Street address? What street address?

Dili is quirky.  There's no doubt about it.  Melbournians who complain about crap roads should come here.  Most residential 'roads' are little more than dirt tracks.   Apparently mini-canyons (pot-hole is just too small a concept) work better than speed bumps as traffic calming devices - at least in the residential streets.

Well that's one quirk.  Another is the concept of an address.  There isn't one.  Most 'streets' have no names and the houses certainly have no numbers.  It makes finding places somewhat problematic.  Although, despite this lack of house specificity we did manage to get pizza delivered to Book Club last night.  The trick, apparently, is to use landmarks.  Note to the uninitiated - ensure your landmark is not going to be moved e.g. a shipping container, hidden behind a new wall, or torn down.  Hey, it happens.

So knowing no one has an actual address it was with great bemusement that I attempted to fill my visa application.  There is was in black ink with all the necessary boxes, all neat and pristine as they demanded the following:  Address:  Number ............  Street.............. Area............. 

And visa applications are not alone.  The bank also wanted this information.  I was so very tempted to ask, "Are you going to post me something?"

In their defense, some paper pusher probably created the form, all gleeful that it was capturing all necessary details.  But, like any seasoned ex-pat, I filled in all I could Area - Marconi.  That's it.  That's where I live.  It's all I've got.