next: Cape Town!

I've been debating what to do with my blog now that I've left Burkina Faso. After all, I'm not a "burkinadoc" anymore. But I think i will continue this - though likely at FAR less frequent intervals to document my next project.

Well, my current project is finding a place to live in Vancouver - what a nightmare. My choices are too expensive or too small or too run down. Its more expensive than Toronto. ugh.

So today, I treated myself to a haircut - first one in a year - and manicure & pedicure. Nice to treat myself. And everyday this week I've gone for an awesome walk with my uncle - enjoying the hot (for Vancouver) weather - 25C every day. And then spend way to much time driving back and forth between the North Shore and the West side, where I want to live - it takes at least 30 min when there's no bridge accidents.

Anyhow, what is next you ask? Well, for one thing, living in the same city hopefully for a long, long time. I don't want to go through this moving chaos again for a while.

But the exciting thing about my new job is the South Africa project. My Vancouver colleagues-to-be (below - at the top of Table Mountain, in Cape Town) and I will be working with an amazing group of researchers on an enormous, 10,000-child, 20-year birth cohort study. For those of you who aren't medical types, basically it means we are going to follow and take measurements on these kids over 20 years and try to figure out questions like, what are the genetic differences between kids who get sick with TB and those who are just infected? And what about asthma, pneumonia etc? I'm really excited about the project.

Cape Town, South Africa is NOTHING like West Africa. In fact, I felt like I'd already returned to the resource-rich world when I was walking around there. Skyscrapers, fancy restaurants, malls with familiar stores... it all felt very foreign but i sure was loving the seafood!!

While we were in Cape Town for meetings, we did find time to climb Table Mountain and enjoy the spectacular views

So, stay tuned for more updates on my South African adventures - and hopefully some traveling stories too. And the odd entry about life in Vancouver in general. My next trip to Africa will probably be in January, so in the meantime will be preparations and getting things set up.

Thank you for all the lovely comments & feedback about the blog - its nice to know people are reading it. It was a substitute for a journal while I was away and it will be interesting one day to go back and read through things as the year progressed.

Take care & until next time.