Intrigue And Mudslinging At Charlie Two!

It’s all happening down in Chapanthodu!

This news is brought to you thanks to our special guest correspondent, Hinesh.

12 November 2012

Hello again, real world. I must apologize for the timing of this long overdue update of Charlie Two’s adventures, but time is, quite frankly, flying out here, and it’s somehow it’s already been thirteen days since we left our comrades at Fieldbase.

I’m happy to inform you that all of our Venturers and lovely PMs are happy and healthy, albeit a little frustrated at the progress of our work to date. Since we last wrote to you, we have completed the digging of the foundations and cesspits of all eight houses, and cemented seven of these foundations. In addition, we have built the walls and bricked the cesspits for five of the toilets with two sets semi-constructed.

However, a serious unfortunate incident regarding the delivery of the materials (i.e. they haven’t shown up yet) has meant that our progress has slowed considerably. Regardless, the ever optimistic Charlie Two team are still hopeful that, with the addition of a second mason and some more materials, we will still complete the work in time for the inauguration ceremony this coming Saturday.

Luckily we have plenty to keep us occupied during this lull in doing toilet building we have had. We’ve received two visits from the lovely Loop, for whom we laid on an elaborate murder mystery event. This was based on the tragic demise of the fictitious ninth Venturer Gertrude Jones, from Bangor in Wales at the hands of one guilty member of Charlie Two.

Gertrude seemed to be a very abrasive character, with the investigation unearthing potential motives from nearly every member of the group. In her short time with Charlie Two, Gertrude apparently managed to get embroiled in a love triangle, break up a ‘bromance’, and drive PM Jenny to supposedly scream profanities and expletives at her for all to hear. Also involved were a pair of high-heeled flip-flops and a broken mirror.

The teams on the Loop had to question, or interrogate, the individuals to try to find the killer, location and the weapon used, in true Cluedo fashion. Points were given to the teams for the style and depth of the investigation, and the winner will be announced at the next changeover.

Is the 'assailant' one of these suspicious-looking people?

Loop detectives Anna and Ruth think they've found the culprit
(with the help of super sleuth Graham - that's me - behind the camera)

We have also been filming for the expedition music video. This has involved dancing in tea plantations, skipping down hills, and a memorable scene where the Venturers had the chance to get back at PMs, which led to Sarah, Jenny and Lou being covered head to toe in mud. A full-scale mud fight followed, with even the CTRD rep, Shree, getting his rather smart clothing splattered with mud. We’ve all paid dearly for our five minutes of fun though. There’s a large pile of laundry to do, and I think there’s still mud in my hair.

Well that’s about it so far. Tomorrow (Tuesday) being Divali means no work, and so it seems to be the ideal time for our day trip. We’re off to explore some caves in the morning and then are going to spend the afternoon in Sultan Bathery to try and buy some extra supplies for the final phase and some souvenirs for a lucky few at home.

We send all our love to everyone at home, and especially to Becky who didn’t actually make it on to phase. We hope you’re recovering quickly and I’m personally very jealous of your business class flight home. Till the next time …

Note: CTRD (Centre for Tribal and Rural Development Trust) is an NGO working to develop tribal communities on the borders of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.  It is Raleigh’s local partner on this project.

Watch out for more news for the other teams as it comes in...