Domesticity- part 5- wheeled transport

In Georgetown there are several options for getting around.
Walking is fine, if you have an umbrella, have little to carry and plenty of time. It is too hot to ever hurry.
The sea wall is one of the nicest places to walk along.

For distances, there are the buses: these are minibuses, owned, and seemingly unregulated, by small competing companies operating on several defined routes. Each has a driver and a "bus boy", who collects fares, opens and closes the doors, shouts instructions and squashes passengers into already crowded vehicles. There is a fixed fare. Yellow paint markings, sometimes obscured or worn away, indicate the bus stops. Passengers shout out when they wish to alight, or bang on the ceiling of the minibus to catch the attention of the driver.
Drivers appear to be racing their rivals, sometimes travelling two abreast down a street, beeping the horn rather than braking then sharply turning towards the pavement and stopping suddenly to pick up new passengers. Scary!

There are several taxi companies, and VSO recommends specific ones which seem to employ the steadier drivers. Cabs are bright yellow, and sometimes decked out with elaborate soft furnishings, dangling ornaments and the inevitable cheesy pop music on the radio or CD.

Or, there is the trusty bike.

My new bike- no gears needed as there are no hills in Georgetown,  and a  sensible basket at the front  for my work bag or shopping. Its a plodding machine and it does the job.

Domesticity- part 4- laundry day

Washing the clothes is a retro experience- wooden wash boards are available, though I prefer to make do with soaking, swirling the clothes around a few times, then thorough rinsing..
Although I could use the smaller sink upstairs in the kitchen, its best to use the full size tub outside.

You can see the handy garden water tap, and the convenient drainage channel. The garden has several  such channels, to  take up the great amounts of water during the heavy tropical rain storms.

After washing, the tumble drier isn't needed- everything dries quickly in the garden.

In the garden there are breadfruit, saponellas, gnips and several leaved plants which we have as house plants in the UK.

Domesticity- part 3- the dishwasher.

Get on and do it- the water is either cold or nearly cold.

When flat sharing its important to respect each other's right to find the kitchen clean and ready for use- happily we have a dish washer.

We also have the latest vacuum cleaner-

eco-friendly

Domesticity- part 2- air conditioning

29th August 2011.

As temperatures are typically in the high 30s centigrade, with high humidity, "air conditioning" is important.
Whenever we are at home, windows are opened wide-and left that way.

The good old electric fan keeps the air moving, 

as does the ceiling fan.

Doors and windows are kept open, but covered with wrought iron grids, padlocked into position for security. Our back door leads downstairs into the garden. 

In this way we can keep the flat at a comfortable temperature.

Domesticity- part 1

Monday 29th August 2011

I have now moved into my shared accommodation.
Each single volunteer, or couple, is allocated their own room, within a larger shared apartment.
I share with Fiona, who comes from Ireland, and Joke (pronounced Yoker) who comes from The Netherlands.

All the Georgetown volunteers are housed within a few districts considered "safe", but not elitist.
As we are in the capital of Guyana, all the basic facilities are available in our homes, and it has been relatively easy to adapt to a routine of sleeping, eating, showering, cleaning and laundering.

Here is a picture of our flat, taken from the stair well. We live on the first floor of a two storey wooden structure. The older houses in Georgetown are made of wood, and many are built in stilts, as the coastal plain is at or just above sea level and prone to flooding during heavy rains.
you can see the beautiful polished wood flooring and wall panelling. Within this structure, room divisions are made using panels almost to the ceiling. This allows for free air circulation- and a different notion of privacy.
Beyond the sitting area, you can see the dining table to the right, three bedrooms to the left, the bathroom behind the dining area and at the back the kitchen.

The area is spacious and light, although the bedrooms are darker.

Freshers' Week for the new volunteers

 Currently about 50 volunteers work with Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) in Guyana. We work in three
areas of development: Education, Disability and Secure Livelihoods (supporting small businesses). All volunteers now work as trainers, advisers and managers. Everyone clearly has experience and expertise in their own field.

On the 11th August, 14 new volunteers arrived in Georgetown, Guyana. I was one of 5 from the UK. There were 3 couples and 2 young men from Canada and one younger woman from the Netherlands. We have now nearly completed our In Country Orientation, a training package to prepare us for living and working in Guyana.
Collectively we make for a noisy crowd at the training sessions and socially. We are all keen to meet each other, make new friends and set up networks of support for work and fun. Its like a university Freshers' Week (but without the alcohol overload, or the teenage energy).

There's a spirit of optimism and a desire to "get cracking" with our projects. Alongside this, people are setting up social alliances: football features as a common bond for many; there's a yoga contingent; future apartments are considered as venues for get-togethers (regular drinking in bars will be way beyond our monthly allowance); a brisk morning or evening walk along the sea wall is pleasant and free; and the swimming pool at the Pegasus Hotel has become an established favourite.

The photos here show us at the Madewini Gardens, a few miles out of Georgetown, where, after a training session on issues around the Disability programme,we would have the opportunity to swim in the black waters of the creek. A thunderstorm lasting an hour or so sapped away our enthusiasm, except for Drew, who braved the waters, while the rest of us took the pictures.

Drew- who braved the black water creek-  the rest of us said, "Next time."

Tessa avoiding the camera, but happy to give a human scale to the size of the leaf.

One wimp!

Heat

Its now day 4. There is something about a 3 day cycle for adapting and adjusting.
And the first challenge, from the moment I got off the plane at Cheddi Jagan airport, was the heat.
Its like driving in the car with the heater jammed on "Hot", or sitting under the hair dryer, all day and all night.

It initially dominates, it can't be beaten.
So, what have I been doing- along with the other 13 new VSO volunteers who also arrived last Thursday, from the UK, Holland and Canada?

Principally- dealing with the heat.
Allowing the body to adjust has meant taking lots of naps, some extending to hours of asleep, and going to bed and getting up very early.
Going out into the sun is avoided, especially in the middle of the day.
I am walking slower and slower, preferably sheltering under an umbrella- and have been told, when the bicycle is purchased, to ride very slowly too.
I am drinking litres of water each- and seemingly never needing to go to the toilet!
I take up to three cold (yes- cold- there is no option) showers each day.
Eating a few pieces of chilli- in a rice or meat dish- helps the sweating along nicely.
Dropping into a bar has been welcomed.

And finally- swimming.
Our group, collectively, has taken out Swimming Club membership at the Pegasus Hotel. This will be a luxury to be relished.
Yesterday (Sunday) an expedition set off- the walk was all of 20 slow minutes- to the venue. After taking out a month's membership, we collected our towels, showered, and enjoyed swimming in a reasonably sized hotel pool in between lolling under the umbrellas and gossiping around the table.
If this sounds a little "ex-pat", it felt like it too.

I think this could be my little bit of luxury, in between work and living in Georgetown.

Leaving sunny Stockport

On the 1st August 2011, I left our family home in Stockport.

Next stop -London- to stay with life long friend Barrie, and then with my daughters Rosie and Clare. Here I am enjoying the culture, traditions and treats of the capital before heading off to Barbados:

and then Cheddi Jagan airport, Guyana.

Humidity levels in London are currently 80%, with temperatures well into the upper 20's degrees C, so preparations for Guyana are going well.