The last few days at the hospital were filled with a lot of sadness but also a lot of joy at seeing how we had actually left an impact on the hospital. The staff threw us a going away party the last day, with balloons and cake and everything. The cake said "Para Yeni y Ambar." My name while I was there became Yeni. They said that they had had a lot of other students but they would always remember us as the ones who had fixed the washing machine. They said they were thinking about putting up a plaque in our honor, and they also never wanted to have male students again, only female students. I took that as a huge compliment in such a macho society as that is. It was really clear how they began trusting us so much more over the course of the month.
They also bought some shirts for us that had the Olanchito iguana on it, possibly the ugliest shirt I have every owned, but one that I wear with great pride because it represents tons of incredible relationships that I formed.
That weekend we traveled to Nicaragua for the final conference. I did not want to leave Olanchito at all, but once I arrived in Nicaragua I was ready to just leave. I think I wanted to either be in Olanchito or be home. The conference was cool though. It was great to reconnect with all the EWH participants and hear all their stories of their summers. I think the best part though was that I got to speak to a woman who works in the Guatemalan government in the Department of Health. She was extremely informative about the issues they deal with in receiving equipment. She also challenged a few of my preconceived notions. And hopefully she can be an asset in my future interactions with Central American governments
I could tell that the team was eager to get back home. We were pretty bushed. The trip back was very uneventful, but when I got to the airport I met a woman from Honduras and got to talk to her a little about my time there. I was with my parents and they got to hear some of my newly acquired Spanish skills. They were impressed ;)
And suddenly I was home. It almost felt as if I had never left and I had simply dreamed it all. It was kind of sad how easily I readjusted to everything, though i suppose good that i didn't go through the supposed stage 6 of depression.
Anyway, more thoughts and reflections post trip next.
They also bought some shirts for us that had the Olanchito iguana on it, possibly the ugliest shirt I have every owned, but one that I wear with great pride because it represents tons of incredible relationships that I formed.
That weekend we traveled to Nicaragua for the final conference. I did not want to leave Olanchito at all, but once I arrived in Nicaragua I was ready to just leave. I think I wanted to either be in Olanchito or be home. The conference was cool though. It was great to reconnect with all the EWH participants and hear all their stories of their summers. I think the best part though was that I got to speak to a woman who works in the Guatemalan government in the Department of Health. She was extremely informative about the issues they deal with in receiving equipment. She also challenged a few of my preconceived notions. And hopefully she can be an asset in my future interactions with Central American governments
I could tell that the team was eager to get back home. We were pretty bushed. The trip back was very uneventful, but when I got to the airport I met a woman from Honduras and got to talk to her a little about my time there. I was with my parents and they got to hear some of my newly acquired Spanish skills. They were impressed ;)
And suddenly I was home. It almost felt as if I had never left and I had simply dreamed it all. It was kind of sad how easily I readjusted to everything, though i suppose good that i didn't go through the supposed stage 6 of depression.
Anyway, more thoughts and reflections post trip next.
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