Roadside hawk

My house

Here is where I, Jeff, a colony of bats, two tree frogs, one black snake, at least two BIG tarentuella spiders and a bunt of other insekts is live at the moment. As long as the insekts keep away from our beds we live in peace with each other.

Thunderstorm comming in from the Amazoian rainforest in the evning

Sunrise over Rupununi river

Some Photos

Another day in Guyana

Yesterday morning I woke up with a big cockroach on my arm. They must be the cockiest creatures on the planet. My nightmare is that they will dart into my mouth while I am sleeping. I hate them but if I kill them it just ends up with another slush to clean, so I guess that I just have to deal with them.

Because of the abrupt wake up this morning I didn’t feel tiered. Dressed as fast as I could and went out in the early morning. The clock was five and the sun hadn’t risen. Everything was asleep as I walked through the deserted village down to the river. The air was cool and the river was smooth like a millpond, and formed a perfect reflection of the sky and threes. This is the best time of the day, when everything feels fresh and untouched.

When I came back a man had been stung by a Scorpion. His hand had swollen up to almost double size and it looked bizarre to see the hand still growing. The man had been working in the garden and rummaged in some twigs. Even if the stung is extremely painful this species of scorpion is not dangerous to humans, I was told.

I was just about to go back from the forest in the evening when I saw huge thunder clouds form over the Kanuka Mountains as they forced towards the village I packed my stuff and went back. 20 minutes later the blue sky turned to black and with a lightning the sky opened and a pool of water smashed to the ground. The shower was so powerful that it was hard to see and breathe in all of the water. While I was running towards the village in the early evening I meet a little girl carrying a big tree trunk together with an older woman. It should have been such good photo, but it would feel so rotten just to watch them carry. Instead I helped them to bring the trunk to their hut and then darted the last couple of hundred meters to Caiman house.

Some good species for the day:
Giant Utter
Black Kaiman
Pearl kite
Fork-tailed palmswift
Linated Woodpecker

Return ticket Lethem

I have fallen in love; in the people, the nature and the feeling of being free like a bird. To do whatever I want, go where ever I want and think whatever I want. After my travelling throughout different countries and cultures I have learned that it is only a very small piece of us that has this opportunity. I am glad that I went here and thank you all of you at home for letting me go.


I have now been in Yupukari village for 10 days and you can’t imagine how different it is from what I am used to. I come back to that later. Instead I would like to tell you about my trip to Lethem yesterday. Some of you at home may think that I am crazy; just for that reason that I don’t mind to do painful and tough things. A good example is this; I knew that the way to Lethem probably should be painful, long and extremely uncomfortable, but why not try and see how bad it is.

The journey started at three o’clock in the morning on a tractor bed. The rain was pouring down over us as we were sitting tight like illegal refuges on the wet wagon, that in the following six hours was supposed to take us to Lethem. In the flashes of the many massive lightning’s the savannah landscape appeared even more mysterious then it really is. Scattered threes and termite mounds as far as the eye can reach made to black and white landscape to look weird.

After about three hours the rain suddenly stopped and the stars appeared shortly before the sun rose. It seemed that the warm sun all of a sudden gave new life to the earlier so sterile landscape. The impressive Kanuka Mountains shined up, it gave color to the Savannah and lit up the sky in all colors’. In that moment I couldn’t tell earth from heaven, it was so stunning I can’t describe. (No pictures due to the bumpy ride).
After six hours on over the Savannah and we reached Lethem.
 I have been traveling on many uncomfortable ways but I must say this beats the most of it. First it was totally wet, after that frying hot and during all the time so crowded that it wasn’t a centimeter left on the wagon. The wheels was not soften so the wagon bumped up, down left, right and everything in-between (I didn’t tell anyone that my rump and backside ached so much that it was hard to walk the first time in Lethem).
The Macushi Indian people are the hardest people I ever meet. It were many babies, kids and women on the flake and noon of them ever complained, cried or when became in bad mood; despite the rain and uncomfortable sitting. I am really impressed!

In the foothills of Kanuka mountains close to the Brazilian border lies Lethem. Not much to see but a good man called Russian from Yupukari showed me around. While I was buying my food for the coming weeks I bumped into George. One of the guides also from Yupukari. Do ya wanna ride home with us? Sure I wanted! Sitting on the back of a truck is far more comfortable than the tractor and took half the time. But I must admit that I felt ashamed that it was I who went with the truck  instead of any of the mothers with their children, but I wasn’t able to change with them.


Some really nice birds seen on the trip:
Sharp -tailed Ibis: really hard bird to find anywhere else.
Buff-necked Ibis
Vermillion flycatcher
Long -winged harrier
Pinnated Bittern
Swallow tailed kite
Three species of Kingfisher

Thanks for reading and I hope that everything is fine in Sweden
Cheers!

Did I write nice blogg? of course I meant bird, sorry too much Guyanan Rum of late. All best

Scarlet ibis at Georgetown. -I know for most you reading this blogg this bird is just scarlet. But for me it has been a dream bird for a long time and I was really glad when I saw it. The only time when I dared to use the camera in Georgetown. Really nice bird how ever...

Bumpy ride towards Yupukari

It is heavy rains over Yupukari today so I take the chance to write some.

I hope that you understand despite bad spelling and grammer most of it seeing that internet is really slow here and I havent got much time to write.

I was told that the bus from Georgetown should take of at seven in the evning. So it did but I couldn’t imagine what kind of struggle that waited us before we could leave the town. The first busstop was  prive at some persons that the driver knew (no hurry) after that we went to the gas station and tanked the bus and the extra tanks on the tops of the tanks. When we where done with that the bus had to be “fixed”. So we drove into someones garage and the driver and his friends did some small reparings. The small minibuss hold nine passagers (it was crowed) and a mountin of baggage tied on top of the rof. Then we went to not one but two polisstations where all of us showed our passports and were interviuwed.

After almost 2 hours we finally leaft Georgetown (it took really long time and was almost driving me crasy). Earlier in the morning the man that sold the tickets hade told me: No problem 10 hours to Letham. This time I asked the same question tothe driver , first didn’t listen (probobly because he thought it was a silly question). Then the man answerd with a sudden harsh and strong voice, -  10 hours, 20 hours, 2 days,2 weeks, 2 months… I DON’T KNOW!... (end of conversation)

The road was crowed my humans, cars, biycals, cows and sheep. The driver never really slowed down. Instead he just used his horn and the people throwed themselves away from road as the vehicle that in a foriously tempo rushed along the road. In one second on the left side, the other on the right; just to pass other slower driving cars as fast as possible (reminded me of the Harry Potter bus, seeing that noboby on the bus except me seeamed to be concerned of the violent drivning). Suddenly all signs of human civilisation just disapeard and we were surronded by tall, dark rainforest. The road was so bad that we didn’t really went on the road instead we went on the margin. After 4 hours ( 1 oclock at the night) we got punkture, fixed it in poring rain and went on.  After another 2 hours of extremly bumpy ride we meet our fist real problem. A big three had fallen over the road and it took us almost 5 hours to get through it. In the morning we reached the savanna who was complety flooded because of the heavy rains. The bus slowly made its way throught the water and mudd but at one special deep hallow the engine didn’t had the energy to push the bus forward and we were stuck in the middle of the temprary river over the road. The water was so hight that it sprinkelt into the bus. Almost in panik a greped my smaller backpack with my camera (that I thought should be safer insife the bus then on the rof) and hold it up above the water.  We where stuck and there was nothing left to do then to bath out of the bus and hope for help. Happily it came a big jeep that helped us up from the water. The engine had become wet so it took the driver some time to repair it (thanks to the jeep driver that helped us out).

After about 20 hours in the bus I finally came to Yupukari junction where Mike Martin hade been waiting for me for 3 hours. The last way was spent on a back of a motorcyckle it too about 1,5 hour. Thanks to Mike!

Some nice birds: Barn Owl,Blue-throated piping guan, scarlet Macaw, Channel-billed tucan, Snail kite, common potoo, ringed kingfisher, white-collared swift etc.

Some damn good mammels: Giant Anteater 2 ex.

I hope everything is alright in Sweden, take care. 

The forgotten city of northern South America

So Georgetown... Where to begin. After a stop in Trinidad the airplan finally landed in Georgetown, the capital of Guyana. The first thing that striked me was the heat. You know, I am used to the heat but this heat is differnet. Depending on three things. 1. The sun is just above your head and the shadow of yours is just under your feet. So the sun is steaking hot. 2. The huminity. Here you become ampfibian. Everything you have on you body become soaking wet. 3. The air here is standing still which makes it heavy, no wind at all.

However on the airport it was kaos with all the baggage. Finally I got my baggage and after 1,5 I was out of the airport taking a minibus towards Georgetown. The distans was 40 km but took almost 2 h. No roads signs or rules. I didnt find out if it was leftside driving or rightside. If it was que on the left the driver was just driving on the opposite side of the road and if it came a car in opposite diraction he just honked and we both met on the (wrong) side of the road. -And do I need to mention that he was driving in full speed all the time? CRAZY,I have been in India, but this beats the most...
Georgetown is a true wildwest city opposite to what we are used to in W. Europe. After 2 h in the city I was the only white skinned person. No tourists. On the hotel I meet Jeff Slocum. A teacher from Boston. Really nice bloke that has a burning interst in ampibians and reptiles, and he is really good at it. He almost know all the species in Guyana! Jeff and I are both volunteers for Rupununi learners (http://www.rupununilearners.org/) and we will work togheter for a couple of month.

During the evning I went out toghter with Guyanan feather frindes to see the stunning Scarlet ibis (I will upload pictures as soon as possible).

On Sunday  we went to change money. We went thorugh a shop crowded with people, through a door and upstairs. There it stood a tatood man with a shootgun. He did not look too nice and was glaring at us when we came up. -We are here to excange money are we right?, Jeff began the man nooded and let us un to a small dark office. It all went out well and there were nice men. The guy with the shootgun was just a private guard seeing that the criminalty is big problem in GEO.
Jeff leaft me in Georgetown he had mangaged to fix a flight ticket to Yupukari seeing that the he came a couple of days earlier. I should fix a bus ticket so I went to a local bus company. -no problems my friend yo take a bus from here in the evning comm back in two hours and buy ticket, he said. No problem I went back 2 h later and heard: You cant buy ticket... -Why. -You just cant buy ticket man. But you said I could buy a ticket 2 h ago. Ya man but the road is closed yau know. -Alright???

At the hotel I met a man named Cris that became fierd with anger when I told him about the mess with the unbought ticket. -I fix a ticket for you, come on I fix! So we went back to the buscompany and he asked for a ticket. Same answer the road is closed. -But this man needs f****g ticket! whos your boss, man?!. Want to speak with the boss! Chris the shouted. I didnt understand anything convinced that the road really was closed. suddenly the man said. -Alright give the foregner a ticket. -What!? I did not understand anything. The buss leaves here at 7 this evning. I was there at 5 seeing that the buss might just leave 1 of 2 h before time.

-Thank you Chris, you really fixed it for me! -Without you perhaps I still would have been in Georgetown if you did not helped me out. And sorry for not trusting you in the begining. In my eyes you where just acting strange in the begining. -New culture for me...

I have been to many cities and many cities that not is that nice but this is the worst I ever been to. It was unsafe even during during the day to walk the crowded streets as a European man. ( Not talk about the nights). Even on the days drog-affected men came to me and shouthted strange things and where even draging my clothes. It felt a bit uncomfortible... -And you dont want to mess with them, they might be armed I heard from the taxidriver.

But everything worked out well and I leaft Georgetown on Sunday evening. During the day I had hooked up with two really cool French guys living in French Guyana and we ever leaving the city togheter on the small bus driving to Letham.

Im glad to leave the city becaus I did not want to stay a minute longer... But also intersting to seen a city like that it. It was so ruff and seamed to lack laws... I heard a lot of things about Caracas but Georgetown? No.

Oh, I forgot to say that I will write in English. Not because I consider my self especially good at its just that I HATE to write in Swedish without all the Swedish letters. I just cant read it! So I will spell wrong and my grammer is not good, but I hope that you can read it and understand.

Airportchaos

The jorney to Guyana did not began that well after changening flight to London (canciled fligth) I got the information on Heathrow that my inchecked baggade was gone…great. –No problem, we just send you your baggage where your staying, smiled a women behind the disk. – Well, it is a bit of a problem seeing that I will be staying 60 km into the Amazonian rainforest in Guyan I said. Fortunately my baggage appeared and once again I checked in on JFK. Airport in New York 6 h later.

-VISA please I heard a man said hebind the disk. –What!? I don’t need a VISA, I am travelling with EU Passport! –Sure you need a VISA, it is written here, see. And so the descusion went on in almost 10 extremley long minutes as the que behind me grow long. Suddently the man mentioned Papa New Gunea. - You must me jokking with me! I am NOT going to Papa New Gunea, I am going to Guyana!   They had quite simpley confused the shortenings on my ticket.

The inchecking on the plain to Guyana was the worst ever. The inchecking personal fixed strange ques that no one understood. It took almost oe hour for all of us to get a seat. I sat besid an older gentleman from Georgetown. – You will have a good time Martin, but do you have a gun? He said when I was telling me of my plans.

Tjena,

My name is Martin Berg and I live in Stockholm, Sweden. I am 20 years old and have, as long as I can remember, had an intense interest in birds, wildlife and photography. In addition to birdwatching, I am very attracted to adventures and spend as much time as possible in the outback. Example on journeys I have done are hitch hiking for weeks halfway around the Mediterranean Sea, trekking and climbing in the Indian Himalayans, the Pyrenees, Arctic Norway and sailed over the Atlantic Ocean.


For three years I have been studying natural science with concentration on biology, upper secondary school, in Stockholm. Parallel to my studies, I have also done much work for bird observatories in Sweden and United Kingdom where I mostly have been ringing birds and done careful inventories. I am member in the Swedish ornithological society which is cooperating with Birdlife international. Side by side my studies I have been working as a waiter and crew member on a sailing ship. For the moment I have just finished the military service in Sweden (which is a duty for all men in Sweden). I have served in the amphibious core which is identical to the Royal marine core in United Kingdom and is extremely physical and mentally demanding.

As a person, people around me regard me as humble, hardworking and kind person that love to explore new cultures and environments.

I hope that you will enjoy my blog and I will do my best to keep it up to date during my adventure through South America.



All the best

/Martin