We came back from holiday yesterday after a wonderful two weeks with David and his friend, Lucie. The last week was on the magical island of Zanzibar where we did all the touristy things:
- most of us (with one exception) spent time relaxing on the beach or by the pool
- we went on an enjoyable spice tour to see the varieties of spices grown on the island and to sample some local food
- we wandered around the main town (Stone Town) exploring the narrow allays and testing the restaurants and coffee houses
- Malcolm visited the remaining rain-forest and mangrove forest and walked among the unique red Colubus Monkeys, and dipped his hand into a nest of giant ants (the fool)
There was one complaint from Lucie – that we hadn’t explained in last weeks blog what a wonderful companion she was and how she livened up the conversation and holiday. So – Lucie was a wonderful companion and she really livened up the conversation and made the holiday more enjoyable for all of us.
We came back to Mvumi on Friday to discover that a lot had happened whilst we were away:
- after several delays the District Council finally visited the Ministry of Health in Dar es Salaam to discuss the transfer of the hospital to Designated District Hospital status. The Hospital’s chief nurse was involved and he also had separate meetings with the Civil servants. The good news is it seems that they have accepted all staff onto the Government payroll which should mean that in future there should be no more problems with the payment of their salaries, PAYE or National Insurance (if it actually happens).
- before Malcolm leaves in 2 weeks the Government want an updated budget so that they know what to fund. This needs to reflect that the Government will now pay for all drugs and many other costs but that some patients, such as children, expectant mothers and the elderly will not pay any charges, no-one will pay any more than 50% of the cost of medicines and the cost of major operations will increase.
- the Task Force Manager and Administrator met with the bishop to discuss hand-over arrangements and the future management of the Hospital. Malcolm understands the Bishop will want to see him next week.
The bad news was that whilst we were away not only did someone decide to demolish the door of an outside store to our house, but someone also broke into a neighbour’s house and stole a substantial sum of money and a lap-top. The most upsetting thing is that irreplaceable photos were saved on the lap-top.
Such is life in Tanzania (or probably most countries in the world, unfortunately).
So next week we return to work to close down our six months here:
- we hope to see the Bishop to discuss future options
- we start packing up – deciding what to take home and what to leave behind
- return to basic (economical) living again after a touch of luxury (expensive) e.g. Somewhere basic and simple (where we pay Tsh 500 for a bottle of coca cola at a restaurant) rather than the wonderful pampering, food and customer service at a luxurious place (where they charge Tsh 2,500 for a bottle of coca cola)
- most of us (with one exception) spent time relaxing on the beach or by the pool
- we went on an enjoyable spice tour to see the varieties of spices grown on the island and to sample some local food
- we wandered around the main town (Stone Town) exploring the narrow allays and testing the restaurants and coffee houses
- Malcolm visited the remaining rain-forest and mangrove forest and walked among the unique red Colubus Monkeys, and dipped his hand into a nest of giant ants (the fool)
There was one complaint from Lucie – that we hadn’t explained in last weeks blog what a wonderful companion she was and how she livened up the conversation and holiday. So – Lucie was a wonderful companion and she really livened up the conversation and made the holiday more enjoyable for all of us.
We came back to Mvumi on Friday to discover that a lot had happened whilst we were away:
- after several delays the District Council finally visited the Ministry of Health in Dar es Salaam to discuss the transfer of the hospital to Designated District Hospital status. The Hospital’s chief nurse was involved and he also had separate meetings with the Civil servants. The good news is it seems that they have accepted all staff onto the Government payroll which should mean that in future there should be no more problems with the payment of their salaries, PAYE or National Insurance (if it actually happens).
- before Malcolm leaves in 2 weeks the Government want an updated budget so that they know what to fund. This needs to reflect that the Government will now pay for all drugs and many other costs but that some patients, such as children, expectant mothers and the elderly will not pay any charges, no-one will pay any more than 50% of the cost of medicines and the cost of major operations will increase.
- the Task Force Manager and Administrator met with the bishop to discuss hand-over arrangements and the future management of the Hospital. Malcolm understands the Bishop will want to see him next week.
The bad news was that whilst we were away not only did someone decide to demolish the door of an outside store to our house, but someone also broke into a neighbour’s house and stole a substantial sum of money and a lap-top. The most upsetting thing is that irreplaceable photos were saved on the lap-top.
Such is life in Tanzania (or probably most countries in the world, unfortunately).
So next week we return to work to close down our six months here:
- we hope to see the Bishop to discuss future options
- we start packing up – deciding what to take home and what to leave behind
- return to basic (economical) living again after a touch of luxury (expensive) e.g. Somewhere basic and simple (where we pay Tsh 500 for a bottle of coca cola at a restaurant) rather than the wonderful pampering, food and customer service at a luxurious place (where they charge Tsh 2,500 for a bottle of coca cola)
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