Old House, New House

This week we said goodbye to Expedition 5 and are getting ready to say hello to Expedition 6. As it was Madison and Sam’s turn to head to Toliara to pick up the new volunteers, I have been left back at Coco Beach to get ready for their arrival. It has also given me some free time and so I have taken the opportunity to move house! The hut that I have been living in is great, but a short sharp rain shower a few weeks ago showed that in rainy season things might get a bit wet. The drips combined with its very pronounced lean to one side convinced me that I should probably seek more stable accommodation. However, I have not travelled far. In fact I am now settled in a newer, sturdier hut only next door!

Old House

Every staff member gets their own hut and all are equipped with everything you would need to lead a happy beach life. A balcony for relaxing in a hammock and hanging wet bikinis, a shower (with brackish water) to wash the salt and sand away, a desk and shelves for data entry and blog writing and a bed to relieve tired heads and legs (and watch many, many films). My new luxury abode even has an ensuite toilet and a concrete floor. The volunteers get much the same, just over the other side of the dunes and shared between 3 or 4.

New House

However, for these creature comforts I also play host to several actual creatures. So far I am waging a battle against cockroaches in the bathroom (helped ably by the ants) and rats, mice and huge centipedes are all possible visitors – but it’s a small price to pay for the beautiful view from my window. Welcome house mates are the cute geckos and hermit crabs which also wander inside on occasion.

I am all stocked up on various methods for lighting my room after dark. The electricity at Coco Beach comes from a generator which runs from 9 – 11am and then in the evening from 4 – 9pm. This means that bed time tends to be pretty early and candles, lamps and torches are a must. Another result of me changing location is that my view of Andava rock and the sunset is no longer blocked by an inconveniently placed tree which provides great vista for many more Instagram moments!

The wooden walls mean that my whole room is a giant pin board and I have already started to fill them with photos and cards. An experiment by my parents shows that cards sent to the BV office in Toliara do reach me (transported by friendly staff members when they make the journey to Andava). The real test is packages though. These are very likely to go missing or be opened on transit. Although, I am informed that religious text written on the outside in French greatly increases the likelihood that parcels reach their final destination.

But I don’t have much time to enjoy my new home as now it is time for me to give Nosy Cao a final sweep, write up the new survey sites on the board and make sure there is plenty of drinking water for when thirsty travellers arrive this afternoon.