Strong US Immune System DOES NOT Equal Strong Ecuadorian Immune System

So the last blog there are BEAUTIFUL pictures of Otavalo...unfortunately cold weather and susceptibility to Ecuadorian viruses came with the majestic mountains.  This week, Stella and I have felt (and still feel) horrible.  It has made it very difficult to concentrate at the clinic and difficult to sleep at night.  The sweet doctor that we are renting from did bring us some cough drops and loratidine though.  She made me feel like I was at home for a little while :) 


So far at the clinic this week it has mostly been "gripe" (pronounced gr-ee-pay not gr-eye-p).  Since it's winter season here, it is also cold and flu season.  Today, as soon as we walked in the clinic, we were told to get masks because there were two sisters that possibly had H1N1 flu.  We also saw a couple of kids with a heart murmur.  The last couple days have also been filled with a few more interesting things, like observing a vaginal exam, suspected tuberculosis patient, and a baby with a horrible bacterial skin and soft tissue infection around his neck.  Dr. Carrion is still a joy to work with; even though I don't understand everything, I still learn something interesting from him each day.

Yesterday we began a new adventure...washing all of our clothes by hand!  I know this sounds super exciting, but let me tell you from first hand experience...it is NOT!  It took 2 1/2 hours to wash and rinse about 1/2 of my clothes.  Lesson learned: wash clothes several times throughout the week, not a full weeks worth of clothes in 2 days time.  Another lesson learned: be very careful not to drop the clothes while trying to hang them, you just have to wash them all over again.  We also had a "technology scare".  The light for the screen on my iPhone just decided not to work (according to my husband's research, this is called the "black screen of death").  Fortunately, today it started to work again!!  I'm so glad Stella can actually see her family now :).  And just FYI...Ecuador's spaghetti sauce in a jar is not as good as Prego or Ragu. 

Otavalo...A Little Piece of Heaven

This past weekend, Stella and I took our first mini vacation to Otavalo, Ecuador.   We stayed in a hostal called Rose Cottage, which I highly recommend!!  The food wasn't the best that we've had, but the view was worth the trade off in freezing rooms and bad food.  We left Santo Domingo on Friday for Quito, where we stayed at the same hostel that we stayed at our first night in South America.  Megan recommended that we go to La Ronda while we were in Quito for supper, and I am so glad that she did.  This was the first location in Ecuador that we felt safe staying out after dark.  We ate at a wonderful restaurant called La Primera Casa and then walked up and down La Ronda, stopping in the different shops.  And did I mention there were tons of places to get dessert...You better believe these "chicas dulces" (as they call us at the clinic) had some delicious Ecuadorian desserts!  We also had a fantastic taxi driver that took us to La Ronda and offered to pick us up when we were ready to go back to the hostal in Quito.  Not only did he take us to and fro, but he acted as a tour guide as we passed by buildings and different regions of Quito.  On the way back, he even went out of the way to stop at the Basilica (a beautiful cathedral) and took a picture for us. 

Saturday we took a bus to Otavalo and went to Rose Cottage.  When we hiked up the driveway, we were absolutely speechless at how beautiful the view was.  We were completely surrounded by the Andes.  It was so majestic, one of the most beautiful pieces of art God painted.  After we finally got over the shock of beauty and checked in to Rose Cottage, we went to the market in Plaza de los Ponchos.  We were there for several hours, and still did not see all of it.  Everything was so, so, so beautiful and cheap!  We felt guilty bartering with some of the people because we knew how much time and effort was put in to each piece, but it was definitely customary to haggle.  Sunday morning, we decided to take it easy and just hang out in the hammocks that were all around the grounds at Rose Cottage.  We talked with out families on Skype and did some much needed leisurely reading before we headed back to Santo Domingo.

Possibly the best part of this vacation was the 5-6 hour bus ride from Otavalo to Santo Domingo.  Because the bus was full, we got to sit right beside the bus driver on a huge padded area that covered the motor.  Not only did this allow us to spread our things out without the worry of someone stealing it, but we were able to take phenomenal pictures of the mountains.  I literally ran down both batteries for my camera in one weekend (one of which was used completely on the bus ride).  Unfortunately, I cannot explain in words how amazing the scenery is on the road from Otavalo to Santo Domingo (which includes Quito), and the pictures will never come close to showing the Andes incredible beauty.  I hope you enjoy these couple of photos of the view at Rose Cottage.  There will be more pictures to follow at some point...I have several to sift through ;) !

The Last Few Days of Week 1 at the Clinic

Sorry this post is a couple of days late, but we have been very busy bees.

Thursday was our first day to take the bus by ourselves.  We were pretty confident that we wouldn’t have any trouble because we had already taken the bus 3 other times that week and we were very familiar with the route to the clinic.  So we get on bus number 13 and things start off great, until we make a U-turn that we have never made before.  Needless to say, our hearts started racing and our senses were enhanced because we had no idea where we were.  After a few minutes of panic, we asked another passenger and found out that there are two routes to the clinic.  It was definitely a stimulating trip, but we made it safely to the clinic, even if we were a little frightened.  On our way back home from the bus, we went to the market with Chloe to get a few things for supper.  We were going to cook some vegetables (which is what we have most nights since meet is so expensive here) but instead we stopped at la Casa del Pastel and bought several different types of pastries/breads.  Supper was very rich in carbs, but very delicious.  It is very interesting to me how many bakeries and pharmacies are located on every street.  I know my mother would love all of the bakeries!! 

The bus ride on Friday was much better since we knew both routes, but we did have to figure out how to get a taxi to go back to the apartment since we only worked half a day.  We left for Quito as soon as we had lunch and were packed.  (There is much, much more to come on our trip to Quito and Otavolo!)

Thursday was baby day at the clinic.  We saw two different pregnant ladies and one that had just had a baby.  I got to listen to a baby’s heart beat!!  It was so amazing.  There was also a poor little boy that had broken his arm that was carried into the clinic (screaming of course) by one of his teachers.  Unfortunately the saddest part of this story is that his parents abandoned him and his sister; the boy was only four years old.  In the afternoon we went on home visits with Mercedes.  We talked with patients that had a type of disease that caused involuntary movements of their limbs and were mentally altered.  It was a very sad situation to see.  Their mother has been taking care of them for 30+ years, mostly on her own.  When asked if she had any questions, she only asked for more help.  It was a very humbling experience. 

Friday Stella and I became very grateful that we had received vaccination for Typhoid.  Originally we were told that it wasn’t prominent in the area we are staying in, but Friday, there were two cases of Salmonella typhi in the clinic.  We also were puzzled (and still are) with a diabetic patient who’s glucose levels fluctuate from the 60s to 400+.  I also counseled my first patient in Spanish on Friday.  Stella had to help me out a couple times, but otherwise, I think it went pretty good.  I know I say this in every blog, but every day I am understanding a little more than the day before.

Dr. Carrion, our preceptor, is an absolute genius!  He knows a lot of information about a lot of different things.  I love listening to him talk.  It seems like he has had some type of experience with anything that involves a person’s health.  Not only does he know the presentation, pathology, and diagnosis of what seems like every disease state, but he knows the pharmacology better than any doctor I have personally worked alongside of.  Whether it is an emergency situation or normal checkup, he has “been there, done that” and is very eager to teach others about it.

Poquito a Poquito

Little by little things are getting better here in Ecuador. 

Yesterday we were able to get a much better feel for the flow of the clinic.  Before we see each patient, Dr. Carrion discusses their history with us and then we go and see the patient and talk with them about their current condition(s).  After we have conversed with the patient, we meet again with Dr. Carrion and he asks us what we think about the patient and gives us his thought process about what is going on with them.  This is a very effective way for me to learn as a healthcare professional, however it would be much better if I could understand the language ;)  I think my Dad put it best, I am still trying to "listen in English".  I know this is a hard concept to understand unless you have tried to learn another language, but it is much more difficult to listen and comprehend to what other people are saying than it is to speak or read the language, especially when they talk very fast.  I am thoroughly enjoying this process and I am doing my best to follow the conversations closely so that I can have some input in the patients' care.

Last night Maggie and Megan had a get together with the people that work at the clinic.  We got to eat a homemade Ecuadorian meal and experience their welcoming hearts on a different level than at work.   Megan did some singing and we did a little bit of dancing.  We really had a great time.  Today we helped Maggie with a party that she had for the children that have been coming to the clinic for different types of after school activities.  Since the children have been reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, they got to watch the movie today and have candy, popcorn and lemonade.  Although it was difficult to figure out what the sweet children were saying to me, I knew they were having a good time and wanted me to trace more Willy Wonka coloring sheets.  "Debujame," they would say as I traced a coloring sheet for a different child.  (It only took me 3 different kids to figure out what they wanted me to do.)

As for the city of Santo Domingo, Stella and I are becoming much more comfortable with the city and streets each day.  We have gone to a fresh market several days, if not every day, of this week.  I really enjoy going with her because she has a lot of experience with this type of environment since she has traveled to several different countries.  It is a joy to watch her interact with the people of Santo Domingo.  Tomorrow we get to take the bus by ourselves...just the two of us plus the medical student from France, Chloe, that has been here the same amount of time that we have.  Although a little nervous, we are very ready for this big adventure.

The First Days in Santo Domingo

The first two days in Santo Domingo have been very busy and overwhelming for me.  The ride from Quito to Santo Domingo was extremely crowded and curvy.  Our cab driver unfortunately wasn't aware that we would have luggage.  After 3 hours or so, we arrived at our apartment in Santo Domingo where we met one of our neighbors, Megan.  She was very helpful in making us feel welcome and taking us to the "Shopping", a giant supermarket in a mall and the farm fresh market on the first day.  Although I was very thankful, I was also very overwhelmed.  It had been a very nauseating car ride and long trip to the grocery, so needless to say I was very glad when we had a chance to rest.

After a decent nights sleep, we met Megan and Maggie (the Peace Corp volunteer, also our neighbor), and they showed us how to get from our apartment to the Clinic via bus.  The busses in Ecuador are quite an experience, but much cheaper than a taxi.  Upon arriving at the clinic, the secretary gave us a tour of the clinic and introduced us to all of the people that work there.  The clinic is very interesting.  There are 2 doctors (but one is not there for very long), 2 nurses, one dentist and someone in the pharmacy.  We also met a medical student from France who will be with us for a week at the clinic.  From what I can tell, everyone seems to operate like family.  After the tour, we went on some home visits with one of the nurses and visited 3-4 patients.  We also met with a patient that had uncontrolled diabetes and was very upset when Dr. Carrion told her that she needed to go to the hospital.  We should find out more tomorrow about what we will be doing on the rotation. 

The temperature today was fabulous.  It is very cloudy and misty in the mornings and then in the afternoon when the sun comes out from behind the clouds, it was a little warm, but not near as hot as I expected. 

I knew that it was going to be difficult t adjust to being here, however I was hoping I would have a more positive attitude.  The most difficult thing for me to adjust to is the language.  I unfortunately have realized that I do not know near enough Spanish to be here.  While we were doing home visits this morning, I was astonished at how people in horrible situation were still putting a smile on their faces and enjoying life, while I was having a pity party about not being able to understand anything that was going on.  I know that I can change my situation, and these poor people cannot do much about theirs, yet they are more content and positive than I.  I am going to do my best to take my husband's advice and change my attitude about being deficient in Spanish, and use this rotation just as it is, a learning experience. 

¡Estamos Aqui!

Stella and I have arrived at our hostel in Quito.  Since it was late when we arrived at the airport, we didn't get to see a lot on our way in...but what we could see was absolutely beautiful!  It has been more than twenty years since my very first and last plane ride, so I was relieved to have enjoyed the two flights to Ecuador.  Although we ran into a little bit of rough weather, there wasn't much turbulence and the pilots did a fantastic job landing.  I can't wait to return to Quito when it is daylight outside so we can see the beauty of the city.  Our cab driver, Polibio, told us that August is a great time to visit Quito because they have an art festival.  Day 1 has come and gone...only 42 to go, and so much to do!

"I'm leaving on a jet plane..."

Well, the day is finally here!  I am very excited about what the next six weeks are going to entail. I pray that God watches over us and allows us to be humbled and rocked like never before!  I'm going to miss my family and friends in the states dearly, but I will see them again soon. Please keep Stella and I in your prayers. ¡Hasta luego!