St Helena Island Weekends

Life on St Helena is so very different to life in the UK (or the US for that matter!) I have never made so many friends in such a short time span nor been invited to so many social events! To mark Andy and Henry’s arrival on the island, we had a small party at Piccolo Hill. Because of the nature of the community and island, our social circle is already a very strange age group mix. Those you socialise with are often determined by who happened to be on the ship! The gathering included others who had arrived with me in May as well as some of those who had arrived with Andy and Henry on the Monday. Also present were neighbours and work colleagues. A few bottles of wine and beer were drunk and food demolished – and new friendships started.

The following day we had been invited to join Andy (Housing Executive and next door neighbour), Martin (Prison Manager), his wife Julie and Graham (Water Consultant and Jacob’s Ladder record holder) in a walk to SugarLoaf. Not for the faint hearted, that’s for sure, as the picture will evidence, but such absolutely stunning views from every angle. The morning didn’t get off to a brilliant start though. The phone rang at eight, John looking for Andy (next door neighbour) Andy had left his car in Jamestown on Saturday night to enable us to get back up to Piccolo after our walk. The roads division had decided to paint new white parking lines on Grand Parade (it’s not, by the way – Grand that is LOL) In true St Helena style, no advance notices had been put out so poor Andy didn’t know his car had been parked slap in the middle of where they wanted to paint the lines! Another neighbour ran him into town so he could move the car. Back to the walking! We met at the wind farm and walked up towards Flagstaff, turning left to walk along SugarLoaf ridge – and it is a fairly narrow ridge that needs careful negotiation if you don’t want to slide into a Tungi (prickly pear cactus) We make it to SugarLoaf in a couple of hours, then set off to walk around Banks Battery (almost complete!)to Rupert’s Bay. On arrival in Rupert’s Bay, I am struggling to see the path (any path) from the Bay up around Mundens part of an old walled fortification! I am assured by Graham that a path exists and to demonstrate he takes off up a near vertical climb up a dusty ‘cliff’ Henry follows swiftly behind. Julie and I are still to be convinced that there is actually a path present, but in the spirit of things we attempt the clamber up to the proper path. I am pleased to say no injuries occurred as we continued around the cliff into Jamestown and James Bay. Arriving in ‘town’ around 4pm, we head off to Glen’s house – He is leaving the Island on 21st August having completed his contract here and this is one of the many leaving parties that will be held to say goodbye. I’ve only met Glen once, but in true St Helenian fashion, we are welcomed and provided with a cold beer! After a while, we say our farewells and jump in Andy’s car for the return journey to Piccolo Hill. Andy has invited all the walkers to dinner, so after a brief freshen up, we go next door for freshly made lasagne and garlic bread, topped off with the a nice bottle of red. It’s been a long day so we troop back next door for an early night – Work for some tomorrow! During the week, Andy and Henry come to meet me for lunch. It’s been unusually windy here but that didn’t stop the shock of a large tree branch falling on the car as Andy negotiated the route down into town! We had a pleasant lunch. Henry was invited out with some college friends and is earning some money locally babysitting! As the weekend approaches, we are invited to a Piccolo Hill gathering – neighbours Sarah, Tim and Lucy are having people round to celebrate Lucy’s birthday. More food and drink in pleasant company. You start to see the same people regularly so become quite familiar with folk quickly. It’s like one big family already! We’d planned a day out to explore the Island on Sunday. The weather was pretty dismal though. Longwood is quite high up and in winter (now-August) it sits under low cloud which is 100% humidity! In lower areas the weather is often drier, so with a picnic packed, we head off to Sandy Bay, in the south west of the island. When we arrive there after a treacherous trip down mountains on very narrow single track roads, some are dirt tracks really, the weather is clear. It’s overcast, but not wet and Henry finds a turtle washed up on the black volcanic sand. The currents and under pull are very strong here, so having attempted to return the turtle to the sea, we settle on leaving it in a rock pool with a higher chance of survival.

There are some impressive fortifications here on the beach, which is also littered with cannons! We walk to the disused kiln site and Henry climbs a mountain side to have his picture taken by another abandoned cannon. There is a huge dry river bed too which we stroll along, hoping the recent rainfall doesn’t mean it’s going to turn into an operational one whilst we are down in it – I doubt you’d climb the sides and get out if the water came! Another great weekend – topped by our eldest and his girlfriend agreeing to a visit here next year – fantastic news, we miss them, but wouldn’t have missed St Helena for the world – Great Place, Great People, having a GREAT time xxx Last minute news flash! Henry had his GCSE results today - his big brother went to school to pick them up and emailed them over to us - Henry has done really well - 10 A-C grades including Maths at B. He now ahs to go to college tomorrow to confirm his offers. Well Done Henners!!!!!!!!! XXXXXXXX

Settling into Island Life!!

Well it didn’t take Andy long to rewire all the electrical equipment, set up Henry’s computer game and PC. This was swiftly followed by running repairs to dodgy shower rails, door handles and light fixings. I went back to work on Wednesday, dropping Henry off at Prince Andrew School on the way as he had been invited to attend for a sixth form team building event off site. I think he was a little nervous, but Henry being Henry he took it all in his stride and I left him happy in the company of the Head of Sixth Form and Head of School. I drove on to the office and on my return home; everything had been unpacked and put away, the house vacuumed and cleaned and the yard weeded! I beat Henry home too – I was back about 4.25. Henry had opted to take the school bus home – not for the faint hearted. I checked with the school that someone would point him in the right direction at the end of the day – due to the location of the school – pretty much mid Island – there are a large number of buses that all go off in different directions! Henry arrives home just before 4.45 and is full of his first day at ‘college’ He’s had a great day which in turn makes Andy and I very pleased for him! He’s made some friends already – he’s chatting to them on Facebook and he tells me that he feels really at home on the Island – it helps that ‘winter’ here over the last few days has seen unusually high temperatures in the mid 20’s with mostly sun. Henry is now on holiday until September – it’s a short holiday here now as it’s winter so the schools break for 3 weeks only, but make up for it at other times through the year – more time off at Xmas because it’s summertime, longer half term breaks, so overall the time spent attending school in similar. The days are longer though with kids leaving home every day by 8, some earlier, depending where they travel from and to. School finishes at 4 and by the time the bus gets you home it can be well after 5. Henry is astonished by the amount of food the Saint children have. On his team building day, the sixth form were bussed from Prince Andrew to Blue Hill. As soon as the kids were on the bus (9 o’clock), lunch boxes came out. According to Henry they had a dozen sandwiched each! For many though, the lunch box would be breakfast, lunch and dinner, because of the amount of time they are away from home – suffice to say, Henry wants more! One of the first questions he is asked is if he has a hard drive with films on it with him and can it be borrowed… Andy’s had a good day too – he went to Longwood Store with neighbour Bob and picked up some provisions – we have an account at the shop so no need for cash there. We also have an account at Longwood Farm Shop, which is open every Thursday for fresh – dug out of the ground yesterday – vegetables. Andy seems to have settled into the way of life easily, but he has to slow down – he’s still working at UK pace. Anyway after a busy day, all that remains is to open a bottle of chilled Sauvignon Blanc, take a seat on the balcony and watch the sun go down over the mountains – heaven x

First Days

Well having dragged Andy and Henry round The Castle (where my office base is) and introduced him to numerous work colleagues, ex-pat, neighbours and Saint, they are now faced with meeting some of the neighbours – As it’s Monday a fair few are at work, so firstly we pop over to see Hazel and Deanna. They are off back to the UK for a holiday (as are most Piccolo residents over the coming months) It’s unlikely we will return to the UK until later next year as my brother is threatening to get married and I’d quite like to be there! Deanna will be in the sixth form at Prince Andrew School, a year above Henry so I am sure they will be good friends. Bob another neighbour is also at home, so more introductions take place. Following tea and cake, it’s time to drive back into Jamestown to collect the hold baggage. Well I’ve actually given them 4 hours rather than the 2 they advise – everything is sloooooooooooow in St Helena! By the time we get back into Jamestown it’s 1 o’clock. We wander along the promenade to the security check point (well man in a hi-viz!) I enquire about the availability of hold luggage to collect. He just looks at me and smiles – ‘Not yet M’am, try later’ Now having driven down I’d quite like to know when ‘later’ is so I persuade him to let us past and we wander into the chaos that is ‘baggage arrival’ After quizzing a customs officer it is clear that the baggage will be sometime – they are prioritising vehicle containers! This is also the first ship in from Ascension since it went into dry dock some weeks earlier so there is more shipments to be landed than usual. We decided to take a tour of the shops! As we walk across Grand Parade and venture up Main Street, heads are turning to check out the ‘new arrival’ As I said earlier everybody knows everybody else literally so newbies stand out! Andy asks me how I know so many people after such a short time – answer is I don’t, but almost everyone you pass in the street says ‘Hello’ and of course you return the greeting. When you are driving everyone waves whether they are on foot or going the other way in a vehicle. I can’t tell you how happy that makes you feel by the time you arrive at work to have waved, smiled and said hello to a dozen or more people before 8.30 in the morning! After being impressed by the shops (yes that’s not a misprint – Andy thought it was much better than he had imagined) we grab some pizza slices from one of the shops and proceed back down to the quay – it’s almost 3 now so that makes 7 hours since unloading commenced. The same cheeky chappie is on the security – ‘Not Yet M’am’ he informs me again. We get past him back to luggage control and get chatting to another Customs Officer. He is really helpful and when our bags finally appear an hour or so later, he does the necessary searches and custom clearance for our belongings and we are free! We load everything back into the car for yet another hair-raising drive back up the mountain – I’m used to it now, plus had the added bonus of driving a hire car for a month. I did ask Andy if he wanted to drive, but he declined! There’s always tomorrow!

The Eagle Has Landed!!!

I’m standing on the quayside at James Bay looking out to where the RMS St Helena has weighed anchor. It’s warm and sunny at 8am –exactly the weather I’d ordered for Andy and Henry’s arrival on the Island! I was up early this morning, with the radio announcing the arrival of the ship at 7 am – usually the top news story on SAMS Radio 1.. A quick breakfast and a 25 minute drive down to ‘town’ leaves me squinting across the water searching for signs that the tender has started disembarkation. I spot my boss, Susan, also waiting on the Quay. Her nephew is coming in on the same ship! She tells me she nearly rang me this morning when she saw the RMS arrive earlier. In fact she heard it too – it’s amazingly noisy when it comes in and out of the Bay. We stand chatting for a bit, then spot the bus leaving the ‘steps’ (where passengers come on land) and heading down the quay. It’s like being on a first date! My stomach is turning and I have high levels of anxiety. As Andy and Henry were under strict instructions to be on the first tender, I am hopeful that they will also be on the very first bus transfer to Customs and Immigration! I find myself standing next to Beverley (Deputy Director of Education). We pass the time of day – as everyone does on St Helena – she spots some ‘non Saints’ waving madly from the bus and tells me they must be mine, because she doesn’t recognise them – everyone knows everyone here, literally. I catch a glimpse of Andy and Henry getting off the bus and going into the immigration building – my first view of them for 10 weeks! Moving back from the barrier, I return to my previous, pole position, spot at the entrance to the bridge. Beverley has gone over the bridge into the building. She comes back and waves me forward to join her! So now I am looking into the customs area and can see Andy and Henry searching for their bags, they don’t know I am just the other side of the doors, until they walk through and see me standing there. Re-united at last! We hug and walk to the car which is parked just along the seafront. Then we all have a proper cuddle out of sight of inquisitive locals! First order of the day is to take Andy to the Police Station. He needs to register his driving licence so he can drive on the Island. Hold baggage is not usually released for a couple of hours, so I drive them up the mountain via Side Path, Two Gun Saddle (repeated hairpins) Tomb Road (Napoleon’s burial site) past Hutts Gate, Alarm Forest until we reach Longwood. Through Longwood gate, past the school, Pub Paradise AKA KJ’s, past Longwood Store and petrol station (think 1950’s western!) Past Longwood House, Napoleon’s residence, and Basil Read Airport Construction offices and there on the left lies Piccolo Hill - -Home for the next 2 years.

If It Can Go Wrong - It Will Go Wrong!

How difficult can it be? You have written confirmation that you have a seat on a flight, so when you turn up at the airport, you name is on the passenger list, right? WRONG So let me start at the beginning! Andy and Henry were due to fly out to Ascension Island from RAF Brize Norton on Wednesday night. The flights had been booked and confirmation received some months ago (March). It was stressful enough for them leaving the dogs, our home and the eldest son behind, packing all your worldly goods into bags and taking the almost 4 hour drive to the airport without things going against you! Having made the journey in good time and cleared security at the RAF base entrance, they arrived at check-in, to be told that there was no record of their booking and they would have to go on ‘stand-by’ for the flight! If you’ve been to Brize, it’s not the most entertaining of airports as it IS an RAF base. The facilities consist of one small kiosk serving tea and coffee and selling a few bits and pieces and the obligatory toilet facilities. Once you go through to the departure lounge (usually an hour or so before the flight there is a soft play area for small children. So Andy and Henry found themselves sitting, surrounded by bags waiting to find out if they would be allowed to board. In the ‘pack’ I prepared for them in the UK, was the email confirmation that they were indeed booked on said flight, but despite this being in their possession, checking in was still forbidden! I can only imagine how stressful this was for them, but finally after a considerable wait, they were allowed to check-in and the ‘missing’ booking now confirmed – No apology though.

Throughout this time I was receiving messages from Henry via Facebook, so I knew they hadn’t been allowed to check-in. The flight time came and went and although I’d asked Henry to let me know if they made the flight, there was no update. With a heavy heart, I went off to bed not knowing if they had made the flight, or whether they were in custody in a RAF jail, having finally lost patience! Early next morning, still no news! Had to look on the bright side and hope that was good news. I arrived at work and proceeded to recount the previous evening’s events. My boss, Susan, has relatives on Ascension and she immediately set about contacting them. The wait for news began and after more anxiety, the confirmation arrived that Andy and Henry were indeed on Ascension. Within minutes the office phone rang and it was Andy calling to let me know they’d made the flight and had arrived safely. But the challenges did not stop there! Although I had prepared all the paperwork the St Helena Government pick up the bill for the permits etc. Despite me sending them a reminder email, they had not made payment! Andy and Henry could not get into Ascension unless they stumped up the cash for the permit. Luckily Andy had enough cash to cover the fees, so they set off for the Obsidian Hotel – just about the only place to stay on the Island. So just when you think nothing else could possibly go wrong, the Obsidian had no record of a booking in their name! After a bit of checking, the booking was found to be in the name of Mr Henry (a very common Saint surname) and the room keys were duly handed over – I do hope they don’t find they are sharing a room with Mr Henry!