Biscuits, biscuits and more biscuits

 

Our plane that has left Surabaya this morning arrives at 13:15. TNT Indonesia has chartered an airplane of one of her partners, Cardig Air. After I shook hands with the pilots, I climb in. There they are: 8 pallets of the biscuits. And more to come. The unloading goes rather smootly except of some minor complications (like a kind of  metal pin that’s sticking out and is temporarily  blocking our pallets). After unloading, the boxes are carried (or thrown..)  into a truck..by hand. Of course our Australian friend is helping out. He has a wife in Berkel en Rodenrijs (a dutch village near Rotteram) so we totally understand each other. Our cooperation runs smootly. I lift one box at a time, the aussies lift 2 or even 3 boxes at a time in a speed twice as fast. It still takes more than an hour. The biscuits will stay overnight in a warehouse, 8 kilometers of Padang.  There they will depart for their final destination: the people of Padang and Pariaman.  This will de done by WFP themselves and I will go with hem. 
 

It is dark already and I am in the mediacenter again. I have used all my smiles and little jokes to borrow a laptop for a few hours from a guy named Frans, another aidworker with a dutch name. Nice! The connection between Indonesia and the Netherlands is visible in more than one way. Downloading my material takes ages, so I will be here for a few hours. Between at least 40 other people who  have settled here to help out. It feels good to be with them, despite the reason of my being here. The flexibility, friendlyness and energy are incredible. We all have the same goal, after all. Everbody makes his or own contribution. The lives these people live could not be more different from mine.