Transport and Communications
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Newsletter
No 6
December 2001
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Steve and Jude in Honduras
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We have now been in Belén for six
months and are feeling relaxed and at home.
With work, visitors and household chores our days are full but we
have recently been enjoying cooler weather (down to 22°C), which makes a
big difference, and in October we had a fantastic two weeks in south
Florida with family and friends to celebrate Jude’s 30th
birthday.
We are feeling much more confident with
our Spanish and are beginning to settle into our different roles at work.
Steve is focusing on management and protection of forests,
development of sustainable ecotourism and conservation of lagoon and
mangrove habitats. Jude is
involved in communications and training, environmental research and
management of integrated agricultural/agroforesty systems.
We have
devoted the rest of this newsletter to the theme ‘transport and communications’,
both of which are important but, at times, very difficult in this remote
corner of Honduras.
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Challenge
Number 1 – bad weather
La Mosquitia
is physically isolated from the rest of Honduras and the only ways in are
by plane or boat. These are
also the main modes of transport once you are in the area (as well as by
foot, bicycle or horse!) so during bad weather all movement stops.
Consequently, for two weeks at the beginning of November we were
totally cut off from the ‘outside world’ because of heavy rain and
flooding caused by Hurricane Michelle.
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Belén International Airport!
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Hurricane Michelle
For six days and nights it rained
non-stop. The lagoon rose by
six feet and there was a great deal of flooding throughout La Mosquitia
with widespread damage to houses and infrastructure.
Some communities were left without access to drinking water and in
places waves and swollen rivers caused serious erosion and destroyed
crops. There is concern that
the area may face severe food shortages in the next few months.
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Flooding in
Belén
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However, thanks to funds from Tearfund
and the UK Government, MOPAWI is currently involved in a small relief
operation focusing on re-building damaged houses, mending water pumps and
cleaning wells. In some areas animal vaccination and food
distribution campaigns are also being implemented.
The affected communities are carrying out the work but with
financial assistance, training and technical support from MOPAWI within
the context of their long-term preventative health and community
development programmes.
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Challenge Number 2 – natural barriers
The west of
La Mosquitia is mountainous with impenetrable tropical forest
and fast flowing rivers. Most
of the rivers can be navigated but only by experienced local people who
are skilled in the use of dug-out canoes.
Elsewhere there are myriads of lagoons and swamps and consequently
it is sometimes difficult to get about – and expensive because all fuel
has to be brought via the sea from La Ceiba (a town 165 miles along the
coast from here).
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The
legendary Germans!
Around the time the English football
team was thrashing the Germans 5-1 in Munich, two German tourists were
having a very different experience here in the Mosquitian rainforest.
Choosing not to use the well-established system of trained local
guides they found themselves abandoned in the middle of the forest by the
local man they paid to show them the way.
The next day they lost their rucksacks while crossing a river and
were forced to hack their way through the jungle without food or any kind
of equipment. Two weeks
later, gaunt and with their legs covered in fungus, they emerged from the
forest in a small village a days canoe ride upstream from Belén.
Lucky to be alive, they are now the talk of the area!
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Quote of the
month:
“I’ve just seen two chickens on their way to Church”.
Context:
Harvest Festival where the pile of offerings at the front included sacks
of rice, beans, biscuits, coconut trees and live hens!
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Challenge
Number 3 – telecommunications and the postal service
Just after we arrived, two telephones
were installed in Belén for the first time (one in the MOPAWI office).
However, due to the extreme unreliability of the system most
communications are still carried out by short-wave radio which tests our
Spanish to the limit (and beyond) as the reception is so bad! We
receive our precious mail (including the wonderful Guardian Weekly
– thanks Alistair) about once every 6 weeks
and we have access to email and the
internet whenever we fly out of the area for meetings or to buy
supplies (at least once every two months).
Christmas
in Belén
We are looking forward to our first Christmas
in Belén although we will miss the festivities and traditions that we are
used to at home and, of course, our families and friends (but perhaps not
the cold weather!). Thank you
for all your letters, emails, prayers and support over the last year.
We wish you a very Happy Christmas and a great new year
full of lots of good things!
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The
fear of the Lord teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honour.
Proverbs 15:33
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