Mail and Holidays

Hello from the Essequibo Coast! Today I met with the Head Teacher at my school and got some information. If you want to send me mail, please address it like this:

William Alex Berry
c/o Anna Regina Multilateral School
Essequibo Coast, Region 2
Guyana SOUTH AMERICA

Please be sure to include the SOUTH AMERICA because apparently the post office sometimes gets Guyana mixed up with Ghana, and it understandably takes a long time to get a package back from Africa.

Here are the national holidays in Guyana. I anticipate having 2 weeks off around Christmas (though my family will be visiting during the first week, and 2 weeks around Easter. I'm not sure of those exact dates, but if you want to come visit me while I'm teaching in Anna Regina, here are some holidays where I'll have a long weekend, etc.

November Divali
December 25 Christmas Day
December 26 Boxing Day
January 1 New Year
Early January Youman Nabi
February 23 Republic Day
March or April Good Friday and Easter Sunday
May 1 Labor Day
July 1 Caricom Day
First Monday in August Emancipation Day

If you want to come visit, please let me know and I'll be happy to provide you with more information.

A Day in the Life: 8-26-2010

I'm going to try and do a few of these hour by hour logs of my days just to amuse myself. I also think it might help me note some things I might not otherwise think are remarkable enough to mention in the blog, but you might find interesting. Or it could be really boring.

26 August 2010

7:30 - Wake up sweaty. Brush teeth. Wash face. Shave. Retrieve dress shirt from clothesline outside. Get dressed in nice clothes (khakis and a button down). Sweat*.

8:00 - Go down to the multipurpose auditorium for breakfast. Scrambled eggs, bread, bacon, pineapple and papaya. Mmm. Sweat.

8:30 - Walk about 15 minutes to the nearby secondary school where we're doing our teaching practicum all week. Sweat.

9:00 - Class begins. Teaching the 4th form (10th grade) students about quadratic functions. They said they needed help with it, but in reality, they haven't even learned about it in the first place and also haven't really had linear equations. We find this out after the 3rd day of teaching about quadratics. No wonder they were struggling. Lesson goes ok. Sweat.

10:30 - Second class. Teaching the 5th form (11th grade), same lesson about quadratics. Observed by Ministry of Education Official. Students still struggling. Do activity where we drop a ball and use the time and equation of motion to estimate height (yay physics!). Observer says we need to work on our lesson planning and classroom presence. No surprises there. Nervous sweat.

12:00 - Walk back to teachers college for lunch. Sweat.

1:00 - Ministry observer presents to our class about Guyanese schools. Dress code, appropriate behavior, required paperwork, etc. Hot, tired and trying to stay awake. She goes on forever. Sweat.

4:00 - Discussion with WorldTeach security adviser, Kitty. He tells me that there is basically nothing to worry about in Anna Regina crime-wise. Least dangerous of any of the sites volunteers are going to. Also tells a story about how like 3 days ago he was near the market in Georgetown and some touristy white guy gets hit by a dude on a bicycle. The dude on the bicycle tries to grab the white guys stuff, pulls a gun, and somehow Kitty ends up between the white guy and the gun. He said he just stared at the guy and he backed down. Kitty is a badass. Less sweaty.

6:00 - Dinner in the auditorium. Fried dough and salt fish. Small portions for dinner in Guyana. Sweat.

7:30 - Take cab to Georgetown for trivia night at an expat bar. My group wins because we are mistakenly gifted 2 rounds where our score is doubled, rather than the usual 1 double round. No one says anything. The other WorldTeach team wins the "rum round," where the winner of the round gets a bottle of rum. Delicious rum (we won it the week before). Bar is air conditioned, but we sat outside. More sweat.

11:30 - Arrive home from bar. Shower in the dark (bathroom has lights, but they haven't worked since I've been there). Water is cold, but refreshing. Wash underwear in shower to keep laundry pile under control. Begin sweating immediately after stopping the water.

12:00 - Set mosquito net down over bed. Read a little using headlamp. Sweating profusely. Sleep.

*Old Spice Sweat Defense is awesome, btw.

Photos

I'm going to be posting photos on Facebook.
Here's a link to the album.

Guyanese Things: A Brief Dispatch on Karaoke

Karaoke seems to be pretty popular in Guyana. You can be hanging out at a seemingly normal bar, minding your own business on the patio, and then within 30 seconds a screen has been erected and a projector has been fired up.

Now I've never actually been to karaoke in the US (shameful, I know), but I think I have a pretty good feel for the point of it. Get really drunk, sing some embarassing stuff that is either enjoyed ironically or for mild amusement. That doesn't seem to be the way things work in Guyana. Cheesy 80's ballads are extremely popular in this country, and large, grown-ass men have no qualms about belting out all sorts of stuff with complete seriousness. It also helps that most of the performers are pretty talented, but even those that don't just really get after it. You won't find any embarassed mumbling into the mic in Guyana. Instead that guy is going 110% on "Flying without wings," or "Rocketman." Once you get over the weirdness of it, its pretty impressive. We've also been told that Guyanese culture in general is not very accepting towards homosexuality, yet no one raises an eye when you bust a lung to some Celine Dion. Everyone is usually pretty supportive as well, no heckling, booing or laughing. There's even some applause for the really talented folks. Altogether a positive experience.

Having entered a karaoke establishment for the first time just this month* (see, cultural growth already!), I've gained a newfound appreciation for the music videos that accompany some of these songs. It's not like the "Total Eclipse of the Heart" wasn't weird enough on its own, but when its been replaced by some woman in lacy stockings wandering around an empty house through a hazy filter, the bar has really been raised. I also love the lame shots of slow-motion pigeons, crashing waves and mountains. Maybe that's what I should look into if this teaching thing doesn't really work out. Karaoke videographer.

*sang some super lame Backstreet Boys song. "I'll Never Break Your Heart" maybe? Would have much preferred some N*Sync or even a BB song I knew better, but you take what you can get I guess.

August Newsletter

Hello friends and family. I have had an eventful first week in Guyana. I left from JFK on Sunday night for a 6 hour flight to Georegetown, Guyana. While Guyana is normally an hour ahead of east coast time, daylight savings time is not observed so there was no time zone change. After a restless flight, the WorldTeach staff picked us up at the airport, took us to the Cyril Potter College of Education, where we are staying for orientation. CPCE is where all teachers in Guyana go for training. I think their experience is a bit different from those of their American counterparts. While CPCE is on the Georgetown power grid, there is no Georgetown city water. Rain water is collected and pumped up to holding tanks where it can be used for showers , washing clothes etc. We have been advised that in all of Guyana the water is unsafe to drink. Across the street from CPCE is a hardware store that also is certified to sell purified water, so we fill up 10 gallon (roughly) jugs every day. The 14 of us go through about 2 jugs a day! In addition to the water situation, there are no washing machines. All washing is done by hand. We got a brief lesson on one of the first days, but today was the first day I actually did my laundry. It took me about an hour and a half to wash about half a load of laundry.

The CPCE dorms are very simple. There are two single beds with shelves above them, a single grade school desk and two cabinets, in a room that's about 8'x12'. We currently have 1 person per room and I've taken over all the available space and can't imagine having to share. The wall facing the hallway consists of sliding or swinging doors. In order to allow crucial air flow, the doors completely consist of what I'd call wooden blinds, angled slats of wood that allow air flow but also privacy. They don't really do much to dampen noise though, so you can hear anyone talking pretty much anywhere on the entire floor. That's taken some getting used to. I'm mentioning all these tidbits about the conditions here at the school not because they're causing me much strife, but instead to help give a picture of how the teachers I'll be working with at my school likely experienced post-secondary education here in Guyana. The contrast to the US is pretty staggering.

We've been pretty busy getting prepared for our year of teaching. We've talked about cultural differences, the role of the volunteer in the community, extra-curricular activities, different learning types, evaluating learning etc. We've been to Georgetown proper a few times to get the lay of the land. I think we'll have to go to Georgetown for any hard-to-find items. There are some areas we've been advised not to go, or at least not to bring valuables into, but I've felt pretty safe on the balance.

I'm getting anxious to get to my teaching site, Anna Regina. Its about 3 hours from Georgetown, and I'll have to take a cab/bus, a boat across a wide river delta, and then another cab/bus. I think I'll take a taxi the first time, just to help me manage all my luggage. Anna Regina is on the Essequibo Coast, named after the Essequibo River. It is supposed to be a pretty quiet town, which I'm looking forward to experiencing. I'll be teaching math, physics or chemistry. The school, Anna Regina Multilateral School is supposed to be one of the best in the country. I'll report back with more details once I arrive in Anna Regina in a few weeks.

We have a wonderful group of 14 volunteers, 4 guys and 10 girls. Of the guys, 1 is from England and one is from Canada. I'll be living with the Canadian (Nova Scotia to be more exact), who is a pretty affable guy. The girls are all from the US, pretty much from all over. There's one girl from North Carolina, so I have someone to appreciate my southern hospitality. Most of the volunteers are going to be placed either very close to Georgetown, up one river or on the coast like I will be. There is one pair who's going to be a little bit in the interior, but I think most of us were expecting to be in more demanding conditions. While I was prepared to be in a very remote area, I think I'll appreciate regular internet access and electricity as the year goes on.

I think that's about it for now, I'm hoping to send these emails monthly. I think there will be more content as I get to my site and become more immersed in the culture.

Thanks again for all your support and I look forward to writing you again.

Alex

On Like Donkey Kong

Arrived in Georgetown yesterday.  The flight was alright, not too shabby.  My bags are stupidly heavy, I am not an expert packer.  Hopefully I'll learn from lugging these bags around.

There are 15 total volunteers here 4 dudes and 11 girls.  They're all pretty nice, math and science people.We're doing a lot of self-evaluating right now, thinking about our expectations, how we think teaching should work, etc.  I think its designed to help us put the techniques we'll be learning in the coming
weeks in perspective, but I'm a little anxious to start working on my teaching skills.

Slept fine (a little sweaty) last night, but woke up with a bunch of  mosquitoes inside my bed net today.  I figured if the net was up against the bed that would be enough, but I have moved it so its touching the floor all around.  Somehow I didn't seem to get bit all that much though, not sure how that happened.  The weather is not too bad, its not insanely hot, but it is insanely humid.  I'm pretty much sweaty all the time.  We have cold water showers, which are pretty refreshing, unless Georgetown is blacked out, where were missing power for about 3 hrs today.  I went running along the seawall with this girl before lunch today.  She ran cross country and track and field, so while I was dying, I think she was a little bored.  The Atlantic here isn't much to look at, really flat, muddy beachfront and the water is really brown, I'm assuming from all the river runoff nearby.  I got sunburned, even though I was only outside for like 45 min.  After the run, my new British mate, Luke, who was waiting for us by the seawall, found some East Indian dudes playing cricket and net fishing.  He played with them a little, then they offered us some sprite and vodka.  Guyanese vodka is not very good.

I think that's about it for now, hopefully I'll have semi-regular posts as the weeks go on.  I'll be in Georgetown training for 3 weeks or so.

Countdown: 2

I'm leaving for Guyana August 8th.  Each weekday, I'll post some information about the country.

Guyanese National Anthem

Dear land of Guyana, of rivers and plains,
Made rich by the sunshine, and lush by the rains.
Set gem-like and fair, between mountains and sea,
Your children salute you, dear land of the free.

Green land of Guyana, our heroes of yore,
Both bondsmen and free, laid their bones on your shore.
This soil so they hallowed, and from them are we,
All sons of one mother, Guyana the free.

Great land of Guyana, diverse though our strains,
We are born of their sacrifice, heirs of their pains.
And ours is the glory their eyes did not see,
One land of six peoples, united and free.

Dear land of Guyana, to you will we give,
Our homage, our service, each day that we live.
God guard you, Great Mother, and make us to be
More worthy our heritage, land of the free.

source

Countdown: 3

I'm leaving for Guyana August 8th.  Each weekday, I'll post some information about the country.

Jonestown

Clearly not a period photograph (source).

 So Jonestown.  It's probably the best-known thing related to Guyana, even if most people have forgotten that Jim Jones decided to park his flock there.  

4 Sentence Recap:  Under a growing national spotlight of negative attention in the US, Jim Jones, leader of the People's Temple cult decided to move his band of followers to Guyana, where the socialist-leaning government was agreeable to the cults various conspiracy (growing US fascism, multinational corporate influence on the US government, US government racism, etc.).   The People's Temple Agricultural Project (nicknamed Jonestown, naturally) was established on 3,800 acres of land in the Northwest Guyana and inhabited by nearly 1000 cultists at its peak in 1978.  Responding to concerns of defected cult members, US congressman Leo Ryan to visit the Jonestown compound with a media entourage, collected many more defectors, and was sent off in a hail of bullets that ended his life.  With Ryan's death ensuring a US crackdown on the People's Temple, an already unhinged Jones enacted a well-rehearsed plan for mass suicide where cult members drank cyanide laced Kool-Aid, those unwilling to participate were murdered and Jones himself died of self-inflicted gunshot wounds.

Other Fun Facts

Excluding natural distasters, the Jonestown massacre constituted the greatest single losses of American civilian life until the incidents of September 11, 2001.

Congressman Ryan was the first and only congressman murdered in the line of duty.

Before leaving Jonestown for the airstrip, Congressman Ryan had told a Temple attorney that he would issue a report that would describe Jonestown "in basically good terms."  So there was essentially no reason for him to be murdered.

Surprisingly, Jones was said to be abusing injectable Valium, Quaaludes, stimulants, and barbiturates.

source

"Are you excited?"

So naturally, I as I tell people what I'm going to be doing for the next year, I get asked a few questions over and over again.  After "why?" (with accompanying look of bewilderment) and "so is that in Africa?" I get asked if I'm excited.  And usually I say yes.  But the reality of the situation is that I wasn't really all that excited up until a few days ago.  I have trouble getting excited for big trips when I don't really know what I'm getting myself into.  It probably has something to do with the human brain not being very good at predicting the future.  It just didn't really seem real that I was going to be in Guyana in less than a month's time.  Well today I found out where I'll be placed, and got to read a letter from the WorldTeach volunteer who's currently at my future school.

Countdown: 4

I'm leaving for Guyana August 8th.  Each weekday, I'll post some information about the country.

Mashramani

A Mashramani parade (source)

If for some reason you hear someone talking about Mashramani, just substitute "Carnival" in its place.  Mashramani, or "Mash," is an Amerindian word meaning "the celebration of a job well done."  Mashramani is usually celebrated on February 23rd, Guyanese Republic Day.  According to Wikipedia, a decision was made to rename prior Republic Day carnival celebrations with an Amerindian name.  Some upstanding Amerindian gentleman's grandfather suggested that the Amerindian Festival celebrating a special event was like "Muster Many," or Mashirimehi in Amerindian, and sounded in Arawak like Mashramani. And so the magic was born.  The first official Mashramani was celebrated on February 23rd, 1970 in Linden. 

Beyond this information, Wikipedia is unhelpful, so the reader is left to draw their own conclusions.  My take is that it's probably pretty similar to Brazilian Carnival, New Orleans Mardi Gras, etc.  I'll do my best to report back in the aftermath.

Countdown: 5

I'm leaving for Guyana August 8th.  Each weekday, I'll post some information about the country.

Lethem Rodeo 

There are cows at the Lethem Rodeo. Shocking. (source)

Every Easter, the town of Lethem, near the border of Brazil,  sheds its sleepy small town cocoon and blossoms as a resplendent rodeo town.  Or something like that.  People from all of Guyana and northern Brazil come to Lethem for the Rupununi Rodeo, the brainchild of an American expat, Ben Hart.  After working on the railroad in Guyana, Mr. Hart settled down in Lethem and began having rodeo competitions on the weekends, which evolved into the international spectacle.  The Rupununi is the savanna region in the south of Guyana, a stark contrast to the dense jungles that cover most of the northern part of the country. 

The spectacle that is the Rupununi Rodeo sounds fitting for what is effectively a frontier town:

The festivities unofficially begin on Good Friday night when there is aprty at Macedo's Texaco petrol station.  Everybody in town gathers around the gas pump to smoke cigarettes, drink Guyanese rum and Brazilan beer and eat meat on a stick.  It's a surreal scene complete with Georgetown, scantily clad Brazilian women, drunken foreign volunteers and plenty of locas.  It's a fitting start to a rodeo weekend.

Sounds like a typical Friday night at the Wal-Mart in my hometown (substitute trashy girls from the next town in place of Brazilian chicks), so I think I'll fit right in if I get to attend the rodeo.  On Saturday and Sunday the best savanna cowboys (vaqueros) strut their stuff at the rodeo grounds, competing in bull-riding, horse-riding, steer roping, wild cow milking, etc.  Most of the cowboys are barefoot Amerindians and events are open to all.

Some of the placements, which I'm still waiting on, are near Lethem, so hopefully I can make it to the rodeo.

 Quote and other info adapted/taken from Guyana, a Bradt guidebook by Kirk Smock.

Countdown: 6

I'm leaving for Guyana August 8th.  Each weekday, I'll post some information about the country.

Kaieteur Falls

The world's tallest waterfall (source, click to enlarge).

Naturally, everyone wants a piece of "world's biggest."  Waterfalls are no different, and Kaieteur Falls in Guyana is no exception.  With a single drop of 741 feet and additional cascades adding to a total drop of 822 feet, Kaieteur has been called the "largest single drop" waterfall.   Apparently, this is different from "tallest single drop."  Reading between the Wikipedia lines, I think the former suggests some combination of volume of water and drop height, whereas the latter is pure unadulterated height.  According to the World Waterfall Database, Angel Falls in Venezuela has a single drop of 2,648 feet, so I'm not sure what all the debate is about.

Now that I've popped the bubble of Guyana's biggest natural tourist attraction, let's build it back up.  The numbers are quite impressive.  The waterfall is about 5 times taller than Niagra Falls.  The WWD rates Kaieteur the 26th most scenic waterfall worldwide*.   The falls have a WWD attributed 19th largest in volume at 23,400 cubic feet per second.  At that rate, enough water is tumbling off a cliff somewhere in the Guyanese wilderness to fill an Olympic-size pool every 3 seconds.  Some unscientific sampling of other high flow waterfalls on the WWD website reveals that Kaieteur is probably the tallest single-drop waterfall pumping out that much water.  It's too bad there's not a less awkward way to say "probably the tallest single-drop waterfall pumping out that much water."  Maybe if anyone has a brainstorm they could shoot the Guyanese tourism industry some rebranding help.

Anyway, I hope I'm lucky enough to be able to visit this waterfall during my time in Guyana.  Although if I ever get to stand on this ledge, the fear-of-heights part of my brain might self-destruct.

*Number 1? Langfoss, or Langfossen, in Norway.  Yosemite falls is #2 and Angel Falls checks in at #5.