Things I Love Monday: Honduras Edition (week 12-13)

Bucket list: Checked!

One of my dreams is to serve a poor community in a Medical Mission Trip. That particular dream came true this past week. From March 25th - April 1st, I was able to achieve this task, and boy, I am very happy that I did. 

As you probably know, I've been talking about my trip to Honduras since November. So here I present you some of the pictures that I've taken during the trip. I guess this is my souvenir to all of you.

rainy day in LA

My dad dropped me off at LAX and I remember it was raining like a mad house here in SoCal. Mother nature was going crazy. Mild anxiety and nervousness kicked in on the way to the airport due to several things: leaving all of my loved ones behind (plus knowing that in some random time, my crazy neighbor can maybe, well, go crazy) with no means of telecommunication, my future encounter with tropical bugs (eek!), figuring out how to manage my skin and hair (yes, this is a serious condition! haha) and the fact that I'm going to spend a full week with people that I have never met in my life. 

suitcases full of donated medical supplies!

Once I got to the airport, after roaming around and texting the group's leader, 3 students from UCSD approached me and asked if I was Rima. After confirming, I gave my dad a big hug and joined the rest of the Brigades from UCSD. For those who don't know, I did my trip with students (mostly Pre-Meds) from UC of San Diego through Global Brigades. I was so happy that these students accepted me in their circle. I could've not ask for a better group of people. These students are amazingly funny, smart and awesome. 

After a transit in Atlanta, where I almost got smashed by the airport train's door, we headed to San Pedro Sula, in north Honduras. Small airport. Right upon exiting the plane, I embraced the damp, humid air and got all giddy. "This is it!" I told myself. Good thing the airport offered free wi-fi, I texted the Pillow right away and did some cute text exchanges. I got kind of teary because I know that I will miss him through out the week. But what do you do... A fun adventure was ahead.

our first lunch! Pizza Hut!

mmm plantain chips!

Apparently, the distance between the airport to the compound that we were staying is a 5-6 hour drive. We were a party of 35+, and we crammed in to a small van and a mini bus (I stayed with the small van through out the whole week). The drive, in my opinion, was insane. Bumpy, rocky roads, twirly streets in the mountains, 2-Wheel-Drive van, speeding and driving the opposite lane to get ahead, plus tight seats with barely any legroom, the rides along Honduras was an adventure itself. At one point, we decided that it was like an Indiana Jones ride. 

We stayed at a compound named Posada Azul, around the south side of Honduras. It's set in the middle of nowhere, with lots of stairs to get around the place. Cabins filled with bunked beds were our retreat. Our soundtrack every night was the sounds of insects singing/mating, followed with occasional appearance of scorpions, snakes, grasshoppers and spiders. We were fed three times a day, usually some Honduran dish yet it got more Westernize towards the end. Accompanied us were students from other Brigades, also from UCSD, and UCI and West Virginia (who weren't too kind to us from the get go). 

fierce ants. within seconds you drop a trash, they come!

We spent the first day sorting medications and donations to bring to the Medical Brigades. Then we went to an orphanage called Nuevo Paraiso by Posada Azul, not to far to the compound that's actually associated with compound. Kids were happy to see us and they even played soccer with the Students. What I love about Honduras is how you get to see farm animals and canines roaming around randomly in the streets. It's amazing. You drive down a quarter mile, you see a donkey. Next thing you know, a dog just chills along the side streets. I feel bad for them because they lack of food and water, so most of them appear malnourish. I really wanted to give all of them a hug (but nah, don't wanna risk the chance of getting super sick).

can you hear them pulses?

CERVEZAAA

The community that we served for the 3 days of Brigades was in Sartenejas, a 2 hour drive from our compound. Yes, the roads were bumpy, we had to wake up early everyday, so napping in the van/bus is a challenge. So we spend at least 4 hours a day on the road. In the 3 days of Brigades, we saw 700+ patients! Impressive. I was station in Triage (since I'm a pro at it, hah) with the Students rotating between triage, consultation, dental, kids charla and pharmacy. With Spanish being the main language, communicating with the locals/patients was SUPER challenging. I can sense the anxiety and nervousness of the students during the first hour of their triage experience. Most of them don't speak Spanish that well, neither do I, so those 3 days was interesting. All of the patients were super happy to see us and were very, very grateful for what we were doing. Most of them shook our hands and said, "Gracias!", even gave us hugs, after their session ends to follow Consultation with the doctor. Makes me love what I do as a nurse. Their gratitudes and sincere gratefulness for the service meant a lot to me. It gave me this feeling that I can not describe. All I know is that what we did helped improve the quality of life of these people in Sartenejas. 

There was this lady, who was our LAST patient of the brigades, who came in last minute. We were supposed to clean up and close triage, but this lady showed up and ask our coordinator if we can see her. Sephy, our coordinator, decided that it's ok, so we did a check on her. Next thing you know, we had to medicate her STAT and had her go to the nearest Urgent Care as soon as possible that day. Her blood pressure was around 218/110 on both arms, the Students were like, "Rima, that's crazy!" The doctor spoke to her and discussed about her problem, she became scared and started tearing up. Just by the expression of the doctor (he was speaking in Spanish, super fast!), I'm pretty sure he gave her the death threat of having uncontrolled hypertension. After getting all the arrangement she needed, at the end she gave me a hug and said "Muchas Gracias, señorita!" while wipping her tears of fear. That meant the world to me. Also there was an old lady who I did a breathing treatment to and said that she felt so much better after the treatment, she gave me this huge smile. These people don't get medical treatment, possibly due to poverty and lack of local health clinics. They really look forward to seeing the Brigades to seek for medical attention. Lots of these kids that we've seen have skin fungal infections and parasites in their small bellies. We give them the medications for free, and I hope they do take care of themselves.

flat tire :/ 

Since this trip was during Spring Break, we had 2 nights of just partying and letting loose. Thank God UCSD kids were able to maintain they're coolness and not get wasted like the other school, but we all managed to have a really, REALLY, good time. One night we had it at our own compound, followed with the another night at the other compound.

parade of the Cerveza

1st partay night

2nd partay night

 We also had a Pilot day with the Architect Brigade at El Canton, about another 2 hours from our compound. We did some construction working, from digging to creating a tire-wall to making cement and befriending a mule. The road was fierce, I was surprised that our van & bus were able to go and leave in one piece.

Due to our airport being so far far away, that last night after Pilot day, we all decided not to sleep because we had to leave the compound at 3 AM to get to the airport on time. We decided to cuddle up, lights out and share some ghost/scary stories and FOOD stories. Those were fun times. Fighting fatigue from construction and the whole brigade week, we hit the road back to San Pedro Sula. And that was the WORST drive ride ever. By the time our asses hit the plane seat, we all passed out. Once we landed in ATL, we all devour American food. Hahaha...

the early flight crew in ATL

Once we were all in LAX, the blues and sadness kicked in. I won't be seeing these kids again. They can see each other in campus. I can't. But luckily there's Facebook. 

This for sure is one of the greatest moments in my life. Being able to serve people voluntarily, meeting new friends who became my Brigade family, and to set foot in Central America for the first time. This is my greatest birthday gift to myself by far. And I'm looking forward to more medical mission trips. 

Honorable mentions:

• I did it. I met my goal: Finished the Hunger Games trilogy. Mockingjay was a really, really intense book. Katniss made me a brave woman. Haha.
• I watched The Hunger Games movie with Robert, the night before I left, which made me super amp'd for Honduras. Good thing he liked the movie!
• Pitbull, Reggae-ton & Akon (don't ask!) will forever be the playlist to this trip. Our Van driver has this epic playlist
• Plantains chips with hot sauce = best.snack.ever
• Last minute shopping with Robert at Target. Oh and breakfast together at Panera
• Swollen ankles due to long hours of sitting down in the car/plane and standing up without any breaks
• A 1 week Technology/Internet/Communication Fast. Very liberating. I spent time making friends and read Mockingjay (I read that from my Kindle app, though. But still... FB/Text free!)
• The Skinny Dogs of Honduras. I feel bad for these canines. I wish they could've been treated well.
• Watching Kevin Hart & Jo Koy on the plane to LAX. OMG, I LOL'd so bad!
• Being the Students mentor in Triage
• We had to toss our toilet paper in the trash can since the piping in the compound is bad. OMG, so gross
• Washed my hair everyday in Honduras with bad shampoo. My hair is toasted.
• OMG, capturing a grasshopper that was lingering at the wall of my bunk-mate. I had to face my fears. I grabbed a plastic bag, and after resenting for 5 minutes, I caught that bastard and set him free outside.
• My parents picking me up with Chimmy! I was super happy to see him. He was super happy to see me, he kept on farting in the car, in my face. Sad, but true.
• Finally hearing my favorite voice in the world, Robert's, after 1 week.
• The little boy in the first picture above (blue wall) that kept on saying, "foto! foto! foto!" when I was snapping his picture. He was so happy :3
• Being helped by our Brigade Staff at Pilot Day
• ... UCSD students are very welcoming and funny and nice.

I recommend Global Brigades. I'm considering to do another one in the near future. 

moonbeams and bunny kisses,

Rima