The Rain Season

The rain season has arrived in Benin-it only takes a few downpours and the streets and houses quickly become flooded, I am still in disbelief that the people here can live in these conditions.
Last week I went running with friend in the afternoon-we were dodging puddles the whole time, making the run a lot more fun and interesting:) However we soon came to a street where a lake had formed and a few people on the side of the road began to laugh at us (we joined them in doing so) and began to turn back. One of the men then motioned that we could get across and before I realised what was happening he had rolled up his trousers, taken off his shoes and the next thing you know I was being carried across on his back!There was a lot of laughter all around-especially from the small children who thought it was a great joke! The African people really dislike the rain and the streets are very quiet during this time, it is not uncommon to see people who are out wearing shower caps...I'm not joking:) there is a use for everything here, which is why we have to be very careful with our rubbish-especially the hospital waste-I have heard of the drapes we use to cover the patients in operations being used as tablecloths therefore you can understand the importance of making sure anything with blood on is disposed of correctly...

Recently I spent the day with friends adventuring to a nearby village called Ouidah. Ouidah was one the most important slave trade ports from the 17th to 19th centuries where millions of African people were sold into slavery. The main religion here in Benin is Voodoo which stemmed from these times and its roots are found in the Dahomey Kingdom. In the center of the town of Ouidah there is a tree, which we were told is where the African people were made to walk around in a Voodoo ritual with the belief that this practice would wipe their memory of their past before being sold into slavery. We walked along a beach that was the single most highly-trafficked embarkation point for West African slaves headed over the Atlantic to the Americas, many were transported to Haiti and Brazil. This photo is a monument just before the beach called "The Gate Of No Return" where millions of African people were taken and sent as slaves throughout the world. Nearby was the Temple of Pythons where they have hundreds of snakes, which they let out at night and collect in the morning-I did not venture near the place!It was an interesting experience and also very moving.

Last week had its challenges, we did some major Paediatric general surgery with the Spanish Surgeon (who I have been working with for the last four weeks) and they were long days. On the Thursday a baby that we had performed two operations on died post-operatively and I felt a sense of discouragement to say the least. Sunday morning I attended the Ward church service and the music, the patients dancing and rejoicing was lovely. I felt my spirits lift when I looked around me and realised I was surrounded by children and small babies that we had operated on throughout the week. It was such a special moment when each of the mothers placed their babies in my arms to carry to theatre-it dawned on me how hard it must be to place your child into the arms of someone you have never met before and trust that you will look after their baby-afterall we are "The Yovo's in the Big white boat".

One of the hard aspects of living in community with 450 other people is that there are always people departing; it can be very hard to watch friends leave. However there are a lot of people who are here long term and I just have to remember there are always people arriving who will no doubt soon become good friends:) Have I mentioned how delicious the food here is?Many of you joked that I would not be eating very well, however we are very fortunate to have fantastic chefs who keep the menu fresh and with a lot of variety. Of course there are days where you wish you could make exactly what you feel like however I am very grateful for the lovely food that we are served daily:)

I am missing you all a lot,
You are in my thoughts often,
Take care& until next time
Auf Wiedersehen....

Disclaimer: I serve with Mercy Ships. Everything here, however, is my personal opinion and is not read or approved before it is posted. Opinions, conclusions and other information expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of Mercy Ships.