The Cottage

Outside view of The Cottage

Allow me to introduce you to The Cottage aka: where I will be spending a very cozy month with 3 roommates. Our living quarters are literally located a few yards behind the actual clinic building - so although we have a spectacular view of the mountainous region surrounding us, we are in the middle of nowhere with the closest ANYTHING at least a couple of miles away. Even better is the fact that there is no television, no radio, no internet access, and no heater in the house! We also have one key to share between the 4 of us, which makes for an interesting moment when any of us needs to make a quick run back home (especially for a bathroom emergency) and we have to first hunt down the person holding the key...

Needless to say, we are all going a little stir-crazy after reading all the magazines and books left behind by previous "visiting scholars." There are moments when I can understand why Jack Nicholson's character from The Shining lost it....

Our bedroom (my half is on the left)

As for my "surprise" roommates, they include a 4th year BCM med student, and two 3rd year UT-Southwestern Pedi Residents. Although the prospect of sharing two bedrooms and one barely functional toilet among 4 females seemed like a cruel joke, we've now grown quite accustomed to each other over the last 72 hours. If for nothing else, at least 4 people in one room can generate more body heat than a single person. Which brings me to the weather: though I knew it would be winter, I was not at all prepared for freezing temperatures! Apparently, the cold here is not be taken lightly - there was actually a thick layer of ice on the grass this morning! I take back all the mean things I said about Houston being too hot in March:( I would looove to be able to walk around in shorts and a tank top rather than have to pile on 2 sweatshirts and thermal leggings underneath my clothes just to keep me warm. 

Our living /dining room

Today we are actually finished with clinic early and as we have grown tired of twiddling our thumbs and exchanging residency / med school anecdotes, we have decided to have dinner "in town" tonight. We are also planning a weekend trip to a nearby village where we can go pony-trekking. We've invited another visiting scholar from the UK who says he will serve as our guide (love the accent!), and possibly the newly arrived baylor interns if they are already settled in. I am definitely looking forward to it :)

My first day

Entrance to the clinic

So today was my first day working in the clinic and it was definitely an eye-opening experience. I was actually just shadowing while getting to know the system but I was immediately humbled by the realization that many of the children seen here are orphans and that they have almost no understanding of what it means to be HIV positive because the bigger concern is whether they will have food or water this week. The degree of growth stunting and malnutrition is also jarring. I only wish I had been able to bring Sam's club quantities of rice, cereal, or even all the Pediasure cans I often see just go to waste at the hospital back home...

The clinic building

I think the biggest struggle for me today was being unable to communicate with the patients. The clinic staff speak English but the patients and their families speak Sesotho. I have been fortunate enough to never have required the use of a translator back at TCH, but now I know what it is like to have absolutely no idea what goes on in the lengthy conversation between the interpreter and the patients because all I get is a 2-3 word message relayed to me. Thank goodness for smiles, though. At least those are universally recognizable!

The clinic playground

So it seems I have much to learn over the next few weeks. At least I got my laptop set up so now I have internet access during clinic hours. The wi-fi signal from the cottage where I am staying is non-existent but it's not like I need to be looking up silly celebrity gossip or stalking people on facebook anyways... I am looking forward to reading the books my friend, Sara, let me borrow and I also brought my extensive pirated DVD collection, hehe...

At Last!

I arrived in Maseru, Lesotho not too long ago and I am officially at the clinic where I will be working for the next month. Of course, the last leg of the journey was not without its complications - mainly, the flight was delayed and once we were allowed to board, my heart sank when we were taken to our connecting plane and I realized it was one of the tiny little express jets (the kind that only seats about 15 people, still has propellers, and looks so antiquated that it should be hanging in a museum somewhere)! There were only about 10 of us on the flight and by the time we landed, the turbulence on that aircraft had left my stomach permanently feeling like it was sitting next to my heart. I also tripped trying to manually climb down the stairs once we de-planed and then it hit me that I had never received confirmation that the driver from the clinic would pick me up. So I waited at the airport until they actually turned off the lights and asked me to step out (yes, we were the only flight arriving today). Fortunately just when I was about to panic, a vehicle showed up with the Baylor sign on it.

Aerial views of Maseru and the airport where I landed

I breathed a huge sigh of relief when I got into the SUV, not knowing that my driver would rival NYC cabbies, except that the added bonus here was driving on the opposite side of the road while steering clear of cattle and small children that appeared out of nowhere and crossed the street at random places. I just closed my eyes for the remainder of the ride and soon I was delivered at the clinic, still in one piece. I was embarassed to be introduced immediately to the clinic directors, as my disheveled appearance can be confused for someone who has been living under the freeway for weeks! My mother would totally disapprove...

Anyways, I'm here! Now to unpack and make the first grocery run...

Views on the drive from the airport to the clinic

Almost there...

So I am officially in Africa, though I still have one more flight to go. The effects of some serious jetlag are now in full swing. If someone performed a mini-mental status exam on me, I know for sure I would fail the oriented to time and place part, as well as the ability to store anything in short term memory or count backwards from 100...lol.

The flight from London to Johannesburg was actually far better than I expected: I had a full row to myself, they served a delicious lamb curry with wine for dinner and an equally delectable omelete for breakfast. I also watched the series "The Good Wife" for the first time and I got so hooked on it, I watched the entire first season through most of the flight. (Ok, so maybe I should have been sleeping so I wouldn't feel so busted right now...lol).

Anyways, after arriving in Johannesburg, I exited the baggage claim area and I was literally approached by a swarm of persistent men trying to carry my luggage for a $20 USD "tip"! I went through the whole passport inspection another 3 times before I could finally make my way to the next departure gate.  I was already feeling paranoid when I heard my name being called on the escalators and when I finally decided to turn, I saw some of my TCH colleagues, Ben and Jordana - what a small world! They are waiting to board to Malawi. Definitely nice to see some familiar faces after all this time. My battery is running low so I'll post once I get to Maseru.

On to my second flight...

So I made it to London surprisingly quickly and without much mishap, except that I couldn't stand or walk properly after being cramped in such a small space for so long. Perhaps one day I'll have an extra $2,000 to just throw into a first class ticket. I kept myself entertained on the plane with the extensive variety of movies offered. As it turns out, "Black Swan" is not an appropriate selection to watch with a 7 year old impressionable child sitting next to me (I had no idea it was going to be that kind of movie)...

Anyways, after the debacle of leaving my luggage at the airport and figuring out the Underground system, I was able to take a mini-tour of the city, including Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Parliament Square, and the London Bridge. I ended the day by having a one-person picnic in Hyde Park eating a delicious nutella crepe (not comparable to Parisian crepes but incredibly better than anything I've eaten in the past 6 months) while watching Londoners enjoy the outdoors. After walking what felt like miles, I was ready to head back to the airport, so I hopped on the infamous double-decker bus and rode back.

I almost electrocuted myself sticking my laptop into the outlet so I hope this does not have long-lasting effects on my computer :(  

Now boarding... here we go again...

Waiting for the adventure to begin...

Annoyed at the 3 hour international check in airport requirement but at I made use of my time to create this blog, to say my last good-bye to friends and family, and to make extra sure I had used the bathroom enough times. It looks like the flight is full so I'm bracing myself for sharing a 10 hour too-close-for-comfort row with 5 total strangers... at least I'm exhausted from being post-post PICU call, so I should be in a sleep coma for most of the trip.

Looking forward to my first layover in London tomorrow. All the craziness surrounding the Royal Wedding on Friday should make for an interesting (although very short) stay there. I'm at least hoping to make it over to Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace...

Btw, happy Easter to everyone! I had a wonderful time with family and though the church was packed and left me with no actual visual of the altar, it was a beautiful service. The meal afterwards was delicious, too! I just wish I had packed some of my freshly baked flan to bring with me on the trip...

Anyways, it seems the airline wants to check all the passengers' passports (for the 3rd time), so I'll write more when I get to Heathrow.