A New Village Schedule

We started 2013 with a new schedule for visiting the remote villages and so far, so good.  We have given every village a daily schedule of where we are instead of just the dates that we will be in their village.  It appears that we have been able to reach more people, particularly in San Jose where we are going every other Tuesday instead of monthly, as some have travelled from surrounding villages when they know we are there.   We gave up going to Conejo, Midway and Crique Sarco in trade for going every Monday to Santa Ana in hopes that people from more villages would have access on that day.  Bill has been leading the team to Santa Ana weekly and it seems to be working.  The first week they saw 15 patients, the second week 18 patients and then 24 patients last Monday as the villagers know that we are there.  

Map of the Toledo District that Bill developed based on village catchment areas

We have continued to see a consistently good number in our main clinic, often close to 30 patients a day.  We only have morning clinic hours there since in the afternoons we see home-bound patients, visit schools to do education or another community outreach project. So, depending on your team of students, 30 patients can seem like a huge number.

Bill crossing a flooded river on the way to the village of San Benito Poite

I am encouraged that our women services is meeting a need in Belize.  We still struggle to convince women to have pap smears but I am getting referrals from Belizean doctors for consults and colposcopies on patients.  Recently I had a self-referral from Belize City for a colposopy.  As I spoke with her by phone, I asked how she had heard about us.  She told me that she is a nurse in Belize City and she heard that we are doing this procedure in Toledo.  She told me that there is only one person in Belize City offering these exams and patients have to pay out of pocket.  The cost of her bus ticket to Punta Gorda was much less so she was willing to make the trip down to to have it done.  We are now struggling to provide birth control to all of the women who are requesting it.  The Ministry of Health has traditionally provided us with some birth control pills and injectable contraceptives but with their budget tight, they have not had a regular supply of many medications.  If anyone has any ideas on how to obtain birth control pills or injectable contraceptives at little to no cost (our available budget), we would love to hear it.

Bill has been rooting for the Belizean football team which has made it out of the first round in the Central American Cup.  They actually tied with Guatemala (an embarrassment for Guatemala!) and beat Nicaragua.  They play Honduras on Friday evening.  There are 3 guys on the team from Punta Gorda and Will has played with them in the local football league.  Mr. Rudy doesn't have a TV so he has been over to watch the games with us.  Since they made it out of the first round, they qualify to go to the U.S. this summer to play in the Gold Cup.  Big news for Belize!!!

Morning in Aguacate

We have a doctor with us this month whose hobby is photography, Jon Rodrigues.  The photos I have included were taken by him.

Happy New Year!

We have a running joke amongst the Americans volunteers down here about what people in the States think we are doing in Belize vs. what we are really doing.  Belize is usually thought of as a tropical paradise with a high amount of tourism, particularly in the northern part of Belize.  This holiday season we have had a chance to experience that other side of Belize.

We really enjoyed having Bill's parents here and showing them where we live and our favorite spots.  They were able to attend our clinic's Christmas party and meet all of the Belizean staff.  A couple of days before Christmas, we rented a boat and went out to the Cayes (islands off-shore, out by the reef).  We haven't had the opportunity to do this since we have been here and it changes your perspective of where we live.  As you head out about 12 miles towards the reef, the water begins to clear and the scenery is beautiful.  The guys caught some fish on the way and when we got to Moho Caye, we had grilled fish cooked over a fire - absolutely delicious!

When it came time for them to go back to the U.S., we drove up to Belize City and had lunch on the Belize River before they flew out.  We then went into Belize City and caught a water taxi over to Ambergris Caye.  As we waited for the water taxi with a group of Americans, we realized that we were no longer Belizean volunteers but tourists for the next few days.  We did have the chance to meet a couple from California who are both physicians - a pediatrician and an anesthesiologist.  We of course told them of our work and tried to recruit short-term volunteers.

Sunrise on Ambergris Caye

Ambergris Caye was wonderful!  We definitely felt that we were on vacation.  It is a beautiful tropical island with white sand beaches and crystal turquoise waters.  We did a lot of nothing around the pool, beach and climate-controlled room.  Bill, Will and Caelan went out snorkeling a few times, including at Hol Chan and Shark Alley.  We also got our fill of American food - cheeseburgers, cinnamon rolls and pizza.  

It was interesting to see the differences in language and culture on the northern Cayes compared to the southern Toledo district.  The street language is primarily Spanish and Creole and then English where we do not have to speak Spanish frequently in the south even though we are sitting right next to Guatemala.  Their accents and English are easier for me to understand than in the south.  It might be that we are used to hearing English with a Spanish accent but not used to hearing English with a heavy Creole accent.

We came back by water taxi and then bus to Punta Gorda.  Once we hit the bus station in Belize City, we knew that we were back to the Belize that we were accustomed to.  We noticed right away that the buses don't go slow.  We were also serenaded with Caribbean and Spanish music for the duration of the ride through speakers that worked very well.  Crossing the Maya Mountains was like riding an old-fashioned wooden roller coaster - slowly going up the hills and then as you reach the top, plummeting down the other side at break-neck speeds, curves and single-lane bridges included.  While we have travelled up to Belize City several times in our own car, it was a markedly different experience.  The boys will have another story to tell their children.

All in all, throughout our holiday break, we have had a relaxing change of pace and definitely added to our experience of living in Belize.

Happy New Year!