease

I was vaccinated against 7 diseases before going to Uganda.   I didn't receive malaria due to high side effects.  Fortunately I didn't suffer from both malaria and other diseases.
After coming to Vienna, I received a vaccination of tick because it is required here.
  Last summer I had to be hospitalized for a week in the treatment of unexpected nosebleeds. I got operations three times in a week. The treatment was very hard, I spent a month  my strength after discharge to return. I regret that I didn't have the knowledge and the courage to refuse the treatment.

Here is Michael, being relaxed without any stress at the hostfamily's.

Sunday, July 21, 2013

Exercise

While I'm away from Vienna, Elsa and Michael stay at their hostfamily's. This lovely family is very fond of cats.  Sometimes they send me the mail about  how Elsa and Michael are.  Elsa and Michael in the pictures always look very very happy. Maybe they don't miss me.  I have almost a little bit  mixed feeling,ha ha.

After a morning exercise-runnig at  full speed- Elsa and Michael are taking a break.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

A tutor

Elsa is watching carefully while a daughter of her hostfamily is doing her homework.  Elsa and Nana-the daughter-are very good friends.  They are friends but Elsa becomes a strict watcher whenever Nana studies at home. After doing homework, they watch television together,they go to bed together.

Saturday, June 29, 2013

Ugandan dress in Vienna

 Two years have passed since we came from Uganda. Architecture, music,art, theater, fashion, life style in Vienna are all fascinating. It is ranked "the best city to live" by an U.S. company's research. I often see a senior noble  lady who is well dressed and whose hair also well dressed and wearing high heels especially in a  concert hall .People in the restaurant or at the mass in church are also well dressed.
 I enjoyed ordering dresses at the dressmaker's shop when I was in Uganda. Ugandan women also have a good fashion sense.They have good quality cotton cloth.Patterns and colors are very interesting. I promised the dressmaker to wear the dresses I got there in Vienna. I wore them to the opera or to the garden party.I thought the dresses were well accepted.

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Michaelpapa

Michael likes to be on my husband's knee. Elsa doesn't. Only  Michael   comes near and cries in a sugary voice. When my husband holds him, he looks rapt and purrs.  They love each other.

Another death

Just after the former housegirl died,her sister came to our house and told my husband to take over her sister's job.  She had five children and she had her own house .But she lived in the servant quarter alone and used to go back to her house on weekends. One day her husband suddenly died.  She said ,"He was killed with poison by his colleagues because of envy.But I can't report to the police because I'm afraid of retaliation."  I was really surprised.  There is no country which has no crime. In Ugandan case I heard that the most murders are poisoning.  While she was in a deep sorrow,I also felt sorry for her.  Maybe the readers will be shocked to read this. But I 'd like to
share my experiences in Uganda. This was a terrible, real story.

Thursday, June 20, 2013

A housegirl's death

We don't have a housegirl here. Whenever I invite guests, I miss a housegirl in Uganda because I get busy.   While my husband was alone in Uganda before I joined, a housegirl suddenly died.  One day she looked ill. So my husband gave some money and told her to go to see the doctor.On that day she died in the hospital The cause was probably a toxoplasma. She was thirty three, and had a child,6-year-old boy. They had lived in the servant quarter of my house. Her aunt came to take the boy and began to bring him up. When we left Uganda, we sent some money to the aunt for the boy. Later we heard that the aunt-looking 50's-had already died.  It was a sad story.

 Elsa's seat in the dining room.

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Michael's turn

Michael became adult.  He got an operation for castration by the same vet as Elsa's.  The vet told me to prepare the special toilet made of kleenex or newspaper and make him use it for a week. He was forbidden from touching the sand.  It was impossible.  Elsa uses the usual toilet. Michael couldn't realize that the box full of paper balls was a special toilet for him. I worried about infection but  luckily nothing happened.

Friday, June 7, 2013

operation

Elsa got an operation to prevent produce (conception). Michael was too young to get the operation.He had to wait until he grew up more.  The vet is a beartiful  and tender woman ,looking thirties (please compare with the blog :At the animal hospital , written in May). Nothing surprised me this time at the vet's. Elsa stayed one night in the hospital and came back, wearing an elizabeth to prevent her from licking the wound.
Good girl,Elsa!

Thursday, June 6, 2013

An apartment

We found a wonderful apartment to live at last.  This is the architecture of the last Renaissance period.  It has a lovely courtyard. Many tourists come to see it. You might have seen my apartment when you visited Vienna. It is located in the center of Vienna near Stefansdom. So many tourists are walking around here. I myself- my feeling like a tourist is not removed yet. The whole city is worth seeing.

Monday, June 3, 2013

A nap

This is the last scene they took a nap together with me.  Then Michael was still small. Elsa had treated Michael with affection. But after Michael grew up, their relationship changed a little-something equal. When Elsa sleeps beside me in the bed, she doesn't let Michael come in. And when Michael is on my bed  she sleeps on the chair. Elsa is slightly difficult.

Friday, May 31, 2013

at the hotel

Elsa and Michael soon got used to the stay in the hotel room.  Elsa liked to come to  the bathroom with me and waited, looking down from the shelf above the mirror. But a room cleaning woman ,who was a young Mongolian, was scared of the cats.  I had to put the cats in their cages as soon as she rang the bell every day. She came from Mongolia alone apart from her family to work in Vienna. Another cleaning woman for weekend was also young and also a Monglian. In her case,no problem with my cats.

Monday, May 27, 2013

Part II Vienna

April 4th,2011 we arrived at Vienna,via Amsterdam. When I saw Elsa and Michael at the airport,it was a luggage claim corner, I found their two cages were clean. Cats were also clean. They didn't look tired. I thought someone of KLM took good care of them.  It was thankful. We  picked up two cats with other luggages and nothing  like a passport control  about my cats was requested.  We went to the hotel and stayed there  for a month, looking for an apartment to rent.

Friday, May 24, 2013

Bye-bye Uganda

This is the end of part one.  I left Uganda on 4th April,2011.  At the age of 52 ,I visited africa for the first time and I stayed there for 9 months .  Uganda is in the eastern part of afrika. Kenya, South Sudan ,Congo are its neighbors.  I enjoyed so much that I didn't want to leave such a bright,sunny land.  When we live in a foreign country, it doesn't matter that how developed that country is. I think it's a personal and a  mental issue how much he or she  enjoys the life in a foreign country. In my case Uganda was nice.  It couldn't be better.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Flight

We reserved the flight tickets to Vienna for two person and two cats by KLM. I was happy to go with  Elsa and Michael.  My husband also seemed happy.  At first he came to Uganda alone. He had never supposed that he would leave Uganda with a large family like this. The departure was 0:30 at midnight. It was not a moonlight flit. We paid the rent regularly.

Monday, May 20, 2013

moving

Everything for shipping was packed.  Elsa was jumping into the each box to play hide-and-seek as if she was busy checking the contents.  Very helpful ,Elsa!  She  still has  this habit now.  When I open  the cupboard in the kitchen, she quickly goes in .  Twice I have shut the door of the pantry as she was inside and I have left her  through the night . She was quiet when I called her. I didn't notice that she was there.


Friday, May 17, 2013

lunch

This is a typical Ugandan plate. I think it's healthy.  Stew with many kinds of staple food - rice, potetoes, matoke (green banana,not sweet) ,posho (cooked corn flour) chapati and so on - and some salad.  The restaurant of this picture is for foreigners or rich Ugandan people.The lunch buffet costs 10,000 uganda shilling,about 5dollars.  I went once to the local canteen and lunch was 2000 shillig,about a dollar.
When we buy the same thing in the market, the price is different between foreigners and local people. I liked shopping in the local market. It was thrilling .

Monday, May 13, 2013

at my friend's

Michael was relaxed from the very first day at my friend's house.  His adaptability pleased me because we have to move worldwide every two or three years. But after he grew up, his caracter changed.  When someone rings the doorbell, he disappears immediately. He hides behind the dryer or the sofa until our guests leave.They want to see my cats ,but no way. One of the reasons I began to write blogs is to show my cats to the guests who were disappointed .

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Michael on my bed

Elsa and Michael slept in the kitchen ,not on my bed.  A mosquito net is very necessary in Uganda to prevent malaria .But cats move during the night. I can't wake up each time to open the net when they want to go out or come in through the net. Especially Elsa liked to jump up and play with it,I had to
darn small holes she made. That's why they couldn't sleep beside me.

Elsa on the sofa

I took this picture in March 2011. Eight months have passed since she came. She grew up,but her weight was 3.5kg. She is still small now even after a contraceptive operation. She feels like rather silk than fur. I'm sorry that I can't show you how soft the touch is.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

another Elsa?

During the safari tour in Queen Elizabeth national park in the  western part of Uganda, my physical condition  was poor because of the carsickness.  After a long drive -all day long- when we were on our way back to the lodge, being disappointed because we could't find any lions and any leopards, we saw a leopard sitting in  the middle of the road about 50m forward.We stopped the engine. I forgot my sickness and gazed at it ,which radiated dim white light from its body. Soon the leopard slowly walked into the bush and disappeared.
 It was a mysterious scene.Unfortunately it was too dark already to take a picture.

The next day we met a group of lions -seven young brothers and sisters-(the guide explained) . The lion of this picture is one of them.  We were very lucky .

Sunday, May 5, 2013

preparation

It is not easy to complete the formalities for cats to enter the European Community.  The veterinary doctor of Makerere University was cooperative enough to give us the certificate in time. He took blood samples from Elsa and Michael and sent them to the rabies reference laboratory in South Africa and received the reports.
.  And he buried a microchip into each leg. And he wrote  inter-state movement permit,and so on.  I was thankful to him.  If it was not successful,  my friend kindly promised to take Elsa and Michael to Vienna later. I was also thankful for her proposal.

Saturday, May 4, 2013

staff

They were the staff of our house. I learned much about Uganda through them. Without their help I don't know if I could enjoy the stay there. They showed good teamwork. They speak English but each of them has a mother tongue of their birth region. Whenever their relative died ,they went back to attend the funeral services at their birth village. If someone died in the city where he or she had worked , the body was carried to the birth place.  It often occured. People die of AIDS or malaria or other diseases comparatively  at an early age. My thought sometimes turns to the Ugandan people. How are they now?


 .

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

At the animal hospital

When I took two or three months old Elsa to the local vet in Uganda for the first time, I was surprised to see that the vet -a tall,  strong looking man- called three assistants to hold Elsa when he gave her injections. Three young men who also looked strong came from the next room.
And the vet put on thick gloves which were thicker than those for cleaning. With the gloves it seemed difficult to use a small hypodermic syringe.  When I took Michael to the same vet, he did the same thing for the still smaller Michael.  I was proud of my both kittens.They could bear it.

An elegant walk

This is not a picture from a magazine which a photographer took. I took it in the park near Kampala. It was enjoying a walk. Though I went near it, it wasn't scared by me. This bird-gray crowned crane- is Uganda's national bird and it appears on its flag. Without make up by eye shadow or cheek rouge it has a beautiful face, without going to hair salon it has remarkable golden hair.



Sunday, April 28, 2013

together

Elsa began to play with Michael after about one month he came to us. I was relieved to see it. She often wants to lick him and it makes him feel ticklish.  There were many rats and mice around my house. Cobras come into my garden to catch and eat them. Thanks to my two kittens, ( they sleep in the kitchen during the night) rats didn't enter the house. But I ordered the gardener to throw some medicine against snakes .I don't know it exactly but local people use it to let snakes escape.

Blue eyes

When Michael came to us, his eyes were blue. His whiskers were broken.  The vet said he was about three weeks old at that time. Two months later his eyes turned yellow gold. The housegirl explained to me it was the evidence that Michael has got enough nutrition. But there are healthy cats with blue eyes ,aren't there?

Saturday, April 27, 2013

Angry Elsa

Elsa didn't welcome Michael. She couldn't accept the situation that the newcomer uses her toilet without asking her permission or he draws everyone's attention.It took several weeks for her to open up to him. On the Michael's side, he was not afraid of Elsa.His behavior was very natural.

Friday, April 26, 2013

Michael

About a week later ,I was sure that he will survive. So I took him to the vet to checkup and to give him an injection. The vet told me the kitten was a male. In those days  we were leaving Uganda for Vienna 2 months later. I searched a german name for him,-Sebastian ,Gabriel,Karl...After all  we decided to call him Michael. Welcome Michael!

A newcomer

For two nights I heard a cat cry . It was in the middle of the silent night. At the first night, the voice was loud with some tension. At the second night it was not powerful. I asked my husband and the guard next morning if they heard cat's voice. Both of them said "No".
After several hours another guard found a baby kitten just outside the gate of my house. The cause of the voice at midnight was in the guard's hand. I decided to take care of him. He is almost going to die, but wow he could eat and drink!

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Elsa on the desk

Elsa likes to disturb me. Especially when I am doing deskwork-sewing,writing,reading,,,She is good at picking marking pins from cloth  I am sewing.