Today was a very busy day. We were on our buses to breakfast by 6:15 a.m. The food continues to be one of my biggest challenges -- I just can't bring myself to try squid and many of the other standards here. As long as there is white rice or bread, I'm fine though.
After breakfast, we headed back to the school to see patients all day. My understanding is that we saw 275+ individuals between 8:30 and 5 p.m. or so. It was, of course, incredibly hot. I was lucky to have a station out of the direct sunlight. We lost a nurse to what I assume is heat stroke late in the afternoon. All in all, however, everyone appeared to hang in there. Catalyst does a wonderful job of keeping bottled water everywhere. (They've planned on 20 bottles per volunteer per day.)
It's difficult to capture all I saw today in a quick post. I hope I can do a better job with photos, once I have the chance to upload them from home.
The bottom line, however, is that this is an incredibly impoverished part of our world. It impacts everyone -- babies, children, adults, and the elderly. Many children don't even have shoes. Those who do appear to have scavenged them from somewhere. The parents and grandparents (and great-grandparents) who bring children in all look so tired and worn. Nothing about life is easy for these people. Somehow, however, the children still manage to smile and be silly. (One little boy squawked out a "what's your name" to me today. This was a rare event, because I've encountered very few people of the area who speak any English at all. I'm certain this was his only phrase. Anyway, he spent the next five minutes in line practicing saying "Amy". He was adorable.)
I heard and saw several incredibly moving demonstrations of the poverty...
...We saw a married couple with four children.. They were only 17 years old. They grew up as neighbors. Their respective families had too many children and too little money or food, so they married the children off to one another at the age of 14.
...We heard several stories of abuse. I realize that happens in all economic classes, but the problem seems to flourish in the stress of extreme poverty.
...We saw little boys at the school drinking the "reserve" water for the toilets. There simply is no clean drinking water for the people here....period. (This is one of Catalyst's long-term projects. That is, to provide a purification system.)
There were also, however, several moments that stand out as very bright spots admist the need here...
...One very elderly woman looked up and said "Thank you very much" after I measured her height. I was shocked to hear her speak English at all and I certainly didn't expect to be thanked for something so simple.
...There was a group of little boys in line who were absolute monkeys. They were every bit as silly as my own children, despite all of their needs.
...I got the chance to hold a 6 year old girl who was seriously crippled by cerebral palsy, with her limbs constricted. It just felt like an honor to be able to hold such a vulnerable child for a few minutes.
Well, that's it from Vietnam for today. We go back to the school to work tomorrow. At the end of the work day, we get on a bus and drive 4-6 hours to our next site, Dong Thap. I'll post more from Dong Thap if I can find an internet cafe. If not, I'll certainly do so from Saigon late in the week.
Photo from the Beach at Phu Quoc in the Gulf of Thailand
People starting to gather for our clinic in Rach Gia, Kien Giang
A house near our clinic in Kien Giang
Measuring "patients" in Kien Giang
Boys at the Kien Giang clinic
More photos from the clinic days in Kien Giang
Applying flouride in Kien Giang
A cemetery outside the dump in Rach Gia, Kien Giang
The dump in Rach Gia, Kien Giang
Many of the people we served in Kien Giang live in the dump. You can see "houses" in the distance on the left.
People living in the dump
These are the same boys from the fifth photo above. I saw them in the clinic one day and then again at their home in the dump the next day.
This is a source of water in the dump...
...and this is a truck pumping raw sewage into that water
Our clinic in Tan Hoi Trung, Dong Thap
Life in Tan Hoi Trung, Dong Thap
Driving through the Mekong Delta
This bridge crosses the water between the road and a house. There are donzens and dozens of bridges, one after the other, spanning the waterways.
Our clinic in My Hiep, Dong Thap
Our clinic in Saigon
During our clinic day in Saigon, we saw girls from the Little Rose Warm Shelter, including those who have been the victims of human trafficking.
This little girl is holding one of the many "goodie bags" that we handed out.
Bikes, bikes, bikes
We distributed 250 bikes while in Vietnam, including to the girls we saw at the Saigon clinic. (You can see that this little girl is using the bike to haul the food that we distributed as well.) Bicycles are an important mode of transportation in Vietnam.
Photos from Camp in Long Hai, Phuoc Thuy
We hosted camp for 330 kids, including the girls we saw at our clinic sites.
The camp was held on this beach on the South China Sea.
Most of the kids at camp had never been on a bus, taken a shower, or slept in a "real" bed. Everything from having a lunch big enough to fill their bellies to using a toilet that flushed, was brand new to them.
I painted A LOT of little fingernails at camp!
Saigon Opera House
Government building in Saigon
Sidewalks in Saigon
The team for the 100-mile bike ride from Dong Thap to Saigon!
The ride raised money for the bikes that we donated to children in Vietnam.
Hitting the road at 5:30 a.m.
Early morning traffic in the delta region
Taking a break along the road
Lots of bridges along the route
Cars, trucks, motorbikes, and bicycles all share one road
Carb loading -- Pringles and...
...bread carried me a long way
Lunch at a local restaurant along the way
Our last break with 15 miles to go
One rider jumped in the van so that Tuan (middle, long pants) could get on a bike and lead the way into Saigon for us.
Saigon at last!
This is what we looked like 100 miles and twelve hours after leaving Dong Thap. We had just finished weaving our way through Saigon's rush hour traffic.
The Foerster Kiddos
