Videos

Outdoor church singing. I could not tape very long because I was totally distracting the congregation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8EIEL8_nw8w


Motorbike ride with Ali who was driving "small small". I could not tape very long because I was hanging on with one hand and taping with the other. Would never try this riding with Kaiba.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxUPVTj0krQ


Boy rapping about his country--Sierra Leone. The one in white shirt was later caught insulting his teacher.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kfim4a3odrY

Good-Bye For Now

Coming home to North America is very nice and a bit different. The water fountains fascinate me, and look at all the outlets everywhere. My fingers, face, and clothes don't get dirty at all, and AC actually feels cold. Andy gave me a care package of Ramen noodles and Sardines, but I only take Lebanese sardines now. It is hard to believe I already ate two meals and a snack in the space of 6 hours today. Going back to work feels like a dream vacation, everything is easy and efficient with predictable outcome.

Bailor said patients continued coming and asking to see the dentist. Both Bailor and Michael have food poisoning now and Ahmidu is sick with malaria. Engineering interns arrived to install the solar panels for the clinic, and the original 4 work away on their projects. Never a dull moment there.

I already miss everyone. Will I go back? Yes I will. And I will bring camping stove and plates. A helmet! And hopefully, a team of healthcare volunteers.

For Christmas this year I will ask Santa for a fully stocked mobile dental clinic on 4x4s with its own generator full of diesel, tons of clean water, and a team of dental professionals for Koidu. Until then I will try and help the clinic and GAF offer limited services and start an outreach program for dental disease prevention.

So many have helped make this trip happen: Barry, though worried about the hardship, donated generously all the instruments to jump start the dental clinic in Koidu. Lisa, Liz, Ellen, Scott, Jeri, Victory shared their valuable work and travel experiences. Val said GO and gave me a vision that turned the corner in my decision making, then she brought the fan the army knife and the cash. Vickie and our dental team helped order, organize, and pack supplies, and told me it would work. Brian gave us a solar lamp for dark nights. The global department of the American Dental Association donated pamphlets on brushing.

To all my friends and family who wrote me via email /Facebook and kept me in their thoughts and prayers during the trip, thank you for being with me throughout this event which was way out of my comfort zone on many levels.

Everybody, please continue to check out GAF (goact.org) and see all the work they do each and every day to help a war injured, diseased, and impoverished population who were largely tossed aside and forgotten.

Much Love and appreciations, Chifan

Not Free in Freetown, Thursday and Friday July 22/23, 2010

Credit cards do not work here so it is cash only. I spent next to nothing on food and bike rides. Most of the cash went to hotels and Uncle Ben's SUV transports. I have to watch and not run out of money now, at least not until I get to Brussels.

Mrs Uncle Ben Ayisha is going with me, so is Kaiba who is no longer needed at the clinic as a driver when there is no car to drive. Bailor cant go because he has to stay and get Michael's project on track. Uncle Ben is sending Abu the driver this time. We were leaving at 8 AM Thursday but Ayisha was not ready till 9; she tends to stick to African time.

I said goodbye to Michael, BJ, Kulani, Ralphi, and Bailor. Hugs and photos. I told them to take care of themselves and of each other. To Kulani I added "Eat, girl, eat something".

Uncle Ben asked if an employee of his could go with me because his mother was ill in Freetown, I said of course. Ayisha however said something loudly which made Uncle Ben frown, then the employee got his bag and got out of the car.

Uncle Ben had worked with the UN refugee camp for 5 years after the war, then became a successful businessman in Koidu recognizing the housing needs of all the NGO and Mining traffic. He is a good host and it is the guest house that we each come home to after working all day. Perhaps I will see him again if he comes to the US next year for a church trip. Did I mention he resembles Obama?

We set out and it was obvious Abu is a good driver, adjusting his speed by the size of the potholes. The road is BAAAAD. I took some photos for Danny the road commissioner from St Joe; he would have a fit here. Bounce bounce swerve bounce---.

We stopped at several markets so Kaiba could buy meat and coals for Bailor's family. He also brought two big jars of palm oil for the family. I saw stands with okras, eggplants, cucumbers, squashes, peppers, mangoes, plums, and other produce. Ayisha said there were stands like that at Koidu. I just never have time to find them. I think had I stayed longer I would have soon been able to have a reasonable diet with rice, fruits, veggies, and a little meat or fish.

Because of the appearance of and the methods used at the butcher stands, and the history of amputations in the area, I won't describe them or take photos.

Around 4pm we got into the crawling Freetown rush hour traffic during the hottest part of the day. First we picked up Ahmidu the GAF travel coordinator who picked me up when I first arrived. He had stayed in Freetown to take care of the four Engineers Without Borders students who arrived this week to install solar panels for the clinic the next two weeks. Then we dropped off kaibi, and the goods for Mrs Barrie who had lunch for Abu, Ayisha, and me. It was rice with a tasty but super spicy soup. Ayisha will stay with Mrs Barrie for a few days. She told me she would see a doctor for her tooth, to keep it, not to pull it, as I had advised.

Then it was time to drop me off at the Hotel Bonmoi which meant we go from the notoriously poor, dense, and dangerous East side to the affluent West side.

I couldn't decide if I should go back to the eerily lonely Hill Valley Hotel where I had stayed the first night, or the Sierra International where the interns had stayed. Michael was adamant I not stay at the latter, the others agreed. Showers didn't work, water was brown, and luggage had to be on the bed because the floor was that dirty. Raphi thought the lonely hotel was better because no people was better than those suspicious Russians. In the end I picked a third option out of the guide book, a hotel on the "beach" which was $20 more but would allow me to see another part of Freetown.

The Hotle Bonmoi has wifi, continuous electricity, two pools, a western style restaurant with table cloth and nonplastic breakable dishes, and a real front desk manned by staff. The room has not one but TWO outlets, AC, running water with no issues, bright lighting, and, wow--HOT SHOWER!!!!

Ahmidu had orders to stay and wait for Bailor's call about meeting with Sarah, an American woman who, instead of getting wedding gifts, had asked guests to donate to GAF. She raised enough money to build a small building next to the clinic for an ultrasound lab, and an outdoor bathroom for the patients to use so they don't break the indoor one. Opening ceremony is next week.

We went to sit by the pool and sipped some Sprite. It was sure a different world from the one outside these walls. At 6:30pm I suggested walking down the hill to the beach part for dinner since it was about to get dark.

Immediately outside the hotel compound was poverty. We went down hill to the beach which was nice except for the garbage and litters. We sat down in one of the open aired restaurants and ordered dinner. I put on some OFF and offered it to Ahmidu. He said he had gotten malaria over 100 times so he did not need OFF, it was just like getting a cold for him.

The sea breezes and the sound of the waves should be soothing, but it just seemed a bit unreal, what where and when is the next struggle?

I asked Ahmidu what the solution might be for SL; he said fighting corruption would be the first thing. 90 percent of the government is corrupt. But How? People's attitude has to change he said. Then he told me about his friends, young people just out of college like himself, working for the government and taking bribes. For instance one works for National Security on the Guinea border and his job is not to allow too much rice and palm oil to be brought out of SL. Depending on the load, his friend collects bribes and allows passage. This friend is doing well and about to build a house. So much for attitude change.

As for social life among young people in SL Ahmidu was stoically bitter. His girl friend recently broke up with him because he could not "provide" for her, which meant supporting her shopping habits. She asked a few times but he could not afford the hand bags and shoes she wanted, soon he saw her going with another man. All girls look for rich guys he said, and their rooms are full of stuff like boutiques. But guys have their own problems too. They move from girl to girl for sex; then when it is time they would marry a "good" girl they barely know, a Muslims tradition.

This reminded me of a conversation I had with Uncle Ben's 19 year old daughter Alema, a great cook and a rising college Freshman, and her fiance Konba who works for a large NGO. Kulani and I guestimated Konba to be at least 30. I jokingly told Konba he was a very lucky guy to have Alema, but he told me Alema was the lucky one to have found him who could provide "security". I said but Alema would get her own security from an education and eventually her own jobs, but Konba insisted he was the best thing for Alema because of his established "stability". Then he smiled and said "we are happy together". Now I understand what Konba was talking about.

Ahmidu told me about his family. His uncle paid for his school fees and he is now paying his younger sibs' school fees. Everyone has financial expectations for him because has a college education and a job.

On that note we started to walk back in the dark. After crossing the street and only walking half a block Ahmidu all of a sudden said "lets get a taxi" and jumped into one three steps from us. The driver was eating his dinner so we waited inside the car. I asked why and he said it would not be safe to walk back because of me, a foreign woman often marked for robbery. There was a guy walking very close to us just before we got into the taxi but I thought he was just walking. Ahmidu is kind of quiet but very alert, he takes care of all GAF travelers coming and going. We got back to the hotel behind its gates and barb-wired walls, and he said I would be safe here.

Next morning Abu the driver came at 6AM instead of 11Am. Then at 11AM he was nowhere to be found. Eventually he came to take me to the ferry pier; but first we picked up Ahmidu after driving a long time in the traffic and heat. The pier is full of people who want to "help", and the ferry is crowded and slow. Watch out for thieves and pick pockets as I was told from day one. I now wore my backpack in the front as Bailor had done to secure it. Helicopters, speed boats, and hovercrafts can be used but they are expensive with questionable safety records. Well for that matter the ferry has sunk too. It is fair to say there are no good options to get across the bay to the airport. I was now convinced this whole thing was designed to make it hard for people to travel and leave. Ahmidu said the Brits built the airport and they did what was convenient for them, but then he said there might have been more infrastructure built had the Brits stayed longer. He has mixed feelings about the Colonial times.

We were in "first class" which was a hot stuffy room with deafening loud music where they advertised CDs by playing part of each track. Ahmidu said it would be safe for me to stand outside so I did. A young Chinese guy asked if I spoke Chinese and we talked. He works for the Chinese Embassy and was on airport pick up duties. According to him 90% of all SL goods is imported from China, and 1/3 of the SL rice is grown in the south by a Chinese Agricultural program. The SL government has asked for a bridge between the city and the airport but the Chinese engineers say it would be cheaper to build another airport. The SL government corruption is incredible, he often has to give the SL officials a TV or something just to get receipts for the Chinese aide checks he delivers. He is pretty bored most of the time and has requested to go back to China in 6 months.

It was another short Taxi ride after the ferry, then we finally arrived at the airport where many people wanted to "help" also. I said good by to Ahmidu who actually was subdued today. He said he was not feeling well, probably getting malaria again. I thanked Ahmidu for all he had done to keep me safe.

It was 5pm Friday now and my flight leaves at 7 for Brussels. It took almost two day's of travel to get to the airport from Koidu. If there were faster easier safer ways to get around Freetown and to the airport, I have not found them. I cant go places freely by myself in Freetown from a security point of view.

The Brussels Airline Airbus landed, and soon this big bird will take me home. Please dont cancel!! I found myself just dying for some airplane food.

Amputee Camps and An Unseen Diamond Mine, Wednesday, July 21

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Ali took me around on the motorbike for a bit of a tour before heading to UN since I have not had a chance to see much. We did not have a lot of time but we could drive around a bit.

The amputees are innocent civilians who did not run fast enough from the rebel forces during the civil war and ended up getting their limbs randomly and brutally hacked off. Many died form bleeding and infections, but some reached humanity ( hospitals or refugee camps) and survived. The camps are clusters of small houses built by Norwegians some years ago to house the amputees and their families. The houses are falling apart at places but the Norwegians aren't around to fix them up anymore. Most amputees face financial hardship, disability and other health issues, not to mention the ghastly memories of the war.

The first amputee camp was kind of quiet, just a few kids and an old woman in the first house. She reached out to shake my hand with her hand which only had a thumb left. She was all smiles when she heard I was Michael's mom and wanted her photo taken with the kids.

The second camp was further away but similar to the first. A few kids were cooking around a three stone stove on the ground with a good fire going, and two old women came out to see us. They also smiled warmly when they heard I was Michael' mom, they knew and liked all the interns well as Ali explained. One woman had lost both forearms. She gestured for me to be in the photo with them, then the other woman said I should stay to eat with them. She had a broad smile on her face showing her toothless gums. This was overwhelming hospitality that made my eyes hot for a few seconds.

Next we went to a nearby mine after going through a check point. The roads were wider and better near the mine, no doubt to accommodate the 4x4's. Several guards shouted for us to get away, no looking around or taking photos. All I could see was the gate and the walls. Riding away I was not surprised by this treatment which was consistent with a policy to cover up the government sanctioned international exploitation.

I said good bye to Ali at the UN gate, told him to wear one of his two helmets and not to scare any more kids. It was quiet in the conference room and after sitting a while by myself I decided to go home.

The bike driver first wanted a higher price, then agreed to the usual price. As he started driving he said, "You are the only responsible people". I said,"Excuse me?" He said " you are the only responsible one, people here are terrible, terrible". He must be referring to the UN workers but I thanked him anyway.

We went to "Sunshine" for dinner. It was a little place in an actual house, not a stand made by sticks, frequented by the the interns. It has actual tables. Kulani hasn't eaten all day so she took a bike over and we walked. Michael and I shared a plate of rice with soup on top and literally two bites of beef. On our way back BJ bought bread drizzled with sweetened condensed milk which he liked. We also bought two papayas which turned out to be rock hard-- a great disappointment because we were expecting the same juicy sweet fruit like the one we had Sunday night.

I wondered out aloud: why did the they take both her arms, Kulani said why did they take any one's arm. Raphi said usually the victims were asked to choose "long sleeve or short sleeve".

This is not an easy internship.

Wednesday--Last Day, July 21, 2010

78c




Michael was at breakfast for a few minutes before setting out for work. His project has to be revamped, the every-third-person-on-the-street sampling now needs to be changed to house-to-house sampling. To do this Bailor will have to meet with all the chiefs and the neighborhoods mapped out. A set back but hopefully in the right directions.

It was raining but Ali did not worry about it. We rode for a few minutes before stopping at a ruin resembling a gas station when the rain got heavier. My hair was now a complete mess, not that it was anything to look at before. It has been bad hair day everyday. Ladies can you imagine not having electricity in the morning? Val gave me a battery operated fan which I use everyday, sometimes as a hair dryer. I also use her Swiss army knife daily, she really knew what to bring. What I need is a battery operated curling iron if they make such an item. It really does not matter that much how I look here, or anywhere else really.

The clinic was full of people when we arrived at 9AM, the result of the radio interview. All adults. We kicked into high gear right away but still had to close the registration at 10. After catching up we reopened the registration at noon. "Always waiting till the last day", both Bailor and Sahr James shook their heads.

People crowded right outside the door watching carefully for their turns, shouts broke out every now and then. Some came around the back and watched us from the window. Val had told me the time in Haiti when there was almost a riot with people fighting to see the dentist. This wasn't like that but still a bit intense.

I did not take a break, too many people were right outside the door and no one else mentioned lunch. I saw Michael walking by with two sandwiches in one hand, and eating the third one in his other hand. Apparently a woman comes to the clinic most days and sells stuff off her basket. Good news is interns always find food, bad news is they will all need to be dewormed the way they have been eating on the streets. To decide which worm to deworm one has to give a stool sample, which is a problem because no one is 'regular" due to a low fiber diet. Raphi also wonders how much sample to give when one does produce.

The registration clerk came in to tell us Uncle Ben had brought two people to be seen, Sahr James took their files and put them in order. A little later Uncle Ben came in to express a desire of moving his people up. Sahr James said half jokingly that would be CORRUPTION, Uncle Ben said with a smile, no, that would be CONSIDERATION. Not getting a response from Sahr James Uncle Ben must have gone to Bailor because a few minutes later Bailor called saying it would be MY CALL to move them up or not. Talk about being put on the spot!! Uncle Ben had been very accommodating to our group and I'd like to help, but I don't see how they could get pass the crowd right outside the door. Sahr James had an idea: Just explain the situation. He went out and asked if it would be all right for me to consult with Uncle Ben's family first since I had been staying at their guest house. Apparently people said okay and problem solved. I told Sahr James he had missed his calling of being a professional conflict resolution expert. Well, actually he is one everyday I suspect.

After a review session with Sahr James, it was time to say good bye. Photos were taken and hands were shaken. Everyone thanked me and asked when I'd be back again. I hopped on Ali's bike and waved.

What I did here the last few days was not even a drop in the bucket!! What they do everyday is the real story.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Kaiba was early today so we set out in the morning cool air. He said lots of his friends had heard the radio interview and really appreciated the free care.

Going through town I spotted Michael sitting in a chair next to a stand waiting to interview every third willing participant. kaiba stopped to buy bottled water for the dental clinic and two of Michael's translators--Anthony and Tomba, came up to give me high fives. They are both teachers and the most polite, friendly, and mild mannered people around. Kaiba and I kept going and around the corner Abu waved at me on his way to meet up with Michael. All these greetings made me feel like a local now.

The generator was working so Ali did not have to fix anything. He spent time in the room to learn to assist per Sahr James's request. As soon as the generator was turned on several employees came in the room to charge their cells. I remembered both my laptop and cell were running low and needed charging, so I plugged in too, feeling kind of like a blood sucking parasite.

To my distress it was a day of advanced dental infections. A parade of 8 or 10 patients all had swellings on different parts of their faces one after another. Quite a few adult patients came because they had heard the radio interview, but I only had 5 patients who were under ten and 3 of them were in the clinic because their parents were coming anyways for medical problems.

A 4 year old boy came in and right away emitted a blood curling scream after Ali said something. Turned out Ali told him he was going to get a circumcision, which the boy happened to have just had and he still remembered the pain. He would not stop his screams and Ali started to order him to stop. Sahr James sent Ali out the door and the boy finally calmed down. After he was done the mother sent his 9 year old sister in. What a smiley and happy little girl. We joked around and "snapped" some pictures which the kids loved to see.

I have picked up some Krio words: swalla you peets ( swallow your saliva), toot shakin (tooth loose), pullou (extraction), filla (filling), bettown(bite down), lock you mout (close your mouth), snap (take a photo), pikin ( children), small-small (slow, or,just a little), you see (she said). "Lock you mout" is my favorite.

I gave Sahr James and Andrew each a bottle of OFF, they were so happy you'd think they had just won the lottery. After saying good by to Bailor, who was very tired from an all night emergency, I headed to the UN compound--the bastion of electricity and wifi. I was really behind on my blog and I wanted to update it before I forget things. Reading comments from friends back home made me shed a few tears; I don't really know why. Maybe it is the feeling that the burden is lighter when it is shared.

A young SL man came in and introduced himself as Thompson to Raphi and me. He works for the Government election commission and is in Koidu a few months to set things up for the election. He showed me a photo of his wife who was studying medicine in another town. No one lives with their family here because of jobs, even Bailor commutes. Sasko who cleans the clinic is the only one who lives with his wife, in the storage room next to the clinic.

Michael called and was upset I was still at the UN at 8pm. "It is dangerous after dark and it is raining, you need to come home right now" he said. Thompson offered to give me a bike ride to pay back for borrowing my charger/adaptor. This was nice of him because he himself was a visitor still trying to find his way. He drove carefully through the evening streets which was not as dark tonight, maybe I was starting to get used to things here. He said he tried to be careful in a new place, and asked to know more about Buddhism when we talked about religion. Impressed by Thompson's poise ad simple confidence I told the interns about him. Kulani wanted to know if Thompson was part of the SL election fraud.

Ramen noodles and canned Sardine from the Lebanese grocery store for dinner. The sardines were surprisingly good packed in with a small piece of red chili pepper. BJ thought Raphi and I were completely weired eating sardines. Michael went to bed so he could get up at 7 again to hit the streets.

I wonder if more children would come to the clinic tomorrow, my last day.

The Radio Interview

Monday, July 19, 2010

I envisioned a radio station in the middle of town like Channel 3 in Champaign, well it was on top of a high hill. Ali's bike made it which was a miracle. The path on the way up would have been rated as "very difficult" in any US parks due to steepness, rocks, ruts, roots, winding narrowness--. We got to a very small building with a huge antenna and loud speakers blasting BBC News. Bailor was there and we waited for Sahr James and the moderator.

The station care taker was very friendly and wanted to show me his garden of cassava and corn. I followed him and his little girl over a small hill to his lush hill garden. It had a great view of the whole koidu town including the soccer stadium I visited on Sunday. He built the small stone house in the middle of the garden himself; his garden provided food and a small income. The beauty and peace of this side of the hill was unreal, almost biblical

Back to the station and we were ready to start. The studio was tiny with the three of us, the moderator, and all his equipments. He needed to get outside at one point and he literally climbed over Bailor to do so. The interview started at 6:18 which was excellent. First the moderator asked for introductions. Bailor and Sahr James both said "me na" followed by their names, so I said "me na is Chifan Cheng". This caused Sahr James to topple over with muffled laughs. The moderator asked me if I was Chinese, Japanese, or Korean. Next were the discussions on cavity prevention, oral hygiene and sweets, Bailor and Sahr James in krio and I, surprise surprise, in English. Sahr James answered each questions by first saying emphatically "Thank you Mr Moderator for the good question' which was very gracious, so Bailor and I started doing it too.

A flicker of light and the power was out for a few seconds. We got back on and the moderator said "sorry about that break" into the microphone. We talked about diet, and the free dental work we had been doing at the clinic. All of a sudden, TOTAL DARKNESS!! And everything stopped. Since the time I was locked in the bathroom of an American Airlines Regional jet I could not stand small spaces, let along a DARK small space. I could feel the rising urge to scream, to gasp for air---. Just then Bailor opened the door and I bursted out into the open air.

About 10 minutes later we returned to the studio, and the moderator said "sorry about that break" into the microphone. Bailor continued to talk about the clinic which offered free care to children before the government started doing so, he encouraged people to bring their "pikin" (children ) to the clinic for a dental exam on Tuesday and Wednesday this week 9am to 4pm. He went on with the new ultrasound service which was to start in August, which cost a fraction of what the hospital would charge. The moderator texted on his cell while Bailor talked. Then it was closing words. I said I really enjoyed meeting the people of koidu and I hope restorative dentistry could be offered in the near future to help save teeth, in addition to pulling teeth. Sahr James did a summary of hygiene and diet, and Bailor gave a reminder about visiting the clinic the next two days before the "specialist" leaves on Thursday. It was now 7pm and there was no time left for call-in questions which was what I had been looking forward to.

We all agreed the interview went reasonably well. On the way down I talked Ali into just letting me walk the steep part; he was macho enough to agree. I got home and Alisame was around to help cook my Ramen noodles and Raphi's fresh corn. The corn was considered to taste like cardboard by the interns; Michael was convinced they were feed corns. But I liked them and got to keep the last ear for tomorrow.

Going to bed I thought about the events of the day. Never a dull moment in this place!! I think Raphi should interview me as a PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) patient.