tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-103318812011-04-21T13:45:38.674-07:00This blog is dedicated to Nupur (Nupe) Mehta's year long experience in South Africa. Check in to hear about my work on treating HIV, travel in Southern Africa, and my thoughts on random subjects...Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.comBlogger911100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1139774316072442932006-02-12T11:53:00.000-08:002006-02-12T11:58:36.096-08:00

Man, it only feels like yesterday when I first created this rambling, nonsensical blog, but sadly it's come time to retire this thing. If anyone is still reading this thing (which if you are, why?), I want to say thanks for sticking with me while I was in South Africa. I know I wasn't the best blogger out there, but I hope you found that some of the stuff I did and went through was

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1132731442932000052005-11-22T23:12:00.000-08:002005-11-22T23:37:22.950-08:00

This is a shot of beautiful Hout Bay just outside of Cape Town at sunset. When I said it was the most beautiful city in the world, yo, I wasn't kidding.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1132729701599595432005-11-22T22:59:00.000-08:002005-11-22T23:08:21.613-08:00

So the final reason why I think the AIDS epidemic is so prevalent in South Africa has to do with politics. The first group to blame is obvious. For 50 years the apartheid government systematically oppressed and subjugated 90% of the population (see previous entries ranting about these idiots). In an effort to divide and rule, in 1950 the National Party instituted the Group Areas act, which

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1130597636019448332005-10-29T07:40:00.000-07:002005-10-29T07:53:56.046-07:00

Beautiful single-roomed church in the middle of nowhere. There might not be running water, but you better believe they've got Jesus.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1130596713975879852005-10-29T07:37:00.000-07:002005-10-29T07:38:33.990-07:00

South Africa’s economy has long been dependent on mineral resources such as gold, platinum, and diamonds. In fact, the world’s most famous diamond monopoly, DeBeers is based in Johannesburg, a city whose nickname, Egoli, literally means “Gold City.” If you travel around Joburg now, you’ll see huge hills of golden, sometimes glittering dirt dug up fand deposited on what used to be completely

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1128971794886750912005-10-10T11:56:00.000-07:002005-10-10T12:16:34.893-07:00

Eastern Cape, with all it's problems, has this one really nice cloud (photo courtesy of Porter Mason photo courtesy service) Flynn drinking a gallon of Mqomboti, frothy fermented wheat based beer served in the Townships that tastes vaguely like grass. Alcohol content? 1.2% This means you have to drink this gallon to get one beer's worth of booze. Cost? 1 rand for all you can drink. Crazy, eh?

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1128970500264485002005-10-10T11:52:00.000-07:002005-10-10T11:55:00.280-07:00

The first reason why I think AIDS is so much more pervasive in South Africa is the long-standing poor treatment of women. At almost every HIV clinic in the country, you see long queues of women with very few men. But why does HIV disproportionately affect women? This is a very complex question to answer, but some reasons are because women are more likely to seek medical attention, the men

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1128686724523368512005-10-07T05:02:00.000-07:002005-10-07T05:08:44.580-07:00

I pose the subject as a question because honestly there isn’t a good answer. HIV prevalence is certainly growing in South Africa whereas it’s leveled off or declined in a lot of places (Uganda, Thailand, Brazil, Vietnam). Take a look at the numbers. In 1990, the antenatal seroprevalence, which is the % of woman who are positive at routine pregnancy visits, was around 0.8%. In the past 15 years,

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1126883630837887772005-09-16T08:02:00.000-07:002005-09-16T08:13:50.843-07:00

Anya showing a group of youths the correct way to put on a condom. Please note that the fake phallus is bright, nay flourescent, white. Me and Anya doing some really groovy surfer-action on top of Table Mountain

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1126882822907959962005-09-16T07:56:00.000-07:002005-09-16T08:00:22.916-07:00

So, as you know, I’ve spent a lot of time in Coffee Bay, notably at the main hostel there called the Coffee Shack. Well, after many visits, resplendent with (at the time, at least) meaningful conversations about the devastating effects of HIV in the country, the owners asked me to come do an HIV/AIDS awareness training for the staff and their families.I agreed and recruited Anya to come along to

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1125239795370394662005-08-28T07:31:00.000-07:002005-08-28T07:48:26.476-07:00

This is the Cape of Good Hope, which despite popular opinion is not the southernmost point in Africa, which is Cape Agulhas. Alas. It is however, really pretty. If you look closely you can see the lighthouse, which is very wee considering how important this spot is.The Mehta Family on top of Table Mountain. Awwww.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1125239405229433012005-08-28T07:28:00.000-07:002005-08-28T07:30:05.240-07:00

Cape Town, on the west coast of South Africa has often been described as the most beautiful city in the world. After my two times visiting there I may have to agree. It’s at least the most beautiful city I’ve ever been to. Cape Town has this amazing combination of gorgeous beaches backed by the sheer face of Table Mountain, so that no matter where you are in the city, you have this really cool

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1124825470362350302005-08-23T12:10:00.000-07:002005-08-23T12:31:10.370-07:00

Cool giraffe that we saw when the Mehta kids attacked Hluhluwe-Umfolozi game park last week. Did you know that giraffe's have the same number of cervical vertebrae as humans? Seven!

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1124824206467999432005-08-23T12:06:00.000-07:002005-08-23T12:10:06.480-07:00

OK, so as most of y’all know, the politics around HIV in South Africa are very complicated. As late as 2003, the SA government not only denied that HIV was a problem in South Africa, but also that HIV caused AIDS (what did cause AIDS no one had a good answer for). Fortunately, due to a lot of pressure from humanitarian organizations and patient advocacy groups (e.g. the Treatment Action

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1122287197460728472005-07-25T03:23:00.000-07:002005-07-25T03:26:37.470-07:00

Caution to my and Anya’s family who might be reading this. Please don’t interpret too much from this entry, the conditions I’m describing below can always be avoided if you’re not reckless and stupid. I’m not exactly sure how to express this moment, but I'll try. When I first got back to South Africa from the US, I made an emergency visit to the Eastern Cape to sort out some issues that had

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1122207207094446072005-07-24T05:08:00.000-07:002005-07-24T05:16:09.086-07:00

Here is a shot of Anya and I getting in touch with our inner selves on a very high ledge.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1122206468291663792005-07-24T04:41:00.000-07:002005-07-24T05:01:08.300-07:00

OK, OK, I hear you. I’ve been a real ass about keeping up with the blog. I’m very sorry, and I’m hoping I can win all of you back with loads of interesting stories, witty repartee, and pictures that will blow your socks off.So, here’s an outline (which will hopefully be a teaser) of what’s to come in the next week or so on the blog.• On a Horrifying Incident• On Me and the Deputy Minster being

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1119018377449324472005-06-17T07:25:00.000-07:002005-06-17T07:26:53.216-07:00

This is the view. Ridiculous.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1119018235444875862005-06-17T07:20:00.000-07:002005-06-17T07:23:55.450-07:00

This is the very nice pool in the new Durban apartment.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1119017735420414412005-06-17T07:14:00.000-07:002005-06-21T00:53:35.096-07:00

So, I’m back in South Africa after a lovely vacation in the US. Happy to be in Durban and writing on the blogskies. Oh, and to all my poor, poor friends who are starting internship in the next few days/weeks: good luck and Godspeed. I’ll be thinking about you when I’m sunning on the beach.Last night, I saw this movie called “My Own Country,” starring Samuel L. Jackson and Juliette Binoche. It

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1116855407654148142005-05-23T06:36:00.000-07:002005-05-23T06:36:47.656-07:00

OK, kids, 4 months in South Africa is almost up. I've moved into my new apartment in Durban (pictures to follow) and I'm coming back to the States for a couple of weeks to see some good friends get hitched, hang out with the folks, and basically chill with you all. I don't know how I'm going to contact peeps, but I can't wait to see you!My itinerary:May 26th through June 1st - Boston and

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1116170692910906252005-05-15T08:21:00.000-07:002005-05-15T08:24:52.916-07:00

The South African Minister (Ministress?) of Health, Dr. Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, recently came out against the use of ARV’s in people with AIDS stating that she felt ARV’s and their “aggressive” side effects were responsible for killing people. Her argument was that good nutrition and healthy living were far more important than anti-retrovirals and that she was concerned about the “rampant and

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1115115898431385972005-05-03T03:19:00.000-07:002005-05-04T07:05:27.396-07:00

Ridiculous sunset in the Southern Drakensberg.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1115115534914402112005-05-03T03:13:00.000-07:002005-05-03T03:18:54.916-07:00

Me conquering the Berg in my Red Sox gear (why do they suck this year, by the way?). You can see "Hole Mountain" in the background if you look closely

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1115113303800186842005-05-03T02:21:00.000-07:002005-05-03T03:08:01.420-07:00

There is a beautiful mountain range in South Africa bordering on Lesotho called the Drakensberg National Heritage Site. Drakensberg means "Dragonsville" (for Amanda the surname would be "McAwesometown") in Afrikaans. The Zulu word for the range, uKhahlamba, is far cooler and means "Barrier of Spears."Anyway, I spent the last two weekends hiking the Berg, as it is colloquially known, and let me

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1114776640081414902005-04-29T05:09:00.000-07:002005-04-29T05:11:29.136-07:00

This is a hippo crossing... Only in Africa my friends, only in Africa.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1114776284616855162005-04-29T05:03:00.000-07:002005-04-29T05:04:44.616-07:00

Me and Brad. He's so dreamy...(sigh)

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1114769524858230102005-04-29T02:57:00.000-07:002005-04-29T03:12:04.860-07:00

So, as you may have read or seen somewhere, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are vacationing in Africa. At the same time, Brad Pitt's production company is going around filming poor people for a documentary on HIV/AIDS. As part of that tour, he came by the Africa Center in Mtubatuba to see the facilty and film some of the homesteads around Hlabisa Hospital.So, Pierre and I were doing our monthly

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1114763228088654072005-04-29T01:24:00.000-07:002005-04-29T01:27:08.090-07:00

This was my dinner last night. Mom, please send food. Stat.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1114071877245011082005-04-21T01:22:00.000-07:002005-04-21T07:13:25.600-07:00

This is the most exciting piece of data to come out of Mhlontlo in the past 30 years. Here I show that by using IHI methods (and no additional resources) we can rapidly increase the number of people on treatment. Giddyup.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1114070949035396452005-04-21T01:07:00.000-07:002005-04-21T07:15:00.960-07:00

This is a really beautiful picture of a herd of buffalo approching our expedition while I was visiting Imfolozi. It's one of Pierre's favorite pictures, so I thought I would throw him a bone and post it on the site. Nature rules!

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1114070370662301092005-04-21T00:38:00.000-07:002005-04-21T00:59:30.663-07:00

As some of you might remember, a little over a month ago, I showed a picture of a small baby boy who was dying of AIDS. He had lost weight since birth and was incredibly lethargic, lacking the energy to even cry out. As I pointed out in my post, this child was being rejected by his HIV positive mother, who in retrospect, I believe had given up on him.I found out today that he died the day after

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1113811529108066662005-04-18T01:01:00.000-07:002005-04-18T01:07:28.986-07:00

This is my apartment in Umtata. I do realize the irony of ranting and raving about poverty when I am living in a sweet place like this, but hey, what's a boy supposed to do?

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1113810874507306562005-04-18T00:49:00.000-07:002005-04-18T00:58:20.446-07:00

Here she is, the beautiful Fantasma. Sorry it took me so long to show her to you.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1113378396842419202005-04-13T00:44:00.000-07:002005-04-13T00:46:36.850-07:00

Sorry it’s taken me so long to write this next entry, I promise there will be more in the next week. The picture posting has also gone wacky – not sure what the problem is with that – I’ll work on it. So, naturally, in my ultra-Guju way, I’ve been paying attention to how much things cost in South Africa (always looking for a good deal). It’s totally variable – my car, worth about 3000

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1112710383952183812005-04-05T07:10:00.000-07:002005-04-05T07:13:03.956-07:00

Sorry for the delay on the blog entries, I’ve been out of internet contact for the past week visiting Kwa-Zulu Natal. So after long wait, I got a new ride. It’s a beautiful 1997, 1.3 liter (litre?), 4 cylinder, cherry-red, Toyota Corolla. It’s absolutely gorgeous, with a sweet 200K kilometers (117K miles) on it. The car is totally pimp with water guards on all the windows and on the hood.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1112010160805681442005-03-28T03:42:00.000-08:002005-03-28T03:42:40.806-08:00

Beautiful outcropping outside of Coffee Bay on the way to Hole-In-the-Wall. Sweet.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1112010070242743952005-03-28T03:41:00.000-08:002005-03-28T03:41:10.243-08:00

In response to Parin's comment - I am not bored. Here, I'm waxing philosophic before doing a jump off a small cliff into a river. Hah!

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1112009940710277472005-03-28T03:39:00.000-08:002005-03-28T03:39:00.710-08:00

This is me imploring the congregation of nurses at the first learning session to please, please, please put more people on treatment.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1112009757095543042005-03-28T03:34:00.000-08:002005-03-28T03:35:57.096-08:00

So the IHI does this really cool thing called Collaborative Improvement. The idea is that a collaboration made of up groups from different places at different stages of development all working towards the same goal (MDRTB, cystic fibrosis, AIDS, whatever) have a lot to learn from each other. The times when these people meet together to share ideas and come up with new ones are called “learning

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111588773452870382005-03-23T06:39:00.000-08:002005-03-23T06:39:33.453-08:00

There's a bovine on the beach. Can anyone say Cow-a-bunga? Wooo, hah-hah-hah. Oh, man, that was classic, I slay me. Oh (wiping away tears), oh man, that was a good one.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111572898832910782005-03-23T02:14:00.000-08:002005-03-23T02:14:58.833-08:00

This is picture of a hand-drawn map of the Mhlontlo District, which is where I work. If you look closely, you can see that they've marked which of the clincs have voluntary counseling and testing (VCT), Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT), and which sites are providing ARVs. Our job now is to take treatment to the really rural places on this map like Qanqu and Mdyore.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111568042660574212005-03-23T00:50:00.000-08:002005-03-23T00:54:02.663-08:00

Molweni. Igama lam ngu Nupur. Ngubeni igama lakho? Pardon. Ngubani igama lakho? Yebo. Unjani? Upilile? Nam Dipilile. Ungahlala phantsi. Ndingakunceda njani? Dicela mqoshu. Dicela amansi. Dicela e Castle Ingosi. Ni Salagahlotle. That was everything I’ve learned so far in Xhosa. Here is the rough Translation. Hello y’all. My name is Nupur. Blanket is your name? Sorry. What

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111502126037027642005-03-22T06:35:00.000-08:002005-03-22T06:35:26.036-08:00

My first cooked meal in South Africa. Portuguese rice and beef stew. I promise that it tastes better than it looks.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111501975373975732005-03-22T06:32:00.000-08:002005-03-22T06:32:55.373-08:00

This is me standing on a precipice. Scary, yes, but don't I look cute?

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111502167931668802005-03-22T06:28:00.000-08:002005-03-22T06:36:07.933-08:00

The last in the four part series of being here a month. Ironically, by the time I’m finished with these four entries, the month will be over, and I’ll be on my “Wow-it’s-been-two-months-already-and-I-have-nothing-new-to-report” series.So, I’ve been watching a lot of South African TV lately because since I don’t have a car, it’s hard for me to get around in Umtata (not that I would go out anyway

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111070757385414582005-03-17T06:45:00.000-08:002005-03-17T06:45:57.386-08:00

OK, OK, so all ESPN.com can talk about is how the hated UNC Tarheels are going to win the NCAA's. I'm sick of it. Let's add some academic rigor to this debate.Here are the facts:1) Rashad McCants is a headcase2) They have the most talented team in the country, a supposedly excellent coach, plenty of experience, yet they continue to lose games they should easily win. I reference the ACC tournament

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111070556477009232005-03-17T06:42:00.000-08:002005-03-17T06:42:36.476-08:00

Carolina Sucks. Go Duke

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111069841693935862005-03-17T06:30:00.000-08:002005-03-17T06:30:41.693-08:00

This is what is going to happen at the NCAA tournament this year. Go Duke.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1111069673168979632005-03-17T06:27:00.000-08:002005-03-17T06:27:53.166-08:00

This is JJ Redick. ACC Player of the Year and Dragon Killer. Sure, he's a punk, but he's a punk with a sweet J. Go Duke.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1110898650799709962005-03-15T06:56:00.000-08:002005-03-15T06:57:30.810-08:00

Here’s the third in a series of “Gee-whiz-I-can’t-get-wireless-internet-at-the-coffee-shop-how-weird-is-that?” entries.So, when you go half-way around the world to a place where the water swirls counter-clockwise in the toilet bowl, you would expect that the palate would likewise behave differently. Well folks, it’s not really true, but there have been some interesting culinary adventures of

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1110898362048324572005-03-15T06:52:00.000-08:002005-03-15T06:52:42.046-08:00

This is a cool picture of a bird on a tree. Sorry kids, I'm stretching for pictures because I lost the cable to connect my camera to my computer so I have to dig into the old pics.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1110525574988617322005-03-10T23:11:00.000-08:002005-03-10T23:19:34.996-08:00

This is the second in the series of my “Oh-my-God-I’ve-been-in-Africa-for-a-whole-month-Egad!” perspective entries. Man, I did a terrible job packing. First of all, I brought way, way, way too much stuff. The funny thing is that these clothes and things fit in my bag when I came down, but strangely they no longer fit. I wonder if it’s the humidity or something. Anyway, here is a list of the

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1110355662074888292005-03-09T00:07:00.000-08:002005-03-09T00:07:42.073-08:00

This is probably the most depressing story that I've heard in South Africa. Here is a little baby brought in by the community health worker (in back). This little kiddo was born at 3.5 kilos and in the past three months has actually dropped weight to 3.1 kilos (for non-medical people this is very, very bad). Mom was diagnosed with HIV at antenatal testing, but didn't take her single dose

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1110354496034396362005-03-08T23:40:00.000-08:002005-03-08T23:48:16.036-08:00

Amazing, but I’ve been in South Africa for a month now. Yes, as I write this, it’s the 4th of March and I arrived on the 4th of February. I know for the rest of you it’s been really tough, and for that I’m very sorry. It’s not my fault I’m so gloriously awesome.Anyway, this is the first in a 4 part rambling about my observations on various things. Since I haven’t talked about my job in a while, I

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1110026729735921672005-03-05T04:45:00.000-08:002005-03-05T04:45:29.736-08:00

Beautiful view of a village and a river from on top of a mountain in Northern Natal. I may be working here in the very near feature - absolutely stunning.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1110026441009320442005-03-05T04:39:00.000-08:002005-03-05T04:40:41.013-08:00

Hello kids, back for another update. Just a preface, but Pierre and I were going up to Northern Natal to visit some projects that were just getting started up there so I thought I would spend the weekend in Durban on the way up. To get there, I hopped on the only plane flight from Umtata to Durbs, which is a one engine prop-plane with myself, another passenger, and the pilot. While the pilot

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109838228141440112005-03-03T00:23:00.000-08:002005-03-03T00:23:48.140-08:00

I've promised to post more pictures of myself, so here is me (notice well manicured goatee) with a group of strangers and Chandler. I met these cats in Durbs and we went to a game park, which you'll hear all about later.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109838114230179812005-03-03T00:21:00.000-08:002005-03-03T00:21:54.230-08:00

This is the crazy, territorial elephant that was trying to kill us. We ran away. Fast.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109837933284193322005-03-03T00:18:00.000-08:002005-03-03T00:18:53.286-08:00

This is the big protest or "Toy-Toy." If you look closely, you can see all the students flipping me off and shaking their fists at me. Despite their smiling, I think they really wanted to hurt the stupid, brown tourist.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109837308581942502005-03-03T00:04:00.000-08:002005-03-03T00:08:28.590-08:00

Crazy thing happened last week. I was sitting in the Regional Training Center offices at the University of Transkei, when I started to hear the faint sound of singing in the distance. It sounded like a happy song, and as it got louder and louder, I began to hum along. Tah-tee-ta-tah, Tah-tee-ta-ta. The ladies in the office all looked at me funny, but as you know from reading the previous

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109318074362938752005-02-24T23:52:00.000-08:002005-02-24T23:54:34.370-08:00

Ahh, the exciting conclusion to last episodes chilling cliffhanger… So, I’m driving on one of the major highways in South Africa, the N2, on the way back to Umtata. What you should know is that the majority of highways, while very well maintained, are usually one lane or at most two lanes on one side and one on the other. Anyway, since this particular highway is the major thoroughfare along

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109230127594493082005-02-23T23:28:00.000-08:002005-02-23T23:28:47.593-08:00

Oh, sweet, beautiful Tazz. Notice that the clutch is completely destroyed given my relative inability to shift gears appropriately (silly people, you can't see the clutch!). I'm glad it's a rental.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109230035090904042005-02-23T23:27:00.000-08:002005-02-23T23:27:15.090-08:00

Coffee Bay beach in the morning. The rest of the day it was completely cloudy. If you look closely, you can see the moderately-sized Loch Ness Sea Urchin, cousin of Nessie.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109229951999390442005-02-23T23:25:00.000-08:002005-02-23T23:25:52.000-08:00

This is me and the guide for the hike/cliff jumping. We're trying to figure out why US global economic policy hasn't adequately addressed the needs of one Nupur Mehta.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109229838259123772005-02-23T23:23:00.000-08:002005-02-23T23:23:58.260-08:00

This is the precipice from whence I jumped into the ocean. As you can see, the waves are crashing into the inlet, so that after you jump you have to swim against the current to pull yourself out. The giant arrow, strangely, is a natural rock formation.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1109149144947456152005-02-23T00:53:00.000-08:002005-02-23T00:59:04.953-08:00

So, as you all probably know, South Africans drive on the other side of the road. And they put the wheel on the other side of the car. And they drive like crazy maniacs, hell-bent on scaring fledgling Brown drivers. Oh, and most of the cars, like 99%, are manuals, which means that, crap, I have to learn to drive stick. This wouldn’t be a problem considering that I don’t have a car, but

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108712560706704072005-02-17T23:42:00.000-08:002005-02-17T23:42:40.706-08:00

This is the friggin' rooster that crows it's head off like it's being choked every morning at 5 friggin' 30 whilst little Nupur tries to rest his weary bones. I'm gonna catch that thing by the waddle and cook me up something extra crispy. Harrumph.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108712219720315722005-02-17T23:36:00.000-08:002005-02-17T23:36:59.720-08:00

Purrty

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108711378352682182005-02-17T23:19:00.000-08:002005-02-17T23:22:58.363-08:00

We (Pierre, Lloyd, and I) went back to Johannesburg to visit the projects going on there and to show Lloyd the progress that was being made. So, we hopped on the puddle jumper, which decided to go directly into a thunderstorm, and made it to Joburg with only lightly soiled pants. Our first stop was the Chris Hani Baragwanath (Bara) hospital, which is the largest hospital in the

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108471871914746592005-02-15T04:49:00.000-08:002005-02-15T04:51:11.916-08:00

http://nupemehta.smugmug.comis where you can see the pictures i've been taking all in one easy place. I'm posting this to the blog for the hard-core Nupewatchers. Gosh, I feel like U2.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108471218886173482005-02-15T04:40:00.000-08:002005-02-15T04:40:18.886-08:00

This is the sweet view from Die Agterplaas B&B in Johannesburg. A touch of Denmark in the heart of South Africa.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108470608569278742005-02-15T04:27:00.000-08:002005-02-15T04:30:08.576-08:00

Yikes, sounds scary but really this entry is all about racism. Read on. On our last night in Umtata before heading out to Johannesburg, Lloyd Provost (senior IHI staff, bad-ass statistician from Austin) and I sat down to do some work and have a beer in the waning afternoon daylight. The beer was cold, and the computer charged - I thought I would crank out some blog entries. All of

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108285820458715102005-02-13T01:10:00.000-08:002005-02-13T01:13:29.903-08:00

This is the pulley from the Big Hole in Kimberley. The Big Hole is a giant De Beers hand-dug diamond mine that excavated 3 tons of diamonds representing over 4 million carats. That's a lot of bling. For more pictures check out my new webhost http://nupemehta.smugmug.com.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108285658642253582005-02-13T01:07:00.000-08:002005-02-13T01:07:38.643-08:00

Here I'm in the Northwest province in a town called Taung. They say that South Africa is caught between 1st and 3rd world, and nothing exemplifies this better than a donkey cart in front of a brand-new KFC.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108285283347888792005-02-13T00:58:00.000-08:002005-02-13T01:01:23.356-08:00

So on Wednesday, the 9th, we had an interesting meeting in Umtata as a means to introduce ourselves as the quality improvement supporters and to meet the people that we would be working with in the district. Our key supporter is this Nigerian doctor named Adelola Olaosebikan, or Dr. Ola for short. He came to SA with his family like 7 years ago after working in Zimbabwe and elsewhere as a

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108204774541809632005-02-12T02:39:00.000-08:002005-02-12T02:57:57.783-08:00

This is a graph of the chronic conditions a small gateway clinic in Taung is treating. The nurse there told us that the person who created this graph is the "best artist that we have." This isn't art, this is data! Our goal will be to make HIV the next bar on that list - we have to destigmatize the illness and make people believe that the medications and their managment are the same as diabetes

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108204341739434722005-02-12T02:32:00.000-08:002005-02-12T02:33:15.680-08:00

This is a picture of our introductory meeting with all the players in the districts surrounding the Regional Training Center in Umtata. I'm completely transfixed by Pierre's presentation.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108204089715088282005-02-12T02:26:00.000-08:002005-02-12T02:28:09.723-08:00

I feel like this is the first day of school or a new job or something, because I’ve finally started to do the work that I came here to do. After sleeping in this beautiful room at a Bed and Breakfast called La Maison (run by that interesting woman, Charlet) and waking to a full 3 course breakfast, we went on some site visits. The first place we went to was St. Lucy’s hospital.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108059909425306352005-02-10T10:25:00.000-08:002005-02-10T10:25:09.426-08:00

This is the countryside on the way out to the very rural clinics we've been visiting. It's quite a ways away from any known civilization, but there are plenty of cattle. We witnessed a surprising number of bovines gearing up for Valentine's Day on the road.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108059821287582692005-02-10T10:23:00.000-08:002005-02-10T10:23:41.286-08:00

This is the service list for St. Lucy's Pediatric ward. You can see that the disease list is quite short, and if there is any problem, "the bottom reads All Complicated Conditions are Referred to Umtata General Hospital."

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1108059662150821872005-02-10T10:20:00.000-08:002005-02-10T10:21:54.963-08:00

So I finally got on the bus to Port Elizabeth from Durban, which if I were going the full distance, would take a good 12 hours along the south eastern coast of South Africa from the province of Kwa-Zulu Natal to Eastern (not East as I found out from a native) Cape. Fortunately, I was only going to Umtata which meant that I would be getting off about 6 hours into the journey. When

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1107849664178513842005-02-08T00:01:00.000-08:002005-02-08T00:01:04.176-08:00

Anya asked me to send more pictures, so here is me at the JHB airport. Don't I look like a goofy tourist with my fleece on in 80 degree weather?

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1107849551437830912005-02-07T23:58:00.000-08:002005-02-07T23:59:11.436-08:00

As I write this, I’m sitting in a beautiful café in Durban, waiting for the bus that will ultimately take me to Umtata. Here’s how I got here. Harry was nice enough to take me to the airport this morning, which was great considering that I would have no idea how to get there otherwise. Taxi’s are supposed be called, I think - I’m not sure you can just hail them as they drive by. Anyway

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1107760814822982332005-02-06T23:20:00.000-08:002005-02-06T23:20:14.823-08:00

This is the Hector Peterson museum. You can see that very famous image in the background.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1107760618862426902005-02-06T23:11:00.000-08:002005-02-06T23:16:58.863-08:00

So I spent Saturday the 5th in Johannesburg, doing my best to see the sights and meet up with the very people I know there. In the morning, I frolicked around the suburb of Melville which as I mentioned, is this ultra hip and trendy place. I spent the morning just chillin, took a nice breakfast at the hostel and chatted with the owner of the place, Trish. She was very helpful and

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1107599220501709752005-02-05T02:27:00.000-08:002005-02-05T02:27:00.500-08:00

Union Building. Very pretty place overlooking Pretoria.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1107599133226340342005-02-05T02:24:00.000-08:002005-02-05T02:25:33.226-08:00

OK, now we’re back in real time with maybe a 1-2 day delay. Can’t believe it, but the plane has finally touched ground. After 3 rum and cokes, 4 cups of coffee, some rather bad wine, a layover in the beautiful (at least from inside the plane) Sol Island (wouldn’t that be Isla de Sol or perhaps Sun Island), and 17 hours of sharing the flu, I’ve finally landed in Johannesburg.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1107543520485783122005-02-04T10:57:00.000-08:002005-02-04T10:58:40.486-08:00

OK, so the blog is in a bit of reverse order because as Anya so aptly put it, I got stagefright and didn’t want to post these thoughts when I wrote them. For those of y’all who are playing at home, while the entry written here comes after the introductory entry, I wrote the intro on the plane to Johannesburg, but I wrote the one to follow during the GREAT BLIZZARD OF 2005. Anyway, here goes.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1107543244968132072005-02-04T10:54:00.000-08:002005-02-04T10:54:04.966-08:00

All of my worldly possessions in one place. Alas, I couldn't fit the bust of myself fashioned by the great Kedarini di Ermenegildo Zegna di Armani di Pomade.

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10331881.post-1107542893082577622005-02-04T10:46:00.000-08:002005-02-04T10:56:03.036-08:00

At long last, Nupe’s Blog-fest and Happy-funtime Extravaganza has its first installment. I know what you all must be thinking. Why in the world has it taken the Nupester so long to write his first blog. Well I’ll tell you. I’m lazy… OK, that pretty much wraps it up. First entry: done. No really, while it’s completely true that I’m lazy, but I’ve made a commitment to making

Nupurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11355228833431859111noreply@blogger.com1