Sunday 25^th October

After an active Saturday morning, we have had a reasonably rested weekend for which we have both been grateful. Ann helped with Jha Jha’s day yesterday morning which is a club organised to meet monthly for children with HIV and their carers.

The start of Jha Jha's day

 

 It is a huge success with around 30-40 children attending. It gives the opportunity for the children to play games and enjoy a cooked lunch. It is an attempt to normalise life for these children as much as possible.

Children enjoying a craft activity

The volunteer cooks were delighted to receive a gift of a bra each for their efforts! Bras are a much appreciated commodity here!

The volunteer cooks

 

I spent the morning on the wards. Unfortunately the woman who was admitted so unwell on friday died overnight from ongoing bleeding. Blood is available for transfusion but it is a very scarce commodity. However others are improving and recovering including an 18 year old girl who had become paralysed from the waist down but seems to be responding to high doses of steroids.

An 18 year old. One of many patients presenting with pneumonia

 

During the afternoon Ann made a birthday cake for one of the other people staying here at present. Jane, whose birthday it was, was delighted and it was a good time in the evening when the cake was shared around amongst all those staying here. There have been a lot of Mzungus here during the weeks we have been here but many will be leaving in the next few days.

The cake!

Much appreciated!

 

We had a walk down to the nearby river yesterday afternoon. All the vegetation is starting to look quite lush due to the rain which is now getting very heavy. It certainly kept us awake last night for a while!

A very green landscape at present

 And a very full river