House sitting

As well as renting about half of the King Solomon Hotel, Aspen Medical also lease several houses for managers and very long term employees. Recently the Deputy in-country manager approached me about house sitting his house while he and his wife went on leave for three weeks. What sounded like a nice offer just got better and better as the details were revealed.
The house is up in the hills on leafy Taveo ridge overlooking Iron Bottom sound. The house is simple but light and airy with three bedrooms. Although architecturally nothing to write home about it comes with wireless internet, computer games (bit hooked on the Wii) and 600 DVDs! It is set right on the edge of the ridge, the gardened property falling away down to the pool and leafhaus. There are two giant mango trees, heavy with fruit and numerous other exotic plants, all tended three times a week by a gardener. The house staff thing is taking a bit of getting use to. In addition to the gardener, Rose, we have a cleaner, Doris, who also comes three days a week who does the laundry and house cleaning. Hardest of all to get used to are the security guards. There are two at night and one during the day who regularly patrol the 8ft high fence that surrounds us. They are very nice guys who keep to themselves in their little office when not doing regular patrols. It feels very odd being guarded in what seems like a quiet cul-de-sac in a leafy suburb but there is a history of affluent properties being targeted during times of unrest so their presence isn’t an option.
The best bit is the other member of the family we are sitting, nine month old Wally the dog. He is a local dog they found in a rubbish pile as a tiny pup. Being local he strongly resembles a dingo. This, Rachael informs me, is because they are closely related, having come with the first settlers from SE Asia some 40,000 years ago, long before they made it to Australia. Unlike his somewhat emaciated and mangy cousins Wally is a clean, well fed specimen. Like all pups he is going through a chewing phase, principally our feet and knees but also furniture, pool equipment, gardening equipment, electrical appliances and pretty much anything that falls from the trees.
As I mentioned we are here for three weeks, and though somewhat out of the loop not seeing everyone all the time at the King Sol we are really enjoying the space, the full size kitchen and the peace. If I try to tell you we did it tough at all when we return you may slap me.