the bush

so yesterday i decided to go with some co-workers into the bush. this week is national week of health (for the bush) where techs, nurses and volunteers go to places to give vaccines to people that would otherwise not be able to get them. They do this throughout the year for different populations (pregnant women, children, etc) and yesterday we worked with children. we had 3 different teams that worked in different areas. I worked with one of my favorite co-workers Emidillo who is in charge of preventative medicine.

After we dropped the other teams off we set up at a site at a local primary school. We first gave a "lecture" about different health issues and what medicines we would be giving them. we talked a fair amount about safe sex and what can happen when you don't use a condom...pregnancy, hiv/aids, std's, etc. after that i introduced myself in the local language which they loved! it seems my few phrases are paying off! after my introduction we asked if any of the kids had any questions. one little boy asked how old i was and i told him to guess...he guessed 40! i'm closer to 10 than i am to 40! most times here people guess i'm older because of my height. when i told them i was only 24 they didn't believe it and they all laughed! Emidillo then used me as an example saying that i am a 24 year old woman who has a university degree and no children. He said that you can make the choice and maybe someday have the chance go and travel and learn. It was nice to hear the same message i've been saying from a Mozambican.

After the primary school we went to many of the other villages in the area to check on the different health centers and posts. It turns out that one of my co-workers was transfered to one of the one's we visited. It was really nice to see him again and it was nice to see how excited he was to show me around the new health center. It was really cool to visit all of these places that i talk about everyday but had no real idea where they were and how far away. I pretty much went around my entire district yesterday which was really cool to see. I had a great time with my co-workers and cannot wait to go out to the "mato" again!
love,
ann