Cindy and Amy v.s. The Volcano

We left off writing about our day on FRIDAY- so I'll pick up from there.

I'm really enjoying anesthesia/surgery at the hospital. So far I've been intubating and performing initial airway management and then scrubbing in on the cases. One of the coolest cases on Friday included an eight year old girl with necrotizing fascititis (dying internal tissue) from a snake bite. From hip to toe -- the entire leg was open with rotting flesh. We cut and washed out the dying tissue and did a loose approximation of the skin. The little girl will probably stay in the ICU for the next several weeks for antibiotics. It was nothing like I had ever seen. I have to agree with Cindy that while the hospital is extremely poor, people seem to be well attended. They are more conservative with material and reuse just about everything from intubation tubes, bovies, sterile gowns, etc.

Cindy mentioned that I spent part of my lunch break visiting two patients that are disabled and working as mechanics. The man renting us the apartment, Santiago, helps them as well as other people with physical disabilities assimilate into the workforce. It's amazing how people here simply WANT to work and contribute to society- while so many of our patients at home present to our clinic with disability forms to be completed for far less significant afflictions.

SATURDAY
The alarm went off at 5:45 and we stumbled out of bed to head off to Quetzaltrekkers- an organization that helps street children by raising funds through backpacking trips to volcanoes. To own own meager supplies we added 150 ml of bottled water, food, sleeping bags and tents. By the time we put on packs again- they weighed about the same as a four-year-old child. We were led by an Austrailian bloke named Nigel and another guide-in-training- Janine.

I was really excited because I correctly guessed that Janine was from Chicago after 3 minutes of talking to her- I love doing that!

We started climbing at about 9:00- we passed several fields with oxen and workers on horses. One particular worker donned a T-shirt with the logo "Latinas-gone-wild.com" We walked for several hours through dusty roads with a few brief, much needed breaks under the infrequent trees. After the third stop at Nicaragua's most perfect Mango climbing tree, we did one of the hardest 45 minutes of hiking in our life. The combo of the heat, dirt, elevation, unsteadying rocks with the 30 extra pounds on our backs made it especially challenging. I kept trying to psych myself out- "It's just like a cardio class- no more,"

After an intense climb- we stopped for lunch.
Cindy asks "Do I have anything on my face,"
I respond: "No- do I?"
Apparently, I had dirt all over my face and looked like I had just survived a war zone. We thought this was funny and it became a joke throughout the day. Having similar eating tastes, Cindy and I were both stoked that lunch did not contain mayonaise and cheese.

We arrived at the campsite and base of the volcano after another hour of hiking. The we set up camp and laid motionless in the shade. While the rest was appreciated- we (mostly me) were still covered in an inch of grime and sweating.

The volcano we visited, Telica- is one of several active volcanoes in Nicaragua and quite impressive. We stood close to the edge and watched the smoke eminating from 150 meters below. The views of the sky were particularly beautiful- We could see far into the distance to other volcanoes, farms and our own town of Leon. We enjoyed a colorful sunset- but agree that the best sunsets in the world are in L.A. due to the exceptional "marine layer," aka smog.

After a campfire, dinner and marshmallows- we had an intense game of Uno under headlamps with our fellow campers. Exhausted, we struggled with finding a comfortable spot on the floor of our teeny-two-person tent and eventually got to sleep. During the night, the wind was especially powerful and nearly blew away our tent if it weren't for the collective 200 pounds of Cindy and I weighing it down.

Our second day of hiking was significantly easier as we had consumed nearly all of the food and water and went down the volcano with gravity on our side. There were a few close calls with sliding down the gravel and rocks, but we made it back with no major injuries. Our first meal back was gregariously appreciated with generous portions of Nicaraguan comida tipica- rice, beans, chicken, platanos- yum. We arrived back to our apartment, greeted our security guard (and HUGE fan of Celine Dion) Jorge and basked in the gloriousness of water and soap.

Amy