Before the Break

Just a quick update before leaving on my break. We get a week off every three months. Yes, it's been nearly that! I was scheduled to go to Kampala in Uganda, but the recent riots there caused a change in plans. I will be going to a game park just over the border in Rwanda, with Alexandra, a nurse who arrived here at the same time that I did. Apparently, one of the things we can do is an overnight hiking trip to look into an active volcano! I also have a list of things to buy, for myself as well as for the mission and the other expats here. The purchases will be in Goma, our new regional headquarters.

I'm trying to get things in order here before leaving, but it's going to be tough. We are in the middle of budgetting 2006. I'm transferring all the files from our old computer to the new one which arrived Sunday. We have a mobile clinic right now for about 400 internal refugees about an hour south of here. And the planning for our 4 four-by-fours and a flatbed truck changes about every 5 minutes.

On the positive side, our new surgeon arrived Sunday. His name is Jean-Pierre. He's 70 years old, and he's here for a month. (Our last one, Sam, was here for 2 weeks.) He's a great guy, but the flight and the drive here from Goma really racked up his back. I feel pretty bad for him, but he's determined to operate, even though he suffers quite a bit.

We had a party Saturday evening to say goodby to a nurse, Dominique, and an anethesiste, Jean-Michel. Dominique is going to Beni, 6 hours north of us, to close the mission there by the end of the year. She should come down before leaving to celebrate new Year's Eve with us. And Jean-Michel is returning to France.

Got to go. Bye,
Ed