After a very long, but uneventful flight, I finally landed at Mount Pleasant at around 4pm (local) on Thursday ready to start my year on the Falklands. Well, ready once I’d managed a few hours of sleep in a nice comfy bed with the ability to lie flat, unencumbered by the arm rests of airplane seats, which are remarkably unyielding.
I was met by two very excited boys who were determined to impart 3 weeks worth of happenings in about 30 seconds of time. It made up for their complete refusal to talk on Skype previously, though the overall effect was mildly confusing. I have picked up though that Alexander had his first sleep over whilst I was away and that there is a cafe somewhere with a ball pit/soft play which I clearly need to find soon.
The past couple of days have been somewhat busy with sorting out details necessary for living here and trying to get my bearings/see a few things. There are a few things I have to get used to, such as writing cheques again as debit cards are only available once you have lived here for 6 months. To add to this, if you want cash, you need to go to the bank in working hours on Monday to Friday, fill in a cash slip and obtain cash from the bank clerks. I’m so un-used to this system and carrying a cheque book with me that on my first solo outing with the boys, we got half way down Sapper hill before I had to turn around because I left the cheque book at home and so had no means of paying for anything. Comments were made on Mummy’s forgetfulness and organisational ability. I don’t think the plea of ongoing exhaustion from the flight fell on receptive ground.
Many people asked me before I came out here what our house looks like. I don’t think I ever did it justice in my descriptions, so rather than attempt more descriptions, I’ll save the thousand words and give you a picture instead, complete with “Wilson” the Defender 110 which is my vehicle for the next year.
In local sightseeing, I spotted on the map that just down the road from the phone/internet shop, there was a memorial and a shipwreck. With a Falklands sim card for my UK phone sorted out, I insisted that Alexander and Ptolemy joined me in finding out more. The memorial is a first world war memorial (much to the delight of Alexander who has an ever growing interest in military history). It marks the naval defence of the Falklands in which Vice-Admiral Sturdee led a British squadron to victory over a German squadron led by Vice-Admiral Graf von Spee.
The shipwreck is that of the Jhelum, a barque that was overloaded for going round Cape Horn and arrived in the Falklands in a sorry condition in 1870. It was duly scuttled after the crew refused to put back to sea in her and the remains are still visible today. It also gave me my first sighting of local birdlife – a Patagonian duck. I feel fairly safe in making the prediction that my knowledge of ornithology will expand considerably this year.
Today has been marked by a trip what I think is the most southerly cinema in the world (at least most southerly fixed one rather than any on a cruise ship) and sampling of some local gin. More on both in a later instalment.
Five penguins and us 