All I've eaten today is fish...and sugar

Kelly and I are thoroughly enjoying our vacation now after the 2 days of travel to get here!

On our first day in Pemba, we went for an exploring run (when you go out for a run and walk/stop where you want to see things more). We stopped to watch a major dance party at a school or something before approaching the cluster of women with their buckets of treats and buying at least one of everything. These snacks included little twisty things, scones, mandasi, etc. Then we decided to run to Pemba town. We found an ATM, a covered market similar to malawi, and wandered around some. Neither of us were very impressed and people were a lot more hassle-y in town. So we got a hitch back to our place and decided to have lunch (seafood of course!) and go play in the ocean. So that's exactly what we did!

The water was decently warm and pretty clear although it was very shallow! Most of the time we were only swimming in like 2-3 feet of water, and you could walk out really far in the bay which was neat! Nobody bothered us, so we laughed and played in the water for awhile. Then before the sun set, we ran to the bar to grab a beer and sat on the beach watching another day finish with the sinking orange sun setting over the crashing waves.

Moving to the Big City

April is coming to a close, and I need to do another update on my life. A whooooole lot changed this month, but the biggest changes were my location, my job, and my health. Last month in March, a bunch of emotional things happened. Two of my closest friends left Liberia, dry season heat was at its peak and making me miserable, and the lack of work at my site was reaching a tipping point. I thought long and hard about my options. My favorite little 9 month old is almost walking I felt torn. I didn’t really want to leave Liberia, but I also wasn’t sure how much more of my situation I could emotionally handle. I felt like I’d lost control over every aspect of my life; my well-being, privacy, daily routine, and happiness all felt dependent on my environment and the people around me. I tried not to stress about this realization, but I also felt like I’d reached an inescapable and unhealthy place. Thankfully, things sort of fell into place all at once. As I was...

Shifting Gears

Exploring Monrovia It’s been an interesting past few weeks/months, whatever has passed since I last updated. As per my last post, I moved to Monrovia. And I feel like a full fledged ex-pat these days. At first, I really resisted this idea, wanting to cling to and hold on to that integrated, I-understand-this-country-from-the-local-perspective way of thinking, but trying to balance the two worlds eventually became too much of a burden, so I decided to just run with my new life. I am by no means a very social or involved ex-pat on the scene here, but I dabble from time to time. I’ve made a few friends and contacts who have gotten me out to explore the area and take advantage of the setting. Occasionally I’ll participate in the weekend, afro-pop nightlife or a dinner party with friends, and I attended a salsa event held by the Cuban Embassy last week—that’s about the extent of my socializing. Learning to salsa dance in Liberia Rainy season ...

You Must Be Brave

I am lucky: I have never before seen someone's life leave their body. That changed today. When I arrived at the clinic around mid morning, something seemed off. I didn't see any of the staff except our registrar who was busily registering our day's patients. I walked down the hallway of doors, peeking inside each one. When I reached the in-patient room, I saw three of our staff inside. They were crowding around a 10-month old girl child who was laying naked on the bed, her chest heaving up and down with labored breath. I asked what was happening. “She's dehydrated,” they told me. I stood in front of the bed, my coffee thermos in hand and still sweating from the walk down to the clinic from my house, trying to make sense of my surroundings. An array of needles in their packages were splayed across the table, and I overhead our CM (certified midwife) saying the baby was so fat that they couldn't find a vein. This was true; she was covere...

Under the Milky Way

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