Ice Cream: Life's Little Joys

I had just come back from Karin’s tonight and was in the kitchen getting my electric kettle to boil water for my bucket bath, when the husband of the young woman that I live with looked at me funny. I told him that the geezer (hot water heater) in my bathroom wasn’t working and it was getting too cold for cold bucket baths at night. 

So he went into my bathroom, fiddled with it for a little while and said to just leave the power switch on even though the light wasn’t showing that it was on. Give it an hour or so and it should heat up just fine. 

As I went to put the electric kettle back, he said “madam, you want to take a walk?” With the language barrier, it was hard to tell if we were actually going somewhere or just going out for an evening stroll. I soon learned though that we were on a mission for ice cream. 

Inside my apartment complex

Outside my flat

Because on a nice weekday night, what else would you be craving? So we began walking in hopes of finding some ice cream. We soon found a shop selling some chocolate shelled vanilla ice cream. The husband then told me that the shop is open 24 hours a day and is just a block or so away from my flat! It’s a little away from the main road which is probably why I haven’t seen it before, but has everything you pretty much need. In India I’ve found it’s difficult to find one shop that has your yogurt, crackers, eggs, washing detergent and Diwali sweets, but this place has it all! It even has some frozen goods, which seems to be a rare find around here.

After finishing our ice cream and walking back to the flat, the husband came into my bathroom and checked the hot water. What do ya know but three weeks after coming here, I find out that it works! Looks like I won’t have to be procrastinating on taking my nightly cold bucket bath anymore! Wahoo! 

Finding some quiet (and air conditioning) in Delhi

Usually when I’ve been moving around the city, I’ve taken auto rickshaws purely for the convenience. But after taking the metro, I think I’ve found my new method of transportation around here! At first when people told me they commute by metro, I assumed it was something similar to the local trains I took in Mumbai. Imagine train compartments always packed, people hanging from the open doorways and boys coming around to sell little trinkets. But the Delhi metro is far from that. In fact, it gives the New York City subway system a bad rap! 

For the most part, it seems to be a well run, world class designed subway system. With over 2 million people riding the metro each day, of course there’s going to be some delays in the trains but all in all it seems like a good system. So far the metro spans about 200 kilometers and is still in the process of being built. With financial help from Japan, they hope to finish the entire project by 2021. 

If you’re a frequent metro commuter, you simply buy a plastic rechargeable travel card for a deposit of Rs 50 (82 cents) and then just keep loading money on as needed. Otherwise, you can buy a token for your individual trip. In a complex city like Delhi, I’m a huge fan of this simple process. 

When I entered the station, honestly if I hadn’t known better I wouldn’t have been able to tell if I was in Delhi, Washington D.C. or London. Even though it opened in 2002 it still looks like it opened yesterday, with the clean floors and well-kept cabin cars. Maybe I was still trying to wrap my mind around the concept of trains in India not being the old blue local trains you see in Bollywood movies, but I was thoroughly impressed with it all. Having the metro cars air-conditioned didn’t hurt either! 

Call me crazy but it makes me want to live 45 minutes away from work just so I can get away from it all and have a peaceful commute! And better yet, they announce each upcoming stop then say “mind the gap”. A little part of me inside smiled when I heard this. Memories of another subway experience :) 

Who would have thought that I would find peace and quiet* in the metro? In a city that has around 20 million people, that’s hard to find. 

*Disclaimer: Peace and quiet will not be found during the hours of 7-10am and 4-8pm. 

The alleyways of New Delhi

This whole week I’ve been going to some of SPYM’s program sites in order to get a better feel for the vast amount of work the organization does. On this particular day, it was planned that I was going to work on some things in the office in the morning and head out to visit a homeless shelter after lunch. And this morning like every other morning and afternoon, there’s chai time. There’s nothing like chai interrupting you doing your work :) 

The morning came and went with random tasks to get done and soon it was lunch time. SPYM is an organization unlike one I’ve seen before. They provide three meals a day to their staff. Usually though the staff just eat lunch there and eat at home for breakfast and dinner. Today’s menu was palak paneer, rice and dal....yum! 

After lunch, I came back to the office and waited for one of the staff to bring me to the homeless shelter. In true Indian fashion, after a little over an hour it was decided who was going to bring me and then we decided to leave. 

Side note: I should mention that yes, Indian time is not exactly American time, but my organization is currently short-staffed so everyone is running around doing the job of two people. So I can completely understand people being late because they’ve been tied up with other things going on. When I’ve asked some staff how they like working for the organization though, they keep saying how happy they are to have a job, especially in the social services. It just goes to show you that money doesn’t buy happiness!

It was a little after 3pm and the shelter was about 40 minutes away. I think it was safe to say that I definitely wasn’t finishing work at 5pm. Once we got on the road, we had to make a detour to drop off some paperwork to a training center near by. A half hour later we were back on the road and ready to head to the homeless shelter. After getting lost a few times and getting caught up in the New Delhi rush hour traffic, we finally found the right area. The homeless shelter ended up being in a neighborhood where the only way to get to it was to drive through an alleyway, the width of a driveway. So we drove through motorcycles coming at us, guys pushing carts of flowers and fruit, kids playing in the roads....classic India. I only wish I had captured the moment on my camera! We had finally made it. 

This is one of those times when the journey outweighs the end. And this is one of the reasons why I decided to come to India. Sure every so often I get frustrated by the auto rickshaw drivers trying to rip you off or the different pace of time, but after learning to take it in as part of the journey, I’ve started to actually enjoy it! It’s part of India’s culture and I wouldn’t want to ever change that. 

On a mission.........for fruit

I think I was spoiled when I was in Mumbai. I had fruits and vegetables at my fingertips, the butcher shop and dairy shop right now the road and a KFC on the corner. I remember just going out to the market each morning, getting my produce for the day and airtime minutes if needed. The shopkeeper greeted me and knew the fruit I usually got and the Vodacom guy knew the number of rupees I usually bought for airtime for my phone. Yes I was white and a foreigner, but there’s still something to be said about feeling at home like that in a big city.

Me back in 2008 in Mumbai eating a custard apple

New Delhi and at least the part where I’m living, has a different vibe to it. I’ve been told that I’m living and working in a posh area, which is fine (although it’s not very posh looking to me)—but which also means that people send their drivers out to get produce and groceries so there’s no need for markets and fruit stands on every block. 

So this weekend, with the help of my friend Karin (who’s also a grad student at SIT and staying in Delhi), I’ll be on a mission to find juicy custard apples/soursop, umpteen number of bananas, cucumbers, carrots, pomegranates—oh my mouth is watering just thinking of it! Sometimes it’s the smallest little thing that can make a place more comfortable and like home. And for the next five months, it’s gonna be fruit and I’m okay with that. 

To India I Go Again

Sunday September 29, 2013

After much delay, the day has finally arrived. I am headed to New Delhi, India to start the second half of my Master’s degree and my five month practicum. I’ll be working with the Society for Promotion of Youth and Masses (SPYM), based in New Delhi. They have many different programs that they have but I will primarily focus on working with their HIV/AIDS program. 

The words “much delay” couldn’t be farther from the truth though. Originally I was supposed to leave for India at the end of August for six months. With life though, it seems like nothing always happens the way you want it to. Since international flight costs can skyrocket after a certain time, I chose to book my flight earlier rather than later and figured I would get my visa after my flight was definitely secured since I saw no issue with a visa taking more than a few weeks to obtain. But boy was I wrong! At the beginning of August, India changed the company that they were going to outsource their visa processing to. And with transitions come delays. With this came aggravation and a few breakdowns knowing that I would have to cancel and rebook my flight since I wouldn’t have my visa in time for my flight. After a few hundred dollars on top of my original flight cost, I finally got my visa and was able to book my flight again. This time though I’m only able to be there for five months rather than six due to the visa timeframe. 

I think I can now say that I have a better understanding of how to be patient and grateful for my family and friends that have been able to support me in so many different ways. If anything, this whole ordeal has prepared me for the busy and crazy life in India that awaits me! My practicum with SPYM sounds like an amazing opportunity and I know that all of this is worth it. 

As an intern with SPYM, I hope to be working with people living with HIV/AIDS, then participating and later organizing HIV awareness/prevention workshops in New Delhi and other areas in India where SPYM already works. I’m really excited to be getting out of the classroom and to be able to apply what I’ve learned during my first year of grad school into a real world setting. And what better setting than India???

Ever since I studied abroad in Mumbai in college and interned at an all-girls orphanage where some of the children had HIV/AIDS, I have been interested in how this health issue affects a culture and how a culture affects the health issue. With my social work and public health experiences and my interest in policies that advocate for this population, I believe that this practicum is right up my alley! With anything new, I have an idea of what I’ll be doing over the course of the next 5 months but really, I won’t have a real sense of my role and responsibilities until I get there. A few years ago, it would have driven me crazy not knowing every little detail of this new experience, but now it’s kind of fun not knowing and being surprised by the unknown. 

Well, I think that’s about it for now! I’m currently sitting at the airport and will be boarding for New Delhi in just a few short hours! 

To Trinidad We Go

Sunday January 27th

This morning we woke up so so early for our flight to Trinidad. By 5:30am or so, we were at the airport and ready to see Trinidad. It was a quick one hour flight, and barely had time to do much of anything before we touched down in Port of Spain, Trinidad. When we did touch down though, it was a huge contrast to the environment of Barbados. Green, luscious hills and other greenery was everywhere!

Once we touched down, we grabbed brunch, although I wouldn't really consider the fare brunch. I had a sandwich with a heavy focaccia type bread with salt fish inside. I'm glad I tried it but I would probably wouldn't want it again for a long time due to the saltiness.

That afternoon, we traveled to a different area of Trinidad to go to a men's group. Although it wasn't something I had looked forward to, by the time the night was over, I was so amazed something like this was going on in Trinidad. This group was set up to allow men to talk with other men about issues that they're having, since it's not common place to talk. They set up each meeting as a fishbowl, with the men on the inside and women on the outside. The rule was though, was that the men were the only people that could do the talking. We learned so many things in that session including:

• There were roughly 3,000 sexual offenses in Trinidad last year
• The average age of a person's first sexual encounter is 6 years old in Trinidad

Although these facts are so sad to hear, at the same time I was so impressed with what they were teaching other men. Part of it reminded me of the Our Whole Lives (OWL), comprehensive sexuality education curriculum, with the men learning the right names for genitals and culturally what the words were also. they said that a lot of the issues men are facing has to do with the value system. This value system isn't transferring from father to son. But they said that if you care enough about these relationships, then you'll find a way to change. Powerful words to hear for these men. 

On another note, after the session, we had dinner with one of the organizers of this group, and spoke with him about the gang violence in Trinidad. He said that elders in gangs are considered about 26 years old. But the even more shocking thing is what happens before that, once someone is initiated into a gang. After they get their gun, the first thing they do is plan their funeral...get a coffin, get an outfit they want to be buried in, etc. Because with their lifestyle, they are prepared to die for their gang. 

When we asked about gun control, especially since it's a hot topic in the US right now, he said that gun laws are hard because each beach is essentially a port--which makes it hard to regulate and control. On top of that Venezuela is 7 miles away, a place where machine guns are made and where drugs are passed through from Colombia then onward up to the US. 

Furthermore, it's especially difficult to control because the gang leaders will threaten everyone so then they don't get a heavy prison sentence. They'll threaten by killing their relatives or friends. "An eye for an eye". It's so hard to imagine that this is all happening where we were. I can't even begin to imagine though how people go about their daily lives and how children still go to school everyday. 

The scary thing about all of this is 1) the people that actually survive this gang violence as children will eventually go kill their parent's killers, and so it becomes a continuous cycle. And 2) since the politicians aren't personally affected by the gangsters, it will continue until a member of their family dies and then maybe something might change. 

Just keep swimming...

Hey everyone, I finally have the time to catch up on my posts, now that we're back from Trinidad. Enjoy!

Saturday January 26th

Today we finally had a day off. Although we still had a full day, at least it was filled with fun activities. We woke up early and got out bathing suits on, since today we were going on a catamaran boat cruise. The cruise was so relaxing...although the sun was so strong, you couldn't even put sunscreen on fast enough before getting burnt. I guess that's the payback since we get to have warm tropical weather in February, right?

From the minute we got on the boat, I was in full relaxation mode with rum punches and the sun basking down on us. Throughout the cruise we had three stop where we could snorkel and see what was around us. I had never been snorkeling before and was a little nervous but my love for the water trumped my anxiety. On the first stop, we jumped off the boat and were able to swim with the turtles. For the most part, they were huge, probably about 2-3 feet in length...and that was just counting their shells! It was such a cool experience to pet their shells and swim with them.

On the second stop, we snorkeled around and saw a shipwreck, where coral and algae had grown. It definitely made me want to learn how to scuba dive so I could really see more. While we were swimming around, one of the guides gave me some fish food so that I could have the fish come right up to me. The fish quickly swam up to me and nibbled at my fingers--which was the coolest experience.

The last stop was lunch, and also where we could swim around and to the beach if we wanted. Lunch was a typical Barbados fare, with macaroni pie (similar to mac & cheese casserole), rice and peas, chicken, and fish. Bajan meals tend to be heavy and this was no exception. Still somehow I found a way to quickly digest my food and jump in the water. A few of us swam to the beach, which looked so far away at first, but after being cooped up on buses and in meetings for the week, I was ready for the swimming challenge.

I forgot how much I missed the water and was truly a fish at heart. Thank goodness I'm surrounded by the beach and waves all the time here!