Lads on tour in Suriname (that well known party destination)

It’s been an interesting week this week. I’m currently not actually legally in French Guiana as I skipped past the border post at the weekend on our return from Suriname on Sunday, and so have a missing exit stamp that I need to go back and get sometime this week probably. I also had my first thrilling taste of French health care today, when I finally decided that the weird bubbling scabbing growing thing on my right foot, wasn’t just a casual mosquito bite that I had scratched. Not really sure what it is but apparently it’s like microscopic flea things chilling out under my skin having a good munch and then moving further along the foot when they have sufficiently killed the rest of the skin. (I hope no one is eating while reading this.) Sounds nice doesn’t it! So, for the next three days I have to mash up some tablets, mix it with cream put it on the foot, and also take some normal tablets. And pay 50 Euros for the pleasure.  Will deffs be claiming that one back. We had also another faux pas yesterday when, my housemate decided to be nice and bring my bike to the supermarket to meet me so I could walk home. Dunno how, but the wheel does not look wheel shaped right now, so we are on a mission to get it fixed before I have to trek to my Amerindian villages on Thursday and Friday. On a plus note... a first bit of mail for me came and I am now the proud owner of the newest series of Made in Chelsea, and all episodes of Gavin and Stacey. That should help the 4 weeks until Christmas go quickly! Also, I finally have a French bank card AND the pin number for it! Shame my first exciting purchase was foot cream.

All the bad luck aside, we have just spent a very nice weekend in Paramaribo, Suriname. Why did we go there I hear you ask? Well, if you want a good night out, and any reasonably priced clothes/ items, turns out you have to cross a border to a whole new country. So, after finishing my hard day of 2 classes on Friday (one was cancelled, as apparently seeing a circus performer is more important than an English class with me (pffftt), we put on our rucksacks and walked to the border. It had been a whole 13 days since we last we out of Guyane, think we did well to last so long! On the other side we were packed into a taxi who assured us that he had only 2 places left in his car and that he would be leaving immediately. Turned out, we were the only ones in the car, and leaving immediately meant driving around the town, and back to the border, approximately 4 times for over an hour until the car was full. Even then, after the hour we were moved to another taxi and somehow ended up being charged more than we had originally agreed. Fail. Upon arrival, we discovered that where we had planned to stay was full. I suppose thats what you get when you rock up on one of the busiest weekends of the year (independence day) without a reservation. This turned out to be fortuitous in that we stumbled across a really nice hotel (by my standards) with an actual bathroom with an actual bath, an actual duvet and actual air-con, with an actual telly. We are not used to these comforts chez nous! You know you live in French Guyana when you walk into a room and proclaim how utterly freezing it is, only to check the temperature on the air conditioning to find it is actually still a balmy 28 degrees. The move to this hotel was also unfortuitous as it used up most of our budget for the weekend. Oops. We had been paid, so oh well.

basically my name on a portaloo company!

That night we hit the town, checked out the waterfront and marvelled at what it must be like to live in a place with actual people doing actual things at the weekend. Trust me, I never thought I would utter the words, yeh, i’m hitting up Paramaribo tonight for a big one :S I mean, it may be better than here, in St. Laurent du Maroni, but it is by no means world class night life. The next day we accidentally slept til 1 o’clock, but to be fair, it was the first comfy non-mosquito riddled night I had had for a while, so that was fine. Except for the fact that all the shops shut around 2 o’clock on a Saturday which made our planned shopping day a little difficult. We won’t go into the palava I had trying to buy a keyboard, but all you need to know is that I do not have one. Or a bikini. Or sunglasses. Or in fact anything that I went to Suriname to buy. We spent the afternoon wandering around, attempting to buy things, eating... But around five we gave up and headed back to the hotel for a bottle of champagne with a nice hot bath. Turned on the telly after my bath to discover frozen planet was on. In English! Absolute win. I can say without doubt it is the most comf I have been since we got here. It didn’t last however, as we had to get back on it to attend a massive reggae concert for the Independence Day. Some guy, called Jah Cure. He must be big over here because girls were literally crying when he threw his smelly towel at them! Even the prime minister of Suriname came on stage to say hi so the whole thing must have been a bit of a big deal. Not going to lie, I was tired, and believe me, it is hard to tell the difference between reggae songs. The coolest part was just watching how people here behave at a concert, how they dance, where they stand, what they drink, etc. So even if the music wasn’t thrilling, I still enjoyed it. And my main man JAH took his shirt off at the end so it can’t be all bad.

Another good sleep and breakfast come lunch, then it was Sunday, chill day! Because normally my life here is so stressful :S We checked out some independence day markets and celebrations, but didn’t last too long before we headed to a bar with a pool and plonked ourselves there for the afternoon. One cheeky last luxury of a mcflurry in the taxi on the way back to the border, and it was across the river in yet another canoe and back to the Maroni massif!

On another note, it’s nearly December and it does not feel like it at all. The people downstairs have put up a Christmas tree which just seems ridiculous but I don’t suppose it is. As well, I am supposed to be starting Christmas activities at school this week or next. When i’m finished drawing monsters that is, which is this week’s activity. I did some maths yesterday, and worked out that there are only 15 more week of teaching until I am finished teaching, as I still have 6 weeks of holiday to look forward to before the end of April. Jokes. So, as for me, I will be off, have to go and pay the doctor, as I forgot to take money with me earlier. I have also been attempting to go jogging which is easier said than done in this kind of heat- especially with worms growing in your feet. Mmm. Lovely. Might just have to watch Gavin and Stacey instead!