Thursday, July 18, 2013
To Jujuy
It's my last day of class. The Brazillians leave tomorrow, I'm not taking classes next week and my Australian friends will be gone before I'm back on Monday. So it's a bittersweet day- sweet mostly because I made Jose chocolate chip cookies again. He's definitely been the best part of the language school, I really lucked out when I was put in his class. In other news; tonight I'm on the overnight bus to Jujuy and I'll be there until I take the Sunday evening bus back- excited to see Cami's family. I'm not bringing my computer so my internet access may be intermittent until Monday afternoon, but if I can I'll try to post some photos while I'm there.
Monday, July 15, 2013
It's been a really nerve wracking day. When I got to the hospital this morning I went to the ER where they were doing rounds as usual. After the shift switch (they're on once a week 24-hour shifts here) we started seeing patients. About 30 min into this there was a screaming in the hallway from a psychiatric patient. Although I never found out why he was in the ER, the police had brought him in and were restraining him. He had been yelling the whole time, but when one of the doctors ushered him into a consultorio he tried to attack the doctor.
The next patient we saw was a prisoner at the penitentiary by my house -he had hepatitis C and needed to have his stomach drained. The whole time while the doctor was draining his stomach and setting up the equipment the patient was chained to the bed and there were policemen with machine guns watching him from the hallway.
Then, when I got to school two of the Brazilian girls came in the door out of breadth and looking really scared. One of them said that they'd been followed by two strange men from the area around their apartment, which is about a block and a half from mine, all the way to the school. They said that at first they just walked quickly and zig-zagged through town, but eventually they started running and tried to duck into a shoe shop. But when they came out one of the guys was standing on the other side of the street watching them. They ran full-out to the school and that's where I saw them as they came up the steps breathless.
Although I might have felt differently hearing this from someone else (like the ridiculous American brat I met last week), I don't see either of these Brazilian girls as people who would be easily scared. And, what's more, the walk from my apartment to school is about 25 minutes- it's a significant distance to follow someone. I told her about being followed last week, and mugged the Sunday before in parque Sarmiento, and I gave her directions to the gun shop I went to buy pepper spray.
After last Sunday I still didn't feel unsafe in Cordoba. But it's been a nerve wracking day and at the moment I'm feeling like a pretty flighty American myself. Really looking forward to going to Jujuy for the weekend.
The next patient we saw was a prisoner at the penitentiary by my house -he had hepatitis C and needed to have his stomach drained. The whole time while the doctor was draining his stomach and setting up the equipment the patient was chained to the bed and there were policemen with machine guns watching him from the hallway.
Then, when I got to school two of the Brazilian girls came in the door out of breadth and looking really scared. One of them said that they'd been followed by two strange men from the area around their apartment, which is about a block and a half from mine, all the way to the school. They said that at first they just walked quickly and zig-zagged through town, but eventually they started running and tried to duck into a shoe shop. But when they came out one of the guys was standing on the other side of the street watching them. They ran full-out to the school and that's where I saw them as they came up the steps breathless.
Although I might have felt differently hearing this from someone else (like the ridiculous American brat I met last week), I don't see either of these Brazilian girls as people who would be easily scared. And, what's more, the walk from my apartment to school is about 25 minutes- it's a significant distance to follow someone. I told her about being followed last week, and mugged the Sunday before in parque Sarmiento, and I gave her directions to the gun shop I went to buy pepper spray.
After last Sunday I still didn't feel unsafe in Cordoba. But it's been a nerve wracking day and at the moment I'm feeling like a pretty flighty American myself. Really looking forward to going to Jujuy for the weekend.
Sunday, July 14, 2013
To the countryside!
Such a good day! Rio and I went to the little towns of La Falda and La Cumbre for hiking today. Got up at 7 to take the bus out -hiked up into the sierras for some pretty spectacular views and even managed to find a path that took us gradually downwards rather than back down the steep path up. It was great to be out of the city at all and even better to get so much time to just hike.
Afterwards we took a bus to La Falda, where according to lonely planet there was a non-touristy 'artisan street market' (said the tourist guide book) where people sold products they made from their houses. It was mostly a bust- complete tourist trap, but we walked a ways up the road and saw a sign for ['sweets and liquors' 5min ->], so we took a side road and wound up at someones house. They were selling dulce de leche, liquors and baked goods so Rio and I got some dulce de leche to bring back.
We tried to walk back to where the cab had dropped us off to see if someone would split the ride back with us, but it was about 5:30 and the sun was about to set, so we were getting a bit nervous. Quite a few cars were passing us, and when a white minibus that said 'escolares' across the front went by, I stuck out my thumb. It turned out that it was a family from Buenos Aires on vacation in the area and they were heading back to La Falda, where we needed to catch a bus. They had the school bus because the mother is a schoolbus driver and had taken the bus so that all five of them could fit comfortably. They were exceptionally nice, and very chatty and it was fun to be able to meet some Argentinians truly at random. Also, I think this was my first time hitch hiking (Rio hitch hiked from England to Morocco a few summers ago) even if it was only for about 20min. Good day, all in all!
P.S. I'll post pictures later!
Afterwards we took a bus to La Falda, where according to lonely planet there was a non-touristy 'artisan street market' (said the tourist guide book) where people sold products they made from their houses. It was mostly a bust- complete tourist trap, but we walked a ways up the road and saw a sign for ['sweets and liquors' 5min ->], so we took a side road and wound up at someones house. They were selling dulce de leche, liquors and baked goods so Rio and I got some dulce de leche to bring back.
We tried to walk back to where the cab had dropped us off to see if someone would split the ride back with us, but it was about 5:30 and the sun was about to set, so we were getting a bit nervous. Quite a few cars were passing us, and when a white minibus that said 'escolares' across the front went by, I stuck out my thumb. It turned out that it was a family from Buenos Aires on vacation in the area and they were heading back to La Falda, where we needed to catch a bus. They had the school bus because the mother is a schoolbus driver and had taken the bus so that all five of them could fit comfortably. They were exceptionally nice, and very chatty and it was fun to be able to meet some Argentinians truly at random. Also, I think this was my first time hitch hiking (Rio hitch hiked from England to Morocco a few summers ago) even if it was only for about 20min. Good day, all in all!
P.S. I'll post pictures later!
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Fireworks
Just walked out onto the balcony to see a fireworks show coming from the apartment complex kitty corner to mine. Que buenaondas! My first thought had been that there were cars backfiring outside my window. My second was that the convicts had escaped from the prison a block from my apartment (I'm halfway joking, yeah, that's silly, I know). But after about 30 seconds of continuous firing, I figured it out.
From where I was on our apartment's tiny balcony I must have been 50m from the fireworks. I've never heard loader fireworks than these, and I don't think it's just because I've never been so close- they were LOUD. The show only lasted about five minutes, but it was a really neat surprise.
I tried to look up what they are for, but can't figure it out, as far as I can find today isn't any sort of holiday. Actually, their independence day was last week (July 9th). I'll have to ask Cami when she wakes up.
Friday, July 12, 2013
San Roque
I switched to a new hospital this week; San Roque. It's a 7 story complex that has every sort of patient and specialization I can think of and it makes Rawson look like, well, like an under-funded teaching hospital. Then again, some of Rawson's walls are literally in the process of falling down, so the bar is not set that high.
I'm excited to be somewhere new, and really glad to have such flexibility in where I'm allowed to shadow. That said I have since discovered the disadvantage of my new position is that I'm never going to get to know the doctors very well because the hospital is set up to run on 24-hour, once a week shifts. This also means that I've been stuck in the same small talk conversation every day of the week (Richard Dean Anderson knows my pain). But, those are small complaints, I'm glad to be somewhere new.
Wednesday was my first day and it mostly consisted of a tour of the hospital and shadowing the ER which was less exciting than expected, but still interesting to see the differences between hospitals. I spent the past two days in the tomography department, which means I've been hanging out with the med techs and helping with CAT scans. I think it's the most interesting thing I've seen while here; a CAT scan is basically a computerized compilation of hundreds of different x-rays. Each x-ray represents a 'slice' of your body, and because they are taken in 3 different planes, the compilation gives doctors a 3-D model. And not just of bone structures, but of blood vessels and musculature as well. AND because you can choose to show the image plane-by-plane you can see the inside of a patients' body from literally ANY view imaginable. Oh, and it all happens in less than 10 seconds. I spent most of the day yesterday just playing with the program, and today helping bring patients in. I wish I could have taken a screen shot of the software they use because it's incredible.
One of the patients today was a 30 year-old man who was having shoulder trouble. He came in, we administered the contrast, he sat down and we started the scan. Within 10 minutes (it takes a bit of time to manipulate the images to see exactly what you're looking for) one of the doctors had a 3-D model of the bones of his shoulder and it showed a partially destroyed scapula and a nearly non-existent head of his humorous. He had severe osteoporosis (strange in a 30 year old man) but it was amazing to be able to see it so clearly and so quickly.
That said, CT scans are commonplace in all hospitals in the US, and although the technology has advanced tremendously it's been around in since the late 1970s. The machine I was working with was the first in the province of Cordoba, and according to the techs I was working with, it's only been within the past few years that the Hospital of Cordoba has bought a second one to serve an entire city of people. I find that hard to believe considering that in the U.S. CAT scans are a relatively inexpensive diagnostic technology, especially considering the level of clarity and speed. But, I also know that the taxes levied against all foreign products have prevented Rawson and U of Cordoba from getting technology, so maybe I shouldn't be so surprised.
Sunday, July 7, 2013
I'm okay but I wish I weren't writing this one.
For the past week I've been in bed sick and haven't had too much to write about. I really wish that were still the case, but today I went for a run in the park and got robbed at knifepoint. I was shook up, but I'm completely uninjured.
I was running up a hill, with my American cell phone in hand (I've been using it for the camera/wifi/music/guitar tuner) and as I got near the top of the hill a guy came out from behind a tree, started walking on the path toward me and pulled out a knife. He put it to my stomach and I put up my hands and dropped my phone. He pushed me down, grabbed my phone and asked if I had any money on me. I told him I didn't and he said "don't move and don't say a thing". He ran back towards where he had come from, I got up, followed him to where I could see where he was going, and at the top of the hill saw him get on a red motorcycle and ride away.
I'm pretty sure that short of telling him I didn't have any money, the whole time I was shouting 'no me molesta! no me molesta!' ...which in retrospect I think is closer to 'don't annoy me', but that doesn't really matter. I'd like to say that this was stupid and I should have seen this coming, but of all the times and places where I've feared for my safety (which have been few and far between), I never expected to have trouble running through the city's main park on a Sunday afternoon -it was about 3pm.
But today was cold and overcast, and although normally families/dates/abuelos will go to the park Sunday afternoon to picnic or just hang out, there was almost no one around. After he rode off, I was pretty shocked, and just stood where I was for about 30 seconds until another runner came by. He could tell I was distressed, asked what happened and when I told him he started saying a phrase in Spanish I can't remember at the moment but it means 'what a dumb/foolish girl'! I asked him where the nearest police station was and he took me.
It was less than a kilometer away. When I got there the police officer at the front desk was very kind, but not particularly helpful. I explained the situation to him and described the robber, he brought me a glass of water, and wrote down my info. Then I they took me to a back office and did the exact same thing for a different officer. I told them that because I was using an app called 'mapmyrun' I knew that the GPS was activated and if I could use a computer, I thought I could get the coordinates. Unfortunately, the station did not have internet access. I asked if they could take me back to my apartment (probably about 3km away) and I could try from my laptop.
They were happy to give me a ride, but first one of the officers had to use the bathroom. Then the other had to feed the dog. Then they chatted with a third guy for a few minutes in the room next door. Efficiency is not a priority here.
Eventually they took me back to the apartment where I called ATT (no luck on that front). They wanted to drop me off, but I asked one of the officers to come in with me. So she waited for about 15 minutes while I made the call via skype (most of which was Cami explaining the situation to the operator in Spanish). Then my police officer said she had to leave. She asked once for my passport number once, but I was on the phone and I never ended up getting it. As she was leaving I had to ask her to write down my Argentinian number and contact information, and at the station they never filed a former report, they wrote my name and address in a spiral notebook and that was all.
I spent most of the afternoon talking to ATT and trying to see if I could activate the GPS using different apps, but for a number of boring reasons, I can't. Cami's brother later told me that if the police didn't hand me a printed copy of a police report before leaving, odds are they're never going to file one because they don't want to do the paperwork. And although they were kind, and I understand that robbers probably don't top their list of priorities, I'm pretty amazed and frustrated by the apathy and inefficiency.
And although I'm overwhelmingly glad to be physically okay, and I don't think that the robber really wanted to hurt me, Cami's brother also pointed out that more than being lucky in that regard, I should be glad that the robber wasn't high or messed up in some other way.
I've never particularly feared for my safety. I don't think of myself as an easy target; I'm bigger than most women, and when I'm in public I don't think I project a timid or vulnerable image. I've grown up in suburban neighborhoods and in the country outside of small-town-Texas, I've lived in the safety of cities like Guanajuato, Claremont and Beijing (which despite being a huge city is exceptionally safe, particularly for foreigners). Even going to schools where we relatively regularly had 'lock downs', Kealing and LASA were their own sort of bubble, like Claremont is now. Point is; I was wrong. It doesn't matter who you are when the other party has a knife (or a gun) and especially as a woman (and a foreigner) I've got to be more careful. I'm not going to start tiptoeing around corners, but I think I might find myself a can of pepperspray and take another martial arts class when I get back to campus.
I was running up a hill, with my American cell phone in hand (I've been using it for the camera/wifi/music/guitar tuner) and as I got near the top of the hill a guy came out from behind a tree, started walking on the path toward me and pulled out a knife. He put it to my stomach and I put up my hands and dropped my phone. He pushed me down, grabbed my phone and asked if I had any money on me. I told him I didn't and he said "don't move and don't say a thing". He ran back towards where he had come from, I got up, followed him to where I could see where he was going, and at the top of the hill saw him get on a red motorcycle and ride away.
I'm pretty sure that short of telling him I didn't have any money, the whole time I was shouting 'no me molesta! no me molesta!' ...which in retrospect I think is closer to 'don't annoy me', but that doesn't really matter. I'd like to say that this was stupid and I should have seen this coming, but of all the times and places where I've feared for my safety (which have been few and far between), I never expected to have trouble running through the city's main park on a Sunday afternoon -it was about 3pm.
But today was cold and overcast, and although normally families/dates/abuelos will go to the park Sunday afternoon to picnic or just hang out, there was almost no one around. After he rode off, I was pretty shocked, and just stood where I was for about 30 seconds until another runner came by. He could tell I was distressed, asked what happened and when I told him he started saying a phrase in Spanish I can't remember at the moment but it means 'what a dumb/foolish girl'! I asked him where the nearest police station was and he took me.
It was less than a kilometer away. When I got there the police officer at the front desk was very kind, but not particularly helpful. I explained the situation to him and described the robber, he brought me a glass of water, and wrote down my info. Then I they took me to a back office and did the exact same thing for a different officer. I told them that because I was using an app called 'mapmyrun' I knew that the GPS was activated and if I could use a computer, I thought I could get the coordinates. Unfortunately, the station did not have internet access. I asked if they could take me back to my apartment (probably about 3km away) and I could try from my laptop.
They were happy to give me a ride, but first one of the officers had to use the bathroom. Then the other had to feed the dog. Then they chatted with a third guy for a few minutes in the room next door. Efficiency is not a priority here.
Eventually they took me back to the apartment where I called ATT (no luck on that front). They wanted to drop me off, but I asked one of the officers to come in with me. So she waited for about 15 minutes while I made the call via skype (most of which was Cami explaining the situation to the operator in Spanish). Then my police officer said she had to leave. She asked once for my passport number once, but I was on the phone and I never ended up getting it. As she was leaving I had to ask her to write down my Argentinian number and contact information, and at the station they never filed a former report, they wrote my name and address in a spiral notebook and that was all.
I spent most of the afternoon talking to ATT and trying to see if I could activate the GPS using different apps, but for a number of boring reasons, I can't. Cami's brother later told me that if the police didn't hand me a printed copy of a police report before leaving, odds are they're never going to file one because they don't want to do the paperwork. And although they were kind, and I understand that robbers probably don't top their list of priorities, I'm pretty amazed and frustrated by the apathy and inefficiency.
And although I'm overwhelmingly glad to be physically okay, and I don't think that the robber really wanted to hurt me, Cami's brother also pointed out that more than being lucky in that regard, I should be glad that the robber wasn't high or messed up in some other way.
I've never particularly feared for my safety. I don't think of myself as an easy target; I'm bigger than most women, and when I'm in public I don't think I project a timid or vulnerable image. I've grown up in suburban neighborhoods and in the country outside of small-town-Texas, I've lived in the safety of cities like Guanajuato, Claremont and Beijing (which despite being a huge city is exceptionally safe, particularly for foreigners). Even going to schools where we relatively regularly had 'lock downs', Kealing and LASA were their own sort of bubble, like Claremont is now. Point is; I was wrong. It doesn't matter who you are when the other party has a knife (or a gun) and especially as a woman (and a foreigner) I've got to be more careful. I'm not going to start tiptoeing around corners, but I think I might find myself a can of pepperspray and take another martial arts class when I get back to campus.
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Museums
I'm still pretty sick, but I dragged my butt out of bed today to get a prescription from Dr. Marienelli at the hospital and then to walk around the museums here.
I'm convinced that the most beautiful part of the Museum of Modern Art in Cordoba is the museum itself. It's gorgeous. And coincidentally, as I was thinking this I walked into the last exhibit in the museum which showed the buildings of famous Argentinian architects, and wuddahyaknow, Museo Emilio Carraffa is featured on one of the first panels. With the exception of the windmill picture below, I found nothing else that made an impression.
However, I also went to the Museum of Natural Sciences, and enjoyed that a lot. Two things I'm a sucker for: dinosaurs and rocks. And, once again, the museum itself was really cool. The whole place was designed around a central, circular room, and each exhibit lined the walls on a different floor.
The other pictures below are from Saturday when Cami, Cami's mom, and I went to La Cumbrecita.
I'm convinced that the most beautiful part of the Museum of Modern Art in Cordoba is the museum itself. It's gorgeous. And coincidentally, as I was thinking this I walked into the last exhibit in the museum which showed the buildings of famous Argentinian architects, and wuddahyaknow, Museo Emilio Carraffa is featured on one of the first panels. With the exception of the windmill picture below, I found nothing else that made an impression.
However, I also went to the Museum of Natural Sciences, and enjoyed that a lot. Two things I'm a sucker for: dinosaurs and rocks. And, once again, the museum itself was really cool. The whole place was designed around a central, circular room, and each exhibit lined the walls on a different floor.
The other pictures below are from Saturday when Cami, Cami's mom, and I went to La Cumbrecita.
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