Overwhelming!!!! There is really no other way to describe it.
Firstly, the cell phone now may be working. Thanks to Pankaj Uncle's instructions I think we may now have a signal....the phone, however, died 2 econds after we got one... we will know once we recharge it... if not we will be going into town tomorrow and buy a SIM card for Hyderabad.
Now to the details of the day...and what a day it was... Woke up at 5:30am...It was hot as hell and the air was heavy.... Amazing... Their was a crazy thunderstorm last night and I could see flashes of lightening through my window and over the trees with huge red blossoms. read for a bit (Life of Pi) while the sounds of birds outside my window were like none I have ever heard.
I woke up, had an ice cold shower and went for a walk around the campus by myself. The campus looked very different by day and 10x as gorgeous. Amazingly landscaped and covered in the most beautiful flowers and trees.... library, an outdoor auditorium (marble seating and colorful plants and all), gardens. I picked up Dave and Jenna and we went accross the street to the International Centre for Rural Eye Care and met with Mr. Rajashekar. Great guy. He introduced us to Dr. Shamana and some of the other staff (including a Dr. who is here teaching from the UK till tomorrow. He works for Sight Savers International). Everyone is very nice and it sounds like they have some amazing things in store for us. We were to meet Rajashekar back at the centre at 11:15 and so went for breakfast first... Dosa, coconut chutney, and sambar...delicious.... a lot of spice for the morning.... Had breakfast with Sundeep ( a student who is taking a 1 yr course to become an Optometry technician).
After breakfast we walked around the back of the campus and found the really nice guest houses which were set up like a minature village (reminded me of Choki Danni - without the sickness). These are reserved for visiting academics/professors (like the Dr. from the UK). But frankly, our rooms are better suited for us - close to students and more modern.
Walking further into this area we found our own little "sacred space"... An outdoor amphitheatre that obviously is no longer used...but it was amazing....it would make a wicked club.... vines and red, yellow, and pink trees all around. We decided to get the video camera and go back. I then ran a small excercise with Jenna and Dave asking them (i did it too) to write a letter to ourselves outlining our feelings, thoughts, goals, hopes, fears and ideas for the next month and how this trip is expected to change us.... This letter is not to be read until we return to Canada. It was really peaceful writing where we were.
We then went back to the ICARE centre and met a Dr. who was working on a major 4 yr study looking at the impact of Cataract surgeries in rural areas...A study with both quantitative and qualitative outcome measures.... We spoke with him for a while, asked some questions, and provided our thoughts on the strengths and weaknesses of the study. And we didn't sound like morons.
Rajashekar then came to get us. We had a hot cup of chai and left for the LV Prasad Eye Institute main building in Banjara Hills. The hospital was gorgeous with both private and public aspects. We were told that we would be working here for about a week... more details to come later
We then got into the TATA and were of again to another centre. Along the way Rajashekar gave us an overview of how the operations of the LVPEI are run and
spoke very highly of Dr. Rao...one of our initial contacts for this project...The LVPEI
is structured like no other institution and has garnered respect and attention worldwide. It is a WHO collaborating centre for the prevention of blindness and has a unique approach to eye care which was Dr. Rao's vision.
We reached the Service Centre , as it wa called, and recieved a two hour tour of the facility. Videotaped the whole thing...It was absolutely amazing...This included scrubbing up and going into the operating room, observing a patients check-up, roof top view of Old Hyderabad, insightinto the patient services/payment system and a delicious pizza lunch in the air conditioned "business" class waiting room. We just got back to the centre and will write to you again in a couple of days. Signing off from the motherland, where the breeze is sweet with the scent of flowers (usually) and life never stops. Sending you all of our love.
Firstly, the cell phone now may be working. Thanks to Pankaj Uncle's instructions I think we may now have a signal....the phone, however, died 2 econds after we got one... we will know once we recharge it... if not we will be going into town tomorrow and buy a SIM card for Hyderabad.
Now to the details of the day...and what a day it was... Woke up at 5:30am...It was hot as hell and the air was heavy.... Amazing... Their was a crazy thunderstorm last night and I could see flashes of lightening through my window and over the trees with huge red blossoms. read for a bit (Life of Pi) while the sounds of birds outside my window were like none I have ever heard.
I woke up, had an ice cold shower and went for a walk around the campus by myself. The campus looked very different by day and 10x as gorgeous. Amazingly landscaped and covered in the most beautiful flowers and trees.... library, an outdoor auditorium (marble seating and colorful plants and all), gardens. I picked up Dave and Jenna and we went accross the street to the International Centre for Rural Eye Care and met with Mr. Rajashekar. Great guy. He introduced us to Dr. Shamana and some of the other staff (including a Dr. who is here teaching from the UK till tomorrow. He works for Sight Savers International). Everyone is very nice and it sounds like they have some amazing things in store for us. We were to meet Rajashekar back at the centre at 11:15 and so went for breakfast first... Dosa, coconut chutney, and sambar...delicious.... a lot of spice for the morning.... Had breakfast with Sundeep ( a student who is taking a 1 yr course to become an Optometry technician).
After breakfast we walked around the back of the campus and found the really nice guest houses which were set up like a minature village (reminded me of Choki Danni - without the sickness). These are reserved for visiting academics/professors (like the Dr. from the UK). But frankly, our rooms are better suited for us - close to students and more modern.
Walking further into this area we found our own little "sacred space"... An outdoor amphitheatre that obviously is no longer used...but it was amazing....it would make a wicked club.... vines and red, yellow, and pink trees all around. We decided to get the video camera and go back. I then ran a small excercise with Jenna and Dave asking them (i did it too) to write a letter to ourselves outlining our feelings, thoughts, goals, hopes, fears and ideas for the next month and how this trip is expected to change us.... This letter is not to be read until we return to Canada. It was really peaceful writing where we were.
We then went back to the ICARE centre and met a Dr. who was working on a major 4 yr study looking at the impact of Cataract surgeries in rural areas...A study with both quantitative and qualitative outcome measures.... We spoke with him for a while, asked some questions, and provided our thoughts on the strengths and weaknesses of the study. And we didn't sound like morons.
Rajashekar then came to get us. We had a hot cup of chai and left for the LV Prasad Eye Institute main building in Banjara Hills. The hospital was gorgeous with both private and public aspects. We were told that we would be working here for about a week... more details to come later
We then got into the TATA and were of again to another centre. Along the way Rajashekar gave us an overview of how the operations of the LVPEI are run and
spoke very highly of Dr. Rao...one of our initial contacts for this project...The LVPEI
is structured like no other institution and has garnered respect and attention worldwide. It is a WHO collaborating centre for the prevention of blindness and has a unique approach to eye care which was Dr. Rao's vision.
We reached the Service Centre , as it wa called, and recieved a two hour tour of the facility. Videotaped the whole thing...It was absolutely amazing...This included scrubbing up and going into the operating room, observing a patients check-up, roof top view of Old Hyderabad, insightinto the patient services/payment system and a delicious pizza lunch in the air conditioned "business" class waiting room. We just got back to the centre and will write to you again in a couple of days. Signing off from the motherland, where the breeze is sweet with the scent of flowers (usually) and life never stops. Sending you all of our love.
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