Ketakutan - Doktor Gigi: Fear - Dentist

One day past another of the items on my list of fearful happenings while in Indonesia; the need of a dentist. Eating my cereal, minding my own business, looking out to sea on balcony full of love and peace for the world and anticipating a visit to a new village with a colleague I haven't travelled with and voila! think I feel a pebble in my mouth and flick it away over the edge thinking to self "cheap granola with stones in it!" But no, of course, it's a piece of my back molar. Raw and jagged and cutting my tongue with every move, I feel the sick thought of needing to go to a dentist which for me in Canada is bad enough. Enlist my friends, get two references for the same doc and off I go, with housemate Anna's prodding. They are only open to 11 am then again in the evening and no appointments, you just gotta line up.
I spoiled myself and took a taxi as I wasn't really sure of where to go and this driver I know well. The reception person tells me in Indonesian of course that something is broken - I think "yes, my tooth" but she also says "no doktor" and maybe not til next week. With the driver's help - have to go find him, I learn a machine is broken, may not be fixed til next week but they will call me.
Back into the car and I am willing to put this off but my driver will have none of that so he gets on the phone and calls his boss and I gather he is asking for another doc saying it is for Mrs Pam and must be a good dentist! She is afraid.
So off we go to the next one where the MD doc works also and his daughter is the dentist but she works at the hospital all day and in the clinic after 6 but the MD phones her and she isn't busy so she comes over to the clinic from the hospital, looks at my tooth and tells me she needs to fill it and to come back at 6 when her assistant is in. I ask if she will freeze it and she tells me "no, won't hurt". Oh cripes!
But, back at 6, she has all the right looking utensils, sterilized it looks like and off we go - smooths off the rough and fills it in!!! She's right no pain and I am just hoping it all holds. I think it will! Imagine that.

beach fun

Had a good trip to Maumere Flores so will post on that soon - technical visit to share skills with other volunteers in their placement and a day of sight seeing. Here's a teaser pic at the black sand beach with volunteer Nancy from Kenya. Oh yes, she made us chipatis!!! Yum.