Home visits

Last night was the best new years yet! We had a dance party and had fireworks. For dinner we had chicken, potato salad, bread, and like a sloppy joe type meal as well. It was really good! I only had the chicken and bread though. Not quite ready to expand my eating habits yet. I have been living off ritz crackers and tortilla, beans, and rice. They put ketchup on their rice which is actually pretty good. The burning of the man that happens at midnight was a stuff man full on TNT. They light him on fire and bAAM! Off with the old and in with the new! It literally felt and sounded like the videos we see in Iraq with all the banging and clanging and people driving by with 20 people in the bed of a Toyota truck.
I ended up getting a little sick last night, luckily nothing a little pepto couldnt handle. tHANK gosh because the bathrooms available are holes in the ground of the people's houses we were going to visit. No thanks! I will never ever complain about using a dirty texaco bathroom ever again! It can be worse!
Today, we went around and took a census of the homes and how many people lived in each home. If anyone was really sick and told them about the clinic. These people live in square wood nailed together houses. Sometimes no windows. It was. Dry hot inside. Sheets were used as doors and usually the kitchen was outside. There was ducks, chickens, roosters, dogs, pigs, and other animals running around the outside and going inside the homes. While I have never seen conditions like this, not even in th slums of temple, the people are amazing. One lady cried immediately when she saw us because us "gringos" are a sign of hope for them. The children are so friendly. Sam and i got to play with one home that had about 13 people living in it and tons of kids. They were teaching us Spanish and we introduced them into some games like the hand slap game that papa and I use to play when we were little. The girls taught us some other patty-cake games too. By far the most fulfilling day. They were to excited and interested in us and wanted to get close and talk. The communication was a little difficult but today our translator was so wonderful! I pretty much destroyed the Spanish language and for some reason German words kept creeping out of my mouth. Bad habit I guess but for instance instead of saying Es foto I would say ein foto. Not sure where that is coming from.
I can honestly say if I miss one thing as far as a novelty it would be a hot shower. I havent had one yet, nothing but freezing water. It's funny to hear the other girls hop in because you hear on no! Oh jeez! Ahhhh! Haha.
Tonight we have dinner at 6 and then a pharmacy seminar with the Dr. At 7. I am so exhausted I hope it doesn't last long. Tomorrow half of the group goes to the hospital where we will be on the maternity ward and the other half does clinic with the people we saw today. I am so excited for the hospital. We are allowed to Take pictures of the people and procedures because it is a teaching hospital. That would never fly in the us.
Sorry if this is mis-spelt. iPhone doesn't work well on long messages and the user being tired! Hope everyone had a great night last night!