Second installment

Our water had disappeared the last time I wrote. This meant I had to learn how to do a great deal with about two thirds of a bucket of water and I am now going to pass this on to you, gentle reader, in case you should ever be in the same situation.

So - you will need your bucket of water, another bowl and a small bowl for scooping up water. Set the bucket in the shower tray, take out about one third and place in the other bowl. This small bowl your washing portion. The rest is for rinsing. Dunk your head in the rinsing one till your hair is good and wet. Apply shampoo and lather it up. Then wash your body using the water in the soapy water bowl. You will find that the shampoo runs down you and this helps. Scoop some water out of the clean water bucket and rinse your hair, the apply conditioner if strictly necessary and rinse this off. When you are happy with your head being as clean as it can be, rinse the soap off the rest of you. If you can, catch any water or if there is any left in any bowl or bucket can be used to flush the toilet. Don't overdo the shampoo.

On Tuesday and Wednesday this week I was at a workshop at the Ministry of Health about the training of Community Health Workers. It was helpful to see how the meetings were run. And I also met someone from the Medical Research Council who are building the new midwifery training school in Makeni. It seems they have been ordering teaching aids and computers, so things look quite positive. I may be spending some of my time there. Today we went to the office for a security briefing with the man who deals with such things. I don't want to worry you all but you can maybe imagine with all the poverty around here, crime is a problem. We got back to the house to find our external door is actually locked now, so that's an improvement. We do have a steel door to the flat and a wooden one inside that.

My good news of the day is that I am supposed to go to Makeni tomorrow (Fri). I am looking forward to that and think it will be good to be 'up country' as they say here. I bought some stuff for the Makeni house to take up tomorrow: it's from a Lebanese supermarket and is way too expensive: about £20 for a small frying pan! One of the 2 paediatricians in SL is paid US$400 per month, if that puts it in perspective. I'll see what I can get from the road side stalls. One strange thing here (among so many - I often see men walking with toilets on their heads) is the seemingly 'high class' bedroom and dining room furniture that is on sale at the side of the roads. You go through these very slummy areas with the rubbish and open drains and, lo and behold, there is a bedroom suite which you would expect to see in Walworth Road, SE London (ie not to my personal taste, bit fancy).

House mate just came in saying there is a mouse at the bottom of the stairs; just like my flat in London then!