This last week was…testing. Monday, Rebekah and I went to KIWAKKUKI’s daily morning meeting, which consisted of morning worship in a circle, everyone announcing what they had done the day before, more singing, the introduction of Rebekah, meaning Rebekah was forced to dance while everyone sung and laughed, some sort of snake line where we greeted every…single…person, and more singing. That took an hour. Gotta love Africa.
After our “informational” meeting (which is what they had told us), we went to work writing up a 28 page grant for KIWAkKUKI’s children program. Only after an hour of working everyone seems to think they need a break, which means tea time. The whole building stops to drink chai tea (I think they lie to us and it’s only milk and sugar) and eat plain boiled potatoes and peanuts.
Tuesday, the Norwegian girls and Rebekah and I went to Rombo for Home Based Care or something, we don’t really know because they never really told us. That was one of THE most patience testing days of my life.
After an hour of driving with four people to three seats with all the windows rolled up because of the dust and no air conditioning we get off the bus to an orphanage or school or something and are told to wait there while the ladies from KIWAKKUKI disappear. While we are waiting we walked over to a group of kids and gave them a bunch of balloons the Norwegian girls randomly happened to have. Then we piled on the bus, added three more people, and drove to some office. We all got off and sat and waited while people whispered in Swahili then we got back on the bus. Then we got off at a school where we walked into a room, introduced ourselves, people whispered in Swahili, then we left and went to another room. Same procedure. Same thing happened at the next school.
We did however learn that at the school there is a garden where the kids can volunteer and learn to grow vegetables. If they put effort into working in the garden they are then allowed to take some of the produce home to their family if they are struggling or sell it at the market and keep the profits. Then…we saw our first goats of the day.
The next stop, we weren’t even on a road but instead driving through a freakin’ corn field on a footpath. We got to a point where there was just too much corn so we had to get out and walk the rest of the way. What was the point of this whole trip? To see a goat. We said hi to the goat, the made us pet him then we turned around and walked back to the bus. Next stop we pile out, walk for a mile in a sunflower field, and get to see the male goat which travels every other day from every goat owner to do his thing. What a life. We said by to the goat, then walked back and squished back onto the bus.
It was like that all day with just more of the same thing. I still have no idea what the purpose of the goat tour was.
Wednesday we decided to stay at home and work on the grant which ended up being a lot more productive. Thursday we went in and sent it off then checked out before tea and decided not to go back.
Friday, was Rebekah’s last night so we just hung out all day packing, shopping and then we all went out to dinner at a hotel. Kristina came back from Arusha for the weekend and joined us, which was nice. I miss having her around and now that both her and Rebekah are going to be gone, it’s going to be a bit lonely. But we are suppose to get 8 new more volunteers next week so that should be interesting.
Saturday, Kristina and I went to town to meet up with Craig, a computer technician who moved to Murangu from Bristol and is planning on staying in Tanzania. I love meeting people like him who have such a heart for helping others and really admire his maturity. We met up with Jasen, Fatuma, Ally and Rijabu (Fatuma’s boyfriend/our taxi driver) at a lounge to watch the football (soccer) game. On our way back home, we got pulled over for having too many people in the car (only 7 in a 5 person taxi) while Dala Dala’s are speeding passed us with people hanging out all sides. They ended up just talking to him to make a point I guess and then said Hakuna Matata and we were on our way.
After dinner we went down to a bar with everyone, including four-year-old Sumia and all hung out talking. I can honestly say that was my best night here so far.
Totally rocked scrubs and converse today which was my first day at St. Joseph’s Hospital with Sophie and Jasen. The hospital is off a series of random dirt roads, of course, up the hill from town. For African hospitals, I was told it is big, but for our hospitals it’s tiny. It’s set up in a square like architecture with a courtyard in the center. All the rooms and wards open up straight to the courtyard and the patients sit on the outskirts. I met the head nun and most of the doctors (who by the way go to school for a total of 4 years here which includes basic degrees and medical school), then we wasted no time getting to work in minor surgery.
Nothing too bad today. Lots of abscesses in literally EVERY place you can imagine, lots of stitches and removal, a few castings, and lots of wound maintenance and redressing, which Jasen let me do. Some of the wounds though were pretty gnarly though. One guy was missing a toe, another lady broke her foot and somehow spit her big toe side from the rest of the foot, which had gotten infected and then part of her foot had rotted away, another guy had been beaten with a lead pipe, and this grandma had fallen while drunk and severely severely torn up her leg, which had also gotten infected. However, over the weekend another one of the doctors had cut off the flap of skin which Jasen was suppose to sew together today now that the infection was gone. Now it looks like a shark has bitten a chunk out of her leg and they are going to have to do a skin graph which they are afraid won’t take because of the size of the wound and her age. We also had a catheter that the balloon wouldn’t pop. When I got the other doctor, he literally got a thin piece of wire, cleaned it and just stuck it in and popped it. They all were laughing and said T.I.A (this is Africa).
I am so much happier with this program and I am very excited to be working in the medical field. I look forward to the rest of the week.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Week One
One week down. Kristina and I went with our house mom Fatuma to the market. The market is almost identical with the ones in Peru. We had a walk down the meat section and I am now vegetarian for the time being. In over 100° weather, pieces of meat are hanging in the sun with thousands of bees and flies swarming around it.
My alarm clock is so sort of mix between the Muslim pray song, the roosters, and screaming bush babies (turns out Nicole, you don’t make up everything you say). The meals here are very good, but very repetitive and simple. Every morning, Fatuma makes homemade Chai tea, fresh coffee and then it’s the choice of bread with pineapple jelly, fresh peanut butter or butter. I usually grab a mango from one of the trees outside as well. Lunch is always left over from whatever we had the night before which Fatuma packs us when we go to our project. Dinner always has rice and beans and then usually chipati (a pancake tortilla thing), fruit mix and ugali (stiff, tasteless porridge similar to play dough but less salty) then some sort of potato or steamed vegetable mix. We always eat by oil lamp for some reason and they never put out silverware because they don’t use it. Garrett, you would get along just great here. They only eat with their right hand though because the left hand is used for other not so clean things. They don’t supply toilet paper anywhere. Not even at our hostel so that is up to us to supply.
I started my project this Thursday at KIWAKKUKI. The first day was simply orientation and an introduction into the program and the staff. I met three girls from Norway who are studying social work. We went to lunch together at a coffee shop and they gave me a bunch of tips on stores and fun places to go along with maximum prices to pay for things.
The proceeding day, Kristina came with me to my project because hers has not yet started. There were donors from Germany there and so we spent a majority of the day sitting and waiting for them to get out of their meeting. Pole pole as they say here.
On the way home we used the Dala Dala for the first time. The Dala Dala is their type of bus, which is really only a van slightly bigger than our minivan but much taller. There are about 10 seats but they will not leave until there are no less than four to a seat and at least 5 standing where ever they can. No one wears deodorant here which can lead to a very potent ride. From the outskirts of town, through town and then to the countryside where we live is only 16.66 cents so it beats walking in the scorching sun.
The girls who were on a safari, Sarika, from India and Rebecca who is from Wisconsin came back Friday. Sarika left the next morning but Rebecca is now my new roommate and we get along really well.
Saturday Ming, Kristina and I went with Sabino, one of our coordinator’s friend, to the Marangu falls. It was about a 45 minute Dala Dala ride and a half hour hike to the falls. We swam there for about 4 hours before we headed home. I have a permanent design of my Chacos and a solid, bright red color that camouflages my mosquito bites quite nicely.
My alarm clock is so sort of mix between the Muslim pray song, the roosters, and screaming bush babies (turns out Nicole, you don’t make up everything you say). The meals here are very good, but very repetitive and simple. Every morning, Fatuma makes homemade Chai tea, fresh coffee and then it’s the choice of bread with pineapple jelly, fresh peanut butter or butter. I usually grab a mango from one of the trees outside as well. Lunch is always left over from whatever we had the night before which Fatuma packs us when we go to our project. Dinner always has rice and beans and then usually chipati (a pancake tortilla thing), fruit mix and ugali (stiff, tasteless porridge similar to play dough but less salty) then some sort of potato or steamed vegetable mix. We always eat by oil lamp for some reason and they never put out silverware because they don’t use it. Garrett, you would get along just great here. They only eat with their right hand though because the left hand is used for other not so clean things. They don’t supply toilet paper anywhere. Not even at our hostel so that is up to us to supply.
I started my project this Thursday at KIWAKKUKI. The first day was simply orientation and an introduction into the program and the staff. I met three girls from Norway who are studying social work. We went to lunch together at a coffee shop and they gave me a bunch of tips on stores and fun places to go along with maximum prices to pay for things.
The proceeding day, Kristina came with me to my project because hers has not yet started. There were donors from Germany there and so we spent a majority of the day sitting and waiting for them to get out of their meeting. Pole pole as they say here.
On the way home we used the Dala Dala for the first time. The Dala Dala is their type of bus, which is really only a van slightly bigger than our minivan but much taller. There are about 10 seats but they will not leave until there are no less than four to a seat and at least 5 standing where ever they can. No one wears deodorant here which can lead to a very potent ride. From the outskirts of town, through town and then to the countryside where we live is only 16.66 cents so it beats walking in the scorching sun.
The girls who were on a safari, Sarika, from India and Rebecca who is from Wisconsin came back Friday. Sarika left the next morning but Rebecca is now my new roommate and we get along really well.
Saturday Ming, Kristina and I went with Sabino, one of our coordinator’s friend, to the Marangu falls. It was about a 45 minute Dala Dala ride and a half hour hike to the falls. We swam there for about 4 hours before we headed home. I have a permanent design of my Chacos and a solid, bright red color that camouflages my mosquito bites quite nicely.
Hakuna Matata
I made it to Moshi (finally) with only a few little hiccups. I ended up not having any layovers like my itinerary had said but instead was rushing to each plane. In Seattle they made me reprint my ticket and I almost missed the plane. I sat next to an Asian which I could not figure out if it was male or female. The plane was a little longer than 9 hours long and they fed me 3 meals. I had pretzels, egg sandwich, banana, a Caesar salad, brownie, rolls and butter, crackers and pepper jack cheese, pesto pasta, and as many drinks as I wanted.
When I landed in Amsterdam, I had to go through security again. I met a very nice Kenyan named Boney who is studying in South Carolina. The plane was a double decker with three seats on either side and five on the side. I know you really don’t care what I ate but I’m going to tell you anyway. I had almonds, cuscus, salad, mango mouse, rolls, curry chicken, rice, ice cream, coffee cake, fresh fruit and Tuscan pasta.
So...they lied about it being 70 degrees and 50 at night it was 76 at night and in the high 90’s in the day. Also Grace didn’t pick me up some random cab guy named Francis who apparently works with Grace. On our way to Grace we passed 3 accidents. They drive mainly on the left side of the road but that’s not always the case. they drive on whatever side is open and it’s a free for all. No tickets they said and the insurance rarely deals with any issues.
When we finally met Grace she said I couldn’t stay in the hostel because there was no one there and IFRE hadn’t sent her the money for me to stay there so I stayed in a hotel. Also I had to pay the taxi which they told me was already paid for. The hotel had a club at the bottom that didn’t close until 3 am. The shower and the bathroom were one thing, like the light and the shower head were right together and the sink and toilet would get all wet when you turned the shower on. So technically if I wanted to I could poop while showering and then wash my hands without ever moving. The bed had unrecognizable stains on it so I slept on my sleeping bag. In the morning I had 5 mosquito bites on my face, which is great because it looks like I have fat zits, three on my legs, three on my hands and 4 on my arms. I think it’s safe to say I have malaria and will be dead before I return.
I had to get up at 4 am and the taxi driver who said he would be there at 4:30 wasn’t there until 5:30 am. We arrived at the bus place at 6 and the bus didn’t come until 7. We then didn’t leave until 8:30 am. The bus was completely packed and we were told the drive from Nairobi to Moshi was about 3 hours. However, the roads were not there and so we were on a dirt/rock road the whole time. The road cuts through the Masai villages. Everywhere you see them herding cattle and goats and their small huts here and there. The savannah looks just like you were walking through The Lion King.
We didn’t arrive to Arusha until 4:30. I was then on the bus with only 2 other people a man and a woman and we continued onto Moshi. They dropped me off at some random office around 6:30 pm. I had to ask the guy there to call the coordinator to tell him where the heck I was. He arrived 30 minutes later, and Mikyah, I think I found your man. He is probably the most beautiful black man I have met. Don’t worry I got his number for you. He took me to town to get a phone and passport pictures to get my working permit. We then went to the hostel.
I’m rooming with 3 other girls, 2 of which are on a safari right now. The other one is named Ming and is from Malaysia. I am the only IFRE volunteer here. There is Jasen who is a redneck from Texas, Bill an interesting character to say the least from Boston, Sofie the sweetest lady in the world from London, Kristina the German who hates beer, and two girls who are leaving today from Wisconsin. There are two house moms, Ester and Fatuma and her daughter Sumia who is 4 and is making it damn near impossible to write this because she keeps pushing all the buttons. The house is very nice but you have to watch where you’re stepping because you’ll step in chicken shit since they roam free in the house. My first shower was freezing and had no water pressure because apparently I used the wrong shower.
Today I had a quick Swahili lesson and then I had the rest of the day off. They are very relaxed and said whenever I want to wake up and want to go to my program that’s when I’ll go. They also said I can change whenever I want. After our lesson Kristina and I walked to town which is only a couple miles but we chose the wrong time because it was the hottest time of the day. We went to a local café and got some fresh squeezed juice, went to the post office and a couple little stores and now I’m home trying to finish this.
When I landed in Amsterdam, I had to go through security again. I met a very nice Kenyan named Boney who is studying in South Carolina. The plane was a double decker with three seats on either side and five on the side. I know you really don’t care what I ate but I’m going to tell you anyway. I had almonds, cuscus, salad, mango mouse, rolls, curry chicken, rice, ice cream, coffee cake, fresh fruit and Tuscan pasta.
So...they lied about it being 70 degrees and 50 at night it was 76 at night and in the high 90’s in the day. Also Grace didn’t pick me up some random cab guy named Francis who apparently works with Grace. On our way to Grace we passed 3 accidents. They drive mainly on the left side of the road but that’s not always the case. they drive on whatever side is open and it’s a free for all. No tickets they said and the insurance rarely deals with any issues.
When we finally met Grace she said I couldn’t stay in the hostel because there was no one there and IFRE hadn’t sent her the money for me to stay there so I stayed in a hotel. Also I had to pay the taxi which they told me was already paid for. The hotel had a club at the bottom that didn’t close until 3 am. The shower and the bathroom were one thing, like the light and the shower head were right together and the sink and toilet would get all wet when you turned the shower on. So technically if I wanted to I could poop while showering and then wash my hands without ever moving. The bed had unrecognizable stains on it so I slept on my sleeping bag. In the morning I had 5 mosquito bites on my face, which is great because it looks like I have fat zits, three on my legs, three on my hands and 4 on my arms. I think it’s safe to say I have malaria and will be dead before I return.
I had to get up at 4 am and the taxi driver who said he would be there at 4:30 wasn’t there until 5:30 am. We arrived at the bus place at 6 and the bus didn’t come until 7. We then didn’t leave until 8:30 am. The bus was completely packed and we were told the drive from Nairobi to Moshi was about 3 hours. However, the roads were not there and so we were on a dirt/rock road the whole time. The road cuts through the Masai villages. Everywhere you see them herding cattle and goats and their small huts here and there. The savannah looks just like you were walking through The Lion King.
We didn’t arrive to Arusha until 4:30. I was then on the bus with only 2 other people a man and a woman and we continued onto Moshi. They dropped me off at some random office around 6:30 pm. I had to ask the guy there to call the coordinator to tell him where the heck I was. He arrived 30 minutes later, and Mikyah, I think I found your man. He is probably the most beautiful black man I have met. Don’t worry I got his number for you. He took me to town to get a phone and passport pictures to get my working permit. We then went to the hostel.
I’m rooming with 3 other girls, 2 of which are on a safari right now. The other one is named Ming and is from Malaysia. I am the only IFRE volunteer here. There is Jasen who is a redneck from Texas, Bill an interesting character to say the least from Boston, Sofie the sweetest lady in the world from London, Kristina the German who hates beer, and two girls who are leaving today from Wisconsin. There are two house moms, Ester and Fatuma and her daughter Sumia who is 4 and is making it damn near impossible to write this because she keeps pushing all the buttons. The house is very nice but you have to watch where you’re stepping because you’ll step in chicken shit since they roam free in the house. My first shower was freezing and had no water pressure because apparently I used the wrong shower.
Today I had a quick Swahili lesson and then I had the rest of the day off. They are very relaxed and said whenever I want to wake up and want to go to my program that’s when I’ll go. They also said I can change whenever I want. After our lesson Kristina and I walked to town which is only a couple miles but we chose the wrong time because it was the hottest time of the day. We went to a local café and got some fresh squeezed juice, went to the post office and a couple little stores and now I’m home trying to finish this.
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