Week 3! Time is really flying...

It's the end of week three! I can't believe it. In less than 5 days, we'll be on our way to climb Mt. Kenya...This week was pretty eventful: we participated in our first tumor board, which was really interesting because although it was similar to what we get exposed to back home, it was also different in many ways. With limited resources, access to certain medical care, and cost all being major issues, a lot of thought goes into determining what is feasible for many patients...In other news, there was a terrorist attack in Nairobi a few days back (with at least 8 people now reported dead). We were lucky to be safe and away from it all in Kijabe. In terms of the adventures we've had, last weekend was more hiking, zip-lining and archery. And this weekend will be more of the same, with a possible horse-back ride. Its been rainy and thundering this week, but that hasn't stopped us one bit!

The cutest little lamb that Dr. Garcia saw on one of her hikes (I think its just a day old)

At the "The Forest" enjoying a delicious dinner with Dr. Garcia, Ginger, Phillip and Nicholas :)

Dr. Garcia showing off her mad archery skills-- seriously, she's so good at it!

 

Archery competition....no surprise, I lost. And the instructor was helping me the whole time (I think he felt bad for me)

THE BEST ZIP-LINING GROUP EVER

Enjoying DELICIOUS chai at the top of the hill. Seriously this stuff is so good...

HIGH GRADE RENAL SARCOMA (It was a huge kidney mass!)

Interesting papillary neoplasm in the colon: it was signed out as at least high-grade intra-epithelial neoplasia/dysplasia with complexity worrisome for adenocarcinoma

UNTIL NEXT TIME :)

~ROUBA 

Another week of crazy cases and good times :)

So much to do, so little time! Kenya continues to be generous with us; the weather has been beautiful, with mostly sunny days and clear skies. We've been able to go on so many amazing hikes (often times just trekking up to very top of the hill), to train for Mount Kenya. Last weekend we explored Hell's Gate, one of the national parks where we saw zebras, warthogs, buffalo and giraffes. And this weekend we hiked Mount Longonot, an inactive volcano that actually has a forest covering the crater floor, ending the day with a refreshing swim at a nearby resort's pool. But in the midst of all this fun, we're also working hard! Almost every day we're seeing challenging and super interesting cases, admixed with routine things as well, which is a great balance. The pathology staff here is awesome, and though we're working with limited supplies (no cassette printer here, we hand-write our own cassettes), we get through pretty well, learn a lot, and have a great time doing it!

 

What sunset and sunrise looks like for us nearly every day.

Family dinner time!

Two incredible ladies we saw on a morning walk balancing bags, suitcases and their babies!

At the top of Mount Longonot; that little girl just casually doing the splits is 6 years old, and this was her 6th time up the mountain with her parents!!!!! I mean, talk about a cool family. PS she was also doing cartwheels up there while everyone else was practically passed out from exhaustion... 

Crater with forest covering the entire floor (the peak behind us is where we hiked to!)

Clinical history provided: Intussusception. We had to call the surgeon and tell him about the florid lymphoma part...

8 year old child with a neck mass--another surprise to us and the clinicians! We favored a salivary gland adenocarcinoma. 

:)

Rouba

Kenya-Week 1!

It's been an exciting and eventful first week here in Kenya! From a luxurious evening at the DoubleTree Hotel in Nairobi, to getting lost on my first run--although I (Rouba) did get to see a donkey up close so can't complain too much..., a monkey invasion which was OUT OF CONTROL and one of the most beautiful hikes I've ever done: this place is truly something else.

DAY 1/2: Rochelle, Ginger and I leaving the DoubleTree...I miss it already: best. showers. ever.

At the top of the hill, my first view of Kijabe. We gained elevation pretty quickly!

Our only evidence of the monkeys...Unfortunately Rochelle was a little too busy chasing them out to take pictures

There were so many animals that we got to see up close on the hike: donkeys, sheep, cows and the infamous monkeys (I will admit the latter are my least favorite...a pack of them came into the house and ate all of our bananas and mangos; and then proceeded to poop on our floor. Little buggers)

Views on our first hike up the hill.

Rochelle practicing her ukulele before dinner :)

Our first set of PAPs!!!

So far, I can honestly say that there hasn't been a single dull moment here in Kenya! There's always somewhere new to explore and interesting people to meet. Everyone here is truly incredibly kind and Kijabe itself is absolutely beautiful. The cases we see at work are a mix of standard to challenging and really rare. I'm looking forward to the days ahead. 

Until next time!

~Rouba