In case you care - here's some fodder from my 'required journal' that I thought was worth sharing! Hope all is well on Amercian Soil.
…Our red-eye got us into Belize around 11am and then a quick and fun puddle jumper took us to many different towns on the coast before landing us in Punta Gorda. (PG) There was a festival happening as we landed and some crazy Reggae music and funny dancers were making the day lively…. We arrived at the clinic via a land rover-ish vehicle from our pre-arranged contact and were given the lay of the land at Hillside Healthcare. It’s a nice place that clearly has a presence in the community. We had some left-over mystery food from the fridge and traveled to a bar down the street where interesting events happened. Tomorrow should be fun and relaxing as we get ourselves acclimated to the area at a local pool sipping margaritas….
… The day dawned warm and bright per the local weather report but we were sleeping so what did we know. ;-) We slept about 12 hours last night because we were simply tuckered out. We decided to catch some sun at the local pool - “Coral House INN” and sip some ETOH beverages. We called our friend Heinz the Taxi man and he picked us up and into town. We are so glad we arrived early - in time to get our feet grounded, unpack stuff and figure it all out.
…. There is something so wonderful and therapeutic about listening to large wet raindrops pelting the tin roof overhead. The steady rhythm, the obvious hand that nature has in daily life and the obvious control that nature has on our lives - It’s been raining pretty much all day - which at first thought would be quite annoying to me. But really it’s been wonderful - especially since we got our fill of sun and slight sunburn yesterday at the poolside. The rain kept our clinic nice and bearable at a comfortable 75 degrees with no mosquitoes… I think working here will be a GREAT experience and will really push me up to a next level in comfort with my independence. Lunch was provided for us - of curry fish and rice with veggies. We were given a quick road tour of Punta Gorda and a trip to a great grocery store. They even had DiGeornos frozen pizzas and Dove ice cream. No - we did not buy any!
…. I had a great run this morning with cloudy skies and bearable temperatures…refreshing for my heart and soul. Another morning highlight was the cold Mocha Frapuchino that I was able to purchase yesterday from the store - it was waiting happily for me in the fridge after my run and it’s icy caffeinated goodness made me feel comfortable in my own skin again...
We became acutely aware today that we are no longer in the US. The pace of life, the daily choices, the economic depression, the lack of sanitation, the lack of basic needs being met are all staring us in the face - yet ironically and pathetically most everyone and their family has Cable TV. Occupationally - “Home Visits” were the theme for today - providing care for the shut-ins and sick kids who need ongoing care and therapy. It was good to see the folks in their own homes and I accompanied a physical therapist - M - from Canada - we kind of saw patients team-style... Later, at dusk we came to realize that I had no ride home (we’re not in the US anymore) and would have to ride the 5 miles back to my house on a bicycle after dark with no helmet on the Belize highway. I was less than thrilled with this development. But we did have a safe return....
Stay Tuned....
