"In Africa, there is so much time to sit around and do nothing. When you are back in the States, this isn't even an option for you. But here, you must spend your time doing nothing. This is Africa."
-the monitoring and evaluation coordinator to me, after walking into the office on a Saturday to find me working.
...on that note, I'm going to get a totabola, which is the Mozambican version of a root beer float, but made with strawberry ice cream and coke. and then i might go watch Animal Planet with Stacey's little kids because as her 7 year old enthusiastically told me yesterday, "every Saturday is monkey day!"
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
smell ya later, lugela!
2/24/08
And the fun continues. Yesterday Celso, Geny, and I settled in to our little pensão in Lugela, the land of mountains and maloocos. Malooco means crazy person. Lugela has never failed to provide its fair share of people, who if I didn’t know better, I’d suspect were possessed by demons. I’m just waiting for a holy man to arrive and cast the malooco demons into one of the many herds of goats that roam about here, who would inevitably hurl themselves off the side of a cliff. Back to what I was saying…it’s become the norm to get hexed by maloocos every time any non-native Lugellan is in town. I take their babbling in Manhawa and carrying on to be their way of saying, “welcome to Lugela! I’m nuts!” Point of my story: I got hexed by a Lugellan malooco…again.
Last night there was a light drizzle so I thought I’d enjoy the lovely outdoor shower, which amounts to a bucket of water behind a wall in the corner of the garden. The lantern ran out of lighter fluid so the guard gave me his flashlight. So I gingerly set up shop in the shower: placed my towel and clothes on the ledge above me, finagled the flashlight on the ledge so I could have a little light, grabbed the soap and a cup of water and enjoyed the peace and serenity of rural Africa. And then I heard the thunder rolling in. Trovuado. There was a storm rolling in over the mountain, and within 5 minutes it was beginning to come down. So I grabbed my towel and my clothes that were getting wet, and tried to quickly pack things up. And then it happened…I reached for the flashlight only to clumsily knock it over the back wall of the shower. Panic! Have you ever spent the night in a place with no electricity? It’s dark. Really dark. And the red clay becomes very slippery when wet. And I had no idea what was behind the wall. I thought the flashlight fell into the neighbor’s yard. I got the sort of panic you get when you’re a kid and accidentally send a ball or frisbee flying over the fence into the curmudgeonly neighbor’s backyard. Only this time it was pitch black, there was a massive thunderstorm brewing, I was wet, half-dressed, and pathetic looking, and with my luck, the neighbor was a Lugela malooco.
So what did I do? I tried to tiptoe around the edge of the shower wall until I made my way to the back, where I would hopefully find the flashlight. In doing so, I lost my footing on a rock, slipped on the red clay, and landed in a pile of dirt. Smooth. On a positive note, I made it to the back of the shower. On a negative note, the flashlight had landed light-down in the mud. So I sat there covered in mud waiting for a flash of lightning so I could see where the flashlight was. What started out as me trying to wash my sunblock off ended up with me soaking wet and covered in mud. Not my best shower. I quickly rinsed the mud off because I was certain that if I stayed out there any longer, God would make another attempt at my life via lightning bolt.
Today we were supposed to have both the men and women’s focus groups. Well, the chefe de bairro (neighborhood boss) didn’t pull through and only managed to organize the men’s group. This means that the women are tomorrow, so we can’t leave here until 3pm, and I won’t get home until 7pm.
Not cool Lugela. Not cool.
2-25-09
After two days of the best that Lugela has to offer, I was determined to make today better. I woke up with the sun and enjoyed the fresh morning air in the garden. Out of nowhere I was surrounded by what appeared to be bumble bees, zipping between the flowers. Upon closer inspection, I saw that they were hummingbirds! Probably the smallest birds in the world. No joke, they were the size of my thumbnail. I tried to get pictures with my camera but I couldn’t get them in focus. The little buggers really move!
After an afternoon of battling my new Manhawa-speaking research assistants, I managed to get the women’s focus group done, and then headed back to Quelimane.
And the fun continues. Yesterday Celso, Geny, and I settled in to our little pensão in Lugela, the land of mountains and maloocos. Malooco means crazy person. Lugela has never failed to provide its fair share of people, who if I didn’t know better, I’d suspect were possessed by demons. I’m just waiting for a holy man to arrive and cast the malooco demons into one of the many herds of goats that roam about here, who would inevitably hurl themselves off the side of a cliff. Back to what I was saying…it’s become the norm to get hexed by maloocos every time any non-native Lugellan is in town. I take their babbling in Manhawa and carrying on to be their way of saying, “welcome to Lugela! I’m nuts!” Point of my story: I got hexed by a Lugellan malooco…again.
Last night there was a light drizzle so I thought I’d enjoy the lovely outdoor shower, which amounts to a bucket of water behind a wall in the corner of the garden. The lantern ran out of lighter fluid so the guard gave me his flashlight. So I gingerly set up shop in the shower: placed my towel and clothes on the ledge above me, finagled the flashlight on the ledge so I could have a little light, grabbed the soap and a cup of water and enjoyed the peace and serenity of rural Africa. And then I heard the thunder rolling in. Trovuado. There was a storm rolling in over the mountain, and within 5 minutes it was beginning to come down. So I grabbed my towel and my clothes that were getting wet, and tried to quickly pack things up. And then it happened…I reached for the flashlight only to clumsily knock it over the back wall of the shower. Panic! Have you ever spent the night in a place with no electricity? It’s dark. Really dark. And the red clay becomes very slippery when wet. And I had no idea what was behind the wall. I thought the flashlight fell into the neighbor’s yard. I got the sort of panic you get when you’re a kid and accidentally send a ball or frisbee flying over the fence into the curmudgeonly neighbor’s backyard. Only this time it was pitch black, there was a massive thunderstorm brewing, I was wet, half-dressed, and pathetic looking, and with my luck, the neighbor was a Lugela malooco.
So what did I do? I tried to tiptoe around the edge of the shower wall until I made my way to the back, where I would hopefully find the flashlight. In doing so, I lost my footing on a rock, slipped on the red clay, and landed in a pile of dirt. Smooth. On a positive note, I made it to the back of the shower. On a negative note, the flashlight had landed light-down in the mud. So I sat there covered in mud waiting for a flash of lightning so I could see where the flashlight was. What started out as me trying to wash my sunblock off ended up with me soaking wet and covered in mud. Not my best shower. I quickly rinsed the mud off because I was certain that if I stayed out there any longer, God would make another attempt at my life via lightning bolt.
Today we were supposed to have both the men and women’s focus groups. Well, the chefe de bairro (neighborhood boss) didn’t pull through and only managed to organize the men’s group. This means that the women are tomorrow, so we can’t leave here until 3pm, and I won’t get home until 7pm.
Not cool Lugela. Not cool.
2-25-09
After two days of the best that Lugela has to offer, I was determined to make today better. I woke up with the sun and enjoyed the fresh morning air in the garden. Out of nowhere I was surrounded by what appeared to be bumble bees, zipping between the flowers. Upon closer inspection, I saw that they were hummingbirds! Probably the smallest birds in the world. No joke, they were the size of my thumbnail. I tried to get pictures with my camera but I couldn’t get them in focus. The little buggers really move!
After an afternoon of battling my new Manhawa-speaking research assistants, I managed to get the women’s focus group done, and then headed back to Quelimane.
Friday, February 20, 2009
75% done
2/15/09
After a week of watching smut shows like E! True Hollywood story, Laguna Beach (season 2, when LC moves back from San Francisco), and The Hills (yes, Amy and I were in heaven; and no, I don’t care that you’re judging me) on Amy and Pola’s satellite tv, and making banana-pineapple-guava smoothies, I packed up my things yesterday and moved on to Ile. I was living better in Molocue than I do in the US…but all good things come to an end.
I had a romantic Valentines Day dinner with Sergio, eating chicken and xima, and drinking a frosty Mozambican beer whilst listening to Brian Adams (further confirmation that Mozambicans have an unnatural love of Brian Adams). Fun fact about Sergio: he’s the first person from his entire province of Niassa to get a degree in anthropology. Can you imagine?! He’s one of the only anthropologists in Northern Mozambique. He taught me a thing or two last night about colonialism and tribalism. Did you know that Mozambique has 38 different local languages? And the country is kind of divided into three stereotypical parts: north, south, and central. The north is considered the area where the warriors live. This is where I’m living now. The south is where the educated people are, and the middle is where the uneducated people live. And as opposed to other African nations, where tribalism leads to wars and genocide, tribal loyalty here manifests as discrimination in areas like education, and in the work place. So certain tribes are kept at a lower socioeconomic level, and others hold all the power.
This morning I ran down the windy road that leads to Mount Ile. It’s this hilly red dirt road with trees on either side that make a beautiful canopy. On my right was majestic Mount Ile and on my left were more foothills with a half moon glowing bright despite the morning sun. Plus the sounds of water running down from the mountain, women working in the fields, birds chirping, and the occasional bicycle zipping by made for a pleasant outing. I’d take this over satellite tv any day.
2/17/09
Sergio and I sat down to a peaceful dindin last night at our pensão, only to be interrupted moments later by a motorcade pulling into the parking lot followed by about 15 Mozambican police equipped with riot gear, flack jackets, and semi-automatic assault riffles ‘sweeping the place.’ Don’t know about you, but I find it hard to eat when a gang of angry-looking weapon wielding men are staring at me. Turns out the Mozambican Minister of Security from Maputo was paying a visit to sleepy little Ile, and since there’s only one place to stay in town, I spent the night surrounded by an important government official and his entourage.
Today I took a long walk through the countryside and did a little birding. Living in Quelimane, I was beginning to think that the only things that fly in Mozambique are bats. My faith was restored after I spotted a few of the most beautifully exotic feathered creatures ever made.
After a week of watching smut shows like E! True Hollywood story, Laguna Beach (season 2, when LC moves back from San Francisco), and The Hills (yes, Amy and I were in heaven; and no, I don’t care that you’re judging me) on Amy and Pola’s satellite tv, and making banana-pineapple-guava smoothies, I packed up my things yesterday and moved on to Ile. I was living better in Molocue than I do in the US…but all good things come to an end.
I had a romantic Valentines Day dinner with Sergio, eating chicken and xima, and drinking a frosty Mozambican beer whilst listening to Brian Adams (further confirmation that Mozambicans have an unnatural love of Brian Adams). Fun fact about Sergio: he’s the first person from his entire province of Niassa to get a degree in anthropology. Can you imagine?! He’s one of the only anthropologists in Northern Mozambique. He taught me a thing or two last night about colonialism and tribalism. Did you know that Mozambique has 38 different local languages? And the country is kind of divided into three stereotypical parts: north, south, and central. The north is considered the area where the warriors live. This is where I’m living now. The south is where the educated people are, and the middle is where the uneducated people live. And as opposed to other African nations, where tribalism leads to wars and genocide, tribal loyalty here manifests as discrimination in areas like education, and in the work place. So certain tribes are kept at a lower socioeconomic level, and others hold all the power.
This morning I ran down the windy road that leads to Mount Ile. It’s this hilly red dirt road with trees on either side that make a beautiful canopy. On my right was majestic Mount Ile and on my left were more foothills with a half moon glowing bright despite the morning sun. Plus the sounds of water running down from the mountain, women working in the fields, birds chirping, and the occasional bicycle zipping by made for a pleasant outing. I’d take this over satellite tv any day.
2/17/09
Sergio and I sat down to a peaceful dindin last night at our pensão, only to be interrupted moments later by a motorcade pulling into the parking lot followed by about 15 Mozambican police equipped with riot gear, flack jackets, and semi-automatic assault riffles ‘sweeping the place.’ Don’t know about you, but I find it hard to eat when a gang of angry-looking weapon wielding men are staring at me. Turns out the Mozambican Minister of Security from Maputo was paying a visit to sleepy little Ile, and since there’s only one place to stay in town, I spent the night surrounded by an important government official and his entourage.
Today I took a long walk through the countryside and did a little birding. Living in Quelimane, I was beginning to think that the only things that fly in Mozambique are bats. My faith was restored after I spotted a few of the most beautifully exotic feathered creatures ever made.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Sunrise Earth: Gilé
2-4-2009
Ok, so after arriving back in Muskegon last summer, prior to leaving for Africa, my mom and dad introduced me to the wonder that is “Sunrise Earth.” It’s this show on some obscure channel that basically amounts to watching the sunrise in a remote area of the planet. And there are a bunch of cameras at different angles that capture what is going on, and there’s no music or talking. So we’d sit there for hours and watch the sunrise in the Everglades, or in Denali, or Siberia. I realize that this sounds kind of nerdy and lame…but I am nerdy and lame. Today, I experienced the wonder of sunrise Gilé. Adi and I got up at 5am to go for a run down the hill, over the rickety wooden planks that constitute the bridge over the Molocue River, and arrived on the other side just in time to see the sun creep up over Mount Gilé. Mom and dad, I wish I could have recorded it for you.
A certain aforementioned “crapweasel” was not at the clinic today (see previous district journal entry), so Adi decided to liberate me from the government regulations that prohibit me from seeing patients in Mozambique. What ensued was the result of Adi missing having med students to teach, and me missing patient care. The two of us rounded on all the in-patients and it pretty much rocked.
Sergio and I were able to do both community focus groups for Gilé today, and it was awesome. We got some interesting responses although I didn’t understand most of what was said because everyone was speaking Llomwe, the local language. I had one of those surreal moments where I realized I was sitting in a circle of people in rural Mozambique listening to them talk in a bizarre language about how they are convinced that the Mozambican government is making money by infecting and killing Mozambicans with HIV and that they're collaborating with foreign aid organizations to facilitate this. Just one of the many interesting things that was said.
I also learned today that my surge-protector doesn’t work. I made the mistake of transferring photos from my camera to my computer during a thunderstorm. Not one of my most brilliant moves. The computer was on the table, connected to the camera that was on my lap. Apparently I completed the circuit. On a positive note, my computer and camera are peachy-keen! And I probably glow in the dark.
2/5/09
Woke up at 5am to head to the bomba to get water. Adi and I loaded the car up with his big yellow plastic jugs and drove to the well on the outside of town. I pumped water for the first time in my life, which of course drew a crowd of spectators. It’s not every day that the good people of Gilé see a white girl pumping water at sunrise. After we got home, Adi’s empregado showed me how he makes piri-piri. I’m talking piri-piri that’ll put hair on your chest! After a nice long run and a bucket bath, I capped off my morning by climbing Adi’s guava tree to pick the last remaining guavas of the season. Not a bad way to spend a morning.
Later in the afternoon…I’m fairly certain God is trying to kill me, Old Testament style. First, I was electrocuted last night during a thunderstorm. Now we have another storm rolling in and being the amateur storm chaser that I am, I decided to take my computer out on the back porch and enjoy the show (computer NOT plugged in. I learned my lesson yesterday). I popped into the bathroom to wash my hands and was blinded by what looked like a fireball inches away from me, and a split second later there was the loudest pop I’ve ever heard. I think the tin roof of Adi’s house was struck by lightning. Fortunately, my ears have stopped ringing. Now I’m sitting here reflecting on my life and trying to figure out what I’ve done to bring this karma upon myself. I think it would behoove me to purge my soul in an attempt to avoid death by the wrath of God. Um, mom and dad, I’m sorry for throwing a party at our house while you were at the Fort Wayne dinner dance, and then lying about it. I’m sorry for bribing the Mozambican border patrol to post-date stamp my VISA, and therefore adding to the corruption of this country. Hannah and Elliott, I’m sorry for being really mean to you when we were little. (love you guys!) And I’m sorry for that time I beat the crap out of Steven, our neighbor…well, not really that sorry. He had it coming.
2/6/09
There’s something about watching and listening to bed sheets and curtains drying in the breeze that is indescribably calming. It’s like having someone massage your brain until you’re lulled to sleep. It’s great for my soul, but not so great for my productivity, as I’m attempting to translate the dialogue from the focus groups, and keep getting pleasantly distracted. And Adi’s empredago is listening to really good mellow Zimbabwean music, which is refreshing and restores my faith in African music. After being on the road with FGH drivers, I was beginning to think that the only music that exists here is Angolan techno.
Dr. Crapweasel still hasn’t returned to Gilé, so once again I got to round on the in-patients with Adi. The usual Big Three as I’m now calling them (HIV, TB, and malaria), plus marasmus, kwashiorkor, mysterious combo of exophthalmos and intermittent nystagmus in a 6 month old, and a 12 year old in heart failure who we think has a congenital VSD.
Friday night in Gilé and what is there to do? The Gilé bar crawl of course! Adi and I went to the two bars in town, the first being a motel/restaurant/convenience store/disco. After enjoying a beer there, we made our way to the second and last bar which amounts to a couple plastic chairs set up under a mango tree in front of someone’s hut.
2/7/09
Woke up early to pump water again. But first, Adi and I went trekking through the fields in an attempt to blaze a trail up Mount Gilé. Not a bad way to spend a morning; romping through the hills in Africa, looking for precious stones and monkeys. No joke. Every so often people find emeralds and aqua marine in Gilé, which is why there are currently 5 cars in town owned by people who have struck it rich. And there’s a group of monkeys that live on top of the mountain that we were trying to find. Needless to say, we didn’t find either of the two.
Headed to Molocue, where I’m staying with Pola and Amy. We decided to have Alto-palooza. This consisted of us drinking beer at their house and shamelessly singing Milli Vanilli, New Kids on the Block, and Ace of Base. Don’t act like you don’t love that music.
2/8/09
Lazy Sunday in Alto Molocue. Woke up early and went for a long run, then worked with Sergio on finalizing the translation from Gilé. Amy and I enjoyed the cool weather and late afternoon sun by reading in her backyard. Nothing beats a good book, a pleasant breeze blowing through the rows of corn, and the sound of the neighbor’s turkeys.
Ok, so after arriving back in Muskegon last summer, prior to leaving for Africa, my mom and dad introduced me to the wonder that is “Sunrise Earth.” It’s this show on some obscure channel that basically amounts to watching the sunrise in a remote area of the planet. And there are a bunch of cameras at different angles that capture what is going on, and there’s no music or talking. So we’d sit there for hours and watch the sunrise in the Everglades, or in Denali, or Siberia. I realize that this sounds kind of nerdy and lame…but I am nerdy and lame. Today, I experienced the wonder of sunrise Gilé. Adi and I got up at 5am to go for a run down the hill, over the rickety wooden planks that constitute the bridge over the Molocue River, and arrived on the other side just in time to see the sun creep up over Mount Gilé. Mom and dad, I wish I could have recorded it for you.
A certain aforementioned “crapweasel” was not at the clinic today (see previous district journal entry), so Adi decided to liberate me from the government regulations that prohibit me from seeing patients in Mozambique. What ensued was the result of Adi missing having med students to teach, and me missing patient care. The two of us rounded on all the in-patients and it pretty much rocked.
Sergio and I were able to do both community focus groups for Gilé today, and it was awesome. We got some interesting responses although I didn’t understand most of what was said because everyone was speaking Llomwe, the local language. I had one of those surreal moments where I realized I was sitting in a circle of people in rural Mozambique listening to them talk in a bizarre language about how they are convinced that the Mozambican government is making money by infecting and killing Mozambicans with HIV and that they're collaborating with foreign aid organizations to facilitate this. Just one of the many interesting things that was said.
I also learned today that my surge-protector doesn’t work. I made the mistake of transferring photos from my camera to my computer during a thunderstorm. Not one of my most brilliant moves. The computer was on the table, connected to the camera that was on my lap. Apparently I completed the circuit. On a positive note, my computer and camera are peachy-keen! And I probably glow in the dark.
2/5/09
Woke up at 5am to head to the bomba to get water. Adi and I loaded the car up with his big yellow plastic jugs and drove to the well on the outside of town. I pumped water for the first time in my life, which of course drew a crowd of spectators. It’s not every day that the good people of Gilé see a white girl pumping water at sunrise. After we got home, Adi’s empregado showed me how he makes piri-piri. I’m talking piri-piri that’ll put hair on your chest! After a nice long run and a bucket bath, I capped off my morning by climbing Adi’s guava tree to pick the last remaining guavas of the season. Not a bad way to spend a morning.
Later in the afternoon…I’m fairly certain God is trying to kill me, Old Testament style. First, I was electrocuted last night during a thunderstorm. Now we have another storm rolling in and being the amateur storm chaser that I am, I decided to take my computer out on the back porch and enjoy the show (computer NOT plugged in. I learned my lesson yesterday). I popped into the bathroom to wash my hands and was blinded by what looked like a fireball inches away from me, and a split second later there was the loudest pop I’ve ever heard. I think the tin roof of Adi’s house was struck by lightning. Fortunately, my ears have stopped ringing. Now I’m sitting here reflecting on my life and trying to figure out what I’ve done to bring this karma upon myself. I think it would behoove me to purge my soul in an attempt to avoid death by the wrath of God. Um, mom and dad, I’m sorry for throwing a party at our house while you were at the Fort Wayne dinner dance, and then lying about it. I’m sorry for bribing the Mozambican border patrol to post-date stamp my VISA, and therefore adding to the corruption of this country. Hannah and Elliott, I’m sorry for being really mean to you when we were little. (love you guys!) And I’m sorry for that time I beat the crap out of Steven, our neighbor…well, not really that sorry. He had it coming.
2/6/09
There’s something about watching and listening to bed sheets and curtains drying in the breeze that is indescribably calming. It’s like having someone massage your brain until you’re lulled to sleep. It’s great for my soul, but not so great for my productivity, as I’m attempting to translate the dialogue from the focus groups, and keep getting pleasantly distracted. And Adi’s empredago is listening to really good mellow Zimbabwean music, which is refreshing and restores my faith in African music. After being on the road with FGH drivers, I was beginning to think that the only music that exists here is Angolan techno.
Dr. Crapweasel still hasn’t returned to Gilé, so once again I got to round on the in-patients with Adi. The usual Big Three as I’m now calling them (HIV, TB, and malaria), plus marasmus, kwashiorkor, mysterious combo of exophthalmos and intermittent nystagmus in a 6 month old, and a 12 year old in heart failure who we think has a congenital VSD.
Friday night in Gilé and what is there to do? The Gilé bar crawl of course! Adi and I went to the two bars in town, the first being a motel/restaurant/convenience store/disco. After enjoying a beer there, we made our way to the second and last bar which amounts to a couple plastic chairs set up under a mango tree in front of someone’s hut.
2/7/09
Woke up early to pump water again. But first, Adi and I went trekking through the fields in an attempt to blaze a trail up Mount Gilé. Not a bad way to spend a morning; romping through the hills in Africa, looking for precious stones and monkeys. No joke. Every so often people find emeralds and aqua marine in Gilé, which is why there are currently 5 cars in town owned by people who have struck it rich. And there’s a group of monkeys that live on top of the mountain that we were trying to find. Needless to say, we didn’t find either of the two.
Headed to Molocue, where I’m staying with Pola and Amy. We decided to have Alto-palooza. This consisted of us drinking beer at their house and shamelessly singing Milli Vanilli, New Kids on the Block, and Ace of Base. Don’t act like you don’t love that music.
2/8/09
Lazy Sunday in Alto Molocue. Woke up early and went for a long run, then worked with Sergio on finalizing the translation from Gilé. Amy and I enjoyed the cool weather and late afternoon sun by reading in her backyard. Nothing beats a good book, a pleasant breeze blowing through the rows of corn, and the sound of the neighbor’s turkeys.
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