i've arrived!

supposedly, i should be in bed. but i am on california time. i haven't been able to get a good night's sleep in about three days. i am hoping that i can wake up in time to go to the clinic with the others. but something tells me that i will be sleeping in.

dr. chris greeted lani and i at the airport with a nice big hug. the reception here has been astounding. dr. chris, and everyone else along the way, have been the most hospitable people i have ever met. i keep hearing the words "you are welcome." the people are beautiful here.

there is so much to absorb right now. more later.

packing list

through the advice of some helpful folks and the magic of google, i came up with a packing list that i am almost finished using. i have some minor things to pick up at the store, but other than that, i am just about done packing for jos.

- 7 shirts
- 2 long skirts
- 4 pairs of pants
- 2 pairs of shoes
- 1 pair of sandals
- 1 pair of flip flops
- 7 pairs of underwear
- 7 pairs of socks
- raincoat
- 2 long sleeved shirts
- 1 cardigan
- 1 hooded zip up sweater
- toothbrush, toothpaste
- dental floss
- contact lenses, case, solution
- glasses
- eye drops
- lotion
- DEET
- bednet treated with DEET
- clothesline, clothespins
- laundry detergent
- shampoo, conditioner, face wash, soap
- deoderant
- razor
- spf
- peanut butter
- trail mix bars
- dry noodles
- summer reading
- MC literature
- vitamins, anti-malarial pills, antibiotics
- hand sanitizer
- batteries
- digital camera
- laptop
- hat
- travel documents, phone numbers, money
- gifts


i am hoping to have just one carry-on and one bag to check. but my mother wants me to pack another carry-on "just in case." i really don't want to carry a lot of things with me, but i suppose i could redistribute my things instead of add more to pack. this is probably for the best. mothers always know.

anyhow, i fly out of LAX tomorrow night. my flight is a total of 16 hours, not including my 7 hour layover in london. and for those of you keeping track, nigeria is 8 hours ahead of california. i land in nigeria's capitol, abuja. i will probably stay in abuja for a night or two, depending on how many others arrive. then we will drive for about 4 hours to our final destination, jos. jos is the capitol of the plateau state in nigeria. from what i've read, and been told, i am very excited and anxious about this trip. hopefully, i'm on the right track.

suggestions?

i am in the process of packing up my current apartment and moving to my newer apartment. with all this fuss, i will not have a chance to pack for nigeria until the very few days before i fly out of LAX. i have begun to think about what i should bring with me, though. my goal is to pack very lightly. but how does one pack lightly for a 10 week stay? i would appreciate any and all suggestions.

stick me once, stick me twice.

i went to the travel clinic today and left with a sore arm. it went by very quickly and i have some scheduling to do with my oral typhoid and malaria pills, but all in all, a very good trip. the MD also gave me some informational travel flyers on diarrhea and such. in my right, sore, little arm i received vaccines for: yellow fever, meningitis, polio, hepatitis A, and tetanus/pertussis. i also received mefloquine for malaria, that i'll start taking the week before i leave for nigeria, and oral typhoid pills that i'll start taking possibly tomorrow.

i spoke with two of my internship coordinators last week (kevin specializes in international internships to africa and amy specializes in infectious disease and epi/biostat internships). together, they are a big help to me. my concern with the recent fire at faith alive was put to ease when i spoke with them. they gave me possible solutions to all of the concerns i shared and encouraged me to contact dr. chris. i promptly emailed him with a list of questions to which he responded by the next day. needless to say, i feel much better about the academic component of my internship, especially with dr. chris' guidance. i hope to produce a paper from this experience, and i hope to become more involved with faith alive and international health in my future.

i also heard from sally again, and i managed to get a mailing address. however, she did warn me of the reliability of postal mail in nigeria. so if anyone wishes to send me anything over the summer, i ask for it to be a postcard (in hopes of the decreased desire to steal it). also, an email to give me a heads up would be nice; i'll be sure to keep a look out for anything. snail mail makes me too happy sometimes. here is the address:

Faith Alive Foundation
P.O. Box 745
Jos 930001
Plateau State, Nigeria
ATTN: VIET NGUYEN


tomorrow, i am meeting with one of my international health professors, julia, to discuss specific projects i can design or work on while at faith alive. i have much research to do in the next few weeks. it helps that i am writing a 15 page research paper on drug access in nigeria as a final for my international health class, however stressful it may seem.

less than one month before i land in abuja!