Tuesday 7th of February
The group stays home. Talking, using microscope, taking care of business.

In the evening there was an interesting and colorful presentation about cirl buntings from Marton. I sit down on the carpet at the lounge and watch  it carefully, but i still don’t understand too much. They are also talking about other stuff – like how to improve habitat on the farm for cirl buntings, and the funky graphics Marci used... i know, BORING! never mind that, give me some strokes and get me some dinner . After this we’re having supper (and i’m still not allowed up at the table like the rest of them) and go to sleep.

 

Wednesday 8th of February
We wake up quite early . It’s freezing outside! We’re going to the marsh with the boat! Cool.

On the other side of the river Dart I am searching for tennis balls while the others dig around in the mud and pick up green stuff. I don’t understand why they are behaving like it’s cold – i’ve already had a morning swim and feel fine. After this we’re heading back to the house quite fast. I sleep for the rest of the day as it turns out i did get a bit cold too!

 

Thursday 9th of February
Labrador bay! I’m kidding with the ponies. I’m enjoying scaring them! Don’t let them make you beleive they’re scaring me – no chance, not for a brave dog like me. The team working hard on the hedge. It seems to be very good for those small yellow birds, and we had a talk from Cath from the RSPB and one of their volunteers came along to plant trees and throw me some sticks.

 

Friday 10th of February
The group split into half. I was with Jack but the boys were working at the Whithy Pool cutting reeds from the boat while the girls are taking part in the Ecomind project, Cooking soup and showing some difficult kids how to survive in the english weather! As they reach back to the house I got some bits from the lunch, and i learn the girls have not survived the english weather very well – they got pretty wet. You should let me show them how to survive outside with a simple tennis ball and box of matches – EASY!

Evening. I go with Jack and Kate and leave the group to relax. That was week 5.

Read less...

Tuesday 31st January
The guys are separate again, but I heard they are on the farm. For sure they have a great time there because they are working in a co-operation with other guys (Princess trust, ROC). I wish I was there.. It’s good fun! Lots of plays, lots of strokes, many hills of branches that I could steal.

At last! They came back here is Jack, the Hungarian guys and Mike! They are talking about how was the hedgelaying today. They smell of smoke, but seem pretty pleased with themselves. Come on guys give me some attention.

 

Wednesday 1st February
Everybody is up (big hurry). Everyone is taking binoculars and warm clothes. They are going to travel to Dawlish Warren, one of the best shorebird habitats in Europe. As I see they packed lots of lovely sandwiches and hot tea, so they won’t return till the evening.

Thursday 2nd February
We are travelling together!!! I love it! Where are we going now? What are we going to do? Here is also a guy from the Spring of Life project. I can’t stop wagging my tail. I am so excited!

Here we are. Oh, more guys. Hey, I know them, they use to help on the Open Volunteering Days. A nice group gathered, who will make hedge management (as a part of RSPB cirl bunting project) which means tree planting on the hedgerow.

Everybody left me alone with their stuff. Sooo boring. I have an idea! During the time they are working hard my time came! Good smells… here are the pasties Jack got for the gang – they won’t mind if I have a taste... who am I kidding!! No one around, they’re all mine!

Wow I have a full belly, feeling pretty happy with myself, why won’t anyone throw me a stick, I need to work off the food! Come on guys. Why so angry? You should have had one of those pasties, they are really tasty. Oh, wait... err.

 

Friday 3rd February
The guys are spending the day in Paignton, in the Youngs Park, which is a little marsh owned by a local community group that we try to support. Jack left me home while they are building a platform. They told me it is to help local kids learn about the wet environment and the spess... spices... species, or something that live there. I don’t know, but I wish I was allowed to go. But they did not finish this work so we can return tomorrow and I can join!

 

Saturday 4th February
The girls are rushing around... it’s early and kate is in the car, she seems to be waiting for something... wow the girls look pretty today, maybe they will not spend the day with us today, I heard we are going back to Young’s Park to finish off the board walk and platform. And I get to go too yuhu!

Ooh not so great, it is pretty miserable outside, and I have to stay in the car. But the boys are getting on really well, it looks like they are taking up all the boards they fitted yesterday? Why... I don’t understand, but soon they get going and work so fast. It’s now dark, and they boys wearily come back to the car, they look pleased, but exhausted... I can’t see what the boardwalk looks like as it is so dark outside and I’ve been sleeping for the past hours. At last some company!

Read less...

The weekly gardening was taken in the most beautiful sunny morning. I was walking around, and laying on the sun, while the team was preparing the soil for the spring. It is afternoon. We are going to make the birdsurvey! The guys are getting excited beacuse of a scarce Mediterrianean Gull. They are trying to go closer to the Gull. As I promised, I try to help them on the wetland! So the plan was that I will run and catch the Gull, and bring them, but after I started to run the guys was shouting my name so loudly, that the birds were scared away. The guys seemed angry, but actually it was not a pretty gull, beacuse an ugly white ring stuck on it’s leg, with some letters on it.

After a presentation about hedges from the last evening, we are already out in the windy, cold weather. The guys seems not so happy with this, but the work needs to be done. After a long talking with a nice girl, thay are starting to cut down the hedge near to an electric wire. ’Hey guys! Be carefull! I found a badger sett in this hedge!

But they work around the badgers, they are cutting down the trees and the bushes. After my master cut the big trees down with a noisy eqipment, they are throwing the branches down to a pile. I can help in this! Check the foto of us! ;-)

On the rest of the week I was not really with the team, but I know something about them. One day they were definately burning some wood. Afternoon, when they arrived back, the whole house became a strong smoky smell. This week is about hedges, so I gess they were burning the branches from the last days. Thursday they were somwhere close to the sea for sure. At the evening the boys were watching pictures about Young’s Park, and of some seabirds. There was a young boy also on the pictures with them. I wish I would have also been there!

Read less...

I can see 3 of the guys cutting up a big dead pine at the Withy Pool. It is too boring for me so maybe I should pick up some collected sticks and play something. The other 3 guys are in the middle of the Pool in a boat with big scissors and just cutting that strange plant that can be found everywhere around the Pool. In the afternoon they swapped so the girls are cutting while the boys take the reeds away. Kate made a lovely dinner and she is giving me some dumpling from her mouth…I love her.

Today is Wednesday. I am going to the store with the team to meet Stuart. He is a funny guy with long beard. I don’t know why it is so important but he is giving a lot of information about the tools. He is highlighting how to take care of tools and be safe with them during the useage. However I am learning some new words (name of tools). Later the guys are cleaning the store and setting up something to hang up the tools on the wall…they should play with me instead of this thing. But I am not complaining too much because sometimes they are throwing a ball for me.

This is the morning of Thursday. We’re going up to the hill where the campsite is. Two guys are trying to catch a rooster so they’re running up and down like a fox. For me it is very interesting to find the balls which I haven’t seen for a long time. Jack and the fellows are collapsing wooden houses and taking down a yurt. This time I should wait for 10-20 seconds to make somebody throw the ball for me. Evening. Good smells are starting to appear in the kithcen. As always I do the hungry dog trick. You just have to look with your eyes like you haven’t eaten anything for 3 days. And I’m not dissapointed this time either: eat some bits from the dinner.

It’s Friday now and we’re still at the campside. The stuff must be brought down to the storehouse. We’re doing a short walk at the river bank too. I’m jumping in the wet muddy soil. Smells so goooood! Don’t know why nobody wants to rub me now? What could be the reason? We’re going back to the storeroom. Half of the crew do some kind of sorting of the packs. The dinner is cooked quite late this day… Later in the evening a cab is coming an bring the folks away. Finally! Freedom! time to go to the forbidden place. Going straight upstairs. Take a smell at these rooms. Hmmm. Jumping up to the beds…. wait I hear voices from downstairs. Running fast to my basket. Acting sleeping. They come back. Why are they speaking in a loud voice and these sentences: there is no subject, and even no verb – sounds like nonsense to me… Better not listen to them. Good night team!

Read less...

It is already lunchtime, and we are all sitting in the kitchen. Jack is with us, and showing a map about the Sharpham Estate, and explaining important things about it. The weather is so nice in spite of the wintertime, so let’s go and show them were we are living together. Come on, take a look at the place, where the previous Hungarian trainees were living in yurts, this spring we should make some developments here. On the way Jack always stops and talks a lot about the history and the future of the different habitats.

We are again sitting in the kitchen. It is the next day. My master brought a big piece of paper and is writing on it things like AMBIOS, Sharpham Trust, IgoMANGO and other organizations, names of people, and lines, which could indicate connections between them. It is too complicated for me, but here are some sentences, that he wrote:
‘AMBIOS is a group of professional environmental scientists and educators working together to assist all peoples and organisations wanting to work WITH nature.’
‘The IgoMANGO Trust is to help people and organisations wanting to make volunteering in the environmental sector an exciting and worthwhile experience.’
‘The Sharpham Trust is an educational charity based on the Sharpham Estate, near Totnes, Devon in South West England. It promotes well-being and sustainable living by providing opportunities and educational facilities.’

After this tough, tiring course we are out again, near the Withy Pool. Smells everywhere. This could be a badger, I know it well, but this one, it smells like fish, and its track just coming out from the Dart River. Maybe an otter? Jack told us that recently they recorded one, so we are seting up two videotraps in front of their tracks, and I hope in the next days it we  will prove thet thay are close to us, and I hope they will be friendly to me. After that Jack and Chris (the head of the Shaprham Trust) showed to the Hungarian trainees the Sharpham House, which was a summer residence of a former rich captain. It is now the main center of the Estate. They don’t let me in, because it is suitible for courses, wedding, and other activities, and not for dogs.

In the next few days we visited Totnes, and Exeter so I was on a lead for most of the time. For me on this day the best time was on the Dartmoor National Park, at Haytor. A big rock formation on the top of a big hill, bogs and moorland around. Nice and famous place, a lot of people come here, and they often bring there dogs also, but I was mostly interested in the ponies, which are special here, they called them Dartmoor Ponies. I heard it also, that they are so good at grazing, that sometimes people use them for special habitat management. We were also on Our Farm. Though the cows, the ponies, and pretty much everything are in the usual place now, I feel, that there will be some big changes in the near future. Rob was taking pictures, and measuring the barn, maybe for changing it somehow for other use. The nice people with the ‘learning difficulties’ as Jack called them were also around, they were gardening, and taking care of the cattle. One of them, a nice guy was interested in me, but he was too shy to take a step forward, and stroke me. Maybe next time.

Holly

Read less...

the people

alice - split toe with spade, headcold, secnidazol, learning to understand salvadoren accent, learnt how to lay brick, figuring out how to ship bulletproof pink brick for her future home

riikka grohn, finland - carpenter, vegetarian, early riser, hard worker.  really liked barrona and may be coming back on our next trip if arcas allows and if she can have milk every day.

lynda watts, england - environmental consultant.  had hard time adjusting to living conditions and local food.  but turned out to be a crack bricklayer.  got bit by a dog in barrona on the fourth day but not too badly.

nando - did fine.  i really tried to put the project in his hands.  will be completing the hatchery in about a week´s time.  talked to flavio, the pc director and peace corps may be doing a site visit in august (hooray!).

chema - maestro de obra who worked in the states.  very capable and very open minded. mr. right angles.

colum - was great .  was on phone a lot.  gave good feedback.  was the most critical of the plans and materials used.  was talking lots w nando about planning to work together and collaborate with hawaii - barrona interchanges to receive alianzas funding.  wants to find money to inaugurate barrona but dunno if they can pull it off with the roads down and the date around the corner.

marlon, kevin -available as needed

others - i grabbed anyone within ten clicks (men, women, children) and put them to work carrying brick or helping us with the walls, etc.  this was definitely a community build.

the trip

getting to barrona is difficult with the bridges down.  hopefully they will have a footbridge up to replace the spectacular collapse outside of chiqui. the other bridge from colonia to barrona is effed and won´t be fixed for some time. it took us 8 hours and 61Q to get from hawaii to barrona.  also no one can bring supplies in or out of the community. no vegetables, no potable water other than personal runs of bolsas, nothing. colum had to drive thru el salvador to bring his truck and our materials in.

that means that la barrona is considered a remote site and things like medical kit, water treatment pills, and malaria tabs should be brought with each set of vols.  also consider that the shops are scarce on supplies and that colonia and chiqui runs are more difficult.

the locals

we saw all of nando´s kids. kevin´s staying in colonia to study, johana in jutiapa.  she came home for a couple days and immediately fell ill. there was no access to pharmacy or medical consult.  alan´s four and going to school. lisa and miguel are fine.  their grandkids were eager to learn english. roberto´s fine as always and dead on in his observations.  he warned us a storm was coming and that canal seco would dry up, etc.  we saw ever for a second, said hi but he disappeared. cindy, wilson, cachete, chencho and nery say hi.

the construction

was problematic from the start due to road access.   but we cleaned the plot, measured and marked the points, but there wasn´t really much sand to push around.  they mismeasured the area we had to clean, so we leveled less than the full area but at least got our hatchery nice and flat.

the blocks we got are salvadorean pink and twice as dense and heavy as guate bricks.  they are also bulletproof.  we dug trenches and there was a bit of confusion as to outside and inside boundaries but we got it sorted.  nando overzealously dug a foot too far on the western wall but we repacked it with water and placed the first two rows without anything, just wet sand.  then started mortaring (which they call mezcla).  again started running out of sand because we were fillling the holes with sand and mixing cement w sand, so they may have to bring in more as the wall started to expose to the third row because we were taking so much for the wall.  they also need to clean the sand inside as it was full of roots.

but in the end walls got done.  there was an issue with the tube endings being broken, cracked and rusted, so they sawed a foot off each one, replaced the tubing and metal fitting and refilled w cement.  they should cure in about a week and then be ready.  i did not personally supervise the pouring of the last four bases but chema has the plans and has a good idea of where they should sit.

riikka made a nice door with frame that needs to be set in the wall.  nando said the seran is repaired and ready to use.  i will check with him in a week to see how that goes.  nando had 400Q left in budget that went to pay chema so he´s flat out.  colum gave me 600Q in cash, 200Q of which i gave to nando to pay chema to finish the hatchery.  200Q went to my homestay, the rest to cover nando´s travel expenses and mine in el salvador.

the excursion(s)

so that we weren´t all work and no play, nando took the girls and colum to milk cows, which they absolutely loved.  they also wanted to ride horses but sadly they were out of town.  we took them in lancha to la barra de agata and went walking to the other boca barra. (NOTE: Agatha ripped barrona a new barra about 1.5km from the aldea).

they were also really keen to check out el salvador, so nando was kind enough to take us to barra de santiago, where he knew some friends.  but we took the unofficial beach route, which involved hitching rides and some bushwhacking with lynda´s heavy suitcase.  but three and some odd hours later and a river crossing, we got there.  tiny village, squished into a cinder block room, but delish pupusas as the first storm hit.  we ducked out and ate and watched the pouring rain and lightning.

nando gave us directions to the next bigger town, acajutla.  we got there two and odd hours later.  it turned out to be a dirty commercial port but at least had bank and internet (why not canal seco here?).  we are staying in hotel.  again another storm hit and torrents of rain all night and all day.  we are the only foreigners here and everyone is staring at aryan riikka.  trying to keep the girls out of trouble as they speak little or no spanish and are keen to wander around a rough town.

the plan

after three days in el salvador, we are hoping to leave tomorrow and travel all day to sunsonate - frontera - moyuta - guate - antigua (there are bridges down all over guatemala and a chain of tropical storms lined up).  lynda can then fend for herself in antigua, riikka wants to go to the lake, and i can then collect my replacement credit cards and renew my visa.  lynda flies out wednesday morning, i may head back to hawaii w riikka as soon as wednesday as late as thursday depending on migracion and legal gymnastics.  i also plan to meet with leon, an interested volunteer prospect, avid conservationist, central america lover who is trying like the dickens not to return to england.

that´s all.  i should be back on my guate cell tomorrow but travelling all day monday.  in antigua tues - thurs but running around during the day.  back home by this weekend.

talk soon

alice

Read less...

As a young person you hear a lot of songs on the radio, you hear great tunes and amazing guitar work. You know the song that is starting due to the guitar intro and as soon as you hear those notes you already know in your head which song it is. This makes the guitar player want to get involved and pick up a guitar. Growing up I have used nature as my inspiration, I saw lots of unique bugs and creatures and picked them up and liked to know about them, and since then, like the guitar player who keeps listening, I have kept learning about things about different animals and plants which I find fascinating. As the age’s advance and mankind manage to destroy music, with atrocious songs, the guitarist wants to do something about it. This is my inspiration because mankind is destroying nature, and so I want to do something to change it, and this is the reason I applied for this position.

When the guitarist picks up his instrument at the starts he enjoys it but it can sometimes be frustrating due to not hitting the right notes and taking time to get it right, but when he has had a little practice he loves every second of it from the moment he start until the moment he puts it down. This is my volunteering journey so far. At first I enjoyed it but found certain aspects a bit frustrating, due to my own flaws, but as I get on with volunteering I enjoy every moment from when I step outside to when I go to bed. As the guitarist has certain songs he really enjoys playing I have bits, which I really enjoy more than the rest. My ‘stairway to heaven’ is using saws, scythes and other hand tools, my ‘sweet child o’ mine’ is going on the water, and my ‘purple haze’ is getting to know so much more about native wildlife

As the guitar player learns how to change chords and solo faster and better then he has much more chance of being in a successful band. As I have learnt so much to do generally with wildlife, conservation and the environment, I feel that it greatly adds to my future job prospects. I have improved my practical skills greatly, as well as knowledge. Using these skills I have learnt I could go to many a gig, and try to make a big difference, like an unexpected solo, which changes things and leaves an impression.

Personally as well as learning a lot about the things I came here to learn about, I have learnt so much about myself and it has helped me develop massively. While learning the ‘songs’ I learnt about the communication with the rest of the band, talking about all things ‘music’ and just generally everything else. On occasion I have risen to lead the ‘band’, which is a huge personal development for me. Before I would have just ‘played’ from the back hoping people didn’t really notice me, but now I feel I have a firm place on the stage, even performing to people who I would usually do a gig for. As an attribute for future jobs this is a big thing I think.

During the project we have got up to so much. Things like bird surveys, river surveys, tram rides, cutting wood, making fires, building hedges, cutting brambles, clearing fields, planting trees, making a few different types of artificial animal homes, coppicing, barn owl tracking, looking for different animals, working with groups, cooking on mass, presentations, being involved in going several places which provide different habitats, stargazing, and much more.

Like a guitarist going into a totally new town to play at a new venue, I had no idea at all what to expect really, just that we would be doing conservation work. But after the ‘gig’ I will definitely try to stay involved if I can because like a music festival organised to raise money for charity, I love what IgoMANGO are trying to achieve through placements like these. If you do not have a stereo you therefore cannot hear the great guitar riffs and so you won’t get inspired by them. This is what IgoMANGO is trying to change. A lot of people, due to development and urbanisation amongst other things, do not get to see nature in all its glory, and therefore do not understand its chord patterns, and see the visual tune it makes, therefore these people cannot get inspired by it, and try to do something about it. IgoMANGO is trying to get these people involved with conservation work, and show them what’s out there.

The project does have a big impact on the community, which it works with, in my opinion. It gets through to people through the work that we get them involved with, like handing them the guitar and tell them to have a go. The feedback, which we have had from the community, has all been brilliant, some call it ‘the best new thing to come out of Devon’, but others say how amazing their experience has been and they want to continue with conservation activities, and that is simply wicked! They are hearing the amp on a medium volume, but they want to turn it all the way to 11, and if other people go on to feel the vibration of their bass then all the better.

After all trying to live without nature, is like listening to a rock song without the guitars, impossible!"

Read less...