splendor in the grass

a chronological review of the last week:

monday:
-planned to get on the bus to take the 3-hour ride to lethem, so i could open a bank account and buy chocolate (no one sells chocolate around here, and i am addicted)
-packed up and went to wait for the bus at 9:30, which is about when the bus usually arrives
-waited at Oasis (nearby restaurant/bus station) until 2 p.m. - the bus had gotten stuck in the mud in the forest, and we (crystal and i) didn't want to miss it, so we waited around
-finally gave up waiting at 2 p.m. and came back to bina hill and showered.
-someone saw the bus drive by, so we went back to the bus station and hopped on the bus at about 4 p.m.
-got into lethem around 8 p.m. the drive was really beautiful. the savannah is so HUGE. it was more prairie and sky than i knew what to do with. one of the most magical things about the rupununi savannah nights is the starry sky seemingly reflected by scores of fireflies. it is amazing. slept at rawle's (our supervisor's) wife's house - on a bed!!! beds are a pretty big deal for us - our hammocks are neat, but not always comfortable, and bina hill doesn't have any "lounging" furniture, so beds are always appreciated.

tuesday:
-felt terrible for declining the breakfast rawle's wife had made for us (an egg and a hot dog - i had not eaten one of either for probably 10 years, and i had no intentions of starting)
-crystal and i were driven around lethem (in the back of a truck) by one of rawle's friends. we tried opening bank accounts, which was the worst and most impossible thing ever. the only bank within 12 hours of driving does not take VISA, and cannot transfer funds from other banks. awesome. so, not very helpful. but the teller did flirt with me, and asked how he could get in contact with me. i told him to face east and yell really loud. he had already taken down my e-mail for my account information, so i couldn't really get out of that one. yikes.
-bought chocolate, fruit, and whole wheat flour at a grocery store. so exciting! everything we eat is either white (white bread/bake/roti; white rice; white pasta) or is chicken or beef. we sometimes get fruit from "town," but this time, i bought some grapes and apples and a pineapple. hey emily, guess what? i decided i like pineapple! now we can buy and share the same groceries! and i stocked up on m&m's, to satisfy my addiction.
-we thought we were going to bus back to bina hill in the evening, but someone from B.H. was in lethem and saw us, so we got in the truck for a ride home. it wasn't sketchy - we knew them well - but the ride ended up lasting about 10 hours. we had to pick up youth from remote villages for the youth forum we were hosting the next day. so the ride was awesome in some ways - 4x4ing through the rupununi was a rare and beautiful experience. we saw termite mounds everywhere, and got to visit a few really neat villages. but by the end of the trip, we were really cramped up (we got to ride in the cab of the truck - all the youth were in the back of truck), and crystal puked out the window near the end of the trip. sick. it was good to be "home."
-when we stopped in yupukari, one of the rural villages, crystal and i got out to go pee. it was really dark, and we just squatted, and there must have been some weird bugs, because now i have a ton of red bug bites all over my bottom. how embarrassing/inconvenient. i went to the hospital in annai on friday to get some antibiotics and cream. additionally, my legs are really cut up and scarred/scabbed from all the mosquito bites i itch. i am pretty constantly physically uncomfortable.

wednesday/thursday/friday:
-we (the Youth Leadership Programme) hosted a youth forum at bina hill, so that the institute could gather information to help put together a training program for youth that will start this october.

saturday:
-tried (unsuccessfully) to transfer funds from my canadian bank to my guyana bank account. boo.
-crystal and i had our bikes put together/greased yesterday, so we biked to rockview resort for postcards and cold water; to annai for crackers/oranges/bananas; and to oasis for some coca-cola for crystal. the bike ride was really nice, and better than expected.


i need to go! the mosquitos are out!