Arrived!

Well, after several days of internet connectivity issues and multiple messages to international tech support Chris Anderson, who some of you may recall as Gallo Blanco from last time, we finally have our blog up and running. We can’t guarantee the frequency of being able to post as it seems the internet is less reliable than it has been in the past, but we will do our best!

Arrived in Antigua!

Day 1:  Saturday. We arrived in Guate Saturday night and Suzy’s friend Estela met us at the airport. It is wonderful to have Suzy’s connections here to welcome us and help us navigate around. We were whisked off to Antigua, and after a little moonlight stroll around the city, we were ready for bed.


Day 2:  Sunday.  Upon waking, we had various logistical and leftover work responsibilities to attend to, so finding Wifi to complete chart notes, finding chips and minutes so our phones could function locally, and figuring out the day’s plans were at the top of the list. We enjoyed a nice lunch with Abesaida and Arnoldo, our Huehue host family who were in Antigua for the day, and then our natural born tour guide, Peter, spirited us away on a tour he had arranged for us to climb Volcan Pacaya.  Upon arriving, We were all excited to get some good exercise, but the local boys on horseback who were following us a few paces behind had different plans for us. “Hey, Senora, it gets pretty steep up there” they would say when they saw one of us breaking a sweat. Like hovering over a laboring woman with the promise of an epidural to take away her pain, they were waiting for any sign of weakness. They probably saw many, however either due to being too fit, stubborn, cheap or afraid of horses, depending on which of us you talked to, we persevered and they eventually gave up.

Roasting Bonbones over hot lava rocks

   



We were rewarded for our efforts of the climb by the chance to roast marshmallows over hot lava rocks, and also to ski down the scree on the way down!  

Rewarded with a spectacular view!

Buscando huevos con ultrasonido

Upon return to Antigua, we were able to practice using the portable ultrasound we have on loan from the company our PMG group works with, by scanning one of Estela’s pregnant family members. We then went out for a nice dinner, and off to bed in preparation for the next day’s travels.





Day 3:  .  Monday.   Rony and Josue, two of our favorite drivers from last time, arrived in their Project Concern International (PCI) vehicles to take us up to Huehue. Such nice guys! Always courteous, often funny, super helpful, we spent most of the day with them getting up to our destination of Casa Materna. Starting with these guys, we started to get used to the questions…..where is Loro Verde?  Y el Gallo Blanco? La flaminga negra?  Our team last year apparently made a big impression and are missed by the people here. I expect no less from this year’s team. Upon arrival to Casa Materna, we were greeted warmly if shyly from the women who are currently admitted here awaiting their babies to be born, and some of the staff as well. Bal Maria gave us an orientation to the Casa and to the programs PCI is involved with. We returned to our house to enjoy a lovely meal of delicious Guatemalan tamales (the best!) and enjoyed the company of Abesaida’s daughter Evelin and her family.
Day 4: Tuesday.  Hijo de la gran puchica! What a busy day. Adjusting to the med list, the flow of consults, the equipment, and a long line of people with only Ana and one nurse helping our docs made for a taxing day, but with some interesting learning for the residents.  No one really had a spare minute to even take photos, so you will just have to trust by the words on the page that we were just doing our best to help out how we could at the Casa and learn or teach a little along the way.  That evening we discovered that all of our team likes to play cards.  The first of several evenings of” up and down the river” was born, and a few nicknames surfaced, but they aren’t birds. Not sure if allowed to share publicly yet.  Stay tuned.

Jornada Medica en Chocal

Day 5:  Wednesday.  Our team with Doctora Ana Miranda, the young, thoughtful, compassionate competent Casa Materna doctor, went to the small pueblito of Chocal in the Malacatancito area near Huehue to give health consults and help promote Casa Materna to the area. On the way, there was a road blocked by construction, and a failed attempt at a detour which was resolved when our driver asked a guy working in his garden how to get to the village we were looking for. It was simple: just go back down the big hill to the entrance to the stadium, and turn left at the Casa of Don Oscar.  Aha! We had missed a vital piece of information. It proved very useful in locating the CORRECT detour.  Way way up in some very beautiful mountains we went to the local health center which is unfortunately closing soon due to the current collapse in the local health system. The government recently decided to cut  ties with many NGOs they had formerly worked with, so with already huge gaps in services for poor people in Guatemala, sadly, that gap will be growing. 

We spent the day doing ultrasounds and seeing kids, women’s health, prenatal and general consults.  Can we just mention something here? The kids are adorable. The photos speak for themselves. 

*This post thanks to the persistant dedication of Suzy (who wrote this 3 times before we succseffully posted), the technical support of El Gallo Blanco, and photo insertion and arrangement by Alexis.