Back in Perth….The Doctor’s told Base he severed his ACL and surgery was on the cards. It called for a bit of an adjustment after months of travel and adventure. We figured it out. I worked two jobs ( weeding invasive species during the day and a fancy french restaurant at night). A three month process to get Base back to his feet (hobbling) again.
I had wanted Base to come and see my home (Canada) and experience it for a bit. I had visions of us spending a year there working and eating pancakes with maple syrup most mornings (kidding).
We arrived in December and got to experience a white Christmas with my family in New Brunswick.
Base recovered quickly and he found some work in Labrador doing exploration (avg winter temperature -30). I ummed and ahhed and then realised I couldn’t bear a year in the freezing cold. I had to look else where for work. It was a good move for his career so he went for it.
I applied for a few internships through the Canadian government to pursue the challenge and a dream of mine, of working in International Development. So while Base headed to the far north, I headed to the equator. I ended up working in Tanzania for 7 months. I worked on a Water and Sanitation Project in primary schools and I loved it, but it challenged me in more ways than I can put into words.
So while Base was spotting moose, deer and bears in Labrador, I was experiencing East African wild life, lions, elephants and wildebeests. It couldn’t be more extreme.
The time apart wasn’t worth it in my view. It tested and tried us. 7 months of long distance was made even more difficult with our remote conditions and not being able to communicate for weeks at time. What could have put a massive divide between us, ultimately in the end pushed us closer. Base came to Tanzania and we got to travel, see the beautiful country that it is, and reconnect.
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