Mudskippers and Other Learning Experiences

When Guyana was a Dutch colony, the Dutch, with their affinity for thwarting the natural course of water, built a sea wall to hold back the ocean. Behind the seawall they built Georgetown-about 6 ft below sea level. Georgetown still retains many of the Dutch place names (I visited Stabroek Market Friday) and, as well as the seawall, a network of canals to drain water from the city. Every road has water filled ditch beside it with a gate at the end where the water is pumped into the Atlantic ocean. By virtue of this arrangement is there is always standing water in Georgetown, wonderful breeding ground for mosquitos. Fortunately, they are not the type that carry malaria but I still don’t like getting bit up. Also, partly because of the city drain water and partly because the Essequibo and Demerara rivers have their mouths near Georgetown, the ocean is dyed brown. Laura tells me that when Micah and Dani first started coloring pictures they colored water as brown rather then blue. We walked along the seawall this Sabbath afternoon; it was quite pleasant, coastal wind and a beach that is more muddy then sandy. But they have mudskippers! Previous to today I had only seen mudskippers on National Geographic and Nature programs. They are funny looking little fish with eyes on the tops of their heads and remind me a little of crickets both in their looks and movements. At first I watched them from the seawall and thought to myself “well those look easy enough to catch” Not so. As soon as one gets close to the water these little fish high tail it out of there. Quite literally, they move by wiggling when they are on the sand but as soon as they hit the water they are able to skip across the waves on their bellies extremely quickly. I was unable to even get a decent picture. I tried sneaking up on them. I tried to cut them off from the water and then chase them up onto the beach. I even tried standing still waiting for them to make a mistake. No dice. Crazy little fish. 

My best photo of the elusive mudskipper.
If you squint there is a dot in the top left quadrant that might be one. Or maybe not. Crazy little fish.

There hasn’t been a medivac flight out yet so Laura, Dani and I have are using the time picking up supplies for the rest of the team back in Mabaruma, stocking up on food since it is a little cheaper here, and getting acquainted. The LaBores have lived here for six years now and are staying another four. They know the town, have trusted taxi drivers on speed dial, and speak Creole. I feel very fortunate to have them as tour guides as we collect everything. It is a little odd, but despite being in South America Guyanan culture has had about zero Spanish/Latino influence. People here are primarily Blacks (decedents of African slaves who worked on the sugar cane farms), East Indian (decedents of sugar cane workers who came in after Britain outlawed the slave trade), or AmerIndian (native population from who knows when) and eat curry and rice rather then rice and beans. It seems a very kind culture despite the poverty. The market vendors aren’t pushy-they post their prices for everyone (including “white-tees”, what they call us), instead of yelling “hey” or “hello” it is respectful to great someone with the appropriate “good morning”, “good afternoon”, or “good night”. Here in Georgetown they speak mostly Creole, a language I haven’t quite got an ear for understanding yet-I love listening to it though. It is a laid back language where you don’t pronounce words fully and instead of using pronouns like “her” or “him” you would just say “she” or “he”. A sentence would be something like “Dey be closed now but I dunno if dey gonna oapen bach, ya know.”, meaning “They are closed now and I’m not sure if they will open back up again.” or “We come to Georgetown to pick up she.” as Dani said to explain why she and Laura were in town. Little twists and a cool accent. I like its sound and feel. The sentences finish up regardless if there is a question or not rather then down like an English period.

Touring around the markets with Laura and Dani I’ve been seeing lots of new vegetables and fruits but I don’t remember enough of those names so I will save those explanations for a later date-maybe when I try to start cooking with them. Hopefully there will be a plane coming out tomorrow (I just hope the person who needs medivacced isn’t too hurt...it’s seems cruel to pray for a medivac), if not there is a body that needs to be flown out of the interior on Monday so we will probably get to Mabaruma then at the latest.