After a month and some domestic shopping getting things back into your suitcases is a tall order
Packing up to clear out on short notice
I have been wanting to write more about everyday events and minor struggles. Staying healthy in Africa is one of our concerns. Food and water born illnesses are major risks and run the gamut from inconvenient and unpleasant (but rarely deadly) traveller's diarrhea to much more serious illnesses. The key is to be sure what you put in your mouth is clean. That is a much bigger challenge than I ever imagined. Water is the common ingredient here. We drink bottled water at all times and do not use ice nor do we use tap water for anything internal. We do not drink from bottles that have been opened except those in our possession since opening. We always check the seals!
We buy clean water in these jugs in large quantities and transport them back to the apartment by taxi. They run from 7 to 10 liters each and are heavy, but cheap. We are getting water about once a month for $30 or so. A daily task is to fill smaller bottles from these (a plastic funnel works well) and keep one these big ones in the refrigerator.
We have also perfected the art of reusing many of these for everything from wastebaskets to vegetable planters to soap dishes etc. There is a brisk secondary market in recycling these from what we can tell. We see guys on the street everyday picking these up and doing something with them to make money. Not much goes to waste in Africa, a trait we first noted in Ethiopia where even random lengths of string are gathered, tied together into longer pieces and resold by the poor.
All our vegetables and fruits are soaked in a dilute bleach solution for 15 minutes, even if we intend to peel or cook them. Then, they are rinsed in clean water. Sounds expensive doesn't it? One of our tools is a homemade water filtration system the Peace Corps taught us to construct out of diatomaceous earth "candles" and 5 gallon plastic buckets. We filter about 5 gallons of water weekly of this and use it to rinse our food and dishes after washing them in hot water. Diatomaceous earth filtration removes about 99.9% of bacteria and parasites but does not catch viruses. Diarrhea inducing virus are like the Norwalk viruses that caused so much havoc on cruise ships. So far, so good.
You pour tap water into the blue bucket which temporarily sits on top of the white bucket. In 24 hours or so you have 5 gallon of rinse water. If you are out in the bush this is probably quite safe to drink. given our urban location and easy access to clean cheap water we are not drinking this filtered water.
Malaria and dengue are both nasty diseases for those without immunity and are endemic in Tanzania. Mosquitoes are everywhere in Dar so we are serious about taking precautions to minimize the bites, including mosquito nets where appropriate and generous application of DEET. We also take malaria prophylaxis in the from of doxycycline daily.
The Peace Crops does a very good job of education all volunteers regarding malaria and the case for prophylaxis. Volunteers have died from it. One died last year and her mother and the PC medical folks made a very powerful documentary about it. I want to commend the Peace Corps on its education efforts around staying healthy while serving abroad. They really do a good job of giving you the information and resources you need. I hope I never need the self diagnosis malaria test kit and medication we are all issued.
10L drinking water container
We have also perfected the art of reusing many of these for everything from wastebaskets to vegetable planters to soap dishes etc. There is a brisk secondary market in recycling these from what we can tell. We see guys on the street everyday picking these up and doing something with them to make money. Not much goes to waste in Africa, a trait we first noted in Ethiopia where even random lengths of string are gathered, tied together into longer pieces and resold by the poor.
All our vegetables and fruits are soaked in a dilute bleach solution for 15 minutes, even if we intend to peel or cook them. Then, they are rinsed in clean water. Sounds expensive doesn't it? One of our tools is a homemade water filtration system the Peace Corps taught us to construct out of diatomaceous earth "candles" and 5 gallon plastic buckets. We filter about 5 gallons of water weekly of this and use it to rinse our food and dishes after washing them in hot water. Diatomaceous earth filtration removes about 99.9% of bacteria and parasites but does not catch viruses. Diarrhea inducing virus are like the Norwalk viruses that caused so much havoc on cruise ships. So far, so good.
Blue bucket with candles
Underside of the blue bucket with the tips of the candles where water exits.
White bucket with spout containing filtered water
You pour tap water into the blue bucket which temporarily sits on top of the white bucket. In 24 hours or so you have 5 gallon of rinse water. If you are out in the bush this is probably quite safe to drink. given our urban location and easy access to clean cheap water we are not drinking this filtered water.
No Bite - Tanzanian made 30% DEET in the handy roll-on form. Standard Peace Corps issue!
Malaria and dengue are both nasty diseases for those without immunity and are endemic in Tanzania. Mosquitoes are everywhere in Dar so we are serious about taking precautions to minimize the bites, including mosquito nets where appropriate and generous application of DEET. We also take malaria prophylaxis in the from of doxycycline daily.
The Peace Crops does a very good job of education all volunteers regarding malaria and the case for prophylaxis. Volunteers have died from it. One died last year and her mother and the PC medical folks made a very powerful documentary about it. I want to commend the Peace Corps on its education efforts around staying healthy while serving abroad. They really do a good job of giving you the information and resources you need. I hope I never need the self diagnosis malaria test kit and medication we are all issued.
No comments:
Post a Comment