We were hoping to post some pictures on the blog, but the power was off in Maroua when we were in at the weekend, so no internet access, and it’s impractical to try to send attachments via the satellite phone link. Anyway, here’s an update on our progress.

I have just had a week during which very little went according to plan- just as well VSO have trained us to be flexible! My plan to visit 3 schools on Monday went up the spout when the lovely God-Damn turned up at 8am instead of 10 and announced that the head of VSO’s partner organisation would arrive at our nearest school to recruit new teachers whom VSO will pay between now and June. My homologue was supposed to ensure that all applicants were there with their CVs but as he had not received the text message stating this, due to the fact that he had given his boss a pal’s number, his boss announced that he would be leaving! He never got around to it. Remember Huggie Bear? Him to a T! The Inspector was there, the 4 head teachers were there, all the staff were there- all the pupils were also there but they don’t count- they were left entirely to their own devices for 4 hours and then dismissed. The meeting was held under a tree with about 30 of us taking part. Eventually 3 teachers were appointed on the basis of their CVs and in their absence. The kids were dismissed at 2pm and the Heidie of Mofu Sud went to get in the beers!

On Tuesday I sent the 95 year old Thomas to market for a chicken for dinner that evening- he arrived back on Wednesday, looking a little rough. I think he had spent my money on beer and then pinched a neighbour’s old rooster- anyway it was the toughest bird I have ever tried to tenderise. It is amazing what you can do with chickpeas when you have nothing else.

On Wednesday the head of Membeng turned up at the house complaining that he had not got a new teacher.

On Thursday we got a puncture on the moto.

On Friday I went to the bank in Maroua to withdraw cash and was told I couldn’t- new accounts are frozen for a month, even if opened with cash. A pity nobody tells new customers. That put paid to the shopping spree!

On Saturday I was accidentally pushed into the gutter in Maroua by a shopkeeper, eager to get his wares on display. Unfortunately gutters here are three feet deep and full of rubbish, sewage etc. Fortunately I did not go in head first! That night we had a huge storm followed by power cuts and no water. We were delighted to get back to Zidim, a cold shower and part-time electricity. No such luck- the big generator has packed in so no electricity or water! Heather’s Turkish Delight and Licorice Allsorts went down a treat by lantern light. Talking of Heather, we have discovered that Godam actually means third child. Sorry, Heather!

There were high points to the week too though- I saw my first Komodo dragon in the garden- two feet long with the upper body of a crocodile and the tail of a snake. WOW! Interviews with pupils were fascinating too. They don’t like drunken teachers, being beaten for giving wrong answers or no answers, or working in their teachers’ fields. They have no understanding of the word “ambition” and when asked what their school needs to make it better, give answers like, “a ball; a flag; a sign with the name of the school on it”. They have no knowledge of what they are missing and therefore have no way of knowing what to ask for.

We are into another week now and Monday’s meeting has been postponed so that everyone can pull up their peanuts easily after the rain………..I wonder if the heidie has any beer left!

I’ve been continuing French lessons, but I’m coming to the conclusion they’re probably a bit of a waste of time. I’m not convinced I’m making much progress. We’ve come to realise that the standard of French spoken here is not exactly text book and very few of the patients speak French. I’m going to have to bite the bullet and learn Fulfulde if I’m to have any hope of communicating effectively with patients.

This week, I saw my first ever case of tetanus. This was a young woman who’d fallen about 10 day’s previously and got an open wound on her forehead. The wound had healed, but she arrived at the hospital having muscle spasms. She was given anti-tetanus serum, antibiotics and valium (to relax the muscles). Fortunately this must have been a mild case as she showed signs of improvement within 24 hours.

Anne Poppelaars & I attended a meeting of “La Societe Medicale de L’Extreme Nord Cameroun” (SOMENCAM) on Friday and Saturday in Maroua. This is essentially an organisation for the local medics in the area and the meeting was a series of presentations on issues relating to mother and child health. There was a lot of useful stuff (including some revision on basic obstetrics which may prove useful!), but timekeeping was something different. Friday wasn’t too bad, but on Saturday, by 1.45pm we were only half way through the first half of the morning session! The day had been scheduled to start at 8.30 and they did not too badly for Cameroon getting underway by 9am. By 7.15pm, Anne P & I had had enough and left even though there were still 4 presentations to be given. I was delighted to be able to escape and join my Anne and the other educational vols for dinner in a local restaurant. As at home, the meeting was sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry and I can report that Cameroon reps are just like the UK ones! The current president of SOMENCAM turned out to be the dental surgeon who shared a compartment with me and the two other male VSO vols on the journey here from Yaounde, so it was a pleasant surprise to see at least one “kent” face.