The team met for breakfast & then were given the agenda for the “Training Day” Originally some of us were assigned to help with BLS but then they decided they were only going to do “re-evaluation” not a full course and would not need all of us so Linda & Patty (OR Nurses), and I were excused. Patty REALLY wanted to get out to a National Park & Linda & I were open to going with her – Patty’s enthusiasm was so contagious. We got an Uber & drove about 40 min to the Parque Natural Municipal de Porto Velho that was opened in 1989. Our Uber driver waited for us to be sure it was open as NO-ONE was there & in fact it was closed for refurbishments thru the end of this year!!! BUT….Linda explained to them we were here as volunteers for Operation Smile for the Mission in Porto Velho & they were SO NICE and said they would take us on a private tour for 90 minutes or so😊 Manuel who works there & is in charge of the “Seedling Garden” was our guide as he is still working on site growing the seedlings. He has a degree in Biology and was passionate about the rainforest & the park. He did not speak English at all so we used Google translate off line to communicate thru the tour.
There was no wifi at the park – of course it was in the Amazon Forest,,,so we prearranged for our Uber Driver to return to get us in 90 min (Brazilian time we knew that would be 2 hours). The park includes part of the Amazon Forest & was so so green and lush. You are told to “take a forest bath” by breathing in all of the air and beauty – so we did. Manuel first took us to the “museum” in the park where basically there were LOTS of preserved animals, birds, fish, rodents, insects, snakes etc that are found in the Amazon & the majority of them were from this park & a few that Manuel had caught! There was a HUGE Anaconda skin, monkeys, sloths, an armadillo, kookaburra (basically a giant rodent) The spiders were HUGE & Patty has a bit of arachnophobia so that freaked her out – especially when Manuel pulled one out for us to hold! There were also really large butterflies & lots of big bugs and fish from the Amazon River.
It was quite humid & for part of the time actually
raining in the rain forest. So my hair down quickly became hair up in a pony
tail The trees were so tall & I now understood the concept of the “canopy”
of the forest. Some of the frauns (sp?) on the plant were huge! They have
demolished the rotting wood walkway thru the park & are rebuilding it so
Manuel took us on the 1000 meters that were completed – it was lush, green,
beautiful & peaceful. We did hear some birds but did not see any animals.
He did take us to a marsh area where there are alligators & the large
freshwater turtles (we had seen skeletons & shells of them in the museum)
but none of them showed up t visit us today in the marsh. IN the park he pointed out a “Golden Chain
Tree” and the wasp hives in the trees. We were so fortunate to get this private
tour & Manuel was so generous with
his time. He took us to “his seedling garden” last it was a bit of a walk yet
lovely & then introduced us to all of his gardening team. SO amazing that
they are doing this work to “replant” the Rainforest.
Our Uber driver was bout 25 min later than we asked but it
all worked out. We had him take us to the Casa de Cultura where other team
member had gone on Monday – it was a place where local artists were featured
and displayed their art in numerous mediums – paint, sculpture, wood, metal,
string, pottery and other traditional crafts. I did find a beautiful, nicely
made crocheted doll for Navy and met the woman who made it 😊
Right across the street from there were the 3 Caixas de Agua (3 water tanks)
which are a famous “photo op” in Porto Velho. There is also a famous train but
it too is under renovations so we did not go there.
It was again really humid so we got an Uber back to the
hotel (4 miles away). I requested the Uber for us & FYI here for a lower
fee you can get an Uber motorcycle. The car was only $3 US and we doubled that
with a $3 tip! The education was over by the time we got back & some people
were going to a seafood buffet near the river but I opted to shower & then
fell asleep on my bed for about 45 min until Yumi returned to our room. She is
38 & single, has a brother & sister & her mom was a pediatrician
& dad a civil engineer. She recognizes that she is so blessed as only about
10% of people in Paraguay go to college & she was fortunate to be born in a
family that could afford that & that she had the aptitude for school. Her
mom is Japanese & her dad is from Paraguay, so part of her family is
Buddhist, some catholic & she has an uncle & his family & those
cousins belong to the LDS church. She said that in her family you do not talk
about politics or religion 0 & I said that is similar in some families in
the USA – we simply love each other even with our differences. She had many
questions about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints & how it
differs from the Catholic church – fortunately I have experience in both 😊
We talked of God & Yumi believes that everyone needs a
“higher power” in their life to rely on & it is missing in today’s world.
She sees it in the “younger generation” & the residents she teaches that
they are so overwhelmed & not grounded or centered & they seek for
happiness in external things & when they are not happy ask for medications
or use alcohol. She was in an accident after her residency & was unable to
walk for 6 months & knew if she could not walk she could never be a
practicing Anesthesiologist. She promised God if he would allow her to recover
& walk she would live a good life
and use her skills for good & service – she recovered miraculously
& that is why she volunteers for Op Smile & does many missions in
Paraguay, she works at 4 different hospitals & says when she is asked to go
on a mission it is often hard to get her work covered “ but it always works
out” It was really a sweet conversation & I am so glad we had all the room
“mix-ups” on that first night so I ended up as her roommate & she said the
same😊
At 5 pm we went to setup the OR’s & PACU – I have never
seen such a paucity of supplies. Alyyson (the local male nurse) seemed fine
with it & encouraged us to not open up the things I would normally open
& have at each bed spot. Many of our medications were expired so we removed
them from our drug box & he was going to get them replaced tomorrow. I will
just “go with the flow” & it will all work out. However I am reminded that
if we were not in a 3rd world country this set up for patients after
surgery would be much different…and here they are just simply grateful for the
opportunity to have the surgery completed. Since we will only have 2 days of
surgery tomorrow we will do all palates (about 20) so they can we watched for 2
days & then Friday will be all lips. Backwards of most missions where we
start w/ lips.
It was 8:30 by the time we got back & some were going
out to dinner but Yumi & I were not up for a 2-3hour event so we struggled
a bit but the front desk helped us order pizza that would be delivered via
motorcycle (their version of Uber eats). It was actually delicious & the
first real food” I think I have had since I got here aside from all my packed
snacks & PB sandwiches! I was in bed by 10 & asleep before Yumi was out
of the shower & went to bed!
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