Falklands humour & zero tolerance

The Fanklands have a zero tolerance policy on drugs. Drug use is strictly forbidden and overseas contract staff applying for work have to answer a question as to whether they have ever used illicit drugs. Any identified use will be reported to the police and is likely to result in dismissal.

However, there is a defite streak of humour among the islanders, and following recent events this photograph has been circulated, with the caption 'Royal Falklands Police going for world record'. (We really do get amazing foam deposits here.)

Crime and drugs

There is a relatively low crime rate here in the Falklands and many people leave their houses and vehicles unlocked, and often the keys in the ignition! However cars do occasionally get stolen, usually by someone wanting to get home after a night out, and the insurers won't pay for damage if the keys were in the car. Some people only bother to lock their houses in the tourist season, particularly if they live in scenic old houses in Stanley, as apparently some visitors feel at liberty to walk in where-ever they fancy as if it is all laid on as an attraction!
There is a zero tolerance policy on drugs here and there is an RAF sniffer dog on duty when you arrive at Mount Pleasant airport checking passengers and baggage. It is a nice golden labrador called Leo and he and his handler are sometimes loaned to the local police and customs departments to check visiting boats etc.
About a month ago a large quantity of cocaine was found on a fishing vessel, apparently being taken from South America to Spain. 2 men were arrested and had an initial appearance in court but are due back in court soon so are being held at the police station/prison. The drugs were also being stored in one of the locked police cells. It was discovered earlier this week that most of the cocaine had been stolen from the police cell - which is presumably causing considerable embarressment to the senior police. One rumour suggests that one of the suspects could reach from his cell into the other one and had been disposing of the evidence down the toilet. It will be interesting to see what the Penguin News has to say about it today.

Leisure

Before we came we thought we would have lots of spare time to fill but we actually both seem to be keeping quite busy. I now have lots of shifts at work.
We collected the last of our freight a week ago and Simon has been setting up his new computer and other things that I don't understand. I have lots of packages and bundles in the garage which are the components for my polytunnel but progress on clearing a site for it is at a halt at the moment. Today is my one free day this week but it is very wet and windy.
This morning I visited the library to renew the books I haven't had time to read. This is in the community (secondary) school and is very well stocked with fiction, non-fiction, magazines, CDs and DVDs. I then went for a swim. The leisure centre is also attached to the school and has a gym and squash and badminton courts as well as a 25m pool. I just took out pool membership and you can swim as often as you like for£110 a year. It is heated with waste heat from the nearby powerstation and is usually really warm. It was unusually crowded today as there were already 4 people swimming but I often have the pool to myself.
Simon has been windsurfing regularly and I have joined him on a couple of sunny days. There are often sailing boats in the harbour.
Simon is also enjoying trying out his off-road driving skills. Yesterday afternoon we went to Cape Pembroke which is East of Stanley and has an old lighthouse. Simon found some challenging tracks to drive on and we walked around the point. There are always birds and plants of interest to see and we enjoy getting out for a walk.
There are lots of things you could get involved in if you wanted to including amateur dramatics, hand chimes, golf, cricket, Scottish dancing, spinning and weaving, darts and quizzes. There are also lots of local bars. The annual horse races are a big event here after Christmas, there is a fire engine pull next weekend, a raft race and carnival at Christmas, a marathon in March and the midwinter madness swim in June.
I'm not sure when I will have time for all the craft activities I brought with me. Maybe in those long winter evenings!

Camp driving lesson

Everywhere outside Stanley is called camp. This is said to be derived from Spanish "campare" for country. The government has spent large sums of money developing a road network, to support a couple of hundred "campers" scattered over areas half the size of Wales. The roads are well maintained and gravelled, but do have very substantial ditches (and in some cases minefields) adjacent . The results of leaving the road can therefore be serious.

Beyond the end of the government network, there are vast areas of trails and farm tracks, criss-crossing the islands. The etiquette here is that before using private areas you phone the landowner, and in return, they will help should you become stuck on there property. People are generally pleased to help one another, and vehicles often travel equipped with a range of equipment such as "bogging boards" (for crossing boggy areas), spades, tow-ropes etc.

Speed limits in town are 25, and on "designated roads" 40 mph, At present most roads more than 5 miles from Stanley are undesignated, and you can drink and drive at any speed you wish.

On Saturday 8 November, an official opening of the new ferry terminal at Newhaven on the west side of East Falkland was held. The Governor (the Queen's representative on the Island) undertook the opening, with local the Councillors and 100 guests in attendance. It was reported that at his request no alcohol was served, in case of any problems arising with subsequent driving. However, even without alcohol, Falkland roads can be treacherous. With a gravel surface on which tail spin-out can easily lead to loss of control, and on the return trip to Stanley the governor lost control of his official car, with the results shown in this photo.


His comments were subsequently published in the weekly Penguin News, from which the following extracts are taken: "Helen and I would like to thank all those who offered support when I rolled the Crown car at the Saladero corner on out way back from the inauguration of the New Haven ferry terminal. Even though we were both unharmed, it was still a shock to the system. We have been overwhelmed by the subsequent 'phone calls and messages of concern that we have received.

Lessons learned for me are that Camp roads deserve the highest respect even in dry weather and that wearing seat belts saves lives and protects against injury.

Whilst I am deeply embarrassed and my dignity and reputation of being a relatively proficient driver has been seriously dented, at least we were uninjured - apart from a lost claw each, so were our two dogs. But I have a lot to learn about how to drive safely in the Falklands. Alan Huckle, Governor."

Surf Bay

It rained most of the day yesterday but late in the afternoon the sun came out and we decided to go for a walk at Surf Bay which is a couple of miles outside Stanley. It is one of the few local beaches you can access as most have minefields on or behind them remaining from the 1982 conflict.

It is a beautiful sandy beach and the waves usually break and surfers sometimes go there. Towards the top of the beach there is a shallow lagoon where a lot of birds were feeding. There were several Magellanic oystercatchers and two banded plovers and a large flock of white-rumped sandpipers. We had not seen these little birds before. I was amazed to discover when I looked them up in the bird book that they breed in the Arctic and then migrate here for our summer, making an annual round trip of 16,000 miles!


We walked along the promontary at one end of the beach and as the tide was low scrambled out along the rocks at the end. I was surprised to see lots of small red sea anemones in some of the rock pools as I didn't realise they lived in such cold waters.


There were some giant petrels flying around, some rock shags perched on the higher rocks and a pair of kelp geese feeding near the water's edge. We also saw a flightless steamer duck having a snooze on a mussel-covered rock. These large ducks are endemic to the Falklands and are unable to fly. When disturbed or having an altercation with another one they move over the surface of the water flapping their wings and paddling their feet on the surface - steaming along - and making loud noises at the same time.

Windsurfing

The passengers from the cruise ship never did get ashore on Thursday. Apparently it blew a force 10. However Saturday was sunny, relatively warm and a gentle breeze so I decided to accompany Simon windsurfing. Having not been for over a year and there being no rescue boat here to keep an eye on you I was feeling rather nervous. I donned as much neoprine as I could and Simon kindly lent me his hat which was great - my hair stayed dry although I had been under the water! The only snag was that I couldn't hear much as it covered my ears.

Anyway I got on better than I expected and we spent quite a long time sailing up and down in the harbour which is enclosed apart from the entrance which is known as The Narrows. The only problem was when we came to return to the slipway the offshore wind was really dropping and I kept getting tangled in the thick kelp that grows along the edge. It is like huge and very strong seaweed that kept catching on the fin of my board so in the end I had to swim and drag it.

At least I have got my confidence back a bit and will have another go when the weather is suitable.

A stormy morning

We have had a very stormy night and the gales are continuing. Our house is rattling and the lamp posts outside are swaying. Looking out of our front window the wind is picking up the surface of the water in the harbour forming clouds of spray (so much for my having washed the windows a couple of days ago!). A small cruise ship, the Polar Pioneer, has come into the harbour but they don't seem to be attempting to lower the inflatable boats which they use to ferry the passengers to shore. I think I would be feeling decidedly sea sick if I was out there.

I have just been watching a couple of giant petrels flying over the harbour. Even against this wind they are able to glide, hardly beating their wings at all. With a wingspan of 2 metres they are quite awe inspiring when they fly past just above your head if you are walking near the sea and they seem to enjoy racing cars along the seafront. They always win because cars are limited to 25 mph!

Yesterday I planted some seedlings of chives, thyme and mint in wooden planters outside our front door. They are getting quite a battering. The planters are actually boxes which coins arrive in from the royal mint (a perk of Simon looking after the money at the treasury).

The fridge has just started making some very strange noises. Does this not bode well for having guests for dinner tonight? Anyway I had better do some cooking and housework.

Manure mashing

I suspect our neighbours are somewhat puzzled about what I have been doing for most of the day. I have been in the process for a while of making a flower bed at the front of our house. It runs along beside a gravel path and is at the top of a steep slope. The first 18" or so beside the path were solid stone, gravel and sand which I have gradually been digging out. The rest is a mixture of stones and very dry peat which blows away if you try digging it when it is windy. I have put a row of large stones (mostly dug out from the vegetable patch) along the bottom to stop the meagre ammount of soil that is there all sliding down the hill.
In an attempt to increase the organic content and improve the fertility I decided to add some horse manure. This is collected from the common a couple of miles outside Stanley. The horses have all been removed from there and are now in peoples gardens in town - presumably in training for the Christmas races which are apparently the height of the social calendar. Therefore the manure is now rather sparse and very dry and hard. On trying to dig it in it just stayed in hard lumps or blew away.
The solution I came up with was to put it a sackful at a time in a dustbin, cover it with water, leave it to soak for a while and then chop and mash it up with the spade. I felt rather like an African lady busy pounding maize. The result was a nice soft mush to dig into the flower bed.
The neighbours are probably now totally convinced that I am eccentric (justifiably so). I am reminding myself more frequently of my mum - it is just the sort of thing I can imagine her doing!
Our remaining freight, which should include the polytunnel I ordered before we came here, is on the boat due in tommorrow. I have been slowly digging an area in the back garden for it. However, yesterday I hit two very big rocks and felt defeated. After digging out a lot of soil from around them I have eventually managed to loosen them but they are at the bottom of a big hole. I am now viewing it as a challenge rather than defeat but it is going to need quite a bit of extra manpower to get them out.
Maybe one of John's tasks when he comes to visit will be to create a large rock feature in the middle of our garden.

A windy walk

On Sunday we went out for the first time with the ramblers who meet on the second Sunday of each month. After meeting up in town 7 of us set out in 2 vehicles and headed for Rincon Grande which is a farm towards the north of East Falkland. The groupleader had already asked the landowner for permission for us to walk there. There was no-one at home when we arrived at the settlement so we headed off northwards off-road. Simon enjoyed testing out our vehicle's capabilities and his driving skills. It is best to go with at least 2 cars in case one has problems or gets "bogged".

It was very windy when we left Stanley and it steadily increased. At times we were driving behind sand dunes and you could have imagined we were in the Sahara in a sand storm. We eventually parked and set off walking along the north coast with the wind more or less behind us. It was impossible to walk in a straight line as the wind was buffeting me about. The coastline is rocky with occasional sandy beaches and there were huge waves breaking and leaving drifts of foam on the beaches. At one point we saw a seal that followed us for a while, bobbing up through the waves to watch us.


We ate our lunch in the shelter of some rocks on a small beach but they were certainly SANDwiches by the time they got into our mouths! Along much of the coast there are kelp beds and huge pieces of this wash up on the beaches, as well as timbers from wrecked ships. You also see whale and dolphin bones (mostly ribs and vertebrae) washed up. Many of these are probably relics of whaling days.


Many of the wild geese now have goslings and we saw various ducks, oystercatchers, plover, dotterel, giant petrels and a few penguins as well as gulls.


To avoid being sandblasted in our faces it was decided we would return further inland which was a hard slog into the wind. Most of the ground is covered by whitegrass, a short coarse grass growing in small clumps, and diddle-dee which resembles heather plants but apparently has tiny edible berries later in the year. Huge areas are needed to support small numbers of sheep and cattle. The cows we saw were very scrawny and we saw quite a few carcases around. Unwanted livestock are shot and left for carrion to feed on.

It was certainly the windiest walk I have ever done and I was pleased when the vehicles came into sight and we got out the hot flask for a cuppa.

Work and healthcare

I will leave Simon to write about his work but will tell you a bit about mine. When Simon was originally offered the job here I was invited to apply for a nursing post . I didn't want to be too tied down at first so applied for bank nurse rather than regular full or part time hours. Acouple of weeks after we arrived I had a phone call asking me to go into the hospital the following afternoon, I was expecting a formal interview, with considerable trepidation as I have not worked in a hospital setting for 30 years but it was a very informal chat and a look around.
The hospital is actually unusually well staffed at the moment so I have only had a few shifts so far but I manage to keep well occupied with other things. I still feel very inexperienced and out of my depth at times but there are always other trained nurses on duty.

The hospital in Stanley provides all the health and dental care for the islands. The doctors provide a GP service and also staff the hospital and there is a general surgeon and an anaethetist. Three of the nurses are also midwives and they each have their own caseload so women have the same midwife throughout their pregnancy, delivery and post-natal care. There are also a district nursing team, health visitor, physiotherapist, radiographer, pharmacist, pathologist and community psychiatric nurses based at the hospital.

X ray facilities are shared by the vetinary department so apparently dogs and cats may be seen going in but the portable X ray machine is usually taken outside for horses! X rays are taken digitally and can be transferred to UK for advice from a specialist.

There is one 28 bedded ward which covers everything including surgery, medicine, trauma, paediatrics, geriatrics, maternity and mental health. At one end there is a 7 bedded elderly care section (where I feel very at home), there is a 2 bedded intensive care room, 1 isolation room, a 1 bedded maternity room and the rest is 1, 2, 4 and 6 bedded bays.

As well as catering for the local population and contract staff the hospital serves the military and visiting fishing boats and tourists so you never know what might come in. The ward staff also cover casualty and some of the nurses run specialist clinics like diabetes and asthma. The tourist season is just starting and apparently we get quite a lot of patients from the cruise ships (particularly elderly Americans with medical problems). Many of the fishing boats are staffed by people from the far east who are often poorly nourished, prone to TB and may have tropical diseases.

We have various specialists who visit every year or two such as a psychiatrist, an orthopaedic surgeon, a gynaecologist, an ear nose and throat surgeon, an opthalmologist and an optician so they may do quite a bit of surgery when they are here. The doctors here have links with different hospitals in UK for backup in different specialities.

The surgeon here only does relatively minor operations (caesarian sections, appendixes etc). Anyone requiring more major surgery or high tech investigations or treatments is sent overseas, usually to Chile or UK. Also anyone critaically ill is usually transferred out. There is a firm who fly in from Chile with a medical team and equipment to the international airport at Mount Pleasant. They are then brought to Stanley by helicopter, which lands on the football field opposite the hospital. The patient is then tramsferred to their care and taken to the helicopter by the landrover ambulance.

The ambulance here is driven by one of the hospital drivers/porters/security men and if it goes out a nurse and sometimes a doctor go with it to care for the patient. One of the nurses also goes if a patient is to be collected by plane or helicopter.