We just wrapped up a long and eventful trip up-country that included two of the schools being completed among a total of seven sites.
Vaama was the first of the schools and went fairly smoothly...until the bees came. I had heard African bees can be a bit nasty and they certainly lived up to their word. All of the crew were stung numerous times and work was cancelled for the day. After a bit of recovery and the bees banishment we came the next day and finished the work. Good news...the village has lights in the school...bad news, their honey supply is dramatically lower.
For the next two days we worked in Kambama, the last village on the way to Tiwai and the location of the boat launching point. Although the plan was to just do the school we ended up with a much more ambitious and difficult project that included lights at the barri and water pump, a streetlight in the car turning area and a 400 yard trench to the school and the full lighting of that. It was a tough two days for the team and the 50 or so community members who contributed by either digging, building fixtures, cooking or just providing general support. In the end the community can not only enjoy the benefit of school lighting but can also boast of being the frist 'grid tied' community in Pujehun! For a bit more information on this project see the update for Global Giving project 2584.

Links:

• Facebook Photos

Pictures:

• Chief Vandy turning on the power (JPG)
• Running the cable to the school (JPG)
• Village streetlight - Kambama (JPG)