Thursday 15 December 2011

Taxi STOP



Becoming acquainted with the public transport system of any new city is always a bit of an adventure, and I am pleased to say that it is one that I am very much enjoying here! Each day I leave my flat for my language lessons with a degree of uncertainty, but to a greater degree, curiosity, as to what this next taxi ride will hold. Unmistakeable in bright yellow, the taxis which are obviously a remnant of French colonisation, whizz, swerve, bump, or rattle along their set route linking various points around the city to the Grand Market at the centre of town. A taxi is obtained by standing along the route and casually pointing a finger out at nothing in particular. This discrete action, that requires minimal effort and thus conserving much needed energy to sweat in the heat, is rarely missed by the closest taxi man, who peers expectantly through his cracked window screen for his next customer. Having identified the inconspicuous finger, the taxi man darts across the road, nearby cyclists, motorbikes, pedestrians, dogs retreating hastily from his path, usually just in time. Now the fun begins… how many can you squeeze into one small taxi??!  Unlike England, a taxi is not for one person or group alone, oh no. A taxi is for as many people as you can possibly squeeze in, and then, when the door can’t shut behind you, a twist, shuffle and final shove later, the door clicks shut and off we go. Ten people has been my maximum: 3 adults and 1 child in the front, 4 adults and 2 children in the back. It was a cosy experience and to be fair, many of the taxi men make the effort to ensure their customers are as comfortable as possible by providing a pillow on the handbrake, on which the middle person in the front is expected to sit on, thus allowing 2 front seat passengers.

Conversation in the taxi can range from a muttered greeting alone, to full on debates, laughter and even singing! And this is one of the many reasons why I like the taxis- you never know who your fellow travellers are going to be and quite how they will respond to seeing a ‘Nasara’ (white person) in their taxi rather than the usual 4x4s. And if conversation is limited, there is always the internal décor to peruse- patchwork upholstery, a lack of working dials in the dash board, door handles replaced with twisted wire are common place, and even on occasions, the lack of a floor!! Yet somehow, these decrepit vehicles keep going, even the complete absence of an ignition didn’t stop one taxi, but meant that every time we stopped the driver rummaged around under the steering wheel, before we lurched forward and continued on our way. Come to think of it, that was also the same taxi that made an awful grinding noise every time the driver changed gears and as we rounded a roundabout the back door flew wide open, narrowly missing a nearby motorcyclist. Thankfully on this occasion there were only 3 of us in the back so the lady sitting next to the door did not go flying out with it!

Once you’ve reached your location, you simply give the order, “Taxi STOP”, pay your 20p, uncurl yourself from pile of bodies and go on your way. Easy, entertaining and never the same experience twice… I wonder what adventures my taxi rides tomorrow will bring?

Saturday 19 November 2011

Poor Monsieur Pastèque!


Monsieur Pastèque has to be the most tolerant patient I have ever come across! He laid quietly on his bed while 11 nervous nurses each gave him a intramuscular injection, without uttering a word of complaint! 
Excellent, if a little bruised, patient!
Monsieur Pasteque

This week, saw the 11 nurses who achieved the top marks in the pre interview test, be whittled down further to 5 who will be joining the team at Hopital de Guinebor II over the coming months.  In preparation for this day of interviews, I was charged with drawing 11 bottoms, which seemed to get increasingly round and peachy! Upon these works of art, the interviewees indicated their chosen site for the intended IM injection, because, as obliging as Monsieur Pastèque was, he really didn’t look all that realistic.

I worked with Dr Andrea in the practical assessment and was overall impressed with the nurses and their abilities to address the watermelon, err, I mean Monsieur Pastèque, with some kind of realism and compassion!!

Other than watching the tense nurses every move, my other responsibility was to pour the water for the nurses from a plastic kettle when they wanted to wash their hands, Chad’s ingenious answer to the scarce availability of running water. This was not the only cultural difference I noted today; They get Coke and doughnuts here half way through the interview day!! I don’t remember the NHS ever doing that!!!

So, several doughnuts, one drugged up watermelon and several hours later, five nurses were selected and I look forward to working with them soon(ish).


Tuesday 18 October 2011

The Comedy and Confusion of Language Learning


Learning another language is confusing enough, but to do so in another culture, along with students who are learning from an Arabic speaking background, takes the confusion to a whole new level! With excited shouts of word- for- word repetition, or challenging and correcting fellow students (correctly or otherwise) at the tops of their voices, there is no doubt that my fellow class mates are eager to learn. This cacophony of noise was enough to bring a smile to my face within minutes of my first lesson, but having acclimatised I’ve found myself joining in!

Further bemusement and entertained is provided by the teacher, a gentleman with an impressive moustache who will regularly leave the classroom either to spit in the court yard or to greet people who happen to be walking by, who, judging by the enthusiastic welcome, it can only be presumed are long lost friends. 

Meanwhile, mobile phones are being answered and various phones are plugged into and unplugged from the much coveted single electrical output in the room in order that as many people as possible are able to take advantage of the rare source of power.

These classes seem to be as much a lesson in culture as it is in language. For example, when trying to describe to the class what the word ‘revelation’ means (easy from an English background, less so from an Arabic one), rather than use the example within the text we were reading about discovering a scandalous top secret job offer, our teacher began to describe that a revelation is what Mohammed received which led to the Qur’an. Cue a mass class debate on who God is and who has received true revelation! Where some of basic literacy skills are lacking, there is no doubting that my class mates are streets ahead in speaking French, and I am frequently left feeling slightly confused, but also very amused!

Friday 30 September 2011

Things I have learnt in my first 2 weeks in Chad

1)  How to balance five 23kg suitcases onto one trolley which has such poor steering it could give a Tesco shopping trolley a run for its money, and then negotiate a busy, overcrowded and chaotic arrivals lounge in N’Djamena.
View outside the hospital





2) Chad has plants! Yes, I’ve arrived in the rainy season which means it’s not so dusty, bleak and barren as I’d feared. At least, not for now anyway. This does mean however that it is very humid, which leads me onto my next lesson…

My first Chadian Baby!
3) SWEAT!!! Oh my goodness I don’t think I’ve ever sweated this much. Not nice, but true! A constant sheen covers my body which either changes to rivers, or momentarily disappears for the first minute of getting out of the shower. This ever present reality has also been a fast lesson in the art of how to sit with 4 people in the back of a car in the sweltering heat and how to position yourself so as to avoid exchanging sweat and to aid air circulation- the answer? Get over it!

4) Hopital de Guinebor II is doing amazing work in such difficult conditions. I knew this before coming but being here and actually seeing it is so exciting. If a little daunting.

5) How to kill a chicken! Yes, I did it! One of my life’s aims completed. It was awful. Even resisting the temptation to name them didn’t help that much and the guilt took away the enjoyment of the final dish. Oh well, won’t be doing that again in a hurry.

On the way home from church
6) If the sticky stinky mud of the tracks surrounding the hospital and neighbouring areas is enough to stop a 4x4, my size 4 flip flop will be no problem- grip tight!

Picking legs and wings off Grasshoppers pre toasting
7)  Grasshoppers get everywhere, and I mean everywhere (one of the downfalls of wearing long skirts!!!). However, when they invade, there’s always an opportunity for retribution- a Chadian delicacy!

Sunday 21 August 2011

Part 3: Je ne comprends pas!!!


Of all the activities that the last two and half months held, it was no secret that my 3 week intensive French course at Les Cedres was the one that I was dreading the most. However, fired up from 5 days in Mali and having an opportunity to begin to drudge up some of my basic French phrases, I arrived in Paris surprisingly upbeat and positive. Oh, what a mistake!! This just meant that the inevitable fall and realisation just how bad my French actually was, was just that bit more crushing and painful!! For those of you that know me well, also know that I don’t mind a little exaggeration and drama every so often, but in all seriousness, the first few days at Les Cedres were awful! Because the only permissible language in Les Cedres is French, whether that be in the class, or over meal times, I was somewhat stuck for words- for once I was quiet. This couldn’t last long however, and after just 2 days and a little pep talk to myself, I took a deep breath and went for it: yes the conjugations were to pot, the phrases inelegant and when necessary the odd English word with a fake French accent was used (which I actually got away with on occasions!), but somehow I managed to communicate enough to make it bearable and enjoyed my time in Paris with some fun people.

Celebrating Bastille Day
Front seat at the Tour de France










Sight seeing with course mates


My 3 weeks finished with an exam which predictably was not the biggest barrel of laughs, but, oh how much more did I enjoy my holiday after that?!!? I’ve had a lovely couple of weeks with various friends who joined me in Paris and a week with my parents in the south of France; a preferable way to absorb a language I feel.


Four weeks today and my language learning is going to be at a whole new level, where once in Chad I’ll have no choice; its French or Arabic or any one of the other 120 tribal languages spoken there, but certainly no English! Hmm, maybe French isn’t so bad after all!!

Monday 15 August 2011

Part 2: Change Makers

The day after I finished at Liverpool I flew to Bamako, Mali to help with a children’s programme during the BMS West Africa Retreat, for which ‘Change Makers’ was the theme. The mornings were spent with Ruth, Rebecca, Raphael, Beatrice and Rosemary and the time flew by with storytelling, crafts, dramas, singing, jewellery making and more. But I am pleased to announce to all those children’s workers reading this- not 1 paper plate was used!

One afternoon, the usual routine of swimming and chatting was supplemented by a boat trip along the River Niger. This was only a little delayed while the substantial puddle in the bottom of the boat was bailed out (!!!), but once we got going I enjoyed the glimpse into more of Malian life.    

Spending time with the Hotchkin family, who will be my future colleagues (and neighbours and family and friends), was invaluable to me for getting to know them better and hearing more of life in Chad. It was great to be back on African soil and I left Mali with an even greater peace, anticipation and eagerness to get to Chad- I was even excited about starting my French course 3 days later in Paris!




Sunday 24 July 2011

Part 1: Snails, Snakes and Scousers


In all the busyness of the last few weeks, I’ve not been very good at keeping my Blog up to date, sorry about that. I’m currently in the middle of my language training so don’t have time to write a long account (you’ll be pleased to hear!) but thought I could break down my next few entries into parts. So here it goes- Part One: Snails, Snakes and Scousers!

Snails
Looking very knowledgeable, I know!
For much of July I was in Liverpool attending a course in Tropical Nursing, which, should I pass (exam successfully completed, assignment still being worked on), will give me a Diploma. The course was fantastic and I spent much of the time squirming in anticipation of Chad: Squirming with an excitement to get there and start nursing again and squirming at just some of the horrid, unpleasant and just plain wrong diseases/ conditions/ parasites I can expect to encounter, hopefully not too many of them personally! Hence, ‘Snails’ who are hosts for parasites causing schistosomiasis/ bilharzia.

Snakes
Extracting the venom
One of the most memorable days was spent with Dr Rob Harrison, otherwise known as ‘The Snake Man’, who is involved in researching and creating more effective anti-venoms. He introduced us to 3 rooms full of snakes and then demonstrated how they extract the venom. He reassured me that plenty of the snakes in the rooms I will find in Chad, I just laughed that comment off but was slightly disturbed when he went on to ask me which anti venom I was planning on taking with me???!!??! Err…

Catching the "Merry cross the Fersey" with Lisa and Anya
Scousers
Ok, so there were not any Scousers on the course, but I did enjoy spending time translating scouse for some of my American or Scandinavian course mates! Between all the of studying I managed to see some of the sights of Liverpool which I thoroughly enjoyed and met some great people who are similarly nursing, or planning to nurse overseas, and with whom I enjoyed comparing notes, swapping contact details and generally seeing who has the most hard core job! 

Thursday 9 June 2011

The Calm Before The Storm…


Being Commissioned at the Assembly

While I refer to it as the “calm”, the past few weeks since finishing at IMC have been action packed, starting off in sunny Blackpool with the official BMS ‘Commissioning’ ceremony. This is basically when people say “Ok, you’ve been trained up, now get on with it, get overseas and lets see what’s going to happen”- a very exciting, poignant, if a little terrifying moment!

Following Blackpool I’ve been ferrying between the South to see family, catch up with supporters, and the North to see friends both in Leeds and away in various pretty locations where I have been making the most of the beautiful green, lush, English country side!
A weekend in Ingelton

But all this busy ‘resting’ is about to come to an end. In a bid to keep people up dated on my movements, my itinerary for the next 4 months is listed below:

13th June- 1st July. Liverpool to complete a Diploma in Tropical Nursing (this is very exciting although while completing my Pre Course Workbook and reading up on parasites this week I frequently found myself doing so through half closed eyes while squealing and wringing my hands!!)

2nd- 6th July. Mali. BMS run frequent retreats for their overseas workers to offer them a time of rest and refreshment. I am joining the West Africa Retreat to have fun with the children while the adults have various sessions (I think I have the good end of the deal!).

6th-9th July. Massey, Paris. I have a couple of days to get into the Parisian way of life prior to….

10th- 29th July. Les Cedres Language School, Massey, Paris. Yes, that’s right people, the dreaded language training commences!!!!

29th July- Mid August. Various locations around France. I take a well earned rest and enjoy the delights of France… I mean, I continue my cultural and language training by fully immersing myself into French society.

15th September. I FLY TO CHAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There’s no ignoring it now, the flights are booked.

Tuesday 19 April 2011

Mystery, Emotion and Moving On


HopeLovegood, IvoraKeys, AnneTique
A strange thing happened at IMC last Thursday evening. My usual fellow Mission Trainees and our lecturers vanished, and were temporarily replaced by the suspicious parishioners of Bosthorpe Evangelical Church, who spent the evening in the murky world of (fictitious) crime… who had murdered Don Ritting??!!! The usually very glamorous Charmaine was replaced by the greyed, deaf and suspiciously dark upper lipped Anne Tique who was commonly spotted napping throughout proceedings, the normally creative Sarah disappeared behind a peach nylon explosion, complete with a hearing trumpet and thick Jamaican accent- “Whad dat did you say?” And our learned lecturer Nicky was finally able to relax and happily sit in oblivion to what was going on around her as Al Zeihmers, and reminisce to her hearts content about the Good Old Days on the Mission Field! While I suddenly became obsessed with celebrities, shopping and became weighed down by an unusual amount of bling. Yes, a Murder Mystery was our chosen final activity at IMC to celebrate our 8 months and take a last opportunity to dress up and laugh at each other.


Ben Da Truth                Al Zeihmers              Rev Al Ation I             Alta Cleff
          Rev Al Ation II                                               Dan Widdit




The Arrest of Stew Ard by Detective Stan De Sing




From hilarity and ridiculousness, to a significant and emotional Commissioning Service on the Friday morning, a time when, following our training, we were ‘Sent Out’ to go and get on with it. Amongst the words of encouragement, affirmation, thanks and shared fond memories, there was a deep sense of solidarity and significance amongst us. However, tears and the regular chorus of nose blowing prevented the event from becoming overly dignified and stuffy- that’s not IMC’s style!

And so now, it is time to sort, throw, store, pack up my bags and move on to the next step. IMC, Step One. Done.



Thursday 7 April 2011

Lists of Lists!


Being flexible and ready for anything are some of those qualities that are useful when working overseas and with this knowledge I try to remain open minded about what could happen. However I was still caught off guard when my team leader phoned me last week to announce that a different language school has been found for me to study at… in Chad. This means that following 3 weeks summer school in Paris for intensive language training, I will not be staying on for another term as originally planned, but instead will be going to Chad earlier than expected. Mid-September is now my due date for departure! Suddenly the stark reality of my lack of language has struck, as has the enormity of all that is required to organise- the need for writing lists has taken over!!

I feel really excited at the prospect of going to Chad sooner than planned and this presents me with the opportunity to get stuck into the culture and begin to make friends before getting too involved in hospital life. But as for here and now, there’s plenty for me to do…

Monday 14 March 2011

A Terribly English Affair And A Dream Come True!


Last Tuesday IMC was the location for a celebration of all things English in honour of the impending departure of our American friends. For the last 6 weeks a group of American drama students have been studying Shakespeare and the sound of old English verse, or the cries of battle have been frequently heard in the corridors and rooms of IMC.

But yesterday, this was interrupted with a fine English Cream Tea served during coffee break. The somewhat passionate arguments of Clotted Cream before Jam on your scone, or vice versa, ensured there was no danger of the event becoming too genteel. 

Following a freshly mowed lawn, during which I achieved one of my life long goals; to drive a Sit- On mower (!!!!!!), the afternoon saw a friendly game of cricket, enjoyed under the beautiful spring time sun! I even bowled someone out on my first throw! A proud moment, unfortunately, this truly was beginners luck and the quality of my cricketing after this was somewhat lacking! But overall, a thoroughly enjoyable day.

Monday 7 March 2011

Nurse North the Teacher!?!


Demonstrating an abdominal examination
Last Friday was my nurse- teaching début. I subjected my fellow trainees to lectures on how to assess a sick person and how to prevent, identify and treat some common ailments that life overseas may throw at us. From D&V and malaria, to how to remove a jigger worm from your foot, I can confidently say that they are now perfectly equipped to save the day…. Err, maybe…

I was actually surprised at how much I enjoyed preparing the lecture, delivering it and answering their questions. Having always loved the hands on side of nursing and being in on the action, teaching did not really appeal, but I’m reconsidering this! This is a good thing seeing as teaching will be a key part of my future role in Chad! So Friday was good practice, because as much time and effort it took, next time it’ll all have to be done in French…!

Thursday 17 February 2011

Ma francais est ne flowing pas!


I'm sitting at my desk with verbs, vocab and conjugations spread before me, a random french woman is chatting away at me via the radio... I hear words like exhibition, première... I guess she's reporting on the opening of a exhibition...

It would be fair to say that fluency in the French language is still a distant reality. However, its that time of the week again, and so with a deep breath and the hope for a break through, I'm off to my weekly French lesson to see if Monique can bring this distant reality any closer... Bon chance!

Sunday 30 January 2011

Life as a Student at IMC

So, a quick summary of what I've been up to from September last year to now...
IMC, my new home!

The transition from long tiring A&E shifts, a busy social life, a place I'd called home for 10 years, to the life of a student at IMC in Birmingham, where I was being 'Trained Up' in preparation for moving to live and work in Chad, was exciting yet harder than expected. What was going on? Who were all these people? Why was I here? Have I made the right decision? (The answer is 'yes' by the way!)

Thankfully the transition to my new life was helped by the surprising normal- ness of the other students here (!) who are likewise are training to work in various countries and also enjoy any opportunity to dress up and have party! Hence, an early Christmas Party was organised for the gap year students before they left for their 6 months overseas, including a nativity play with a difference starring a gruffalo, an octopus and a lobster...

For me, the highlight of last term, was the 1920's party for mine and 2 other trainees joint 30th Birthdays, as well as an end of term celebration. The band was fantastic and the costumes impressive, as were some of the dance moves!!

But between all the partying there was some serious work to be done! Lectures, such as cross cultural working were immediately put into practice outside the lecture room when trying to communicate with the Action Teamers who spent most of their time behind their phones and laptops.... when did I become so old and grumpy?! Other lectures on 'Saying your Goodbyes Well' left me quaking in my boots; “do I really want to do this?”. Yet in comparison, stories told by the Regional Team Leaders of all that BMS is involved in across the world, raised my expectations and impatience to get on with it!

IMC as a place to call home is not so bad either and even in the everyday we are prepared for overseas life. The sweltering temperature of my bedroom, in comparison to the little ice box that was my home before, has significantly raised my internal thermometer in preparation for the high temperatures of Chad, while the immense cooking from Kat is adding to the reserves in anticipation of the inevitable bouts of D&V that await! The only thing missing is access to a sandpit to practice those sandcastles.....