Another super-hot weekend with no move to the market. BUT, I did manage to get out on Sunday afternoon after all. Played a little football with some guys and girls. My big question was why they chose to play at 3 o'clock on a Sunny afternoon??? Turns out however that

1. there are no lights on the field so you can't play too late and
2. if you snooze, the cricket enthusiasts would've taken over all the fields and you'd just spend the time watching them play cricket.

So, I get it. We have to play in the sweltering sun. Still, we managed to knock the ball around a few times and run wildly around which means maybe I burned some calories.

Then we stopped and played some dominoes before heading home for the evening. Now, aside from the new style that I learned... (3 people playing with 1 sitting out and us taking turns), I also did a few other new things.

1. I ate tamarind straight from the tree. Yes, you may all wonder why I hadn't done this before since I grew up in a country that actually HAS tamarind trees. But, I hadn't. And I not only now ate ripe tamarind, but also tried the green one as well. (Not so hot on that one).
2. I had the famous Gun Oil. See previous link http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2557674867574491801#editor/target=post;postID=7170093129934827018   And now it has been somewhat explained to me. Yes, it is supposed to help men in their quest for "greatness". And it is actually boiled corn in cocnut milk with a variety of things including callaloo at times. The one I had was home made and had no callaloo but boiled corn is always good, and this was no exception. Thanks L!!

Living under a mosquito net...

When I was a very little kid, I have one or two memories of a mosquito net. I don’t know if my mom was just being protective of me as a baby, but, mosquito nets seemed to disappear from my life. Until now.

Tied up above bed

During prep to come to Guyana, I was told I’d be getting a net (Dengue Fever and Malaria, remember?). I remember hating them before and I thought of this claustrophobic feeling I could possibly have. So, I was not looking forward to it. I got here and of course there was one at the guest house. It was tied up in a knot above the bed, hanging from the ceiling.  Much like this===>

THe first night, I untied it and let it drop around the bed, and my room-mate coached me and let me know that I had to tuck it in under the mattress. Otherwise, mosquitoes fly up under it… and other creatures crawl, slither, slide… need I say more? So, lesson learnt. Tuck tuck. But, I still didn’t like it. L

How round net hangs from ceiling

I moved to my house and discovered that the net still was not working for me. I was awaiting a new one, but even so, it just wasn’t working. First of all, I realize, I was trying to fit a square (relatively speaking) bed into a round net. Now you know what they say about the pegs and the holes. They’re right. It doesn’t work. But, nevertheless, I was trying to make the best of an awkward situation. I finally got my new net and tried to get it prepped for installation. I had to soak it in an insecticide that was to prevent bugs, etc from even wanting to “knock” on its door. Goodie! I let it dry, then looked at the one that was hanging, to see how I was going to get this one up. Now, there was a hook in the ceiling, and the net had a round top – reinforced by some kind of wire. And four strings equidistance around the circumference of the wire that came together in a knot and then hung from the hook.

Square net. Yay!

My new net didn’t have any wire, so I just grabbed the four ends of the strings and fashioned some knots and tried to now take down the old net to put the new one up. But, there was a little bit of a vertical challenge. Hmmm. Needed help… So I called in reinforcements from my bredren and he took one look at my handiwork and was literally on the floor laughing. Apparently I had tied it wrong. I couldn’t understand what was sooooo wrong about it – a knot for a mosquito net is simply a knot!!!! But, it seemed… I had a square net at last. Now, I’d never seen one, so had no idea how they worked. He advised, organized and soon enough (several weeks later), my new net was UP!!!  He thought it was pretty cool, and I didn’t understand why… but now I GET IT. Man, whoever designed a round mosquito net was trying… phase ONE. The square net is the REAL DEAL. Love it!!!!  Now I don’t have to deal with any skewing and touching me in the night.

I’ve learned (thanks Roomie) that I can’t just barely put the ends under or the net will sag and touch the bed.

Sagging net. No good. :(

It has to be taut. Standing on it’s own like my own little castle around me. MOSQUITOES be gone! 

Net tucked right. :)

But, with all of that, I still have some questions. If I soaked this thing in insecticide, then why do mosquitoes still laze around on it like they’re on the Sea Wall lyming? The second thing is this… Imagine me tucking in 3.25 sides of the net. I have to leave a little crawl space on one side. I duck under, and while in bed, try to grab the ends of the loose side to tuck them in. This is easier said than done. And, imagine lifting this everytime you want to get in and out? And no matter how much I tuck, when I awake, the net is t-r-a-i-l-i-n-g on the floor. Why is this? Are there some super creatures lifting it out? WORSE if I have the fan oscillating around me. It does not stay put!!!  So, what’s the point? How do I get it to behave???

And finally, if we’re worried about dengue and malaria, and supposed to apply SHOO (our famous body insecticide here – not OFF) every evening, and reapply, and reapply… but, I haven’t been doing so, and have many bites on my arms and legs anyway… THEN WHY AM I FIGHTING THE NET AT NIGHTS???? I’ve already been bitten!!!!!

The THING in the bathroom!

Friends, I awoke in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. I did reach for my glasses, but when I got there, I didn't turn on the lights, because there's enough light coming in from outside, so I could certainly find my way around. On my way back out, I noticed a "spot" on the floor. I thought about this for a second, because I couldn't remember that a spot should've been there. But before I could think too much, the "spot" JUMPED unto the mat. Someone was playing games with me. This wasn't funny!!! I wasn't in the mood for games... I JUMPED outside the bathroom and shut the door. I would deal with it in the morning.

In the morning, armed with broom in one hand, and camera in the other, I tentatively opened the door... I looked left, right, up, around the corner, in the shower, behind the door, I poked, and NOTHING appeared. It wasn't a dream, but it's gone, so I don't care. As long as it's not in my room!

The weather can spoil your plans

The weather in most places is unpredictable.  In Guyana, know one thing… It shall rain.

So, naturally on Sunday morning I woke to pouring rain. And then light rain. And then rain. And then more light rain. That to me meant… no football. But, I figured that most guys will go play in the mud anyway (since they’re not washing their own clothes). Hmmm. In any event I was called about an hour before scheduled start to find out if I was still going? What? Hmm. Okay. I will go. (I will bring my book in case it’s too muddy for me). But, I would go. Anyway, turns out it was apparently too wet for some others because no game took place.

Please note that my laptop is also currently under the weather – which means my blogging may be sporadic. But, I will try to find a way to keep you updated.

Weekends in Georgetown, Guyana

It's Friday, Friday, Friday. And you KNOW how I love my weekends. Doan care if I have anything to do, I LOVE my weekends. So, I'm fixing up some chicken and black beans (and fried ripe plantains) for dinner, and going to settle into a night of pc games and maybe a movie. I will make sure to put some clothes to soak (apparently they forgot to install my washing machine so I have to hand-wash). Now, the thing about washing in Guyana, is the brown water. Did we speak about the water before? I don't recall, so let me just tell you... water coming out of the taps is BROWN. Now, truthfully, from what I'd heard before I came here, I expected it to be a tad browner, but, nevertheless, it's BROWN. Is water supposed to have colour? Is POTABLE water supposed to have colour? So, we boil and filter our water for cooking and drinking, but what am I to do with the wash water???

So, I'm going to soak my WHITE clothes  in brown water? How can that possibly make sense? A lot of bleach, and a little blue soap, and a lot of work, but it seems a pointless exercise to me. Might as well just sun the clothes! Probably better results.

Tomorrow after I've washed and hung them to dry (and collect dust that's blowing around), I will probably go to the supermarket. Now, every Saturday so far I've had a plan to go to the market. Sigh, but you know how your friend is lazY I mean tired? So, when the sun is hot like it is on weekends (Did I not tell you it's hotter on weekends?), I definitely don't feel like going all the way to the market. But, I will try to pick up a few things somehow, and maybe I can get some curry chicken or shake n bake going this w-end. MAYBE.

Yes, the vow to cook seems to have burnt up. I guess I like cooking too much to just abandon preparing meals totally. Plus, some things just aren't the same here. For example, I get fried plantain here, but, in Guyana they seem to fry it when it has just turned ripe. In fact, what's more popular is green fried plantain. Also yummy, burt for a different purpose. That reminds me of the fried green bananas grandma used to make. And, in fact, since her birthdate is coming up soon, I guess I'll try frying some green plantains the way they do here that weekend. But, back to the ripe fried plantains. In Jamaica, we tend to wait until they're RIPE, and then fry them when they're sweeeeeeet. You know what I mean, right JS and PD??? ;) So, if I want it like that I have to do it myself. Some time soon I will expound more on the food here.

On Sunday I've been invited to the National Park to go play some football. Now, I'm not going to get into much detail except to say, maybe it will be fun??? and at the very least, remember those dratted ten pounds? Maybe I could drop one up there. It's a big enough park. So, that's my weekend PLAN for the mo. What's yours?

Life as it now stands...

So, I was chatting to one of my friends who asked me about music in Guyana. We spoke about how there was mainly reggae and soca as two main themes. "Which do you hear more", he asks. Now, I pondered this, but wasn't sure. I was hearing a lot of soca, but could it have been because Mash was coming up - and naturally, soca would play a big part in any street parade, right? So, Mash came and went, and I now have a response to that question. REGGAE and DANCEHALL rule the streets of Georgetown. I say the streets, because even as I type and the cars go by, I can hear the dancehall pounding. Now, I'm not sure how this began, but there is obviously a competition to see which car can play the music the loudest as they zoom by. I do come from a culture where loud reggae music in cars is not a foreign concept. However, THIS is by far a national standard that has been set. You think I'm kidding... listen to the car alarms going off as the last two cars went by! Need I say more???

But, there are other things happening as we speak. I was saddened this week by the death of a friend's father. I feel like I'm several countries away and can do nothing to help, but, still, I feel my friend's pain. May "dad" R.I.P.

I was also saddened because I realized this week that many of my friends who CLAIM they will come and visit will probably never get here. L Did I believe at first that they were gonna come? Of course! But alas and alad... I now fear otherwise.

FIVE weeks have gone since I've been here. My how time flies! Before I know it I will be halfway through this journey.  My goals for the year:

• Be a useful resource to my workplace and learn a lot at the same time
• Lose TEN unwanted pounds somewhere on the streets of Georgetown
• Make some nifty friends here in Guyana (I've already started to do so)
• Start a Calooki Crew
• Remember my friends far and wide (even if they don't keep in touch with me)
• Get to know Guyana - and any other places where opportunity presents itself
• Don't worry be HAPPY!!!
• Be all that I can Be!

Shell Beach

Wicked!!!  I’d heard about Shell beach, and even though I would not be able to make it there the night before to watch for turtles myself, I’m glad it got unto my list of things I did! (Or in this case, was about to do).

This trip was to be 50 mins by boat and we were expecting it would be very rough. We actually go out to sea and then come in to the beach. Pretty exciting. But here is where I was told to pack... NUFF (plenty) water, snacks, mosquito repellent, extra clothes, etc for the day. I was told not to wear my sneakers because I would have to wade from the boat out to land. Okay. Lewwi go, lewwi go!!!

Approaching anArmy base

The army base

Houses along the river bank

On the way I spot Scarlet Ibis! Never seen one before, but I did know that Guyana has lots of birdlife. So, still excited! Yay!

100 Scarlet Ibis(es?) in the trees

Now, a quick aside. Many houses are located along the river banks. Some are hidden behind the mangroves. So, how do people get around? By boat of course. The size of the boat I imagine depends on what you can afford. But, I also saw these little "dugout canoes". I can't remember what they're called here, but this is how kids get to school. Sometimes maybe 15 of them pile into a canoe to get around. 

The river is wide. Still brown, but changes brown-ness as we get closer to the sea. Then, BACK-SIDE, the boat starts to jump into the air and slap back down into the water. Not little flip flops like the other day. My behind was slamming into the bench!!! 

Brown water was splashing into my face and hair. We were wet from top heading downwards... Someone handed us a tarp to cover ourselves, and off we roared into the wind. I remember going to an amusement park in Maryland (King’s Dominion) and riding one of their new rides at the time which had the t-shirt... “I survived........” and I thought to myself, I don’t know if we’ll survive this, but NOOOO amusement park has anything over this ride. The Tower of Terror at Disney, None of the rollercoasters at Canada’s Wonderland, NONE. NONE. This was IT!!!! I didn’t know if I should laugh or cry, so I laughed. (And prayed). Man alive.

The joke is I’m watching the boat pull farther and farther away from land and I’m thinking... aren’t we supposed to go closer, not farther??? But, I realize for some reason, they must need to go hither before coming in. But this did not make it any easier. Looking in at the beach though I was amazed. The sand looked a reddish colour – almost like it was tinged with bauxite. I just wanted to get to land! Finally we got as close in as we could, I rolled up my jeans, and waded in. The ENTIRE beach was covered in shells. Nothing but shells. This stuff couldn’t even break down fast enough to become sand. Shell Beach??? Okay, I get it now...

And yes, we carried in some plantains, grains, snacks, etc for the teachers who would have to hire a boat and brave the waters to get a little food. Since they often run low on supplies, we brought a few goodies. To the left is the school with the little kitchen behind it (a hot lunch is provided for the kids). On the right is the house where the teachers live.

Cricket pitch. Lunchtime games

SHELL Beach! :)

Apparently two turtles came to shore last night. A bit disappointing that I missed that, but, wha fi do? I listen as I’m told about the monkeys running wild, the poisonous snake found under one teacher’s mattress last week and the disappearing dogs (thanks to jaguars of course). The entire community has about 100 people, with approximately 30 children in school. Great beach, looks nice. Nothing to do but movies when one neighbour has gas. And I guess go watch turtles. There is no shop here, so if you want supplies you must take a boat to the mainland. Our 75 engine took us 50 minutes in VERY rough waters. Some of these guys here have a 5 engine. Three hours or more to land? Capsizing? Is that life for me? Only to visit...

Kumaka

We walked from the guest house into town to get food.  This was to save us from the guest house prices, but I’m sure expensive is spelt the same way no matter where you are in Region 1. I was disappointed in the bbq pork, so decided I would have fried chicken the next day. But, I’m not going to talk much about the food – including the curry turtle and the deer, because I haven’t told you about the guest house yet.

Jamaica, Jamaica, Jamaica... tourist country. Where the Guest Houses are guest houses. But, this is Guyana, and the regions no less, so... standards are a little different.

I'm convinced this is a hilly region as everything I had to go to was up on some hill. Getting to the guest house was no less challenging...

Here is my room. With the mosquito net that doesn’t quite cover the bed.  The net that was holey enough that I woke with a bedmate my first morning. And it wasn't anything as small as a mosquito. Thankfully it wasn't a snake...

 The balcony doors which are just screen doors that pull shut.

The bathroom where if you sit on the toilet you will bang your head on the basin. (Sorry I didn't catch that in the pic, but I'm sure you get the idea).

And the shower where the shower floor is covered with the shower curtain because it’s so “long”. J

A guest house where I had to adopt spiders, beetles, moths, other unidentified bugs, houseflies and naturally, ANTS. I was afraid I would wake up one morning and the ants would be trying to lift me over the balcony wall... ANTS!!!! But, let me not get carried away with small details.

So, there is no electricity in many of the communities. Where I was living for the past few days, there was no electricity in the day. Thank goodness we did have water though. And at 5p.m. there were lights... Except for when there was a powercut at 5:15 one day – and then there was no light...                        There were four channels on the TV. One Peruvian – in Spanish, one which switched between news and a frozen pic, and a “movie” channel. But, I’m trying not to snicker. It was better than nothing at 8p.m. after my colleague had gone to bed. And because there was nought else to do... I watched...

On days when we were caught between returning from the school trips and 8p.m. – we played dominoes (just the two of us), because I’d finished my book the first day. Why hadn’t I brought more than one book? Oonu did want the plane bend under the weight??? TWENTY pounds is all I was allowed. And, you have to remember, I had to carry extra clothes – in case I got wet on the boat... More on that tomorrow.

Region 1

How excited could I be to be going to Region 1??? THIS excited. I know you probably can’t imagine how much, but let’s just say... I’m grinning from ear to ear.

So, my colleague and I got to the airport and I was duly weighed, then my bags were weighed, tickets handed in, and we took off for Mabaruma. 

Hotoquai Primary

Notice all the bags just stashed in front? WTH??

We headed straight for the Education office and made arrangements for trips to visit the national volunteer teachers in their placement schools. The first trip was to Hotoquai. Now, maybe I should stop about my experience long enough to give you some facts about Guyana.

The 10 Administrative Regions

 Guyana is divided into 10 Administrative Regions. Not parishes, not provinces, not states. Regions.  I live in Georgetown in Region 4. Everywhere else is kinda “country”. So, we refer to them as “the regions” even though they all have names. I don’t know the names, so I will just continue to tell you about my trip to Region 1. Now you do remember what the name Guyana means? Yes, previous blogs are important, and although there is no exam there will be a pop quiz every now and then.

Heading out from the boathouse

So, because of this land of many rivers, quite often travel here involves a boat. So, part of the arrangements we were making was for a boat and driver to take us to the community. Now, I remember before I got here reading blogs of previous visitors, seeing a pic of someone on a river and thinking, “bwoy, shi brave sah! I would be scared to do that”. It seems however, either I was mistaken, or the trip in the 12-seater plane for one whole hour took away all fear. It was FUN!!!  Did I spell that correctly? F-U-N!!!

 I had a blast bumping up and down in the boat as we sped along. I was particularly happy I had not really had breakfast as I remember the days with Doctors Webbers  out in the Kingston Harbour, Discovery Bay and beyond. Also remember being sick on the Dive Boat in Port Antonio one day. But, as we zig-zagged and flip-flopped (that would be how I describe the bumping over the rough waters), I had a good time, and an hour later we were climbing up unto dry land. This again of particular note as it did not remain dry for long...

As we approached the first building and I started to slow down, I noted that my colleague was still "walking strong". And I gazed further up the hill to realize we were a looooong way off from the school. Oh well. I could dream, but it wasn’t gonna help, so I kept going.

It was an interesting day, but I'll let the pics say the rest...

Lunch arriving up the hill...

Volleyball game in session. Can you see the ball?

Heading out... Looking back up the hill

"Workie"

What a week! I started work on Monday. The people in my office are really nice (so far)

J . Check me back later in the year for an update. J 

Anyway, we've really had a good week there I think. I had orientation, got the new strategic plan to read, and started doing some research for my report. Wednesday you all know by now was a shocker (see previous post about when it rains in Georgetown) . But, Thursday made up for it. My boss picked me up and we drove to Sophia (pronounced Saffire/Saffiyah) to pick up another colleague. Then we headed out past the University of Guyana whose football field looked like a large pond, and out unto the highway to get to the East Coast. It was really interesting to see how every mile or so was a new village??? Really people? Really? What's with all the villages? There are almost as many villages as people! I understand there are some villages with just three streets. And then I understand there is one village with a street that has seven churches on it. Does anyone know Church Street? J

Anyway, we went to visit a Mangrove rehabilitation project. Most of you may (or may not) know that in my past life I worked on environmental projects and so mangroves were right up my alley. It was very cool for me to be out there... except for trying to plod around in the size 12 men's "long" boots that I borrowed. I think it was a great project which showed lots of successes and the Ambassador from the European Union who was out with us obviously thought so too. http://www.guyanachronicle.com/site/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=40099:ambassador-tours-expresses-satisfaction-with-eu-funded-projects&catid=2:news&Itemid=3

Fridays are dress down day in the office. Yay! I was clearly overdressed on Friday but I had a meeting out of office, and I'd rather have been safe than sorry. But, now I know... Jeans next week!!! Oh ye! And here's the best part... the office closes at 3:30 on a Friday. OHHHH YAAAYYY! (Said in my best barritone). J

I had my first run-in with a meat shop as I stopped to get some PORK for my newfound bredren who was cooking dinner. The meatshop on a whole was a tad expensive I thought. But then, most things in Guyana seem to be...

I continue to walk whenever and where-ever I can here. The roads are a bit rocky and it doesn't help my poor knee, but I think it's worth the exercise. And, of course I save on bus or taxi fare!!! It's still quite hot though. HOT. Am not any more used to this at the end of my third week. Especially on weekends. I think those days are surely hotter. Anyway, the pork dinner was great and we went to a party last night (another VSO leaving to go back home). Good thing this was just downstairs, so it worked well for me! It was sad in bits. She was much loved, and many expressed the good work she did here over her 2yr stint. It made me wonder... will I be successful at my job here? Will they also be appreciative of what I've done? Will the work live on???