NaNA and PACKAGES!

*Disclaimer* If you are totally bored with Nutrition, you probably shouldn't read this.
Chad, a fellow Aggie in my group, and I went to the National Nutritional Agency office today.  I was really excited to see how professionals view the Nutritional status of Gambians and what areas were major concerns.  When we first arrived we were sent to the Director of Program's office.  Alieu gave us a general overview of the history of the organization and what exactly they do.  He talked about the breastfeeding policies in the Gambia and how women are sensitized to this information.  Over 60% of all births in The Gambia are at home with the help of a TBA, or traditional birth attendant. Because these women at not at a clinic where information on the importance of breastfeeding cannot be relayed, NaNA has teams of 8 that go out in the community to talk to TBAs about the policies they support.  I think this is awesome! I can't believe that the number of births we see at the health center is only representative of 40% of the births occurring in the area.  There are so many babies here! He also talked about the 3 major micronutrients that are of concern in The Gambia.  Iron is a concern for citizens of all ages.  The normal hemoglobin count for patients in the US is about 12.  In contrast, a good value for a patient here is anything above 8.  The iron in their diets is so low due to the amount of fish they eat, instead of meat.  Iodine is also a major concern, which is rarely mentioned as one in the US.  The salt produced in the area isn't normally iodized, so UNICEF has funded mobile salt iodizing plants which will iodize local salt production for free.  The last nutrient of concern is a deficiency in Vitamin A which is the leading cause of childhood blindness in the world.  Eye abnormalities and blindness are very common in The Gambia because of the prevalence of these deficiencies as well as the prevalence of syphilis is pregnant mothers.
After chatting with Alieu for a while we were fed lunch and then directed to a presentation over nutrition for people living with HIV/AIDS.  I learned so much about the disease and its low prevalence in eastern and middle Africa.  It's a common misconception that the AIDS epidemic is widespread across Africa.  In actuality, sub-Saharan Africa is the major area where this disease is so common.  There are 33 million people in the world living with AIDS and 22.5 million live in southern Africa. After covering the statistics of the disease, we talked about how it is crucial that an infected person have adequate nutrition.  I learned so much about such an interesting topic. I didn't want to leave when it was time to go!
After dodging a near death head-on collision on the way home compliments of the fantastic driving skills of Gambians, the rain started in.  A few of us were determined to get the post office today and decided to battle the rain, thinking it would probably quit soon anyways.  Oh my goodness were we wrong.  It poured and we definitely didn't have a rain coat.  We laughed the entire way there.  Thankfully the trek paid off because I got 2 packages! My parents sent a package of goodies and the English's and Reeder's sent one together.  I am so blessed to have family that loves me so much! Thank you for being so thoughtful! Normal American junk food is way better than Gambian junk food any day! Thanks again for sending love half way around the world!

Tomorrow we are celebrating our last day of work with a little end of the day party to say thank you. Saturday we will start our travel week of crocodile pools, river cruises, camel riding, and lots lots more! Can't wait to write all about it!

Love you all so much-
Morgan

Parades, Beaches, and Gambian Weddings!

This week was a three day weekend and we packed it full! Friday was Gambia's Revolution Day, which is a celebration of when the current president took over and basically overthrew a more corrupt government.  This country loves their president! He has been in office for 17 years now. We took part in the celebration by loading in the ambulance (our usual transportation) and heading to the capital Banjul.  We were surprised to see everyone in green! Apparently we didn't get the memo that the president's political party is represented by green and none of us had it on- oops. After quite a bit of waiting, we finally got a glimpse of the president.  He rode by in a stretch hummer truck limo- very extravagant. The security was ridiculous! There were men with machine guns in the back of the truck and snipers on the roof! I was afraid just to reach in my bag! After the president drove by, he stood at a podium under this giant pavilion where most of the spectators of the parade were sitting. We were ready to escape the heat so we decided to head out.  Ebrima had this grand idea that the shortest way to get to the car was to just jump in the middle of the parade and walk with them to where our car was.  He is too funny! So we jumped in behind a marching group of kids from a local school.  I'm sure everyone was wondering what the heck we were doing there! We were even on TV.  Ana said they saw us cracking up and everyone watching started yelling about how they knew us! It was quite the entertainment of the day.
Saturday we headed back to Sanyang for another beach weekend.  We had originally thought we were going to go to Senegambia, but after hearing of the abundance of jellyfish and bumsters (men that steal your stuff in plain sight), we decided Sanyang was the better option.  We had another great beach day playing in the water, basket tossing each other, and even had some giant seaweed fights! It was a blast.  Ana brought chicken and cooked grilled chicken sandwiches on the beach for us. It was perfect.  We even joined in on a local party and did some dancing while waiting on our driver.  We have been so lucky that the weather has cooperated every beach weekend.  I couldn't have asked for better memories at Sanyang.
Sunday we spent the day relaxing at the lodge and sleeping in-our favorite pastime besides Canasta.  We headed to Serekunda in the afternoon to celebrate Maimouna's wedding.  The entire maternity ward had dresses made out of the same fabric, so to join in we took scraps of the fabric and added them to our outfits.  It was so cute! The wedding was gorgeous. The women are all so glamorous! I was surprised at how similar it was to a traditional outdoor wedding reception in the states. We had dinner and sat outside waiting for the bride and groom to arrive from the mosque.  The bride spends the day at the salon, while the groom and the elder men go to the mosque and get the wedding approved and blessed.  Lamin (the groom) picked up Maimouna from the salon and they made a grand entrance.  Chad and I were very disappointed that for some reason the Ford Explorer they showed up in had a longhorn sticker on it! What the heck?!?! They greeted everyone and took lots lots lots of pictures.  Maimouna looked gorgeous! The only downside of the wedding are the attendance of griots- one of my top 3 least favorite things about Gambia.  I was more prepared to ignore them this time and Haley had a great time video taping our responses to these annoying begging women.  After Maimouna had greeted everyone, we were moved to a different compound just down the street.  They had cultural music playing and everyone enjoyed dancing and observing.  The biggest event of the night is when they arrive again, Maimouna in a new dress.  They have a cake set up and a leather couch where the bride and groom sit and cut the cake.  Overall the wedding was tons of fun and a great way to celebrate and special friendship we have all made with her.  

This week I will wrap up our hospital time with RCH (peds) and Hands on Care again. Friday we are having a small going away party with the hospital staff to show them how much we appreciate all they have done for us. As time is ticking away and I get excited to head home, I can't help but think about all of the relationships we have made here and how sad it will make me to say goodbye.

Looking forward to seeing my American family and friends very soon!
-Isa

Hands on Care

I have spent the week in the Hands On Care, HIV unit, rotation.  Monday I enjoyed getting to sit in on some counseling sessions for patients who are getting ready to start their ARV medications.  They are required to meet with a "counselor" (nurse) 3 times prior to beginning, and they must bring in a "supporter" for at least one session so they are notified that the patient is HIV positive.  I had some difficulty watching the reactions of some of the patients since a few broke down into tears.  One woman got upset telling us that her husband was divorcing her because of "the sickness". (they rarely ever say the words HIV or AIDS. It's always "the sickness")
The second part of the day was a lot better! I got to help with antenatal visits.  They taught me to do palpitations where I could feel for the baby's head and back, listen to the fetal heartbeat, and even date pregnancies.  I was so excited the first time I actually heard the heartbeat! The mom just laughed at me! I really enjoyed getting to perform them on my own and then have him do them and compare our results.  It was definitely a more rewarding and uplifting way to end the day.
Tuesday was extremely slow.  I spent half of the day working with the home based care unit in HOC.  They provide infant formula and milk powder to children with HIV, orphans, and children with HIV positive parents.  It was interesting for a while, but wasn't very busy at all. After work we went to the post office since several of our group members are getting boxes of American snacks! I cooked at Yandey's house for dinner.  We made spaghetti with an onion sauce and potatoes- the most American meal we eat.  I always love spending time over there with all of the women.  They get a kick out of watching us toubabs attempt to cook like they do.  Yandey tied a wrap skirt around me yesterday and patted my butt saying she liked my "loppy".  It seems to be a reoccurring theme here for Stephanie and I.  The women love to tell us how we have the "African style loppy"- so funny.
Wednesday I worked in the dispensary department of the HOC unit.  I learned a lot about ARV medications and how they are distributed.  I enjoyed spending the day in an air conditioned unit and was really busy the whole day.  By the end, I was reading and putting together all of the prescriptions while she dictated to the patients how to take them and handed them out.  It's always rewarding to feel like the unit has really benefited from my time there.  After work we ran some errands in the market and prayed for electricity.  We didn't get it.  It was the 4th night in a row that we have had to stay up waiting on current because it's too hot in our rooms otherwise.  Thankfully, Chad, Steph, Haley, and I have started playing this card game Stephanie taught us called Canasta and now we're hooked.  It's a partner game and tons of fun! I can't wait to teach everyone when I get back!
Today was another extremely boring day at the health center. It seems like that's been happening a lot lately.  Tomorrow is a national holiday so everyone is off work and apparently today got included in the not working category.  We are spending the day in Banjul tomorrow participating in the festivities and taking in the sights.  Saturday we are looking forward to another beach day.  We are going to head to Senegambia and spend the evening there.  Sunday is our favorite midwife Maimouna's wedding! I cannot wait to see how a Gambian wedding is and see her get married.  I am so excited!
Can't believe I'll be home in 19 days!

Love you all so much!
-Morgan

20 Things I love about The Gambia

1. omelet sandwiches
2. waist beads
3. Gambian children
4. bottled coke
5. skip bo
6. the morning sounds
7. futbol games
8. taxi rides
9. benechin
10. porridge
11. African dresses/fabric
12. my group
13. Africell
14. hair braids
15. Nyambai fast food
16. nutella

17. Gateway
18. beach weekends
19. bats
20. African dancing and music

I thought everyone might want a quick update on the things I love here and at home!
Miss you all!!

20 Things I miss about Texas/civilization

1. friends and family
2. AIR CONDITIONING
3. warm showers/baths
4. chicken fingers
5. ice
6. milk
7. TV
8. unmosquitonetted beds
9. brushing my teeth without bottled water
10. soft toilet paper
11. pools
12. cheese
13. washing machines
14. dishwashers
15. constant electricity
16. driving myself
17. cleanliness
18. dollars
19. internet connection
20. non gigantic bugs

Birthday Parties and shopping, shopping, shopping

On Thursday, we spent the evening at a 4 year old's birthday party.  Juma's son Muhammad invited us to celebrate with them.  I was intrigued to see how a kid's birthday party here differed from back home since we've been told that most people here don't even know their birthdays and don't celebrate them at all.  However, we were pleasantly surprised at how similar it was.  There were a ton of kids there! We had this grand idea to play musical chairs with them since it's a game that doesn't take much explaining, but everyone loves it.  It was a hit! We had so much fun with them.  There was this one little boy named Musa who was decked out in a suit and tie with Timberlands- So cute! We were crazy about him and took too many pictures.  After playing for a while, Juma's wife brought out suckers and balloons, which the kids loved.  Dinner was served shortly after, which was sort of a seafood stew.  There were full crabs in it! It definitely was not what I was expecting for a meal at a 4 year old's party.  They had meat pies, a kind of pound cake, and baobab juice.  We had so much fun that we were some of the last adults to leave!  Afterwards, a few of us headed over to Gateway, the one place around here with the prepackaged processed food Americans love, and picked up some ice cream to go with the cake we had bought for Ana's birthday.  When we got back to the lodge, we sang to her and she blew out a lighter (to replace a candle).  She said it was her best birthday yet!
On Saturday, we got up early to head to Serekunda for the day.  We had been told that it was more of a touristy area so we should be more careful with our bags and money while there.  We looked like such toubabs carrying our backpacks on the front.  Saturday was by far the hottest day we've had yet! It was so humid that we were all drenched from head to toe. Ebrima accompanied us for the day and showed us all around the market.  He was excited to show us the meat market. We were not excited to see it.  I caught one glimpse of the fly-covered, unrefrigerated slabs of meat covering the counters and a whiff of the odor before I decided I would wait outside.  The most common purchases of the day were waist beads.  They are these elastic beaded jewelry that women commonly wear around their waists.  When I first asked Ana about hers, she laughed and totally looked suspicious, so of course that made me want to know even more.  Awa explained that "the men like it".  Our group thinks it's absolutely hilarious. I'm pretty sure just about every girl in our group bought some- just for the fun of it.  I guess it's the closest thing they have to cultural lingerie and we weren't about to miss out on something so uniquely Gambian.  The highlight of the day was definitely the "proper supermarket" we had been hearing about.  We were not leaving Serekunda before checking it out.  Turns out it was Air Conditioned, had a fully stocked alcohol section (which you NEVER see), and had plenty of refrigerated drinks.  We were ecstatic!
After spending the day shopping, sweating, and getting sunburned, we headed to a naming ceremony.  Ebrima's wife Isatou had a family member who was holding a naming ceremony in Serekunda and invited us to go. We enjoyed great company and great food!
Today it poured all morning long, so we are just having a lazy day reading books and praying for a break in the rain to do some laundry.  Tomorrow I will start my rotation in the HIV/Hands on Care unit.  I can't wait to see what's in store at the hospital this week!
love you and miss you all!
-Morgan

Futbol, Dancing, Maternity, and Birthdays

Sunday night we attended another soccer game at the local Brikama stadium.  It was an important game, because Brikama was tied for first place in the league and really needed to win to secure the lead.  They were playing the Gambia Army Team, which is who our friend Kaba played for.  So basically it was his alma mater versus his hometown team that all of his friends and family were cheering for.  Brikama ended up winning and we went on the field for pictures again.  My roommate on the trip is dating/head over heels/engaged to one of the guys who plays for Brikama so it was fun to interact with him on the field as well.  I don't think any of us realized how big of a celebrity our friend Kaba is.  He just got offered to play for Spain's national team and is leaving in August for that! We are so proud of him and we're all praying he ends up in the US. 
Monday I spent the day cooking lunch for everyone and didn't get to go to the hospital.  At Yanday's we made Chicken Benechin, my favorite! It was a longer process than I expected, but probably something I could make at home.  I think we are all kind of shocked by how much oil and sodium they use in their food here! Everything is fried.  It seems to be working it's ways on the stomachs of a lot of our group. Last night we bought some apples (expensive here!) and you would have thought we had died and gone to heaven.  We scarfed down 5 apples between 6 of us and barely spared a core.  We have really been missing our normal regimens of protein and dairy too! The continuous carb diet is taking its toll on our appetites and attitudes with food. 
Tuesday, Stephanie and I went out with the RCH (peds) and public health units to a small village called Pirang.  I spent most of the day weighing infants and marking them on the weight chart.  Stephanie dealt with most of the antenatal checkups for pregnant women in that area.  It was really nice to get out of Brikama for a day and to see a smaller, more remote area of Gambia.  The health center there was extremely small, but in such a gorgeous area. After we loaded up, Stephanie and I noticed we were heading in the opposite direction of Brikama and asked where we were going.  Of course we weren't given a straight answer, they just said we were going a different way back.  Well it turned out we showed up in this open area where there were a bunch of women sitting in a circle underneath a tree.  It's pretty common for the ambulance to take a million stops on the way home as if the vehicle isn't needed and the employees aren't supposed to be working.  They fed us some lunch and before we knew it they were making a bunch of music! It was hilarious! They broke out in traditional African dance (it was chaotic/awesome) and insisted that Stephanie and I join.  We were adorned with dancing beads around our necks and did our best to keep up with them.  It was so awesome! We couldn't stop laughing and got some great videos of the whole thing.  Can't wait to show them to everyone when I get back!
Wednesday was my first day in the Maternity unit which I was a little nervous about since it can often be the most stressful area.  It was a pretty slow day, surprisingly. They didn't have any women in the postpartum area (a first) and when I got there, they only had 1 woman laboring. By the end of the day, I got to see 2 deliveries. The first was relatively easy and the baby was healthy.  The second was another story.  At first, the mother lied about how many children she had (I have no idea why), but we later found out this was her 10th.  Hearing that, I was expecting a pretty quick and easy labor.  Well it turns out the woman was exhausted and couldn't push.  They attempted using the vacuum, but since we're in the middle of Africa, it was broken.  They ended up having to push the baby out by putting pressure on her stomach.  It looked awful, but I was impressed it actually worked! I was pleased that the day went smoothly, but Thursday wasn't so lucky.
Today the maternity ward was nuts! Within 10 minutes of arriving, a transfer came in from Pirang and needed urgent attention.  It turns out Stephanie had just seen this woman on Tuesday for her antenatal checkup and determined that she was 30 weeks.  She came in with intense hemorrhaging and had lost an enormous amount of blood when she arrived. Being that there is no hurry in Gambia, midwife attention was minimal at first.  After a few exams, they concluded that there was no fetal heartbeat and that she had a placental abruption, where the placenta had detached from the uterine wall and was causing lots of bleeding.  They decided to transfer her to Banjul to get better help.  The ambulance ride was interesting.  They crammed her in a car with another woman who was pregnant, but there was also no fetal heartbeat. The nurse shared a seat with the second woman, the woman's mom sat in what was left of the back seat, and I straddled the stick shift in the front seat with another woman.  It was an interesting 30 minute drive as vomiting and lots of moaning occurred the whole way. We safely transported them and of course made a million stops on the way back, but finally returned around 12.  When I got back, there were 7 women laboring and 3 had already given birth! I didn't get to see any births, but I did get to see them tie off a 6th finger on both hands of 2 newborns.  It was pretty interesting! 
Tonight we are attending a friend's son's 4th birthday party and then throwing a party for Ana's birthday at the lodge! Can't wait for an eventful night!
-Isa

Dancing the night away

Friday in pediatrics was just what I needed! It was such a relief from all of the stressful units to just be in charge of healthy kids for once.  The setup of the pediatrics unit is quite interesting.  They just use 2 tables underneath a covered pavilion area to do checkups.  There are no doctors in the area at all. Basically, mothers are given a blue birth card, similar to a birth certificate, after delivery.  They are instructed to bring their children in every month until they turn 5, which I think is way excessive.  On the cards is a growth chart made by the World Health Organization where we mark the child's weight each month.  I was in charge of weighing the toddlers on Friday.  The whole system is a little silly in my opinion, since the majority of the children are extremely underweight and after we mark it on the chart, they just go home.  There is no counseling or suggestions given to help the mother raise a healthier child; they are just sent home.  It's not surprising that most cards were at least 6 months behind.  The whole experience is a little chaotic.  There aren't any lines, so its pretty much which mother can shove their card into my hand before everyone else!? The kids are funny too. Some are so brave and just stand there, hand over their card, get weighed, and leave.  Others are deathly afraid of me!! They take one look at white skin and sprint in the other direction. I couldn't help but laugh even though it's kind of sad. I know I mention it a lot, but it's so hard to get used to looking like some kind of monster here! Anyway, after they are weighed they are sent to get vaccinations pretty similar to the US.  However, in The Gambia, all children get an injection of Vitamin A every month.  Being a nutrition student, I find that very interesting.  Vitamin A deficiency is the number one cause of blindness in childhood, so I think it's awesome that kids are supplemented here! Although, its sad for the women who go 6 months without bringing there children in. Since we finished at noon in pediatrics we went into the maternity ward (everyone's favorite) to see what was going on. It wasn't a very pretty sight, as it normally isn't.  There was a woman there that had given birth to a stillbirth child and was hemorrhaging. It was really scary! She had lost so much blood. To check the relative amount of healthy blood a person has you pull down the skin underneath the eye and check the color. It's supposed to be a healthy pink/red color, but her's was the whitest I had ever seen.  And it was ridiculous how the nurses and midwives were acting.  She was probably a max of 10 minutes away from passing away and they were just sitting around talking.  There is no such thing as an emergency here! They were waiting on a unit of blood to warm up since it had been in the fridge, but they were running it under the cold water-the only way it comes.  We were all freaking out.  FINALLY, she hooked up the blood and Fatou was able to be transfused.  Maiouna, the head maternity midwife we all love, said they would also put her on oxygen since her hemoglobin was so low, except there was no electricity. Yet another downfall of living in the area.  She was transported to the Banjul hospital shortly after and we haven't yet heard if she made it.  I swear I can never escape the sad parts of a frontier hospital even for a day.
After getting off work early on Friday, we met up with a friend, Isa (yes it's VERY common here), to search for fabrics.  A couple girls want to get traditional African dresses made and a lot of us want pajama pants! The fabric is relatively cheap, but we have to take an escort with us since it's easy to rip off the toubabs. After shopping, we went for our weekly night out to eat at the "American fast food" restaurant.  It's always a nice break from all of the fish!
Saturday was another day at the beach. This time there were 18 of us in a 13 passenger van! It was a sight to see! We had so much fun, like we always do! The swim lessons continued and of course the basket tossing.  The weather was perfect and so was the water.  After a full day at the beach, we traveled to Senegambia to go to dinner.  Senegambia is apparently the tourist spot of Gambia, because it was SO nice! The restaurant had a dance floor and we had such a good time learning some new African moves.
After dinner we headed home for a quick shower and then a few of us went to a traditional Gambian nightclub.  We weren't sure what to expect, but were definitely pleasantly surprised.  Either Kaba is apparently more famous than we thought or because we were white, we got in VIP, which was a treat! It was the nicest place we've been yet, and the first with air conditioning! We just couldn't get over how a night club had guaranteed electricity and AC, but the hospital seems to never have it.  Anyways, we stood out even more since Muslims don't drink and us Americans were ecstatic that they had whiskey! Not to mention, we were all wearing three times the amount of clothes the locals were! The nightclub stayed open until 5am, but we left around 3:30.  It was a great way to have some fun together and let loose. :)

Since we didn't get home until after 4 am, most of us slept in until around noon today.  We are spending the day playing cards and relaxing around the lodge.  Tomorrow and Tuesday I will finish my time in Peds and will be put in a new rotation Wednesday.  Looking forward to a start of a great week. 
Love and Miss you all!
-Isa :)

A Tough Work Week

So it's been a busy week and the time has flown by without having time to blog! Monday I finished my rotation in the pharmacy.  I enjoyed it, but was ready for something a little bit more exciting.  We have an arrangement with a couple friends of ours that they will cook us meals if we have one person learning to cook with them each time.  So Monday night was my first shift at Yandeh's house.  I was slightly nervous and didn't know what to expect, but it was so much fun! We made Turangetta, or what we call porridge, but with a Gambian twist.  We used a giant mortar and pestel to grind peanuts with rice grains.  It was pretty entertaining to watch me attempt this.  They were even trying to teach me tricks to do like clap while pounding. We added a sauce made of peanut butter, boaboa, and bananas.  It was great! I loved the food and had even more fun making it.  I got to see how the typical Gambian lifestyle is.  At about 6 it was bath time and all of the kids got bucket showers outside! It was adorable! I am so glad we are getting this opportunity to get to know such a warm, welcoming family.
After dinner our group decided we wanted to sing the national anthem to our friends at the lodge to share the holiday with them.  They thought it was so neat and wanted to hear all about it. Ibrihim couldn't believe we actually worked on our Independence Day! It was definitely a 4th of July I will never forget!
Tuesday I started in the Inpatient Department.  It was a little boring at first, but got a little better as the day went on.  Its a huge unit with 5 different wards: male, female, peds, acute, and ER/ICU. I enjoyed following all of the doctors during their rounds and seeing how they manage such vast amounts of patients.  However it did get a little tough when I met Sally Camara.  She's an adorable 8 year old who is HIV positive and battling bronchiopnemonia.  It broke my heart when she came in with a 106 degree fever, went unconcious shortly after, and started seizing.  I could barely stand to be in there! She's so sweet and it makes me so sad that they don't have the resources to help her the way she needs them to.  Yesterday the electricity went out all day (like it does constantly) and the doctors refused to see her because her room was "too dark" to see her. I was so mad. Finally Stephanie and I pretty much insisted on getting them a flashlight so someone would help her.  They put in a feeding tube and I actually got to feed her with a syringe in her tube.  It was interesting from a clinical standpoint, but was so hard to do on someone so young.  I have been praying she can make it through.
Today I went with the Hands On Care, or HIV, unit out to a small community called Sukuta. We visited their small health facility and counseled pregnant women on the importance of getting tested for HIV, Syphillis, and other diseases.  Overall, we tested about 89 women so we were very pleased with the result.  I got to sit in the lab and watch blood draws, see HIV testing, observe Hemoglobin analyses, and even do the urinalyses by myself! We only had 3 positive results from the tests which I thought was great. After testing and recording the data, we had to help notify the patients on their results.  Gladly I only had to watch, because I don't know how I would have handled telling someone something like that.
Tomorrow I will rotate to the area I am most excited for-Pediatrics! I can't wait to weigh and examine babies and interact with them all day!
Foinyato! (talk to you later)

Weekends!

This weekend was a busy one! Saturday we were at the hospital all day assisting with a blood drive program.  The hospital blood bank is in low supply, so they put on a seminar type workshop to try to convince people to donate.  We started by participating in another parade through town.  We followed behind the band and marched through the marketplace. We listened to another pretty long (and boring) 2 and a half hour lecture with speakers talking about blood donation.  At this point- the rain started, and didn't stop. It poured!! I guess we really are getting deeper into the rainy season.  After lunch, we headed home to relax and help celebrate Ana's daughter's 9th grade graduation.  There was a big party with great food! We scarfed down the chicken since it was the first time we've had it (or something other than fish) since getting here.
 Sunday we headed to the beach! Some friends from the compound next to us  came, Ana, Isa, Awa, Jambos, and Kaba.  They were just as excited as us! Ana hadn't been to the beach in 15 years! We were shocked.  We took a taxi to a small beach they knew about.  IT WAS AWESOME.  The beach was gorgeous and we were the only ones on it.  The water was SO warm-definitely the warmest ocean water I've ever been in.  It was really shallow too, so we could walk out far to jump waves and still be only waist deep.  We had such a good time trying to teach them to swim, basket tossing each other, and just playing in the sand.  I couldn't have thought of a better way to spend a Sunday after a long week of work at the hospital in the heat.  We think we may want to make it a habit to go every Sunday!
This week I will finish my time in the pharmacy and move on to the inpatient department.  I am a little nervous about it since it's pretty much the ICU.  Looking forward to a challenging, but rewarding week ahead! 

Happy Birthday to Jill!

Along with Chelsea's song, Kamas also wrote a poem for Jill's birthday so here it is in English:

Happy Birthday to you
Hope your day is merry and bright
Happy Birthday to you
That is our wish tonight

We miss you in Gambia
Your smile, beauty, and such
We miss you in Gambia
And we love you so much!

It's a little cheesy, but it was they best they could do to make it rhyme!

Happy Birthday big(gest) sis! Hope your day was perfect!

Love you so much!!

A Week Coming to a Close

Over the last two days I have spent my time working in the Pharmacy department.  Although it can be a little tedious at times, it's definitely the area to be in if you want to stay busy all 6 hours.  I learned a lot about different medications and when they are prescribed.  It was the first time that I felt like I was actually really helping them, instead of just observing.  It was nice to see them benefiting from my work instead of me being the one who gains the most knowledge.  They were so appreciative of my help and continually told me how much it made their jobs easier.  Pharmacies here are a lot different than pharmacies in the states.  Most of the pills are handed out in wrapped pieces of paper with the name of the medicine handwritten on it.  We fold up pills in scrap paper and that's usually the way the patients have to handle them.  If there are more than 10 pills, they will put them in a little baggie, but that's rare.  It's a lot different since we get our medication with descriptive instructions, a full list of possible side effects, and detailed ingredients.  They only get a piece of paper and a few words to tell them what to do.  VERY DIFFERENT.
Tonight we are headed to an "American" fast food restaurant and we are all excited for the possibility of eating something other than rice!  We have high hopes for this place so it better not disappoint us! Other than that we have been dodging the rain and preparing for the blood drive tomorrow.  We have been asked to hand out water and sodas to donors so it should be a long day in the heat.  After, we'll get to celebrate and cool off with Ana's cooking for her daughter Fatou's 9th grade graduation.  I am looking forward to games, dancing, and great food for Saturday and a relaxing day on a sandy beach on Sunday! Wishing everyone a weekend as great as mine!