Last Post From Samoa....:( Sad to leave

I can't believe..i now i keep saying this..that my 6 weeks of elective in Samoa have come to an end. It has flown by and really sad to leave such a lovely and friendly place!
We are off to start ur travels on Friday....we fly into Auckland and have 5 days in the North Island and then fly to Christchurch where we have a few days either side of our bus tour. We are going on a seven day tour of the South Island which sounds great! We will have to get used to the weather! I cant believe that im no that brown after 6 wks here...but my excuseis ive been inside working hard all day so no time to sunbathe lol!
Considering its rainy season now..looking out of the internet cafe window..you wouldnt know it..though it mainly rains in the evenings!
This weekend we went to a beach down south of Upolu called Aganoa. It is a black sand beach. It was almost deserted meaning that we had the beach to ourselves! Im not quite sure why this is the only black sand beach in Samoa..but one thought is that it is broken up lava from the many volcanic eruptions that Samoa have had, but then i am confused to why there aren't more black sand beaches. The sea was v.rough....we played a game seeing if we could stand up against the waves. Sometimes we managed to...'the force was with us'! and other times a wave sent me crashing along with it...roly pollying!..until in finally came to a halt..washed up on the beach! The wave would drag you in with it..and then the wave before would drag you out..so waves kept sneaking up on us and knocking us off our feet..but was great fun..though i may have brought some of the black sand back with me..accidentally..as half of it wasprobably up my nose and in my stomach having swallowed so much sea water!
Sunday was a complete wash-out...it rained the entire day...so we had a DVD day!
For our last week of the hospital we have continued doing paediatrics in the morning..as it has been really good. Now we have a slight clue what's going on.....we frantically scribble in the notes..check if the kid has a fever etc..and examine them.......and then present our findings to the intern....who most of the time concurs...but occasionally implies to me that i should wash my stethoscope..and possibly my ears out lol..dont worry..im not that bad! In the afternoon we went to A and E..though it was very quiet!
Last night we went in at 5pm..thinking that pts may come after work. It was still dead..which is weird for an A and E, but got to see some outpatients. One guy came in with an infected wound..which had become really infected. I wont go into gory details....but apparently he had something called SSS, (Staphylococcocal Scaled Skin Syndrome). I had never heard of it, but having looked it up, the description fits this gentleman! I then got to put a cannula in him and we then admitted him as he needs IV antibiotics.
So many children come into outpatients with bronchiolitis or pneumonia....that they almost need a separate outpatients just for them!
Yesterday afternoon we went to a place called Sliding Rocks! The guide-book said that it is an 'obligatory visit' for everyone in Apia..so we decided to go in our last few days! Lots of the water had dried up..making it more dangerous to slide. We hung around for about 30min.....i kept sizing up the v.bumpy looking rocks with a bit of water running over them..working out how i could minimise the damage to myself. I was abut to chicken out..when some other people arrived and went to the 5m slide. Having seen him and then a 42 yr old mum do the slide..i decided to go for it! Like always..i couldnt make myself slide..but one false move...and there is no turning back...and i ended up sliding down.....it is over v.quickly..and suprisingly it is so quick that you dont feel all the bumpy rocks! Having done it once..and loved the adrenalin rush..i did it again..but this time went slightly to the left of the stream...resulting in a slightly more bumpy and more frictioned slide..but was still good fun!
I hope everyone is well
It is funny to keep hearing that more friends and family are reading this blog. I didnt expect it to have much circulation..and ive never been good at English but it great to hear that everyone is enjoying reading the trials and tribulations in Sarah World!
i wont have anymore to tell everyone when i get back..as everyone will be telling me what ive done..which is good..as i ll need reminding! But dont worry..i havent written everything on here..and for years to come..ill remember Samoa and things will pop up in conversation..like what has been happening since i went to Mexico last summer!
Love to everyone
and truly thanks for everyone's best wishes and love
Sending love back over the ocean..hope its not a choppy ride!
xxxx