On The Dock

I've recently been considering how we've adjusted to life here.  Things we thought were unusual when we came last year are, well, normal.
Last week's Thursday night community meeting was a dock party. That's when we have a picnic dinner on the dock, followed by music and speakers.  So we enjoyed our hot dogs while talking to a newly arrived dentist from Switzerland.  The African band started playing and people are up and dancing!  Kids join in the conga line and some of the nurses bring patients down the gangway from the hospital ward.  There are women in hospital gowns dancing- and yes- I saw one women dancing while holding her catheter bag.  We then listened to two speakers- one from New Zealand and the other from Holland.  They both had French translators for the African day crew.  It was a great evening.

dock party

On Friday night we had fun at a barn dance.  No barn- just the dock, and led by an Australian nurse with music from a CD.  Actually, in Australia it's sometimes called a bush dance.  We had line dances and circle dances with adult crew, teens and kids.  We danced in the hot evening air- yes, it's hot here even when the sun goes down.  We were so sweaty that our hands stuck together when we clapped.  We took a break from the dancing to go up the gangway, check in with the Gurkha guards, and grab something to drink from the dining hall.  Then we were all back out on the dock for some more dancing.  

Debbie