SEVEN

Hello all,

So, today was my last day in Gaborone and tomorrow morning I fly out to meet my brother for our backpacking tour. Let's start with how I watched the Lion King and cried about saying goodbye to everyone I've met here. That movie's intense and how did I think I'd make it through it without shedding a tear on my last day here?! I'm nuts.

Man oh man, let's start with how crazy of a seven weeks it has been here. Some of it was definitely a challenge but looking back at it now, I've learned a lot about education, health, and the "real" world.

Seven highlights of the health care side of things included:

• Observing a circumcision procedure on a 23 year old male 
• Listening to many unborn babies' heartbeats
• Learning about the attitude toward HIV/AIDS and other STIs 
• Observing different and most common forms of family planning
• Watching babies get weighed...they're so adorable
• Learning about how to clean and treat wounds 
• Understanding the positive and negative impacts of the Botswana healthcare system 

Seven highlights of my study abroad experience included:

• Firstly and most importantly, the people who I met on this trip and spent every waking moment with for seven weeks. In a world away from the world, these 26 other students are some wonderful people who I won't forget (and will hopefully see again). It was the hardest thing saying goodbye to them because they're all I've known for the past seven weeks. 
• Volunteering with community kids has really shaped my experience in Botswana and helped me understand the community aspect of how society affects the development and attitude of kids. 
• My week in the village Kanye showed me how different the rural and town life are in Botswana and how the village is a big part of being Motswana. It's not every day you get to learn how to live without running water (for me at least). 
• My home stay mom in Kanye will truly be missed! She was such a darling and did such a perfect job and working me into her home and life. 
• Learning a completely different type of public transportation and having to rely on myself to find out where I'm going in somewhere that isn't my home. 
• Getting proposed to by strangers (plural) and being told "I love you" "You're so beautiful" "Let's make sex" by strangers. Lol. 
• My great study abroad team including employees and volunteers! 

Seven foods I miss from Texas: 

• Barbecue (and sauce) 
• Chips and Queso
• Chips and Guac
• Chips and Salsa
• ....all Mexican food
• Thai food -Pad See Ew
• Whataburger- the 2 AM run to breakfast honey butter chicken biscuit 

Seven things I miss about home:

• Family and friends
• Constant access to wifi/internet/electricity/water 
• UT 
• Texting on my iPhone
• Touching animals without fear of getting fleas/rabies/disease
• Fountain drinks
• Texas pride everywhere

Seven reasons to study abroad: 

• Meet people from different backgrounds, cultures, and lifestyles
• Experience new things/ grow as a person
• See new things and places
• Learn how different education is outside of the USA
• Learn or introduce yourself to a new language and culture
• It's unlikely you'll spend as much time in a different country and it's harder to get away from responsibility
• Let's be honest, you know you really want to do it so stop holding back and get out there! 

In just seven weeks, I managed to learn a lot about myself, culture, language, society, healthcare, public health, development and growth, politics, infrastructure, and so much more. In seven weeks, I learned about Botswana. In seven weeks, I made some close relationships and bonds with people who I had never met. In seven weeks, I made a new home.

Now, it's time for me to enter the next leg of my journey. I will be camping with my brother from Windhoek, Namibia through northern Botswana and ending in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. I will be out of touch for the next week and will follow up about my travels when I reach South Africa.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my time in Gaborone as much as I enjoyed the stay and updating about it. Feel free to keep traveling with me through my blog post as I "rough it" through southern Africa.

As always,

Safe travels and enjoy!

Komal

Kanye, Botswana

Hello all, 

So to start off- this blog post is about my weeklong stay in Kanye, a village of 47,000 located in south Botswana (Kim and Kanye almost have all of their four corners covered-ha). Some of it was written throughout the week and some was written later so I apologize for any gramatical errors or poor tense agreement! Anyway, hope you enjoy the read!

We came to Kanye and entered the education center to see all of our host parents sitting inside awaiting our arrival. Families were assigned randomly by picking their names on crumbled pieces of paper. My host mama's name is Eunice pronounces and she's 58 years old. She's a grandma and a single parent. All of her kids have moved to the city with the exception of one who lives in Ireland. All of the grandkids are also in school so Eunice has been living alone since May when her husband passed away from diabetes. Eunice is really cute as in she calls me darling and baby and daughter and sweetheart. She loves having company around. We had a traditional dish for dinner consisting of pounded and salted cooked beef. I don't really get home sick much but being a part of a family that isn't yours will do the trick. This week, I really miss my family. 

My host mom, Doddy, and I 

Anyway, Eunice has about ten chickens, ten goats, a few chicks, a dog, and a cat. It was interesting to see the goats because we basically walked to her other house which is where her goats roam and she lets them out in the morning/ puts them back gated in the evening. It's about a mile walk to and from the houses. There is a small fire pit to warm up water with to bathe because there is a MAJOR water shortage in Kanye. However, Eunice does have a geyser that should heat the water up but it isn't functioning. Eunice is a Jehovah's Witness and we have had interesting talks about religion and the differences between them. Eunice has already felt comfortable sharing some personal stories with me about her belief system so I have as well. There are some things that we just had to agree to disagree but when isn't there? I also think she enjoys having someone around to tell the stories to. She is very excited because she found out her son his wife and her grandson are coming to visit Botswana from Ireland in August and she hasn't met her precious six year old grandson yet! (Who is so adorable- I've seen pictures) I'm so excited for her because she loves having people around and is a family oriented person.

My first day was interesting because I wanted to take a bath so I turned the geyser switch for the warm water and we went about dinner and closing the gate for the goats. When I checked, the water was still cold if that and barely running (My host mom says she usually warms water through the fire but wanted to try the geyser for me). By the time I got into the bath the water was cold so I decided I would just rinse off. It happens- no big deal. So I put on my clothes and the door was locked but the keys are the old style keys where you can only unlock it with the key. So I yelled for Eunice and she finally came and was in almost of a panic. She just changed the lock and didn't have the old key to open that door. She forgot to tell me not to close the door because it would lock behind me. Luckily, I had clothes on (always a plus). We tried and tried and tried to open it. She brought a screwdriver through the window which I would have jumped out of but it was too high and little and she's not young enough to exactly catch me . So I unscrewed the door knob hoping that would fix things. Nope. So. I kept trying every which way and how and told Eunice to call someone because this thing was not coming undone and I couldn't even bust the door open. So she went to fetch someone and I kept trying and finally I got the frame loose enough to where I could jiggle the lock in just long enough to open the door! Relief. Let's talk about how annoying it is to get stuck in a stranger's bathroom after taking a cold bath and them not having the resources to unlock the door. Slightly nerve racking for a minute there because I didn't have any ideas left. Well, all I can say is shit happens and this is Africa.

Proof- Lol

My host mom's room is right next to mine and all of the doors creak so I can always hear when she wakes up around 5 to tend to her goats. Did I mention the roosters? OH the roosters. My room is right by the chicken/rooster cage so I always hear them. That was rough. Did I mention the roosters? Seriously, I can't stress it enough. Always doing their thing and waking me up at 5 to 6. It's a shame how annoying they are to wake up to because they don't even know it. 

For breakfast, I would have some corn flakes to go with my full cream whole cow long life milk. It tastes... different. 

The clinic was not busy at all and we sat in child welfare  to weigh babies since that is the bulk of patients at the clinic. Don't worry, I asked permission for this picture! This will give a better perspective for how children are being weighed. Notice the fabric sling brought in my mothers to avoid spreading diseases through baby weighings.

Pearl came in for her monthly weighing! 

The doctor comes on Wednesdays and other nurses help out with patients. The facility is relatively nice and was donated in 1995. However, there is a hospital nearby and unlike Gaborone, people don't come in to the clinic for small aches or to get a sick-leave because in the village, you work regardless of if you are tired or sick. After clinic we had Setswana class at a friend's host house. Transportation is a long process because we have a 16 seater van but 27 kids and the village is somewhat spread out- imagine that. 

Later that day my mom warmed up her bath by using the fire outside and mixing it with the cold water from the tap. For dinner she made pap, moroho, setswa, and cabbage so that i could have a taste for traditional foods. Oh also, we didn't have a sink to wash dishes so we used a large bowl with water and soap to wash dishes- the struggle. My host mom also showed me pictures of her son, his wife and their mixed son because they live in Ireland now. We watched the bold and the beautiful as well as Generations, a South African soapie. The soapie is right now about a lady who got pregnant who has been trying a really long time and her husband was not giving her attention and focusing on work. So she didn't tell him the news yet. He has been trying to find out the killer of her dad and working to bring him down. On the other end, a character is trying to win prize money by filming for a reality tv show about a plus size woman. This show is basically THE show to watch in bots and SA.

Inside the Clinic

 I fell asleep by 9 and woke up at around 5 to roosters. Living the life y'all!! I also managed to finish almost two novels this week...not much to do if the electricity is out and no access to internet or the outside life for a week!

We asked the nurses if there was anywhere to get wifi in the village- they didn't even know or understand the concepts of wireless Internet. These nurses weren't even in their thirties. Well, this is the village. 

The best thing on TV was France 24, giving me my fix of international news including everything Edward Snowden, Nelson Mandela's critical state, interracial family style Cheerios commercials  Brazil protesters, the US supreme court ruling on homosexual marriage, Texas's inmates on death row, the Tour de France, and President Obama in Pretoria, S.Africa- about a 6 hour drive from me! It's amazing how many times you can see the same news because that's how long you've been watching it. 

Warming bath water

For some reason, I had become very attached to my host mom by only two days in. She has really opened her house and life to me. I can't really explain it but it makes all of the little annoyances about the village such as water shortages or cold water or no real mall or restaurants liveable. Maybe it's because she makes me feel loved and at home or maybe it's because I feel like I'm helping her in someway. She said how it had been a long time that she had had someone to worry for and come home to. This made me feel differently in some way. It made me feel so happy when she cleaned up my room this morning because she enjoys having the company so much so that she wants to make me happy. Being here has really made me so much more interested in not only learning the culture and language, but also to appreciate the differences in lifestyles, values, society and language barriers. The beauty of appreciating spoken language is something that should be highly appreciated cross culturally . It makes me feel the need to practice my Setswana more and so I do. It also makes me want to truly learn another language. Maybe I'll take one up when I get back to the states!

My host house!

Doddy, my mom's dog ran away for a night and we were worried that someone might have taken him but we found him the next morning thankfully. We tried to search at night but it was especially dark without street lights (or power). My mom texted me saying how happy she was the dog came home. 

The power had been off for 12 hours until 8 pm. It sucks. Don't worry though it came on just in time for the South African popular soapie, Generations! Everyone knows better than to mess with prime time TV!

The stars here are so beautiful. There are no street lights and the lights were out when I looked outside so oh my gosh I just can't explain it's not something I can capture. If there's one positive of living in the village, it's to look outside and have an appreciation for natural beauty. I just can't get over it. I look outside and I never want to stop looking. That must be why people come back to the village- to get a real peace of mind. 

On Saturday, I went to a local wedding and it was also very bittersweet because my (real) cousin is also getting married today in Houston. Man, that was a tough one to miss! 

My host mom wants to meet up in Gabs after I leave so I can meet her entire family and she said she started counting down the days since Wednesday because she was sad her little girl was leaving since she would be alone again. SO CUTE. She even called me three hours after we left just to make sure that I got home safely. I got a bittersweet feeling because the real homesick just kicked in.

Part of our group also took a tour of the village which turned out to be pleasantly surprising! We saw some gorges and the dam. We also climbed to the top of the hill and enjoyed a beautiful view of the entire village!

Anyway, all in all, I really enjoyed my stay in Kanye and couldn't have asked for a better host family. It was also pleasantly surprising because I was sad when my family was assigned to me because I wanted a family with kids. Little did I know, I would form a bond with someone who was searching for a family here as much as I had been. It's odd to actually feel a family-type connection with someone after only a week but it happened and I'm so grateful it did! I really enjoyed learning what the real Botswana is like outside of the city. I enjoyed learning of daily challenges, beliefs, customs, foods, and benefits of the village as well. It's a real difference is culture and lifestyle living out there! I missed taking real showers and enjoying the luxury of running tap water!

I apologize for how scattered my thoughts were in this blog and hoped some of you will be able to follow it anyway! Thanks for keeping up with me and my new endeavors! Below are many more pictures of Kanye that I had to post! Enjoy!

Best,

Komal

Old Naledi Clinic makes do with limited resources.

Hello all,

Last week, I volunteered at Old Naledi clinic. There were many differences I observed from this clinic and Julia Molefe clinic. This clinic is larger in size and has two doctors at a time. One side of the clinic is dedicated to HIV positive patients- complete with intake, drawing blood, consultation, and dispensary. The other side of the clinic is the same except has an added weighing for under five years- babies get weighed every month (preferably on the same date) until their fifth birthday. The interesting part of baby weighing is that there are mostly mothers coming in for child weighings and it may occasionally be a couple and even less than that are fathers coming in for monthly child weighings alone.

Speaking of babies, the maternity ward at this clinic is respectable in size and in functionality. The Old Naledi area is rural in nature and is not as financially stable of an area as others in Gaborone. Due to this, the clinic observes power outages more often than not. This would be fine if the clinic had a generator but it does not. This would also be fine however, the maternity ward is harder to function without light and a proper heating system. Expectant mothers go into labor, give birth, and are observed here. It is one thing to give birth without proper lighting, but it is another thing for a mother to lay in a bed with a blanket with no heat during winter. The next ward that loses the most efficiency from electricity outages is family planning/ ante-natal care/ post-natal care. Women come in here to get full exams, vaginal exams, and pap smears done. If there is not proper lighting when conducting a vaginal exam, there is virtually no purpose in putting a speculum up a woman because there is no view of the cervix (There aren't even back-up flashlights for this purpose which is something I would highly recommend for these clinics to invest in).

 

Also, these woman aren't given the option of getting epidurals... So imagine that. There aren't even stirrups or lubricant for speculum. You spread your own legs apart during birth and other vaginal exams. Talk about discomfort. It's a wonder how so many women here still give birth willingly to multiple children. Imagine that.

Another thing I really liked about this clinic was how comprehensive the check up was to go back to using a form of birth control after delivering birth compared to the previous clinic I was at. A full exam must be completed. The materials to complete this exam are fully autoclaved and nurses double up their gloves when performing an exam. I also really enjoyed learning about the different types of family planning available and what is provided there. Most commonly, women were taking the three month injection as opposed to the standard combination pill. This was probably my favorite "learning moment" of the week but in family planning, the World Health Organization created a wheel with common problems such as hypertension or HIV/AIDS. This is a really helpful tactic because it promotes the idea that the same method of contraception isn't for everyone, which is very true. It was also interesting how family planning nurses told women of what they thought was best and rarely would a patient disagree.

Did I mention the TB cougher's area? Yeah, that's comforting. If you relapse on your TB meds, you have to get an injection (usually on your butt) for 60 days. Oh, and you're still contagious. TB just sucks all around.

As far as my experiences with the rest of the clinic, they were great. I saw a lot of abysses/ infection usually pus filled. They are very painful to squeeze out. There was a woman who had one the amount of pus that she had in her under arm- I don't even know how she was still functioning. Moreover, there was a man in dressings, where they clean and cover wounds as well as change dressings- daily until they heal. A man came in who recently got stitches out from a stab wound and there was so much dried blood when they un-stitched the wound. I'm not too sure if that much dried blood is normal but it made the wound elevated and painful for the patient.

Listed below are common medical services and the fees for them as dictated by the Ministry of Health. Note the 5 Pula flat rate- if only that was the case in the United States (5 pula= ~0.58 USD)!

From my observation, the doctors that work in public clinics here are mostly from the DRC who came in about 6 years ago. Their primary language is French- so they were forced to learn English and Setswana. They said the conditions of Botswana medicine and healthcare were much better back then and that it is unfortunate now. The doctors complained of a lack of medical personel- mainly a shortage of doctors, a major lack of medical equipment, and a shortage of medicines needed.

A woman came in complaining of painful and itching ears but there wasn't even an otoscope to look into her ears. 

 Doctors often complain of how little time they get to spend with their patients and that since healthcare to patients is completely free, most patients come in if they experience any symptoms. For the record, let me mention that over the counter medicines are a thing here too. People would just rather go to the clinic at any point of feeling sick and get a sick-leave from the clinic to avoid going to work.The power outages are so prevalent in this area and resources are limited so it's no wonder why a computer backup system seems like a waste of resources before obtaining a generator...or flashlights. 

I think the worst part about this week was that we experienced a few sad cases -an expectant mother in her first trimester's baby wasn't found when the mother got a check up, a person who had been on antiretroviral drugs for ten years was diagnosed with Tuberculosis and the x-ray showed it was intensive and one of my colleagues reported a case of HIV that was so far gone that virtually nothing could be done at this point because he had been off his medication and waited too long to seek treatment. Although this is Africa, this should not happen anywhere.

To leave off on a relatively happy note, the community here, although not wealthy, makes do with the resources available. People stay warm and still smile. This says a lot considering I was working in a rural clinic, in the winter, and around people who generally aren't feeling well. Also, people on our way out to the combi stop urged us to take pictures of the community. Enjoy!

Until next time,

Komal

Normal size house in Old Naledi. 

He purposely wanted a picture posing like that!

At the end of the day, some values cross international borders, race and socioeconomic status. 

Volunteering with kids: It's all in the details

Hi all,

 Hopefully, I'll have a few posts written in the next few days so that I can be caught up before Sunday- we are leaving for a weeklong village homestay in one of the largest villages in Botswana, Kanye (Sorry to pop your bubble but it's not in the West, it's in the Southern district...lolz). Anyway, two weekends ago (I promise y'all, I'm working on catch up) I volunteered at the Tlamelo Trust in Old Naledi, a relatively poor and rural community in Gaborone.

Most of the group went to Victoria Falls, but a few others and I stayed back and some volunteered at the Old Naledi Baptist Church community day sponsored by Orange, a popular phone company. I'm traveling to Vic falls in about a month, so it wasn't worth it for me to take another trip out again considering $$$ and I could be enjoying something else.

Anyway, I'm so glad I stayed back because I got a lot closer to the group that stayed back and volunteered to get an amazing experience!

From left to right: Me, Jordan, Mr. Matata, and Michelle

Mr. Matata is the project manager and coordinator for the community's homeless and orphaned kids. Man, does he do a good job. He was born and raised in the Old Naledi community and went to college at the University of Botswana. He decided to come back and help out his fellow community members. He said that he wants to give each child the best possible chance to succeed in life and have opportunities. He says the job of getting food for these kids can be very difficult on a daily basis because he gets food (usually donated or highly subsidized) for about 200 or so kids every day. Mr. Matata (who's name literally translates to Mr. Problem) says that sometimes he wonders if he should do something real with his life and get a "real job" but that if he gives up, these kids won't have a role model like he has been all of these years. 

You know, that's an interesting thought. He is literally someone who may not have been replaced by someone else because he created his position. If Mr. Matata didn't organize food for these kids on a daily basis, who would? Who would take charge? Who would feed these kids? Who would show them that it is possible to get to the top of the ladder? Who would show these kids that life isn't always handed to you? Where is the light at the end of the tunnel if it exists?

In life, it is important to become someone who you believe brings more to the table than what a replacement at your pace could bring. If you weren't here, would someone be leading your life? If so, would they be better at it than you are?

 I should get back to the day before letting all of these deep thoughts unveil. 

When Jordan, Michelle, and I arrived at the community center. A flock of kids headed our way. These two little girls were literally attached at my hip the entire day! Literally. Although it was super adorable and heartwarming when we met initially, there was also a sadness. What if they are so attached to me because people don't give them attention? What if these kids don't get the social interaction so necessary for development and growth? The girl above, kept holding my hand and wanting me to carry her and the one below always wanted to hug me and both were so adorable and precious. It's really a shame to have to play with these kids all day and then have to leave. It was also a sad sight because so many of these kids had runny noses and coughs/ you could feel the rough dirtiness in their hands. It's an interesting thought how your lifestyle can dictate how smooth, rough, or calloused your fingertips are. It's interesting how some of these kids have clothes with little rips all around- which may or may not be sewed. The thought of matching your clothes was as foreign as my nationality. Some of these kids would layer up and wear three or four layers in the morning and adjust throughout the day as needed. You could still see the stains in their clothing or the felt of clothing that comes from long term wear and tear. You could still see the residue of dirt in the hair of some kids suggesting they needed a bath. At the end of the day, it's about the details in the fabric. 

To the "upside" of that, some of these kids kept asking for money or some of our belongings (and some really expected it to be handed over). Is it because they get things handed to them? Or is it because they expect us to have money? So after getting trampled by over a hundred beautiful little community kids, they kept playing with my hair. What's funny though is that none of the kids believed my hair was real...they kept saying it was plastic. I told them that my hair was real and one girl pointed to her hair, which was coarse and a lot shorter than mine and said this is hair! That's not hair! I even pulled out a strand of my hair to prove it wasn't a weave because the kids kept looking for my "real hair" where my roots are. This was probably the most interesting part of the day to me because I hadn't realized that some of these kids had never seen hair like mine.

After playing with these kids for nearly three hours including games such as ring around the rosie and duck duck goose, the three volunteers helped the other volunteers who came from Orange to hand out snacks. The snack they had was half a hot dog and orange punch. After we passed out hot dogs to 200+ community kids and members, which was just as crazy it sounds, Jordan, Michelle, and I helped prepare lunch. Preparing lunch was...intense. So one of the dishes that these kids love is potato salad...with LOTS of mayonnaise. I don't think I'll ever be able to look at mayonnaise the same way after smelling so much of it. We went out to the kitchen to prepare food with other volunteers from Orange. While preparing, most of the crew was day-drinking, cooking steaks, and having a party...and the three of us felt slightly out of place. It was an odd thought for us that people were drinking...while at a volunteer event...before lunch... so confused. Meanwhile, these kids still stayed super adorbz. They asked us to stay for a futbol game after lunch with the kids but we were so exhausted that we had to head out. It's crazy how tiring playing with so many kids for hours upon hours can be!

Volunteering with kids gives you an entirely different spectrum of joy. Spending time with these kids brought to me a different sense of joy, happiness, hope, love, and appreciation. Joy to see so many precious smiles. Happiness to be able to spend some time with these kids. Hope that  programs like these will in turn to prove bright futures for these kids. Love in its simplest form stemming from quality time spent together and appreciation for the lessons I have learned and the motivation I have gained. I didn't teach a class, I didn't save a life, nor did I provide food for these children but these kids seemed to be so attached to me for simply providing my smile and my time.

Honestly, it's a different world out there. It's not as easy to even say no to a kid that asks you for your tennis shoes or jacket or money but what does that teach these kids if I do give them my things? Yes, it would make me feel better about myself knowing that I kept someone warm for the night or kept feet from being calloused but it teaches these kids to get what they ask for. A few other local volunteers helped me understand this concept when Orange provided these kids with new shirts. It was amazing giving clothes to these kids (and acted as a great publicity stunt for Orange) because that was all that we could do for them today. It's tough but in the end what helps the most is stability and earning the clothes and food that you get. This was when the volunteer informed me that they also have after school learning sessions and sports activities to keep the kids involved. They also have the older ones help the younger ones learn there ABC's! How cute is that!? Learning this made me really happy because I didn't know how much detail went into transforming these kids into adults who can make a real living in the world outside the doors of the community center.

I had an amazing time volunteering and meeting these adorable, sweet, and energetic kids. It touched my heart when Mr. Matata thanked Jordan, Michelle, and I for coming out and volunteering but there is no comparison to what he does on a daily basis. Mr. Matata had all of the community kids learn each of our names and publicly thanked us by giving us a round of applause. I was pretty taken aback because I didn't even feel like we had done anything to deserve such thanks. That day I learned so much about society, a sense of community and the behaviors of children. I saw the innocent kids, the divas, the top-dogs, the quiet ones, and the criers too. Spending some time with these kids has really taught me how to appreciate having a loving family, having a quality education, and access to good health care. It also taught me how many people are capable of helping others in the simplest of ways. I can't wait to go back and volunteer with these cuties again!

Hope you enjoyed it and until next time,

Komal

Hook em' in Africa- grab em while they're young!

Take the world by the horns. 

Clinics and Combis

Hi all,

So let me start by apologizing again on how little I've been blogging. In my defense, I have had a jam-packed schedule and there have been a few unannounced and announced power outages so technically it's not all my fault. Technically. We had one scheduled outage for 11 hours on Saturday. It's okay though because I had a chance to volunteer with adorable kids, which I will DEFINITELY post about soon enough!

I guess it's time to catch y'all up on all of the details! I'll go in order and try to keep it short but it has been a while so no promises!

I'll start with a daily routine: Firstly, I wake up around 6 AM and chat with my parents and some friends (their 11 PM) because it is the time that works best for both timezones considering I'd have to wake up soon anyway. After that I get ready for my internship and all. We leave around 7-7:15 depending on where the clinical rotation is for the week. Then we walk about 10 minutes to take a combi (16 seater public transport) to the combi/ bus station and catch another combi to the clinic. Last week, my group was at Julia Molefe clinic and this week we were at Old Naledi clinic. Below are some more images to get everyone familiar with the combis!

Getting to the clinic the first day of each week is process because we don't know exactly where we're stopping at and have to tell the driver to make sure to stop. It costs 3.50 P every ride which is about 0.43 cents. So after getting to the clinic we intern 8-12 AM Monday to Thursdays. Mondays are always the busiest day because we get a tour of the clinic and there are always a ton of patients waiting to be seen. A good amount of patients have nothing wrong with them but because the health care in Bots is free, they exaggerate symptoms or fake them to skip work/ school and go to the clinic. The doctor gives them a sick leave to prove they were at the clinic. This is a flaw of the system and of the mindset of people here. It is a shame because a doctor should see an average of 20 patients a day but ends up seeing up to 100 or so due to the amount of patients in the clinic and the lack of doctors available. There are about 25 doctors rotating in 15 or so clinics except 3 of the clinics are 24 hour and each of the 3 clinics need 3 doctors a day for each shift so between 12 clinics, there are 14 doctors. Most clinics get 1 maybe 2 doctors at a time. Some clinics don't have doctors at hand if the doctor doesn't show up or the shift schedule is miscommunicated.





Let me get into the more interesting and gory details...

So the first day I had at the clinical was alright, we just took vitals but I could already sense the difference in the worlds. When we entered the clinic, there was no clear way directing us where to go. We didn't even know where the office was because it was smack dab in the front. Once we found the right place to go, there was no one in the office either. Alright, fine so we get settled in and on my first day I'm taking temperatures of people by putting a thermometer in their armpit and recording their temperatures. Then I swab it with a spirited swab and onto the next. No gloves. No nothing. This may not sound that gross, but after a while, you just feel gross. It's even grosser because there's not really a place that I can wash my hands and well, some of these people are actually sick... so that helps.

Looking back, this was a piece of cake and it only gets worse from there. Day two was weighing babies. This sounds super adorable. Oh, the babies are too cute here. I'm talking deep brown beady innocent eyes adorable. I just want to take them all back. Alright, aside from all the cuteness, I didn't get to do much because mothers bring their own slings for their kids to be weighed in. It kind of reminds me of a grocery store but that's beside the point. They bring their own fabric slings to avoid cross contamination and to reduce spread of skin infection. This is an excellent measure taken place. However, the baby changing table wasn't cleaned once so that's screaming for transmission. Oh, and to top it off if babies peed in the sling onto the floor or table, the mothers had to clean it up with a paper napkin...the floor or table still weren't cleaned while I was there.

Day three. Oh day three. Day three, I watched people get screened for HIV by double rapid tests and the other half I shadowed a doctor. I'll get into the details of HIV culture in a later post but let's get back to this doctor. He was arrogant and more interested in his American interns than his patients. His bedside manner was virtually non-existant. He made a girl take off all of her clothes because she complained of abnormal vaginal discharge. This was upsetting because there was no reason for her to take off her clothes above her waist. Furthermore, another patient came in later that day and complained of vaginal discharge and wart around her body- the doctor only made her take off her pants. This doctor was speaking english the entire time so I know I didn't just miss a beat or something. Meanwhile, a baby came in who was diagnosed with Meningitis and the doctor (this part is common) tore off the end of his glove to tie on the baby's foot to search for a vein. This would be used to place the needle and then inject antibiotics. The doctor tried the vein on her foot three times, her wrist three times, and THEN he proceeded to try to find the vein in the head. Fine. But he also took the end of his glove and placed it on her head. Meanwhile, he was completely unaware of where the rubber string was on her head or how tight it was for her head. She was obviously crying in pain and the rubber string would fall over her eyes and her grandmother was the one pushing it up so that it wouldn't hurt her eyes. Moreover, the doctor kept moving the baby's head (not at all gently) to find the vein but one of the damn signs of meningitis (which the grandmother told the doctor) is stiffness of neck! After two unsuccessful attempts at securing the vein in the baby's head, he sent them away to the hospital. AFTER ALL THAT SUFFERING. Man, I'm not one to usually tear up, but I was fighting back tears as I could hear the pain of the one year old who was unable to express her pain other than crying.

Day four: Today, I shadowed another doctor and also shadowed pre-natal mothers' exams. This doctor was MUCH better at being a teacher and acting like a real person to his patients. Today was also interesting, I saw the doctor push back a piece of skin into a woman's anus because she was in the second stage of hemorrhoids- also, very painful. He also let us tell her prevention methods and how to improve her diet by eating high- fiber foods and drinking plenty of water. We also saw a lot of high blood pressure in people and it has shown to be a problematic issue here in Botswana. The doctor urged patients to lower BP when he had time to. He told them of the importance of eating more vegetables and not just meat and starch. A man came in who was in a car crash because he was avoiding a head on collision and then hit a tree with his car - the police brought him in because this was the closest clinic but it's not even an inpatient clinic! He has small wounds on his knees and arms, he complained of chest pain, and a headache. This guy was literally shaking and was almost in shock. They cleaned him up and ordered an x-ray of his chest. There was also other smaller injuries throughout the day because people use the clinic as an excuse to miss school/work.

When I was observing in maternity, let's be honest, it was adorable. I learned that the measurement (in cm) of a expectant mother's belly, so from the top of her abdomen to her pelvic bone- is a close guess to the weeks of gestation! It's pretty spot on as well expect for people who are very small or large in stature. Still, it's pretty accurate +/- 1-2 cm. Also, I heard a lot of heart beats and that's just something that is so cool and interesting to hear for the first time!


Alright, well this was all from the week of June 2-7, so I promise I'll be sure and update about that weekend and this past week soon! Also, I'll definitely try to post more often after the weekend! I saw some very interesting things this past week! Lot's of pus, blood, and TB- a teaser. I'd write more now but I'm actually about to take a weekend trip to Johannesburg, SA so I'll definitely post about that as well!

Safe travels and happy summer (or winter on this side of the world).

Komal

Hide your kids

Let's start with how undergraduate dorms are shitty wherever you are... especially in Africa.

Good thing I'm living in a graduate student flat with five other roommates! 5 stars y'all. I've seen a spider on my bed. One of my curtains is broken so I safety pinned it up and my closet door doesn't lock. The best part is mopping after yourself because the shower overflows each time. College living sup. Don't get me wrong though, I've had one of the better living situations. 

The city has weekly power and water rationing cuts in sections to conserve energy because most of our energy comes from a local dam and well, it's drought season. So, a few of us were hanging out waiting for the water to come back and when one of my friends went back to her room...there was a layer of water flooded on her floor. There wasn't even a pipe that led to her room. It was so random and unexpected. Just a "did that really just happen" moment. Another flat has a bug problem so I'm sure that's fun to deal with. There are clothes lines outside for hanging up your hand washed clothing and there were birds inside the student building. This is Africa. 

There's also a creepy guy that tries to claim he's looking for a spare room to all of the international girl students. He seems like great news. I haven't met him personally but ya know hide your kids, hide your wife.
The randos are pretty sketchy at times though and you really have to be careful about where you put your things and how you present yourself. One girl lost $80 USD on a night out and the random attention gets annoying as well.

The Mozambique visa office is about a ten minute walk and the advice we got for it:

"The men that work there are notorious for hitting on American girls. Do not give them your phone number or let them deliver your passport to you (or any other ‘favor’), they will stalk you until you leave the country."

That's comforting.

But really, I do love Africa. 

Generally, I've heard this good things of this country...generally. I'll save the other stories for after I leave the country.

Best, 

Komal 

In and around Gabz!

Hi all,

I realize I've seriously been slacking on keeping up with my blog but to be fair, the daily time frame for me to write is so small and I have been choosing to hang out with friends or sleeping. Oh, also, our weekly power outage cut the internet for about 12 hours so Wednesday doesn't really count. Speaking of, we're having another scheduled power outage on Saturday from 7 am to 6 pm. That should be fun! Mondays are water cuts 6 pm to 10 pm for the part of the city I'm staying in.

Anyway, I guess I'll start with last weekend since that's where I left off (oops). Well, my group and I went on a "scavenger hunt" of the city, Gaborone (pronounced Hab-uh-ro-nae). It was awesome and also so tiring! Gabz is huge and so varied in what you'll find. The best/worst part about four tourists walking around in the city is the random attention. Sometimes, you'll get strangers (men and women) just come up to you and tell you how beautiful you are or they'll say "Hello. I love you!" or they'll try to take pictures of you/with you. It's definitely an interesting city. Lolz. Let's be honest though, the attention gets old because people also assume you have money... so you have to be careful to keep your things close, especially at popular places, like the mall or the bus rink.

Public transportation is also...interesting. People mainly use taxis and combis. To the left you'll see the front of a combi and I'll be sure and get a better picture in one of these days for full effect. They're 16 seater white vans that have routes and stop when requested. Oh, these routes aren't really listed anywhere either...you just know or ask a driver. They're pretty cheap but also relatively sketch at night. The ones with blue license plates are "safer" but hey, they get you where you want to go! One thing that sucks though is that when you want to leave somewhere in the morning from the bus rink, you have to wait for the 16 seater van to fill up before it leaves, and it can make you late to your destination. There's no set time for when a combi will arrive or if it will...it just does. The best part of the taxis is that you never really know what you'll hear until you get in the car... I've heard music from gospel African to "Call Me Maybe" there's no telling what's next!

Okay, so back to the scavenger hunt...my group also went into a few places we weren't supposed to get into... such as inside parliament (hey, who's fault is it if you have virtually non-existent security in a government building AND you leave the doors unlocked? Speaking of security, there is an embassy row with different government buildings like the embassy buildings for Zimbabwe and Canada... and then there's the United States embassy. So intense. You can't even take a picture of the parking lot they own. (If you try to take a picture of the US embassy, game over).

The coolest place we saw that we weren't supposed to be able to see was inside the high commission courts. We got to go inside because we're American and it was Sunday so the courts were vacant. Now, we actually got to go inside the courtrooms and all. We even saw the cells where those who are accused of committing murder and treason are detained before being seen by a judge. I'm talking maximum security. I saw the scuff marks of people who resisted their court appeals. It was intense and old school.

Here are some visuals to fill in the gaps! Enjoy!

High Court

Three Chiefs monument!

Outside the taxi station! 

Nicest hotel in Gabz! Rooftop chillen' y'all!

INTERCAPE WOOOOO!!!

Mokolodi Nature Reserve

 Hello all,

The group of 28 students plus student volunteers and staff went to Mokolodi Nature Reserve, which is a reserve just outside Gaborone and we did an overnight there. We went on a game drive and saw giraffe, warthogs, zebra, baboons, impala,wildebeests, spotted hyenas and kudus. This reserve is huge. The reserve is also known for its education and conservation lessons. This includes learning about the different wildlife as well as animal population control. I learned a lot about the dynamics of wildlife control, poaching, hunting and exportation of animal goods. For example, the country has declared that no more hunting licenses will be issued after 2014 and hunting will be banned. This is due to 12% of Botswana GDP coming from ecotourism (National Geographic) and the negative effects poaching has had on trophy animals, such as Cape Buffalo. The Okavango Delta in Botswana was nominated as a UNESCO heritage site so, if any time to ban hunting, now would be ideal in essence. However, for non-endangered species, hunting helps control wildlife population. The guides helped us understand a little more background about the issue.

Impala

Warthog

The problem with letting animal species overpopulate reserves is that the reserves can only accomodate so many animals before they overpopulate, eat all of the vegetation, overuse the lands, and starve to death. So, another option is killing the animals, which is never a crowd pleaser. This also discourages tourists from visiting and sponsors from contributing to keep the parks funds afloat. Another option is providing supplementary feeding to animals which is wonderful in theory. However, this poses the problem of providing monetary assistance for the extra food. Another option is exportation of animals (preferably alive) to countries in SADC such as Namibia, who is looking to vamp up it's wildlife preservation. Exporting gives much more bang for your buck than selling to local markets. This is also a great option except the ministry of agriculture recently stopped giving out permits for the exportation of any wildlife. Now, there's a problem. Keeping the country's wildlife population under control while maintaining economic stability is something that may be a future issue for Botswana's wildlife reserves. Hopefully, there's a master plan behind all of this somewhere in between the lines! Only time will tell what's in store for these animals and reserves.




We had a wonderful dinner out by the lake and it was gorgeous. It was gorgeous. We saw the sun set as well and I'm losing words for how to describe the natural beauty found in this country. Let's talk about camping with 28 college kids and well, a little something to get the group's night started. The group ended up playing "Never have I ever" and for some reason that game mixes perfectly with camping, bonding, and booze. I'd say this was a great bonding night for everyone because we all got to relax and get to know each other. Also, I enjoyed hearing stories about other peoples' travels and just what brought them to Botswana. Everyone has a story and I'm enjoying discovering everyones purposes for being here.



I ended up staying up with a small group late because we were talking and discussing life stories. One of the guides was still up with us as well and we heard two Impala males fighting over a female. One of the Impala backed away and our tour guide walked us through it. This was pretty cool because he knew what was going on, timing and all,  even though it is pitch dark at this point.

We also saw the stars. Man, the stars. I don't think I can accurately convey the beauty I saw this night. The southern hemisphere has different stars than those that we see in the states. The air pollution is so little in this area that the clarity was un-parallel to anything I had ever seen. I saw the milky way as well as the scorpius constellation. Oh, and I saw three shooting stars. I'm no astronomy major, but damn, this was a sight. It was literally perfect. It was one of those sights where you can see it as soon as you search your google images, you can learn about it in class, you can even map it out, but there is no comparison and it's that simple.


Hakuna Matata,

Komal 

  Mokolodi Education Center