arriving Makunda
August 26th, 2017 by jenniferolmstead
Posted in Uncategorized|
Getting to Makunda was an adventure all its own. The day started early, at 3am I got up and showered as I was too tired to shower before bed. Then I made sure I had everything packed and di not forget anything. The taxi driver was there to pick me up at 4 am. Got to the airport and got checked in without any complications. Had a little time before my flight so I got something to eat and a cup of coffee. That early in the morning the only food option was pastry, which had me worried but I knew I could not go all day without food, so I got one with chicken in it. I figured if I was going to have tummy trouble I should at least make sure I got some protein. So far, my tummy isn’t to make, but definitely not happy. I had a plane change in Karkulta and when I arrived I discovered that my bag was not checked through, however they were preparing to begin boarding and I did not have time to get my bag and still make the flight. The interesting about the airport is that when you arrive you must go through the baggage area and then return through the security check point to board another flight. Anyway, an employee from the airline retrieved my bag and rechecked it for me so that I had it when I arrived in Argucalta.
While on the plane I met a man, who was traveling home on leave. He is in the Indian Navy and travels playing with the band. We had an interesting conversation. When I arrived, my ride was nowhere to be found. The man I met on the plane decided he was not going to leave until I was safely on my way with the driver so he called my contacts and waited with me. While we waited a local taxi, driver asked him to tell me that they have a very nice town and there are no thieves there. The guy found this exchange to be as interesting as I did. Another man tried to talk to me but I could to understand his limited English and do not speak Hindi so that conversation was ended. It turned out that he however was a friend of the driver who was picking me up. A doctor cam in about an hour after me and we were to ride together. We went to an outpost hospital to droop the doctor off and pick up another doctor. We grabbed a quick lunch before starting the drive. Leaving about 1pm I arrived Makunda at 7:30p. I don’t believe I will never complain about roads again after what they called a road today. That I will have to describe when I get home. An interesting point was that on our way I saw a man, completely naked sitting in the middle of the road in the rain. No one else seemed to be surprised ad said it may be mental illness, but mostly likely he was drunk, evidently moonshine is common here.
As I was completely exhausted on arrival ate, unpacked enough to find pajamas and went to bed about 8:30p. AS It was dark when I arrived I have not seen much. I did learn that I am staying at the doctor’s personal home with two medical students from England instead of the hospital; compound. This seems to be an honor. According to me roommates we do not have a shower here, just clean up from water in a bucket. So, I am glad I took that shower before leaving, even though it was cold.
Internet was down when I arrived due to a storm, so I am writing this about 4:30am and will copy into blog when I get internet access.
Hello! My name is Jennifer Olmstead. I am a RN, and I’m starting my INMED service-learning experience at Makunda Christian Hospital (EHA) in India beginning in July 2017.