So here goes another instalment, spurred on I have to say from a good friend Aine who is currently working in Eritrea and is writing lengthy and entertaining stories so I thought I would have a go also (that’s right blame her!). So I think I am right in saying I am entering my third week here in Guyana, strangely it at times seems like I have been away from England for a lot longer….then again there are times when I realise I have to still concentrate really hard when going home so as not to get lost…..it is around these times when I realise that I am still very much a new comer (the shouts across the street such as “hey whitey” act as helpful reminders too..)!

On Monday 8th I returned from my first visit to one of the special schools. The school admits children who are hearing impaired and “mentally challenged” (it may take me a while to get my head around some of the terminology…but hey small steps). I went with one of the rehab assistants; Karen. In general my job will be working alongside assistants, like Karen, who are already running rehab departments and services with occasional supervision/on the job training from qualified therapists, which in the case of speech therapy has been a string of different VSO volunteers for several years (there are no local speech and language therapists in Guyana).
The school itself had around 60 students of mixed ages and abilities. In general the older children were reading and writing to a basic level (I would guess that the majority of the children probably had mild-moderate learning difficulties). The school has only 2 qualified teachers, but in general from what I could see, the others were doing a good job as well with the resources that they had available to them (it is also worth remembering that there is little financial incentive for becoming a teacher in Guyana).

The “box” of speech therapy equipment I was shown was fairly basic; some puzzle pieces in bag, maybe 3-4 books, some alphabet blocks, a chewed up ball (which may have belonged to one of the local dogs I am not sure…) and some handmade noun/verb picture cards….. I should add we had to blow dust off these and the clinic notes, of which there seemed to be only a few (and definitely less than 60!), anyway hopefully this may change over time.
One thing that strikes you (or me at least!) with most of the schools over here is the school uniforms. Considering many children and families have little money the children in general look immaculate…. ……usually brightly coloured uniforms, clean and pressed and for the girls neatly platted hair with matching coloured ribbons – very cute!! The neatness/tidiness I should also say goes for many of the houses, which is not surprising since the Guyanese appear to sweep incessantly morning, noon and night!

I spent some time in the different class groups including the hearing impaired class….my ASL/GSL (American/Guyanese Sign Language) is entering its second week of development; I am attending a course here on a Wednesday and a Saturday…there are enough differences between BSL to have me fairly confused, not least a one handed alphabet compared to the British two….I have just about mastered it and can now answer “what is your name?” (made easier by the fact I only have to remember 3 letters!), unfortunately I am still at the stage when I have to nod sweetly (pretending that I have understood) to those children who have names which are less familiar to me after getting them to repeat them more than twice and feeling completely inadequate!!!

So after the school day had finished (2.30; not sure if this is general for all schools or just this one in particular) I took the minibus back to Georgetown; Stabroke Market. I think it took around 20 minutes, and then another one back to the end of my road, in total at a cost of 160G$ (~260G$ = £1.00) so can’t complain…well actually you can when you are sweating like a pig and you are squashed into a bus like a sardine! Apparently if the driver is going too fast or playing his music too loud then it is quite acceptable to not pay (yeah right like I am assertive enough to do that!).

So I am now back at home….writing my blog to post at a later date. It already feels like home and I am fairly settled…..I hope to have successfully posted some pictures for you to have a nosey at. It has two bedrooms off an open plan kitchen/living room. It is fairly small though I think marginally bigger than my flat at home so yeah I have moved up the property ladder! Sleeping is helped most of the time by a fan and a mosquito net and prevented by general noise, which appears to last pretty much throughout the night and day, with a particularly annoying peak around 5.30 – 6.00 in the morning; apparently this is optimal time for dog fighting, sweeping, washing clothes (constant outside tap flowing and scrubbing) general (shouting) chit chat, and listening to very loud music !! It has some benefits in that I don’t have to worry about fiddling with an alarm clock, there is definitely no worry of over sleeping here in Guyana! Never the less you do get used to it fairly quickly and to be honest it is probably not that healthy to stay in bed/asleep for two long considering I think I might just be sleeping on the most strangely packed and uncomfortable pillow known to man!
On my wish list (for when I can orientate myself around the shops) is a second fan and maybe a decent pillow, if they exists….anyway it is almost 8.10 (01.10 your time) so I should be thinking about tucking myself under my mosquito net, have got into the habit of watching DVD’s on my laptop away from the mosquito’s, oh and also becoming master at the few games which are offered on the computer…I recommend Mahjong Titans if ever you get the chance!