tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55371522011-04-22T01:34:34.358+06:00A beer swilling Australian yobbo tries his luck lecturing occupational therapy in Bangladesh...Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comBlogger991100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1111900448551131712005-03-27T10:42:00.000+06:002005-03-27T11:14:08.553+06:00

Well I was just having a look and Dad is right with his comments. It has been a long time since I last posted.The placement at the National Institute of Mental Health is finished. Well at least for the moment. I might send a couple of fourth year students back to do some more data collection. I need to get some the interviews that I already have translated and then I will know if what I have will

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1110188610147165322005-03-07T15:42:00.000+06:002005-03-07T15:43:30.146+06:00

Have recently acquired a copy of Jeff Buckley’s ‘Grace’. This is an old favourite that I really haven’t listened to much for the last few years and on hearing this again there were a few things that stuck out to me that I had never noticed before. One thing was the absolute passion that went onto every song. From the beautiful ballads like lover you should have come over, to the haunting corpus

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1110188521679528102005-03-07T15:39:00.000+06:002005-03-07T15:42:01.683+06:00

Well here we are half way through the 8 week psychiatric placement and things have finally found a bit of rhythm. We seem to have hit our stride. The program is running smoothly and the data collection seems to be coming along nicely if a little slower than could have been hoped. I’ve been thinking a lot about cultural perspectives on health and illness. We have been so indoctrinated with the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1109158408527678822005-02-23T17:25:00.000+06:002005-02-23T17:33:28.530+06:00

Well it’s been a long time since my last post and that is for several reasons. The first is that I have been pretty busy with work and the second is that life has settled into a fairly normal routine and so to me it doesn’t feel like there is that much that is interesting to write about. I’m sure this isn’t true but Bangladesh just feels like home to me. I guess I realised how much I’ve changed

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1107855459585079362005-02-08T15:24:00.000+06:002005-02-08T15:37:39.586+06:00

Well my favourite part of the year has begun again in ernest. This is the 3rd year students psychiatric placement at the National Institute of Mental Health. I don't know why but I feel quite comfortable in mental hospitals, maybe it wouldn't be so much fun as a patient, but I guess that depends on how much insight you had. The placement has been knocked around by the current political situation

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1106645420634096112005-01-25T15:19:00.000+06:002005-01-25T15:30:20.633+06:00

Well just arrived back from a wonderful holiday in the Sundarbans, the largest littoral mangrove in the world and home of the royal bengal tiger. Of course we didn't see any of these but any tiger that would be stupid enough to be seen by 20 people crashing through the forest would probably be too stupid for me to want to see anyway. This was a trip organised by Natasha as her family was coming

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1105875789139365712005-01-16T17:31:00.000+06:002005-01-16T17:43:09.140+06:00

Well I'm back after a wonderful holiday in Australia which almost managed to turn on a bit of summer for me, must admit on the way to Canberra on the plane when they said the ground temp was 16 degrees I almost asked them to turn the plane around and head nack to warmer places. As is often the case not everything went as planned and I didn't get to spend as much time with people as I would have

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1102569363008589212004-12-09T11:07:00.000+06:002004-12-09T11:16:03.006+06:00

Well despite the insanity of leaving and the fact that I am well behind on my workload I am still very excited about coming home. Australian summer with all the associated trimmings, BBQ's, beer, cricket, the beach, these are things that are just not the same in Bangladesh. Not to mention the fringe benefits associated with this trip like new nephew to play with and the obvious holidays and

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1101360237798546952004-11-25T11:16:00.000+06:002004-11-25T11:23:57.796+06:00

Well Bangladesh home at least, reminds me of how many places I've called home for the last 6 or 7 years... Well back to work is never that much fun and some gastro problem i seem to have picked up in India hasn't been helping a smooth transition. Well that and the fact that I have a semesters worth of marking to do in the next couple of weeks. My own fault so not much point complaining. It's

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1100671074589135332004-11-17T11:54:00.000+06:002004-11-17T11:57:54.590+06:00

Well Frieda finally had the baby, by all accounts a fit and healthy young lad named Alexander James. For more specific details check the comment by Mum on the rpevious post. So now we can all relax hey! My main problem now is how to spend the afternoon. I did the shopping I had planned on taking most of the day in about half an hour and now am at a bit of a loose end. Might just go for a wander

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1100621186175772182004-11-16T21:51:00.000+06:002004-11-16T22:06:26.176+06:00

....turn out the lights. Well that's what the doors had to say. I only realised after walking into about three different places which had the date displayed and not really believing any of them individually that I am on the train back to chennai tomorrow evening. It's gone pretty quickly and when it comes down to it although this hasn't been the easiest holiday I've ever had in my life I feel

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1100414319778676772004-11-14T13:16:00.000+06:002004-11-14T12:38:39.776+06:00

Well I finally feel like I'm really travelling. I think one of the reasons I was a bit down on Pondicherry was not that it's a bad place but just that I had been mollycoddled until I got there. I even got dropped off there by a vehicle from the resort we were staying at. How soft is that? So definitely one to go back to when I'm more in the mood. This place I'm at now is just a little bit

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1100238986453686622004-11-12T11:48:00.000+06:002004-11-12T11:56:26.453+06:00

Well after a not so bad day yesterday wandering around pondicherry, eating pizza and watching people set off all manner of fireworks that have been illegal in Australia for years this evening I am back on the road. Well not really the road, actually the train. I've decided to head as far south as I can and go and watch the sun rise and set out of and into the ocean. Sounds nice. Let's hope I can

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1100156320793799822004-11-11T13:34:00.000+06:002004-11-11T12:58:40.793+06:00

Well the honeymoon is over. The culture shock in going from a 5 star luxury resort where there are heaps of people bending over backwards to make sure everything is perfect, to a 150 rupees a night, tiny room, squat toilet, general travellers accomodation has been a shock to the system. Not that I'm complaining. 3 nights of luxury is better than none. Might have to organise things so next time I

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1099823397761301992004-11-07T15:37:00.000+06:002004-11-07T16:29:57.760+06:00

Well I'm sure that everyone will be terribly surprised to hear that despite my total lack of organisation I someone how pulled it off and made it down here. It was quite an eventful trip. It started at CRP on Saturday. I'd already sorted out the visa and so all I needed to do was to pick up the ticket and get to the airport on time. Usually a simple thing to do but not if there is a transport

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1099389960807330522004-11-02T15:39:00.000+06:002004-11-02T16:06:00.806+06:00

Well it seems like this week my fancy free attitude has fianlly landed me in a spot of bother. I am meant to be leaving for India on Saturday and currently don't have a visa or a ticket. Now it may not be as bad as it sounds. I have actually booked a ticket but Zia, the main man at the travel agent predicted my visa difficulties and recommended that I don't pay for the ticket until I have a visa.

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1098161530887436822004-10-19T10:37:00.000+06:002004-10-19T10:52:10.886+06:00

Well wasn't I surprised to get by both snail mail and email on approximately the same day some info from the uni saying that I was supposed to be in Sydney for a research presentation, interview and something else. I felt like asking if they were planning on flying me back for it. They also sent me a form which I am supposed to fill out my self, show to both my supervisors for them to complete

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1097490122729013252004-10-11T16:01:00.000+06:002004-10-11T16:22:02.730+06:00

Never a dull moment. This is the phrase that most aptly describes Bangladesh. If it's not one thing it's another. For example last weekend was not only my good friend and colleague, Rimon's, last day in CRP (he has got a 2 year working visa to Ireland and a job as an OT), not only did Faruk (another colleague) get an excellent job working for Handicap International, reducing our teaching capacity

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1096979653573774862004-10-05T18:08:00.000+06:002004-10-05T18:34:13.573+06:00

Well it's that time of year again folks when the fourth year students embark on their biggest and toughest challenge yet. I've been working pretty hard this year to try and diversify the definition of occupational therapy here so it focuses more on the psychosocial aspect and less on the physical stuff. It makes sense that OT here is a lot more physical as when OT began they basically did

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1096717160605029152004-10-02T17:13:00.000+06:002004-10-02T17:39:20.606+06:00

Well there's good days and bad days in Bangladesh and fortunately of late I have been having more good days than bad days. Last Thursday was one of those days when for no particular reason I was in love with Bangladesh and everything in it. This has continued on into today. I am going to try and combine voting with the grand final as it just makes sense and I really don't like not seeing the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1095660633809247032004-09-20T11:28:00.000+06:002004-09-20T12:10:33.810+06:00

Sometimes I wonder how this country has managed to continue as it has for so long, I mean surviving at all. It seems that every other week there is another natural disaster which stops the whole country. I believe the latest flooding has made the news at home. Dhaka had it's biggest dump of rain in 50 years. A whopping 341mm in 24 hours. If you shared that around the whole of Australia it might

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1095073183701861562004-09-13T16:08:00.000+06:002004-09-13T16:59:43.703+06:00

Well there's definitely a depression in the Bay of Bengal, it has been raining here pretty much non stop for three days and looks set to continue on for the rest of the week. I think it is a meteorological response to the raiders dismal performance against the roosters yesterday. There are plenty of things that I could complain about, the sin binning and some other dubious calls against the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1094360101399306322004-09-05T10:45:00.000+06:002004-09-05T10:55:01.400+06:00

Well the last of the last batch of youth ambassadors, Aimee, left us the other day and now things are a little bit quiet. But like most things around here there is plenty to keep us busy and only a few weeks before the batch of 7 youth ambassadors arrive. Should be a bit of fun. On top of that there has been teacher training at CRP for the last few days and excursions to different places to look

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1093503053819785712004-08-26T12:29:00.000+06:002004-08-26T12:50:53.820+06:00

Well what a week it has been here in Bangladesh. Bomb attacks, strikes, more strikes and strikes being called to protest against the way police behaved during other strikes. It looks like it could go on and on. Jokes aside the situation is fairly serious here at the moment. A previously unheard of fundamentalist terror organisation has informed the leader of the opposition that they planned the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1093169298869513732004-08-22T15:47:00.000+06:002004-08-22T16:08:18.870+06:00

This is just a quick post to let everyone know that I am ok. If you haven't heard there was a bomb attack at a political rally yesterday which it is thought was an assasination attempt on the leader of the opposition party, The Awami league. There were 16 people killed and around 200 injured. Ironically the rally was a protest against the goverments lack of action against the perpertrators of

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1092638448130261572004-08-16T12:25:00.000+06:002004-08-16T12:40:48.130+06:00

Well it's sad days here in bangers with a cuple of weeks of farewells coming up. Derek the boy wonder and drummer of the world famous, legends in their tiffin box, AIB heads up the road on Thursday and then that very same night is the farewell for Jane, Damo and Aimee who head off over the next week or so. It's always sad to see people leave and we've spent a fair bit of time together and had a

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1092114363723768902004-08-10T10:43:00.000+06:002004-08-10T11:06:03.726+06:00

Well it's been all work and no play making jack a very dull boy here in Bangladesh. Have been flat out trying to get a draft of my ethics proposal finished, organising meetings with the National Institute of Mental Health and generally trying to teach a few classes and mark some work at the same time. Actually haven't done any marking for a very long time and now the pile infront of me is almost

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1091358951132251812004-08-01T17:14:00.000+06:002004-08-01T17:15:51.133+06:00

Damo has recently updated his site so if you click on the link to your right you can check out in pictorial form some of thye latest shenanigans from bangers.....

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1091342807513993132004-08-01T12:43:00.000+06:002004-08-01T12:46:47.513+06:00

Well it’s been quite a while since my last post and quite a lot has happened since then. Where to begin. AIB played their final gig on Thursday night at the Australia club. It was AIB unplugged, well basically, we ran one of the guitars through a little stereo to give it a slightly fuller sound and ran a mike through there as well. For the setting the mood was right and as far as I could tell

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1090738689401740272004-07-25T12:38:00.000+06:002004-07-25T12:58:09.400+06:00

Well am sitting here watching the scores come in over the internet for the raiders warriors game and have already chewed all my fingernails off and uttered a few words that are probably not appropriate given the context of the CRP computer room. Score currently 29 all and about 1 minute into extra time. Had to start writing this for something to do in between the updates which only come once a

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1090211604680072962004-07-19T10:04:00.000+06:002004-07-19T10:33:24.680+06:00

Well it's been quite a week here in Bangladesh the country of opportunity and possiblity.   I spent a few days in bed last week pretty crook but had to drag myself into Dhaka on the weekend as it was Rhodri's farewell and Derek's birthday. The farewell was pretty sad and I still wasn't feeling too great so I stayed of the turps but the real fun was to be saved for Friday.   For Derek's birthday

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1089179698197865032004-07-07T11:42:00.000+06:002004-07-07T11:54:58.196+06:00

Well it's hard to believe it but it is one year to the day since I arrived in Bangladesh. I guess in some ways I can believe it. I now know a little bit more Bangla, can confidently navigate my way around Dhaka, by bus, taxi, rickshaw or foot. Am beginning to have some understanding of how the system works and who you need to talk to to get certain things done. However it still feels like the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1088923507818786292004-07-04T12:14:00.000+06:002004-07-04T12:45:07.820+06:00

Well as promised here is a full report of the gig on Thursday but just to give it some context I thought I would also describe some of the incidents leading up to and following the gig. The afternoon started in an interesting fashion. For some reason I cannot possibly understand I was given the responsibility of taking five new female volunteers shopping. I thought this would at least give me

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1088663474830246452004-07-01T12:10:00.000+06:002004-07-01T12:31:14.830+06:00

Well it's that time again where four otherwise unrecognisable development workers in Bangladesh are transformed from being just another bedeshi hanging out at the BAGHA on a Thursday to tequila fuelled rockstars... Although I can tell I'm not a real rockstar because on the way to the gig I have to take some new volunteers (surprisingly female) clothes shopping. Not that I mind. It should be good

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1088315030263277092004-06-27T11:28:00.000+06:002004-06-27T11:43:50.263+06:00

Well there's no knowing how things will work out these days. Who would have thought that at the Euro 2004, France, Germany, England and Spain would already be up the road and the only team that anyone would have backed to win the thing (with the possible exception of people who actually live in the Check republic, greece or denmark) is holland. Although I must admit that in the CRP prediction

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1087988316365421352004-06-23T16:52:00.000+06:002004-06-23T16:58:36.366+06:00

This is going to be a quick post as since it has started raining here it is nearly impossible for the internet to stay on for more than about five minutes at the time. It means it's a few degrees cooler and the air is fresher so I guess you can't have everything. Well the news is there's not much news. Work plods along at quite a tolerable pace which I'm sure will change in a few weeks when I

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1087292283444178182004-06-15T15:23:00.000+06:002004-06-15T15:38:03.443+06:00

Well I'm sure you're all wondering why everyone here would be so excited about the raiders beating the sharks on the weekend but rest assured, I'm the only person in bangladesh who even cares. What I am of course talking about is Euro 2004. Now I'm sure most readers haven't been watching too many of the games considering that they start at about 1:00am for the early games and about 4:00am for the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1086754390011235942004-06-09T09:44:00.000+06:002004-06-09T10:13:10.010+06:00

Well due to technical difficulties I had to post very quickly yesterday but hopefully will get a bit more out today. Last night went into Dhaka for a farewell at the Aussie club for 3 volunteers who are leaving. One of them may be coming back in a different capacity bu the other 2 are definitely going. I was looking around the table last night and thinking that most of the people there would be

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1086673051910599882004-06-08T11:35:00.000+06:002004-06-08T11:37:31.910+06:00

Well the rollercoaster ride of life in bangers continues this week with the good the bad and the ugly all rolled into one. I find it really funny here how some weeks almost anything could happen and you could laugh it off and other weeks you feel like you could just curl up into a ball and sob... like now when the computer is about to shut itself down for no apparent reason

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1086411019058118462004-06-05T10:29:00.000+06:002004-06-05T10:50:19.056+06:00

Well the plan was to catch a flight to Jessore, a bus from there to khulna and then get on the rocket, a paddle steamer, that would bring us back to dhaka by the wee small hours of saturday morning. So after our plane had been delayed for half an hour about 6 times, the chief pilot had come to discuss weather maps with the eager passengers we waited some more and then decided that we actually

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1085893944339376662004-05-30T10:27:00.000+06:002004-05-30T11:12:24.340+06:00

Who is the greatest drummer known to mankind? Who is the best connected geezer in Bangladesh? Who leaps tall building in a single bound? Who starts the conversation with the only other foreigner at waterworld? Who has their own radioshow? Who has appeared on Bangladeshi TV playing the blues? Who put the band back together? Who has the most fun? Who gets all the chicks? Who dances to the music in

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1085205787934314942004-05-22T11:39:00.000+06:002004-05-22T12:03:07.933+06:00

Well the aftermath of the weekend is over and despite being absolutely devastated by the fact that there is no way to watch the super 12 final in bangladesh I'm generally feeling quite happy about things. The gig went really well. Over 100 people forked over 100 taka to come and see us play and at the height of our set there was about 50 people dancing. Quite surprising and amazing considering

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1084773087301347262004-05-17T11:01:00.000+06:002004-05-17T11:51:27.300+06:00

Well along with all the real work of teaching, writing research proposals I'm sure you're all very pleased to know that I still find time to have a little fun. Last weekend it was Damo's birthday celebration and so we went to a water funpark on Friday. Now this was not anything to rival wet and wild or even say the slides at jamison pool but to be standing at the top of the slide and looking out

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1084166583762886602004-05-10T11:02:00.000+06:002004-05-10T11:23:03.763+06:00

Well after approximately 12 more hours on buses, and one more wedding party I am finally back at CRP and back to work. It got off to a bit of a rough start as I found out that none of the work I had set for my class while I was away had been followed through with which was frustrating but not unexpected. It just means I'll have to make them work much harder now, the lazy buggers want me to change

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1083935936102036932004-05-07T19:05:00.000+06:002004-05-07T19:22:10.153+06:00

Well it's been a whirlwind few days since leaving Australia on I believe it was Monday night. Since then I spent nearly 24 hours travelling back to Dhaka via Sydney, Melbourne, and Bangkok, about 2 hours in a car from Dhaka to Savar and then I was only there for 2 or 3 hours before it was back into Dhaka for a swim and a quick beer before the grueling overnight train ride to Chittagong began.

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1081404796938873632004-04-08T12:13:00.000+06:002004-04-08T12:16:01.686+06:00

OK here it is as far as I know..... 9:00am 14th April, arrive in Canberra Weekend of 24th April, in Sydney, possibly a few days either side. Weekend of May 1st, in Canberra for Mum and Dad's 30th Anniversary 6th May in the evening leave canberra. Obviously there are many omissions and this is a very rough guide but it should give you a general idea. Can't wait to see you all!!

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1080990213973176932004-04-03T17:03:00.000+06:002004-04-03T17:06:13.983+06:00

Well there is a good chance that this will be my last post before I am back in Australia to harass you all in person. Needless to say the last few weeks have been quite hectic and it is all I can do to try and get my head around the things I need to do before I leave, actually doing them all is proving even more difficult. This has not been assisted by my new found fame as a rockstar, and failing

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1079591279400105752004-03-18T12:27:00.000+06:002004-03-18T12:30:22.996+06:00

This word has been the bane of my existence for a few weeks now. I am supervising 4 final year students which is proving to be insanity inducing. In fact all of the OT teachers are on the verge of insanity. It is hard enough for me to get my head around research at all without having to think about four different designs etc. etc. In fact this is probably the main difficulty. None of the teachers

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1079175940346085822004-03-13T17:05:00.000+06:002004-03-13T17:07:59.340+06:00

Well at long last my placement is finished and I no longer have to travel to Dhaka every day. This has by no means meant that I am not busy. I have 3 months worth of placements to mark on top of four research papers, 2 supplementary exams and a partirdge in a pear tree. Surprisingly this has seemed quite relaxed compared to previous months, and it's always better to have something to do than

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1077943700329721722004-02-28T10:38:00.000+06:002004-02-28T10:50:24.653+06:00

Well in a country full of surprises the hits just keep on coming. A few weeks ago a few of us decided to put a band together for a bit of fun, in the knowledge that one of our friends new the owner of the only nightclub in Dhaka and he was keen for some new talent. So we had one practice and haven't got together since due to people being out of the country and things. So anyway, Derek, one of

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1077450439126297782004-02-22T17:21:00.000+06:002004-02-22T17:49:17.763+06:00

Well i've just got back from the annual Bangladesh occupational therapy association (bota) picnic to, surprisingly, nejumdwip. this is an island in the far south of bangladesh which has only existed for about 100 years. i think it's something to do with being a large delta but it seems that as soil gets washed away from places further upstream it gathers gradually over time in new places and

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1076569785280698962004-02-12T12:42:00.000+06:002004-02-12T13:11:34.030+06:00

Well sorry everyone for the lack of updates latley but January was a hell of a month. So where to begin. The main things at work that have been occupying my time are the psychiatry placement which see's me travelling to and from Dhaka six days a week and supervising 4th year research students which is a surprising amount of work. Let's start with the placement. With one week to go of the last

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1073390249287074642004-01-06T17:39:00.000+06:002004-01-06T18:04:15.153+06:00

Well it's hard to believe that 2004 is upon us already. I must say the whole festive season has been viewd by me froma completely different angle this year. Although we still managed to see in the New Year over a couple of beers and fortunatley for me Patrice had organised the placements so that the gap in between placement 1 and placement 2 was right on New Years day which meant that I could

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1072693054846387042003-12-29T15:45:00.000+06:002003-12-29T16:18:38.843+06:00

Well although Christmas does not mean a lot to most people around here the aussie contingent managed to pull it together and make a show of having a very aussie christmas. And as all good ausiie christmases do it began on christmas eve. The whole mob of us went round to Kate and Jills place where we had a slab of beer and a few bottles of wine, which were kindly supplied by Neil, our friendly

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1072173581964727682003-12-23T15:40:00.000+06:002003-12-23T16:00:39.466+06:00

Well I couldn't have asked for a better birthday despite the fact that I worked for the first time in 25 years. I never even had to go to school on my birthday as it was always during holidays. On my actual birthday had a chat to the family and then Patrice and Aimee cooked me dinner and we had a few drinks but the real party was the next night at the Australia club. We had organised to use the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1071485798440596992003-12-15T16:14:00.000+06:002003-12-15T16:57:28.903+06:00

Well I know I've been a bit slack with the posting and everything but I have also been very busy. I know some of you will find this hard to believe but in the first week of the placement I worked from 8:00am until at least 6:00pm without a break every day. I know what you're thinking. He's cracked. He's finally lost it. Also maybe. He's lying. But as with most things there is a story. Turned up

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1070540763390928902003-12-04T18:26:00.000+06:002003-12-11T13:57:23.436+06:00

Well have been back from Nepal for about 3 days and have been flat out ever since. Straight back into work and trying to get hte final things sorted for the prac that i'm supervising, it starts on saturday. Think everyhting is organised but I guess we'll find out when we turn up to the hospital on saturday morning. Should be a great experience either way and with a bit of luck I'll get a chance

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1069065152835150602003-11-17T16:04:00.002+06:002003-11-17T16:32:55.123+06:00

please disregard, it appears that the crack has finally got to me....

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1069065030837254322003-11-17T16:04:00.001+06:002003-11-17T16:30:53.153+06:00

posted yesterday but for some strange reason it has already been archived.... hmmm a little pre emptive in my estimations, someone at blogger must be a kiwi....

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1069064967611081852003-11-17T16:04:00.000+06:002003-11-17T16:29:49.936+06:00

posted yesterday but for some strange reason it has already been archived.... hmmm a little pre emptive in my estimations, someone at blogger must be a kiwi....

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1068980824733783692003-11-16T16:32:00.000+06:002003-11-16T17:07:24.030+06:00

Well there is the rest of the trip to Sylet to tell you about which involved a lot of singing and dancing by the students as I played my guitar... they went absolutely nuts. Followed by an encore performance by myself on guitar and voice and Kim on kazoo. The two hundred people watching were quite amused but apparently didn't understand the concept of applause or throwing money, probably thought

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1068534824359375982003-11-11T12:40:00.000+06:002003-11-11T13:13:41.973+06:00

There's nothing I love more than getting up at 5:30 in the morning. Seriously. But sometimes it is necessary and so you just bite the bullet and do it. Last Thursday was one of those days. Six of us in all from CRP, all volunteers, from 3 different countries piled into the transport to head to the train station. I decided that I should take my guitar for no reason I can really articulate other

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1067943519316256262003-11-04T16:45:00.000+06:002003-11-04T16:58:37.246+06:00

Thought maybe after my quasi philosophical ramblings yesterday it might be worth mentioning a bit of the mundane. Have been fighting a cold for a few days now which is a bit harder here because they don't stock my favourite OJ... surprisingly and all the stuff you can get here is really sweet which I hate. Am considering getting some vitamin tablets as I also have quite dark rings around my

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1067744751642309862003-11-02T09:17:00.000+06:002003-11-02T09:45:50.040+06:00

Well one of the many wonders of the Muslim world is upon us and I must say it's very interesting. All of the Muslims are now fasting from sunrise to sunset. This means that nothing can pass your lips, even water. I am not actually observing the fast myslef which means that I have to go and hide in teashops with curtains over the doors as eating or drinking outside is considered insensitive to

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-106703923775902812003-10-25T05:47:00.000+06:002003-10-25T05:47:17.290+06:00

You don't see many dog's in Bangladesh or Cambodia, although there was a time when every household in Phnom Penh had a guard dog. As Mick and I sat on plastic stools drinking coke in the front of the grocery shop, I feared for the safety of a dog resting in the middle of the road that reaches up to the front gates of CRP. It is a busy road and taxis push aggressively through the mass of

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1066916488651728802003-10-23T19:41:00.000+06:002003-10-25T05:19:37.496+06:00

It was in Savar, as we reached the top of the steps, that I realised Michael had gone tropo, that is adopted the habits of the locals. He seemed to have learnt the rules of the game as he unobtrusively spat in the corner and moved on without losing stride. Not that this behaviour is unique to Bangladesh, I have seen and heard it in Paris, Amsterdam, Phnom Phen, Canberra, Jahkarta, Shanghai and

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1066645179612219542003-10-20T15:42:00.000+06:002003-10-20T16:19:39.490+06:00

Well, I thought I'd save my account of what happened when Mum and Dad were here until they'd written theirs but now that I've read all I can really say is that I didn't bribe anyone. Although perhaps the cultural idea that bagging a teacher is not cool has helped me out a little bit. So what's been going on in the big bad world of Bangladesh, the answer is marking. Mountains of it. But I think

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1066390117333327432003-10-17T17:28:00.000+06:002003-10-17T17:28:37.060+06:00

Six days in Bangladesh Enough time has elapsed for Jeff and I to process our thoughts and impressions of our visit to Mick, but before they get too rose-coloured and hazy, we better report. First impressions were not wonderful. Arriving very late at night, and after queuing for ages to get through immigration, Jeff found himself in the incapable hands of a ‘learner’, making entry into the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1065774188075641662003-10-10T13:33:00.000+06:002003-10-10T14:23:07.903+06:00

This is going to be a long post, i've had a bit of trouble getting access to the internet for a while so that's my sorry excuse for the lack of updates. Well I guess it's best to start at the beginning, which in this case is when mum and dad arrived. Went to pick them up from the airport which was a bit of a drama in itself because I had a few problems with guards who wouldn't let me in to the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1064467239052661472003-09-25T10:58:00.000+06:002003-09-25T11:20:38.940+06:00

Well it's hard to believe that another weeks has passed me by and it is now only a matter of days before I'll go and pick mum and dad up from the airport. I think in many ways it will be quite surreal to see them in Bangladesh but I am defeinitely looking forward to it. It's getting around to the end of semester so that means lots of assignments being handed in and lots and lots of marking to be

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1064311001628083562003-09-23T15:56:00.000+06:002003-09-23T15:56:40.940+06:00

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1064201324486426482003-09-22T09:10:00.000+06:002003-09-22T09:28:44.230+06:00

Last week the new bunch of youth ambassadors, or AYA's, quite humourously in my eyes also the bangla for the people who clean and do washing and cook and stuff, arrived in Dhaka. There are three who are living together in Dhaka and one who is living next door with Patrice. Apart from being aussie's they seem like a pretty good bunch. So last Thursday night we all met up at the Australian Club and

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1063771004096316152003-09-17T09:23:00.000+06:002003-09-17T09:56:43.480+06:00

Well am feeling somewhat better now that the raiders will get at least one more shot at it this weekend. And I guess as long as we play well I'll be fairly happy with how the season has gone. It will be tough to beat the warriors but I am eternally optimistic. So back to CRP life. My usual day starts at 7:30am when I wake up. Usually pretend I don't have to get up straight away and end up having

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1063450928639356962003-09-13T16:41:00.000+06:002003-09-13T17:02:08.563+06:00

Sometimes words just don't cut it, but i'll give it crack anyway, besides, thought the comment that I may be personally responsible for the raiders abismal effort yesterday warranted some sort of reply. Like sitting in an internet cafe in Savar waiting for the stats to pop up on the screen isn't enough. After watching your team drop the ball how many times and miss that many tackles.... All that

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1063089079211754832003-09-09T12:31:00.000+06:002003-09-09T12:31:19.180+06:00

Well sunday night was the first and thankfully only performance of the international volunteers cultural extravaganza spectacular. Saturday rehearsals were alittle subdued due to afore mentioned shananigans on friday night but when it came to the big night not even Big Kev could match the cast for pure excitement. The story of an aussie backpacker (me) who went backpacking to europe and married

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1062916209320030262003-09-07T12:30:00.000+06:002003-09-07T12:30:09.300+06:00

Well I've decided to skip the day in the life for a bit as something much more exciting has happened. On friday night a group of 7 of us went to a dinner and live music thing at the american club. We met up at another club before hand for a couple of drinks and then by 8:00 we were on our way down the road. The food was great, buffet style. Beef strog, veg lasagne and a whole array of fresh

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1062393515235347242003-09-01T11:18:00.000+06:002003-09-01T11:18:35.263+06:00

OK for those who are interested here's the postal address at CRP Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed (CRP) PO CRP-Chapain Savar Dhaka 1343 Bangladesh Tel: (880) 2 7710464/5 or (880) 2 7711766 I would also highly recommend checking out the website which has lots of info on lots of different things. The address is: http://www.crp-bangladesh.com/ will write more and better stuff soon.

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1062239069879828302003-08-30T16:24:00.000+06:002003-08-30T16:24:29.876+06:00

Well may I start by saying how good are the raiders. At the start of the season I was chatting to my good mate Bill, the yardsman at hennessy, and he said he had a feeling that the raiders were going to win it this year, no don't get me wrong, he doesn't look much like your average clairvoyant but here's hoping that he got this one right. It's hard not being able to kick back in front of the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1061637252198501052003-08-23T17:14:00.000+06:002003-08-23T17:14:12.210+06:00

Well it's great to see that the kiwis are biting... always good for a giggle. Friday was Patrice's birthday and so as she was away in Dhaka hanging out with her parents it was left to me to organise the boat trip. For this task I was forced to enlist the most powerful of OT skills, networking. One of the OT's Shuhad came down with me to help book the boat, this consisted of me pointing at the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1061443377359481022003-08-21T11:22:00.000+06:002003-08-21T11:22:57.400+06:00

Thos of you who read the comments section of this site may have realised that there have been a couple of random kiwis giving me a bit of stick about australias recent performances in the rugby. At first I thought that no response was warranted but now I have decided to repond in love and maturity, two things for which I am widely known. This is my heartfelt plea to all Australians to be open

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1061287710035134082003-08-19T16:08:00.000+06:002003-08-19T16:08:30.040+06:00

Well today is a holiday. Why I'm not sure but who's going to complain for the simple fact that they do not fully understand why they don't have to be at work. So what amazing adventures have I had? Well last night a read a book about a guy who hitch hikes around Ireland with a fridge to win a bet until 3:30am, slept til late this morning and then read the rest of the book. So all in all I think

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1061034737092206102003-08-16T17:52:00.000+06:002003-08-16T17:52:16.956+06:00

Well it's been a bad couple of days in terms of things that have happened, fortunately none of them to me directly. Let's start with the nightmare taxi ride home on Thursday night.. with Patrice this time. We get in the cab tell him where we want to go and then at the bus station at the edge of Dhaka he pulls out stops the engine and says he won't take us any further. Patrice was furious and I

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1060755036436448452003-08-13T12:10:00.000+06:002003-08-13T12:10:36.500+06:00

I think in my last post I got up to the bit about the amazing clothes so i'll just kick on from there.. It was in a big sort of hall with lots of big tables full of people eating. Now so many of people come to these events that there is not enough room for everyone to eat at once, so after you arrive you kind of hang around a bit and when it looks like some people might be just about to finish

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1060513480443133382003-08-10T17:04:00.000+06:002003-08-10T17:04:40.410+06:00

Well, needless to say the wedding experience was a very interesting experience but the real excitement started long before we arrived. On Thursday night, having successfully honed my hunter gatherer skills in pursuit of a cold beer and being rather successful I had to make my way back to Savar by taxi alone. I had enlisted the support of a few bystanders who seemed to speak barely more english

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1060238429182423322003-08-07T12:40:00.000+06:002003-08-07T12:40:29.223+06:00

Well have almost made it to the end of another week which has been one of the hottest yet, clear blue skies no rain in sight and you know that when the locals are having a whinge that it's a-ok for you to have one too. I'm not sure if my ability to concentrate for any extended period of time has been affected by the heat but I cna't seem to put my mind to anything at all this week, I try to do

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1059819621207899802003-08-02T16:20:00.000+06:002003-08-02T16:20:21.246+06:00

Well the raiders go down in a thriller hey? Almost glad I didn't watch as it sounded like a heart breaker. Someone from canberra should have sacrificed themselves for the team and taken fitler out with a cheap shot, maybe a late elbow after a kick or something... any enough about that. On Friday we went on a boat trip to the village of one of the students. The boat was probably about 10m long

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1059628946513036442003-07-31T11:22:00.000+06:002003-07-31T11:22:26.503+06:00

I arrived at work on Monday morning to be told by the OT head that there was a problem and that my students didn't want to attend my class anymore, she was joking obviously but I'm sure anyone who has seen me at 8am would realise I am not at my sharpest at this ungodly hour. The real reason I had no class was that there was a sports day. Now I imagine sports days as kind of a mini olympics with

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1059367039232544762003-07-28T10:37:00.000+06:002003-07-28T10:37:19.250+06:00

The thing that probably got to me the most when I was travelling around Dhaka on my own on Friday afternoon was the poverty. Every street you walk down, every time you're in a vehicle stopped at an intersection there is someone begging and these do not often look like have any other way of supporting themselves. Now I made a decision that I wasn't going to give money to beggars while I was in

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1059214469369239812003-07-26T16:14:00.000+06:002003-07-26T16:14:29.460+06:00

Well it's been a big weekend for me here in Bangladesh. On Friday morning headed in to to Dhaka with Mel (Pommy Speech and language therapist) to go to the Bagha club. This sis a club for ex-pats where they do sacralicious things like serve bacon and sell beer. Now I need to make a confession that I'm sure some of you will find hard to understand but I hope that my explanation will suffice. Here

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1059034816015505612003-07-24T14:20:00.000+06:002003-07-24T14:20:15.736+06:00

I have just managed to install a comments feature on the page! The technological genius required to do this is beyond the scop of this post but I thought it would be a good way to make this a bit more interactive. So if you have any comments or questions etc. comment away!!!

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1059034008262840032003-07-24T14:06:00.000+06:002003-07-24T14:06:48.046+06:00

Well it's the end of the working week for Mick, well at least until Saturday morning, but its better than nothing and this weekend I've got a few adventures planned that should make things quite interesting. I'll probably head into Dhaka tomorrow some time and go and hang out at the Bagha club, this is a club for ex pats where they sell wonderful things like cold beer, its crap but it's still

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1058934964133129032003-07-23T10:36:00.000+06:002003-07-23T10:36:04.156+06:00

Well last night I played my first 2 games ina singles table tennis tournament and got flogged in both... Here are my excuses. I had worked from 8:00am to about 6:30pm with a one hour lunch break. I was tired. But I think the most important one is that compared to most of the people here I'm pretty crap. Oh and I forgot to mention the added stress of the joy that is marking assignments. You may

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1058699436225412442003-07-20T17:10:00.000+06:002003-07-20T17:10:36.296+06:00

Well it's not even 2 weeks in and professor mick has some assignments to mark. This may prove difficult for several reasons. My students are all writing in their second language and so it has hard to differentiate between lack of knowllege and lack of ability to explain things in english... I'm sure i'll pick it up as I go along and fortunately Patrice (aussie OT) is back from her jaunt to

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1058424232738620742003-07-17T12:43:00.000+06:002003-07-17T12:43:52.620+06:00

Well I have been requested to post a few things about general life over here starting with that most interesting topic of conversation... the weather! Well for starters it is bloody hot. I realised this yesterday morning when I was on my way into Dhaka to visit the Institute fro mental health in a landcruiser which had a temperature gauge. I was thinking to myslef it isn't that hot yet as it was

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1058422794749405742003-07-17T12:19:00.000+06:002003-07-17T12:19:54.743+06:00

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1058266223207544552003-07-15T16:50:00.000+06:002003-07-15T16:50:23.126+06:00

Well its hard to belive that it's only been a week! I feel like I've been going flat chat since I arrived. Maybe this is due to having a 5 1/2 day working week or the fact that being oriented to somewhere this big is daunting in itself but I guess it's always good to hit the ground running. Have had my first classes I'll deal with 2nd year Psychiatry first. These guys are trying to learn in

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1058006922870191412003-07-12T16:48:00.000+06:002003-07-12T16:48:42.770+06:00

Well I've been here for a few days now and am starting to settle in. There are quite a few volunteers here from around the world which is making the job a little easier but everyone has been very friendly which is tops. My accomodation is so much more than I ever could have expected... a 2 bedroom flat (other bedroom now occupied by Akili, a 70 odd year old nurse from italy who has spent a good

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1057667828285048992003-07-08T18:37:00.000+06:002003-07-08T18:37:08.330+06:00

There's always something about travelling across vast distances that is inherently exciting when thought about theoretically but in practice rarely ever lives up to. Travelling on a modern jet is much the same as sitiing in the back of a luxury sedan with DVD players on the freeway up to sydney only for a longer period of time. This in itself is no worse than boring. The things that really get

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5537152.post-1057151098929789372003-07-02T19:04:00.000+06:002003-07-02T19:04:58.923+06:00

Welcome to bangers and mash... 5 sleeps until I leave for Bangladesh for two years to.. allegedly.. teach occupational therapy to unsuspecting Bengalis. Who would allow me to do such a thing.. certainly no-one who knew me as a student. But that currently seems irrelevant as I have my tickets and a whole lot of stuff to pack and people to see in the next 4 days. The main thing coming to mind

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10449514004104615050noreply@blogger.com