Well I haven't had a chance to add my last comments so here they are:
Our 3 day safari was a blast! We went to 3 different national parks, including the famous Ngorongoro Crater. I took tons of photos and we were able to see elephants, lions, giraffes, hyenas, monkeys etc. We also had a flat tire near a group of "sleeping" lions. The safari driver was trying to change the tire when one of the lions stood up and started walking towards him. He quickly got back in the truck and waited for the other drivers to block the view of the lions. After accusing our driver of not being a real safari driver, but just a taxi driver from Dar es Salaam (apparently that is a big cut down), all of the other drivers pitched in to help change the tire. Other than that little incident everything else went basically smooth. The animals were great and the scenery was beautiful.
After leaving from the safari, Dawn, Dr. G. and myself all returned to Dar, while Karen C. returned to Mwanza to continue working on the data collection part of the project. In Dar we continued inputting data into the computer and preparing our presentation for Dorcas and everyone at CARE. We gave our presentation on our last day in Dar (for Dawn and I) and I felt that it went off very well. Dorcas seemed excited about a lot of the stuff that we had done.
All in all the trip was great! I learned a lot about community health, maternal and child health, international work, how CARE operates, how to implement and carry out a project etc, etc. It was also great to learn about another country and culture and to get to work with and meet great people! Thank you so much DR. G, Dorcas and all of the other folks at CARE and GSU/IPH that made the trip possible!
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Safari Time
Yesterday morning we all worked on compiling the data that we had been collecting from the hospitals and clinics and then had a meeting with the CARE staff to talk about what we had seen at the various places. After the meeting we then dressed in our native clothes and went to dinner. It was quite funny because some of the Tanzanians were dressed in more "western" clothes and the gringos in Tanzanian clothes. For our last night in Mwanza (for Dawn and I) we went to a Chinese restaurant of all places. The food wasn't bad.
Today we are getting ready to leave on our safari (everyone minus Jamie) which I am really looking forward to. Our plane leaves at 1:40 pm and we will be flying to the town of Arusha. From there we will visit 3 different places, 2 of which are Mt. Kilimanjaro and Ngorongoro crater. It should be fun! I doubt that I'll have internet connection...
Adam
Today we are getting ready to leave on our safari (everyone minus Jamie) which I am really looking forward to. Our plane leaves at 1:40 pm and we will be flying to the town of Arusha. From there we will visit 3 different places, 2 of which are Mt. Kilimanjaro and Ngorongoro crater. It should be fun! I doubt that I'll have internet connection...
Adam
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Country Kwimba
I haven't had a chance to update my blog because I've spent the last 4 days in Kwimba, several hours outside of the city of Mwanza. We stayed in hotels that weren't exactly 5 star. The only other thing that I need to say is that they cost about 4 bucks a night. The good part was that they were considered safe and a had a bed with a mosquito net.
We had a chance to visit many rural clinics and hospitals on very bumpy roads (as well as muddy roads, check out our bogged down vehicle in my pics) in Kwimba. As most of you know I'm no stronger to rural areas but these were much different. Most of these people don't have cars, many have bikes or they walk, they live in traditional hut type housing, they wander around with their cattle during the day (while their cattle feed) or tend their small corn or rice plots. Most of the contact that I've had with them at the clinics has been very positive and as you can tell by my pictures, most have no problem having their picture taken. I think everybody in our group has enjoyed the children, who love to have their pictures taken and then seeing them on the camera. Start taking pictures of a couple of kids and you're guaranteed to attract 50 more.
Adam
We had a chance to visit many rural clinics and hospitals on very bumpy roads (as well as muddy roads, check out our bogged down vehicle in my pics) in Kwimba. As most of you know I'm no stronger to rural areas but these were much different. Most of these people don't have cars, many have bikes or they walk, they live in traditional hut type housing, they wander around with their cattle during the day (while their cattle feed) or tend their small corn or rice plots. Most of the contact that I've had with them at the clinics has been very positive and as you can tell by my pictures, most have no problem having their picture taken. I think everybody in our group has enjoyed the children, who love to have their pictures taken and then seeing them on the camera. Start taking pictures of a couple of kids and you're guaranteed to attract 50 more.
Adam
Sunday, March 4, 2007
Adventuring around Mwanza
Yesterday morning (Saturday) we returned to Misungwi Hospital to finish up what we had been working on the previous days before. It didn't take too long because the hospital staff found many of the documents that we needed (but not all). We returned to Mwanza in the afternoon and spent the rest of the evening relaxing.
Since Sunday was an off day for us we were looking for things to do. Suzanne, the owner of Tree House, called a local that she knows to be our tour guide. He took us to the market area where they have fresh fruits, veggies, meats, etc to buy (the smell was very strong). It was a very interesting experience. Unfortunately we couldn't find any artisan shops open so we decided to go and check out the casino. As all of you know we are all broke college students so after 5,000 shillings (less than $5.00), shared between 3 people, we called it quits. After losing 5 bucks at the casino we decided to go eat and then head over to Lake Victoria to take a tour. The tour takes you to a small island which is out in the middle of the lake. The island is a game reserve, essentially a zoo, with wild animals brought in from the serengeti. Of course the carnivores are kept in cages (1 lion & 1 hyena) but some of the herbivores are able to roam. Many of the cages were empty (the animals had presumably died). I wasn't especially impressed with the animals but the island was beautiful. It was very hilly, with lots of green grass and rock formations. Check out the pics!
Since Sunday was an off day for us we were looking for things to do. Suzanne, the owner of Tree House, called a local that she knows to be our tour guide. He took us to the market area where they have fresh fruits, veggies, meats, etc to buy (the smell was very strong). It was a very interesting experience. Unfortunately we couldn't find any artisan shops open so we decided to go and check out the casino. As all of you know we are all broke college students so after 5,000 shillings (less than $5.00), shared between 3 people, we called it quits. After losing 5 bucks at the casino we decided to go eat and then head over to Lake Victoria to take a tour. The tour takes you to a small island which is out in the middle of the lake. The island is a game reserve, essentially a zoo, with wild animals brought in from the serengeti. Of course the carnivores are kept in cages (1 lion & 1 hyena) but some of the herbivores are able to roam. Many of the cages were empty (the animals had presumably died). I wasn't especially impressed with the animals but the island was beautiful. It was very hilly, with lots of green grass and rock formations. Check out the pics!
Friday, March 2, 2007
Back in Misungwi
We returned back to the CARE offices this morning to continue working on graphs that we needed for our work later on at Misungwi Hospital. It took a little longer than expected to finish at CARE and before we even began the real work at Misungwi it was like 3 in the afternoon. When we eventually arrived at the hospital we were directed towards a small office where they keep the data that we need. It was a bit of a mess and as it turns out the exact data that we were looking for was no where to be found. We were there for a while and didn't accomplish as much as we wanted and Dr. G says as we go down to some of the lower levels of health facilities it will only get worse. Wow! I think the take home messages when visiting Africa are:
(1) In Africa 500 seconds= 1 minute (2) They do the best they can with the limited resources that they have.
Tonight we were also able to chat in depth for the first time with the lady that runs the Treehouse (where we are staying), Suzanne. She is originally from Canada but lived in South Africa for years. She is a retired grandmother but dreamed of starting a program in order to help street kids. With help from her daughter she started Streetwise Africa, in which her and a group of volunteers read to children that are living in the street here in Mwanza (also provide counseling). The funds from this hotel (more like a B&B) go toward the program. It is a very cool project!
(1) In Africa 500 seconds= 1 minute (2) They do the best they can with the limited resources that they have.
Tonight we were also able to chat in depth for the first time with the lady that runs the Treehouse (where we are staying), Suzanne. She is originally from Canada but lived in South Africa for years. She is a retired grandmother but dreamed of starting a program in order to help street kids. With help from her daughter she started Streetwise Africa, in which her and a group of volunteers read to children that are living in the street here in Mwanza (also provide counseling). The funds from this hotel (more like a B&B) go toward the program. It is a very cool project!
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Visiting Our First Hospital
This morning we woke up and headed to the CARE Mwanza offices to finish up business that we had started yesterday (as far as getting information from local CARE workers concerning the local hospitals and clinics in the 2 districts that we will be working in).
After finishing up there we headed over to the Misungwi Hospital for our first visit to any clinic/hospital. The hospital is about an hour outside of Mwanza and on the way we were able to see some very nice scenery including hut villages and Masai cattle herders. We also had a flat tire on the way!! There were no other problems however and after a short time we were back on our way and arriving at the hospital. Misungwi hospital isn't the biggest or most important hospital in the region but it is still a fairly large sized hospital (as compared to the various small clinics) and it serves many of the surrounding villages. However, the hospital does not have incubators, AC, or ultrasound equipment and they are waiting on a new building to be built in order to have space to use their antiquated x-ray machine. I don't even want to talk about all of the flies that I saw in the maternity ward.
In many ways it was disturbing. In other ways it was nice to see that people that have so little can still manage to enjoy life and smile. When I wasn't fixating on the flies, I did notice that every new mother in the ward was happy and smiley.
Of course I also went to the restroom at the hospital so look for my latest latrine photo. Also notice that my bathroom photos over the last week have gotten progressively worse. Soon I'll have to start holding it.
Adam
After finishing up there we headed over to the Misungwi Hospital for our first visit to any clinic/hospital. The hospital is about an hour outside of Mwanza and on the way we were able to see some very nice scenery including hut villages and Masai cattle herders. We also had a flat tire on the way!! There were no other problems however and after a short time we were back on our way and arriving at the hospital. Misungwi hospital isn't the biggest or most important hospital in the region but it is still a fairly large sized hospital (as compared to the various small clinics) and it serves many of the surrounding villages. However, the hospital does not have incubators, AC, or ultrasound equipment and they are waiting on a new building to be built in order to have space to use their antiquated x-ray machine. I don't even want to talk about all of the flies that I saw in the maternity ward.
In many ways it was disturbing. In other ways it was nice to see that people that have so little can still manage to enjoy life and smile. When I wasn't fixating on the flies, I did notice that every new mother in the ward was happy and smiley.
Of course I also went to the restroom at the hospital so look for my latest latrine photo. Also notice that my bathroom photos over the last week have gotten progressively worse. Soon I'll have to start holding it.
Adam
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Working on the project
After a few days of getting our systems back to normal and playing a little bit we put in a solid day of work today. We were able to meet with the 4 local women that worked on the CARE Community Based Reproductive Health Project (the project we are collecting data on and evaluating now). They were so knowledgeable about the project, the local community, and hospitals and were really able to help us understand the various layers that a project like this consists of. They also happened to be very warm and sweet people! We also brought some data and graphs along with us to talk to the women about the importance of having reliable data (some of the data collected from the project is inconsistent).
After our meeting at CARE Mwanza we went to dinner at the Domo Domo(?) Restaurant which sits on the edge of Lake Victoria. The tilapia was as good as advertised, especially in conjunction with a locally brewed beverage!
After our meeting at CARE Mwanza we went to dinner at the Domo Domo(?) Restaurant which sits on the edge of Lake Victoria. The tilapia was as good as advertised, especially in conjunction with a locally brewed beverage!
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