Day 6: Last Full Day in Manaus

We have been going, going, and going. The Manaus Rotarians have been excellent hosts the entire time we have been here. They have scheduled several meetings with various people in our fields of study/profession. The Brazilians have been so kind and gracious to our team. It will be difficult for us to leave such a great group of people in Manaus.

A few highlights from the past several days:

• We visited SAMU (the equivalent of our 911 medical service in the US) a couple of days. They have been able to go from a run-down system to an elite system within one year. They have some great things happening in the medical services including very cool first-responding motorcyclist and a boat ambulance that serves several riverside villages on the Amazon.
• We visited with the Secretary of Health for Manaus, who has really helped expand medical services and pushed to revamp the SAMU system as well.
• We witnessed an incredible program that serves over 300 children to adults with disabilities that was started by a Rotarian several years ago, designed to provide adaptive mobility for people with physical and mental deficits.
• We also visited the integrated central military security communications center that oversees the police & fire departments. They monitor hundreds of cameras around the city of Manaus and we were able to observe their activities in action around the city.
• We also took a boat tour and saw the "Meeting of the Waters" where the Rio Negro (black water) & Solimoes (brown water) rivers converge. These waters do not mix for several miles, an incredible sight to see as the waters flow side-by-side as far as the eye can see. Also went on the tour of the channels (igarapes) where we we saw giant lilly pads (Victoria Regias) and several river villages where many people have their homes on the river and live their lives everyday on the river.

A couple of us have experienced the universal health care program in Brazil with unforseen visits to their urgent care center... everyone is doing fine. Gaelynn had a really bad cough and Eric had heat stroke but the Brazilian hosts wanted to make sure everything was okay, so both Gaelynn & Eric now have a Brazilian medical record.

Tomorrow morning we leave for Santarem by river boat (33-hour journey). We will be on the boat until late Tuesday night so we will not be able to update the blog until Wednesday or later. Thanks for sharing in our adventure by reading our blog!!

Day 2 - GSE Activities in Manaus

Today our GSE team visited the Emergency Medical System (EMS) center of Manaus and visited with the Municipal Secretary of Health.  We will follow-up with a visit on Friday of their speed boat ambulance, which is used for the emergency response and tranport from outlying communities along the Amazon River (range of 4 hours each way - out and back).  We also learned about the motorcycle emergency responders, who are able to maneuver through the city with greater agility than the other emergency vehicles... a unique approach to emergency response.

We made another Rotary Club presentation today at lunch to the Rio Negro Club.  Later in the day we visited the famous Amazon Theater (opera house) built for rubber barons during the rubber boom of the late 19th century (1896).

From GSE Trip

Arrived in Manaus, Brazil

After nearly 20 hours of air travel and 6000 miles we arrived in Manaus, Brazil at Noon.  Our trip took us from Kansas City to Atlanta, then to Brasilia with a connecting flight back north to Manaus.  We crossed the equator 2.5 hours prior to landing in Brasilia.  We are just a few degrees south of the equator.  It's 86 degrees and humid (like a sauna).  We were met at the airport by two wonderful Rotarians (Gerson and Maxwell), who took us to lunch and helped us get settled into a hotel near the famously beautiful Opera Theater Building (circa 1890).  We will visit the four Rotary clubs in Manaus before leaving by boat next Monday to Santarem.  The river trip on the Amazon will take 2 days.  Happy Birthday, Gaelynn!!

Final Phase of Planning

The GSE planning is nearly complete and the excitement about the trip is clearly palpable.  Visas are arriving, airline tickets are in hand, and the itinerary includes five days in Manaus followed by a two-day boat ride down the Amazon to Santarem.  We will stay four days in Santarem and then fly to Belem for the remainder of our trip.  The Rotary District conference will be held in Belem April 29-May 2.  We will return via Rio de Janeiro on May 3, arriving on May 4 in Kansas City.

Back on track with our new team

We are back on track with two new members (Amanda Dura and Christine Pearson) from Emporia, KS to complete the GSE Team.  Here is a new team picture!

Re-Grouping The Team

Unfortunately, two original members of the GSE team resigned and the alternate member was not able to join the GSE team.  As a result of these unforseen circumstances, the GSE Selection Committee has been reactivated to recruit two new GSE team members by the end of January 2010.  The orientation of the remaining members will proceed on schedule with our second meeting being held, today.

The GSE Team Began Orientation

The Kansas GSE Team bound for the Brazilian Amazônia Rotary District 4720 began their team orientation on November 15 in Topeka, KS.  Over the next four and half months the team will participate in monthly orientation meetings focused on their preparation for the GSE journey to Brazil in April 2010.