Here I am trying to balance 10 liters of water on my head- the grandmama that is carrying this lives on the other side of the mountain and does this everyday for her family to have water.

Picture from my front door at Morogoro Hotel- beautiful

Our driver took us up into the mountains and parked when the road narowed to the point we could not continue. He met a lady who took us on up the mountain so we could see where the river comes down and to the water treatment plant where her husband works. Along the way, we met another 'grandmama' carrying 10 liters of water on her head. She lives on the other side of the mountain and walks every day down the mountain to get water and then carries it back up to her family. Perthena and I both tried to balance the water on our heads and could not even stand up straight let alone walk! Both ladies were very friendly and the view from the mountain was spectular!

Tanzania: Here We Come!

Ok, I am now off to explore a new country and one I have been anxious to visit. I am a part of a 3 woman team presenting a pre-service workshop to university professors teaching Clinical laboratory Science curriculum at the university level. We will be sharing ways to use diverse teaching methodologies with our Tanzanian colleagues and professors. As fate would have it, my flight from the US to Amsterdam has been cancelled and I am waiting to board a later flight to meet my colleagues in Dar es Salam.

Next Trip- Back to My Adopted Country of Kenya

Ok- remember I was adopted by the Kikuya Tribe and my Kenyan name is Wambui! Well, Wambui returns to her adopted homeland! I am back in Nairobi and this time asking about local happenings and news events and specific friends. The warm night air and the drive from Kenyetta Airport are relaxing as I look ahead to new sights and activities. We are in Nairobi for only one week and are scheduled to visit 18 Health Clinic Laboratories! Glad I packed my running shoes.
More to come!

Back to Nairobi and Nakuru, Kenya

After our trip to Georgetown, Guyana, There was yet more revision of the BLOT training materials!!! Again, thanks to our U.S. workgroup for all the teamwork and hours spent revamping the modules to reach perfection!

I keep flying into Nairobi, spending one night, then leaving for other cities in Kenya. This time, we spent a whole week in Nairobi, visiting many laboratories and observing their labs and resources. After working, we had time to see the sights in Nairobi! We had a wonderful driver by the name of Kenneth, and he saw to it that we visited everything important in and around Nairobi.
First, we went to the animal Orphanage and saw wonderful baby elephants- these were animals that had been caught in man made drainage ditches, etc..they were delightful to watch and very people-oriented. After the baby elephants, came a 1-month old baby rhino!!! He is definitely the cutest baby ever. He was this miniture rhino in perfect shape and acted like a two year old human child. He would take off running, stop dead in his tracks, turn around and take off running again!!! You may wonder how I know his age - the rangers said they were watching his mother who was about due to deliver and happened to see her one day and the day they spotted her again- not pregnant but also without a baby. Seems she delivered early and in the animal world premature babies don't usually make it and the mothers generally abandon their newborns. Lucky for this fellow- the rangers tracked him down and rescued him.
Next stop was another 'home' for injured animals- this time for larger animals- like giraffes! We were allowed to feed the giraffes- their own favorite food and take pictures with them eating from our hands! What fun! There was also a stray wart hog that decided protection and personal feeding was enough to entice him to move into the range with the giraffes!!
More later- time to board for my flight to London!

Trip to Georgetown, Guyana

This trip was quite an adventure and only the second time I have visited South America! The first time was in 1977 on our honeymoon! No rose-colored glasses this time around!

With colleagues I revised the Basic Laboratory Operations Training (BLOT) to better meet the needs of resouce limited countries working towards improving the accuracy of medical laboratory testing. The Medical Laboratory Scientists working in the hospital labs in Georgetown are just amazing! In addition to their professionalism, their love of their career, they all work together as the perfect laboratory team, and thoroughly enjoy their work.
As timing would have it, we gave the workshop the same week as Laboratory Professionals International Celebration Week. And, believe me, the technologists in Georgetown celebrate big-time! There were activities sponsored by their national Medical Technology Association every night. Unknown to Connie (my colleague) and myself- WE were the speakers for two of the evening! Imagine our surprise at being asked to prepare a presentation with only a few hours notice!! But we did and there was a large group of medical technologists who showed up to hear us talk about our profession from a U.S. prespective!!!
Again, more to come in a day or so.

Off to Nakuru, Kenya to present workshop on harmonizing HIV/AIDS testing protocol and treatment

Hobari,
I am way behind in keeping my blog up to date. I will log my trips and experiences in chronological order and then go back and add details and pictures. Trip to Nakuru occurred in February 2009 and was extraordinary with respect to workshop participation and outcomes as well as touring Lake Nakuru and seeing the monkeys and flamingos and storks!
More to come!