Sunscreen, Soap, Security, Stupidity & Snafus

Sunscreen
I reapply it every time before I step outside. All the other "white" people look at me, amused. But funk that - some of those people are my age and look 37. No thank you to a hastened aging process and skin cancer. But, the downside is that it feels gross and my skin is caked in it. Which leads me to the next issue.

Soap
I was told to bring everything with me to South Sudan, except the kitchen sink - and soap. Apparently that is all you can get here. Well, the soap provided by Oasis Camp is Juliet soap, with the appealing tag line "Lingering Freshness." I seriously do not know what they make this stuff out of, but I swear it does not cleanse a thing! It just leaves me smelling like a fake lemon for about five minutes. Between that crap soap and cold water, I haven't felt clean since arriving.

Security & Stupidity
I was invited to a party last night. Stupidly, (or naively, when I am being gentle on myself) I thought I'd easily be able to catch a ride with someone's vehicle (as it would have been in Vietnam), or that someone would have the name and number of a trusted "freelance" taxi driver (as it would have been in Uganda). I at least was not stupid enough to think I could call a cab company. Around 9:30, nothing seemed to be materializing . . . around 10:15 I started to worry and asking around . . . After much discussion with everyone who was still at the house, it was determined that one group of people from an NGO who had a vehicle could give me a ride, even though it was in the complete opposite direction. This was finally determined around 11:30pm, well after the recommended time when you should not be on the road (11pm). Whoops! Just glad no "incident" occurred. I am also relieved I learned this lesson in Juba, which seems to be much more secure than Yambio, at least from what I've heard.

Snafus
Dr. James and I were supposed to head to Yambio tomorrow morning - insha'Allah. The flight is operated by WFP, and apparently the plane is tiny (can take 8 passengers). A passenger must book in advance, but will not know if he/she is on the flight until 5pm the night before departure when the manifest is released. Even then, the flight can be (and often is) canceled last minute due to inclement weather.

On top of all of that, we are waiting for money from headquarters. There are no banks in Yambio, so we must bring cash with us to manage all program costs. So we also could not leave Juba unless the money came. Guess what? The money didn't come - gasp! (yes, I am already being sarcastic about things not working here well/on-time). But instead of waiting here, Dr. James is heading home to Kampala, Uganda to pick up cash. He informed me that I will be heading to Yambio as originally planned tomorrow, without him. He will follow on Monday night/Tuesday. Keep in mind we are currently the only two CMMB staff in South Sudan . . . We have no office/home - we still have to set it up (property has been rented, but we have to furnish it, improve the latrine, build a shower, purchase a generator, etc). So I am heading to some random town in Western Equatoria all by my lonesome. The only thing that is keeping me from completely freaking out is that our partner, World Vision, has been wonderful here in Juba and I have no reason to think their Yambio-based staff will be any different.

Until our office/housing is set up, I'll be staying at the UNICEF compound. There will be wi-fi, except when it goes out. I'll probably be working at the World Vision office there until Dr. James arrives . . . at which point it will be time to get our place ready! As for this weekend, I am hoping to hole up and not communicate with anyone. I have met soooo many people since arriving - it has been wonderful to make contacts and begin friendships here, but I am exhausted!!!

Example of a Compound - Juba, South Sudan

As I mentioned in my last entry, there are many "compounds" in Juba. The PEPFAR meeting that I've been attending since arrival was held at this compound.



Both compounds and camps are shocking when compared to the homes of some Sudanese. While some Sudanese are living in homes with concrete walls and corrugated tin roofs or mud huts with thatched roofs (and every combination in between), below is an example of the most basic homes I've seen here (as mentioned before with stick frame and plastic/tarp walls and roofs).


It seems highly unlikely that these homes have running water or electricity, and what their source is for drinking water is unknown.

While these living conditions are unheard of in the US, I have seen similar "homes" in most countries I've visited (outside of Europe and Japan).

Oasis Camp – Juba, South Sudan

My boss was joking today that in Juba one either lives in a
"compound” or a “camp.” A compound, from what I can gather, usually refers to a building or a group of buildings (such as an office, toilets, housing, meeting room, etc) surrounded by a tall wall with barbed wire at the top. Entrance/exit to the compound is monitored by 24-hour watchmen. Similar setups existed in Vietnam and in Uganda. It seems to serve various purposes from avoiding theft and protecting confidential data to protecting staff/inhabitants in an insecure setting. I think I’ll be living in a “compound” in Yambio where I will be based.

However, while in Juba, we have no office or home so we are based at a “camp.” Until recently, camps were just that – a compound with a bunch of tents for people to stay because the country was so war-torn that there were no hotels, and no skilled workers to build them or supplies to build them with – or wait, even any infrastructure to get the supplies here should they have been imported along with the workers. But . . . since the Sudan Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) . . . things here seem to be improving? This could be inaccurate assessment of the situation, but please forgive me, I’ve just been here 32 hours!

Oh yes, but back to my point, these places were named camps because they resembled campgrounds/refugee camps. Recently (from what I heard in the past 2 years or so), buildings have gone up in place of tents. They are still very basic by American standards, but a big improvement, and much nicer than where many locals live (sometimes stick frames with roofs and walls made of plastic, tarps and anything else they can find). We are at Camp Oasis, which is on the Nile River and has private bathrooms with running water (but not hot water), a TV, free Wi-Fi and aircon (A/C). For now – I’ll just share some photos to give you a better idea of what it is like here.

The Camp

(I don't know if you can tell in this photo, but that is a faux pond on the left with a gorilla statue that has water shooting out of its mouth. I do NOT get it . . . do gorillas do that? Not to mention there are droughts here, water shortages, etc . . . seriously, WTF?!)

(my room is at the far right. the light is on in the room next to mine - so the right half of that little bldg is where I am)

(the dining area/restaurant/bar is right on the Nile River!)

My Room

(a stinky pair of socks and a phone charger were left in this little cubby . . . perhaps a long time ago??? cannot use it - smells sooooo bad!)

(hole in my mosquito net . . . kinda defeats the purpose)

Rain and Mangoes Falling on my Roof

I arrived in Juba, South Sudan this afternoon (Nov. 3rd) -- it seems like eons ago that I left Omaha (actually, evening of Nov. 1st). For those of you who haven't heard, I am here for my new job/volunteer-thingy. I am the Monitoring & Evaluation Officer for the Catholic Medical Mission Board (CMMB). It is a job in terms of the scope of work, but technically a volunteer position, which is reflected in my small monthly stipend and lack of grown-up benefits. But despite it being a volunteer position and one with a faith-based organization (two things I said I would NOT do after getting this master's degree!!!), it was such an amazing opportunity I couldn't turn it down!

So, per the request of many, and to hopefully once again help me sort through the crazy things going on in my head, I am going to blog about what is going on here. Don't get your hopes up for anything insightful!!! I mostly just want to give my loved ones (if you're reading this, that probably means YOU!) a sense of what my daily life is like over here.

My flight from Omaha to Nairobi, Kenya (via Detroit and Amsterdam) was pretty uneventful - which is a good thing! An 8-hour flight to Amsterdam, followed by an 8-hr layover there, then another 8-hr flight to Nairobi . . . no delays, no lost baggage, no crazies/screaming babies next to me on the plane . . . not to mention getting an AMAZING discount on my overweight and excess baggage since I am volunteering - yay! The other highlight might have been FINALLY finding the relaxation chairs at the beginning of my long layover at Schipol. I slept in one of those bad-boys for approximately 4-hours! After being so well-rested I headed over to Starbucks for what may have been my last chai latte for a year, and took some time to write down my professional and personal goals for the upcoming year. I then went to the meditation center to meditate on them and to practice affirmations (cheesy, but I believe in the theory behind them so am trying them out). While I don't doubt coming here was the best decision for me now, I don't know if I want to keep applying for positions like this (unaccompanied post, very far way from loved ones) . . . I guess my year here will shed some light on that.

So, anyway, back to my trip here. In Nairobi it became clear to me that I have my CMMB colleagues convinced that I am competent and don't need hand-holding. My trip was not booked all the way through, and I was informed that a CMMB colleague in Nairobi would be arranging my travel documents for South Sudan and booking a separate flight for that leg of the journey. Well . . . after 30+ hours of traveling I was not my sharpest and it took me about 30 minutes to figure out that I needed to get a transit visa in order to exit the airport in order to meet my CMMB colleague. Seems so obvious now, but in the moment, I just kept thinking "no one told me what in the hell I am supposed to do after arriving in Nairobi!" I didn't know I was going to have to purchase a visa, I didn't know who was meeting me at the airport, I didn't know what time my flight was leaving out of Nairobi . . . small stuff, but as I said, was stressful for a minute.

(my travel document which states that I have black eyes and brown hair!)

But once I pulled myself together and got out of the airport I was greeted by Moses, a lovely CMMB driver who helped me with my luggage (and there was A LOT of it).

He then drove me to the CMMB office.

(on Mombasa Rd in Nairobi, people walk right in the middle of the traffic jam to get on/off matatus
and hawkers crowd the cars that stuck to sell cell phone minutes, fruit, newspapers, etc)

Jane, who was helping me with my flight and travel documents was not in yet, so I was given coffee and biscuits while waiting for her arrival. All my colleagues there were very welcoming and warm, and the view from the conference room was lovely.

But I did get a few reminders that I was in a developing country .... I wanted to freshen up a bit. You know, brush my teeth, wash my face, etc - but water was out for the entire building. Then I wrote an email to family to let them know I arrived. By the time I finished writing it, the power had gone out twice and the internet connection was lost (it never returned and my email was lost forever). Just small things, but as Jane said, "You are so lucky in the US. Everything works all the time." While this is not 100% accurate, relatively speaking it is shocking how quickly I take that for granted after being back in the US for just a few weeks. This in Nairobi, which is pretty advanced with good infrastructure . . . I just kept wondering if this is what is is like in Nairobi, what in the heck is Yambio going to be like?!?!

Around 11am, we headed back to the airport where the drama-portion of the trip ensued. This was my first trip where I wasn't booked through to my final destination. I actually had two separate bookings. It seems JetLink, the airline I took from Nairobi to Juba, doesn't have any partners. They also have their own crazy luggage allowance scheme that cost me many pretty pennies. While the international leg of my flight allowed for two 50-lb suitcases, plus a carry on, plus a personal item, JetLink allows ONE 50-lb suitcase and one 10-lb carry-on - with HEAVY overweight fees at $5/kg over!!! Did I mention that I actually had three checked bags - all well over 50-lbs. Too make a loooong story somewhat shorter, there was a big miscommunication about the process of getting some luggage waivers for volunteers. After 45 minutes of back and forth, they refused to give me the waiver, but did give me a discounted rate of $3/kg (I think this was actually a better deal for me). $175 later, two of my original checked bags and what was formerly my carry-on were checked. I left one large suitcase in Nairobi in hopes that a colleague will bring it up with him later this month. All of this was in addition to realizing I needed my Yellow Fever card to be able to check in (I of course, left it in Nebraska!). Luckily, they offer the vaccine at the airport and were happy to take my money without administering the shot so I could get the needed documentation to enter the country and running all over to pay the luggage excess fees (credit cards were only accepted at the terminal at the other end of the airport).

But, with two minutes to spare, I made it for the 1hr 40min flight to Juba - which was hot and smelly . . . but flying into Juba was like nothing I'd ever seen before. It was only three minutes before landing when I finally saw any signs of life - before that, no roads, no homes - NOTHING. It was crazy. Juba's airport is tiny and I was so pleased to see my new boss there to meet me. Dr James. Based on the email he had sent me about this airport, I was expecting chaos and bribe-demanding. But it was relatively calm, although I wouldn't exactly call it orderly.

Dr. James and I then got in with our young taxi driver, James, and went to the Oasis Camp. It seems we'll be in Juba through Saturday, so I should continue to have wifi for awhile :) I will try to post pictures tomorrow to give you a better idea of this place . . . The accommodations seem so basic on one hand, but here I am with wireless!!! Strange . . .

Mini Cleanse, Part Deux

I love to bake Christmas cookies, but even more, I love to EAT Christmas cookies. An astounding number of cookies. So many cookies others are shocked when they see how many I can consume in one sitting (not to mention what happens over the course of a day). This past Christmas was no exception, and my annual Christmas cookie addiction kicked in full force.

In an effort to break this serious Christmas cookie addiction, which was quickly turning into an "any kind of cookie" addiction, I have decided to do another mini-cleanse. It is now day 5 of 13, and it is much easier than the first time around. I still am bummed to turn down free wine and cheese (which seems to happen often when I am cleansing), but I have been able to quickly mourn the lost opportunity to eat/drink good stuff and move on. I am not sure if this means that I have improved my eating habits (cookies, aside), if I have developed some amount of self-control when it comes to food/drink, or if I need to step up my cleansing a notch. 

This interesting article presents one doctor's view on cleansing and chelation therapy.  It also discusses a modified version of my mini-cleanse which, in addition to what I am doing already, also drastically reduce starches, eliminate oils, and add in some kind of detox drink. Hmmmm, maybe I'll try that in Round 3. Did I miss the point of the article? Maybe. But I cannot argue with how I feel - which is better! 

Moving Makes Me Pist!

As everyone knows, moving is a real pain in the neck. In NYC, however, the pain is not only in your neck, but also your arms and legs (literally). I moved from an elevator building to a 5th-floor walk-up. I did hire three guys with two vans to move me, but after a late start, parking debacles and threats by the movers to walk off the job - I did what I had to do - including schlepping 25 loads of my "valuables" (that at the time I would have thrown in a dumpster had one been closer than my 5th flr apt) up these lovely 5 flights of stairs and getting the movers a bit tipsy at the end of the job.

I wish I could say I loved living in Harlem, but I was pent up in the apartment all day unpacking and haven't been exploring. (Although it could be fear of the stairs and cold keeping me indoors as well). I am hopeful it will be great (good points: only 5 blocks from Central Park and my new roommie is also a pescatarian)- but the following issues do need to be addressed!


The last two aren't move-related, but do need to be dealt with!

**If you'd like to create you own ON NOTICE board, click here. Thanks to the Ring Leader for sharing this great site.

things that DON'T make me miss meat

Only in the US would someone stuff a chicken in a duck in a turkey,
then wrap it in 5 pounds of bacon!

Check out more photos and info on the Turbaconducken.