Bittersweet Memories

Note: This post was written and intended to be posted on February 7th, but I had some technical difficulties. Enjoy!

Today was our last day in Ilula. Tomorrow morning, we (myself, Adrianne, Aneudy, and Cole) jump in Kulwa’s Land Cruiser to head back to Dar es Salaam where we’ll meet up with Elizabeth and Bri who have been spending a couple of days in Zanzibar. We’ll stay overnight at Wista’s, have some free time to roam in Dar es Salaam on Friday, and then fly out late on Friday night. I’d have to say, this experience was much different compared to last year in many ways, but our mission to strengthen relationships and work alongside our Tanzanian partners was ever present. When I came back from this experience last year, I had only been in Tanzania for barely three weeks (compared to a full four this year), was just starting my clinical rotations for PA school, and had one day of recovery before moving on. This year, I’ll have six weeks to unwind, think about the experience, and prepare for my new job as a PA-C which starts at the end of March. Just like last year, though, there will be many times when I think back to Tanzania and recall the great memories we created as a group. Since I came with the second half of the group on January 14^th, we started with the Ilula-Minnesota Health Conference followed by our visit to Tungamalenga and safari in Ruaha National Park before heading back to Ilula to round in the wards for the last 2.5 weeks. I’ll remember when those attending the conference asked great questions during the presentations and the horrific, jaw-clenching sound the legs of the metal chairs made when they scraped across the poor, clean, freshly-installed tile floor. I’ll remember when we went to Tungamalenga and Barnabus showed us his immaculate dispensary and the children surrounded us during church. I’ll remember seeing Godfrey again (one of our safari guides from last year) and immediately jumping into his safari vehicle and when we got stuck in the mud near some lions after many failed attempts to rescue another safari vehicle which was also stuck in the mud (let it be known that their vehicle was stuck first). Luckily, after quite some time, we were both able to get unstuck. But most of all, I’ll remember the many faces of Tanzania; the old friends and new friends, patients and providers, children and families, and our eager group members. I know Tanzania will always hold a place in my heart and I look forward to the next time I can go back.