new pictures

Some of the many birds' nests in the trees at the hospital.  I just liked this picture.

One of the many posters hanging around the hospital about AIDS ("Everyone together against AIDS").  

These roosters are so stupid.  I thought roosters were supposed to crow at dawn.  These roosters (and there are many of them, some mere feet from my head in the morning) crow at all times of day and night.  We now dream of coq au vin.  

A haiku, courtesy of my roommate:

Oh, stupid rooster. 

Crowing your virility

You're just a small cock   

Yay! Gabon's making headlines!

Oh wait, but not for anything good.  Please see the wonderfully-written nytimes article on the recent developments here.  In brief, the president of Gabon ("Africa's longest-entrenched autocrat") died this weekend.  The government has responded by closing the airport and borders and imposing a curfew.  But everything's just fine here, so please don't worry.  We are far from the capital, which is where things usually go down anyway.  Just wanted to write a quick note in case anyone was worried about me being in the middle of a politically-unstable central african nation.  And now back to your regularly-scheduled programming.  

New Pictures

Welcome, indeed. :) 

This is the hospital, outside the Polyclinique, where I spend most of the day.  This was taken on a particularly muggy morning, normally it's brilliantly sunny.  The yellow building is one of the surgical wards, but they all kind of look like that.  Those giant trucks are from the military hospital.  A large brigade of soldiers descended last week with ophthalmologists and otolaryngologists and their mobile exam rooms and ORs (the above trucks) and saw patients from 7:30 am until midnight.  People were sleeping overnight outside to have a place in line.  

Typical hairstyle.  Women are crazy about their hair here.  Everyone has an elaborate weave or a wig.  It's pretty awesome.  

We went to a culture festival in Libreville this past weekend, and this is a picture from outside the Senate building, where there were a bunch of different dance groups from all over the country.  It was pretty cool.  :)  (Gosh, I'm so eloquent this evening, eh?)