Home Sweet Home

Woke up at 2 am on Sunday morning to finish packing before heading for the airport at 3:30 am. As we all stumbled in to the lobby with all of our luggage, it was obvious that we were going to miss our morning cup of joe as even the Dunkin' Donuts was not open upon passing it in route to our flight. We arrived at the airport by 4 am and we began our check in process. First was our luggage check and then we headed to the exit fee line. They charged us $40.80 to leave the country of Ecuador, and it became mighty tempting for many of us to claim no money to have to stay behind. On our way up the escalator we encountered an open coffee shop, so we ordered 12 ounces of glorious caffeine and made our way to the immigration line. Once we got our passports stamped it was time to head to the terminal. We promptly began boarding our plane at 6 am and pushed away from the hangar at our designated 6:35 am flight time. After ten minutes of inching along the runway the captain announced over the intercom that one of the engines did not pass the check and that we were going back for maintenance to come look at it. For the next hour we sat on the plane wondering when we would be back in business and could head home, but then the next announcement was made that for our comfort we were going to disembark and return to the terminal so it wouldn't be so uncomfortable. After sitting in the terminal for another couple of hours the announcement finally was made that the flight had been cancelled and to return to the ticket line to receive vouchers for a hotel and food. All 200 of the passengers traipsed back to the ticket line to begin our next four hours of standing/sitting in line to find out what was in store for us next. After much debate and arguing we were all able to check in to the Marriott hotel and finally arrived there at 3 pm (without luggage as we were told that it was too difficult to get our baggage). The weather was perfect, so Rachel, Ruth Ann, and myself headed across the street to the large park and strolled through the booths and just enjoy a nice walk. I finally stopped at one of the vendors and bought a t-shirt so that I didn't have to wear the same shirt the next day that I had worn all day. Around 8, we headed to dinner and as I started to fall asleep at the table, I headed back to the room to get some rest so that we could return to the airport the next morning by 5:30.

The next morning, we hopped in to a cab and headed to the airport. 6:30 came, 7:00 passed, and soon it was approaching 8 am and we still had no word when we would be departing. The announcement was finally made that a maintenance crew had been flown in the night before and they had spent all night attempting to fix our airplane and that we should be able to leave by 10. At 9, we finally learned that our airplane was still not fixed and that we would be taking over the 9:30 flight out and the people who were scheduled for that flight would need to wait for our original plane to be fixed. We finally flew out of Quito aroun 10 and arrived in Miami at 5. We were told that while in flight that all of our tickets would be adjusted since most of us would miss our connections. So, when I got to the counter in Miami I was sorely disappointed to find that I was not going to get home that evening and would need to spend the night in Miami. I asked, how far can you get me, and she said either Dallas or Chicago, so I asked to fly me to Dallas and put me on stand-by for Kansas City. Three hours later we landed in Dallas and as we stepped off the plane those in our group who had not been able to connect to KC stopped at the closest ticket booth and the best agent in the world overfilled the plane to get many of us seats!! At 11:15 pm, we descended in to Kansas City and I had the biggest smile on my face. I was home and I was going to get to see my girls, even if they were sleeping and didn't know I was there.

Mike drove me to Cerner so that I could catch a ride with Stephen since he didn't get off till midnight. As I was waiting for him to get off, he got involved in a call and we didn't leave there till 1 am. By 1:30 in the morning I was finally headed to bed and get some much needed rest. I slept in some the next morning, but was at work by 9 am to start getting caught up on everything that had been piling up in my abscence.

Although it was a struggle to get home, I still treasure this trip forever. Many invaluable lessons were learned and much love and appreciation were gained throughout. I will never forget the time that I shared with 21 loving and giving individuals (my MMF team) and cannot wait for the next opportunity that I may have to serve in this capacity again.

Now begins the next step in my life. Thank you to all who have checked in often to read of our adventures and for all of the well wishes and prayers.

The return to the northern hemisphere is imminent

I woke up bright and early this morning and took one more stroll through the grounds of our resort. I was greeted with a clear view of the volcano Antisana, with its snow-capped top, before the clouds descended and hid it from view. By 9 am, we all were loaded back on to the bus to begin our trip back to Quito and visit the meeting of the hemispheres. We arrived at Mitad del Mundo around noon and began the tour of the museum and also experimented in many activities that can only be performed on the equator. There was the loss of balance when trying to walk a straight line, trying to balance an egg on a nail (Mike was the only one in our group to balance the egg which earned him the title of Egg Head, well that's my title for him, I'm sure the official title was a little nicer), the loss of resistance and many other interesting factoids of the middle of the earth. We piled back on to the bus and headed to the other equator line (this was the original equator line marker, until GPS determined that it was off by 240 meters and a new equator line was marked which is the first stop we made of the day). By now it was around 3 pm, so we headed to our hotel to check in and then piled back on to the bus to head to the central market. We spent the next three hours shopping and then enjoyed one last Ecuadorian meal. One last stop of the night had us at the grocery store to stock up on more coffee and chocolate and then we returned to the hotel at 8. We leave for the airport at 4 am tomorrow and I should arrive back in to KC by 6:30 pm. I cannot wait to see my family and hear their familiar voices and receive my many hugs and kisses. I thank my husband for agreeing to my eight day foray and taking care of the children during my absence. I now close this chapter on my life, but the journey is not over, it is only a bridge to the next adventure.

Much love to the country of Ecuador and all of the love and compassions you have bestowed upon me and my companions. Until next time...hasta luego!

Adios Ambato

Well, today was our last day at the hospital. With a few more children and adults under our belts, we packed up our pharmacy and OR room and loaded up the bus. We finished handing out gifts to the many volunteers who have helped us this week and headed back to our hotel for the last time. We quickly finished packing and met everyone in the lobby to wait for the bus to pull back around so that we could load up our items. Our WONDERFUL and THOUGHTFUL med students/translators surprised us all with gifts from Ecuador. For each woman, a beautiful scarf was given and for each of the men an Alpaca woven hat. I wish these young men and women much success in their finishing years of school as each and every one of them will make wonderful doctors/surgeons. Thank you to each of them, as their superb knowledge of the English language made the "lost in translation" situation nonexistant.

We pulled out of the hotel by 12:30 to begin the long drive to our next destination. To save time, we asked the hotel to pack lunches for all of us so that we could eat on the bus. During the next four hours we were bombarded by breathtaking beauty as we climbed higher and higher in to the Andes. At one point, we could see the clouds below us and clouds whispering around us. I have never been at such an altitude where I feel like I am approaching the highest ends of the earth until today and a few miles out from our hotel, we pulled in to a rest stop and piled out of the bus to the most incredible view. We were each taking each other's photos, and upon reviewing mine, it looks like I have been Photo Shopped in to the photo as the background looks that unbelievable.



At 4:30, we arrived at Termas de Pappallacta resort and spa. The spa is located 40 miles east of Quito at the entrance to the Ecuadorian amazon jungle. Located all around our cabins are three types of springs, hot, warm, and cold. I never ventured in to the hot/cold, but spent some time relaxing in the warm spring. I checked out the services they offered and decided to undergo an Andean mud wrap. I have never had a mud wrap done before, but after being slathered with hot mud, saran wrapped in and piled with warm towels and left to soak for 45 minutes, I truly felt refreshed once I rinsed and went on my merry way.

Due to the altitude sickness, one of our doctors stayed behind in Ambato with Becky to meet up with us in Quito tomorrow and this evening another one of our group was hit with a stomach ailment. The rest of the group sans three met for dinner at 7:30 to yet another amazing meal. After eating, Beverly (the head of the mission trip) rewarded each of us with a certificate of appreciation for a job well done and many words of praise and thanks. There were many tears to be had around the table as each of us has become very close over this past week. Many of the nurses suggested that I would make a wonderful nurse and proposed a job change, but as I have another year of my MBA program left, I do not see that within the near future. But, I do plan to sharpen up my Spanish, so that if I come back next year, I will be more of an asset to the team as I can help translate!!

So, it is now time for bed in the chilly night air. As we were lying in the spas, we could see our breath, so I know the temperature has dropped below 40. We had to locate the heat in our room to nip the chilly air and upon returning from dinner the room had nicely warmed up. We plan to stroll the grounds early tomorrow morning and meet for breakfast at 8 and head out by 9 so that we can reach the Equator and straddle the hemispheres. One last full day in Ecuador and we then head out bright and early Sunday morning. Shopping will ensue tomorrow as I still have many gifts to buy, but there will be many hours for rest on the flight home.

Adios y buenas noches!

The week is coming to an end....

Today began bittersweet. Yesterday, during surgery, one of the members of our team, an OR nurse, became very ill. She was admitted in to the ER at the hospital we have been volunteering at with severe chest pains and shortness of breath. All of her symptoms were pointing towards a heart attack. After two EKG's and cardiac panels and multiple other tests, all of her tests were coming back normal. Unfortunately, her pain was not diminishing and there were two times when she truly believed she was dying. It was finally determined that she was suffering from altitude sickness, and although this can be very mild, it can also cause death. She was treated with diamox and the consensus was that for any future mission trips to such a high altitude that this will be given prior to leaving for the trip to prevent this type of problem again. Thankfully, she is doing better and was released from the hospital this afternoon, but for the next segment of our trip we are headed to higher ground, 10,800 ft while Ambato is at 8,500 ft.

With all of our worries with Becky, the mission still needed to go on and today we truly went further than we had the days before. We were down one OR nurse to altitude sickness, an anesthetic nurse to a stomach ailment, and another volunteer to a stomach ailment, too. Even with fewer numbers, we saw more patients in the clinic than we had in the past few days, and we performed more surgeries than the days before. In total, at this time, we have seen 127 children, 124 adults, and performed 42 surgeries. We ran out of presents to give the children, so over lunch a few of us hopped in to a cab and headed to the Mall of the Andes. We perused a few stores and found some more coloring books, crayons, and stuffed animals to last us through tomorrow morning when we close the clinic at 11. Just to see the children's eyes light up when you hand them a gift is worth all of the running around that it took to gather what we needed.

The last surgery of the day today is an interesting story. Yesterday, as a group of us were standing around in the lobby waiting for the bus to pick us up, an older woman walked in with her family to visit someone in the hospital. Dr. Gutek looked at her, then looked at us and said, I can fix that. She had a prominent cleft lip. Our translators were standing with us and we asked them if they would go speak to her and ask her if she was interested in having surgery to fix her lip and she said yes! She came to the clinic this morning for a check-up before surgery and as she was giving us her information, it came up that she was born the year of the devastating earthquake that destroyed Ambato in 1949. Dr. Gutek performed the surgery this afternoon, and by 6:00 she was released to come home and the rest of the team headed back to the hotel.

Tonight was our recognition dinner that the hospital held for us. I cannot even express how exciting the night was! There were traditional Indian dances performed while we ate, and for the finale they brought many of us out to dance with them! Yep, you know it, I was chosen to dance. For those of you who know me well, you know that I don't dance. But, guess what, I did it anyway! We were gifted with beautiful purses from Ambato and a certificate of appreciation. As I was headed back to my room for the night, one of our translators gave me a documentary of Ecuador that I cannot wait to go home and watch. We are already talking about coming back next year, and adding on some days to go to the Amazon. I, also, promised some of our translators that I would work on my Spanish so I will not need to be so dependant on them next year.

I do have some pictures of today and our evening, but it is too late to download and post, so I will attempt to get them added tomorrow. Tomorrow is a short day, as we will be wrapping up by 11 and then checking out of the hotel and then begin our five hour trek to Termas de Pappallacta. Depending on when we arrive and if there is internet service will determine whether or not I am able to update the blog tomorrow. We will then be heading to Mitad del Mundo and then back to Quito, so this may be my last blog till I get back to the States. It is obvious that we have changed many lives this week, but the one I can relate to the most is my own. The Ecuadorian people and their culture have found a way in to my heart that can never be replaced. I will be back here in some capacity in the future as the love and joy expressed here is so monumentous and branding to the heart and soul.

Buenas noches mi amigos!

Guinea Pigs, Dogs, Cows, and Pigs

Today was another full day of surgeries at the hospital for our two plastic surgeons. Our first patient was a two-year old who had spilt hot water over his entire body and had already undergone two previous surgeries. Today's surgery was to enable him to lift his left arm higher than his shoulder as the burns had left him unable to do so. It broke my heart as he knew what was ahead of him for the day and he just didn't want to do it anymore. Our morning continued with repairs to cleft palates, release of scars, and various other surgeries to correct the many issues that these patients had been living with. I went in to the OR during a period when no patients were being worked on and am including a picture of us. After the surgeries had wrapped up I headed down to the clinic, but they were already starting to shut down as the number of patients had trickled down and we were setting out for tonight's adventure: a trip to Quizapincha, a small village outside of Ambato. They are known for their numerous leather shops, and upon arriving I understand why. It was shop after shop after shop of leather goods, so much that the smell became overpowering after some time. On the drive there, I was able to capture some photos that I had wanted to be able to show: the dogs on the roof and the cows on leashes. The fifteen minute drive to the village was full of some quite amazing views. We could see the entire city of Ambato below us and the magnitude of the size of this city just blew me away.












We then spent the early evening trying on leather jackets, leather boots, and leather hats. I managed to leave the city spending no money (all because the guy didn't want to come down on the price of the leather jacket I really wanted), but was privy to some rare sightings in town. A group of people called the Amerindians live high in the Andes mountains and we found one family walking their mule back home and I had to chase down a man who was walking his pig somewhere.

















We finally finished our shopping and headed back to the hotel. The nice volunteer who was driving us around listened to me stating that I had yet to see the famous delicacy fancied by the locals called cuy (guinea pig flayed on a spit) so she was nice enough to take us to a part of town that vendored these on the side of the road :) Not much else to relay for today. I came back to the hotel after our outing and enjoyed a nice dinner in the hotel with my roomie, Peg, and am now getting ready to call it a night so that we can approach tomorrow with a clear head as it is the last full day of surgeries and clinics that we will be hosting for this years mission.

It is my belief that dogs live on roofs in Ecuador

It is so nice to finally be settled in at my hotel after such a long day. I have pictures to post, but I have not downloaded them, as of yet, and I am mucho tired after this 17 hour day. So, I will edit this post tomorrow and fill them in with the text. Today began at 6am with cafe con leche (coffee with hot milk) and pineapple for breakfast. The nice chefs in the hotel also made me an omelet with goat cheese (queso), champognes (mushrooms), y peppers. (And, yes, I have found that I am now speaking Spanglish quite often, so please excuse me when I throw in Spanish words here and there.) We loaded the bus at 7am to begin our ascent up the mountain for our second full day at the hospital and found that operations would be delayed by 30 minutes as we could not locate any staff to get our instruments sterilized. So, lesson learned, when staff cannot be found, check the breakroom! In the meantime, we were able to prep our first two patients (Dr. Gutek's first patient was a no-show, but we found out that the baby woke up with the flu and would be unable to get her cleft palate repaired at this time, but his second patient had arrived early so we quickly compensated and moved him up to the first slot of the day). The morning flew by quickly with our early kiddos and we escaped to the lunch area around noon to be greeted with a true Ecuadorian lunch! A group of volunteers from the hospital had gone shopping the night before and provided our hotel with the ingredients to prepare beef with onions and peppers over angel hair pasta, vegetable medley, the famous aji sauce that I have come to love so much and a dessert to fall over for (I think it contained some form of lemons or some equivelant fruit that I have no name for).

After lunch, I traded spots with Mike (my comprade from Cerner) so that he could go up to surgery and post-op for awhile and observe the afternoon cases. I soon took over the clinic logs by filling in any patients that were being seen by either the pediatrician or with our doctor who specializes in hypertension and Type II Diabetes and detailing the treatment provided in our documentation. The afternoon was definitely much slower compared to the morning, but after speaking with one of our translators I confirmed that siestas are taken seriously in South America, too. Now, how do we get that fad to take on in the US??? At 4:30 we had discharged all of our surgery patients and had finished up in the clinic and we all boarded the bus to head out for a speacial treat.....we were headed to the city of Banos!

Banos, located about an hour southeast of Ambato, is settled in to the base of the most active volcano in the area, the Tungurahua. The drive there was one of the most spectacular and thrilling that I have ever been on. The roads wind endlessly, climbing and then falling down grades that have to be sharper than Lombardo Street in San Francisco. And the views!!! I have no words to explain the beauty of Ecuador. I am awestruck at how this country has developed and how they have managed to carve a life in to the terrain of the Andes mountain ranges. One common theme, as we drove through many rural areas, were the sheer amount of dogs that were hanging out on the rooftops. I do not know how they got there and/or why they want to be there, but I have not captured that photo yet, but it is worth seeing a bichon on a rooftop :) We pulled in to Banos (this drives me nuts that I don't know how to add the tilda on top of the 'n', but just know that one belongs there) around 6:30 and our group of 27 piled in to a local restaurant to place our orders and then head out for shopping while they prepared our meals. I started in one of the small squares in the city and marveled at the pristine beauty located in such a simplistic setting. I then set out to peruse the shops, but found I did not buy anything as nothing captured my eye (every store seemed to have the same type of items and it was hard to buy when I found nothing unique about the "tourist items" that were for sale). I then found my way to the main square of the town which contained the Basilica of the Virgin of the Holy Water. When I arrived the main doors were open and Mass was setting to begin. I quietly stepped inside and was floored by what I encountered. The floors were comprised of green and white tile, the walls were covered in huge murals, and the art inside depicted the Virgin's miracles and volcanic eruptions. Absolutely stunning! I soon discovered that dinner time was approaching so I strolled the mile back to the restaurant and found a place to sit and await my dinner of peppered steak, green beans/carrots/zucchini, and a bowl of potatoes in goat cheese. One couple was already in the restaurant eating dinner when we quickly overtook the inside like vultures. I felt so sorry for them as we are not quiet and it was a small place. We were then joined by a Danish group of 10 and completely filled up all the seats. A local Indian band then packed themselves around our tables (I know we were well over a fire hazard at this point) and started playing the most amazing local music. Many members of our group got up to dance and the entire night of dining turned in to a masterpiece of comraderie. Companionship, music, drink, and good food allowed the night to end on a beautiful note. We all sleepily climbed back in to the bus for our trek back to Ambato and quickly retreated to our rooms for a busy day of surgeries por manana (another tilda on that one, too).

On that note, I shall end this post, but will be sure to add the photos from today as soon as I can. Hasta manana y buenos noches!

Tienes valor!

We began this morning at 6:30 am with a wonderful breakfast spread of fresh fruits and the most delicious coffee I have ever tasted! I could truly become addicted to that drink. We then loaded the bus at 7:00 am to head to the hospital for our first day of surgeries and clinics. Here is the first group that headed to the hospital as this was the surgeons, anesthesiologist, pre-op, PACU, and OR nurses (and myself). The clinic group joined up with us an hour or so later to begin their visits at 9 am. Our first patient of the day was the sweetest little girl who was having some repairs done to burns on her face. We then moved to our first cleft lip repair of the day on a four year old little guy. I was able to see him in the PACU, too, and met his father who held him throughout the time that he was reacclimating himself to his surroundings. Our next little girl was having some burns on her foot repaired that she received from walking through hot ash. All smiles in this picture, but I was able to observe her in PACU, as well, and she was definately NOT happy with us at that point. She'd had enough with the IV and the waking up in strange surroundings. Our next surgery for the day was the most beautiful two-year old boy. He was born with an extra digit on his left foot and the doctors were able to remove it. His smiles melted my heart and when he woke up from his surgery he was still smiling! I don't think I heard him whimper at all. Tienes valor! We then admitted

our next child, this little guy also needed a cleft lip repaired. I was able to go in and observe his surgery and watch the surgeon repair the muscle that circles around the mouth. After the surgery, I was able to console him as he was waking up from his anesthesia. Amazing what such a surgery can do for these patients. Our last surgeries before breaking for lunch were two brothers. One was two and he had a tumor in his hand that needed to be removed and the other a thirteen year old who also had a tumor to be removed. We then broke for lunch while we were prepping our afternoon cases which included four adults who were having burns and scars tended to.

That afternoon, when Dr. Hubbard (our anesthesiologist) was checking on our patients who were getting ready to head back for surgery, we encountered a national news station! They interviewed him and one of our pre-op nurses, Rachel, about coming to Ecuador and the experiences that we had already had since being here. Along with this news crew, a local news station also came and did more videoing and interviewing. I hear I made the 7pm news, but we were at dinner at the time, so none of us were able to see the airings. We also found in the local paper a picture of Rachel and Dr. Kolanda screening a patient with a very nice column about our mission.

Around 4pm we finally had our last patients in surgery so a small group of us were able to leave the hospital and head back to the hotel. When we arrived, our liason for this trip, Martha, suggested that we visit a local church on the main square in the town as it was only open till 6 pm. Upon arriving we were disappointed to find that it was not open, but Martha promised to go to 8am Mass in the morning and find out when we could visit. Since the church was located on the largest square in the city, we decided to wander through the grounds and admire the magnolia trees, various statues, and the many people that were strolling through and enjoying the day. I did want to add another photo as these vendors are all over the streets. The one I captured today was a fruit vendor, but there are so many types of carts selling some form of goods it is quite overwhelming.

When we returned to the hotel from our walk, Rachel and I headed to the gym for a quick run and then to meet up with a group to head to dinner at 6:30. We dined at an Italian restaurant, called Ali's, and enjoyed a fabulous dinner with fascinating conversations. I am now nicely relaxed in my hotel room listening to the rain fall outside my window. There are still many people walking about on the streets, but for the most part the city has gone to bed, as I should, too. Please remember to watch the mmfworld.org website for the blog that is being put up from a neutral party, so a better feel of what the entire mission is accomplishing as I cannot be in all places at once! Buenos noches!