This 'n' That

Photos by Tony Cenicola for The New York Times via Destined to Design

Turns out Google Reader can be a productivity drain no matter where I am.  Along with the photos above, here are some things that have caught my eye in the last few weeks ...

Maybe I'll try to bring home some of this safari style.
Will definitely be trying some summer soups when I get home, see here and here.
Too bad I'm not a DIY gal, because I love these bracelets.
Amazing - a clothing collection inspired by vintage luggage labels!
Running the risk of being totally repetitive, but I just can't get enough of outfits like this!
Because of my and JM's upcoming trip I've got Paris on the brain, so much do to and wear.

They're Ready!

Yesterday we went to pick up our new dresses!

We were so pleased with the finished products that we promptly commissioned more.  African prints are quite in after all.  Look at this dress Anthropologie is trying to sell for $138 - the fabric is from Rwanda!  I ordered a skirt and two dresses to be made in a more western style.  Betty, the dressmaker, kept laughing about how short we wanted the skirts.  Below left, Elizabeth & Betty check out various patterns.  Right, Betty & I work with Leigh to determine an appropriate skirt length - check out all the kids looking in the window, we caused quite a stir in town!

Here we are with some of the fabric we have bought so far ...

Note, locals have repeatedly made fun of me for purchasing the fabric on the left.  Apparently it is used to make children's school uniforms.  I say gingham is gingham and it's cute!

Are You Sure You Don't Know How to Draw Blood?

Once every month each of the 13 Rakai Health Sciences Program satellite clinics have what they call a "bleeding day" when most patients come to have their blood taken and tested for things like CD4 levels, viral load, and other infections.  On Friday Leigh and I went to a clinic hub to help staff organize patient files during their bleeding day.  When we arrived we were given two options: 1) looking through patient files, writing down the blood tests each person needs, and labeling vials (the job we thought we were there to do), or 2) drawing blood.  Obviously since we are public health students (not medical or nursing students) and not equipped with the clinical skills to draw blood, we opted for patient filing.  The clinic staff really wanted us to try taking blood though.  One nurse in particular kept saying, "just try it, I'll teach you!"  Later she came back and said, "are you sure you don't want to try?"  This seemed to speak to the strong culture of teaching and learning, as well as the fact that sometimes when the clinic is short-staffed literally all hands are needed on deck.  While we were appreciative to the offer of phlebotomy lessons, we stuck to the files.

We labelled each vial with the type of test to be performed as well as the patient's ID number.  After all the blood was taken, it was loaded in coolers to be taken back to the lab at RHSP headquarters.  Next, lab techs will perform the necessary blood tests, the results will be communicated to the satellite clinic, and the next time patients come in they will receive their results and/or have their ART regimen modified if necessary.  Quite the complex system.

Week in Review #23

After many a travel adventure over the last month we decided to stay in Kalisizo this weekend.  Our activities have consisted of sleeping in, reading (I finished Lonesome Dove), and exploring the fabric stores in town (we might have a fabric-buying/dress-commissioning obsession).  Also, we stopped at the local hotspot Trends Executive Pub and Pork Joint for a Nile Special on Friday after work - more great signage.  Hope you are having a fantastic weekend!

A Place Where to Meet

It's always fun to observe signage in other countries.  Two of my particular favorites from last weekend...

Let's get one thing straight, the accommodation is not good, it's just decent.  Also, who can go wrong with the slogan "A Place Where to Meet"?

A good interest rate really is something to get excited about.  Makes your eyes pop.

Best of Bunyonyi

Since most of last weekend's trip was spent with food poisoning, I don't have much share.  We did however manage to go on a boat ride Sunday morning to explore some of the 29 islands of Lake Bunyonyi.  According to the Bradt Uganda guidebook, the lake is "thought to have formed 8,000 years ago, as a result of a lava flow from local craters which blocked off the Ndego River to create a natural dam."  It is lies at an altitude of 1,800m and is approximately 45m deep.  Some highlights ...

The boat trip crew.  We were out for about 3 hours and stopped on four islands.

Well, you can't really call this a "highlight" but below is Punishment Island.  The Bakiga people, the native ethnic group of the surrounding area, would leave unmarried pregnant young women here in punishment.  Most of them would starve or drown attempting to swim to the mainland.  A very sad tradition that was stopped in the 1940s.

Left, some of the many eucalyptus trees around Lake Bunyonyi.  Locals use eucalyptus to create the dug out canoes which are used to get from island to island.

Bwama Island is the largest island in Lake Bunyonyi.  From 1929 to 1969 it was home to a leper colony founded by the British doctor Leonard Sharp.  Today there is a boarding school in the former medical facilities as well as an Anglican church.  We visited on a Sunday and saw all the locals arriving for services in very crowded canoes.  It was a special day since the bishop of Kabale was in town.

Boarding school students heading up the hill to services.

The Kalebas Campsite and Hostel.  In spite of it all, I would still recommend this place to anyone traveling in western Uganda.  It is beautiful, relaxing, and has a great lakefront on which to lounge.

View from Bwama Island.  If nothing else, it was gorgeous once the sun came out.  At 1:00 PM on Sunday we drove back to Kalisizo and by midweek we were finally feeling back to normal.  Bunyonyi we hardly knew ye.