Happy new year!

Happy new year everyone!

Here are the highlights from the last few days:

For Dr. Toni's birthday, Dr. Brian bought her a pig. Yes, a whole pig. After the beast was slaughtered, I helped cut up the meat. It was still warm - so weird! The next day we had an incredible feast up at Toni and Brian's place, live music and beer included. It was a warm and beautiful day, and I'm sure a birthday that Toni won't soon forget.

Toni and Jefferson, our biologist, shaking a leg and checking out the band

Toni and Brian officially opening up the dance floor

Me figuring out how to use the panorama feature on my phone!

New years here was a lot of fun. I cooked up some spaghetti and meat sauce and garlic bread for the group, which was a big hit. Most of the ingredients, especially the beef, had to be brought in from Iquitos (thanks to Blanca, our obstetrician). Dr. Toni (a true Italian from the Chicago area) was thrilled. After dinner we decorated the dining area in the traditional yellow, had some champagne, and headed out to the town center for a huge party where neighbouring pueblos from the Napo congregated to bring in the new year.

Enjoying some post-meal dessert - Manolo, one of our lab techs, seems unimpressed

Panorama of the party in the town center

The most people I've seen in one place in a while

Happy new year, girls! Manolo, again unimpressed

Some interesting things I've noticed during my time here so far:

• Everybody checks the money: anytime you pay for anything and hand over a bill, it gets a good tug, a rub, and a once over to make sure it's real.
• Dancing: in North America we often dance in groups. Here, that's a big no-no. You go up to the partner of your choice, ask them to dance, and sit back down when the song is over.
• Cheers: arriba (glass up), abajo (glass down), al centro (glass in front), a dentro (down the hatch)
• Dolphins: there are actually dolphins in the Rio Napo (saw some when I was waiting for the Rapido in Mazan). Dr. Julio calls them bufeos colorados, and says that some people say that they swim up to shore and turn into gringos. This brings me to my final point, 
• Superstition: people here believe in spirits. For example, a spirit called the 'Tunche' haunts the jungle at night, whispering names and making sounds. I was also told once that I shouldn't sleep in the call room because there are phantoms there. 

Interesting medical case of the day:

A 15 year old girl comes in with a 1-month history of an itchy rash on her left shoulder and arm, running down the  distribution of the ulnar nerve right down to the pinky and half of the 4th finger. While a diagnosis of herpes zoster is tempting, she has no pain, only itch. Does the rash follow a true dermatomal pattern, or is it along a line of Blaschko? If it's the latter, lichen striatus is the more likely diagnosis.