Khanjanpur

Yesterday I went to visit the Khanjanpur eye clinic and school with Mr. Uttam Dewan and a few others. It takes about an hour and a half to get there, and it was pouring almost the whole way. As we drove through Bogra some of the streets were totally flooded, and there weren't very many people out at all. I was happy to be out in my first downpour. The roads once you are out of the city are lined with trees and elevated above the fields. You could see people way out in the distance working in the rice paddies, even in the rain. Once we got to Khanjanpur, the rain had slowed to a sprinkle. I met Dr. Costa, who is the eye specialist there. He showed me all around the clinic, operating room, and the out patient department. He said he does about 20-30 surgeries a day, he is a very busy man! Then I got to see the girls hostel for the school their. There are about 150 students living there, but they were all away on vacation for Ramadan. I hadn't realized it before but all the schools have off for a month. I got to meet the cooks, who were still there. The last students had left that morning. Then after lunch I got to go back to the OR to see them setting up for the surgeries that afternoon. Sometime later on my trip I will be able to go back and work for a week there too, assisting with the surgeries. I'm looking forward to it! I've never done that before. Then driving home it wasn't as rainy, so I got to see more of the country. THere are haystacks all along the road, and goats and cows everywhere at times. Once we came across a tractor that was parked across the length of the road to to load something up, and we had to squeeze around it.
I have been enjoying all the pictures in the papers, and today there was one of a bazaar down by the coast, the water was up to peoples waists!

Love, Sarah

ps- if I sometimes repeat information here, I'm sorry. I can post new things, but for some reason I can't get back to look at old posts,to remember what I've written. I think i will try to post parts of my emails here too, just in case some of you don't get them.