Yesterday Natalie and I had the opportunity to go with Veronica, one of the workers, and two little boys to a photography studio to have their pictures taken. We drove for about 15 minutes while Natalie and I each held a boy on our lap. We parked about a block from the studio and when we arrived the staff was very happy to see Victoria and the pictures went well even though the flash scared Ishmael. It seems that they take pictures of the children frequently.

We are planing a day trip to the jungle which necessitates getting yellow fever shots so today Carmita, the director, took us to the Health Center to get them. We actually went to the Center two days ago but there was a mis-comunication among the staff and when we arrived they did not have the six other people necessary in order to open the vial. Today the six others where there and the nurse told us that we had to go buy our syringes. Emma was not feeling well and had already received the shot in the states and so did not come with us. Amy, Natalie, and Ashley, waited at the clinic while Carmita and I went across the street to a little store to buy the syringes.

The store consisted of one small room, against one wall were bags of rice and crushed corn, in the center was a table with some roasted kernel corn and bread for sale, and among other things on the counter where four boxes of syringes. After some discussion regarding the appropriate size I purchased four of them for $1.20. Upon returning to the clinic the nurse told us that the syringes where to big so we went back across the street to the store...which was closed. The large garage type door had a bell above it which we rang to no effect, so we walked a couple of blocks to the tiny pharmacy and purchased the correct size syringes for $1.00.

Back at the clinic once more I wrote our names and ages for the nurse and after completing some chart work and filling out our yellow receipts the nurse, Carmita, and the ten of us patients crowded into the little administration room. One by one each person received his or her inoculation and yellow receipt and left. Simple. None of us are having any side effects.

Because most of our meals consist largely of white rice or white noodles we have been desiring to go to a grocery store to pick up some foods which contain a little more protein. I'd like to take this moment to say that the food here is very good and they usually have a few vegetables twice a day and sometimes some fruit. Anyway, after we left the clinic Carmita drove us to the grocery store. It was in a small mall and didn't open until three in the afternoon but since we arrived at 2:57 this was not a problem. In a few minutes the guard and workers arrived and opened the gate.

The store was very small, about 50 by 25 feet, but had some produce, meet, cheese, dairy, dry goods, drinks, and snacks, as well as soaps and wine. We where very happy to find peanut butter, whole wheat crackers, nuts, prunes, and a few vegetables.

Finally, Carmita took us by her home which is above a computer/internet store to meet her daughter who is a tour guide. We are hoping to go see a few sights while we're here which may include a hike part way up Chimborazo, the mountain whose summit is the furthest point from the center of the earth.

The last few days have been very enlightening from a cultural point of view. Things are so very different here but it works just fine. In America you'd rarely, if ever, see ten patients treated at once in the same room... but it worked here. In America you wouldn't have to buy your own syringe, but they were sterile so what did it matter? Besides, the inoculation itself was free! Our stores are larger and have bigger selections but if you can get what you need from this little place or that one down the street...what makes one way better than the other? Nothing.