A Brief View of Our Site

On top of the mountain.

Almost Mugged

First off, dont worry this situation did not happen in our village.

Secondly, we are completly fine and ok. Really just more aware and alert than anything. Oh and maybe just alittle paranoid of walking in the dark and EVERYONE we pass on the street.

Anyways heres the story:

Alyssa and I really wanted ice cream one night after dinner. It was 7:30 or so and the hotel resturant didnt have the ice cream we wanted so we opted to walk the 8 blocks or so to the market. We arrived at the store, ate our delicious ice cream bar and began walking back to the hotel. Prior to this we had never had any issues in the area of GT that the hotel is in and had actually felt fairly safe.

We some how got wrapped up in conversation, I believe it was something along the lines of how nice it was to get our mail situation figured out and resupply, but how much we HATE GT and were really missing (enter village name here). The streets werent crowded with people but there were enough people around so you didnt feel extremely isolated or at risk as we were walking on the side walk.

When we were about 2 blocks from the hotel (no joke we could see it) we came to three kids, probally late teens. Heres where we make our mistake. Ive replayed the situation multiple times and I still kick myself for it. Two of the boys were leaning against the wall and one of them was standing in the street. It almost looked as if they were gaffing to each other but, Alyssa recalls that the boys on the wall werent watching us they were watching the kid standing up waiting for his signal. The way they were situated forced us to either walk around them or walk the gauntlet through them. Unfortunately, we chose the latter. And unfortunately for them they chose me, the person who wasnt carrying anything but the hotel room key and a snickers bar and had at least 6 inches and 20 pounds on each of them.

Alyssa walked through and I walked behind as the boy standing came up on my left and rubbed against me grabbing my left arm and trying to reach my pockets while his friends (tweedle dum and tweedle dee) grabbed my right arm. I had seen it coming so I had thrown both arms in front of my pockets and as they tried to grab me and pull me down, I spun around to face them ripping my arms from their clutches and as I did so I lost my slipper (sandal). Dum and Dee quickly ran off leaving the ring leader alone.

The only thing really on my mind was getting my slipper back and being on my way. As I faced leader boy he says, thinking I was going to confront him, "watch it boy, don't try anything or I will shoot you." I highly doubt he had a weapon, because it would have made more sense for him to put it in my face and demand a randsom but you never know. I reached down grabbed my slipper, looked him in the face and went on our way. Meanwhile a few people are standing around just watching the scene play out.

I HATE GEORGETOWN!

THE REAL DEAL ON OUR MAIL!!!

We didn't receive our mail for the past two months because our previous address was not one the post office seemed to care about.  Long story.  To sum up the long story, our mail situation is all figured out.  Peace Corps was kind enough to give us our original address at the embassy back, and they'll deliver our mail to us every two weeks.  With that said, our real, actual, definite, working address is:

Paul and Alyssa Quinlivan, PCV
Peace Corps Guyana
c/o U.S. Embassy
100 Young and Duke Street
Kingston, Georgetown, Guayana
South America

We LOVE THE LETTERS the most.  Staying connected back home has been a struggle, so even a little note saying hello or a news article or comic will completely brighten our whole day.  Things seem to get to us easier in envelopes than boxes, even if the envelopes are padded.  Flat rate shipping boxes seem to save a lot of people money on shipping.

Again, LETTERS are our favorite thing to receive.  We love the packages too.  It's like Christmas but better.

Let me start this next part by saying we are not asking for things.  However, we have had many of you wonderful friends and family ask if we need anything.  Honestly, we need nothing.  Some things, however, would be helpful for our jobs and the projects we are starting, either because we don't have them available or we can't afford them on our little Peace Corps stipend.  I'll explain what we're trying to do so you know what these things are for.

Paul is starting to make some visual aids for the resource center and get some information in there for patients to read while they're waiting or when he's doing health talks.  He's also trying to get the school garden going with some competition between the grade levels.

Alyssa is doing some remedial skills pull out programs with the kids on literacy and math, and trying to get the kids and families into the resource center.  I'm also trying to start a reading club as well with some incentives to come and participate.  I'm also working on some teacher training as none of the teachers where I am are trained, and creating visual aids for the walls that can help the students learn.

Things That Would Be Incredibly Nice For Our Projects
* Large colorful permanent markers!
* Pencils (many kids don't have)
* Pencil sharpeners (no kid has - they use razor blades)
* Erasers (another thing many kids don't have)
* Flashcards (mainly addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, but also colors, shapes, etc.)
* Medical info pamphlets from doctors and dentists (any topic, but nutrition and basic well being are good)
* Early Readers for kids (any level - Hello Reader, I Can Read, Step Into Reading, etc - we have none)
* Stickers
* Kids songs and rhymes to teach the kids
* Education skillbooks for phonics!
* Small and INEXPENSIVE toys for kids (I'm talking from the dollar store or party city): balls, puzzles, balloons, bracelets, figurines, hair ties, hand held games, small writing books, colored pencils, small packs of crayons, bookmarks, stencils, colorful chalk, etc.

Things That Would Be Nice For Just Us
* Games for 2+ players (We have Uno, but Skipbo, Phase 10, anything like that or that we can teach others)
* Magazines, news articles, comics, etc. - especially news from around the world
* Guitar tabs (Paul says thank you so much for those he has
* Soup packets/mixes without MSG (non-existent in Guyana)
* Scraps of cloth (Alyssa's supporting a woman in starting a women's sewing group and is trying to learn some skills)
* Taco seasoning, pasta seasonings, any packet seasonings (we'll make it work)

Please Come Visit!

Alright, so I know that before we left a few of you mentioned that you wished to visit us down here in the deep South (that is those of you besides our families who are obligated to at least try and come). We wanted to extend an invitation to all of you.
Due to obvious spacial constrains (see previous blog posts) I think the maximum number of people we could accommodate in our house at a time is three and even then two is probably more realistic. However, our village has a guest house that is fairly cheap and would be easy to fit you in.
Some of you have asked, "Paul and Alyssa, when would be the best time to come?" ANYTIME! However, there are times that may be better than others. Every three months one of us needs to come out of the mountains and come into George Town to collect our money and resupply. So if you are not so much the type who thinks they could come off an international flight without a connection on the ground, then these times would probably be best.
We will be coming in this July, October, (2011) January, April, July, October, (2012) January and then finally in April. So again if you want a connection in GT plan on one of these times. Let us know in advance as well so we don't have anyone "double booking" on us. Actually now that I think about it, if you want to book one of these times to come visit us just leave a comment on this post with the dates you want to come. First come first served.
For those more adventurous of you, come anytime you want. Just leave us an e-mail, a few months in advance, for when you booked your flight so we can be expecting you.
To get to our site from the international airport get in a taxi and tell them Ogle airport (should cost $4000 Guy, or $20 US). Be aware that planes to our site only come Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday and even then if its raining or they just plain don't feel like they wont.
At the airport tell them you would like to go to (enter our site here) and then pay for your ticket ($16,000 Guy, $80 US). Then get to our site. When you get off we will be the only white people there so if you don't immediately see us ask anyone and they will get you to us.
When your at our site if you could just pay us about $1000 Guy, $5 US a day or so for food and gas we will call it even. Oh and no one is allowed in our house unless they bring us a tray of eggs and some sliced bread (oh how I long for French toast).
Whenever you need to get your flight back we can put you on a plane, when it comes ($26,000 Guy, $130 US- it really should cost the same both ways but I guess that once your in your stuck so you will pay anything to get out) and get you back to the airport for the states.
So if you want to come visit us it will cost you roughly $250 plus international airfare plus spending money for whatever other random things you want. But Guyana really doesn't have any touristy trinkets for you to purchase.
If any of you want to spend a little bit of time in GT look into these hotels http://www.aracariresort.com/ and the WindJammer Hotel. The first is a really nice hotel (by Guyana standards) with AC, hot water, pool, bar and security. However, it is a ways outside of GT. The Windjammer is the hotel that Peace Corps uses and that I am writing this post in as we speak. It has running water (not hot but warm), AC, TVs and all you really need plus a little more. The resort is obviously more expensive but is still cheap on the U.S. dollar.
Things you might want to think about bringing: Bug spray (we get mosquitoes but not really, its the kabora flies you have to be weary of), malaria prophylaxis, hiking boots (or sandals), sunscreen, bathing suit, clothes (don't bring all of the touristy/travel clothing, you already stand out so no need to draw more attention plus you are just going to sweat through it anyways, we have a creek and you can wash your clothes as often as you would like), passport and your sense of adventure. Oh ya and any fun things you may feel inclined to bring us like thrift store T-shirts we can beat up, dark chocolate and things for the school kids.
We have a solar shower at our site (we don't use it much but you can) and i'm working on getting a seat for our latrine so don't worry about running water or lack of luxury (honestly if you are uncomfortable we can put you on a plane back to GT and we will never talk to you again because you are such a wuss). As far as electricity goes you only really need it for light and candles do just fine so you should be ok.
Again please come visit.

Paul "The Farmer" and Alyssa "The Green Thumb" Quinlivan

A few weeks ago we were, with the help of some villagers, able to get our garden fence made, and then came our crops. I spent a week tilling the land and building up the mounds and rows for our crops. Here are the pictures of what we have now. Im so amped because the rain and all the sun makes the best combination for growing plants. We have bora (string beans), belange (eggplant), cabbage, pak choi, pumpkin, watermelon and some tomatoes. If you know anything about gardens leave a note for us cause I really know nothing except how to work hard.

A Working Address!

We have a real address that will really get us real mail!  YAY!

It's actually our old one.  Peace Corps will make sure we get mail every two weeks, so send away!

Paul and Alyssa Quinlivan, PCV

Peace Corps Guyana

c/o US Embassy

100 Young and Duke Streeet

Kingston, Georgetown, Guyana

South America

(Make sure to put South America.  They have problems with stuff going to Africa!)

Many more updates to come in the next week!  Don't worry.  It may be a novel though!

Love Paul and Alyssa

Our House, en el media de la calle

       So inorder to understand our home I need to explain in more detail the general layout of village.
       Our village is separated into three different sections. Section one is a series of about twenty houses that run parallel to our airstrip, plus a dozen or so houses that are scattered between the airstrip and the river and creek about a quarter of a mile away. All of section one is located on a small mountain that is surrounded by much larger mountains. So we are on a mountain in a valley.
       All of our shops are in this section, along with anyone who has some sort of money, which is to say they make at least $200 US a month or more. We are a mere three hour walk from Brazil which means that other than physically being on the Guyanese side of the border, we are basically in Brazil. Everyone, for the most part, speaks Portuguesa and over half the people in section one are Brazilians who came to Guyana in search of diamonds and gold.
       Section two is on the opposite side of the airstrip and on the other side of another creek (which is home to a beautiful waterfall) and then on top of a plateau. Section two spans from the airstrip and then at least as far as your feet could carry you in two hours time.
       Section three is on the North End of the East end of our airstrip and spans out at least 4 hours walking. Section three is obviously by far the most remote section and is home to most of the extreme poverty in our village. We are talking not enough money for shoes ($6 US) let alone a pencil ($.10 US). 
       Anyways back to our home. We live in section one at the top of the airstrip. So we basically live in the most central location of our village on top of the hill.
       Our house is a traditional Amerindian home in our village made with thick sticks cut from the local bush, or jungle, which are used almost like we use rebar back home. The sticks are then stuffed with mud. For the roof a type of palm leaves called eebies are cut from the forest and placed like overlapping shingles to keep the rain out. Roof leaks slightly on one side of the house but I think that is due to the wind blowing the rain in and not from an actual hole in the roof.
       The house is about thirty feet by twenty feet. Inside we have two small bed rooms and a main “living area” which is where we have our table, kitchen area, bookshelf and hammocks. It is exactly what we need and nothing extra that we don't.       
          You may be asking yourself what about a toilet or running water. Our pit latrine, a really deep hole with a roofed and covered structure around it, is located maybe fifty feet away. Twenty feet from that is our “shower” which is really just aluminum covering which we bring a bucket in to. I did attach a piece of wood that sticks into the air so I can hang our solar shower, which I’ve used twice I think. We get water from a pipe that runs from the creek up the mountain to our door step. In the dry season we may be fetching water from another pipe a ways away but for now the pressure is good. Occasionally during heavy rains something will clog the pipe and cut off our water for a day or two, but it will generally work itself out.
       And that is our first house. Enjoy the photos.

Hair!

Alyssa had been complaining for weeks of the sweat that was constantly accumulating on her neck due to the extreme humidity so one day she asked me to cut her hair. Some how, must have been with intervention from providence, I convinced her to let me cut her hair SHORT. I think it looks amazing, but maybe thats because its my own work and the ring on my finger says I have to but i'll let you be the judge. What do you think?

It is Beautiful here! (Oh my goodness, we are actually doing this)

       We finally arrived at our site (like we said before we can’t tell you where our site is but if you use some of the clues we have given you, google maps and your head im sure you can piece things together). We got off the plane and we were greeted by most of the people who live near the airstrip as well has the prominent members of the village, such as our Toushou (or elected mayor) and counsel members.
       Our things, which collectively weighed 444 Lbs, were put onto a truck and carried up hill to our very first home. The Toushou, the Medex (pretty much a lead medic) and the deputy toushou (our counterpart) all welcomed us into our new home as we began to look around and comprehend the incredible blessing of a house that the village had bestowed upon us.
       We will talk about our home in another post.
After awhile they decided to leave and allow us to settle in. We stood there looking at each other for quite sometime, finally realizing that this is where we would be living, working, sleeping, cooking, crying, etc. for the next two years of our lives. We explored some of the finer intricacies of our home, of which there are few, and then set to the large task of building house.
       After while things settled down we decided to just sit and take everything in, so we sat on our door step viewing the rain forest covered mountains merely half a mile away and breathed a sigh of awwww and the absolute majesty of our new home.

Back on the Grid (for two days)

Hello Family and Friends!
We have returned from the great beyond, sort of. After 6 weeks of no phone, internet or electricity, but only a High Frequency radio which doesn't even work well at connecting within our own region we are back online.

 Yesterday we took the grueling 12 hour and at least 16 mile trek to Paramakatoi, our largest neighboring village, to connect with some friends who live in Pk and another local village. We are also taking the time to use the only internet and consistent electricity for miles. The whole experience of reconnecting in extremely strange and foreign. Our friends are the first westerners, or foreigners, that we have seen for quite sometime and the hustle and bustle of a 2,000 person is almost too much to handle. Today we went into the village store to get food for the next few days and the fact that the store had eggs, sliced bread and chocolate threw us into culture shock.We are still living and loving the dream of building community through sustainable relationships.

 More blog posts will come tomorrow but we just wanted to update any of you out there that are just drooling  for some Paul and Alyssa information. Send us an e-mail today or tomorrow and we maybe able to respond tomorrow night.