Bolivia is a beautiful country. I love the variety of natural resources and geological features. The indigenous groups that make up about 50% of the population keep the culture thriving and the colors vibrant. Bolivia´s got character...bloqueos, marches, pedestrian days, festivals abound. And the people are nice. I don´t always understand the actions or ways of thinking of my co-workers but they treat me with respect. The men and women in the prisons are mostly warm, funny, and grateful. The kids are sweet and in dire need of attention often. My soccer ¨team¨ is gentle and kind while also a bit competitive and they have treated me with nothing but timidness and kindness since I first began playing with them in August even though I am a girl:). They are the least machista of all the Latin American countries I have played in. Not nearly as many ¨cat calls¨ as I grew accustomed to in Ecuador and other places. Many gringos get robbed but so far I have been lucky. So, short of a fear of the wild dogs on the street, I feel safe here.
The ugly truth though (that some of you may find too gross or rude to read - so be warned), is that, as a gringo coming to Bolivia, a person has almost inescapable odds of getting sick at least once. It is a constant topic of discussion and within days of being here, any shyness about bowel movements is quickly overcome and most people are explicit with most people...at least in the gringo world of conversation. So, it was not all that surprising when after only 9 days in the country, I felt a sudden onset of upset stomach that quickly decided to leave my body not only through incredible projectile vomiting but in any other way it could find.
This was my introduction to being sick in Bolivia. It certainly did not let me ease my way in. A key to survival here is a stool sample. This is the fun game of going to a laboratory that you can find about every ten blocks in the city. You get handed a wonderful little cup, give thanks or curse depending on its size. When finished, you leave it and return a few hours later to see your results. At this time, if you have any idea what the lab says...you can know you are fine and you must have just had food poisoning (which was the case of my initial sick incident here) or, there are medical facts you don´t understand and have to proceed to a doctor´s office to get help diciphering and determining the best course of action.
This has been the case in every case since the first incident. I am past the point of the typical gringo getting sick and have reached a level that few can obtain. At this point, I am a pro at stool samples. I have been diagnosed with amoebas several times here, once about a month after arriving and now, since the beginning of November, I have been diagnosed with amoebas three seperate times. In between, I was also diagnosed with a stomach infection and also a seperate bicho or bug. The lab and doctor have become accustomed to my weekly visits. My doctor has filled up an entire page just on my stomach history in the last couple of weeks.
It's not easy. One affect of being sick for six or seven weeks straight is that I feel pretty useless. Some days I would go in to work and feel great and get stuff done and other days, after only hours I would have to leave to deal with my stomach. And, I think the biggest frustration, is that it is hard to be away from a bathroom for long. My prison work and home visit work are both defined by poverty and well, part of that is a lack of adequate bathrooms to which so far I have avoided facing head on but does mean I have been seen sprinting through the streets to get to the nearest toilet. It means less soccer, less interactions with Bolivians and Bolivia, which of course is what being here is all about.
My fear of the dogs has lowered as I have learned how to navigate around them and even avoid the scary ones when possible. But my fear of food has escalated and especially with all the well-intentioned yet contradicting advice I get, I am not always sure what will lead to only greater issues. I am extremely careful, as I have to be while my stomach is so sensitive,...and any immunity you´d think I would build up seems to get kicked down every time I have to take an antibiotic to treat the amoebas. Food scares me. It is considered rude here to turn down food somebody offers you but I am at a point that rarely can I accept the food feeling it is ¨safe¨ so I have to explain my situation and try to not offend the person when turning it down.
I really like Bolivia. I want to BE here and not forced to the bathroom or doctor´s office with so much of my time. We are exactly half way through our 10.5 month commitment here and I am afraid while also a bit hopeful for what the second half of my time holds here. A good friend is meeting Brendon and I at Machu Picchu for New Years so I am hopeful that traveling will be peaceful and I'm excited because I hear long bus ride buses in Peru actually have bathrooms on them unlike here in Bolivia:)
Today, for the first time in seven weeks, I got a lab result that says there is nothing wrong with my stomach...no amoebas, no infection, no other bugs. So, I will load my system up on probiotics and other such healthy things and then cross my fingers and pray...for a bit of peace so I can enjoy this gorgeous country (and Peru:)).
