Updates and such

Again I find myself with so much to write, and no idea where to begin. A few recent updates seem especially relevant:

> I moved out of my apartment this weekend and in with Jean, the executive director, and her husband temporarily. I must admit, the lack of transport combined with rudimentary furnishings made living alone incredibly lonely. I feel much more at ease, already, to have the sound of people in the morning and conversation in the evening.

> I have been appointed a new project here at the clinic, which is to teach group therapy techniques to the social welfare department. I really think this rounds out my workload in terms of experience/challenges and interests. Keep plugging away at the SV prevention program and the post-natal clinic. Crossing my fingers that it is ready to open at the beginning of April.

> I received some very wonderful news (inadvertently) that my lovely boyfriend Ari is coming to visit in April! My supervisor is pushing me to take a few weeks off work and travel as apparently in SA the standard minimum amount of yearly time off is 3 weeks. Glorious! Travel plans yet to be determined, but it is just around the time I will have to renew my tourist visa and thus leave the country.

Summer marches on, and I have acquired quite a tan by now thanks for hours and hours by the pool. I am including that note just for all you on the East Coast who are suffering through snow and chill ... you are always welcome in South Africa!

Above is a picture from my Lion Park experience. 

Kruger Park, here I come ...

The pediatric waiting queue:

(Just to give you an idea)

I'm going to a Lion Park ...

I am officially at 3.5 weeks in South Africa, and my-oh-my has it been an interesting journey thus far!

My projects have taken off at work, and I am usually found running around from about 7:30am until I collapse on the couch in the evening.  Then, somehow, I rouse myself to keep up (or begin?) a social life and out the door I go again. I have begun a regualar practice of salsa dancing on Wednesday nights which seems a bit ludacrious considering I am in Sub-Saharian Africa, but then again, why not?

I have met many many many wonderful people over the past several weeks and continue to be amazed and perplexed by the South African way of immediately welcoming people. I am able to re-connect with my friendly California roots, after a year and a half chill, and am quite enjoying it. I have also joined a small group through the Anglican Church on Tuesdays, a yoga class on Thursdays and a regular practice of long runs on the weekends. Some things stay the same no matter the country.

Today I went with the social workers to Diepsloot, to a township (read: shacks with no running water or electricity) just a few kilometers from the affluent suburb the clinic is located in. Despite all the preparation I received, the disparity was shocking, and reminiscent of my days in Huanuco, Peru. In one shack we found a woman lying on the ground, naked, wrapped in a blanket. She has advanced AIDS and had been discharged from the hospital several times over the past month without proper treatment. She was unable to walk and severely emaciated, so we brought her back to the clinic immediately. Scenes such as these are the ones that stay, begrudgingly, for a long time.

My tasks at hand are, in order of priority: to set up a post-natal clinic, to train the staff on sexual abuse response and to bring sex education/sexual abuse prevention to the neighboring schools. But for now I am interviewing staff and pregnant women to gather info for the post-natal clinic. 

On a lighter note: a fellow BC GSSW intern is coming out this weekend to stay at my place! It will be nice to hear an American accent again, and discuss all things culture-shock. Her supervisor is taking us to the "lion park" on Sunday and while I am not entirely sure where or what this is, I assume it will feel very African. 

And per the very-British-custom, I am due for a cup of "normal" (black) tea before meeting with my supervisor.

Cheers for now!