Hope in the Face of AIDS Banquet, Phoenix Arizona. 5/9/2008

T-5 DAYS

The countdown has begun! Next Friday I take off. Well actually I am leaving for Phoenix then Chicago then London then Chennai. I am so excited I don't think I am going to make it through the end of summer school...

A little background on the trip:
I will be teaching with International Alliance for the Prevention of AIDS, a nonprofit group that was started by medical students looking for a practical way to make a difference in the AIDS epidemic.
This group teaches college students a curriculum about HIV/AIDS and prepares us to teach it to others overseas in India, where the spread of the virus has become a huge socioeconomic problem. This link has a few stats on the current issues and numbers of those infected.

http://www.who.int/hiv/HIVCP_IND.pdf (from the World Health Organization)

Some of our lessons include immunology, basic biology, methods of transmission, prevention, and healthy living. And lets not forget my favorite, the condom demonstration. (The 10th graders at Tucson High thought it was…very informative. They were our guinea pig class. I think I learned more from them than they did from me)
Once in India, we are going to be traveling to different schools and organizations in Chennai and teaching different material, depending on the audience.


I can’t wait to be working and living with all the IAPA kids...even the ones from ASU. Everyone has some different talent and passion and they have really inspired me and made me realize how much more I have to learn in order to be a successful teacher.

Just for kicks
Here is my current packing list:
-Sunscreen SPF 1,000
-Mosquito net
-A gallon of bug spray
-A pretty hefty supply of doxycycline - malaria medication
-Another supply of Cipro (we wouldn’t another ‘Spring Break Mexico’ incident…)
-A case of Luna Bars, apparently I’ve been told I won’t like what is traditionally offered for breakfast. However as long as it isn’t goat testicles I think i'll try anything.
-Modest clothing. (No tank tops. No skirts. No tight shirts. Basically I had to buy a whole new wardrobe)
-12 or so camera memory cards
-A long book for the plane ride. Right now I have Eat Pray Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert. Anyone have any other suggestions? Lets face it, I have about 40 hours worth of travel to look forward to.

More details once we arrive in country :)

-S