5th December
I thought I would write this brief note to you to announce a realisation: I now know why rainy season is called ‘rainy season’. The answer being: ‘Because it rains a hell of a lot.’
I guess in some ways it a fairly useful season as it is a good method of letting one see just how good your roof is. For us, when it rains outside, it also rains inside. It is not the slow thudding drip of a leak: it is literally a shower. I had a proper shower yesterday morning, turned it off & went to my room to get dressed & it was still showering water on me …AMAZING! I slept in Craig’s bed last night (&no he wasn’t in it …he’s in town) & awoke at 2am feeling very much as though I were sitting in a rain cloud. I was wet with a sheen of mist, I then realised that it was the result of sideways rain coming in through the mosquito net & kind of sieving through at high speed. I crept into bed with Ollie in our windowless room.
Rain also makes us cold! A nice change. Last night I went to bed & savannah was present (not in my bed obviously) & this afternoon it is pretty much entirely under water…..Wow!
Washing clothes is made even more tedious as now we have to hang clothes up to dry INSIDE …this process takes days & adds even more obstacles to our house. Now to get from the kitchen to the bed I have to: walk over our nice new red carpet, around hammock no. 1, step over the damp patch/puddle, under washing line no.1 & Ollie’s damp hoody while simultaneously stepping over hammock no. 2. You then have to duck under washing line no. 2 & Ollie’s damp shorts & you’re in to our room. THEN … you have to duck under 2 large electrical wires hanging down from our walls & across the door way – managing to avoid my damp towel, then lift up the mosquito net & climb in to bed.
Going to the loo in the middle of the night is not the easiest adventure!
School is also affected by the rain. The Guyanese do not go outside when it rains. This morning at 9.30am only about 40 dedicated students had arrived. The Headmaster still hasn’t made it here yet & it’s 2.30pm. For some students it is understandable – some have to walk 5 miles to school. Others have a 1 ½ hour paddle by dug-out. There’s a school rule that if by 12.15pm it hasn’t stopped raining then school’s cancelled for the whole day. Love it. & we thought we were pathetic about snow!
Currently, while it continues to rain, I am sitting waiting for my form 3 students to finish their biology exam. I have little faith that many will pass, because it involves them actually having to use their brains …something many find hard!
We’ve had the IT exam already & the results were …..poor. Class 1A & 1B actually had averages over the passmark (50%) of 51% & 52%. 1D & 1C had class averages of 37% and 35% while 2A’s was a little more respectable at 47%. So it’s all good
I would like you to know , also, that I BAKE AWESOME BREAD!
Love to all,
MERRY CHRISTMAS
Whoppee!
Love, love, love
Emily xxxxxx
Monday, 22 December 2008
Letter 4 from Guyana
24/11/08
I am officially ¼ of the way through! How time has flown.
So I returned from my trip to Georgetown safe & sound if not a little wet & absolutely exhausted . My first night involved eating a large banana split by myself, the second involved a large amount of Rum & Ian & Stewart (St Cuthbert’s boys) & Nicola & Meg (New Amsterdam girls) & Karaoke. The third night involved no sleep at all, a lime at the owner of a car sales place - & then an all nighter of chatting in hammocks. It was so refreshing to get away for a while – so good to get undeafened at the doctors - & brilliant to spend some time catching up with some other volunteers. I feel like I know Georgetown much better now, & have found a few amazing little places to go & chill out at & most involve food: e.g. the Roti Hut -> contains not only Roti & curry but all types of cake & pastries you can imagine.
Yet again I was wowed by the fantastic journey there. The boat left Kumaka landing at 5 am, Peanut came to pick me up from the house. I gathered my stuff, locked the door & shoved the key through the window before realising that I’d left my phone inside so I had to holla at Craig to wake up & let me back in …just to let you know that the Powellish ways don’t even escape Moruca!
The sky was red as we started the journey. Pyramids of cloud rose up from the silhouetted jungle & palms. Flourescent red/ pink outlined each pyramid. Obviously, if my camera had been working, I would have taken hundreds more photos of sunrise, palm trees & the sky adding to my already massive collection. It’s a sight I just can’t tire of, & every time it’s different & beautiful.
Driving along the coast was different this time because all the rice fields are under water so the landscape looks completely different. As usual, I’m always amazed to get out of taxis & buses alive – sides of the road don’t really exist. It’s therefore a common occurrence to turn a corner on the wrong side of the road & at 120km per hour to meet a car coming the other way & a cow just standing in the road. Adrenalin rush the whole way.
So weight continues to be gained as my/our cooking just keeps getting better & we discover more and more dishes. Having finally obtained an oven even more goodies can be created. I baked bread yesterday it actually tasted like white bread. Today I’m so proud of myself having just cooked chicken in a peanut satay sauce with noodles. We’ve discovered the local goodness of ‘Monkey ears’ – a bit like deepfried scotch pancakes, & I’ve developed a lemon curdish sauce to go with them. Our surrogate mum, Wanita, has finally showed us her secret recipe for how to make Mai-tai (something I’m sure I’ve mentioned before) – a delicious deep fried snack -> sticks of nutmeg & cinnamony coconut dough-covered in a sugary, cinnamony sauce. It’s my ultimate weakness. So food is still playing a highly important part in my jungle life.
So much has happened here in the last month, much of which I’ve already told you, however for blog purposes I ought to mention all.
Firstly, about a month ago we saw a sloth (I may’ve mentioned this last letter). It was sitting in Wanita’s plum tree – Not a clue about how it got there, do sloths walk? It was rather like watching Wilf in a tree. Big, fluffy and grey/brown, looking completely out of place & very ancient. Since then Craig has found the sloth’s hang-out (Craig has taken to monkey hunting in the nearby jungle – I attempted too but the mosquitoes, swamp & foot-eating animals quickly chased me out).
It’s now rainy season which has its pros and cons. Pros: we have water! This means showers. The river is rising, so good for swimming & rain is generally fun & refreshing.
Cons: MOSQUITOES, my feet are itchy 24/7. Humidity – it now feels as though you’re constantly in an enclosed room in summer with the heating on full strength. The humidity must have changed from a survivable 30% to a nasty 85/90%. Using solar power computers -> rain = clouds; clouds = no sun, no sun = not a single computer to teach IT on.
This month we’ve had a few strange experiences that I never expected to partake in – especially seeing as I’m in the jungle! The first of these involved walking in on a full scale exorcism of the dormitory children. 3 weeks ago 13 dormitory girls fell ill within the same week. They would start with a headache & then deteriorate until they were writhing with fever & moaning & just generally pretty ill! We walked in on 2 of the patients, they were each being held down by 6 others, holding limes & garlics & having methylated spirits poured over their faces. This was all being done to try & rid the girls of the Jumbie spirit – which is what they believed was possessing them. Craig decided that the girls needed to go to hospital to see the non-enlish speaking Cuban doctor. So the girls went & were sedated & the doctor ran some tests only to conclude that, yes indeed the girls are possessed by the Jumbie spirit. 5 years of medical training seemed to have gone down the drain.
So on the following Friday we went over to the dorms to help study & we walked in to discover a Church service. The Pentecostal church had discovered that the Catholic Church had managed to perform 2 exorcisms in the week (one for the building & one for the children) & had decided that they too wanted a go. So we were handed a free bible each & watched as children went forward to be prayed over by 13 adults all speaking in tongues & randomly bursting into shouts of ‘By the name of Jesus flee you spirit, flee!’. One girl collapsed – just as the evil dorm-mother was being surrounded by all 13 muttering adults - & the adults hurried over & started thrashing her & shouting & pleading & muttering. Freaky or what?! We politely refused to be exorcised, the children all believe that now the Jumbie is going to get us!
By the weekend all the dormitory girls who were ill had been sent home & all the ‘not yet possessed’ moved in to the Amerindian hostel in Kumaka. This was obviously a very sensible solution as now the girls are living 13 to a room & 2 to each single bed. No-one has actually thought about cleaning the dormitories yet …they smell bad.
The Guyanese newspaper has, as usual, heard completely the wrong story & published that the primary school children were being poisoned.
The week after these illnesses & we had USA military doctors arrive for 10 days to offer free healthcare to the community. Local could get free teeth cleaning, extractions, glasses or surgery. I spent the week carrying students back & forth, to & from the hospital & standing in long hot queues. This did however give me the opportunity to hint to the Americans that a ride on the helicopter would be very much appreciated.
We found out that Wanita has a hernia & that she needed to have surgery on it. This meant for Wanita (& Liz as her escort) a trip to the military ship for 3 days. Very jealous we persisted in the *subtle* hinting & ….IT WORKED! Last Tuesday we got up at 6 am to walk to the irstrip, get in a helicopter & fly to the ship. Liz had been told to choose 10 people from the community to get a tour of the ship. The 5 whities, a couple of nurses, a couple of Guyanese soldiers & Kassandra the AKEO (an awesome young powerful lady who wouldn’t surprise me if she announced that she was to be the 1st Guyanese Amerindian & female president) all disembarked the helicopter on a ship that holds 1500 people and up to 30 helicopters. We met the captain & had apple juice, Danish pastries & cookies with some of the crew. The air-conditioning was incredible! We had a tour of areas of the ship including the hospital where cataracts & dental surgeries were in process, & also the Bridge – where we sat in the captain’s chair & saw all the cool machines & radar thingys.
On the flight back to the airstrip one of the US guys beckoned me towards the large gaping hole at the back of the helicopter. I cautiously stumbled forwards looking sexy in my hat, goggles & ear muffley things. The guy strapped me to a lead attached to the floor & I sat on the edge of the hole with my feet dangling out over Guyana. Incredible experience! Also gave me the chance to yet again make the observation that Guyana has many trees & a lot of water. While flying over the sea, there is a very clear line where the brown sea around Guyana suddenly turns into the blue of the Caribbean Sea. Most Guyanese don’t realise that mostly the sea is blue – they have only ever seen brown ocean (it’s brown due to the fertility of the land).
We had a Halloween party after a fundraiser bingo night! Generally disappointing turnout by the 5 Guyanese men who turned up – they all came as Guyanese men. Most of the children haven’t heard of Halloween. The Americans had Halloween sweets & everything. Rum ended up being drunk & various games played …Craig was Harry Potter, the PC girls were Santa Rosa schoolgirls & Ollie & I were the clockwork dolls from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
As for the Bingo it’s taken very seriously. Different to English version as every round people go outside to collect pebbles to cover their bingo card with ….recycling & all that
Guy Fawkes night was celebrated by us – I may have mentioned this too …We pulled down rotten trees & dry banana leaves & oiled them on top of our rubbish pit & lit it. We also managed to buy traffic light fireworks & a couple of rockets. The traffic light ones were awesome as you could hold them while they were shooting their coloured sparks. We shot the sparks at the clothes pegs aiming as though with a rifle. Good times . We also had sparklers, which all the children loved. We had Wanita’s children over (6) & the 2 ‘maids’ from neighbours – Rhonda & ‘Fat Girl’ (I don’t actually know her real name – all locals call her ‘Fat Girl’ or ‘Fatty’). We had Courtley round (the guy who works the village generator & seems to have a bit of a thing for me – he gave me diamonds he’d found in the mines). Courtley and Derek (Wanita’s giant of a 14 year old) & Larry (who always turns up where there’s the chance of finding rum) cut down bamboos from the bush. They created a traditional bamboo cannon. The bamboo has a hole in the bottom & kerosene is poured inside it. A lighted splint is then put into the hole & fire & a massive BANG shoot out of the other end. It lasts for hours & the boys never get over the fun of mixing fuel fire & bamboo to produce big fire and loud bangs. It was only at the end of the evening that we discovered that fireworks are illegal in Guyana. To be honest I don’t think that the police would ever try to stop us using fireworks as they (the policemen) are drunk 24/7, literally. Craig gets offers to go and join them for Ivanoff vodka on the way to work.
Later on that evening Murphy turned up with the Captain of Cobana (26 miles away), some friends & vodka. His family then also turned up & Murphy & Larry dueted on our guitars. The more Murphy drinks the higher and more irish his voice becomes. We always start off with Guyanese folksongs & then progress to Ronan Keating, Backstreet Boys & Enrique Iglesias. A really good night.
Craig has a Student with 6 toes ….
What other news?
Ollie & I & Sophie have taken the Moruca Red Cross Youth Group on their first field trip to teach peers about STI’s & HIV. We took a 3 hour boat trip through jungle & savannah to Warapoka – a beautiful settlement with white sand, a massive creek & large rocks everywhere (on which everyone the boys of the group insisted on having a photo taken). We strung up our hammocks in the local primary school & Ollie & I ran the kitchen on an awesome kerosene stove. During the days the children ‘taught’ & in the evenings we went down to the creek & then went back to the school to sit chatting, playing the pink guitar etc. The kids in the group are super. All have drive – which is something most Morucans seem to lack. They all have a very good sense of humour & are generally lovely people who deserve to get somewhere in life.
This coming weekend we are going on our next field trip to Waini Mari, involving a 2 ½ hour hike!
I cannot wait until Christmas. Jen is coming out for the week before Christmas. I think we’ll come to Moruca for a few days, then either go camping or back to Georgetown. We’ll have Ian and Milly with us (2 other PT volunteers) & Craig too so its going to be a fairly random group but should be IMMENSE. I can’t wait to see Jen.
I then fly to Tobago on the 23rd Dec to meet all other volunteers (26) & then stay there for Christmas & maybe go to Trinidad for New Year. I’m kind of sad that I’m not going to be spending Christmas in Moruca, sounds like it’s a ig thing – lots of parties (including an Old Year’s party) & lots of food. But whatever I do it will be good. Woop!
I thought maybe as I have a lot of time on my hands (it’s exam leave for the whole school this week & next – teachers are the only people who have to be at school every day) I would describe to you a typical day & week.
Typical week day:
• Wake at 7am & have a breakfast of either porridge or pancakes.
• Shower using bucket or shower (in rainy season)
• Get to school for 8.45
• 9.00 assembly for whole school outside. This involves: The national pledge, a prayer & announcements – often very long ones by Sir Errol who sounds exactly like King Julian from ‘Madagascar’.
• Lessons until 12.00 – I often don’t have lessons & so sit in my form room (there’s no staff room).
• Lunch until 1.00 – often involves our most experimental cooking
• Lessons 1.00 to 3.00
• Then chill out, unless we have to go & help at dormitories.
• Cook, or whoever doesn’t cook washes up
• Bed at 10ish
• Current out at 10.30pm
Mondays: Milk shake Monday!
After school Ollie & I go & buy milkshake & walk to Palloma bridge – the most beautiful views & a lovely breeze. Sometimes we walk further from island to island, exploring. Last time we ended up at a lady’s house & she commanded her children to pick tangerines & oranges for us. We went back to Palloma bridge, met Craig & sat having pip-spitting contests while watching the most beautiful sunset.
We also met Crazy Clare who often hangs around Palloma. Crazy Clare is usually seen carrying a dagger or flowers, with a post-it note or sweet wrapper attached to her forehead & singing at a high pitched voice. She likes to leave things on peoples’ door steps & Wanita’s cousin (who lives next to Palloma bridge) is a favourite. We’ve also seen Clare walk in to the jungle & emerge 30 mins later carrying ½ a tree as though completely normal. She completes Moruca!
I’ve decided to tell you about a day a letter…….my hand is tired.
Basically I’m fine! Love to all,
Love, love, love Emily xxx
I am officially ¼ of the way through! How time has flown.
So I returned from my trip to Georgetown safe & sound if not a little wet & absolutely exhausted . My first night involved eating a large banana split by myself, the second involved a large amount of Rum & Ian & Stewart (St Cuthbert’s boys) & Nicola & Meg (New Amsterdam girls) & Karaoke. The third night involved no sleep at all, a lime at the owner of a car sales place - & then an all nighter of chatting in hammocks. It was so refreshing to get away for a while – so good to get undeafened at the doctors - & brilliant to spend some time catching up with some other volunteers. I feel like I know Georgetown much better now, & have found a few amazing little places to go & chill out at & most involve food: e.g. the Roti Hut -> contains not only Roti & curry but all types of cake & pastries you can imagine.
Yet again I was wowed by the fantastic journey there. The boat left Kumaka landing at 5 am, Peanut came to pick me up from the house. I gathered my stuff, locked the door & shoved the key through the window before realising that I’d left my phone inside so I had to holla at Craig to wake up & let me back in …just to let you know that the Powellish ways don’t even escape Moruca!
The sky was red as we started the journey. Pyramids of cloud rose up from the silhouetted jungle & palms. Flourescent red/ pink outlined each pyramid. Obviously, if my camera had been working, I would have taken hundreds more photos of sunrise, palm trees & the sky adding to my already massive collection. It’s a sight I just can’t tire of, & every time it’s different & beautiful.
Driving along the coast was different this time because all the rice fields are under water so the landscape looks completely different. As usual, I’m always amazed to get out of taxis & buses alive – sides of the road don’t really exist. It’s therefore a common occurrence to turn a corner on the wrong side of the road & at 120km per hour to meet a car coming the other way & a cow just standing in the road. Adrenalin rush the whole way.
So weight continues to be gained as my/our cooking just keeps getting better & we discover more and more dishes. Having finally obtained an oven even more goodies can be created. I baked bread yesterday it actually tasted like white bread. Today I’m so proud of myself having just cooked chicken in a peanut satay sauce with noodles. We’ve discovered the local goodness of ‘Monkey ears’ – a bit like deepfried scotch pancakes, & I’ve developed a lemon curdish sauce to go with them. Our surrogate mum, Wanita, has finally showed us her secret recipe for how to make Mai-tai (something I’m sure I’ve mentioned before) – a delicious deep fried snack -> sticks of nutmeg & cinnamony coconut dough-covered in a sugary, cinnamony sauce. It’s my ultimate weakness. So food is still playing a highly important part in my jungle life.
So much has happened here in the last month, much of which I’ve already told you, however for blog purposes I ought to mention all.
Firstly, about a month ago we saw a sloth (I may’ve mentioned this last letter). It was sitting in Wanita’s plum tree – Not a clue about how it got there, do sloths walk? It was rather like watching Wilf in a tree. Big, fluffy and grey/brown, looking completely out of place & very ancient. Since then Craig has found the sloth’s hang-out (Craig has taken to monkey hunting in the nearby jungle – I attempted too but the mosquitoes, swamp & foot-eating animals quickly chased me out).
It’s now rainy season which has its pros and cons. Pros: we have water! This means showers. The river is rising, so good for swimming & rain is generally fun & refreshing.
Cons: MOSQUITOES, my feet are itchy 24/7. Humidity – it now feels as though you’re constantly in an enclosed room in summer with the heating on full strength. The humidity must have changed from a survivable 30% to a nasty 85/90%. Using solar power computers -> rain = clouds; clouds = no sun, no sun = not a single computer to teach IT on.
This month we’ve had a few strange experiences that I never expected to partake in – especially seeing as I’m in the jungle! The first of these involved walking in on a full scale exorcism of the dormitory children. 3 weeks ago 13 dormitory girls fell ill within the same week. They would start with a headache & then deteriorate until they were writhing with fever & moaning & just generally pretty ill! We walked in on 2 of the patients, they were each being held down by 6 others, holding limes & garlics & having methylated spirits poured over their faces. This was all being done to try & rid the girls of the Jumbie spirit – which is what they believed was possessing them. Craig decided that the girls needed to go to hospital to see the non-enlish speaking Cuban doctor. So the girls went & were sedated & the doctor ran some tests only to conclude that, yes indeed the girls are possessed by the Jumbie spirit. 5 years of medical training seemed to have gone down the drain.
So on the following Friday we went over to the dorms to help study & we walked in to discover a Church service. The Pentecostal church had discovered that the Catholic Church had managed to perform 2 exorcisms in the week (one for the building & one for the children) & had decided that they too wanted a go. So we were handed a free bible each & watched as children went forward to be prayed over by 13 adults all speaking in tongues & randomly bursting into shouts of ‘By the name of Jesus flee you spirit, flee!’. One girl collapsed – just as the evil dorm-mother was being surrounded by all 13 muttering adults - & the adults hurried over & started thrashing her & shouting & pleading & muttering. Freaky or what?! We politely refused to be exorcised, the children all believe that now the Jumbie is going to get us!
By the weekend all the dormitory girls who were ill had been sent home & all the ‘not yet possessed’ moved in to the Amerindian hostel in Kumaka. This was obviously a very sensible solution as now the girls are living 13 to a room & 2 to each single bed. No-one has actually thought about cleaning the dormitories yet …they smell bad.
The Guyanese newspaper has, as usual, heard completely the wrong story & published that the primary school children were being poisoned.
The week after these illnesses & we had USA military doctors arrive for 10 days to offer free healthcare to the community. Local could get free teeth cleaning, extractions, glasses or surgery. I spent the week carrying students back & forth, to & from the hospital & standing in long hot queues. This did however give me the opportunity to hint to the Americans that a ride on the helicopter would be very much appreciated.
We found out that Wanita has a hernia & that she needed to have surgery on it. This meant for Wanita (& Liz as her escort) a trip to the military ship for 3 days. Very jealous we persisted in the *subtle* hinting & ….IT WORKED! Last Tuesday we got up at 6 am to walk to the irstrip, get in a helicopter & fly to the ship. Liz had been told to choose 10 people from the community to get a tour of the ship. The 5 whities, a couple of nurses, a couple of Guyanese soldiers & Kassandra the AKEO (an awesome young powerful lady who wouldn’t surprise me if she announced that she was to be the 1st Guyanese Amerindian & female president) all disembarked the helicopter on a ship that holds 1500 people and up to 30 helicopters. We met the captain & had apple juice, Danish pastries & cookies with some of the crew. The air-conditioning was incredible! We had a tour of areas of the ship including the hospital where cataracts & dental surgeries were in process, & also the Bridge – where we sat in the captain’s chair & saw all the cool machines & radar thingys.
On the flight back to the airstrip one of the US guys beckoned me towards the large gaping hole at the back of the helicopter. I cautiously stumbled forwards looking sexy in my hat, goggles & ear muffley things. The guy strapped me to a lead attached to the floor & I sat on the edge of the hole with my feet dangling out over Guyana. Incredible experience! Also gave me the chance to yet again make the observation that Guyana has many trees & a lot of water. While flying over the sea, there is a very clear line where the brown sea around Guyana suddenly turns into the blue of the Caribbean Sea. Most Guyanese don’t realise that mostly the sea is blue – they have only ever seen brown ocean (it’s brown due to the fertility of the land).
We had a Halloween party after a fundraiser bingo night! Generally disappointing turnout by the 5 Guyanese men who turned up – they all came as Guyanese men. Most of the children haven’t heard of Halloween. The Americans had Halloween sweets & everything. Rum ended up being drunk & various games played …Craig was Harry Potter, the PC girls were Santa Rosa schoolgirls & Ollie & I were the clockwork dolls from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
As for the Bingo it’s taken very seriously. Different to English version as every round people go outside to collect pebbles to cover their bingo card with ….recycling & all that
Guy Fawkes night was celebrated by us – I may have mentioned this too …We pulled down rotten trees & dry banana leaves & oiled them on top of our rubbish pit & lit it. We also managed to buy traffic light fireworks & a couple of rockets. The traffic light ones were awesome as you could hold them while they were shooting their coloured sparks. We shot the sparks at the clothes pegs aiming as though with a rifle. Good times . We also had sparklers, which all the children loved. We had Wanita’s children over (6) & the 2 ‘maids’ from neighbours – Rhonda & ‘Fat Girl’ (I don’t actually know her real name – all locals call her ‘Fat Girl’ or ‘Fatty’). We had Courtley round (the guy who works the village generator & seems to have a bit of a thing for me – he gave me diamonds he’d found in the mines). Courtley and Derek (Wanita’s giant of a 14 year old) & Larry (who always turns up where there’s the chance of finding rum) cut down bamboos from the bush. They created a traditional bamboo cannon. The bamboo has a hole in the bottom & kerosene is poured inside it. A lighted splint is then put into the hole & fire & a massive BANG shoot out of the other end. It lasts for hours & the boys never get over the fun of mixing fuel fire & bamboo to produce big fire and loud bangs. It was only at the end of the evening that we discovered that fireworks are illegal in Guyana. To be honest I don’t think that the police would ever try to stop us using fireworks as they (the policemen) are drunk 24/7, literally. Craig gets offers to go and join them for Ivanoff vodka on the way to work.
Later on that evening Murphy turned up with the Captain of Cobana (26 miles away), some friends & vodka. His family then also turned up & Murphy & Larry dueted on our guitars. The more Murphy drinks the higher and more irish his voice becomes. We always start off with Guyanese folksongs & then progress to Ronan Keating, Backstreet Boys & Enrique Iglesias. A really good night.
Craig has a Student with 6 toes ….
What other news?
Ollie & I & Sophie have taken the Moruca Red Cross Youth Group on their first field trip to teach peers about STI’s & HIV. We took a 3 hour boat trip through jungle & savannah to Warapoka – a beautiful settlement with white sand, a massive creek & large rocks everywhere (on which everyone the boys of the group insisted on having a photo taken). We strung up our hammocks in the local primary school & Ollie & I ran the kitchen on an awesome kerosene stove. During the days the children ‘taught’ & in the evenings we went down to the creek & then went back to the school to sit chatting, playing the pink guitar etc. The kids in the group are super. All have drive – which is something most Morucans seem to lack. They all have a very good sense of humour & are generally lovely people who deserve to get somewhere in life.
This coming weekend we are going on our next field trip to Waini Mari, involving a 2 ½ hour hike!
I cannot wait until Christmas. Jen is coming out for the week before Christmas. I think we’ll come to Moruca for a few days, then either go camping or back to Georgetown. We’ll have Ian and Milly with us (2 other PT volunteers) & Craig too so its going to be a fairly random group but should be IMMENSE. I can’t wait to see Jen.
I then fly to Tobago on the 23rd Dec to meet all other volunteers (26) & then stay there for Christmas & maybe go to Trinidad for New Year. I’m kind of sad that I’m not going to be spending Christmas in Moruca, sounds like it’s a ig thing – lots of parties (including an Old Year’s party) & lots of food. But whatever I do it will be good. Woop!
I thought maybe as I have a lot of time on my hands (it’s exam leave for the whole school this week & next – teachers are the only people who have to be at school every day) I would describe to you a typical day & week.
Typical week day:
• Wake at 7am & have a breakfast of either porridge or pancakes.
• Shower using bucket or shower (in rainy season)
• Get to school for 8.45
• 9.00 assembly for whole school outside. This involves: The national pledge, a prayer & announcements – often very long ones by Sir Errol who sounds exactly like King Julian from ‘Madagascar’.
• Lessons until 12.00 – I often don’t have lessons & so sit in my form room (there’s no staff room).
• Lunch until 1.00 – often involves our most experimental cooking
• Lessons 1.00 to 3.00
• Then chill out, unless we have to go & help at dormitories.
• Cook, or whoever doesn’t cook washes up
• Bed at 10ish
• Current out at 10.30pm
Mondays: Milk shake Monday!
After school Ollie & I go & buy milkshake & walk to Palloma bridge – the most beautiful views & a lovely breeze. Sometimes we walk further from island to island, exploring. Last time we ended up at a lady’s house & she commanded her children to pick tangerines & oranges for us. We went back to Palloma bridge, met Craig & sat having pip-spitting contests while watching the most beautiful sunset.
We also met Crazy Clare who often hangs around Palloma. Crazy Clare is usually seen carrying a dagger or flowers, with a post-it note or sweet wrapper attached to her forehead & singing at a high pitched voice. She likes to leave things on peoples’ door steps & Wanita’s cousin (who lives next to Palloma bridge) is a favourite. We’ve also seen Clare walk in to the jungle & emerge 30 mins later carrying ½ a tree as though completely normal. She completes Moruca!
I’ve decided to tell you about a day a letter…….my hand is tired.
Basically I’m fine! Love to all,
Love, love, love Emily xxx
Sunday, 23 November 2008
Letter 3 from Guyana
1st November 08
Dear Mum & Dad
I’ve been away for 2 months & a week! So about 41 weeks to go …. No time at all! *Ahem*.
Things that have happened recently:
• Two of the New Amsterdam girls visited us last weekend bringing with them mangoes, dairy milk & large amounts of Rum. We went fishing & sunbathing & swimming at Kamwatta – a village 6 miles away – where there are white sands. It was a really lovely few days.
• We’ve been fishing in the savannah which is an interesting experience as it turns out just to be floating grass – so you can’t stop walking – otherwise you sink.
• Ollie & I now feel completely comfortable talking about puberty, sex, STI’s & HIV in front of people as we’ve spent the middle 2 weekends of October at a Red Cross training program with the red cross youth group.
• The Morucan Red Cross Rescuers held their first fundraiser last night – a Halloween Bingo Night (not that anyone knows what Halloween is!). Bingo is taken very very seriously here – instead of crossing out numbers everyone goes out to collect pebbles to cover their numbers! The Red Cross kids are really really good children … any support would be much appreciated!
• Sophie and Liz (the peace corps girls) held a hallowen party after the bingo. They dressed as secondary school girls. Craig was Harry Potter with a Guyanese flag cape. Ollie & I were clockwork dolls. Drew (Ollie’s boy), Rouel (Sophie’s boy) Hally, Darrel & Larry were there too but clearly made no effort with dressing up …. They came as Guyanese men.
• Cooking has been very exciting! I can make roti: flour, water & baking powder then mix, split into balls, roll flat & rub on oil, fold back up, wait 10 mins. Heat tawa (a round flat metal slab) put on oil then put on one of the (now thinly) rolled roti. Cook either side, take off tawa then toss up & clap then throw down. Repeat clapping … its messy. Guyanese eat this with curry & most things. I’ve made sagaloo, squash curry, aubergine curry stuff …& other vegetable dishes that you would not understand due to vegetables that you’ve never heard of! Did I mention Banopic before? Ollie & my invention: Mashed banana, crushed biscuit, sugar & peanut butter all mixed together ….mmmm
• I’ve learned to love powdered milk. We use it for most things including breakfast which is either porridge or pancakes!
• I have found my first stomach crease line.
• We have complained about the noise next door & their use of an electric iron which affects everyone else’s power & has caused the AKEO to threaten to cut power from our houses.
• Today we plan to order a dugout canoe & then go to a fish fry & lime where we get fish, chips, beer & we chillax!
• I am learning to tolerate Craig’s loud eating noises ….Akg – he is currently slurping soup!
• The harmonica next door has been stolen by Liz.
• There has been an addition to the family next door … they have a wormy, flea-infested, whining puppy.
• We saw a sloth, it was amazing, it looked so weighty, big, fluffy & ancient (almost like Wilf in a tree), it was hard to understand how it got in to the tree in the first place ….
• I try to go for a walk for an hour or so a couple of times a week to explore & try to get rid of some of my flabber while watching the sunset behind palm trees a sight I never tire of.
• I still haven’t received any packages for 5 or 6 weeks.
• I am constantly hassled by young (& old) men (who are usually drunk) to dance or to explain why I haven’t got a boyfriend here, why I don’t want one or how my current boyfriend is. No I don’t have a boyfriend, I believe the term is ‘Stalker’ who is obsessive – he called me the other day to ask why I didn’t dance with him & if we had had a quarrel - he’s a creep … now known as creepy Andy among the volunteers. All because when I was rumfully intoxicated within my first 2 weeks here I danced with him and possibly led him on!
• IT at school is going well .. it’s completely pointless (though when the sun is out one of the computers does work), but it keeps the kids & us busy. When Ollie was showing a group of kids how to use the computer they tried to move the cursor by picking the mouse up!
• The school library has been padlocked closed so that students now can’t use it because they weren’t returning books.
• Biology is going great for one class (touch wood), OK for the 2nd and AWFUL for the 3rd class – who hate me & have no self-respect as they don’t bother trying in any subject as far as I can see. They told me (practically) that I’m a bad teacher! Woop that made me happy!
• I have now read 5 books, just in the middle of the 6th.
• Craig brought his laptop here & so far we have watched: Wall-E, The Sound of Music, Hairspray, Mamma-Mia.
• My camera has died. My waterproof camera has water in it.
• We have now strung up 2 hammocks in the ‘sitting room’ – perfect for hammock wars or propelled swinging.
• I love, love, LOVE the food here. Mmm Craig made some awesome chicken & noodle soup the other day .. actually a week ago now but it still sticks around in my head … & probably my thighs!
So that’s my news of the last month. Or most of it.
I hope everyone is OK, I miss you all like crazy & cannot WAIT to see you!
Love to all,
From Miss Emily xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Useful things/Christmas List - Jen's coming out to see me in December so if you want to send anything with her please let parents know and get stuff to them by 12th:
- Seductive Poison (the book about Jonestown)
- 3 Lush soap shampoo
- Herbs & Spices
- British snacks
- GB Flag (big)
- Bird book of Guyana
Dear Mum & Dad
I’ve been away for 2 months & a week! So about 41 weeks to go …. No time at all! *Ahem*.
Things that have happened recently:
• Two of the New Amsterdam girls visited us last weekend bringing with them mangoes, dairy milk & large amounts of Rum. We went fishing & sunbathing & swimming at Kamwatta – a village 6 miles away – where there are white sands. It was a really lovely few days.
• We’ve been fishing in the savannah which is an interesting experience as it turns out just to be floating grass – so you can’t stop walking – otherwise you sink.
• Ollie & I now feel completely comfortable talking about puberty, sex, STI’s & HIV in front of people as we’ve spent the middle 2 weekends of October at a Red Cross training program with the red cross youth group.
• The Morucan Red Cross Rescuers held their first fundraiser last night – a Halloween Bingo Night (not that anyone knows what Halloween is!). Bingo is taken very very seriously here – instead of crossing out numbers everyone goes out to collect pebbles to cover their numbers! The Red Cross kids are really really good children … any support would be much appreciated!
• Sophie and Liz (the peace corps girls) held a hallowen party after the bingo. They dressed as secondary school girls. Craig was Harry Potter with a Guyanese flag cape. Ollie & I were clockwork dolls. Drew (Ollie’s boy), Rouel (Sophie’s boy) Hally, Darrel & Larry were there too but clearly made no effort with dressing up …. They came as Guyanese men.
• Cooking has been very exciting! I can make roti: flour, water & baking powder then mix, split into balls, roll flat & rub on oil, fold back up, wait 10 mins. Heat tawa (a round flat metal slab) put on oil then put on one of the (now thinly) rolled roti. Cook either side, take off tawa then toss up & clap then throw down. Repeat clapping … its messy. Guyanese eat this with curry & most things. I’ve made sagaloo, squash curry, aubergine curry stuff …& other vegetable dishes that you would not understand due to vegetables that you’ve never heard of! Did I mention Banopic before? Ollie & my invention: Mashed banana, crushed biscuit, sugar & peanut butter all mixed together ….mmmm
• I’ve learned to love powdered milk. We use it for most things including breakfast which is either porridge or pancakes!
• I have found my first stomach crease line.
• We have complained about the noise next door & their use of an electric iron which affects everyone else’s power & has caused the AKEO to threaten to cut power from our houses.
• Today we plan to order a dugout canoe & then go to a fish fry & lime where we get fish, chips, beer & we chillax!
• I am learning to tolerate Craig’s loud eating noises ….Akg – he is currently slurping soup!
• The harmonica next door has been stolen by Liz.
• There has been an addition to the family next door … they have a wormy, flea-infested, whining puppy.
• We saw a sloth, it was amazing, it looked so weighty, big, fluffy & ancient (almost like Wilf in a tree), it was hard to understand how it got in to the tree in the first place ….
• I try to go for a walk for an hour or so a couple of times a week to explore & try to get rid of some of my flabber while watching the sunset behind palm trees a sight I never tire of.
• I still haven’t received any packages for 5 or 6 weeks.
• I am constantly hassled by young (& old) men (who are usually drunk) to dance or to explain why I haven’t got a boyfriend here, why I don’t want one or how my current boyfriend is. No I don’t have a boyfriend, I believe the term is ‘Stalker’ who is obsessive – he called me the other day to ask why I didn’t dance with him & if we had had a quarrel - he’s a creep … now known as creepy Andy among the volunteers. All because when I was rumfully intoxicated within my first 2 weeks here I danced with him and possibly led him on!
• IT at school is going well .. it’s completely pointless (though when the sun is out one of the computers does work), but it keeps the kids & us busy. When Ollie was showing a group of kids how to use the computer they tried to move the cursor by picking the mouse up!
• The school library has been padlocked closed so that students now can’t use it because they weren’t returning books.
• Biology is going great for one class (touch wood), OK for the 2nd and AWFUL for the 3rd class – who hate me & have no self-respect as they don’t bother trying in any subject as far as I can see. They told me (practically) that I’m a bad teacher! Woop that made me happy!
• I have now read 5 books, just in the middle of the 6th.
• Craig brought his laptop here & so far we have watched: Wall-E, The Sound of Music, Hairspray, Mamma-Mia.
• My camera has died. My waterproof camera has water in it.
• We have now strung up 2 hammocks in the ‘sitting room’ – perfect for hammock wars or propelled swinging.
• I love, love, LOVE the food here. Mmm Craig made some awesome chicken & noodle soup the other day .. actually a week ago now but it still sticks around in my head … & probably my thighs!
So that’s my news of the last month. Or most of it.
I hope everyone is OK, I miss you all like crazy & cannot WAIT to see you!
Love to all,
From Miss Emily xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Useful things/Christmas List - Jen's coming out to see me in December so if you want to send anything with her please let parents know and get stuff to them by 12th:
- Seductive Poison (the book about Jonestown)
- 3 Lush soap shampoo
- Herbs & Spices
- British snacks
- GB Flag (big)
- Bird book of Guyana
Thursday, 20 November 2008
Saturday, 11 October 2008
Letter 2 from Guyana
Dear Mum, Dad, everyone & blog!
Well it’s a month into my Morucan life …only about 9 to go before I can up & leave to go travel – which I am so excited about, but wish I could do now.
Firstly thank-you so, so much for your letters & packages … they keep me going when times are tough! And times have been tough & I’m sure that they will continue to be, so keep them coming.
Right down to business, I have a feeling that this is going to be a long slog of a letter … (and I can’t remember what I’ve said before so bear with me a little.)
So project trust has sent me to the most beautiful place. They really gave me ‘something different to home’. The only problem is that it is indescribable – you have to see it to understand. Even photos can’t capture it – especially the night sky which still astounds me every time I look: just the sheer quantity of stars, the clarity of the sky & the blackness. I enclose a map that Ollie drew. The weather is hot surprisingly! When the sky is clear it can become unbearable & I begin to melt. When the clouds come it cools & in the event of rain it feels as though the tin roof is going to fall in. We usually strip down to underwear or swimming costumes at this point & run out to shower under the gutter, fill our buckets, sing & dance & make complete fools of ourselves – I cannot wait until November: rainy season woop!
After rain all the monkeys come out to play in the trees (jungle) outside our front door. & yes we have a front door now & a whole bungalow to go with it! Ollie and I moved in with Craig into the teaching accommodation purposefully built for volunteers. We don’t have an oven – all we have is 2 hobs (the 2 ovens are broken). We have 2 bedrooms both with double beds & so Craig is in one & Ollie and I in the other …it’s cosy .. we then have a shower that doesn’t work due to lack of water & a toilet with the comfiest squidgy pink seat! The rest is open sitting room/ kitchen & we have a hammock here hanging from the roof – which is usually occupied by a sleeping Ollie! I think I’ve previously mentioned the wildlife we live with: lizards, tarantulas (we had a pet one named Barbara that lived in the ceiling) cockroaches, ants & frogs – though these tend to house in the cistern during the day and jump around at night. There are then also the bats that like to fly over our mosquito net at night. The house is concrete but its wall’s like paper. Miss Deena lives in the middle apartment with her 2 kids, 2 nephews & 2 sisters (the house is the same size as ours) & the children insist on waking, screaming, playing &, worst of all, playing the harmonica at 5 am … we hear it all …we can hear them snoring – THAT is how thin the walls are. We are often woken by howlers in the trees outside, rain on the tin roof & drunken men knocking on our door/ falling in to the building at all hours of the night. So that’s ‘home’.
We plan to get a dugout canoe! Although this place is amazing I find it claustrophobic. Everyone knows us .. we stand out a tad so they all know what we’re up to, what we do etc. There’s only one road which is the route to everywhere & exploring off road is kind of dangerous – you may get eaten, fall into swamp or cutlassed by an Amerindian child. So the way to explore is by boat therefore we are going to get one …hopefully.
We also have a job now. I’m teaching Form 3 (year 9) biology & then IT to forms 1 & 1 class in form 2 (computerless). To be honest I don’t enjoy teaching at all. The kids are at the age where they’ve realised that if they don’t want to work they don’t have to. They can no longer be scared into it. They are also bored out of their minds: every year they do the same thing in every subject but with the tiniest bit more detail. They don’t understand any type of learning that isn’t copying from the board & so any activity you do to make the lesson fun it takes 4 times as long as was planned because they simply don’t get it. There are some that just can’t read or write – there’s one lad who is re-sitting form 3 for the third year & my smallest class has 41 children. I certainly got a challenge – though perhaps a larger one than I wanted.
Ollie & I have been keeping ourselves busy. We went to Georgetown 2 weeks ago for the weekend – mainly to get money. There we met the 4 New Amsterdam girls who seem to be having, in some ways, similar & in some ways very different experiences. We got to know our way around the city – got the hang of how ‘buses’ work. This was all with the help of Chip – a guy who helps Kala out with the Guyana volunteers – very nice guy – a good contact. To be honest a journey to Georgetown, although very expensive, is worth it for the trip. We had to get up at 5am to take the speed boat so we saw the sunrise over the savannah & palms, flocks of scarlet storks flew overhead while 3 speed boats (w included) raced across the sea. STUNNING.
We have started helping out at the dorms which is OK, tiring & had one awful experience last week when I angered the dorm-mother by suggesting the word ‘play’ & she promptly left leaving just me to look after 130 kids for the night (so she said). I wanted to just burst into tears but I called Ollie & Craig & they came & helped until 9pm when the DM returned fuming & said she was going to report us to the headteacher.That really stressed me out.
We are also taking part in the Morucan Red Cross youth group set up by Sophie, one of the American girls. We are then hopefully going to start helping out at swimming classes at the river though it sounds like because the water is too low the training for the moment is going to be ‘physical activity’ at 5.30 am on a Monday!
This week has been eventful. We had sports day (the first half) yesterday. It was field events & teachers have to take part. I did long jump, shot put & discus & came 1st, 2nd & 1st for Toucan house: teachers event female U21’s! Running events are next Friday. With some events if I come first then I go through to interschool, then regional & then national events in my category! HaHa!
This weekend it has been the end of ‘Amerindian heritage month’ so parties every night. Last night we went to Flavi’s where an awesome band played till past 3 am. Tonight there’s a beauty pagent in Mora (a nearby village) & the captain’s asked Sophie to run for beauty queen! After there is another band playing at Flavi’s. Tomorrow there are events such as tug of war & cricket at ‘Russia’ – it’s not the village’s real name but I think it’s known for its vodka! It seems that old men here only live for alcohol, they drink all day every day. Last weekend there was a large ‘Digicel’ ceremony. Digicel is a phone company & have advertisements & shops all over Guyana. In Moruca phones are the ‘in thing’. DIGICEL IS EVERYWHERE … it’s very surreal to see people paddling in their dugout canoe speaking on a mobile!
As for food .. well I’m certainly not going to come home stick thin as I had hoped. Unfortunately, with Moruca being Guyana’s largest Amerindian community there are a lot of shops – like every family pretty much owns one - & they all sell exactly the same things. The chocolate I usually don’t get as its fairly melted but it depends on the cravings. We’ve discovered American popcorn, marshmallows, many sweets to satisfy Ollie, but best of all banana and chocolate milk (milk is the biggest craving). We’ve discovered how to make pancakes using powdered milk – that is now breakfast as well as porridge. I’ve drunk more fizzy drinks than I have ever in England because they are so refreshing. Non-imported snacks – so local snacks – that we’ve discovered are cooldown (bags of fake juice), palari – balls of battery dough, & pine tarts – pastry with pineapple jam in. I’m hungry so much. Ollie & I have been very inventive with our lunchtime cooking. Banopic being the most successful creation … mashed banana, sugar, peanut butter & crushed biscuit. It tastes surprisingly like banoffee pie! Every Saturday morning we go down to the market & buy our fruit & veg & extras for the week: usually consisting of Okra, Bora (like a long green bean), egg plant, squash, avocado if possible, limes, oranges, plantain, bananas, fish, spray for killing insects, eggs etc. But the diet is so high in carbohydrates; they always eat roti – like savoury eggless pancake - & bake – like savoury doughnut. We invented a really good sweet roti with bananas soaked in rum then folded in the roti with sugar & cooked till caramelised , mmm. So the diet is healthy but packed full of carbs & then surrounded by tempting sugary joy to satisfy the many cravings. This is not an excuse for you to not send me food. I’ll come home fat! Also with no teeth!
I went to the Church today met the priest who let us use the internet! We also met the Church parrot, church puppy & church kitten. It’s such a lovely peaceful place & loads of kids around helping out. There are spectacular views also.
Nearly time to love you & leave you. Being out here & receiving your letters makes me so grateful to you guys, I’ll never take you for granted. I love you all so much & already am dying to see you again. Like I said if you can come out then do - & at any time.
Loads of love, hugs & kisses,
Emily XXX
Well it’s a month into my Morucan life …only about 9 to go before I can up & leave to go travel – which I am so excited about, but wish I could do now.
Firstly thank-you so, so much for your letters & packages … they keep me going when times are tough! And times have been tough & I’m sure that they will continue to be, so keep them coming.
Right down to business, I have a feeling that this is going to be a long slog of a letter … (and I can’t remember what I’ve said before so bear with me a little.)
So project trust has sent me to the most beautiful place. They really gave me ‘something different to home’. The only problem is that it is indescribable – you have to see it to understand. Even photos can’t capture it – especially the night sky which still astounds me every time I look: just the sheer quantity of stars, the clarity of the sky & the blackness. I enclose a map that Ollie drew. The weather is hot surprisingly! When the sky is clear it can become unbearable & I begin to melt. When the clouds come it cools & in the event of rain it feels as though the tin roof is going to fall in. We usually strip down to underwear or swimming costumes at this point & run out to shower under the gutter, fill our buckets, sing & dance & make complete fools of ourselves – I cannot wait until November: rainy season woop!
After rain all the monkeys come out to play in the trees (jungle) outside our front door. & yes we have a front door now & a whole bungalow to go with it! Ollie and I moved in with Craig into the teaching accommodation purposefully built for volunteers. We don’t have an oven – all we have is 2 hobs (the 2 ovens are broken). We have 2 bedrooms both with double beds & so Craig is in one & Ollie and I in the other …it’s cosy .. we then have a shower that doesn’t work due to lack of water & a toilet with the comfiest squidgy pink seat! The rest is open sitting room/ kitchen & we have a hammock here hanging from the roof – which is usually occupied by a sleeping Ollie! I think I’ve previously mentioned the wildlife we live with: lizards, tarantulas (we had a pet one named Barbara that lived in the ceiling) cockroaches, ants & frogs – though these tend to house in the cistern during the day and jump around at night. There are then also the bats that like to fly over our mosquito net at night. The house is concrete but its wall’s like paper. Miss Deena lives in the middle apartment with her 2 kids, 2 nephews & 2 sisters (the house is the same size as ours) & the children insist on waking, screaming, playing &, worst of all, playing the harmonica at 5 am … we hear it all …we can hear them snoring – THAT is how thin the walls are. We are often woken by howlers in the trees outside, rain on the tin roof & drunken men knocking on our door/ falling in to the building at all hours of the night. So that’s ‘home’.
We plan to get a dugout canoe! Although this place is amazing I find it claustrophobic. Everyone knows us .. we stand out a tad so they all know what we’re up to, what we do etc. There’s only one road which is the route to everywhere & exploring off road is kind of dangerous – you may get eaten, fall into swamp or cutlassed by an Amerindian child. So the way to explore is by boat therefore we are going to get one …hopefully.
We also have a job now. I’m teaching Form 3 (year 9) biology & then IT to forms 1 & 1 class in form 2 (computerless). To be honest I don’t enjoy teaching at all. The kids are at the age where they’ve realised that if they don’t want to work they don’t have to. They can no longer be scared into it. They are also bored out of their minds: every year they do the same thing in every subject but with the tiniest bit more detail. They don’t understand any type of learning that isn’t copying from the board & so any activity you do to make the lesson fun it takes 4 times as long as was planned because they simply don’t get it. There are some that just can’t read or write – there’s one lad who is re-sitting form 3 for the third year & my smallest class has 41 children. I certainly got a challenge – though perhaps a larger one than I wanted.
Ollie & I have been keeping ourselves busy. We went to Georgetown 2 weeks ago for the weekend – mainly to get money. There we met the 4 New Amsterdam girls who seem to be having, in some ways, similar & in some ways very different experiences. We got to know our way around the city – got the hang of how ‘buses’ work. This was all with the help of Chip – a guy who helps Kala out with the Guyana volunteers – very nice guy – a good contact. To be honest a journey to Georgetown, although very expensive, is worth it for the trip. We had to get up at 5am to take the speed boat so we saw the sunrise over the savannah & palms, flocks of scarlet storks flew overhead while 3 speed boats (w included) raced across the sea. STUNNING.
We have started helping out at the dorms which is OK, tiring & had one awful experience last week when I angered the dorm-mother by suggesting the word ‘play’ & she promptly left leaving just me to look after 130 kids for the night (so she said). I wanted to just burst into tears but I called Ollie & Craig & they came & helped until 9pm when the DM returned fuming & said she was going to report us to the headteacher.That really stressed me out.
We are also taking part in the Morucan Red Cross youth group set up by Sophie, one of the American girls. We are then hopefully going to start helping out at swimming classes at the river though it sounds like because the water is too low the training for the moment is going to be ‘physical activity’ at 5.30 am on a Monday!
This week has been eventful. We had sports day (the first half) yesterday. It was field events & teachers have to take part. I did long jump, shot put & discus & came 1st, 2nd & 1st for Toucan house: teachers event female U21’s! Running events are next Friday. With some events if I come first then I go through to interschool, then regional & then national events in my category! HaHa!
This weekend it has been the end of ‘Amerindian heritage month’ so parties every night. Last night we went to Flavi’s where an awesome band played till past 3 am. Tonight there’s a beauty pagent in Mora (a nearby village) & the captain’s asked Sophie to run for beauty queen! After there is another band playing at Flavi’s. Tomorrow there are events such as tug of war & cricket at ‘Russia’ – it’s not the village’s real name but I think it’s known for its vodka! It seems that old men here only live for alcohol, they drink all day every day. Last weekend there was a large ‘Digicel’ ceremony. Digicel is a phone company & have advertisements & shops all over Guyana. In Moruca phones are the ‘in thing’. DIGICEL IS EVERYWHERE … it’s very surreal to see people paddling in their dugout canoe speaking on a mobile!
As for food .. well I’m certainly not going to come home stick thin as I had hoped. Unfortunately, with Moruca being Guyana’s largest Amerindian community there are a lot of shops – like every family pretty much owns one - & they all sell exactly the same things. The chocolate I usually don’t get as its fairly melted but it depends on the cravings. We’ve discovered American popcorn, marshmallows, many sweets to satisfy Ollie, but best of all banana and chocolate milk (milk is the biggest craving). We’ve discovered how to make pancakes using powdered milk – that is now breakfast as well as porridge. I’ve drunk more fizzy drinks than I have ever in England because they are so refreshing. Non-imported snacks – so local snacks – that we’ve discovered are cooldown (bags of fake juice), palari – balls of battery dough, & pine tarts – pastry with pineapple jam in. I’m hungry so much. Ollie & I have been very inventive with our lunchtime cooking. Banopic being the most successful creation … mashed banana, sugar, peanut butter & crushed biscuit. It tastes surprisingly like banoffee pie! Every Saturday morning we go down to the market & buy our fruit & veg & extras for the week: usually consisting of Okra, Bora (like a long green bean), egg plant, squash, avocado if possible, limes, oranges, plantain, bananas, fish, spray for killing insects, eggs etc. But the diet is so high in carbohydrates; they always eat roti – like savoury eggless pancake - & bake – like savoury doughnut. We invented a really good sweet roti with bananas soaked in rum then folded in the roti with sugar & cooked till caramelised , mmm. So the diet is healthy but packed full of carbs & then surrounded by tempting sugary joy to satisfy the many cravings. This is not an excuse for you to not send me food. I’ll come home fat! Also with no teeth!
I went to the Church today met the priest who let us use the internet! We also met the Church parrot, church puppy & church kitten. It’s such a lovely peaceful place & loads of kids around helping out. There are spectacular views also.
Nearly time to love you & leave you. Being out here & receiving your letters makes me so grateful to you guys, I’ll never take you for granted. I love you all so much & already am dying to see you again. Like I said if you can come out then do - & at any time.
Loads of love, hugs & kisses,
Emily XXX
Sunday, 28 September 2008
Letter 1 from Guyana
Dear everyone & Blog,
I’ve just received your letters – having worked out how the post office works. Thank-you – it was nice to have something familiar on arrival especially with all the housing hassle that still hasn’t been sorted out.
I have never sweated so much in my life; collect all the sweat I’ve ever lost in one big bucket & it still would not equal the vast amounts over the last week. Yesterday on the boat it hurt to physically sit in the sun when not moving. By the way dad, I’d like you to know that its not just our boat that brakes/breaks? Oh dear I’m teaching in 2 days & can’t spell! Every time the boat stopped yesterday it took 20 mins to start it again.
Georgetown was good. We stayed in Kala our representative’s house which was about 40 minutes away from Georgetown & involved travelling across the world’s longest floating bridge over the Demerara river. They had cleared out the whole of the upstairs & put down loads of mattresses. It was really lovely being with everyone & I got to know some people much better than I did on training to the point where I really miss quite a few of them, so it will be lovely to see them at Christmas. Aunty Delta cooked our food for us outside on a fire in a massive wok – food such as rice, noodles, fish, curry etc. Breakfast was always good – egg mixed with sausage & onion.
We spent a lot of time waiting around because everything in Guyana is very slow – it’s all ‘just now’ which gives false hope as it actually means ‘some time within the next six hours – maybe’. Buses always took hours to come – chow was our driver – it was always a hot experience – waiting for the bus sitting on Kala’s bridge from the road over a ditchy rivery thing that contained piles of crabs! & then all clambering in to the minibus far too many for comfort – one would always have to peel yourself off the seat (I keep having to peel my hand off this paper. In Georgetown everything is mixed – the race, the houses (which are generally beautiful), the transport. A common sight when stuck in traffic is the Rastafarians in their large hats & dreadlocks driving their horse-drawn carts among the cars & minibuses. Everything’s colourful & another observation is the vast amount of trees!
We’ve done various things – visited the world’s largest wooden building, St George’s cathedral, which was stunning. We went to Guyana national museum which was so stuck for what to put into it you can go in and observe actual genuine English cider bottles. We had a talk by the department of education where embarrassingly everyone fell asleep. We went to Georgetown Zoo where I took a photo of a sloth holding its baby especially for Robbie. I also managed to get mud all up my bum from walking in swamp to see a manatee - really all you see is a nose!
We spent much time in office max – an awesome shop selling everything. I bought monopoly. We went to the British High Commissioners to swim & have a barbecue – it was an amazing house, I’m considering changing career choice! On the last night we went to a Brazilian all you can eat restaurant with the most amazing meat I have ever eaten – the best steak ever all for $2500 (about £6) & we also went to a festival event that was a mock Amerindian village with crafts and music & cheap colourful hats which we obviously had to buy! This was part of a cultural festival that’s on at the moment called corifesta. I love this place so much. The people are friendly but not in a pressurising or suffocating way (Georgetown people). I do love the morning downpour of tropical rain – I cannot wait till rainy season.
The journey to Moruca showed me the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen & indeed Moruca is stunning. We left on Friday morning after Orealla, New Amsterdam, Paramakambi & Chinapow. Taking the bus to the Essequito river at 7.20. We then crossed the river which took about an hour as it is so wide. It contains about 300 islands, the largest being the size of Barbados. A nice colourful straw hat I’d bought accidentally blew off & the driver ignored my pleas & insisted on turning around & going back after the flying hat. Also speed boat means SPEED boat, they are so much fun – the front lifts right out. At Supernaam (the other side) we got out all 7 bags & waited to discover who Romel the taxi man was. Turns out that Romel the taxi man likes to see just how many people and bags he can fit into his car. We managed 8 people & 13 bags. The drive took around an hour across open grass lands – Mum there were very satisfying lines of trees nearly all palm. This definitely is the Caribbean not South America. Unfortunately given the wedged cosy seating of us I couldn’t help but doze off. There was the usual array of brightly coloured houses & mixtures of mosque, mandir & church on entering the closest town to us Charity.
Then for the incredible boat trip to Moruca – 40 mins to the Atlantic along a brown river lined with palmy jungle (this time is the presumed without the breakdowns), 10 mins along the coast – the ocean was also brown, it was fairly calm. We then, as expected, turned towards land & suddenly found ourselves in mangrove. I’ve never seen anything like it. Black trees lifted up out of the water by long entwined roots, it was eerie – strangely beautiful. Through on the other side it opens up into open grasslands, dotted with palm trees. We had to keep cutting the engine when passing families & kids in their dugout canoes; this became irritating as every time we stopped it took at least 20 minutes to get the engine going & the heat was sweltering – so painful – my hair-tie that was around my wrist burned in to me! The colours of the savannah was/ is incredible – golds, greens, yellows with the orange of fruit and flowers, the black of the water & the blue of the sky. The river was very very bendy & the drivers must have such a good time tearing round the corners at full speed – sending refreshing ‘spray’ (bucket loads) all over the passengers. It took (minus the stoppage) about 1 ½ hours to reach Moruca (Santa Rosa). We passed the bar as we neared & were surrounded by many bobbing Amerindian heads.
It seems that no-one was really expecting us … no-one met us at the landing stage (where our sandals quickly started melting). So we asked around for help. A girl took us to get registered in to the village & took us to our supposed teaching residence bungalow (part of a group of 3). On the way we spotted 2 white girls – as you can imagine it is easy to spot the foreigners! (In Georgetown we met 6 white people, 3 are ex Project Trust volunteers returned to visit & 3 are peace corps from the USA – there were also the High Commissioner’s family. Whenever one sees a white person you can’t help but wonder why they are in Guyana – it’s not the average holiday destination!) The girls turned out to be peace corps arrived in Moruca a month ago, living in one of the 3 bungalows, staying for 2 years (both 25) & working for the hospital, red cross & resources.
It turned out that our bungalow was not to be. 2 were occupied & the 3rd had no key & had someone expected to move in today, so we are currently residing in the hostel which is ….basic. We have 2 beds at least, though with rather stained mattresses. The owner is lovely & actually it is OK but it’s a very annoying situation. This has been aggravated by the fact that we don’t even know now where we’re working as the ministry sent our profile to the primary school instead of the secondary so the primary are expecting us & the secondary not. Both majorly need our help but the secondary is not prepared for our arrival – shown by the housing situation – so we wait till Monday to find out ….
Looking beyond the annoyances Moruca is breathtakingly gorgeous – if the project fell through (which it’s not …don’t stress & start calling PT people, Dad) they would not be able to drag me away. The village is on both sides of the river with houses on stilts dotted around in small clearings beneath the coconut, papaya & mango trees. Everyone says ‘Good morning/ afternoon’ as you pass & at night they address you by saying ‘Goodnight’ which always confuses me & I end up replying ‘night night’ & expect them to leave. There is constantly music pumped out of most houses a style called ‘Chutney music’ – remixes to steel drums etc. The food is amazing – Sir Nigel the secondary head teacher set up a lady to cook all our meals while we are in the hostel. Aunty Juanita is lovely as expected – we & the peace corps vols took two of her children Amy & Alissia down to the creek today which was refreshing. There is also Aunty Evette, Aunty Shandra & Uncle Murphy & their adorable kids – Shania being one who’s 4 & talks & talks even though I don’t understand a word – the accent is so hard to follow. She is so confident she reminds me of Maia. So we’ve met a few people & know a few friendly faces & Uncle Murphy and Aunty Shandra are having a bamboo fire & rum party tomorrow to celebrate end of holidays so I’m sure I’ll meet more people.
A volunteer moved into the bungalow today – he’s British – went to Peterhouse in Cambridge & is teaching Biology in the secondary school. He says that Ollie and I can share the other room in the apartment so it looks like we’ll be moving in tomorrow.
Wildlife I’ve seen so far: Iguana, Vultures, parakeets, crabs; apparently there are monkeys everywhere though we haven’t seen any, we can hear the Howlers.
Sorry this has been such a long letter but there is such a lot to say, to tell, to describe but also my vocab is limited & my hand tired as well as my eyes. I was woken at 5.30am by loud music & it continues to play late in to the night – it’s now 10pm – when I say late it feels late as it gets dark at 6pm.
I apologise for the atrocious punctuation, spelling & grammar & also for the number of pagfes & the handwriting!
Loads & Loads of love to all,
Miss Emily
Xxxxxxxx
I wish you could see all this
The night sky is incredible, so many stars against a black sky & the shooting stars.
Saturday, 30 August 2008
Georgetown
29th August
HI
I leave tomorrow at 7 am. Very excited. Went to zoo today and shook hands with a monkey. Bought a bright pink guitar for $15000 (about 37 pounds!) woop. Spend the days being dry wet dry wet dry... and wet means soaked to underwear (due to tropical downpour not sweat...much)mmm but is fairly refreshing. I have no idea how much money I've spent as conversion is just too bizarre...Love to all...not missing you yet...sorry... Mosi count is up to 37. LOVE xxxxxx
28th August
hey hey, as you know I'm ok... managed to survive both business class and being struck by lightning! This place is amazing... though first impressions was 'WOW what a lot of trees!' I can't really put into words what it is like, and pictures don't really capture the whole impression and so I'm going to have to have long hard think about descriptions and then write them in a letter! A few words summing it up though: colourful, trees, 'WHITE GIRL', rum, hot, itchy, FANTASTIC!... and I also have been called Jennifer Lopez... I mean one can see why...!
We leave for our project on fri - sun and still have no clue what/who/how to teach...soooo its exciting?...Takes HOURS for anything to get done here, they all say that it'll happen 'just now' which means within the next 6 hours if you're lucky! So we've spent so much time waiting for things to happen but its sociable so its ok. Anyway I'm off. lots of love,
HI
I leave tomorrow at 7 am. Very excited. Went to zoo today and shook hands with a monkey. Bought a bright pink guitar for $15000 (about 37 pounds!) woop. Spend the days being dry wet dry wet dry... and wet means soaked to underwear (due to tropical downpour not sweat...much)mmm but is fairly refreshing. I have no idea how much money I've spent as conversion is just too bizarre...Love to all...not missing you yet...sorry... Mosi count is up to 37. LOVE xxxxxx
28th August
hey hey, as you know I'm ok... managed to survive both business class and being struck by lightning! This place is amazing... though first impressions was 'WOW what a lot of trees!' I can't really put into words what it is like, and pictures don't really capture the whole impression and so I'm going to have to have long hard think about descriptions and then write them in a letter! A few words summing it up though: colourful, trees, 'WHITE GIRL', rum, hot, itchy, FANTASTIC!... and I also have been called Jennifer Lopez... I mean one can see why...!
We leave for our project on fri - sun and still have no clue what/who/how to teach...soooo its exciting?...Takes HOURS for anything to get done here, they all say that it'll happen 'just now' which means within the next 6 hours if you're lucky! So we've spent so much time waiting for things to happen but its sociable so its ok. Anyway I'm off. lots of love,
Tuesday, 12 August 2008
Nearly gone...
I've been to training, met my awesome partner and finished fundraising! I leave in 11 days... on the 23rd August. Just starting to say goodbye to everyone and consider attempting to pack a 20 kg bag full of all my belongings to last me a year!
Also been watching Lost Land of the Jaguar, a 3 part series about wildlife in Guyana (good timing BBC) check the last one out this wednesday at 8pm BBC 1, it's awesome, also check out BBC iplayer for the previous ones. Its all based in the same national park that i'll be living in!
More thanks to everyone for helping me complete my fundraising, especially Brian Earle (and Liz Earle for her generous donations of her Aftersun product!... i'm going to need it!) and also to Lucy Willer...
arg...
xxx
oo also ... my address (as i'm not going to have internet)
Emily Powell
Santa Rosa Secondary School
C/O Acquero Post Office
Kumaka
Moruca
Region 1
Guyana
write in biro or pencil as ink fades and runs in the humidity!
Also been watching Lost Land of the Jaguar, a 3 part series about wildlife in Guyana (good timing BBC) check the last one out this wednesday at 8pm BBC 1, it's awesome, also check out BBC iplayer for the previous ones. Its all based in the same national park that i'll be living in!
More thanks to everyone for helping me complete my fundraising, especially Brian Earle (and Liz Earle for her generous donations of her Aftersun product!... i'm going to need it!) and also to Lucy Willer...
arg...
xxx
oo also ... my address (as i'm not going to have internet)
Emily Powell
Santa Rosa Secondary School
C/O Acquero Post Office
Kumaka
Moruca
Region 1
Guyana
write in biro or pencil as ink fades and runs in the humidity!
Thursday, 8 May 2008
The Project
Finally...
News of my final placement...
I'm going to be in the Moruca reserve teaching at Santa Rosa Secondary School. It sounds like a paradise: It's situated 5 hours from Georgetown (the capital) and involves traveling by speedboat on 3 different rivers! It is open-grassland that floods during the rainy season creating small islands linked by bridges!
My house has been renovated this year and there is a bedroom each and an open-plan seating area... there is a flush toilet and shower but NO RUNNING WATER! This has to be collected from the well at the end of the garden! Electricity is sometimes available for a couple of hours in the evening.
I will probably be in charge of science and maths (with my partner) for a form or 2 so between 100 - 200 students.
WOW i can't wait... only £480 to raise
News of my final placement...
I'm going to be in the Moruca reserve teaching at Santa Rosa Secondary School. It sounds like a paradise: It's situated 5 hours from Georgetown (the capital) and involves traveling by speedboat on 3 different rivers! It is open-grassland that floods during the rainy season creating small islands linked by bridges!
My house has been renovated this year and there is a bedroom each and an open-plan seating area... there is a flush toilet and shower but NO RUNNING WATER! This has to be collected from the well at the end of the garden! Electricity is sometimes available for a couple of hours in the evening.
I will probably be in charge of science and maths (with my partner) for a form or 2 so between 100 - 200 students.
WOW i can't wait... only £480 to raise
Ok...
So the challenge originally was to cycle from Land's End to John o' Groats... However this had to be altered as college wouldn't give us time off and parents kept mentioning this thing called A-levels??? So Milly and I decided to cycle from Cambridge to Land's End in 10 days... untrained...
The (original) Route:
This was the most unlucky week i have ever experienced...
The first couple of days was fairly easy. Met Roz on the first day for lunch ( a PT volunteer who i met on selection) in Bedford. Got very very wet in the evening and a little lost.
It was as we were cycling out of Wells towards Glastonbury that the first trouble occured...
My tyre was looking v. flat and so i stopped to pump it up but couldn't work the pump and in the process of trying to sort it out i let all the air out of it. So Milly (on easter sunday) cycled back in to the town to attempt to find a working pump while i sat on the side of the road guiltily. She returned 40 minutes later with a pump she'd bought from the only shop that was open in the town that just miraculously turned out to be Halfords though it was just closing! We arrived at Glastonbury...
The next morning my tyre was flat... so we mended the puncture in 15 mins but it took an hour to get both the inner and outer back on the wheel with me, Milly, and the two oldest Bacon boys all helping! So we left an hour and half late for what was to be the longest day. Within 7 miles of leaving the house the tyre was flat AGAIN and so from then on i pumped it up every 6 miles. Once at Bridgewater we'd caught up with ourselves and feeling rather proud stopped for some chocolate. Ahead was 11 easy miles along the canal to taunton where we could have lunch... However, we then met 27 mph winds coming straight at us and so instead of our average 14 mph we were traveling at about 6 mph and in 7 miles were completely exhausted. We were 1 hour late for lunch and shattered. We set off for Bampton at a slow pace still heading in to wind v. aware of large hills ahead and my deflating tyre. It got dark and hinted snow and we had 6 miles to go before Bampton (5 uphill) i pumped my tyre again and this time the whole valve snapped off, my tyre died. There was only one house in the vicinity and so after 40 mins of debating we walked to it and knocked and asked for help. The couple v. kindly gave us a lift to Bampton to a B&B, However in all the pa lava a bag was left on the side of the road outside the B&B and within 10 mins was gone...the one with the map...and... my camera, bike lights, tools, £15, the Bath house key.
The next day we woke up early and headed to Tiverton to get my wheel mended, we had to wait an hour and during this time wandered around in achey despair. We arrived at a church and decided that we may as well have a look inside and on entering met a kind priest who made us tea, gave us chocolate and listened to our tale of woe before producing... A MAP!!! We'd like to say many thanks to him though we don't have a name but his collie was named Bob...
We collected the tyre and went back to Bampton (by this time it was around 1 pm) we fitted the tyre on to the wheel but had to let out all the air in my tyre before it would fit and it was just after this that we realised that the pump had also been nicked! So we used the broken one to pump which did an extremely poor job and by the time we reached the top of the hill a couple of miles out of Bampton the tyre was flat AGAIN. Tired, angry phone calls to mum told us that the next 3 days were forecast to have winds of 40-50 mph directly at us and judging by the affect of when it was 'only' at 27mph we changed plans... a taxi took us to a bike shop (where i left my phone) and then to a station where we caught the train to Barnstaple and stayed with the Redwoods. That night we decided to get the train to penzance, cycle to Land's End and then back up to Bampton... it was the only way we were going to manage.
Mum came to meet us with the car to take our luggage between penzance and padstow... my bike tyre continued to deflate :( however we succeeded but instead of following the original plan of sustrans we decided generally to cut out the scenic parts and take the shorter routes on A or B roads... by that point we were just too exhausted...
The distance was 407 miles!
And thanks to everyone who sponsored... and sorry there are no photos...(obvious reasons)
xxx
So the challenge originally was to cycle from Land's End to John o' Groats... However this had to be altered as college wouldn't give us time off and parents kept mentioning this thing called A-levels??? So Milly and I decided to cycle from Cambridge to Land's End in 10 days... untrained...
The (original) Route:
- My house - Milton Keynes
- Milton Keynes - Newbury
- Newbury - Bath
- Bath - Glastonbury
- Glastonbury - Bampton
- Bampton - Barnstaple
- Barnstaple - Bude
- Bude - Padstow
- Padstow - Penzance
- Penzance - Land's End
This was the most unlucky week i have ever experienced...
The first couple of days was fairly easy. Met Roz on the first day for lunch ( a PT volunteer who i met on selection) in Bedford. Got very very wet in the evening and a little lost.
It was as we were cycling out of Wells towards Glastonbury that the first trouble occured...
My tyre was looking v. flat and so i stopped to pump it up but couldn't work the pump and in the process of trying to sort it out i let all the air out of it. So Milly (on easter sunday) cycled back in to the town to attempt to find a working pump while i sat on the side of the road guiltily. She returned 40 minutes later with a pump she'd bought from the only shop that was open in the town that just miraculously turned out to be Halfords though it was just closing! We arrived at Glastonbury...
The next morning my tyre was flat... so we mended the puncture in 15 mins but it took an hour to get both the inner and outer back on the wheel with me, Milly, and the two oldest Bacon boys all helping! So we left an hour and half late for what was to be the longest day. Within 7 miles of leaving the house the tyre was flat AGAIN and so from then on i pumped it up every 6 miles. Once at Bridgewater we'd caught up with ourselves and feeling rather proud stopped for some chocolate. Ahead was 11 easy miles along the canal to taunton where we could have lunch... However, we then met 27 mph winds coming straight at us and so instead of our average 14 mph we were traveling at about 6 mph and in 7 miles were completely exhausted. We were 1 hour late for lunch and shattered. We set off for Bampton at a slow pace still heading in to wind v. aware of large hills ahead and my deflating tyre. It got dark and hinted snow and we had 6 miles to go before Bampton (5 uphill) i pumped my tyre again and this time the whole valve snapped off, my tyre died. There was only one house in the vicinity and so after 40 mins of debating we walked to it and knocked and asked for help. The couple v. kindly gave us a lift to Bampton to a B&B, However in all the pa lava a bag was left on the side of the road outside the B&B and within 10 mins was gone...the one with the map...and... my camera, bike lights, tools, £15, the Bath house key.
The next day we woke up early and headed to Tiverton to get my wheel mended, we had to wait an hour and during this time wandered around in achey despair. We arrived at a church and decided that we may as well have a look inside and on entering met a kind priest who made us tea, gave us chocolate and listened to our tale of woe before producing... A MAP!!! We'd like to say many thanks to him though we don't have a name but his collie was named Bob...
We collected the tyre and went back to Bampton (by this time it was around 1 pm) we fitted the tyre on to the wheel but had to let out all the air in my tyre before it would fit and it was just after this that we realised that the pump had also been nicked! So we used the broken one to pump which did an extremely poor job and by the time we reached the top of the hill a couple of miles out of Bampton the tyre was flat AGAIN. Tired, angry phone calls to mum told us that the next 3 days were forecast to have winds of 40-50 mph directly at us and judging by the affect of when it was 'only' at 27mph we changed plans... a taxi took us to a bike shop (where i left my phone) and then to a station where we caught the train to Barnstaple and stayed with the Redwoods. That night we decided to get the train to penzance, cycle to Land's End and then back up to Bampton... it was the only way we were going to manage.
Mum came to meet us with the car to take our luggage between penzance and padstow... my bike tyre continued to deflate :( however we succeeded but instead of following the original plan of sustrans we decided generally to cut out the scenic parts and take the shorter routes on A or B roads... by that point we were just too exhausted...
The distance was 407 miles!
And thanks to everyone who sponsored... and sorry there are no photos...(obvious reasons)
xxx
Some Catching up...
Big thank-you again to St. Ives Rotary club for your donation and for the meal that we had before the presentation. Also an extra thank-you from Milly R., who you also decided to donate £100 to.
Since Christmas 3 more Hills Roaders have joined Project Trust: Milly who is also going to Guyana, Chris who is going to Uganda and Edmund who is going out to Hills Road's partner school Ndamse in Umthatha, South Africa (a new project).
I'd also like to thank Coleridge Secondary School for donating some money raised from an own clothes day.
Next to the story of the cycling...
Since Christmas 3 more Hills Roaders have joined Project Trust: Milly who is also going to Guyana, Chris who is going to Uganda and Edmund who is going out to Hills Road's partner school Ndamse in Umthatha, South Africa (a new project).
I'd also like to thank Coleridge Secondary School for donating some money raised from an own clothes day.
Next to the story of the cycling...
Saturday, 12 January 2008
Thank you to all of you who bought a square...the draw has now been done!
Zoe Philips - £100
Ann Wall - Field and Trek Voucher
Carol from Comberton Netball - Field and Trek voucher
Mr Walker - 2 x Cinema Tickets
Harret Speller - 2 x Cinema Tickets
Megan Shale - Starbucks Coffee Hamper
Ieaun Smith - Twinnings Tea
Liza Finch - Starbucks Mugs
Emily Walker - Starbucks Coffee and mug
Jane Powell - Pot Plant
Alison Murphy - Twinnings Tea
Thank you to all of you,
xxx
Zoe Philips - £100
Ann Wall - Field and Trek Voucher
Carol from Comberton Netball - Field and Trek voucher
Mr Walker - 2 x Cinema Tickets
Harret Speller - 2 x Cinema Tickets
Megan Shale - Starbucks Coffee Hamper
Ieaun Smith - Twinnings Tea
Liza Finch - Starbucks Mugs
Emily Walker - Starbucks Coffee and mug
Jane Powell - Pot Plant
Alison Murphy - Twinnings Tea
Thank you to all of you,
xxx
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Tuesday, 8 January 2008
Hello!
The Fundraising:
Having been selected to go away with Project Trust to Guyana in September the fundraising commenced.
It started with a donation of £450 from the College Student council. I have also recieved donations adding up to £400 from two different charitable trusts...not sure if i'm allowed to name but you know who you are... I also recieved £100 from the St. Ives Rotary Club!
Thankyou to all of you, you have made this challenge seem ten times easier...much less daunting.
Following these i have been selling squares...there are 900 in total though only 300 ish have been filled but names will be drawn next week... with a prizes having been donated from many places such as Vue cinema, Field and Trek, Scotsdales etc. The first prize is £100, as promised.
I have run a few Christmas stalls selling homemade decorations, and tombola-ing Starbucks coffee and mugs and Twinnings tea. Thankyou to both these companys and also to Tindalls art shop who gave us a large discount on glass baubels!
Several of my friends have been involved in filling Smartie tubes with 20ps, thanks to all of you who handed them back and especially to those who handed them back full!
So far this has accumulated about £1600 ish...
The most recent event was my parents and my cousin and aunties three legged ascents of Mount Snowdon...the first people to ever acheive it in the winter. Pictures and videos will be posted very soon... Dad managed to raise around £500 and Barclays has very kindly agreed to double this, and my cousin and aunty collectively raised about £300. THANKYOU!!!
So this makes my current funds about £2900!!! Any of you wishing to get involved and help whether it be via donations or help, please email me...
Thanks for all your help
Having been selected to go away with Project Trust to Guyana in September the fundraising commenced.
It started with a donation of £450 from the College Student council. I have also recieved donations adding up to £400 from two different charitable trusts...not sure if i'm allowed to name but you know who you are... I also recieved £100 from the St. Ives Rotary Club!
Thankyou to all of you, you have made this challenge seem ten times easier...much less daunting.
Following these i have been selling squares...there are 900 in total though only 300 ish have been filled but names will be drawn next week... with a prizes having been donated from many places such as Vue cinema, Field and Trek, Scotsdales etc. The first prize is £100, as promised.
I have run a few Christmas stalls selling homemade decorations, and tombola-ing Starbucks coffee and mugs and Twinnings tea. Thankyou to both these companys and also to Tindalls art shop who gave us a large discount on glass baubels!
Several of my friends have been involved in filling Smartie tubes with 20ps, thanks to all of you who handed them back and especially to those who handed them back full!
So far this has accumulated about £1600 ish...
The most recent event was my parents and my cousin and aunties three legged ascents of Mount Snowdon...the first people to ever acheive it in the winter. Pictures and videos will be posted very soon... Dad managed to raise around £500 and Barclays has very kindly agreed to double this, and my cousin and aunty collectively raised about £300. THANKYOU!!!
So this makes my current funds about £2900!!! Any of you wishing to get involved and help whether it be via donations or help, please email me...
Thanks for all your help
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