Yida. Where do I even begin?
I’ve been here 6 days now but it feels like 6 weeks. I had seen photos of Yida before. I have worked with people who had been here before. I’ve read news articles and development press releases about it. None of that really prepares you for a place.
It’s hot, like 118 degrees a day hot. A colleague said April and May are the worst months. I picked a great time to start but I guess it’s worth it to get the hot season out of the way. The ground is covered in inches of dust. It’s impossible to keep anything clean. Thankfully we can wear shorts and footwear is pretty casual as well. They say you get used to the heat and in some ways I am acclimatizing but they also say it takes about a month. I drink about 3 gallons of water a day so I’ve avoided the dehydration/ heat stroke that affect some here. We have a freezer on the compound so I froze a bottle last night and I’m spoiling myself with cold water on this Sunday morning.
Our compound is actually pretty nice. Far nicer than expected. We have wireless internet with pretty good speed, 24 hour electricity, fans for our tents and usually 3 meals per day. Good food too and fresh vegetables and fruits are flown up weekly. I’m actually eating better than I have in the past.
The office is decent and my coworkers seem alright after just a few days of working with them. It’s a very diverse crowd: Ethiopians, Kenyans, Ugandans, American’s, Canadians and of course Sudanese.
The food program is pretty massive. Feeding 70,000 refugees a month is no easy task but the team is doing a great job. Honestly, I’m not fully sure what I am doing here. There is some work I can help out with, but largely the program is under control. I’ll continue to settle in and get plugged into the work over the next week and see where I can best help out.
I’ll try to write once a week, tell stories, share photos or rant. Stay tuned.
I’ve been here 6 days now but it feels like 6 weeks. I had seen photos of Yida before. I have worked with people who had been here before. I’ve read news articles and development press releases about it. None of that really prepares you for a place.
It’s hot, like 118 degrees a day hot. A colleague said April and May are the worst months. I picked a great time to start but I guess it’s worth it to get the hot season out of the way. The ground is covered in inches of dust. It’s impossible to keep anything clean. Thankfully we can wear shorts and footwear is pretty casual as well. They say you get used to the heat and in some ways I am acclimatizing but they also say it takes about a month. I drink about 3 gallons of water a day so I’ve avoided the dehydration/ heat stroke that affect some here. We have a freezer on the compound so I froze a bottle last night and I’m spoiling myself with cold water on this Sunday morning.
Our compound is actually pretty nice. Far nicer than expected. We have wireless internet with pretty good speed, 24 hour electricity, fans for our tents and usually 3 meals per day. Good food too and fresh vegetables and fruits are flown up weekly. I’m actually eating better than I have in the past.
The office is decent and my coworkers seem alright after just a few days of working with them. It’s a very diverse crowd: Ethiopians, Kenyans, Ugandans, American’s, Canadians and of course Sudanese.
The food program is pretty massive. Feeding 70,000 refugees a month is no easy task but the team is doing a great job. Honestly, I’m not fully sure what I am doing here. There is some work I can help out with, but largely the program is under control. I’ll continue to settle in and get plugged into the work over the next week and see where I can best help out.
I’ll try to write once a week, tell stories, share photos or rant. Stay tuned.
Staying tuned!
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