Back in Bucharesti….

I am so oddly content to be back in Romania. It is an odd sort of homecoming considering I don’t speak the language or even know the culture all that well. Nevertheless I am at home with being in Eastern Europe and doing service work. I was sort of amazed as we flew over and such how easy it all was. I suppose after 4 yearsof going abroad for a summer ( or for a month last summer) I have become strangely accustomed to international travel.

Last night we went to the new mall which is a lot like the central mall except even larger. I was shocked by its size and diversity of stores. Romania is certainly on the rise at least to some degree. We had Pizza Hut (I caved beacause I knew Emily would eat it) and then went grocery shoppng. We then headed home. The clinic where we are working has a second floor with a library, seating room, kicthen and call room. We are living in the call room. But after hours we have the whole floor to ourselves. So its like our own flat…for free. Quite nice.

We have been spending an hour or so each night doing language study which is going well. My grammar is non-existant but my vocabulary is growing all the time.

Today we slept in but we got up in time for lunch and one of the doctors’ birthday. In Romania it is tradition that you bring your co-workers or classmates cake on your birthday. So there was much chocolate cake and celebrating. The clinic has a prayer time after lunch and then I saw three patients. THere is a resident who has been working with the Hansons (Drs) for several months but he is nearly done. He did a good job teaching me, I did not get too much hands’ on experience but I think they were mostly feeling me out today to see what I knew and what I could do. We are having a meeting tomorrow to discuss what our duties will be each day. I am still working out the logistics but hopefully we will go the orphanage/do research twice a week and then work here three days a week.

Patient wise I saw a mole excision procedure on a Romanian 12 yr old, a 22 yr. mormon researcher/former misssionary to Romania with a hernia and a 30 yr old (who oddly works for the IMB (Southern Baptist Mission Borad) with an enlarged Thyroid. We discussed religious freedom post-communism with the Mormon and the high pervalence of thyroid problems in certain regions of Romania with the Thyroid case. My attending does a good job with patient education which is a forgien concept here. Its really interesting to see how he incorperates public health and education into his practice.

I am so tired…that night of no sleep flying over here is still being paid off (maybe I am not such a vetran at this after all. ) But there is lots to say that I will blog tomorrow (first jaunt out into the city, more impressions of the clinic, long covnersation with young social worker, etc)

Pa!