I typically write my blogs after the [Peace Corps mandated] curfew while sweltering in my apartment with all my windows closed because of the mosquitoes and my computer always on the verge of overheating. So in those moments with sweat dripping precariously close to my keyboard, I sometimes forget all the beauty that Guyana has to offer and likely come off as a bit of a curmudgeon.
Truth is if I never had to navigate a Guyanese road, I probably wouldn't be terribly upset. It's a nerve-wracking proposition each and every day. But once you get off the pavement and on the numerous trails surrounding town and it truly is beautiful. I found a great trail(or rather I linked up two trails together yesterday and it was phenomenal).
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| Can you spot the pig? |
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| Another sunny beautiful day |
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| The sugar cane |
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| This just goes on forever. I didn't even get to the end of it |
Okay so I was never good at the analogy section of the SATs but I'm going to try one, nevertheless. Here goes: Guyana is to birds as Hawaii is to fish. Haha. Butchered it. But what I attempted to convey is that as I run through these trails I am surrounded by every shape and color of bird imaginable. Little white storks are everywhere as are these pretty yellow birds as are so many others. Also huge raptors that hover overhead just waiting to see if today is the day I collapse from heat exhaustion. And my favorite, a little bird I call a durk. It's got a head of a duck but the body of a stork. And they are skittish little things. I brought my camera along during today's run in hopes of getting a picture of one but wasn't quick enough. In addition to all these birds I run alongside iguanas which I have to say make me laugh out loud when they run. I know it's not nice to make fun of a creature less fortunate than myself but they are so funny when they run. I can't quite describe it but it's kind of like what I imagine a bowlegged cowboy would like if he ever had to run rather than ride.
Side note: I have been called a sandbagger in the past, so I'm going to be upfront with you. I have been running a lot down here. Probably the most I have run, consistently, in 3-4 years. Still nothing like a lot of marathon runners do but a lot more than I usually do. I had run 812 miles in the 9 months before I left and I have run 261 since coming to Guyana. So no sandbagging. I feel pretty good about my chances at podiuming at the Guyana marathon. However, I'm so confident in my fitness that I registered for the Suriname Marathon the very next weekend. The winning time last year was a 2:57, which I realize was in 90 degree temps but still, I'd like to think I can come close to that.
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| Crazy Danny |
Until next time,
Danny
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