Count down

1. News, news, still waiting for news. The texts keep nudging my sister to send some news. What were the outcomes of yesterday's team meeting. Shall they be kept a secret? That poor man - I keep thinking of him hating the condition he is in. How can anyone say 'we shall make you better' There cannot be better only holding on to life a little longer in less than pleasant circumstances.

2. Would you believe I leave here at 5.30 a.m. on Friday morning to catch the 8.30 from Tivat. I should arrive at the South Terminal via Montenegrian Airlines at 10.30 thereabouts.

3. Saturday I shall be going up to all points in Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire. Not that I shall be able to find anything out from the professionals, it being the week-end. Mandi will have had her operation; the same one as I shall be having in a couple of weeks. A visit to her may be a good or a bad thing.

4. Views in Montenegro are of the geographical kind, the mountains, the sea, the coast, the landscape in general. Other views are difficult to form. Observation assists and comments from expatriots form views which perhaps have a bias. Who knows.

5. What one does know is that there are 600,000 people living here with a GDP of $4,000. Exports consist of citrus fruits, olives, some steel and aluminium. The main industry seems to be tourism, but customer care needs to be improved if increases are sought. Official figures for unemployment are not given, but rumour has it that the figure is between 10 and 15%. The country has applied for EU status, but again reports say that it will never happen because the leaders are corrupt and joining the EU would reduce their power and ability to benefit from ill-gotten gains. The process is to placate the people!

6. Karstein has found a bunch of Europeans who play squash and amongst their number is a man who works for a development agency advising the Government. Advice is given, seemingly, but never taken. Not much manufacturing is done here as the processing costs are high and the efficiency is low. The shops have all kinds of consumer goods and there is always a lot of traffic. Cars and cars, no horses or donkeys or men pushing wheelbarrows.

7. Montenegro used to be a principality after the World War I. That is the reason for all the Embassy buildings in Cetinje. There were at least 15 to 20 Embassies there alongside the King's Palace. Swathes of foreigners have occupied these parts over the years, the Ottomans, the Austrians, the Venetians and of course many years ago, the Romans.

8. And the people, as I have previously mentioned, are not smiley and generally unhelpful. Cheeky too. The cleaning lady arrived last Thursday whilst we were still having morning coffee. She made herself a cup of coffee and sat down with us for 20 minutes unbidded. Hang on a minute you have come here to work. I believe she would have continued, had we not moved ourselves.

9. I spoke to Karstein about the Norwegian elections and he commented that the same group has got back into power. The government consists of 8 parties, the far left want higher taxes and more state funded healthcare and the far right want the opposite. He made the comment that the Social Security Benefits are very good so it does not encourage those on benefits to seek work.

10. Kaaren is in Munich now for the Board Meeting. She worked until 1 on Monday night and her colleagues and her worked until 1.30 last night. Surely it cannot be healthy. In fact most nights whilst I have been staying she has worked.

11. I am not in the mood to go exploring today, well I have done Podgorica. We were supposed to join the expat Ladies' group, but the person we were going with is not well. It would have been interested to hear those who have lived here for several years. I may go into the Kindergarten tomorrow.

12. Waiting for the return