Lampung

My time in Lampung was quite an eye-opener. I got to experience the life of doctor researchers living in Hanura, a village in Lampung, and serving the surrounding areas. Each work day, we would go out in the afternoon and go to randomly selected households with children under 15-years-old, asking for blood samples to check for malaria. The goal of Dr. Ayleen, Dr. Deka, Pak Pri, and Tri under the guidance of Professor Inge is to understand the different patterns of malaria incidence related to season changes.

I was really grateful to get to help out by organizing blood samples and doing finger pokes (you don't need much blood to check for the Plasmodium parasite). And I was even more grateful to get to interact with the families, especially the children who were excited about us being there.

Compared to Aek Matio, the people in the villages near Hanura had a little more exposure to the outside world. They live much closer to the city that the people in Aek Matio do. Similar to those in Aek Matio, the people we visited were usually not educated beyond elementary school, and usually worked as farmers.

This trip has been amazing! I'm now back in Jakarta, spending time with my relatives. I leave for Singapore on Sunday, and return to Seattle on Tuesday. I absolutely cannot wait to be home, and I will be there soon! Praise God, He's kept me safe and strong throughout this trip.