Old Year's Night

In Guyana tonight is Old Year's Night, rather than New Year's Eve.
We are still "enjoying" Christmas events connected to work. Yesterday we had two Christmas meals. The first was at lunchtime for the Curriculum Unit at work - it was quite nice because before the meal everyone took turns to make a few comments about the past year - although the emphasis was on being very positive and thanking people. There is little room to be anything except positive as being otherwise is just seen as criticism and undermining the status quo.
The second was a Ministry of Education bash at the cricket club - free bar, free meal and extremely loud music making it difficult to talk to anyone. My flatmate and I dressed up (elegant casual) and turned up to find that the only person we knew was the minister of education. We had a little greeting chat to him. Later my local colleague showed up and introduced me to a few other big wigs. The meal was nice though - rice with bits in, chicken, turkey, duck, fish, potato salad, green salad, then ice cream to follow.
This week has been a bit frenetic as my house purchase in Hereford completed yesterday. Emails have been flying around in great numbers. The estate agent will hopefully be able to rent it out, pending my return in summer 2010.
This week at work we have been asked to make a list of all work visits, training and activities for the next four months. This is on top of the costs list for setting the budget. So that has given us a focus for reviewing and discussing what we are planning to do. It has been helpful to have that impetus.
On Wednesday we are going to be interviewed on the media, newspaper and audio, about our work in special needs. I am preparing to talk generally about inclusion: all children are different, all children can learn, all children have a right to learn - then how teachers can either teach in an inclusive way (for example doing practical activities) that different children can take part in different ways, then how teachers can have different expectations of different children and how to keep track of progress for individuals. My colleagues will talk about remedial reading, and about coordinating action across Guyana. Sounds OK??
Happy New Year - we have fireworks at midnight down the road - I have a good friend coming round and staying over, so maybe I'll stay up that late.
At the weekend another friend and I hope to make a visit to Bartica which is a minibus and hour speedboat ride away, up the Essequibo. We are staying with a very interesting older couple of VSOs, so there should be lots of interesting discussions. That's the best bit!

Around and about Christmas

Had a good concert with the choir last night. The rather ambitious piece we were doing went off with great spirit although we got a mix up in the last song - the narration was a bit slow so we missed our cue to come in. We were singing against an backing tape, so if you miss it you' ve had it, we just had to try to leap back in when we recognised where we were. The rest of the concert was various smaller pieces and quite a few soloists, small groups and a steel band.
Christmas passed quietly, I enjoyed staying over a couple of nights with a friend so we could have lots of good talks and some long walks, despite the rain. It was also good to be able to communicate with home via email by borrowing her laptop. We went to midnight service at the anglican cathedral. We were expecting the place to be packed out but in fact it was quite a subdued affair. It was the streets on the way that were packed out. All the street vendors selling drinks, food, clothing, gifts and general tat were still there, and people standing around enjoying the atmosphere both at midnight and when we were on the way back. I think that the vendors are desperate to make any money they can so are hoping to pick up a sale at any time of the day or night. Or maybe it is easier to stay set up all through the night so you don't have to pack it all away. I was expecting Christmas here to be a quiet time as people here are so religious, but in fact it seemed to be just a massive opportunity to party party party. Also last evening there was a big Lime - which means a chance to hang around in the street drinking and listening to music. Main Street was closed and there were bands and stalls. I didn't go as I came out of the concert at 8.30 and it would have been too much.
Back to work today - and on the table is a form to fill in detailing our work programme for the next four months. It will go into the budget to go to the chief planning officer. At least it will provide a basis for discussion about our next step.

Signing off work for a bit

This is my last day at work until Monday, I have two half days for "shopping" which I will be taking tomorrow. I am looking forward to having a bit of a break, just to empty the mind a bit. Yesterday we had a visit to a special school which is some way up country. It is called a centre for the disabled, so perhaps that is the best description in that it is not really trying to be a school. However there was a desire for training of the two teachers from someone on the management committee, so I feel it would be worthwhile trying to do something there. The children are either Deaf, or have learning difficulties. My new VSO colleague works in deaf education, so I am going to have a go at researching a framework for skills and ways of tracking progress. I think if it is simple enough then the teachers will find it encouraging rather than a threat. That is my story anyway! There are four special schools which are quite similar, so I think I need to visit and try to get an overview of what they are doing at the moment, and what skills areas they want to work in. Then I can research some ideas, present them and see what they think. My very practical attitude seems to work quite well here, as mostly teachers are on the defensive if they think someone is from the Ministry of Education. I am attempting to turn that around. I remember so well having staff development sessions myself where I felt overwhelmed by grand new ideas, and the cry went up that it would just increase the burden of paperwork. At least this project idea is one where I feel I know what I am doing, as I like to work with making complex systems into something workable in the everyday classroom - pragmatism I suppose.
On home matters, I am very pleased to say that my house purchase is going ahead with completion at the end of December. I am hoping that the estate agent will be able to rent it out until I get back to the UK in summer 2010.
I am still feeling that I want to limit my time here to one year. I feel I can get my work done for the blind in that time, and the other work that I am doing does not require my particular skills. Every week I am trying to maintain my positivity about my work through some inspiration - this week I am trying to maintain a reasonable, holy and lively attitude (quote from the end of the church service). I think lively is the hardest of those three, as I feel I can maintain the brain power OK, and I am finding that I am able to walk in the light of my faith, but feeling full of life and enthusiasm in the face of all the barriers and negatives is a minute by minute challenge.
By the side of the roads here there are cold drinks sellers, who have slogans on their carts - frequently BLESS UP. This seems pretty useful advice to us all.
Have a blessed Christmas
Kate

Crocodiles and hummingbirds

This weekend some VSOs have been staying over in Georgetown en route for Christmas trips overseas - it is good to catch up on the news from volunteers who are out in the hinterland - their perspective is very different. I think I am quite glad to be in Georgetown as I think the isolation would be too much.
On Saturday I was walking along the sea wall and saw some people parked up in an isolate spot cutting meat from crocodiles - they were about 5 feet long. I didn't speak to them but I gather that catching crocs for meat is illegal although the tail is seen as a special delicacy. They would be catching them up the river, not in the sea.
Yesterday I made a Christmas tree - just from a tree branch and some improvised decorations but I enjoyed doing it. It is strange to be getting that organised on the same day as spotting hummingbirds near the swimming pool. They were bright green, black and white - they are like massive bees around the flowers - working around one bush then zipping off to the next.
Tomorrow I'm off on a trip out to go to the reopening of a special school which is about an hour and a half journey away. It's rather a long way to go and I think we will not have much time with the two teachers as they are running a Christmas party for the children in the afternoon as well. They have 25 children there, some with hearing impairment and some with learning difficulties. At least I'll be able to practise my sign language. We have a new Ugandan volunteer who works in education for the deaf - I'm hoping we can support each other in thinking about what we can do and how we can make our work sustainable.

Coming up to Christmas

Quite a few volunteers are going home or overseas for a Christmas break, but I am staying put in Georgetown as I don't feel I can afford to spend the money at the moment. I have arranged to stay over for the actual Christmas bit with a good volunteer friend locally - she says she will do the cooking so that sounds OK! I am teaching her to play bridge, so that will give us a bit of a hobby. The weather here is still hot humid and sunny, we have not had a rainy season because of El Nino - it is just a bit cloudy on some days and can rain heavily for half an hour or so at times. You know about it if you are caught out in it though. So the Christmas experience will be quite different from the UK, with outdoor events being the order of the day.
On Tuesday there was a Christmas event in the park run by the mobile phone company. There were beautiful fairy light decorations strung between the trees, and entertainments of various kinds on the bandstand - carols, gospel singing, speeches by the prime minister and the leader of the opposition, prayers by Christian and Hindu religious leaders, and a visit by Santa. The statistic is that 95% of people in Guyana have a religion, and from my experience that means a very strong religious belief - in a multitude of varieties. The zeal of young people is particularly striking - in the UK it would be small children dressing up as angels, but here it is teenagers who lead.
Last night our choir sang the Halleluia Chorus at the end of the Carol Concert in the Catholic Cathedral, which went pretty well. Then the second half of the evening we had our own practice working on the big piece we are preparing for our Christmas Concert on the 27th. It is a bit ambitious - the idea is to sing along to a backing CD but we have practised with someone playing the piano - so now the conductor and the choir are trying to make sense of the changes in pace on the recording, and also pick up enough rhythm to get the entries correct - if you miss it, then there is no adjustment like you'd get from a pianist! I am enjoying the challenge of the music, I have borrowed a recorder from someone in the choir so I can go over my part at home and try to learn it. It is also good to be busy at this time as many other things take a break over the Christmas period.

Music events

The party on Friday was pretty special - one of the leaving volunteers likes live music, so we had a group of drummers. They had a large bass drum, a medium drum and some small drums worn around the neck. They said that it was similar to Muslim drumming - it was extremely LOUD. The rhythm starts quite gently then gets louder and faster, with complex sub rhythms. The leader spoke to me about it afterwards - he is trying to revive local traditions - it is based on a mix of the cultures of Guyana. They played outside in a yard, so the sound was bouncing off the stone floor and walls. The other interesting aspect was that the neighbours did not complain, but that is also due to the local culture that having extremely loud music blasting out is absolutely fine. However some of the VSOs live near a rum shop which was very loud late at night, and they have a banning order in force at the moment which has kept the volume down to a low level - so things do sometimes happen and do get enforced.
It was the Bishop of Guyana's enthronement on Sunday - there was a huge choir based on all the five anglican churches in Georgetown plus our Woodside Choir. The amount of singing was huge as it was a very formal service with sung responses, huge long hymns and anthems. It went off well - we managed a bit by the skin of our teeth as we had not really practised some of the things much, and it was difficult searching through all the sheets to find the music for the various bits and pieces. Afterwards there was a reception on the top of the bank building, which is about 4 storeys high, one of the biggest buildings around - so we had a great view round Georgetown by night. We could see the ships with lights passing up the river, see the stadium lights, the harbour bridge, the old lighthouse and of course the centre of the town below. There is another new and very posh bank being built across the road from where I work - it seems strange to spend all that money on a huge bank building - but then I suppose banks are about people trusting that the bank has money - so the grander the better!
Today I have arranged a small training session at the primary school where the unit for the blind is. I hope that that will lead to some individual contacts to support the staff to move forward a bit in inclusion.

Busy week

The training course on Monday was fine. The teachers at the special school liked the activities and we were able to listen to their concerns and needs. Hopefully we will be able to follow up to address some of these.
On Tuesday and Wednesday I went out to do training at the other unit for the blind which is inland, about an hour and a half by minibus. I arrived at the bus park, then took a little ferry over the river, then taxi up to the school. It was only a few minutes drive, so I was pleased at the end of the day that one of the teachers showed me the way so that I could walk there and back for the rest of my stay. It was the end of term so things were quite flexible - I was able to do some training with basic tactile equipment and diagrams, Braille and Jaws. The two staff are very enthusiastic and keen to learn - I just responded to their questions which led down many different paths. It was great to have a close match between my skills and what they wanted to know. Although it was quite a challenge to set up the Jaws training for them, as this is not something I've done before. But they had a list of keystrokes, so I practiced myself and set up a Noddy guide for them. I stayed overnight in a guest house, which was fine - I was the only one staying, but the staff in the canteen were friendly so that gave me someone to talk to. I went on a long walk in the late afternoon, to the library to attempt to get the internet, along by the boat ferries and market, and off along the main road out of town towards the mines. It is a bauxite (aluminium ore) mining area. I felt quite safe walking as long as I stuck to busy places. I have just finished writing up notes from this training so I can send them a copy, also these will build up to be a manual on teaching the blind - which I will be leaving as an online resource as well as print copies here, in the training college, as well as in the units for the blind.
Tonight is a party for a batch of VSOs who are leaving. Then over the weekend and next week there are a number of choir rehearsals and performances at carol concerts and at the bishop's enthronement service. I like being busy!
Weather here is a little cooler, so the temperature of the swimming pool at 7 am is a slight shock to the system. I'm just trying to make you jealous...

I have a busy week ahead. Today we are doing the first training session at one of the seven special schools in Guyana, hopefully this will give me a start in working with those teachers in sharing good practice, or perhaps developing good practice. I would like to set up a way for ideas to be shared with teachers in other special schools, hopefully tobuild the confidence and motivation of teachers. I will need to follow VSO's advice to have big ears and a small mouth, so that I listen to what is needed and not impose my own clever scheme which may not work with the local culture.
Then Tuesday and Wednesday I am off to the other unit for the blind which is up country. It takes about an hour and a half by minibus. I will stay over on Tuesday night at a guest house there. Again I need to listen to their needs and find ways that I can share skills with them.
Over the weekend I had a first game of bridge - the new VSO wanted to learn. I think that will be a good little group as we are none of us inclined to be too serious, there is plenty of time to chat.
I saw the person from the Rotary Club on last week, so hopefully that will push forward my appeal to them for funding for a Braille embosser. She invited a couple of us to their Christmas concert which we went to last night. It was a bit of an elegant event, with jazz and blues backing group and a succession of lady singers - it seems funny to have songs about mistletoe and snow flakes when it is still 30 degrees and so humid!
This week is a big choir event supporting the cathedral choir for the enthronement of the new Anglican Bishop of Guyana. We are singing at the big service on Sunday. I've really enjoyed the experience of going to the practices every Saturday over the last few weeks. There are people from the five anglican churches in Georgetown all joining in - a choir of fifty ish.

Birds, Dance and Music

Saw a pelican fishing on the foreshore on Friday which was a first - something I've never seen before - it was surprisingly agile for something so big - taking off and skimming for fish in the shallows.
Sunday I chanced going to a Hindu event which was advertised on local TV as having singing and dancing. It turned out to be a talent contest for thwe hindu youth who are learning chanting, singing, classical dance and folk dance. I really enjoyed the music - they played harmonium (one hand does the bellows) double ended drum played witht he hands, and a device like a triangle with a long rod so it can be damped with the other hand. They served up food - rice and small tasters of mild curry - on large lily leaves. Better than the ubiquitous polystyrene boxes which litter everywhere around here. They have some Hindu dance classes on a Sunday afternoon starting in January so I'm going to give that a go. Should be a bit of a new challenge. I also found out about a steel drum group that I could join - things are looking up.
Today I had my three month review with my VSO manager - she is pleased with how I am getting on. It was good to be able to discuss my small successes and the challenges I'm working with.

Sharing good practice

We have a day off tomorrow as it is a Muslim holiday. There are quite a few holidays as we get the Christian, Muslim and Hindu, but maybe not all of all of them. It is always a week for something or other as well, and next week is National Disability Week. There is an awareness raising march, a free concert in Main Street, a sticker campaign about letting persons with disabilities onto minibuses. So I'll be going to these events and networking. The Disability Bill is having its second reading in the Guyanese Parliament today. It has taken five years to get this far. If it gets passed then it gives the right to equitable education, so that will make a big difference to Special Needs Education (hopefully). This week we heard that the government is planning on increasing spending on education generally, I hope that includes giving teachers more pay. Currently they get less money than us, and we are classed as volunteers. Most teachers just want to get qualified then go overseas.
Yesterday I had a workshop about how Rehabilitation links up to Education - aimed at teachers and workers in special schools. It was run by the VSO for Rehab, so it was a fun day. We had a game of cricket (guess who hit the ball out into the road and lost it) - then we were asked to list the skills involved in cricket, link the whole experience to education, then think how it could be adapted for a child with any disability to take part. The interesting idea was that every subject on the school curriculum could be taught through the medium of cricket. Cricket is a national obsession in Guyana - maybe I mentioned that I met Clive Lloyd who is a famous West Indies cricketer - are you impressed?
One of the new ideas I am getting involved in is to work on building up a curriculum for special needs based on sharing good practice between the special schools. The idea is to use it as a vehicle to empower teachers - to make them feel that they have valuable expertise, and so they will feel more motivated. But it is hard when they are so badly paid. To get the atmosphere in the schools think about 1950s in the UK. We are going to look at the idea of working on little bits of curriculum, then getting someone to try it out, then it will be tried and tested in Guyana. Then we have to monitor whether it is actually used in classrooms.
A guy at choir says he has a piano accordion that nobody uses, so he will bring it. So maybe I can have a blast on that. Will they cope?

VSO Forum

I am on the annual VSO Forum. There are 47 VSOs plus staff. We are staying at a pretty wacky guest house on the north side of the Demarara river. The proprietor was living in the US for 20 years, and got homesick. So he collected anything he could from Guyana on various visits. So then when he came back he had to build his house bigger just to house all the junk. The place is packed with old furniture, maps, bottles, books, pots, documents, household objects. It is a bit spooky to be constantly surrounded by it all. It is a very common thing for Guyanese to be returning from overseas, over half of Guyanese live overseas.
This VSO Forum is a chance to do a lot of networking, to see how we can work together between the different programme areas: education, disability, secure livelihoods. It is also a chance to hear the inside story of how other vols are getting on in their placements. Many people have similar stories about how the written objectives look impressive, but in fact the best way to get started is on a much more basic level. I'm going to try to do more work in partnership with the disability vols.

Better news

Had a great experience yesterday - there was a session for parents at the unit for the blind where I was able to meet the local person who is the main trainer for teachers of the blind. I also met someone from Jamaica who is helping to make the University of Guyana more equipped to deal with learners with visual impairment. Also there were inspirational talks from various local people. So there is some will power for change. The local person has had some bad experiences with VSOs in the past. I think my approach of supporting at the grass roots level is appreciated. At least it gives the message that VSOs want to empower local people rather than pontificating.
I have got a week fixed up at the other unit for the blind which is in the interior in Linden. I'm looking forward to that. Hopefully I will be able to stay with a local family rather than a guest house, so it will help me get to know local people more.
The next couple of days will be a VSO forum - so everyone is coming in from the regions - they feel like old friends even after just 3 months in country. So it's a chance to catch up and reflect on what has been happening. Time to sit back and enjoy. I am hosting a bring and share supper tonight so the gossip will start then...

Mash dancers

Here are the dancers in the same parade.

Stilt walker Retry!

Try again with this picture - look at the last blog for details.

Stilt Walker + work + chat

Following on from the last picture, this is the stilt walker who led the Mash parade. He took one stilt off and whirled it round his head, strapped it back on his leg, then continued along the road.
I was a bit disappointed on Friday to find that I need to have two weeks down time with the demonstration sessions I have been doing with the pupils in the unit for the blind. The mainstream school does tests, so the support staff are busy supporting the kids to get them done. I was enjoying having the daily challenge of thinking up some practical activities for them, and it was very motivating to have the contact with real kids. Hopefully I can restart for the last week or so of term. Then next term my plan is to work to support the staff to do the sessions themselves, firstly trying out the materials and activities that I have prepared, then I hope to be able to motivate them to invent their own activities. In the meantime I am hoping to be able to start talking to the staff in the mainstream primary and secondary school who have the blind pupils included their sessions. I need to find out what the issues are, and then think how I can try to move things forward in a sustainable way.
Had a good weekend, yesterday I enjoyed a walk with a new volunteer who is a member of ramblers back in the UK. Thursday and Friday this week we have our Volunteer Forum where all the VSOs meet up and have two discussion days. I am really looking forward to that.

Drummers

These drummers were playing outside the Umana Yana, which is a traditional Amerindian hut which is right outside where I work. It is used for community meetings and so on. It was the first meeting of the Mash committee, which plans the Mash carnival in February. So they had drummers and a parade of dancers following a steel band on a lorry. The music and dancing was great, but the meeting was a bit boring!

Beautiful Guyana?

People I meet tend to ask, "How do you like our beautiful country?" Up to now that has been a pretty difficult question to answer, without seeming rude. It is hard to see the beauty when there are lots of stuff that is quite shocking and depressing. But this week I managed to say how much I like it - getting into the half full attitude instead of half empty - it's easy to get around, the birds flowers and butterflies are amazing, the people are incredibly helpful and kind, you have a hundred fruit and vegetables to choose from, and having a cool swimming pool does help. I feel like I live here rather than having landed off another planet. As for the down side, it is a question of being able to maintain the positive yourself, so you don't fall into the pit. That is the challenge every day. What we have to offer is to give an example of positive, respectful and efficient ways of working - get rid of the blame culture.

Had quite a relaxing weekend - on Saturday it rained and rained so I did a bit of baking - which is a hobby which is impossible on a hot day. They have a raisin and rum mush here called carambola which is used for rich fruit cake, so I tried it with plantain (banana) and it came out quite well.
On Saturday midday I had a choir practice - they are joining with the catherdral choir to sing for the consecration and enthronement of the new Bishop of Guyana. I really enjoy choir now, I have some pals among the altos - it is great to do somthing with ordinary people.
One fo the VSOs stayed over the weekend bnefore goin off on ajungle survivla expedition for ten days. The last three days they are let loose with only a machete, they have to cope with finding food, water and shelter. They get tracked by Amerindians who check they are not dying. I don't think I'd fancy it - a bit of a mosquito hell.
At work things are getting better, my local counterpart has started this week. VSO tell us that we must work alongside local people so the work will continue when we have left. Otherwise we are plugging gaps and making no long term difference.

Botanical Gardens

This is the biggest and most interesting tree in the Botanical Gardens. It has loads of epiphyte plants growing on the branches. I often walk in the Botanical Gardens early in the morning which is the best time for spotting birds. I've seen macaws, toucans, jacanas which walk on water lily leaves, humming birds, woodpeckers, kites, shrikes of various types. I saw a cayman last week (a foot long crocodile). I go armed with binoculars and an umbrella (for the sun and to feel brave). The style of the gardens is decaying colonial. Families go there on a Sunday afternoon. The gardens are not that big, but you can walk through and then up the street to the sea wall and walk along to see what fish people are catching on the foreshore. I saw frigate birds with the big red pouches last week there. On the shore I've also been collecting shells, pebbles, sticks etc for using for maths games for the visually impaired pupils.

Pool

This is the pool at the posh hotel which is right next door to where we work. I go to swim at 7 am before work, and sometimes at lunchtime as well. We join the pool as a family group for a month at a time. The month rate is twice the day rate! There are quite a few volunteers who are members so it makes a good place to meet up and have a chat. Some volunteers buy food at the hotel, but I am more careful with my money and have managed so far to survive on my allowance, which is about 30 pounds a week. Last night I went to a poetry reading and art display in a gallery that was free. It is interesting to listen to the local intelligensia (he was into the philosophy of shadows) and it was also a great opportunity for people watching.

More about the flat: We have a three bedrooms, two balconies and two bathrooms, and a big open plan kitchen/dining area, lounge. We have the biggest and best flat but then we do share it. We can have friends to stay whenever which is handy for volunteers who are visiting from the regions. Then we can visit them out in the regions to make affordable weekend trips away.

Cheers

This is my flatmate and I at home. This was the first meal that I cooked for VSO friends in the flat - chilli and pasta.

It's before I had my hair cut!

House

We live in the upstairs flat of this house. It is unusual as it has a front garden. It has a kind of broad leaved grass which only grows when it rains, then they cut it with a machete. There is a small back garden as well which is mainly huge trees so is very shady. My landlady gives us bananas, mangos and breadfruit off the tree - the mangos are delicious, far better than the ones from the market, but the breadfruit are fairly disgusting to eat, a cross between glue and potato. Another volunteer is moving into the flat below us, and we have a peace corps volunteer in the house at the back - I go and chat to her when we have evening power cuts - she sits outside then because it is too hot inside without the fan going. Our flat is cooler as it is upstairs, and we get a cool cool breeze through the side windows.

Weekend at the Sea, Maths with the Blind

I'm glad to have found a way that I can get photos on the blog at last, but it takes an hour to load, so I have to do it when I know I am going to be in the office for a bit.
I had a good weekend break, staying in Corriverton on the coast near the border with Suriname. We swam in the sea at the only passable beach in Guyana - it felt like a proper little holiday. The sea was pretty clear and a sandy beach - you just have to look out of broken glass. The journey there is by minibus - you have to wait for the bus to fill up before you can leave - that took an hour- then three hours travel including a puncture stop (only 10 minutes). The trick with the travel here is to view it all as part of the entertainment, but it can get a bit wearing - hot, crowded, noisy music, terrible driving and no loo stops. It helps to have a good travelling companion, my Australian friend is both wise to the tricks of the trade as well as full of stories to help pass the time.
I have got a routine of working down at the Unit for the Blind where I demonstrate some activities and games for maths with the pupils, with staff observing and learning as we go. Then I'm writing it all up as a resource to go on the website. I'm trying to help them become empowered to be more creative by following up their ideas. I've got agreement to go down to the other Unit for the Blind In Linden for a week to run training for them. Then a lot of the things are equally useful for other special needs, so I'm hoping to do training in the other special schools. I can also run training in mainstream and for education officials to sensitise them about the potential of pupils with special needs. I can broaden out my work to anyone who will listen! There was cartoon in the paper today which went a bit like this:
"I had to do a presentation to day where I was pretending I knew what I was talking about"
"Oh, did it go alright?"
"Yes, luckily the audience were only pretending to listen"
A lot of training which is done here is like this. We are trying to make all our training sessions interactive and participatory so that helps to educate the people who run training.
Cheers
Kate

Diwali

This is one of the floats in the Diwali motorcade. The girl is dressed as Lakshi, who is the goddess of happiness and prosperity. She has her raised right hand painted with symbols, and sits perfectly still as she glides past - no looking round and no smiles. The roadside is thronged with people watching, there are police directing the traffic, and in the distance the sound of people setting off firecrackers as they wait for the procession to come past.

Birthday

Just about to cut the cake for my birthday. This is at my VSO friend's house - she cooked a meal for a few of us then we went out to see the Diwali parade. This is the first time I've come across a teapot in Guyana!

You can also note that I've had my hair all cut short - I couldn't stand the heat any more.

Entertainment

Lots going on this weekend - Friday was Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights. There was a massive motorcade - cars and lorries with strings of coloured lights and depictions of Laksmi, the goddess of happiness and prosperity, and Lord Ganesh, the god of luck. Meanwhile there are firecrackers (illegal) being set off all over the place, many under cars so they set off the car alarm just to add to the general mayhem. On Saturday night the Hindu households burn diahs which are small cndles all round their house and entrance - the lights are a symbol of knowledge and wisdom.
Saturday I had a birthday party with VSOs as well as some of my new friends from choir. I did an entertainment party where people brought along a song, a game or whatever - we had some fun with that. I got them doing some dancing (Zemer Atik) in the kitchen, we had some calypso singing, cheerleading, Dingbats and poems.
On Sunday I sang with the choir as part of a concert for pensioners. It turned out to be pensioners of the government (over 55 - so I'd qualify). Believe it or not they sang their song at the beginning: "We are Pensioners of the Government" to the tune of D'ye Ken John Peel. It was a bit like a Flanders and Swann song, but sung in earnest. If you get the local style of speech, the accent comes on the last syllable of the word - pensionERS, governMENT - then it fits the tune pretty well!
Nature notes: I am taking to walking in the Botanical Gardens on a Saturday morning, and this week saw a crocodile - OK just a cayman actually, which was a foot long, and a toucan flying around, with a white and red beak.

Workshop today

Today I was involved in my first training workshop. We were asked to do a general session about special needs to a group of Primary Teachers Grade 6 (top class). The three of us worked together and set up a participatory workshop in the style recommended by VSO. We did some things about disability awareness, causes of difficulties in learning to read, vision and hearing testing, teaching in different styles, adapting expectations to the needs of the child. It was very interesting as we all three have very different approaches, but all in all it went off well. We will be developing the ideas so that we can do similar for people at any level in the education system. The whole system is based on teaching the same thing at the same level at the same time, so there needs to be a root and branch change - it is difficult to see that happening within the reality of the education system here, along with current constraints financially. Still all we can do is to attempt to be models of good practice, and not be critical. Tricky though...
I am hoping to get my first project proposal in soon which is to get (charity) funding for a Braille embosser and use it to produce materials for people wanting to learn Grade 1 Braille, and to learn to read.
Cheers
Kate

Seawall in Georgetown

I hope this has a picture attached

Paralympics Guyana

I didn't go away this weekend after all, the trip to the decent beach is set up for two weeks time.
On Sunday I went along to the first Paralympics in Guyana. I have been visiting special schools and many of them were there, along with some adult Disabled Persons Organisations. I knew one of the headteachers, so I was drafted in to walk as part of the "march past" which sounds rather grand, but at least made a proper start to the proceedings. The Minister of Sport was there and made a nice (short) speech, including that they are expecting the Disability Bill to get passed this quarter. When that happens then there can be legal challenges to discriminatory practices, so there may be more action taken. The set up of the Paralympics was good, having a sporting feel to it rather than a paternalistic feel. Generally there is a lot of good work going on with disability organisations here. My job is to translate some of that into action in the creaky education system, where the curriculum is aimed at the most able child, everyone learns the same thing on the same day, and teachers would be criticised for doing anything different. Ho hum.
On Saturday morning early I cycled a few miles along the coast to visit my Australian friend and we walked further up along the sea wall - watching people fishing who were walking through the water with nets as well as using boats - and saw massive black frigate birds with red throat pouches. We walked as far as the next village which has an extensive market with live ducks and chickens, butchery stalls for goat and pork, and at least 50 types of fish, most of them still flapping on the stalls.
We also had some torrential downpours yesterday along with a massive thunder storm which was quite exciting - the house shook - the power failed - but at least that made the lightning show more impressive.
Work is difficult today, we have observed some unpleasantness/unfairness towards other staff so we are feeling unsettled ourselves. It is difficult being an outsider, but also an advantage perhaps.

Bit of positive

Today I met the colleague who I will be working with. She is enthusiastic and positive about what we have been doing so far. We will meet once a week until she really starts work on 1 November.
I'm also finding out about how much Braille stuff there is around here. I went to Guyana Society for the Blind today. It's a place where people do a bit cane seating or woodwork. They have a load of donated Braille books from Canada which are still in the boxes. Some are in French. They are dated 1988. They also have some antique Bibles and other books similarly ancient. Talking to a few people there made me realise the interest in learning more about Braille, but there is no one to teach them. So that all gives more backing to my idea of trying to set up a Braille printing machine here so that an unskilled user can produce Braille in Grade 1 at least for people to learn and practise the basics, along with a basic guide for teaching Grade 1.
I've got a trip set up for Saturday - Sunday to go to the only decent beach in Guyana, so I should be able to get a swim in the sea.
Cheers
Kate

Leisure and Reflection

On Thursday one of the VSOs went home - she was in a very remote area of the hinterland and was struggling with the isolation and lack of progress with her placement. It makes me glad to be in Georgetown. It is only about the size of Hereford, but has enough amenities to give some options. Also there are loads of VSos, Peace Corps, and Teach First vols, so there is a range of people to talk to, of many ages, nationalities and interests.
On Saturday I went for a long early walk through the Botanical Gardens, bird spotting, then way along the seawall - there were a couple of blokes bringing in some catfish from nes strung from poles on the shore. Big fish - up to 18 inches long. I met my Australian VSO friend walking there so we went off to explore a few cool (air conditioned) supermarkets.
Saturday evening another friend and I went along to the GuyExpo 2009, which is about promoting local business in a low carbon environment. The President of Guyana is trying to negotiate terms to get and international agreement in return for forest conservation. Guyana will certainly need to do something to get some extra cash as it will be in deep water literally if sea levels rise. They'll need lots of pumps as all the populated area is below sea level.
Sunday was a birthday bash for a few vols, a trip to a blackwater creek resort - that is a place where you can swim in a stream and pools and relax in benabs (thatched huts). The local soil is white sand. The black water is because of the iron content - it is like swimming in strong tea. It rained which was great as it cooled things down. Some of the vols had just done the big tourist trip to Kaiteur Falls, you can go overland for 5 days, then fly back.
Today I am feeling a bit less than enthusiastic about my placement, so don't be surprised if I only last a year, not two. I feel then that I can pace myself better. The education system is in a dire state, but the people I work with are focussed very much on the able. It is a bit like swimming through treacle. Still I hope to focus mainly on getting some improvement for the visually impaired where I feel I can have most impact. The baseline of current provision is so low that I can't fail to do some good.
Cheers for now,
Kate

Busy Weekend

My flatmate was away for the weekend, so I was able to get up early on Saturday without having to creep around. Early on Saturday there is a farmers' market a couple of streets away, so I went down to get a few provisions. Provisions is what they call the basic root vegetables etc here. My latest recipe (courtesy of my nice landlady) is for metagee. This is root vegetables (cassava, sweet potato, eddo), plantain, onion, garlic, celery leaves, grated ginger, chilli all cooked in coconut milk (grate coconut into water then squeeze out) then with fish laid over the top. Then you have dumplings cooked in the top, the dumplings are flour and cornmeal. It was pretty good, but takes ages to prepare all the vegetables. Fortunately I had some guests who were happy to peel and chop stuff up. I had another VSO staying overnight - she lives out in the sticks so appreciates a chance to see the bright lights of Georgetown - well we both went to the Catholic Cathedral for 6 am mass, then went swimming in the hotel pool, and back in time for breakfast.
Later on I cycled to a sports day run by the Rotary Club for children with disabilities. They call it paralympics, but it is more like a school sports day with running races etc. After each race the children were given a pair of shoes (crocs).
On Sunday afternoon there was a Deaf Awareness concert, called Talking Hands Dancing Feet. It was brilliant, with children and teenagers doing various dance and skits etc, all with signing and interpreting where necessary. The whole thing was delayed an hour in starting, which is just Guyana time, so you have to chat to your neighbour to keep entertained.
The evening was the concert with the choir. Fortunately my costume was ready in time. I really enjoyed taking part - by yesterday I felt more confident about my alto parts, and they gave me a person to stand next to who could keep me on track. There were other music performers including a solo violin which was very professional, as well as a steel band who played the overture from the Nutcracker. I didn't know they did anything so ambitious. It is great to mix with local people in that context as you have the challenge of the pieces to give a focus.
Back to work this morning, then a major trip out to Linden Special School tomorrow. We are being picked up at 6 am.

Special School Visit

I went to New Amsterdam yesterday which is about 2 hours drive away, leaving at 5.30 am. I visited a special school, which takes about 40 children who have learning difficulties and disabilities. There are four classes: deaf children, beginners, middle and older children. The deaf children have a teacher who has done a sign language course, so I was able to try out my rudimentary signing. The children are mixed ages from 5 to 16. The curriculum in the special school is the same as for all other schools, they adapt it themselves according to what they feel the children can do. There is no guidance about how to adapt the curriculum, and no additional curriculum to meet their needs. This may be an area that I get involved in (maybe life skills), but at the moment I am just observing what the local situation is. There have been speech and language therapists and occupational therapists coming to the school, but at the moment there aren't any in the country - some of my VSO colleagues are training local people.
On the positive side, the school has separate rooms for each class, and space outside for them to play with some rather antiquated swings etc. The teachers seem more motivated than I have seen in the mainstream schools. I observed teachers dividing up the group to give the children different work according to what level they needed, this is the first time I have seen this. Usually the teachers do the standard chalk and talk lesson, with choral repetition, choral answering of questions, and the children do what they can, there is no differentiation of the work. There is individual questioning of children as well, they have to stand up to answer the question, so it really puts them on the spot. In mainstream schools it is often too noisy for the teacher and the children to hear well enough to do this - (Primary schools usually have 8 - 10 classes in one big room separated by blackboards.)
So you can see that there are lots of challenges here. I am just trying to observe and see the overall context before leaping in to try to find a corner where I may be able to contribute something useful. I am still waiting for my local colleague to be appointed so that I have someone to discuss and work with. Otherwise it is not sustainable.
At the weekend the choir that I am in is performing. I have borrowed a recorder to practise and learn my alto parts, so I am a bit more confident about it now. It is in a local church on Sunday evening. I enjoy being able to mix with local people, as well as focussing on something different from work. It is a good hobby.
Cheers, Kate
Kate

Deaf Awareness Week, Balmy Breezes

September is Education Month (Punctuality and Attendance - the keys to success) and this is Deaf Awareness Week. These things are declared grandly in the local paper or local TV, but it is well nigh impossible to find out when and where anything is actually happening. But yesterday I succeeded in joining the Supporters Group for Deaf Persons marching behind a banner with a police motorcycle in front to sort out the traffic. Then there was a conference day covering solidarity, HIV AIDS, Advocacy and Rights. There were about 30 people including lots of teenagers, all using sign language apparently very effectively. I am hoping to learn, but of course it is the American version. This week there are visits to schools to promote Deaf Awareness and I'm going along to a couple of these as well as visiting the Police - to raise awareness of issues with the police tackling groups of youths who may be deaf. That should be interesting.
On Sunday evening we met up with VSOs and friends as one of the VSOs is leaving. We went to a bar with terraces overlooking the beach - cool balmy breezes and dark, so you cannot see the mud coloured sea.

Speedboat trip

I went off for the weekend to visit another VSO who is working near the coast to the north of here. We went on a minibus at 6.30 am from the market place in Georgetown, then a speedboat ride on the Essiquibo river for an hour, then a shared taxi to the place which is called Charity. The speedboat was pretty exciting taking a dozen people on a wooden boat alongside mangrove covered islands (lifebelts provided and tarpaulins to keep off the spray). Charity is the end of the road literally, where goods get traded with river craft from up the Pomeroon River. Our VSO friend used to work for the World Wildlife Fund so is very knowledgeable. He lives in a quiet place on the first floor with views from the balcony across paddy fields towards the palm trees on the coast. We saw scarlet ibis flying over, the locals call them curry curry birds because of the colour. Also saw vultures, birds of prey, lizards, wasps an inch long and other flying bugs worth avoiding. On the way back we were in the taxi and were stopped by armed police. I think they are looking for drugs smugglers bringing stuff down from Venezuala down the rivers. But they let us through without any bother.

Visits to Schools

On Friday I visited some primary and secondary schools. It was a real eye opener. In the secondary schools there appeared to be a lot of chalk and talk, but the primary schools were incredible, in one place there were ten classes in one big room, separated by blackboards, and with very little space between. There was a high level of noise and lack of privacy for the teacher to establish a relationship with their class. The teacher had to repeat the question to each group of children in the class so they could hear. Again the main method was copying from the blackboard. It is difficult to see how children with special needs could receive the support they need. We have also found out that the organisation we work for (NCERD) is responsible for continuing professional developement and provision of materials for teachers, but that responsibility has been devolved to Regional Councils for things like providing and maintaining equipment.
Today I went to a unit for children with a visual impairment which is attached to a secondary school, but also supports children in nursery and primary. I met the head teacher who said that the main difficulty they had was in maths. For other subjects the children go to the mainstream classes, then bring the work to the unit where they go over things, and record bits onto casette for them to listen to. But for maths they only do basic number work and money in the unit itself. So there is a lot of work that I can contribute there. She said that I was the answer to her prayers. Let's hope so. However I have to do things in a sustainable way, ie I have to make sure that I work alongside a local person so that they can continue when I leave. I am arranging to go to observe sessions later this week hopefully.

National Literacy Day, Early Grade Reading Assessment

Yesterday was National Literacy Day. We attended the event here at NCERD. The day kicked off with standing up to say the National Pledge, then very formal speeches of welcome to an audience of ministry officials, head teachers etc. The Minister of Education talked about the importance of literacy in an age when children are tempted away from books towards watching TV and playing computer games. There were displays from bookshops, displays of learning materials for nursery, primary and secondary teachers. Then there were storytelling for groups of various age school children. It was good to have contact with some school children at last. There were groups of 10 children from each school with a teacher - they may have been selected on the basis of smartness and quietness (mainly girls). Their uniforms are extremely smart right to the colour of hairbands. There was barely a murmur while they wait half an hour for an activity to begin.
Today we had a presentation of the results of the Early Grade Reading Assessment which is a piece of research conducted by academics from the US. The results are appalling, particularly in children understanding how to sound out words and comprehend what is written. We believe that many teachers rely on old fashioned writing on the blackboard which the class copies down, without understanding the meaning. A programme of jolly phonics has been introduced to schools over the last couple of years, but the results are still poor, allegedly because training given to staff is not implemented. Why? Because many teachers have little training and motivation is low, because many schools are very isolated so support is difficult, because when teachers get experienced they go overseas to work so there is little continuity.
So all in all there are plenty of challenges here. My job is to set up a Special Needs Unit at NCERD to address the training needs of teachers in special schools, in SEN units attached to mainstream schools and of teachers who will be expected to include more special children in mainstream classes. My first step has to be a baseline of what is currently going on. There has been a lot written down about initiatives over the last couple of years, but how much have things actually changed? My first visit to schools will be on Friday, so that will help get my feet on the ground a bit more.
I have tried again to put a picture on here, but without success. I think the processing on this computer is not up to it. A couple of us are planning a trip on Saturday and Sunday to go North to a place called Charity to visit another VSO. It involves a speedboat ride on the Essequibo River, so I hope to have some good stories to tell after that. Cheers Kate
Cheers
Kate

Choir and Meeting with Eyecare Guyana

Two of us VSOs went along to a local choir for the first time last night, it was a real hoot. Turn up at a local secondary school hall, help get out the chairs and sit around. The woman conducting is very entertaining, laughing all the time but also very clear and strict about what she wants which is great. There were about 25 people, with a good number in all the four parts. But they were glad to have more altos. We did some Handel, Spirituals, Gospel, locally written songs, and the standard was really high, quite a challenge for me. We did some rhythmic work as clapping to accompany a song. We were sat in front of the basses, some of whom took solos and that was a real inspirational sound. They were all local people, of a mix of ages, very friendly. They said they would make sure we got home safely, and we were given a lift with someone who was the head of a special school, where I will be going to visit soon, so that was good. The choir meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so I am looking forward to going again. I asked someone there to help me find a local dance group that I could join, so I'm hoping to get that sorted as well.

Yesterday I also went to meet someone from Eyecare Guyana. They have a little office in Georgetown. They do advocacy, campaigning for funding for free glasses for people who can't afford them, and give rehabilitation training eg they give out long canes which are provided by a charity, along with training. The canes are good for indoors, but the external environment around here is absolutely dire for anyone with low vision, no kerbs, loads of open holes into drains, changes of level, broken concrete paths, street vendors, insane traffic and so on. This chap says that the school system is managing to get a few kids with visual impairment through their equivalent of GCSE English, History etc, by using amanuenses, but have no way of doing maths or science diagrams and stuff. So he suggests that I could set up a programme for training new teachers, as well as CPD for existing teachers. I also found out today from the maths people here that they do not make any adaptions to booklets, exam papers etc, not even photo enlarging, so there is a lot to be done. It is great to feel I have found some work that I can get involved in.
Cheers, Kate

Second day at work

I'm on my second day at work. The person that I will be mainly working with is a local SEN Coordinator who should be in post by the end of September, so up till then I will be talking, observing, visiting schools and trying to get an overall picture of the current position: a baseline. Then if I do a project I will be able to measure if it has had any output, outcome and impact. We have already had a power cut this morning, but apparently they only last for half an hour or an hour.
My morning routine is shaping up: I managed to cycle to work with no punctures, it is about a mile and a half, then a swim in the pool at the posh hotel, there is another lady who swims early every day, so I have a little chat to her, get into work just before eight. Having the bike will be worthwhile because it is so hot later in the day. At least the bike gets you there quickly without having the heat reflecting up at you from the road. I hunted round to find a shop to buy a spanner after work yesterday, and got quite lost, but got an adjustable one eventually, only to find when I got home that it was useless. So I will go down to the best hardware shop in town at lunchtime. Hopefully it won't rain. Yesterday we had very heavy rain for about half an hour. At least it cools things down a bit. I finish work at 4.30, and as the shops can shut at 5pm, it can be difficult to get things. I have to be very focussed and know exactly where to go and my route.
Cheers
Kate

First Day at Work

I am busy meeting my new colleagues at the National Centre for Educational Resource Development. I didn't realise that there are so many people working here, 75! Our room is quite cool and has a kettle and cups available, so that is good. The computers are still to arrive, so I am writing this in the IT room which has six computers with internet access and six which don't. We have been listening to at various meetings and introductory chats today, so we have a lot to process. But we have an event on Tuesday 8 September which is National Literacy Day. We hope to do add on something about Special Needs. They are putting out a radio promotion to suggest that everyone in offices all around the country stops work for 10 minutes to read a book at 1.30 pm. I have set up a meeting with someone who works in advocacy for Eyecare Guyana, so I will find out more about how it is for people with visual impairment in these parts. But my job is about all special needs not just VI.
I spent quite a lot of time at the weekend on two hobbies: cooking local recipes for VSO friends, and helping fix punctures on the very cheap bikes we bought last week. We are just off to complain at the bike shop, and try to get some better inner tubes.
cheers
Kate

Trip out of Georgetown

Today two of us went out to visit a couple of volunteers who are about 6 miles out of Georgetown, they are going to be working at the Teacher Training College. The minibuses give a rather wild ride, weaving in and out of the traffic, blowing the horn and stopping suddenly to pick up anyone who looks like they may like a ride, but they're very cheap. The area was quite different from being in town, big wide verges and houses set in gardens. Some of the houses are very posh, but in other parts they are little more than shacks. We visited the market which was much quieter than in Georgetown so it was easier to look at all the interesting fruit and vegetables on sale. There is thunder around today, and it may rain. Last time some of the roads were flooded a few inches, they say that our area floods so we need to get ourselves some wellies.

Houses and bikes

I have visited some houses that the other volunteers are living in, and ours is a really nice house, with everything working OK. I am hoping to get mesh on the windows which will be a good mosquito barrier when it gets a problem in the rainy season which starts in November. Some of the other volunteers have no running water yet, or are next to a liquor store. We had a visit from a Peace Corps volunteer yesterday evening, she lives just behind us, and is working in an HIV/AIDS project. She's been in country for a while and knows some things to do which are free, like having Spanish lessons at the Venezuelan Embassy. My housemate is interested as well so we may go to a beginners class. It gets dark at 6.30 pm, and it is unwise to go out alone in the dark, so it is good to have some companions who join in with.
Today four of us have been buying new bikes, the others are nervous about cycling, so I have some skills to share with them. I am also hoping to be useful in fixing up bikes and punctures. Tomorrow we have a trip to town to go round the market with one of our landladies, so that will be useful to get used to how to buy fruit and veg and prices.

Moved in and half a day at work

I have moved into my house. It is fine, our landlady is a lovely old lady from Trinidad who made us welcome and showed us everything. So I felt at home enough to sleep well which is the main thing. We are in an upstairs flat which has a big lounge area with a TV, a balcony leading off, three bedrooms and two bathrooms, so that is pretty cool. It is literally cool as well as we have ventilation from all sides so there was a good breeze in the night, so I did not have to keep the fan on, so that is quieter. I have lots of sorting out to do later today.
There are three of us working at NCERD which is the National Centre for Educational Resource Development. We went in this morning to have a meeting with the Principal and some key staff. It was good to meet people and find our way around. I found out a bit more about what I will be doing:
Upgrade competence of teachers in Special Schools
Raise awareness of special needs throughout the country
Work with Ministry of Health about screening
Liaise with the National Commission for Disability
Carry on with the work of the last volunteer who left 6 months ago.
Produce learning materials
Talk on radio and use publications to promote our work
Travel around to do needs assessments
Assist with maths and science phobics!
That should keep me busy....

Relaxation time

Some of us have joined the pool at the very posh hotel which is next door to where I will be working. I was in the pool at 6 this morning, it's cooler then. I think the hotel charges 200 pounds a night, so is aimed at diplomats and ex patriates. We have been noticing how many staff there are everywhere, just the opposite of the UK. There are security people on the door, three staff on reception, then it's another person's job to smile and hand you a towel. People here are on very low salaries but make up for it by insisting on recognition of status - very smart and very bureaucratic. For instance I have bought a mobile phone - you have to take your passport, they print a receipt, stick tax stamps on the back, sign it, rubber stamp it, then you go to someone else to pay for it. We are warned that it takes ages to get anything agreed - for instance if you want to get some stationery at work there will be a long winded procedure with different staff having to agree. As my placement is at the Ministry of Education I am expecting this to be even more extreme - watch future blogs! So the name of the game is to take it easy, to slow down and go at the local pace - the saying is that things will be done "just now" which means between 5 minutes and a week.
Today we get to meet our employer and move into our accommodation - mine is a three bedroom house shared with another volunteer. Then we get the rest of the week off, so we can settle down into shopping, cooking, and generally finding our feet. I'm getting an allowance to buy a bike today.
Nature notes: saw a tiny hummingbird this morning close to the National Park which is the jogging place.

Seawall in Georgetown

Just to prove that I am really here! The sea wall is a good evening place to stroll and catch the breeze.

Settling in

Over the weekend we have been relaxing and getting used to Georgetown. We have had a tour of the shops - that's the veg market as well as the shopping mall which has the only escalator in Guyana. We've had a stroll on the beach which is pretty dirty, so not for swimming. Some of us are clubbing together to join a pool/gym at the posh hotel, which is over the road from NCERD where three of us are working.
On Sunday some of us got a minicab over to the Botanical Gardens, they have a manatee in a pool, we saw its back, nose, tail and find, but not all at the same time. The afternoon was a pot luck supper at a volunteer's flat - we had a chance to talk things over with current volunteers including a blind volunteer [for RNC readers she knows Hetal B!]. I went to the church service at the Anglican Church, it is one of the biggest wooden buildings in the world - it has a couple of pigeons flying around the roof, so is a bit like Marden Church...
I'm getting more used to the heat, certainly for walking around the city. I've got a morning run sorted - that's starting at 6 am when it is cool enough. There is a National Park where there are loads of other joggers so that is a safe place to run and there are shady trees. I've seen loads of weird and wonderful birds, butterflies, flowering plants and trees. Georgetown varies from elegant colonial white wooden buildings surrounded by palm trees, to very poor areas with people sleeping rough, but everywhere are filthy ditches and scattered rubbish. Mozzies are not too bad so far - they are apparently worse in the rainy season which starts around December. I hope to get some pictures loaded soon, but this computer is Windows 98 so does not work. I am asking a friend who has a laptop to help.
Cheers Kate

Arrival

Arrived safely at 11 pm Guyana time, which is 5 am UK time. We are staying at a guesthouse for the first couple of weeks - it is a traditional wooden house in quite a quiet area, although apparently it may be a bit noisier tonight as there is a bar across the road. There are twelve new volunteers who all arrived yesterday, so we are doing the introductions and getting to know the staff at the VSO Office today. Some of us walked up to the sea wall first thing, someone was swimming but it looks pretty muddy as it is close to the mouth of the Demarara river. It was very hot and humid overnight, but we had the fan on low so it was passable. I have not seen a mosquito yet! The guesthouse will be cooking for us - it was bacon eggs and cheese today, with lots of refills of tea, so I am feeling more with it.
Love Kate

Week to go!

One week to go and things are getting sorted at last. I've got the main bags packed and weighed, and just the last minute shopping to do now. I fly out to Guyana on Thursday 13 August, and then have 10 days of orientation in country before starting work.
Those of you who are successfully reading this - do you have any hints about how to get into this blog? - then I'll pass them on to people who can't!
Cheers
Kate

I will be living and working in Georgetown.

Kate

Test to check the time!

I hope to be able to post an update every week with a picture so that family, friends and supporters can find out how things are going.
Please drop me an email if you want to know more.
kate.stevens@hotmail.co.uk
Here is the link for my fundraising page:
http://www.justgiving.com/katestevens4
Cheers
Kate