and thus ends my lovely stay in rural Babati, TZ. times have been great, and i have had some epic moments that i will not forget. we had three community days thsi last week, where we tested about 300 people a day (hiv tests)-one man i coaxed into getting tested by getting tested with him ended up being positive.
the other day Rachel's homestay dada had an infected cut on her foot--a tiny cut, but she couldnt even walk because of it. they ended up cleaning it with an antibiotic wipe and neosporin, and the next day she was able to walk again. it is crazy how such simple treatment is so necessary yet unavaible to most people here. last week i visited dada lulu (our hiv positive friend from town) in the hospital with Haji. she had malaria and was in the public hospital for 12 days. its just a long room with beds lined up on both sides. no privacy, no space, and no type of machinery you usually find.
a realization i had that came a little too late: the low literacy rate of our town. we printed out about 70 fliers for our testing day behind my house, when really the most effective thing we could have done was just to walk around and megaphone---
things i will miss about Babati:
--the selflessness and generosity. people have nothing yet will bend over backwards to give you everything and treat you like a queen.
--drinking chi with my baba after a long day of walking my ass off teaching and such
--being outside from morning till dusk
--having to avoid random wandering cows and goats while walking around--hhaa
things i wont miss:
--bucket showering! yes, it is environmentally friendly when taking into account the little amount of water used, but its also nice to be able to get all the dust and dirt off your body every day.
--cow stomach in my potato and beef stew. its fuzzy and weird looking and i was just not a fan.
--filthy feet. currently mine are cracked, blistered, cut, and dirty--you only wish you could see these babies.
onward to zanzibar!!
Monday, July 13, 2009
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