25th April 2009 It is so hot here. Temperatures are never under 40 degrees in the daytime, and it doesn't really cool down in the evening. Your body has to adapt to a whole new rhythm of waking up at least a couple of times each night.
Even the locals complain that the heat is intolerable. Books come apart, glue unsticks itself, my iPod is hot to the touch, and you have to protect everything from the dust which gets everywhere.
I survived the 12 hour trip to Guidan Roumji and met the rest of my team. Guidan Roumdji incidentally means "House of the Butcher" - I haven't met him yet though! We are staying in two houses in the village. I won't give any more info, as again, not sure how much I can put on here without being sanctioned by MSF.
Today was International Day against Malaria. We were invited to attend a ceremony (in baking heat) at which the President's wife and the Minister of Health were present. There were lots of speeches, of which I heard nothing, as everyone was too busy chatting to pay attention (not just the expats!). But apparently in the local language Haoussa, "moustiquaire" (the French for mosquito net) means "house of the mosquito", so everyone thinks that the mosquitoes live in the mosquito nets. What people do is set up the mosquito net and sleep BESIDE it as they think the mosquitoes will target the net. To us it seems funny but it makes you realise how valuable education is!
I interviewed 40 people for Guard position yesterday which was fun. We do a lot of tests with recruitment; apparently one of the questions for nurses was "what do you do if a baby has sunstroke?". One of them gave the answer "Put the baby in the fridge" which I am not sure is the best thing to do...
Even the locals complain that the heat is intolerable. Books come apart, glue unsticks itself, my iPod is hot to the touch, and you have to protect everything from the dust which gets everywhere.
I survived the 12 hour trip to Guidan Roumji and met the rest of my team. Guidan Roumdji incidentally means "House of the Butcher" - I haven't met him yet though! We are staying in two houses in the village. I won't give any more info, as again, not sure how much I can put on here without being sanctioned by MSF.
Today was International Day against Malaria. We were invited to attend a ceremony (in baking heat) at which the President's wife and the Minister of Health were present. There were lots of speeches, of which I heard nothing, as everyone was too busy chatting to pay attention (not just the expats!). But apparently in the local language Haoussa, "moustiquaire" (the French for mosquito net) means "house of the mosquito", so everyone thinks that the mosquitoes live in the mosquito nets. What people do is set up the mosquito net and sleep BESIDE it as they think the mosquitoes will target the net. To us it seems funny but it makes you realise how valuable education is!
I interviewed 40 people for Guard position yesterday which was fun. We do a lot of tests with recruitment; apparently one of the questions for nurses was "what do you do if a baby has sunstroke?". One of them gave the answer "Put the baby in the fridge" which I am not sure is the best thing to do...
Emma lavorava a Bruxelles nel reparto delle risorse umane in una delle tante aziende finanziarie. Un giorno ha fatto richiesta ai Medici senza frontiere, una delle organizzazioni più difficili in cui entrare.
Qualche mese dopo era sull'aereo per il Niger per una missione di un anno come responsabile delle risorse umane nel villaggio di Guidan Roumji.
Dopo tre anni nei MSF tornerà in Europa a un lavoro normale.
Il Blog di Emma e i suoi racconti usciranno ogni settimana su Gwen.
