Time Marches On

We have really gotten busy over the last few months and our blog has suffered the consequences. Work has really picked up, especially for Ann. Her Lumbar Puncture study is up and running and she's handling most of the work on her own. I help out with some database updating and helped a little with the patient interviews at Mulago Hospital. The Neuro-Cognitive Deficit Study for Patients with Cryptococcal Meningitis is nearing its beginning, so I have been working on preparing forms and making sure the study will begin smoothly. Ann also continues to prepare for the Antiretroviral timing trial. I have also been lending a hand in the creation of various forms (of which there are many) for this study. We will learn in April when the funding will arrive which will determine the start date.

We took a trip to Tanzania so that Ann could run in the Kilimanjaro (as in Mount) Marathon (she ran the half) which was in Moshi. It also offered the opportunity to visit some friends from the U of Mn who live in Arusha. The race was set against the backdrop of Mt. Kilimanjaro, which made for an amazing sight, unfortunately the clouds obscured the mountain most of the morning. Elvis, a ninja, and an albino in a lion suit took part in the various distance races offered. We went on a two day safari to Tiringiri National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater. Tiringiri was ok, but not any better than Murchison Falls NP in Uganda. The tsetse flies actually made it much worse. I seem to have an exaggerated reaction to their bites and was covered with terribly itchy welts for the next week or so. One bit me on my knuckle and my entire hand literally swelled up. It was very uncomfortable. The crater was by far the best safari experience I've had in Africa. It's largely grasslands populated with all kinds of exciting creatures. We saw lions (12 or so), black rhinos (9ish, all from a distance), elephants, zebras, african buffalo, various types of antelope-like animals, hyenas, flamingos, ostrich, and crested cranes (the national bird of Uganda in which I've seen zero).


Arriving in Tanzania


The runners and their fancy visors.


Safari truck


Crested crane in the Ngorongoro Crater


Mr. Monkey enjoying the view in Tiringire NP


Mr. Baboon


Somewhere in Tiringire NP


The safari crew above Lake Manyara


Papa lion


Funny looking cows in the Ngorongoro Crater


Young lion hanging out on the ridge of the crater


The horde

We attended the Irish Ball last weekend. It's in celebration of St. Patrick's Day and the (real) Guinness, Bailey's, and Jameson were free and in full effect. Not being a big fan of whiskey made it easy to avoid the Jameson but it's safe to say I could have used less guinness (and wine). Ann had a basketball tournament that weekend, so we called it a night around 12am so she could get some sleep for her games Sunday. Her team got 3rd in their first tournament/games of the year. She's definitely excited to be playing organized basketball again.


At our friend Sam's graduation dinner.

We paid for our gorilla tracking permits in Rwanda, where we'll be going over our 4 day Easter weekend (hopefully with a blog post soon to follow). We'll be spending some time in the capital Kigali, Lake Kivu, and Ruhengeri, the staging point for the gorillas. This is probably the one thing I absolutely have to do while in Africa even though it's not cheap. Rwanda is apparently beautiful in stark contrast to the devastation that took place in the 90's.