Monday, 7 December 2009

So what's there to do on a Mon eve in Dili? Attend a cathedral inauguration of course!

I think I may have mentioned, that as a Country Director, I receive invitations almost every other day to various events in Dili, hosted by the government, other NGOs and the (Catholic) church; I usually pass on the invitations to one of my staff members who is most interested in attending a given event, but I do attend some events myself, especially those that pique my interest :-)

For example - this evening was the inauguration of the 'refurbished' cathedral in Dili - and although I am not Catholic, I am very curious (well, just plain nosy!) so I went along to join the crowd made up of mostly nuns, a few priests, various dignitaries and some local Timorese, both young and old....

Usually Catholic events run on time in Timor, but not this evening - we waited for over an hour in the blistering heat (even the nuns were getting hot under the collar!) until the President finally arrived...

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But it was worth the wait! After some speeches and the unveiling of a plaque, we had the opportunity to tour the Cathedral, inside and out - it is beautiful, simple but beautiful...

The plaque...



Stained glass window above the entrance...



View from the street....



Angels at the entrance / main gate....



The rest of the week will be spent attending various Christmas celebrations with friends and colleagues, before I head out to Singapore on Sat afternoon for some reesstttt and reeeeelaxation! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh I can't wait! :-)

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