Writing from atop a tree house on the side of a volcano a bit out from Granada. It’s been a pretty relaxing weekend and it’s only Saturday arvo.. got here yesterday around lunchtime and for the most part have been in a hammock ever since (the rest of the time being spent either dancing or making the climb between the sleeping hammocks and bar). I’ve been enjoying watching the animals.. butterflies, hummingbirds, leaf-cutter ants trails from start to end, monkeys, and squirrels even. Still haven’t seen a scorpion but that might be for the best. Overall though it’s just a nice vibe here.. people just hanging out, chilling in the rain, or watching the silent electrical storms which I’m still wrapping my head around. The rest of the group arrived at dark and left in the morning but I’m making 48hrs out of it with no regrets (especially given the relief from the heat!). Have plans to make red curry for the host family tomorrow if all goes well.
Guys working on a centrifuge
This week has gone the fastest so far… perhaps because the pool/bar routine has become a bit too comfortable, so the days aren’t particularly distinguishable. Even winning rum at trivia is losing its novelty 😉 I also think going to the hospital in halves over Thursday and Friday might contribute to it, as suddenly Wednesday seems like the end of the study week. After learning about common repairs to more types of equipment we’re likely to come across in the hospital during the week we got to test out our diagnosis, repair and testing skills at Nandaime hospital this week. Last week the other group were asked to work on a microscope which turned out to have a fried lizard inside plus eggs which hatched. We returned with a replacement fuse only to further discover that the back of the circuit board had been charred to bits from (presumably) the lizard, so they weren’t too happy about that news. I think over the day though we put a reasonable amount of equipment back in service: some centrifuges, some autoclaves – pretty much all connection problems – an IV bag stand on an incubator, and almost some blenders from the kitchen. It’s a different dynamic working under such strong time constraints – I’m looking forward to being able to take time to read more and search for appropriate parts next month.
As for spanish classes, we’ve been powering through some more tenses this week (given that it’s review for most of the group) so I’m learning a lot but at a rate faster than I can keep up with in terms of practice, so there’s a bit of a delay but I’m trying. I had a reasonable conversation with a German nurse in the back of the ute on the way Poste Rojo for the first time at a comparable level to my catalan, and if my new 5 year-old friend keeps coming to our house and correcting my spanish and pretty much miming games with me then I should be ready for the hospital in no time.
what's deanna doing 
Sounds great Deanna. Thank you for keeping us all up to date with what you are achieving over there xxx
So good to catch up on all you’ve been up to 💕💕
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