Sunday, January 3, 2010

A Kalene Christmas


Christmas! Some special home baking (how I spent my Christmas day afternoon), and some of the staff enjoying a meal at the staff Christmas party. It was a very different Christmas in rural Africa!


Christmas Day! Presents for all the patients.


My gardner Rihan and his family outside their house in the village, and one of my ward staff Orpheus and his wife with their first child. Very proud parents!


Anne Revell arrived early December from Auckland (same church - St Georges Epsom) for a 2 month stay.


Some of the kids in the village and Anne trying to look natural with a pounding stick.


Anne brought a wheelchair with her from New Zealand to give to this old lady who suffered from a stroke but was confined to her bed in her dark room. This Sunday morning we took her to church. She fell asleep during the service!


A bike ride out to the Zambezi river


Tuberculosis. Three different cases on my ward within a few weeks, all with very impressive xrays.


Anna and some of the kids on her ward.


Fredrick, who featured on my previous blog, a few weeks after his injury, happy and healing well!


Haircut day! I've never (successfully) cut a woman's hair before, but enjoyed having a go at Anna's, and I must say was quite pleased with the outcome!

Friday, November 27, 2009

A long overdue post!


Kema, a gorgeous boy who's had some orthopedic surgery to his foot and hand. He told us he wanted to marry a white girl until we told him she'd make him do the dishes!


This lovely old man made a remarkable recovery and went home walking, after arriving with almost continuous seizures from a stroke.


Abel. See his back xray, two of the vertebrae have collapsed on each other. We suspect spinal TB.


Some impressive lymphadenopathy


A brave wee boy who got his arm stuck between some branches while playing. He's doing well.


The gratitude of the patients makes it all worth it. This letter came from a man we treated from Congo, hand delivered in a "par avion" envelope.

Hillwood Orphanage

We stopped to visit the kids at a nearby orphanage during a weekend off.


They love visitors!


Anna with some local kids.



Mamisa and Berlin, girls from the youth group, braiding my hair.


Cuties on childrens ward.


The popular bathing spot on childrens ward.


Mango season is upon us! And we just can't keep up...

Creepers, crawlers, and other creatures


Flying ants, a good source of protein! I arrived to work one day to find my night staff with a bag of them that he'd collected during his shift (seeing as they are attracted to the light in the ward office). This wee boy was diligently skewering them ready to roast.


Beetle - just a small one!


Turtles at the orphanage


Blue headed lizards


Ah yikes! SO pleased to find this one DEAD outside my bedroom. What a whopper! I've thankfully not seen one alive yet...



Snake skin


Army ants with their in-charges.


Baby lizard... these little fullas are everywhere, very cute!


Always finding interesting looking insects.


Chameleons - beautiful gangly creatures - the locals are terrified of them! Can't understand why...

They change colour quickly to camouflage to their environment...

These 3 pics are all of the same chameleon! Wow, check out that chin when it feels threatened!!