Malaria Strikes. And Planning.

Posting will be continue to be slow this week due to malaria and government budget planning meetings. Mainly due to the planning meetings. I also have some tough malaria breed which Coartem won’t kill, so I’m now on to Quinine.

Fun Quinine fact - it makes your saliva taste like tonic water.

Next week is also my last in Southern Sudan (for now). Reflections to come once I have had time to catch my breath. I might need a new sub-title for the blog. Suggestions welcome.

Also to come - notes on adventures in Kenya the week after next, when I’ll be learning how to do a randomised controlled trial.

Watch this space.

So Malaria really sucks (surprise, surprise).

But the real sickness only lasts for a few days. I made it into work on the third day (which massively impressed my Sudanese colleagues who told me to go take a week getting treated in Nairobi. Treated with what exactly? You get the same drugs wherever you as are as far as I can tell.) The annoying part is the lingering weakness, which makes you a prime target to be completely wiped out by some little cold. I'm really bored of being sick now, can't it just go away?

Anyway there's a reasonable Southern Sudan article in the Guardian today, (better than some of the hyperbole to be found in the Economist). It also comes with a great photogallery.

The one big error is the use of the word "stagnation" in describing Juba. One thing Juba is not is stagnating. That would imply a lack of change. You can't call it stagnating because IT IS CHANGING, probably faster than any other African town right now. And you would realise this if you had spoken to anyone who has been around for even 2 or 3 years and can remember when there were only 4 cars on the roads and no hotels and only 2 restaurants to eat in, compared to the hundreds of pizzerias and cappucino places you can find today. Lazy.