Helicopters, helicopters, helicopters.......

We are regularly visited by helicopters here at the school, we are right next to the hospital, and the school playing field is used by the RAF Search and Rescue Helicopter for landing during casualty evacuation.  People around here are used to the SAR helo landing, but it does take some getting used to!   It can also cause severe disruption, as we found out a couple of weeks ago when the PE teacher and I had to abandon our lesson due to the helicopter arriving.  We couldn't move indoors to the sports hall as it was being used for a careers fair!

Anyway, in it came today at lunchtime, and I had my camera with me this time, so I snapped a few pictures.  It was quite windy today as well, gusting at 40+mph, so you really have to admire the pilots and loadies on the Sea King.

The Sea King acts as a vital lifeline for many people, as a 30 mile journey out here can take over an hour, so it really is a vital and useful role that the RAF carry out.

It's a massive turnout too, as the helicopter cannot land until the ambulance crew and fire brigade are ready, and often the medical evacs happen at short notice!  Generally the helo remains on the ground after the casualty has been unloaded, people have mentioned it is in case they need to casevac the patient off the Islands, it means they can be at Mount Pleasant very quickly!

On a more positive note, we had a "show the flag" visit from a Lynx helicopter based on HMS Gloucester, a warship currently on patrol here.  All the students had a chance to meet the pilots and be shown around the helicopter.  One of the funny anecdotes behind the visit is that when the crew first came to recce the area a couple of days before, they asked where they should land, so someone said "over there, about where the Sea King lands, we'll show you in a minute........no we wont.........the Sea King is here.......Look, it lands there!!!!"

In came the Lynx and began a hover, before lowering a man dressed in a penguin suit to the ground!

Lowering the "penguin"

And down onto the deck!

Once down we went out with students, a class at a time.  My group was the first out, so we recieved a commemorative picture of the Lynx in flight above Gloucester and a HMS Gloucester hat band.  I'm next to the pilot, and receiving the photo is our acting head, Helen, along with some year 7 students.

Cape Pembroke BBQ and Bogging

After the Remembrance Day Parade, we decided to go down to Cape Pembroke with Tracey, WIll and Ollie.  We decided to follow the Northern Route, as it is more challenging.  There were some nice holes on the way, but the Front Hubs on the Lightweight wouldn't engage, so I ended up bogged in something quite simple

When we got to the end, I jacked up the front end, and the hubs clicked in.....grrrrrr.........

Anyway, we had a lovely BBQ

and Ollie went exploring

A more unusual view of the lighthouse

and then it was time for a snap of the Lightweight covered in sludge

We finally headed home, Will and Ollie had decided they wanted to come in the Lightweight, so we had fun on the way back finding holes, and funnily enough not getting stuck.  Will then saw a puddle which he wanted to go though.  I knew there was no way to get through it, but it would be fun anyway!

By now the Lightweight was plastered!  Harry decided he wanted to help wash it, but as he was too small he went and fetched the kitchen mop.....guess whose fault that was........

Still, a good time was had by all!

Remembrance Day Parade

When I arrived, I joined the Faldkland Island Defence Force (FIDF).  They are liek the UK TA, but get more kit to play with, and are held at a high state of alert because of the political situation with our neighbours across the water.

Anyway, they needed some people to fire the saluting guns for the two minute silence, so Frank and I volunteered.  In what appears to be a case of travelling 8000 miles away to meet people who were local to you in the UK, Frank comes from Peterborough!

First of all we had to set up the guns.  They are 3 pounder guns and take a blank charge of 11 oz.  The weather was fantastic!

Once set up, we waited for The Last Post to be played, ready to start the silence

and then I had to fire my gun.....BOOM...there was a surprising pressure wave!

Frank fired his to end the silence....

and we were done, time to pack up and go back to the FIDF club for a well deserved pint!

Penguin Eggs

 One of my year 10 students brought me a penguin egg to try.  I had heard all sorts of horror stories about them from people, but others who said they loved them.  It seems that they are like Marmite - you either love them or loathe them.

The egg I was given was a Gentoo egg, shown below for scale.  Just now how to cook it........

 

 Lots of people who have tried them complained that they tasted of fish, and looked like eyeballs when boiled.  They are fairly unique in that the white stays clear even when cooked!

I decided that the best option would be to cook it as an omelette, and Harry decided he would have to help, trouble is, their shells are really thick!

We cracked it into a jug, and all was revealed!

 

We fried some mushrooms, onions and chorizo sausage, and then added the egg and milk mixture and some ham for Harry, and on with the cooking!

It was actually bloody lovely, Harry ate all of his piece, and declared it the best omelette he had ever tasted!  The flavour was really rich, and there was no fish flavour, probably due to the extra ingredients!

I would actually try another, and this time would try it boiled or fried!

Hallowe'en Parties

Okay, I haven't done any updating for a while, work has been a bit mad for the last few weeks as we have been getting ready for OFSTED.  Unlike schools in the UK, we get lots of notice about inspections, but there is still the usual panic and madness!

October 31st was Hallowe'en, so Cat held a party for all the kids, which also allowed the adults a chance to socialise too!

Harry found Zoe's doll house, but it kept him amused for a while!

After food (and beer for the adults!) it was time to go trick or treating. Here was a first, as it was a gloriously sunny evening, so we all had to slap suncream and sunglasses on, and of we went.  It seemed like the whole of Stanley was out trick or treating! It was like the 80's back in the UK!!

Harry had found a green mask, so he insisted he was Shrek, while Zoe was dressed as a witch!

Afterwards, all the children attacked Andy!

Cape Pembroke Lighthouse

We had intended on going to the Welcome the New Governor Parade on Saturday 16^th October, but we were sat in Jacs, a local excellent cafe before the parade when a friend asked us if we wanted to go the Cape Pembroke Lighthouse as they had managed to get the key.  They were going with the Falkland Conservation Watch Group, who are the local young wildlife group.  The weather was fantastic – glorious sunshine, and not a breath of wind.  Ideal weather!

We had been trying unsuccessfully to get the lighthouse key for several weeks, and had also heard it was an interesting drive.  A friend had got bogged the week before on his way out there, and it took him 5 hours to get out!  The peat bogs are really soft, and will swallow a vehicle.  Off roading out here is somewhat different to the UK!  We decided we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to head out there with some experienced guides, so we met up at the airport and set off in convoy.  This view is from the lighthouse looking back to Stanley, and you can see the different tracks used by people.

It was quite an interesting journey out, but we didn’t get bogged.  A few people seemed surprised we were taking the Lightweight when they had Discos, 110’s and the usual collection of Mitsubishis and Toyotas, but the old girl did us proud, and everyone was suitably impressed with its performance!

Having got used to laning in groups of 3 and 4 in the UK, it came as a surprise that 10 vehicles headed out there.  Sometimes as many as 40 or 50 vehicles will go off roading!

Now, this will surprise my UK teaching colleagues, but some of the kids in the Watch Group go to my school, and they were extremely mature in their attitude to seeing a teacher outside of school – none of that silly giggling stuff; because it is such a small community, they accept that they will bump into their teachers all the time outside of school.  They had been looking at the role of camoflage for predators and prey, hence the bits of grass and head bands!!  Harry didn't want to put bots of grass into a head band, so he borrowed Dawn's hat!

Harry wanted to go up the lighthouse, so I took him up to see the view, and then went back up on my own to take some photos.  He wasn’t very sure when we got to the top, and the last two ladders inside were nearly vertical, which made it interesting getting him to the top!

There is also a memorial to the Atlantic Conveyor which was part of the Task Force, and was carrying useful equipment like helicopters.  It was the loss of the ship to an Exocet that meant the Task Force had to yomp across the island.  The memorial is a large bronze propeller with the names of the dead and the location of the wreck.

Again the wildlife was stunning, and this is one of a sequence of photographs of a night heron.  Unfortunately it refused to dive into the water to catch a fish!

Surf Bay again

We went back to Surf Bay, it is rapidly becoming a favourite place for several reasons.  The walk along the beach is fantastic; the wildlife is excellent; the sand is gloriously white, and the waves crashing over the rocks makes it brilliantly moody, or extremely pretty depending on the weather!

Harry had his wellies on, so we let him paddle in the pools in the sand.  Needless to say, he still got soaked!

He also made friends with a dog.  The dog was also called Harry, which caused great confusion for both of them!  “Mummy and Daddy, why are they calling me?”  and the dog kept running to us!

He then decided to climb the dunes, and roll all the way down!

Some steamer ducks were swimming on the sea.  This is one of a sequence of photos I took using the multisnap facility on the camera.

After that we visited the guns they located just above Surf Bay.  Apparently they were moved here in ‘82/3 to deter our friends from across the water should they decide to do anything silly again!

It is located just above the airport which serves Stanley.  No large planes use the airport, just the Government Air Service planes, and the view of the aiport is extremely commanding.