Babies!

Yesterday was probably our favorite day in the clinic yet. Since it was their last day, the UCONN girls went to the local hospital to shadow and see another angle of Thai health care. We got to stay in the clinic and do well child checks! We split up into groups to do the initial check-in, help with the dentist, prepare vaccines and do wound care. Helping the dentist consisted of counting the kids' teeth and counting how many were rotten (usually about half), then rubbing some fluoride on them. The kids were very well-behaved and playful, minus a handful who were afraid of us scary white people. Just before lunch, a woman came in with a knife cut that needed stitches. The nurse walked Fiona through it and let her do her first sutures while we all cheered her on!

Lunch was our favorite fried rice again, and then we went back to the house with the afternoon off. We bummed around for a while napping and reading, and the guys went to the Internet cafe while the girls went for a quick run. We all went with the UCONN girls to dinner at a little place right next to our house that we refer to as "chicken rice" because of its main dish. The cook's daughter is the waitress and some of the girls had gotten to know her because she studied enligh classes for a while in the US. She knew it was their last day in Surin, so she gave us a huge plate of Pad Thai to share and tons of fruits for dessert. Every time we thought we were done eating, she would bring out more! We stayed up for a while after playing cards and packing because we are now en route to Khao Yai national park! We must be getting used to the heat here because the A/C on the train feels like the arctic tundra, and we are layering as much clothing as possible for the next three hours.