July 4

It's Sunday the 4th, and I'm missing being at home right now! Craving brats with mustard, watermelon, and sitting with family by the pool.

But I've had a nice day visiting with people here. A bunch of us "expats" went to church together this morning. Aloys, a social worker at the hospital, sat with us and translated the major points of the sermon. I always enjoy the choir singing at the church services, even when there is no one to translate the sermon. But we did get stared at a lot today in church, even more than usual. Probably because there were so many of us muzungu sitting all together. Or perhaps because one of the visiting Brit girls has long blond hair.

Spent some time drinking tea outdoors on the deck at Lisa's place and visiting with a new arrival, Torrie. She's from the States and at only 28 has already produced a documentary film. She is now writing the accompanying book. She said the film is called, "Beyond Good Intentions" and is about how some humanitarian aid agencies are inadvertantly doing more harm than good. To create the film, she traveled around the world interviewing government employees, NGO workers, and local people. That film came out a couple of years ago and did well enough that she is now traveling through Africa and elsewhere to research and write the book. She has been to all 7 continents and I think she said 81 countries. She is traveling by herself here on a very low budget, and hitchhiking occasionally is a requirement of her travels. I admire her creativity, boldness and fearlessness. She is a great example of "if you can dream it, you can do it". (Note: see www.beyondgoodintentions.com)

Another family arrived from the States this afternoon: Eric, Jennifer and their 4 children (picture of 2 of the children above). They will be here a month. Eric is a general surgeon, and the hospital will keep him busy with cases. Though some of the local physicians can operate, most of the hospital's surgeries seem to be done by visiting volunteer surgeons, and the hospital tries to schedule their visits so that there is not too much overlap and not too much of a gap. If the visiting physician is a specialist, then radio ads go out in advance advising people in the local area that a "so-and-so" will be at Kibogora Hospital next month. Then the specialist will have a group of patients ready to see him/her upon their arrival. I believe Jennifer is a nurse or nurse practitioner, but I imagine she will have her hands full taking care of the 4 children aged 3-9 while they are here.