Such a long day, I don't even know where to begin. We awoke early this morning to the smell of breakfast and the hustle and bustle of the city sounds below us. I looked out the front window to a most spectacular view of the sea just below the hillside atop which the city was set. Children ran through the crooked streets and motor bikes beeped a viscous warning as they sped around corner and weaved through the busy crowds. Everyone had somewhere to go.
We enjoyed our breakfast in the company of two other American travelers, who were repeat visitors of Sierra Leone, both doing temporary volunteer work. We quickly packed our bags and headed down to join the chaos of the dirty city streets below. People lined the streets and at every turn there was someone waiting to sell you something- anything from bread soda or fruit to clothing, shoes or perfumes. Anything to make some money. Soon we made our way from the city and followed the smooth paved road to a town where we stopped at the market for groceries and a local hotel for lunch.
I begin to think... third world countries are not unique- yes, each has their own individual problems, but you see the same looks on the faces of the people you pass- different faces, but all with the same look of desperation. Often, though, you are still able to find luxuries- as in this hotel with manicured grounds and a centralized swimming pool surrounded by plasma televisions with satellite dishes. It doesn't seem right. I still wonder how this is possible. It is quite perplexing to me.
We move on from lunch and left behind the smoothly paved road to a long and very torturous dirt road through the jungle. This journey amazingly continued on for over 2 hours and we finally arrived at the hosptial grounds at 4pm after leaving the US at 10pm 2 days ago.
We unloaded our bags for the second time as we tried to become situated. Phillip is staying with the Ashers and I have a room with a missionary couple from Indiana who have volunteered here off and on since the 1970's. We had a nice family dinner at the Ashers' home with the rest of the volunteers that are here right now from a church in North Carolina. It was very nice to have everyone all together and get to know them all a little better.
After dinner, Dr. Tom took us to the hospital and we checked on a few patients. The equipment here is very primal and the facilities very basic. I was very uneasy about the whole idea of practicing medicine under such circumstances. I expected basic, but I never imagined that they wouldn't even have the bare necessities such as exam gloves. All I could think was "in the US I use gloves to examine healthy patients and these people are SICK- with rashes and diseases we've only read about in text books-and you expect me to do what??" I immediately felt the guilt of my thoughts. I was so ashamed that it had even crossed my mind, but the instincts are so hard to fight.
Darkness cam after dinner and I found myself having to get accustomed to life without light. A few things are battery operated or solar powered, but I mainly used a flashlight since the sun's gone down. It's amazing how dark it can get here.
The group of volunteers decided to go to a local hangout in the village that shows films via a projector in an open courtyard, so we agreed to tag along. We made our first trip into town in the darkness of the pitch black night with people jumping onto the streets out of nowhere. Often you couldn't see them, but you could hear them or sense them watching you. The projector was broken, so we did not watch the film, but I did enjoy a COLD sprite as we sat beneath the several strands of large Christmas lights that adorned the courtyard. Children ran along the fence line, often popping their head in for a closer look at the white people, as if were glowing in the darkness. They are still a little stand offish with us at this point, but hopefully they will warm up to us soon.
As we sat and enjoyed the cool breeze of the night, the volunteers began to tell us stroies of the tribal rituals in town and how the children are taken "into the bush" and taught to become men and women as they are initiated into a "secret society". It was all a bit overwhelming for me, so we soon decided to retreat back to our rooms. Maybe tomorrow I will try to learn more of these rituals...
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