July 19

There has been quite a bit of hype around here lately about a bunch of tremors that have been happening. I was lying in bed the other night and my room started to shake, and the stuff on my desk started hopping around. Apparently after that tremor, there was crank call into the media saying that everyone in a high rise should evacuate because a big earthquake was about to hit, so all of these people were grabbing their valuables and driving away in their cars to avoid disaster. Luckily I don’t have tv or radio here, so I was pretty oblivious to all the chaos, which is good since it turned out to be a scam.

I spent some more time on the pediatrics floor yesterday and saw a ton of stuff- neonatal sepsis and meningitis, jaundice, a boy with unexplained lower limb paralysis that couldn’t be investigated because his family couldn’t afford an MRI, a child with nephrotic syndrome (kidney problem) who had EXTREME edema and swelling- she almost couldn’t see out of her eyes they were so puffed up, another poor abandoned child- she was so sweet… I actually was thinking about how I could take her with me, which I know is irrational, but you look at these kids and just wish you could do something for them. It was a really interesting day, but it got to me a bit, more than other days have.. not as easy to shake off when I left the building.

In complete contrast I went to an extremely ritzy dinner party at night. A friend in my class did her undergraduate degree at McGill with a guy from Nairobi who she was quite good friends with. She gave him my contact info when she heard I was going to be in Nairobi, and he called and invited me to a dinner party he was hosting- which was really nice of him. He stays at his parents’ house, which is probably one of the most beautiful homes I have ever seen. They live in one of the nice suburbs outside of the city- their property was huge, full of elaborate gardens. They had a really nice outdoor dinner area- so much delicious food and about 10 people cooking, serving, and providing drinks from the bar. All of his friends were really friendly- most of them were born in Nairobi, but went to prep school in the UK, then to university in Europe or the states. There were a few other medical students, a guy who plays some big role in the Kenyan coffee trade (I learned what the best coffee in the world is… apparently it’s a specific Kenyan bean and brand, and he has worked in other countries with coffee so claimed not to be biased), a film producer and photographer who works with national geographics, and the survivor reality show, among other things. Overall, a very interesting crowd- but I found it hard not to feel a bit guilty having steak and wine and genuinely enjoying the luxurious surroundings, after seeing some pretty tough living conditions in the day.

Today I had a meeting with the pediatrician I am working with to develop a Kids’ club at the HIV clinic. I think we have figured out how we are going to try to make it work, so I spent the rest of afternoon/evening starting to write up a proposal so I can get it finished and hopefully distributed to some potential sponsors before I leave. I think the idea is really good, and I know the patients would really enjoy the program, but it’s hard to say much of the plan will materialize- especially if I’m not going to be around to follow up, and the funding is a bit of a challenge.

I am still feeling a bit restless at times- I miss being able to walk around on the streets and go for a run if I want to... so I went and bought a skipping rope today to alleviate some of the restlessness. It turns out that skipping is pretty boring… but depending on how things go I might have some pretty impressive tricks by the time I am done here.