It's been only a week

I can't believe I've only been gone a week. Sometimes it feels like it should be more like a month and other days only a day or so. The Indian culture is sometimes very aggravating to get used to and at the same time very rewarding. There are always two different sides to everything it seems here. The traffic, congestion and the amounts of people will be something to get used to. I'm glad that I've had this week to get acclamated to the culture and all of my surroundings. Once I do get used to the area though, I think that it will be a wonderful experience. It's nice every so often to jump outside your own culture and live in another one. Different food, different language and different people will make this semester that much more enjoyable....once I understand all of it :)

As for all of that traffic and different ways of transportation, I'll be taking a bus every time I go to school. This morning I took the bus to the school but took the bus that went in the complete opposite direction as the school! I had to call the director of the college for him to show me where to go. In the end, he picked me up and brought me to the school, which was really nice of him. It's hard to navigate the bus system but after I do it every week, I'll start to get used to it. I only have to go to school for one class on Wednesday...unless I have to have a meeting with someone.

Other than the bus, I'll probably be doing a lot of walking and hailing rickshaws (motorized 3 wheeled carts) to get from place to place. Everything that I need seems to be close by which is nice. If anyone has ever been to Europe, it's the same way as here. There are markets for fruits and vegetables, little shops to get chocolates, little stores for dresses & shoes, etc.

Hopefully I'll have the time to visit every little market and store around here. I'm having an internship at an orphanage that's about an hour away by a combination of a train ride & bus ride. The orphanage, St. Catherine's Home, is run by a Catholic order or nuns. This past Saturday I went with my Social Work professor to see the orphanage and meet with one of the sisters. After meeting with them, I found out that the sister wants me to be at the orphanage 5 days a week!! I'll be starting the days at the internship probably around 7am (and getting there by 8-8:30am), being with some of the older girls in the orphanage til about 11am, then being with the little babies and infants til about 12:30 or 1pm and then heading back to the apartment. It's not a long day as so much as an exhausting day. I guess it's a good thing I don't have to start the internship until September 9th! Now I have the time to rest up and see the local sights.

After visiting the orphanage though, I realized that was what I pictured India to be. The beautiful side of India. I wish I had taken pictures because it looked just like Key West or the Everglades....like a tropical garden surrounding all of the cottages & buildings on the dusty road. I couldn't believe how many children were there though! I thought it would be like a one room school house but there were so many cottages (for each age level) there. I'm hoping the long commute to and from the orphanage will give me time to reflect on everything. It will give me a chance to think about my days so far and what I've thought of them.

I'm hoping that I'll be able to get a good night's sleep once I start the internship. Since I arrived, I haven't been able to get a good night of sleeping in. It is normal not to be able to sleep well for the first week or so because of the time change and new surroundings, but it's killing me! I'm so exhausted yet when it gets time to sleep, I can't. It's so frustrating. I think I'm about ready to take a nap after writing this long journal entry. Taking a nap and trying to recharge my energy will be a daily thing I'm sure.