Romania Week 1

Hello everybody, well here goes my first email report from Transylvania, excuse the spelling as the keys don't all work on the keyboard....well me and my fellow volunteer (Helen) arrived Friday night, to be greeted by William, who told us he was leaving us in three hours and we would be alone until the next volunteer arrived in a month, we were somewhat shocked but were told the interpreter (Lia) and another helper (Jackie) would be with us for the 1st week, and thank god they were. The town in called Tarnaveni, and is a very small 'town' in central Romania. It does however have good beer and lots of football on the TV... so I'm happy enough.

The hospital where we work Monday to Friday 1000-1800, is an old building, with rotting stone (but some new PVC windows), the patients we work with have very little other than the clothes on their back, but are some of the most warm and welcoming people I've met... apart from feeling quite tall for once in my life, (as most people are small) the biggest shock has come from seeing the hundreds of patients in such a small place... some have been there for years, after the orphanages, and some do come and go, depending on family wanting to take them.

I have been bitten lot at night, but not by any vampires, but from mosquitoes who have no mercy, though things are improving!!! The weather is hot but we have been having rain and some amazing thunderstorms which light up the sky. The local kids like talking to us in the street which is great and we are trying to learn Romanian quickly to help us converse more, but many people speak Hungarian too...

The work we do is based around activity in a 'club' room which allows up to 10 patients a time to come to the room, and do something fun, but many women simply enjoy having nails painted and lipstick, but also singing folk songs and dancing, the men like to read or play chess / back gammon, they also love a coffee and cigarette... we also see some patients on the ward who can’t get to club do to being immobile, the conditions which the staff here have to work in are bad but they do an amazing job sometimes having to look after 80 patients to one staff member, but obviously it means some things just can't be done, so people have to fight to be heard... or simply give in... it’s difficult to accept, but we must think about what we can do, rather than what we would like to do.

I'm going to leave it there for now, as some of you will have skipped bits already and I want to see if it will send! I'm hoping Liverpool beat Aston Villa today!!!! So fingers crossed! Please be patient if you send individual messages as I can’t reply quickly, and it costs money!!!!
Regards from Vietnam
Dan