Visitor MS0304 
| Visitor |
| Sex? |
male |
| Profession/occupation? |
medical student |
| Home country? |
UK |
| What made you want to go to
Solomon Islands? |
reading an article |
| Arriving in Solomon
Islands |
| When did you arrive in Solomon
Islands? |
September 2003 |
| Did you encounter any
bureaucratic difficulties? |
no |
| What was your first impression
after arrival? |
Poorer than expected. EXTREMELY humid! |
| Living in Solomon
Islands |
| What did positively surprise
you? |
Cleanliness and pride in homes and gardens. Affection
towards children. |
| What did negatively surprise
you? |
[-] |
| What took longest to get used
to? |
Questions being answered by the flick of an eyebrow. |
| What did you miss most in
Solomon Islands? |
Being so relaxed. |
| What should you have brought
along? |
Umbrella - but easy to buy there. It does rain...a
lot. |
| What did you do to prevent
malaria? |
Mefloquine |
| Place and province where you
spent most of your time? |
Gizo, Western Province |
| Where did you stay? |
Phoebe's Guesthouse |
| How long did you stay at each
location? |
2 months |
| How much did you pay for
each? |
SBD 45 |
| Where did you usually eat? |
Cooked for myself (and other guests) on a voluntary
rota. |
| What did you typically pay for
a normal meal? |
SBD 30 (for 4 people, every 4th night) |
| What local food/beverage did
you like most? |
Fresh tuna and pineapple. |
| What local food/beverage did
you like least? |
SB [SolBrew beer] |
| Working in Solomon
Islands |
| How did you usually go to
work? |
walk |
| Where did you work? |
Gizo Hospital (mostly female/maternity) |
| What was your occupation? |
Student doctor |
| What were your working days and
hours? |
8:30am - 5pm (with generous lunch breaks) |
| What was particularly difficult
in regard to your work? |
Accepting that routine treatments were unavailable and
not feeling bad about it. |
| Did you feel accepted by the
locals? |
yes |
| What did you usually do in your
spare time after work? |
Read, chat, go diving. |
| Leaving Solomon Islands and
looking back |
| When did you leave Solomon
Islands? |
October 2003 |
| How long was your stay? |
8 weeks |
| How do you judge the length of
your stay? |
too short |
| What did you learn from the
locals? |
A lot. |
| Your advice to prospective
visitors? |
Get stuck in and talk to people. |
| What did you miss most when
back at home again? |
The sun and the views. |
| What did you enjoy most when
back at home again? |
Clothes not going mouldy! |
| Would you go back for another
stay? |
Anytime! |
| Estimated total cost of your
stay (including travel costs)? |
EUR 3,200 |
| Additional comments? |
A wonderful place. Talk to people, you'll pick up basic
Pidgin easily. They're very friendly. Try and visit other
villages and islands - they are all very different. The
diving is fantastic. I had a lot of responsibility in the
hospital and was treated as a doctor and was frequently the
only 'doctor' there. Alarming at first, but faced with 20
people in out-patients, alone, you have to get used to it
quickly. Got to perform operations - tubal ligations, lipoma
removal. I also got to deliver babies and was had to do ward
rounds by myself. The doctors and nurses were very friendly
and helpful when I didn't know what was wrong with a patient
or needed help with translation. Phoebe's guesthouse has the
best views in the world. Gizo (and the hospital) are very
relaxed - dresscode was T-shirt, shorts and flip-flops. In
summary, a fantastic friendly place with a lot of
responsibility. |
