Hey Everyone! mountain or temple you’ve been meaning to see and PROJECTIONS Welcome to the December acknowledge that you still have the best and most and January bumper issue! rewarding part of your year to come. We hope everyone’s had an We’ve been hearing loads of exciting news and stories amazing Christmas and from Desk Officers who are just returning from visits and celebrated New Year in good all is well. Thanks again to those of you whom we spirits. Going back to your visited for showing us a great time. We look forward to routine after the party season seeing the rest of you soon enough! can be difficult, so don’t be disheartened if you feel a A further thank you to those who have sent in pictures little bit flat. The best way to and tales of your life overseas. Our office is awash of tackle this is to keep busy, colour from all over the world. Keep sending in your this is the time to really push yourself; after all it’s a new great pictures. It gives us something to smile about year. So put your fantastic ideas for secondary projects into during these long, cold winter nights on Coll… practise, keep up your language learning, visit that Photo: Laura in RSA. Around the World with Project Trust Malawi Fieke and Mia have been loving the huge challenges their to a still born kid. They even gave the mother goat unique project at Nsanje in Malawi has been throwing their way. aftercare, a crushed paracetamol in water. That’s a ex- They split their time between teaching and then working in perience to tick off for a year out! the maternity ward of the District Hospital. Mia was involved in the emergency treatment of a baby who had Chile been born not breathing. (At this point it may be worth Fiona Sinclair shares with her blog readers all the things noting, as Mia points out, that her help does not extend that make her smile in Chile. Here are some examples further than holding the necessary tubes etc- no solo from a rather long list: I love the way I can judge what deliveries just yet!) Mia tells of the magical moment when time it is in the morning by the rooster, passing airplane the baby finally started to breathe, opened her eyes and and the neighbours leaving their house. I love niños looked straight at her. shouting ‘Tia’ and wanting me to give them a hug. I love that my family here know me better than people who have Franci and Chloe in Blantyre have also been providing known me for years. I love the way I am constantly sur- medical relief or their newly adopted puppy. They prised but never shocked. I love that I now have a deep managed to take him to the vet to get his rabies injection knowledge of Justin Beiber. I love 8 o´clock at night but were worried that he hadn’t yet when the sun is going down and the sky fades from Pink had his parvovirus injection so to Light blue above the dark silhouette of the Hills. I love decided to carry him home in true how I call the Andes ‘the Hills’. Malawian style- with a chitenge, a large piece of cloth wrapped around South Africa the waist for carrying infants! This Helen and Cara have been “in the wars” with a dislo- attracted a lot of attention and cated shoulder and a torn ligament in a knee. They have amusement from the locals on their walk home with shouts been getting by and competing sling vs crutches. They of “What are you doing white lady? That’s a dog not a did this playing Ultimate Frisbee! They are ok though as baby!” they are working in a hospital and their Doctor colleagues patched them up, free of charge! Senegal Lottie and Sarahjane have been playing Doctor Doolittle. The volunteers in South Africa over Christmas have had The girls armed with pair of scissors, a towel, a bowl of an interesting Christmas doing a bungee jump, a 54km water, gloves and training from a one minute phone call cycle down a mountain and had a neck massage from an and a quick look at Google assisted a goat give birth, sadly ostrich!! In the News Float like a butterfly; sting like a bee Cruise Disaster Former professional boxer Muhammad Ali celebrates A Concordia cruise ship carrying over 4,000 passengers and his 70th birthday this January. He shares his birthday crew crashed into rocks off the coast of Italy and capsized last month with Mel Gibson, Elvis Presley, Michelle weekend, killing at least 6 with many more missing. As we Obama and our very own Kate Bower and John Fraser. go to print, the captain has been detained on charges of manslaughter. Pat Butcher leaves Eastenders After 26 years on the show, Pat St. Clemet, better know Haiti marks 2-year quake anniversary to you and I as Pat, left Eastenders in a dramatic Ceremonies took place all over Haiti on the 13th of January to storyline over Christmas. mark the anniversary of the earthquake which took over Our favourite cracker joke of the season: 300,000 lives. Reconstruction efforts continue as 500,000 What did the fish say when it swam into a wall? Haitians remain homeless. Dam Answer: Bulletin Board Life on Coll… Safety and security As some of you may have heard, the UK has been As you begin to feel more at home in your host taking a bit of a battering from the weather lately and community, there is also the tendency to become we’ve been bearing the full brunt of it! In early complacent about your safety. DON’T! There have December we saw winds of over 120 mph and a already been an incredible amount of incidents across resulting 4 day power cut. We were thinking of you in the world: volunteers have had bags stolen from buses, the warmer climates overseas. A special mention phones stolen from accommodation, have been broken should go to the volunteers who were up on Selection into, have been sexually propositioned, have got drunk and coped well with the challenging conditions, no and had passports and money stolen……and you’ve power, water nor heat. only been overseas for a few months! Despite your integration into the community, all the warnings given The New Year saw a new member of staff join the on Training still stand, and will be even more recruitment team Tom Longden. Tom was a volunteer important during the winter holidays, when many of in Chile (07/08), Tom upon his arrival was met with a you may be travelling. true Coll welcoming a series of wet and very windy days. He is probably questioning his sanity! At your project: check your risk assessments and make sure you have locks on your door, check electric Ross Evans is now a father to a healthy baby boy called wires and gas appliances, keep valuables hidden. Bryce and we are all welcoming his return to Coll, On the move: Be vigilant, keep bags on your front, partly so we can all have a cuddle with the baby. don’t carry passports and credit cards unless you need to, don’t walk on your own at night, DON’T get blind drunk and lose everyone else, look after each other and Staff visits watch your drinks. Many of the staff will be heading out on their annual visits next month. Nick and Ingrid are visiting India and Sri Sponsors, donors and schools…: Keep those Lanka; Doug and Ross are visiting Jamaica and Guyana, newsletters and updates going to all the people who with Chris joining Doug later. John and Kate are heading to put you where you are. Just think if it wasn’t for them, Thailand and Cambodia; and Gill is set to visit Senegal. you’d probably be doing something very different There are lots of things which staff will hope to achieve on their visits and we thought this was probably a good time to right now! reiterate them so that everyone knows what to expect. Photo Competition: We’re enjoying writing these Some volunteers will have received a visit in November/ circulars, hearing all your tales, but we’d still love to December time, and others early this year. These times tend see more of your photos and share them with other to be dictated by commitments on Coll (usually selection) vols. So…we’re starting a photo competition! Send and your timetables overseas... no point in doing a visit if in your photos every month and we’ll choose a winner the entire country group is on holiday! The objectives of the which will be put in the next circular. This month, we visit are to make sure that everything is running as smoothly want photos of you in your PT gear in you new as it can be; this means a meeting with Hosts as well as talking with Reps. Also included is the chance to watch you communities or on your travels. So get snapping and in action at your project, to spend a bit of time talking emailing your faves into [email protected]. through the last few months with each individual as well as with partners (where applicable) as well as risk assessment SPORT follow ups on both accommodation and projects. We like to RUGBY see your accommodation, and if there is a chance, to see Chris Patterson has hung up his boots and retired from your local community, where you visit and shop, it is international rugby for Scotland.