Mr B @ Work

Just completed a 4 day sejour on the Bahamas. I assure you – this required dedicating myself 24/7 to schmooze a range of donors. In any event it puts me at 76 countries, still 5 countries behind the very worldly Mr. Earle. As you can imagine it was tough putting on shoes and a jacket while staying at the Vegasesque Atlantis resort on Paradise Island (along with 2,500 other Caribbean HIV conference attendees). Here you see me here sipping a tasty Kalik Gold lager (doing the needful), and munching on a conch salad. The Bahamas stand apart from many of its Caribbean brethren in terms of its successful offshore banking and general cleanliness. Amazing that within this orderly environment more than 3% of the adult population is living with HIV (mainly due to the extremely large Haitian migrant workforce).

Peace Building Movement

After a bit of break I am back on the road and looking for points. Next week I will be in Ethiopia for some low hanging fruit, but this week a slightly more prickly pear to pluck, North Sudan. In fact I was here a few weeks ago, and to my shame, not appreciating local customs fully, I failed to meet all club requirements. However, a second bite of the prickly pear and I was better prepared; with exceptionally strong (and rule compliant) mouth-wash especially imported from Loretto, Kentucky. A hard earned point but I believe but a point all the same.

Attached, also find a photo of an amusing sign I happened to see hanging discretely above the gents (or rather the "The Peace Building Toilet") in the office of a UN agency I happened to visit (and obviously won’t mention to avoid unnecessary embarrassment). But I must say, when I whipped out my iPhone to take a snap, I got a very dirty look from an earnest looking young women in the impeccably tasteful, global-and-yet-oh-so-ethnic-and-at-one-with-the-downtrodden-at-the-same-time, ‘neck ornament’ - but hang em’; A couple of us thought it was very funny. And if you can’t laugh at a bit of toilet humor...

So I wish all club members, peace-building movements, wherever their destination.

Warmest,

Grant.

The World's Newest Country

Greetings from Juba in South Sudan, the world's newest country. Tonight I did the needful with the locally brewed "White Bull" beer while dining on the banks of the Nile. To be confirmed by our secretary, but I believe this moves me from 9th place to a tie at 8th with Mr. Negus. I only regret that delayed permits prevented me from visiting Khartoum on this same trip and making it a two-fer. Next time......

Dar es Salaam Chapter Meeting

Messrs Karam, Earle and Chapman, with Special Guests, Messrs Manchester and Crapper, combined Club business with queries relating to Another Club such as "what was the name of our first representative in Eritrea?" [Mr Earle retrieved the answer in a mere a 48 hours; by that standard, I'm sure the rest of us would have come up with an answer by the end of the year]. All conversations concluded with a tale of our Dear Founder in the early 90s. Odd that. Mr Earle noted concern that some members appear to be actually trying to visit countries. Firm denials were issued all around.

3G = Ghana, Golf and Goats

Mr Secretary, After a fine game of golf at the Celebrity Golf Club in Accra Ghana today, there ensued a discussion on whether the course was to be qualified as a goat track or not. The participants in the earlier match between Ghana and China did not seem to be occupied too much with this issue, nor was I as my golf partner and I had won the game by the time we Teed off the 16th hole. The cool Star beer afterwards helped settle the issue, the caddies received a nice tip and we all agreed that, as nobody had lost a ball in the lagoon nor was anyone bitten by a viper, plus that the scorecards were sponsored by Porsche, the course was not quite a goat track. With that, I humbly report my visit to a new country. MvH

Bob Sahib @ One Tuna Beach

Mr Secretary,
Lovely Lion Lager on the Beach of Unawatuna, Sri Lanka! You would love it here even more than India - colonial and clubby for sure, yet cleaner, fewer touts, and dynamism post civil war! Bob v/d Z

VDZ: Ain't No C2H6O Where He's Gone

Mr Secretary,

I am writing to report that I visited KUWAIT (new country) en route back from South Korea (not new). Painfully, I searched for two days the entire city, and every corner of every single mall in this town, but I can assure you: there ain’t any C2H6O in that country. Thank you for having confirmed that this is indeed a visited country according to Article 3.1.

Bob vdZ

Washington Chapter Meeting

[Mr Sempliner's absence being noted, a quorum was present]

Katrinka writes:

With Malcolm D-nald as our beloved benchmark -- I'd say we all look prettttty darn good, quoi. Will, shabash on hosting in your beautiful home; Andrew, great to have u back in town, and a good excuse for a gathering, Steve, thanks for the ride, country club stories and chocolate motorcycle, Peter, a real treat to get you to stay up past your bedtime and good on you for keeping PSI en forme, quoi. And Daveed -- always a delight to catch up with you; we promise to visit u at your air-conditioned digs at Walter Reed. As for jobs -- I hear there might be an opening as CD for PNG...

Love you guys,

Our founder writes:

Great picture, great time, great summary, and maybe worth inclusion in the notes for the Country Club as an ad hoc Membership get together, even though no drinks were visibly noticeable in the picture.

If anyone needs to reach me tonight, you can find me in one of DC's cooling shelters, I think near the Armory

Minutes.

1. The Chapter had a lively conversation about The Good Old Days, which none could clearly remember.

2. We drifted in and out of a largely substance free discussion concerning Article 3.4 of Our By-Laws, with our Founder concluding, in a nod to revisionism, that it made no sense. Here is the Article in question:

"3.4 A Visited Country that, subsequent to the qualifying visit, splits into two or more countries, can only be counted as a single Visited Country. The Member will elect which of the issuing countries shall be recorded as a Visited Country."

3. The Chapter gave the highest of praise to the gracious hosting and culinary skills of our dearest member, Mr W!!

VTY, yr sec'y

Two for None

Our newest member, Mr PC, visits two countries, frugally.

Excuse my informality, and certainly this incorrect method of notification. But I hereby and boldly lay claim to my 82nd and 83rd countries respectively: Papua New Guinea and Australia. The latter having been visited in full conformance with the appropriate by laws of this fine club, yet without having secured in advance the absolutely necessary visa. The ensuing difficulties at the border form the stuff of legends, yet I will spare you the details in this missive, knowing full well as I do that official club communication protocol requires that members relate such details only while suitably armed with liquid refreshment of the type normally served in such establishments where the purpose of dialogue speaks to the higher and more, shall we say, refined principles of communication.

As to photographic proofs of my exploits, as have been submitted by some of our esteemed membership in similar circumstances, I can only plead that my usual personal staff were not in my company, and thus the necessary assistance was not available to record these events on any media, whether that be using my habitual chemical plates, or using the latest technology, which I take as being some sort of photographic film. Yet I would only be too happy to show you my passport, which indeed does bear the markings of the official border entries and sorties affixed by the appropriate authorities in the performances of their duties. As to whether I consumed liquid refreshment during these visits of the type that is normally reserved for gentlemen such as I, I trust that my reputation well precedes me and I beg your forbearance in lieu of any sort of formal evidence to same. I would, however, be only too glad to provide references as it seems that I need to settle some accounts with the various establishments visited in the course of my travels, as I was unaccountably short of the local currencies, and I had promised to wire the appropriate remittances upon my return.

I remain, Sir, in your debt, and I look forward to your speedy confirmation of my exploits, secure in the knowledge that I am fully and irrevocably in possession of 4th place, absent any dubious claims by Mr. Earle.

South Sudan Becomes 193rd UN Member State; Club Denominator Changes to 194

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South Sudan Becomes 193rd Member of United Nations

Friday, July 15th, 2011 at 9:15 am UTC

Posted 3 minutes ago

The national flag of newly independent South Sudan has been raised outside the United Nations after becoming the world body's 193rd member on Thursday.

Hundreds of diplomats gathered outside U.N. headquarters in New York to see the flag being raised for the first time after the U.N. General Assembly admitted the country by acclamation.

On Friday, a U.N. telecommunication agency made another gesture in recognition of South Sudan's landmark independence.

The International Telecommunication Union assigned South Sudan a 211 dialing code at the country's request.

The number symbolizes the year South Sudan became its own country after approving a referendum in January.

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has praised Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir and South Sudan's President Salva Kiir for ensuring that the south's referendum for independence and its results were honored. He said the north and south share a common destiny and must see a future as true partners, not rivals.

The world's newest nation declared independence on Saturday, splitting from Sudan. The two sides fought a bloody 21-year civil war that ended in 2005.

The now neighboring countries are still trying to work out disputes over borders and oil revenue. The Ethiopian government says it has started deploying troops to the disputed Abyei region this week. The U.N. Security Council recently authorized deployment of a 4,200 strong-Ethiopian peacekeeping force to monitor the situation there.

Just One More Thing...

Mr. Secretary,

Colombo. Wasn’t there a 70’s TV detective by (almost) the same name? If so, he’d doubtless be able to put me at the Taj Hotel in Colombo in the attached photo. But he’d probably have known that that glass I’m holding isn’t really an alcoholic beverage. Nor is it a purple Japanese fighting fish. It’s just the floral decoration from table where I’m sitting. You couldn’t get a drink on the day that picture was taken because of the full-moon festival. Luckily for me, I’d taken a Lion beer in my hotel room the night before.

Mr B

Viva CdW!

Mr Secretary,

It is with great pleasure that at long last I share new country news.

Revolution! I have broken away from the dictatorship of travel to already visited countries and at long last conquer my 63rd country - Cuba. What better liberation can there be than the land of rum, sugar cane, 1950ies Buicks, Che and Castro with its infectious music, warm hearted people and beautiful countryside. Needless to say, libation of Cristal beer and mojitos accompanied our visit. May country number 64 be not far away and just as fun.

With much respect and salutations to you, Mr. Secretary, and all my fellow club members.

Caryn de Walden

Bonne Anniversaire!

Mr. Secretary,

Ms. Ridley and I report a first visit for us both to Morocco – we went for an early celebration of the 25^th anniversary of an event which 3 other of our esteemed members attended: our wedding! [sec'y's note: those would be our Honorary Past President, Mr Hovig, Mr Brady and yrs truly].

In fulfillment of article 3.1 we sampled local beer, Flag, wine, see attached as well as numerous G&Ts as we explored the medina in Marrekech and the rugged Atlas mountains.

Cheers!

Yours faithfully,

Duncan & Robin

Ukraine a go-go!

I am pleased to report my visit to Ukraine.

In addition to visiting Kiev, I visited Crimea, which is an autonomous republic (but may NOT be counted as a new country, as per instructions from our Secretary, alas)

While on my visit, I did the needful with, among others, Lvivske beer (delicious).

Balkanized

Yr sec'y traveled nearly 6000 kilometers from Amsterdam to Albania on his BMW R1200 GS and visited Albania, Macedonia and Serbia for the first time while observing naturally Article 3.1 requirements along the way.

Dalai Dublin

Your secretary visited Ireland earlier this week. The conference I was in grew absolutely electric when word went around that the Dalai Lama had walked into the hotel lobby and chatted up people there. Others reported seeing him multiple times in the lift. I could find him nowhere, and made my way back to my room, only to pass him in the hall; he was sharing a giggle with another saffron robed monk. Beats a Guinness. Here's a link to what he was doing there.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0413/dalailama.html

An Outlet Survey

Mr Secretary,

As you can see from the photos I combined some spiced rum tasting with an condom outlet check in St. Lucia (a new country for me).
Each bar has its own recipe, some much better than others.
What I tasted was quite the concoction as you can see from the expression on my face.

Here is a more conventional recipie if you want to move past Captain Morgan.

• whole star anise
• 1/2 3-inch cinnamon stick, broken into pieces
• 2 whole cloves
• 2 allspice berries
• 2 cardamom pods
• 1/4 ounce (1/2 tablespoon) freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 liter light rum
• 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
• Strips of peel from 1 whole orange
  & lemon

Rock Bottom?

Mr Secretary,

Since my induction as the 18th member of The Country Club in February 2010, I have planned with little success to visit a new country. Most recently, a December snow storm thwarted my plans to spend my 50th birthday with Mr Earle in Livingstone, Zambia (and neighboring Zimbabwe which would increase my country scorecard by two). See first attached photo - doesn't Mr Earle look a bit off?.

Finally, in early March, I had the opportunity to visit New Delhi, India for the first time. I was surprised by the many green spaces in Delhi - tree lined boulevards, parks and gardens. The second photo was taken at the Imperial Hotel with my UNDP colleague Andrea P. who then dragged me off to our real destination [See email for the rest of the story!]

Sincerely yours from the rock bottom rung,

Ms Ridley

Mr W Suggests a Competition

As you know, the world will welcome its newest country in July when Sudan splits in two. I request a clarification re how the Club will treat this split. Will those who have visited Sudan receive credit for North Sudan, and will South Sudan be the new country? Or have you and the Governors made other provisions? However you plan to approach it, I suggest we launch a contest to challenge our members to see who will be the first to visit the new country. A prize should be offered. I have suggestions. [Sec'y's note. Students of the By-Laws of our fine Club will cite Chapter 3 "Definition of a Country Visited" and Article 3.4, which states "A Visited Country that, subsequent to the qualifying visit, splits into two or more countries, can only be counted as a single Visited Country. The Member will elect which of the issuing countries shall be recorded as a Visited Country."].

Shaken but Not Stirred

Mr Sempliner writes:

I was waiting in the lounge here at Narita Airport (Tokyo) yesterday afternoon for my connecting flight to San Francisco when the earth literally moved, windows swayed and things began to drop from the ceiling. Women began crying, lights flickered and it was like being in a bad movie. All pretty dramatic and the worst earthquake I've ever experienced. Needless to say my flight, in fact all flights, were cancelled as we continued to have aftershocks all afternoon. At first we were asked to leave the terminal for a few hours on the tarmac. Once back inside disorder reigned... well, as much as it is going to in Japan, and I slept on an airport bench for the first time in years.

This morning I found that the office had re-booked me on today’s flight. A good thing too, people (foreigners really) are beginning to get petulant. On reflection I’m glad I was in Japan when this happened. If this sort of thing had happened in New York or LA it would have been even more of a nightmare.

Shaken but not stirred,

Sandy

Our Beloved Founder Comes to Dinner

Ms v/H cooked, our Founder regaled, and yours truly took a picture. :)

No Cooler in Finland

Mr Secretary,

Hello from freezing Helsinki! The word arctic has a new meaning for me since walking around in a city with -3F temperatures. Had an Italian red wine over a business dinner last night and a German white with lunch. This is probably the one country where a wine cellar needs a heater. The red, although nice, was served at room temperature and was still too cold! There is so much snow that one simply has to believe in the existence of the abominable snowman!

Ms v/H

Mr. Warshauer visits DRC

I spent most of last week enjoying Kinshasa and did the needful there with several Primus beers. I believe this visit further extends my lead over other club members for visits on the continent, although I'm sure our esteemed Secretary can confirm. The city is one big construction site and the central boulevard has been widened to be 8 lanes (at the cost of all the trees that used to line it, alas), creating some rather amazing pedestrian crossing challenges. I had a great visit, my only regret being that I left on the day that Papa Wemba was giving a big concert in town. Prochaine fois!

Metaphoric in Manila

Mr Secretary,

Here in the dank underworld of the Country Club cellar, where mirth and happiness are unknown, we still have our pride. We dream of one day toppling the masters of the universe who rule so capriciously from above in their all expenses paid business class seats. I'm proud to report having removed one more brick from the wall of oppression by arriving in Manila and drinking deeply from the river of golden San Miguel that flows so powerfully here.

Respectfully yours,

J.A. Sempliner

Mao-tini

Dear Sir,

I write to you from Peking where the heroes of the risibly named Peoples Liberation Army seem to have developed a prodigious taste for Gucci, Burberry, Maserati, Rolex, Louis Vuitton and every other conceivable sort of western consumer goods. I have consumed a martini.

Unsure whether my previous visits to Hong Kong and Macau count as China visits or otherwise I write to confirm presence in the heart of the beast . Those of us in the cellar of the country club always identify with the proletarian struggle!

The East is red,

Sandy

[Secretary's note: Mr Sempliner has indeed already visited China when he traveled to Hong Kong and Macau]

A White Nile

Mr Secretary,

Having a white “Chateau du jardin Nil” while overlooking the Nile River from the Four Seasons Hotel bar. Not a bad way to start my first visit to Egypt!

Ms v/H