The Smells of Payatas

One of things that hits you before you can even see anything is the garbage that is strewn all over the streets and other areas in Payatas. There are two large garbage dumps in Payatas and, lucky us, we pass both of them on the way to Cashew. The smell is unreal. The best comparison I can come up with is a very large diaper pail that has been left full of dirty diapers for days on end during a 30 degree heat wave. The other pervading smell is that of burning garbage, a smell I recognise from childhood when we lived in the country and Dad would burn the garbage in a barrel out behind the house. Both smells turn my stomach and make me pray for the ride to Cashew to be completed ASAP.

Unfortunately, Cashew is located very close to one of the garbage dumps so we cannot escape the smells while we are working. If the winds are right and you happen to be near a window, the stench can nearly bring you to your knees. The smell intensifies after a rain which tends to happen almost daily and in large quantities. As Gemma (one of our group members) puts it: "It just chucks it down."

The best part of the drive home is when we begin the descent towards Mango; there are no dumps around Mango so the air tends to be quite clean and scent-free. Occasionally, the smell of burning wafts our way but it is nothing like the smell around Cashew. Sadly, most of the drive takes place in and around the garbage dumps which leaves me no option but to put on the iPod, close my eyes, and pray Eddie drives just a little bit faster that day.

Kristen