The Last Days of May

Day 24 – Tuesday 27/05/08

‘Winding Down…’

By day 24 the pace of the project was starting to wind down a bit because the first phase of the project was so far ahead of schedule. Chris was starting to worry what the July group were actually going to do! We arrived on site a bit later than usual and decided to chill out and not work quite as hard as we had been doing. I think we definitely deserved it.

At the start of the day we split into small teams of two or three in each, and each team concentrated on a small section of the blockwork. One team marked out the location of the windows and doors and put some of them in place ready for the blockwork to be built up at the sides of them.

In one location of the school there is an area where three doors are really close and are facing different directions. Gary stayed on site to help us out with the task of setting out and levelling these three doors so we got it exactly right. He then left us to do the rest.

Because of a shortage in trowels and floats, it turned out a lot of people didn’t really have anything to do; so five people were allowed to have the afternoon off and then the rest of the group could remain fairly busy.

We made good progress by the end of the day. The back wall had blockwork up to the height of the ring beam, which goes just above the level of the tops of the windows and the rest of the walls were built up to about a metre and a half. We left early at about three after all the sand had been used up and there was no mortar left.

Day 25 – Wednesday 28/05/08

‘An Explosion of Texture and Taste’

The day started with perhaps the most filling breakfast yet – doughnuts, fruit in lemony/custardy sauce and the obligatory bread roll; ‘An explosion of texture and taste’, enthused Andy, self-appointed food critic for the day.

Unfortunately, this proved to be the high point of the day on site, with progress yet again limited by the (lack of) material deliveries. However, the local workforce were able to continue with raising blockwork around window and door frames at one end of the school. Government education officials arrived on another visit to view progress on the school.

Some of the group filled their time with a walk combined with litter collection, while others worked hard on perfecting the art of doing nothing while lying in the shade. An early finish was declared at lunchtime.

Most went into Tofo in afternoon, to stock up on presents from the market and to sample milkshakes. Matt and Charlie had a ferry ride to Masheesh to extend their visas, but with limited success. Chris, Mike and Fotini went to Inhambane to attend to business in town.

England vs. USA friendly tonight on TV in the bar.

Thursday 29th May

‘Off site with a bang’

A lift to work was becoming a rarity and today was no exception. The chef tried to sink us again with donut and fruit salad for breakfast plus a mountain of spare donuts for those with big appetites.

Today’s target was to ay the foundation for the veranda, which meant that the previous trench work had to be uncovered and re-levelled. Working with the same passion with which we started the month the job was completed just in time for lunch, giving us all a free afternoon.

Lunch was Matapa-free, consisting of a tasty fish stew and a plateful of prawns surrounded by a ring of chips.

The afternoon was spent in a variety of activities including diving training, visiting Tofu (again), relaxing and training for tomorrow’s big match against the local teachers.

The bush telegraph must have worked since Mango Beach obviously got the message that we missed matapa for lunch. As a special treat, for the first time in 4 weeks we did not have a tasty vegetable soup for dinner but matapa samosas. These were followed by calamari and chicken pieces with the usual salads.

Day 26 –Friday 30th May

‘Field of dreams, stuff of legend’

Having seen the inspired England performance on Wednesday night, the team started their day of departure from the village in anticipation of the afternoons international friendly against the local team.

Friday started with the entire group taking their final stroll through the dunes and marsh on the way to the school. Upon arrival we joined the children to sing the national anthem. ‘Pedra pedra construindo novo dia…’ (‘stone by stone creating a new day..’) had never seemed so apt or relevant.

Later a special treat was prepared where Fernando the chef presented the group with a breakfast comprised of a chocolate chiffon cake iced as a white and pink mother duck surrounded by ducklings (Which we were informed that we should eat whilst thinking of the children). The significance of this was then explained as one of our compassion and caring for the children of their community. Fernando (or ‘santa’ as he is known by all) appeared wearing a Santa suit, which added to his compassionate and thankful presentation by conveying an additional message of peace. He added that he thought that we cared more for the children than their parents did…. Reactions to that were mixed.

The director of the School (Juliao) continued the speaking tradition and thanked all for their involvement, support, commitment and spoke of his sadness at their departure. All in all, an emotional start.

Once stuffed with cake (surely a local ploy to ruin our hopes of a dynamic start to the football) we said our goodbyes for the first time and sat around discussing tactics, approaches and motivational speaking (at the blow of the whistle…clatter them!).

After about 4 hours we reached the conclusion we were bound to win, until the opposition turned up….

The ‘Group 1 heroes’ spent the morning and early afternoon playing with children in Pembane; balloons, Frisbees, football and songs and dances were the order of the day and although somewhat preoccupied with the football, I couldn’t help but notice how good so many of the team were with the children, despite the language barrier (and age difference) the games were so genuine and enjoyable and the kids so appreciative that even Chris - ‘Tin Man / psycho’ - Williams couldn’t fail to feel very happy about how well the team and local children had gelled in the past month. Genuinely inspiring and positive. Any burst balloons were immediately greeted with whoops and hunted down and put in the rubbish pile… something you’d never see in England.

The walk to the field of dreams was calm and collected, accompanied by the children, parents and builders all ready for the spectacle.

Once the crowd, of over 300 locals, had enjoyed the female students competition, the preparation began for the showdown.

Throughout the day it became obvious that Juliao had substituted a team of professional mercenaries in place of the expected teachers.

Teams warmed up, donned their kits and seconds later this first Scott Wilson / Mango Beach / QUEST All-stars were in action.

The pace caught everyone by surprise, and a tense few minute followed in which both teams sized each other up, looking for that first break.

A team comprising nationals from Ireland, Mozambique, Scotland, England, Zimbabwe and South Africa linked up surprisingly well in the first period of the game and the game was taking shape….

About 20 minutes in the unthinkable happened, Keith (‘man of the people’) Fulton moved forwards from the midfield and hammered home the lead, high and proud into the top right, taking a glance in off the post. Truly a wonder-goal. The crowds were ecstatic. After celebrations and congratulations within the team and from the fans the team got stuck in for more, with everyone doing their best to thwart the advancement of of the local team (ominously kitted in Man U strips)….

The first half ended with committed performances (as was to be expected given the building track-record) with Luke and Pidgeon linked in the midfield, Messi, Williams, and Pabs (el Mango) leading the strike force along with Bambu and Fulton.

A strong defensive line-up including Neville (‘Hard As’) Taylor and Neil (Razor a.k.s. ‘Clean Sheet’) Rugg between the posts.

After the first half, still one-nil up, the reality of the situation became clear.

The second half started with an unlucky bounce, which looped in over our replacement keeper and set the scores level.

From now on it was only a dedicated performance which could hold things balanced…. And that it was.

The game ended a 1:1 draw just as the sun set over the coconut trees and marsh. Truly a magnificent way to finish what has been an inspiring and positive first phase. One the subsequent team will have to work hard to live up to.

We were then invited back to the school for more goodbyes and a home-made treat from the children. Roasted Cashews and Coconuts were prepared and handed out and after an emotional goodbye the team wandered home by the marsh for the last time.

They will truly be missed…. But never forgotten.

C

Day 27 and 28 - Saturday 31st & Sunday 1st June

The team took a well-deserved break for the final weekend. Some went diving, some slept in, others wandered around Tofo or spent the day relaxing and reading.

Nuff said. C

Day 29 - Monday 2nd June

Departure time for group one (tears all round) and a busy day in town in preparation for the next groups arrival.

A smooth turnover and hopefully everyone enjoyed their time here and will remember it for a long time to come. On a personal note to anyone in group 1 that reads this (all of you) – it was a real pleasure working with you, I enjoyed meeting you all and getting to know you properly, keep the support coming, it really helps… please ah…!

Once team 2 arrived, again with one bag missing (a pattern emerges - David) and one less tooth filling - Ed (herewith known as ‘Bagless’ and ‘Toothless’) and had settled into Mango Beach they were briefed on the progress of team 1 and their targets for the week ahead were set. After a few ‘welcome drinks’ at the Mango beach bar and a wonderful seafood dinner (tuna and shrimp) the team settled in to their new rooms to prepare for their first day on site.