Greetings again and I hope everyone is enjoying their summer, wherever you are. Last October I wrote about going to the Mexico-USA Friendship conference in Acapulco and my committee choosing three projects for our Rotary Club to help support. In March I talked about visiting the General Hospital of Cholula, Puebla where the eye bank will be. Now I am pleased to be able to announce that the eye bank has had its inauguration, is open for business and has had its first client from day #1.
On June 28th at 4pm, Rotary club members, hospital staff and dignitaries gathered in the General Hospital of Cholula, greeted by someone in a giant eyeball costume, complete with an optic nerve protruding from the back of the “eyeball.”
After mingling, we were called to order and presentations were given by the people up on the stage – various government ministers, the Director General of the Hospital Dr. Francisco Javier Enríquez Reyes, the head of ophthalmology Dra. Marcela Tejeda Mondragón and the president of the Club Rotario Puebla Campestre Real Mónica (Maby) Flores.
After the speeches we were led into the eye bank. There we were able to see the culmination of all the efforts of Rotary in collaboration with the hospital administration and staff. There was a table set up with gleaming new instruments. There was a new refrigerator which enabled storage of the donated corneas.
For me, the crown jewel was the microscope. This instrument did not resemble what you would think of when you hear the word “microscope.” It was a cylinder set on top of a square container next to a computer screen which was also attached to a printer. The cornea is placed into the microscope and its image appears greatly enlarged on the screen. This enables the doctors to view it in great detail at the cellular level and detect any problems which might disqualify it from being transplanted. I must say that I am constantly amazed at the progress in the field of medicine just in my lifetime, but that is a post for another day.
After the tour there was a reception during which we had many separate discussions with our colleagues from this endeavor. In addition, several more short speeches were made, including by Dra. Tejeda Mondragón and Mónica Flores.
While the inauguration was the purpose, and would be the highlight, of my trip, there was still more to come. After a good night’s rest, it was time for a road trip.
The Rotary year begins on July 1st with dinners officially celebrating the changing of the guard being held around this time. This dinner was for the district governor of Rotary District 4185, which includes the states of Puebla, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Morelos and Guerrero.
The dinner was being held in Veracruz, so after spending the night with Maby and her family, we packed ourselves into their car and off we went – me, Maby, her husband, son and daughter.
I slept for part of the way, and for part admired the landscape on the way, including wind farms. On arrival, we checked into the Galería Plaza Hotel, where the dinner would be held, and it turned out that I had a very nice room overlooking the Gulf of Mexico. The dinner started at 8:30pm so we had plenty of time to relax.
The dinner began with traditional dancers, speeches, presentation of the outgoing district governor (Ing. Cipriano Navarro Maya) and the incoming governor (Jesús Pita Barcelata). Plenty of photos were taken and a delicious dinner was served. Kudos from this gringa from New York to whomever prepared the menu. Only a single hot/spicy (picante) item, which was a crouton floating in the crab soup. The rest was delicious and thoroughly enjoyed.
I don’t even remember what time I returned to my room for a good night’s rest, refreshed in the morning and ready to see some of the sights of Veracruz before returning to Colima on my 4:30pm flight.
As I said, Veracruz is right on the Gulf of Mexico, so it reminded me of many little seaside towns on the east coast of the U.S. Souvenirs had mainly seaside themes, the fresh fish was absolutely delicious and one tourist attraction reminded me of Acapulco. In Acapulco there were cliff divers who earned money by having tourists watch them dive from cliffs into narrow stretches of water. The divers in Veracruz would dive from the docks to retrieve coins tossed into the water. I noticed that when they stood up, the water was only waist deep. However, a ship was also docked a little ways away. I was told that the ground beneath the water was flat until it almost reached the ship and then there is a steep drop.
After touring Veracruz, we went to the airport, where I was told I could not take my flowers on board. Maby had given me a nice bouquet and I believed that since I was still traveling within Mexico I could take them with me. I was told by the agent that it was not allowed, that it didn’t matter if I was not leaving the country. I don’t know if she was correct or not, so Maby kept the flowers and I kept the wooden box in which they came.
So there ends my latest tale, but I will leave you with one thought. How lucky I am to be part of such a wonderful organization such as Rotary International – a worldwide volunteer organization. I have been blessed to meet so many wonderful, caring humanitarians whose volunteer work makes the world a better place one person and one project at a time.
If you have a Rotary club near you, you might want to check it out, be a guest at a meeting and see what we do. If you are not inclined to join, you may want to help them in some of their activities. In addition, or even instead of, it is a wonderful experience to travel and meet other people from different countries, different cultures. You will see that deep down we are not so different after all.
And so – adiós until next time!
mex-pat.org 