Originally uploaded by Basinbob.

This was a bathroom that was in use before the sub evacuated this wing of the hospital. Those are holes in the outside walls under the window that were not part of our deconstruction. The conditions here are not to be believed with all 260 beds now crammed into the other half of the hospital as our contractor works.

While the Iraqi subcontractor continues to submit designs for reconstruction of this hospital, we meet endlessly with Ministry Officials, and hospital staff. Mostly, they don't bring anything to the table except their desire for the best materials. The subcontractor built a model patient room that has been the nexus of our discussions, while important but less obvious issues like sewage disposal, roof repair, fire control and operability of the air conditioning does not get the same facetime as wall paper or floor tile color.

The Cooperazione Italiana Aid group working on the childrens ward did an end run around our prime contractor and cut a deal with the hospital to extend the elevator shafts to the top themselves before they go home next month. In their headlong rush, they didn't tell me or the prime contractor. We're still sorting out the mess and waiting for the politial fallout as we move forward with our own plans and leave them behind. More meetings to come, but at least we won't be talking about wallpaper.