Friday, April 13, 2007
Rambling Man
One (+) week into this adventure and what are my thoughts? There are things that surprise me and perhaps a few things that I accept, but there are also things that shocked me at first and now have grown on me. The town has its own set of shocking elements that I am not yet accustomed to. Our home is coming together and with a little help from the guys at the garage our yard will be sorted as well. The hospital community has many interesting dynamics that I have much to learn about.
When we arrived and were standing around the airstrip I was pleasantly surprised by the immediate hospitality. The multi-coloured Land Cruiser pulled up to the plane and 4 people got out, Clementina, who Nicole had met last year, a driver and two guards. Clementina surprised me by greeting us all with hugs, which was a very nice welcome and made me feel instantly accepted. The men with her greeted us in Swahili and we were able to practice a bit of this new language.
These amazing people are very patient with us and seem to enjoy helping our language skills. From the guy in the library to the people in some of the shops, most everyone has had some hand in teaching us Swahili. Of course, Emma Stella, our housekeeper plays a large role in our Swahili; she sits with us over lunch and bombards us with Swahili, in a helpful way. My new Rafiki, Alphonse has always spoken English to me but pushes me to reply only in Swahili. He says, “only speak Swahili and you’ll learn more fast!” So we help each other. When we head to town to hit the shops we sometimes – especially me – have problems with numbers when bartering or asking prices. The shopkeepers find it funny but also slow down and give us a hand with understanding the prices and sometimes make us repeat it so we learn.
The drive in from the airstrip, after waiting for the Cruiser to return provided me with a little anxiety. The road was bumpier than I had imagined, dirt with massive ruts and eroded trenches, there were even speed bumps that I imagine are part of the ruins of long gone buildings. Sharp rocks protrude everywhere threatening to pop the tires of the abundant bicycles being ridden and pushed with only a rider or hauling all manner of things on the rack. The homes and shops were a bit of a shock and I was uncertain as to what type of place we would be living in, and if it were anything like what I was seeing on this little trip I would have crapped.
The security to get into the hospital complex was a little more than I had anticipated. Everyone is funneled into one main gate with a door sized opening for foot traffic and cyclists in a large gate that the security guards open manually for vehicle traffic. There was an obvious increase in the number of people out in the street as we approached the gates and a steady flow through the gate, both in and out. The number of people that ebbed and flowed between the gate and the Hospital, the clinic and the grounds overall, amazed me.
I went into town on Saturday after Jeanine and Frances took me out to the huge market and the sights, sounds and smells that confronted me, threw me off. We parked under a tree in the shade and got out among a flock, or is it gaggle...no, clutch of Chickens that did not care to move away from the scary humans. They weren’t that arresting but the garbage that was strewn all around certainly was. It was everywhere and in many forms; plastic bags, bottles, tin cans, well worn chunks of wood to only name a few. We walked over totally uneven ground that I have now come to call a street, that on that day I was too surprised at the area to even think of a name. The buildings, as I have mentioned, were planted about all willy-nilly like a child’s first garden; Carrots in the Pea's row and Potatoes strewn all around and through the Corn. As we strolled to the vegetable market the landmarks that were pointed out to me for future reference were things like rotten looking fish on a grill that when purchased were wrapped in newspaper that looked like it had spent time in the dirt under the truck, under the tree.
We have decided to try to stay in the small house as it is comfortable and the location is very convenient. Of course the hospital grounds are not that large but with the office right out front, we are only steps from work. Everyone lives just past us, in one direction or another, so we have many drop-ins throughout the day and especially when the workday is done. It is nice to share a coke with one of our new friends and chat about the day. I am surprised at how quickly some of the people here a become friends.
Once we are able to corral a few guys to chop down the grass – with their interesting sawed off golf club scythes – we will be able to run around out there without worrying about snakes or other creatures lurking in the grass.
I have yet to figure out the politics and dynamics of the hospital and I hope to meet some of the employees and learn about how they operate (no pun intended).
When we arrived and were standing around the airstrip I was pleasantly surprised by the immediate hospitality. The multi-coloured Land Cruiser pulled up to the plane and 4 people got out, Clementina, who Nicole had met last year, a driver and two guards. Clementina surprised me by greeting us all with hugs, which was a very nice welcome and made me feel instantly accepted. The men with her greeted us in Swahili and we were able to practice a bit of this new language.
These amazing people are very patient with us and seem to enjoy helping our language skills. From the guy in the library to the people in some of the shops, most everyone has had some hand in teaching us Swahili. Of course, Emma Stella, our housekeeper plays a large role in our Swahili; she sits with us over lunch and bombards us with Swahili, in a helpful way. My new Rafiki, Alphonse has always spoken English to me but pushes me to reply only in Swahili. He says, “only speak Swahili and you’ll learn more fast!” So we help each other. When we head to town to hit the shops we sometimes – especially me – have problems with numbers when bartering or asking prices. The shopkeepers find it funny but also slow down and give us a hand with understanding the prices and sometimes make us repeat it so we learn.
The drive in from the airstrip, after waiting for the Cruiser to return provided me with a little anxiety. The road was bumpier than I had imagined, dirt with massive ruts and eroded trenches, there were even speed bumps that I imagine are part of the ruins of long gone buildings. Sharp rocks protrude everywhere threatening to pop the tires of the abundant bicycles being ridden and pushed with only a rider or hauling all manner of things on the rack. The homes and shops were a bit of a shock and I was uncertain as to what type of place we would be living in, and if it were anything like what I was seeing on this little trip I would have crapped.
The security to get into the hospital complex was a little more than I had anticipated. Everyone is funneled into one main gate with a door sized opening for foot traffic and cyclists in a large gate that the security guards open manually for vehicle traffic. There was an obvious increase in the number of people out in the street as we approached the gates and a steady flow through the gate, both in and out. The number of people that ebbed and flowed between the gate and the Hospital, the clinic and the grounds overall, amazed me.
I went into town on Saturday after Jeanine and Frances took me out to the huge market and the sights, sounds and smells that confronted me, threw me off. We parked under a tree in the shade and got out among a flock, or is it gaggle...no, clutch of Chickens that did not care to move away from the scary humans. They weren’t that arresting but the garbage that was strewn all around certainly was. It was everywhere and in many forms; plastic bags, bottles, tin cans, well worn chunks of wood to only name a few. We walked over totally uneven ground that I have now come to call a street, that on that day I was too surprised at the area to even think of a name. The buildings, as I have mentioned, were planted about all willy-nilly like a child’s first garden; Carrots in the Pea's row and Potatoes strewn all around and through the Corn. As we strolled to the vegetable market the landmarks that were pointed out to me for future reference were things like rotten looking fish on a grill that when purchased were wrapped in newspaper that looked like it had spent time in the dirt under the truck, under the tree.
We have decided to try to stay in the small house as it is comfortable and the location is very convenient. Of course the hospital grounds are not that large but with the office right out front, we are only steps from work. Everyone lives just past us, in one direction or another, so we have many drop-ins throughout the day and especially when the workday is done. It is nice to share a coke with one of our new friends and chat about the day. I am surprised at how quickly some of the people here a become friends.
Once we are able to corral a few guys to chop down the grass – with their interesting sawed off golf club scythes – we will be able to run around out there without worrying about snakes or other creatures lurking in the grass.
I have yet to figure out the politics and dynamics of the hospital and I hope to meet some of the employees and learn about how they operate (no pun intended).
