Monday, May 3, 2010

2 May 2010

The past week has been really busy, but really fun also. It was “herinandran’ny fahasalamana” (health week) here in Madagascar, which basically means mass distribution of Vitamin A and deworming pills for pregnant women and children under 5. On Monday, Tuesday and Thursday I went with one of the midwives at the hospital and a few other helpers to surrounding smaller villages to distribute the medicine. Before we gave out the pills, I did a little health education on various topics (prevention of diarrheal disease, nutrition and vaccinations) for all the women and children waiting to get the medicine. It was really fun to meet all the new people and to help give the medicine to the children (Malagasy kids are so cute!). On Wednesday and Friday, I still helped with prenatal consultations and family planning at the clinic, but now we finally have the HIV and syphilis tests again. Before we were supposed to be testing all the pregnant women so that they wouldn’t pass any diseases on to their babies, but there was a problem with the supply chain (probably related to the current unstable government situation). Because of health week, we now have the tests again and medication for those who test positive for syphilis, which I’m really happy about.

On Saturday I went with a friend to a village 17km out in the countryside. It was an exhausting 3 ½ hr hike, but really fun because the scenery was absolutely gorgeous. The forest/jungle here is really beautiful and really fun to go hiking in. Once we arrived, we rested, had lunch with his family, and then walked around the village. It’s a really cute place surrounded by mountains and forest and a windy creek. There’s also a small clinic with one doctor and a small primary school. I got to talk with the doctor at the clinic and the teachers at the school, so hopefully I can come back again soon and do some health education projects with the folks there. Everyone was so nice, and as usual I came back with a bunch of gifts (oranges, avocados, bananas and beans). Can’t wait to explore more of the surrounding rural areas when I get the chance. There are still so many villages I haven’t seen yet and so many new people to meet.

Oh, and thank you to everyone who sent me cards or packages or called. I had a great birthday thanks to you all!

18 Avril 2010

Some exciting things have happened since the last time I posted. One of my good friends here is part of a local NGO in town that wants to build a bunch of public latrines in town and in the surrounding rural areas. They also want to do a health education program in conjunction with the latrine construction to encourage use of the latrines (and good hygiene in general) once built. I already know several of the folks in the NGO fairly well, and they are really excited to have me involved with the project. I helped put them in touch with a French NGO in Ampanefena, just 15k north of us, that specializes in building latrines. The same NGO in Ampanefena also wants to build a water system here in Antsirabe Nord that will bring potable water to public taps in town and at the clinic. They’ve already implemented the water system (and have already built several public latrines) in Ampanefena. They already have funding, have already talked with our mayor, and want to break ground in August! Hopefully we can all work together to improve the water and sanitation situation here in Antsirabe Nord, because it really is problematic. Many people just use the woods as the bathroom and there’s also tons of trash by the river side, so when it rains, the river gets really dirty. People still bathe, wash clothes, wash dishes and fetch water from the river…especially when the public taps that we do have in town break (which happens frequently).

Other than getting involved with these two projects, I’ve been trying to learn more about daily life of people in and around Antsirable Nord by asking people about their daily and yearly schedules. It’s really interesting, because people’s lives here are often centered around when they plant and harvest crops (mainly rice and vanilla). It’s so different from in the U.S. where hardly anyone farms anymore because of the industrialized agriculture system and widespread importation of crops. In the U.S. what we eat and when we work isn’t as dependent on the growing seasons as it is here. Even those who live in town often have fields which they travel to on the weekends to farm, and almost everyone has family members who live and farm out in the countryside. Most people wake up around 6am. After they eat breakfast, the women go to the river to do the washing and the men go to the fields. Many women also go the fields to work during the day too if they’re not taking care of the children at home. They come back and eat lunch around noon. In the afternoon they pound rice with giant mortar and pestles in order to get the husks off. Most people here eat dinner around 7pm and go to bed soon after that (if they are out in the countryside and don’t have electricity). I found out that there are several different types of rice people plant: one that grows in 3 months, one in 4 months and one in 5 months. Most people plant rice in October through December and sometimes January. Then they harvest in February through June depending on the type of rice and when they planted. Then they prepare the fields for planting again in May through September. People also plant corn all year around. A lot of people also farm coffee, coconut, bananas, cassava, vanilla, oranges, avocado, peanuts, beans and cucumbers. Many also farm chickens, ducks, pigs and cows if they have the money. There are even a few goats around, which is rare for Madagascar.

What I think is really interesting is that there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of division of labor, with the exception of the domestic tasks, like cooking, cleaning, washing and taking care of the kids, which is primarily the women’s job. However both men and women work out in the fields (and kids if they’re old enough and not in school), both men and women pound the rice, and both men and women sell things in the marketplace (although women tend to be the ones selling food items, and men seem to sell more of the hardware and other household items). I often see husbands and wives working together as one unit as they go out into the fields, run small restaurants or shops in town or sell things in the market.

Aside from that, I’ve had to travel down to Antalaha several times to visit the dentist because I apparently clench my teeth at night, and it’s causing problems with my gums. It’s a cute little town with a nice beach, though, so at least that part’s nice. There will also be two new environment volunteers coming to my region in May, which I’m excited about, since the only other volunteer who was up north here with me before quit Peace Corps and went home a few weeks ago because of some personal issues. I’ve been the only other American volunteer for miles around, which is kind of cool in its own way, but I miss the other volunteer and I’m excited to collaborate and do some cross-sector work with the two new ones who will be nearby.

Health week is coming up on April 26th, which is also my b-day (yay)! As hospital workers, we’ll be promoting and distributing vitamin A, deworming pills, vaccines and to women and children all around the area (and health information in general to as many people as we can, I hope). Then in mid-May I travel to the capital, Antananarivo, for two weeks of training with Peace Corps. I’m looking forward to seeing all my fellow volunteers. I can’t wait to catch up with everyone and see how they’ve been doing the past three months…a bit of separation anxiety since we were in such close quarters for several months before that.