Drinking during the day

This morning, I went to the countryside with the nurses. They gave out Vitamin A and gave vaccinations and I gave a health presentation.

The nurses giving medicine:


If you look closely at the picture, you can see a shot glass and a container of rice wine next to the medical kit:


In between repeating the announcement for villagers to bring their children to see the nurses, the village chief would take shots of rice wine with some friends. It was only 10 am at this point. Yet, no one looked twice, as it is not abnormal for a community leader to knock back a few shots in the morning, even while organizing a local event.

To the village chief's credit, he was helpful to me during my presentation. He read some documents I brought and helped me interact with the audience.

While he was behaving poorly by drinking, he was promoting good health during my presentation. I've learned to accept the positive things people can offer me here, even when they do things I would consider unacceptable in America.