TAKING PRIDE IN OUR WORK

Caitlin, the Fundraising Assistant, reports on the November activites at the South Georgia Museum.

At the beginning of the month we welcomed the cruise ship NG Explorer which kindly brought our final member of the museum team, Jérôme. He was soon put to work and with the help of Hannah, they were able to finish unpacking all of the new shop stock. As a team, we then decided which new clothing line would become part of our uniform.

With our museum team now complete, we received full training in the areas of fire safety, waste management, shop and postal. In particular, we all had great fun practising how to use a fire extinguisher, under the guidance of the island fire marshal.

Whilst we have had plenty of cruise ships to keep us occupied this month, we have also made headway with various museum tasks. Following Curator Jayne’s guidance, the museum collection object files were reorganised into numerical order by Caitlin. This month also saw the two Museum Assistants, Hannah and Jérôme, begin to get to grips with the South Georgia Island Crafts. As a result, we sold lots of locally handmade magnets in the museum gift shop. Another task saw Hannah placing protective films on the library windows within the church to reduce light-damage to the books.

We have had quite sunny weather this month, which allowed us to start on tasks outdoors, including the cleaning and repainting of various museum signs. As lovely as it was to be outside in the warm weather, access to signs proved tricky at times as male fur seals have begun to take over Grytviken. Luckily, the furries are beginning to understand that we aren’t a threat to their ladies, allowing cruise ship passengers to land safely at the beach.

With the summer season now in full swing, we also have a rise in the number of people living on the island. For only the second time in South Georgia history, we have at least an equal proportion of males and females living here. To commemorate both equality and inclusivity on the island, members of the museum team decided to organise South Georgia’s very own Pride event. This involved a parade from KEP to Grytviken, finishing with a tea party at our home, Drukken Villa. We had a great turn out, with everyone dressing in bright colours for the occasion.

A few days later a good crowd of locals, and some from the South Georgia’s fisheries patrol vessel Pharos SG, went on the mechanical tour of the whaling station. Everyone was captivated with Pat’s explanation of the inner workings of the machinery and seemed to thoroughly enjoy their afternoon at Grytviken. The Museum and Slop Chest exhibitions were also open, and there was the added incentive of cake and Christmas shopping too.