Today is Friday…it’s my last day of my first week at Valkenberg Hospital. I’m not feeling the best but am rallying today so that I can help some of the patients with a cooking class. One of the other volunteers is named Michael and is so sweet. He is married to one of the woman who is a staff member at the Friends of Valkenberg. The minute I met him we immediately hit it off. He loves Harleys and is so excited that I was born and raised where Harley Davidson was created and made! He also wants to take me to a South African baseball game while I am here. I was surprised to hear this because if people aren’t already in love with Football (American Soccer), they LOVE cricket and rugby. Hopefully we can fit that in while I am here. Today we went to a new ward and try to teach the patients how to cook on a budget that is simple and cost effective. We are not in the business of gourmet cooking but sustainable cooking that they could do when some of them are discharged from the hospital. Today we made a simple dessert involving peach halves, a chocolate cookie on top, warmed in the oven and topped off with vanilla custard. The woman loved it! While I was there we began talking about having a Braai in two weeks which as I mentioned before is their version of a BBQ. Everyone is so excited for me to try a traditional Braai and they asked me to make a more Americanized dish so that they can try something different. Any suggestions? I was thinking about a potato salad or pasta salad of some sort but if anyone has any other ideas please send them and the recipe my way. We will start planning the menu next week!
Right after cooking class the staff sent me off. I haven’t been completely forthcoming in previous blogs because I have been super excited to be here but I haven’t been feeling the best. Part of me was in denial and to be quite honest my not feeling well seems pretty trivial compared to what other people here are dealing with on a daily basis. I know you wouldn’t know from the pictures but I came down with a sinus infection on the plane and had an arsenal of medications with me that I thought I could knock it out. It then turned into a cold and then about 5 days ago I developed a bad cough. I haven’t been sleeping and have such a bad cough that it is keeping my roommate and myself up at night to the point that I cry when I cough. Something is definitely not right and I have lost my voice. So…they whisked me away to the Dr. and I found out that I have bronchitis. Kind of a bummer but at least I have antibiotics and a bunch of other medications that will have me feeling better in no time! Keep your fingers crossed. There is so much to see and do when we aren’t volunteering that we are all trying to jam 48 hours into a 24 hour day…this probably hasn’t helped with the feeling better component but I’m trying to take it all in and make the best of it. I’ve also been told repeatedly that people tend to get sick when they arrive in Cape Town because of the extreme weather changes and that the strong winds are breeding grounds for stirring up dust, pollen, allergies etc. I would agree with this sentiment and am getting used to the sore throat every day! But…all in all…I wouldn’t trade it for anything!
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