So here I am in warm and sunny Davao, South Philippines! I am living in a house with so far 6 other girls- although I can't really keep up with all the names or which house they live in (this one- Green House or the one next door- Orange House), all from America except one girl from Switzerland. Everyone is very warm and friendly and I feel very much at home.

After having spent the past three weeks travelling with Ju and Mark, we parted ways- them to Shanghai and me to Beijing, only to discover I had left my passport on our Chinese tour boat. I miraculously managed to fly to Beijing with my out of date student card and reach my friend, where I then spent the next 12 hours on the phone ringing as many people as I could to try and get my passport to be sent to me the quickest way possible! Eventually, my passport arrived into Beijing airport, which only delayed me by one day for my trip to the Philippines! Phew!

I am now here and eager to get started! After travelling all night I arrived feeling groggy and a bit worse for wear and so slept a few hours before meeting with another intern and having orientation, which basically consisted of us taking on a lot of information and being taken around the local mall. It has got me sooooo unbelievably excited!

My shifts rotate either between pre-natal clinic or birth room. Sometimes I am on two shifts a day. Birth room shifts are 8 hour shifts- day 6am-2pm, swing 2pm-10pm or night 10pm-6am. My first shift is tomorrow and I am on a night shift! Pre-natal clinic starts at 7.45am (unless you have worked a night the previous night, you can have a lie-in until 9am) and you stay until all patients have been seen.

I will initially just be observing as of course I have had no prior experience. So to start with I will have to observe 5 births, then I will be able to start charting and finally I may get the chance to 'catch my first baby'- never knew this was what it was called!!

So there we go, just spent a lovely evening watching a movie with the other students- the majority of whom are leaving in a week's time as they are all 2nd year students, and I a now going to get a good's night sleep in preparation for my first shift!

Goodnight x