I love living in a hostel. I love our little home. It is cute and quiet, a little sanctuary set back in the middle of a crazy crowded unapologetic city.
We usually eat breakfast and dinner here at the little cafeteria, however it isn't really a cafeteria because the young men that work her insist on serving us and our group of Americans are usually the only diners.
Once and a while there actually are other guests. Today Kali and Deepa and I ate breakfast with with an older man who is a pentecostal veterinarian hailing from Bangalore. He told us he was in town for a wedding at the catholic church in town. Then we started to ask him questions about being a veterinarian in Western India and the kinds of things he sees (we figured a man like that must have tons of stories about cool things he has done), but really he just wanted to proselytize to a bunch of American college kids. (Too bad Kali is Jewish and Deepa is Hindu and I pretended to get more dosa...). Anyway the pentecostal veterinarian will be back for another wedding in August so we might run into him again.
Another visitor to the CSI hostel is a med student names Thakara. I think she is Indian by birth but was raised in the UK, and is here in Chennai as part of a rotation for a premier med school in London. She is absolutely adorable and traveling alone so naturally we have adopted her into our little circle of students. So now Tharkia, the surgeon-in-training eats meals with is and tells us stories of about her practice at the Chennai city hospital. Which is generally too graphic for breakfast conversation but we are interested anyway. Plus she uses cool slang like "pop-in" and "narley".
My favorite time of day at the hostel is in the evening after everyone returns from their various teaching assignments all over the city. After people eat dinner and shower the days pollution off, its nice to sit in an air conditioned room and chill out.
In some ways, it feels a lot like summer camp. We have no tv and no readily available internet. (And if there was tv, we wouldn't watch it because in India, shows are corny and in Tamil). So we spend our time doing other things that get forgotten about in college lifestyle. A few kids brought guitars with them, and last night I was treated to a few Jack Johnson numbers by some people who surprised me with their singing ability.
I also have gotten a lot more time to read, which has been nice. I was glad to see so many people brought stacks of books with them, so when I finish a book we just trade around for something interesting. We have a nice little book club going on as well. Currently everyone is reading Eat Love Pray by Elizabeth Gilbert (I just finished). The reason everyone is nuts for this book is because the woman spends a few months in India and writes about her reactions and the things she sees, and much of the book closely mirrors what we are going through here (it's kind of eerie actually...).
Tonight, however, our activity for evenings entertainment is poster-making. We start teaching at a new school tomorrow and we are preparing lessons for a ninth standard class (12 and 13 years old). It is an English-medium school which means everything is taught in English, so our translators can take a break. It is also government school; everyone that goes there are children of military and governments families. This means they should we well behaved, but here nothing is certain. I'll tell a little more about our teaching experience next time. Every place we go is so different and we have to learn to be very flexible depending on the level of English, number of students, and their prior knowledge of bio and anatomy.
This weekend, however, I am going to Ooty. Neelys family lives there and he is taking a bunch of us to go visit. We are going by sleeper train and leaving tomorrow after classes are out. I am SO excited because Ooty is a mountain town that is usually much cooler than the city and it is also famous for it's tea and beautiful temples (I might never want to leave!)
-S
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
water
I think we have all known for a while that water has become a scarce resource, but now I am convinced of this more than ever.
The river that runs through this city is indescribably filthy. There is garbage and dead fish that line the banks and the center of the river is a massive blanket of greenish\brownish foam. One local told me it was algae but somehow I think it is more than that. No one dares to go in the river but people have no problem throwing their garbage and peeing in it.
The beach in Mahabalipuram (the coastal town with the orphanage) is a similar story. When we took the kids swimming, I didn't get near the water on the beach. There was even more dead sea life all over the shore. Naturally none of this bothered the children, they all went diving head first into the waves. Some even found it amusing to throw crab carcasses at each other (poor Ruchi was not amused by this...). In regards to all the seafood I are that weekend, I never did get sick so that's good.
While I am here I have to force myself to drink a lot of [bottled] water everyday day because I know I sweat so much and I don't want to get dehydrated. This is not unlike living in Arizona but we all have to be careful that any we drink comes from a purified source.
There is a small restaurant near our hostel and each day before heading off in our rickshaws we will stop in and buy several liters of water. The shop owner is staring to recognize us and I'm not sure if he is amused or annoyed because each day we don't stay, we don't eat, we just buy out his supply of bottles and leave.
General guidelines for safe eating and drinking in Chennai:
SO SCARY!!
(I've run out of time at yet another internet cafe that does not allow USB connectors. More later)
-S
The river that runs through this city is indescribably filthy. There is garbage and dead fish that line the banks and the center of the river is a massive blanket of greenish\brownish foam. One local told me it was algae but somehow I think it is more than that. No one dares to go in the river but people have no problem throwing their garbage and peeing in it.
The beach in Mahabalipuram (the coastal town with the orphanage) is a similar story. When we took the kids swimming, I didn't get near the water on the beach. There was even more dead sea life all over the shore. Naturally none of this bothered the children, they all went diving head first into the waves. Some even found it amusing to throw crab carcasses at each other (poor Ruchi was not amused by this...). In regards to all the seafood I are that weekend, I never did get sick so that's good.
While I am here I have to force myself to drink a lot of [bottled] water everyday day because I know I sweat so much and I don't want to get dehydrated. This is not unlike living in Arizona but we all have to be careful that any we drink comes from a purified source.
There is a small restaurant near our hostel and each day before heading off in our rickshaws we will stop in and buy several liters of water. The shop owner is staring to recognize us and I'm not sure if he is amused or annoyed because each day we don't stay, we don't eat, we just buy out his supply of bottles and leave.
General guidelines for safe eating and drinking in Chennai:
- No meat of any kind (chicken, goat, fish etc.) unless its from a reputable place. This is often determined by either a recommendations from our translators or Lonely Planet.
- No roadside juice drinks. (You can be certain it will give you the 'runs')
- No chutney - water based dipping sauce
- No open drinks, especially at pubs and bars.
- Nothing from a tap, faucet, hose, sink or hole in the ground. You get the idea....
SO SCARY!!
(I've run out of time at yet another internet cafe that does not allow USB connectors. More later)
-S
Saturday, June 21, 2008
monsoons and hangovers
Today I had my first Indian hangover. We went to a dance club last night, which was an interesting experience. The place was called Vertigo and was on the ninth floor of one of the nicest hotels in Chennai. (According to Indian law, any place that serves alcohol must have a overnight rooms attached, so all clubs/bars/legit restaurants are in a hotel).
As usual, we all get stared at...A LOT. And the law also mandates that clubs close at 11 pm each night, but as we are preparing to leave at the unusually early hour, it begins to pour. And this is rain unlike any I have ever seen, not in Arizona, Mississippi, Costa Rica, NO WHERE have I ever seen such a downpour. The monsoon falls in sheets and instantly floods the roads and stops everything and everyone in their tracks. It's a little scary how it creeps up and the thunder and lightning is fierce.
Several of my friends and I hadn't left the club yet and despite the rain, were being told by the owners to leave. So we had to venture out into the apocalyptic storm to hail down a rickshaw to take us home. Ordinarily we fit three or maybe four people in an auto, but since it was a small miracle that we found the one, all six of us crammed into the back. (This gives you a little idea about Indians regard for safety, since the rickshaw driver allowed and even encouraged this...the more passengers, the more money). Anyway, we all managed to fit and even in the rickshaw we still got soaked. We also had trouble trying to explain to the driver how to find our little hostel that was on the other side of the city because his English and our Tamil were equally bad. All in all, we made it back in one piece but it was really the most hysterical and bizarre experiences I have ever had. I have pictures showing we survived our first monsoon and it is something I wont soon forget.
On that note, it appears as though most Internet cafes have a strong aversion to people using USB drives in their computers so I wont be able to upload pictures today.
From what I was told, the official "monsoon season" doesn't start until early August but we may be seeing more of these torrential rains in the next few weeks. I will need to invest in an umbrella...
As usual, we all get stared at...A LOT. And the law also mandates that clubs close at 11 pm each night, but as we are preparing to leave at the unusually early hour, it begins to pour. And this is rain unlike any I have ever seen, not in Arizona, Mississippi, Costa Rica, NO WHERE have I ever seen such a downpour. The monsoon falls in sheets and instantly floods the roads and stops everything and everyone in their tracks. It's a little scary how it creeps up and the thunder and lightning is fierce.
Several of my friends and I hadn't left the club yet and despite the rain, were being told by the owners to leave. So we had to venture out into the apocalyptic storm to hail down a rickshaw to take us home. Ordinarily we fit three or maybe four people in an auto, but since it was a small miracle that we found the one, all six of us crammed into the back. (This gives you a little idea about Indians regard for safety, since the rickshaw driver allowed and even encouraged this...the more passengers, the more money). Anyway, we all managed to fit and even in the rickshaw we still got soaked. We also had trouble trying to explain to the driver how to find our little hostel that was on the other side of the city because his English and our Tamil were equally bad. All in all, we made it back in one piece but it was really the most hysterical and bizarre experiences I have ever had. I have pictures showing we survived our first monsoon and it is something I wont soon forget.
On that note, it appears as though most Internet cafes have a strong aversion to people using USB drives in their computers so I wont be able to upload pictures today.
From what I was told, the official "monsoon season" doesn't start until early August but we may be seeing more of these torrential rains in the next few weeks. I will need to invest in an umbrella...
Thursday, June 19, 2008
PICTURES
I am going to post a few pictures because I finally figured out how and I don't know when I'll get another opportunity.
Street traffic in India. Crossing the road is a full-contact sport and not for the faint of heart.
The yellow car is an auto-rickshaw. Still, my favorite mode of transportation. Each driver owns his own car so many of them are pimped out with Hindu god stikcers and painted in many colors. I've even been in one with incence and music.
my room at the hostel...very dorm-like. I share with Deepa and Lila and in our spare time, we enjoy keeping our room bug free.
Street traffic in India. Crossing the road is a full-contact sport and not for the faint of heart.
The yellow car is an auto-rickshaw. Still, my favorite mode of transportation. Each driver owns his own car so many of them are pimped out with Hindu god stikcers and painted in many colors. I've even been in one with incence and music. 
my room at the hostel...very dorm-like. I share with Deepa and Lila and in our spare time, we enjoy keeping our room bug free. . 
This is (the back of) a woman that lives near our hostel, and was talking to us in Tamil. Her family has a small house and was telling us about her husband who taught at the nearby school, but most of the conversation was in Tamil so we only know that through pantomiming. Oh, and her grandsons are adorable. Neely and Neicea bought them a soccer ball and were playing in the field behind their house.
Mani, Lakshima, Briana, myself. Despite how they look, our counterparts are actually very fascinating and thrilled to be working with us. Mani is 21 and her lives here in town and was a translator for IAPA last summer. I have a feeling he knows the biology/ immunology material better than we all do. And Lakshima is 20 and working on her undergraduate degree but lives 3 hours outside Chennai yet commutes by bus then train everyday, just to come teach with us. And we all really love mango smoothies. 
More later!
More later!-S
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Special Projects
While we are here teaching, we are also working on what Sanjay calls "special projects" which are organizations in the community that we pair up with and work for, (charity really) so we can learn more about how businesses are run and get more exposure in the city etc. This past week we have taken time each afternoon to visit different project sites, speak with coordinators and learning about their needs and how we can help them in the short time we are here.
Monday we went to an orphanage in a coastal town an hour south of here, Mahablaipurem. We met the director of the orphanage, learned about his financial needs and we played with the kids for the afternoon. There were about 12 or so children, all under 13 years, and living and going to school in a very modest stone building.
They were amazingly sweet, knew limited English and called us all auntie and uncle. We took them down to the beach and played in the waves and played games. It was really amazing to see how unbelievably sweet they were. They didn't want anything, they didn't ask for money or things, the just wanted to hold our hand or sit in the sand with us. The director said that it costs about 50 American dollars for each child for one month, and unfortunately their wealthy Dutch benefactor just died and they are going to need financial support from the Tamil Nadu government now.
[When we went to the beach with the kids Sanjay taught them some game where you tackle everyone all at once. I didn't really get it but they had fun]
Yesterday we went to a "truck stop" outside the city. A truck stop is really the same thing here as it is in the US, men that drive cargo trucks across the county stop for a day to rest and reload. At this particular stop there is an organization doing HIV-prevention outreach and education (because stats have shown that truckers moving across the country is a high demographic being infected and spreading AIDS). Within the center of the area there is a small booth that acts as a little classroom and some peer-teachers stay there to educate truckers. There are books and posters and demonstrations on health and hygiene, which we were all very impressed with. It seemed to be very effective for such a modest working space. (Although the large crowd of local truckers might have something to do with the 20 Americans getting off a bus and taking a ton of pictures....)
This morning a small group of us went to an AIDS hospice that is located inside a hospital in Chennai. This hospice was started by some men in the medical community when they paired up with some students from IAPA a few years ago (as you can imagine, there is a serious need for palliative care in this area). The director and a physician gave us a short tour of the center and explained how it is run. The tour was short due to the fact that the place was very tiny; six beds, handful of nurses and one physician. They also only had one patient at the time because there isn't enough staff, space and supplies to allow for more. They spoke to us about helping them work to expand their services and be able to serve more people. Despite the conditions, the doctor and nurses were so happy to see us (not unlike most places we go) and we so thrilled that we might be able to help them, even if it is just administration work or "beautification".
I wish I had time to write in further detail about all of these trips, but each service project is unique and moved us a little bit. I can tell some students are more drawn to one particular project, a lot of the girls want to go back to the orphanage and some guys saw the importance in the trucker outreach. I don't really know what I want to do yet, but we still have more opportunities to see other potential projects this weekend. (I am feeling a little overwhelmed because there are so many opportunities and there is so much need. Its hard to pick just one thing that is feasible in just eight weeks! So little time to get something tangible accomplished!)
On a final note, I think that it is interesting that at nearly all places we visit, no matter how small or impoverished or crowded, everyone still breaks for tea and cookies. I will never cease to be impressed by this.
-S
Monday we went to an orphanage in a coastal town an hour south of here, Mahablaipurem. We met the director of the orphanage, learned about his financial needs and we played with the kids for the afternoon. There were about 12 or so children, all under 13 years, and living and going to school in a very modest stone building.
They were amazingly sweet, knew limited English and called us all auntie and uncle. We took them down to the beach and played in the waves and played games. It was really amazing to see how unbelievably sweet they were. They didn't want anything, they didn't ask for money or things, the just wanted to hold our hand or sit in the sand with us. The director said that it costs about 50 American dollars for each child for one month, and unfortunately their wealthy Dutch benefactor just died and they are going to need financial support from the Tamil Nadu government now.
[When we went to the beach with the kids Sanjay taught them some game where you tackle everyone all at once. I didn't really get it but they had fun]Yesterday we went to a "truck stop" outside the city. A truck stop is really the same thing here as it is in the US, men that drive cargo trucks across the county stop for a day to rest and reload. At this particular stop there is an organization doing HIV-prevention outreach and education (because stats have shown that truckers moving across the country is a high demographic being infected and spreading AIDS). Within the center of the area there is a small booth that acts as a little classroom and some peer-teachers stay there to educate truckers. There are books and posters and demonstrations on health and hygiene, which we were all very impressed with. It seemed to be very effective for such a modest working space. (Although the large crowd of local truckers might have something to do with the 20 Americans getting off a bus and taking a ton of pictures....)
This morning a small group of us went to an AIDS hospice that is located inside a hospital in Chennai. This hospice was started by some men in the medical community when they paired up with some students from IAPA a few years ago (as you can imagine, there is a serious need for palliative care in this area). The director and a physician gave us a short tour of the center and explained how it is run. The tour was short due to the fact that the place was very tiny; six beds, handful of nurses and one physician. They also only had one patient at the time because there isn't enough staff, space and supplies to allow for more. They spoke to us about helping them work to expand their services and be able to serve more people. Despite the conditions, the doctor and nurses were so happy to see us (not unlike most places we go) and we so thrilled that we might be able to help them, even if it is just administration work or "beautification".
I wish I had time to write in further detail about all of these trips, but each service project is unique and moved us a little bit. I can tell some students are more drawn to one particular project, a lot of the girls want to go back to the orphanage and some guys saw the importance in the trucker outreach. I don't really know what I want to do yet, but we still have more opportunities to see other potential projects this weekend. (I am feeling a little overwhelmed because there are so many opportunities and there is so much need. Its hard to pick just one thing that is feasible in just eight weeks! So little time to get something tangible accomplished!)
On a final note, I think that it is interesting that at nearly all places we visit, no matter how small or impoverished or crowded, everyone still breaks for tea and cookies. I will never cease to be impressed by this.
[the beach temple at Mahablipurem]
-S
Monday, June 16, 2008
FOOD
Due to popular demand, I'll write about the food here. First off, let me say that Northern Indian food and Southern Indian food is very different. It appears that all the Indian that I have had in the past has been of the northern flavor (and I am in the very...very south).
Traditionally for breakfast we have a dosa, flat rice pancake dipped in Sambar, which is kind of like chicken noodle soup. We also have coconut chutney and bananas. It's good, but very plain. Nothing here is seasoned with salt, everything is spicy or sweet. We always have breakfast at the hostel in the 'canteen' and it is pretty much the same thing every day.
Lunch, however is more exciting. We usually eat where ever we are teaching or hanging out in the city. Yesterday we ate at the food court in the big mall. That included Dominoes Pizza, KFC, and Subway, (I'll give you three guesses as to which I had).
But eating at the food court is rare, usually we find a little diner or restaurant that can fit us all and we order a ton of food and just pass things around. This includes more dosa with different masala sauces, rice and veggies, fruit chutneys, noodles with chicken or goat meat, wide variety of stuff. But mostly white carbs and spicy sauces. My stomach is slowly adjusting...I won't go in to detail there, use your imagination.
The strangest thing is EVERYONE EATS WITH THEIR HANDS. yes, EVEN RICE. So far I have been asking for silverware and taking baby steps towards eating like a local, but all the other kids really get into it. All foods are eaten with your hands, more specifically just your right hand. I will have to do some research as to why this is, but it's awfully fun to watch!
For dinner the past few nights we have gone out as a group to some nice restaurants...Sanjay wants to treat us the first few days we are here. But starting tonight we will be eating at the hostel. More rice, dosa, marsala and chutney. Also a lot of fruit like bananas and mangoes. Its very good as well, my favorite being paneer butter marsala over rice or nan bread. It is cheese cubes and a spicy sauce and sooo good.
Today we are spending the afternoon south of the city is a little coastal town where a children's orphanage is. We ate lunch at a little seafood place and since this is a food-related post, my first picture of the day will be of our lunch selection. very fresh!
Actually, I had marsala calamari... way good. If you are wondering if the seafood is safe to eat even when the water is not safe to drink...that is a very good question. And I don't really have an answer to that, other than I'll let you know if I get ill. But everyone seems to think it's ok. :/
On a different note, my new favorite thing is tea breaks! When we are teaching or visiting or just having lessons, locals take a tea break just about every three hours. And the tea is really just a mix of coffee and tea leaves, very sweet, kind of milky and a highly caffeinated and it comes served with little biscuits as well. At first I thought this was a practice reserved for foreigners or wealthy people, but in actuality there are tea stalls all over the city and everyone takes multiple tea breaks throughout the day no matter what you are doing.
Some days I love it and some days it doesn't love me back but all in all the food is pretty good.
-S
Traditionally for breakfast we have a dosa, flat rice pancake dipped in Sambar, which is kind of like chicken noodle soup. We also have coconut chutney and bananas. It's good, but very plain. Nothing here is seasoned with salt, everything is spicy or sweet. We always have breakfast at the hostel in the 'canteen' and it is pretty much the same thing every day.
Lunch, however is more exciting. We usually eat where ever we are teaching or hanging out in the city. Yesterday we ate at the food court in the big mall. That included Dominoes Pizza, KFC, and Subway, (I'll give you three guesses as to which I had).
But eating at the food court is rare, usually we find a little diner or restaurant that can fit us all and we order a ton of food and just pass things around. This includes more dosa with different masala sauces, rice and veggies, fruit chutneys, noodles with chicken or goat meat, wide variety of stuff. But mostly white carbs and spicy sauces. My stomach is slowly adjusting...I won't go in to detail there, use your imagination.
The strangest thing is EVERYONE EATS WITH THEIR HANDS. yes, EVEN RICE. So far I have been asking for silverware and taking baby steps towards eating like a local, but all the other kids really get into it. All foods are eaten with your hands, more specifically just your right hand. I will have to do some research as to why this is, but it's awfully fun to watch!
For dinner the past few nights we have gone out as a group to some nice restaurants...Sanjay wants to treat us the first few days we are here. But starting tonight we will be eating at the hostel. More rice, dosa, marsala and chutney. Also a lot of fruit like bananas and mangoes. Its very good as well, my favorite being paneer butter marsala over rice or nan bread. It is cheese cubes and a spicy sauce and sooo good.
Today we are spending the afternoon south of the city is a little coastal town where a children's orphanage is. We ate lunch at a little seafood place and since this is a food-related post, my first picture of the day will be of our lunch selection. very fresh!
Actually, I had marsala calamari... way good. If you are wondering if the seafood is safe to eat even when the water is not safe to drink...that is a very good question. And I don't really have an answer to that, other than I'll let you know if I get ill. But everyone seems to think it's ok. :/On a different note, my new favorite thing is tea breaks! When we are teaching or visiting or just having lessons, locals take a tea break just about every three hours. And the tea is really just a mix of coffee and tea leaves, very sweet, kind of milky and a highly caffeinated and it comes served with little biscuits as well. At first I thought this was a practice reserved for foreigners or wealthy people, but in actuality there are tea stalls all over the city and everyone takes multiple tea breaks throughout the day no matter what you are doing.
Some days I love it and some days it doesn't love me back but all in all the food is pretty good.
-S
Friday, June 13, 2008
Well that crisis is over. My luggage arrived (one week after I did) and I am pretty sure everything is intact. I have been ten times happier since.
Let me explain a little about how our orientation has been going this week. We are preparing to start teaching at the schools and clinics on Monday so each day our group meets with our CPs (CP being short for counterparts...they are our translators but Sanjay doesn't want us to call them translators because they are doing so much more than that, they show us around the city and help teach the curriculum,take us shopping and touring places on the weekends, basically our new best friends). There are about 10 CPs, two per teaching group and they are college students from all over the city of Chennai who are fluent in both English and Tamil. We have to practice teaching with them so they can learn how to translate for us when we are with students. We are also learning how to get around the city and taking a few lessons in Tamil and learning a little background on the history of HIV in India. We also got a short lesson in how the Indian government is helping those infected and other marginalized groups. (NEWS FLASH: you are better off being infected with AIDS in India rather than in the US because Indian government will pay for majority of medicines and health care no matter what the social class or status...not so in the US).
Here is your Tamil lesson for the day (and this is about as much as I can remember without my notebook in front of me)
Hello - Van-i-com
Where is it? - Inge e ir-i-ku?
Thanks - Nan-dri
Rice with spicy tomato sauce and cheese - Paneer Butter Marsala (my favorite dish, I order it everywhere)
It does not appear that I can upload pictures yet, still working that out.
-S
Let me explain a little about how our orientation has been going this week. We are preparing to start teaching at the schools and clinics on Monday so each day our group meets with our CPs (CP being short for counterparts...they are our translators but Sanjay doesn't want us to call them translators because they are doing so much more than that, they show us around the city and help teach the curriculum,take us shopping and touring places on the weekends, basically our new best friends). There are about 10 CPs, two per teaching group and they are college students from all over the city of Chennai who are fluent in both English and Tamil. We have to practice teaching with them so they can learn how to translate for us when we are with students. We are also learning how to get around the city and taking a few lessons in Tamil and learning a little background on the history of HIV in India. We also got a short lesson in how the Indian government is helping those infected and other marginalized groups. (NEWS FLASH: you are better off being infected with AIDS in India rather than in the US because Indian government will pay for majority of medicines and health care no matter what the social class or status...not so in the US).
Here is your Tamil lesson for the day (and this is about as much as I can remember without my notebook in front of me)
Hello - Van-i-com
Where is it? - Inge e ir-i-ku?
Thanks - Nan-dri
Rice with spicy tomato sauce and cheese - Paneer Butter Marsala (my favorite dish, I order it everywhere)
It does not appear that I can upload pictures yet, still working that out.
-S
Thursday, June 12, 2008
still jet-lagged
Coming from Arizona, the humidity is suffocating especially when the sun is strongest. It also doesn't help that there is a visible cloud of hazy pollution that hangs on the city and prevents any kind of cool breezes.
We took auto-rickshaws to orientation this morning which is really just a glorified lawn mower with a cover. You cram four people in the back seat and it functions just like a cab. They are the most popular form of transportation because they are cheap and very common and only the wealthiest people have cars. Most use motorbike and bicycles. The rickshaw drivers can be compared to cab drivers in New York, except they drive so close to the auto next to you, you could reach out and grab the steering wheel. These cab rides have been my favorite thing we have done as of yet, because you get a fantastic tour of the city as well as a breeze (which is important because it is annoning showing up to meeting drenched in sweat by 8 am). Plus avoiding walking in the street whenever possible is a good idea because our group gets many stares...apparently huge groups of Caucasian young people are not common here and reason for people to stop what they are doing and gawk at us. That is something that will take getting used to.
It turns out that getting to an Internet connection is not as easy as I would have liked, so blog posts are not going to happen often. Hopefully I will be able to write more about our translators and orientation soon, as well as upload pictures once my camera equipment arrives.
Luggage status: still not here. It had been six days and I am wearing other peoples clothes. This is beyond frustrating because I am not having any luck with the transportation desk her in Chennai nor with British Airways. Maybe I will never see my stuff ever again. Oh well...I guess I 'll just have to do some serious shopping. :)
More later
-S
We took auto-rickshaws to orientation this morning which is really just a glorified lawn mower with a cover. You cram four people in the back seat and it functions just like a cab. They are the most popular form of transportation because they are cheap and very common and only the wealthiest people have cars. Most use motorbike and bicycles. The rickshaw drivers can be compared to cab drivers in New York, except they drive so close to the auto next to you, you could reach out and grab the steering wheel. These cab rides have been my favorite thing we have done as of yet, because you get a fantastic tour of the city as well as a breeze (which is important because it is annoning showing up to meeting drenched in sweat by 8 am). Plus avoiding walking in the street whenever possible is a good idea because our group gets many stares...apparently huge groups of Caucasian young people are not common here and reason for people to stop what they are doing and gawk at us. That is something that will take getting used to.
It turns out that getting to an Internet connection is not as easy as I would have liked, so blog posts are not going to happen often. Hopefully I will be able to write more about our translators and orientation soon, as well as upload pictures once my camera equipment arrives.
Luggage status: still not here. It had been six days and I am wearing other peoples clothes. This is beyond frustrating because I am not having any luck with the transportation desk her in Chennai nor with British Airways. Maybe I will never see my stuff ever again. Oh well...I guess I 'll just have to do some serious shopping. :)
More later
-S
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
FINALLY
You can breathe now...I finally made it to Chennai. My first impression of this city...hazy, crowded, colorful, humid. I arrived late at night and Eric, Sanjay and Cambel were there to pick me up and take me to where we are staying. We are staying at a Christian Church led hostel. It is actually a non-denominational Christian Church (imagine my surprise!). We call it CSI, Church of South India. There is a small chapel with a small hotel and canteen attached which is run by the Christian Indians that live there. Among our group we have ten or so rooms with three people in each. The rooms are nice, reminiscent of summer camp. Three beds, a desk, two dressers and yes...a full bathroom in each room. However drainage systems are interesting...that I will save for another day. Did I mention each room is air conditioned? That was a nice surprise. :)
One thing us American students must get used to while living here at the CSI is being more conservative. Since we are living at a church, we must abide by their rules, and that means dressing appropriately, keeping our voices down and not swearing (our hosts do speak English). They are so serious about all three of these things. Swearing is hugely offensive and that could cause them to ask us to leave. In all honesty though, these are not unreasonable requests, and seeing as though the CSI is centrally located, inexpensive, and safe, I think we got a pretty good set-up. Hopefully I'll be able to upload pictures at some point because it is interesting.
The city of Chennai itself is breathtaking. Not for its beauty (because to be honest, it is filthy), but because of the sheer amount of people that fill the streets in all forms of transportation and in all methods of dress. I learned today that there are close to seven million people here, and I have a feeling every single one of them all try to cross the street at once. The busy roads here are full of motorbikes, rickshaws, cabs, cars, bikes, people, everything all at once and driving in different directions, swerving and crossing in front of eachother. Not to mention they drive on the left side of the road whuch made my first ricksahw experience very frightening. I am astonished that there aren't more head-on collisions. I don't really know how else to describe the street life except that I am going to have to upload pictures as soon as my card reader arrives...
On that note, still no luggage.
Oh well.
-S
One thing us American students must get used to while living here at the CSI is being more conservative. Since we are living at a church, we must abide by their rules, and that means dressing appropriately, keeping our voices down and not swearing (our hosts do speak English). They are so serious about all three of these things. Swearing is hugely offensive and that could cause them to ask us to leave. In all honesty though, these are not unreasonable requests, and seeing as though the CSI is centrally located, inexpensive, and safe, I think we got a pretty good set-up. Hopefully I'll be able to upload pictures at some point because it is interesting.
The city of Chennai itself is breathtaking. Not for its beauty (because to be honest, it is filthy), but because of the sheer amount of people that fill the streets in all forms of transportation and in all methods of dress. I learned today that there are close to seven million people here, and I have a feeling every single one of them all try to cross the street at once. The busy roads here are full of motorbikes, rickshaws, cabs, cars, bikes, people, everything all at once and driving in different directions, swerving and crossing in front of eachother. Not to mention they drive on the left side of the road whuch made my first ricksahw experience very frightening. I am astonished that there aren't more head-on collisions. I don't really know how else to describe the street life except that I am going to have to upload pictures as soon as my card reader arrives...
On that note, still no luggage.
Oh well.
-S
Sunday, June 8, 2008
I hate airports
Ok, so it went down like this: Point of origin = Tucson. Got delayed three hours in Phoenix made it to my next city four hours late. Was supposed to make a flight to London from Chicago however nothing was leaving Chicago for the rest of the evening thanks to some kind of wind advisory...So I spent the night there, left the next morning for Toronto where I learned that I have to be on a flight to Brussels that wull then take me to Chennai (final destination).
So by the time I arrive in Chennai I will have passed through five cities on three continents in two days. Or maybe three days, thats debatable because I crossed multiple time zones and I dont really know what counts as a day anymore. Perhaps it has been three days because I have seen three sunsets.
Oh and have I mentioned that my luggage did not, in fact, make it here to Toronto with me. That means I dont know were it is and it won't make it to India on time. But I think I will be okay, I have my toothbrush, my camera, and a few turkey sandwitches in the bottom of my bag (thanks to my mom who inadvertently taught me to always travel with sandwitches). I'm going to go take a nap on the floor of the airport...hopefull next time I write I will be in Chennai!
So by the time I arrive in Chennai I will have passed through five cities on three continents in two days. Or maybe three days, thats debatable because I crossed multiple time zones and I dont really know what counts as a day anymore. Perhaps it has been three days because I have seen three sunsets.
Oh and have I mentioned that my luggage did not, in fact, make it here to Toronto with me. That means I dont know were it is and it won't make it to India on time. But I think I will be okay, I have my toothbrush, my camera, and a few turkey sandwitches in the bottom of my bag (thanks to my mom who inadvertently taught me to always travel with sandwitches). I'm going to go take a nap on the floor of the airport...hopefull next time I write I will be in Chennai!
Saturday, May 31, 2008
T-5 DAYS
The countdown has begun! Next Friday I take off. Well actually I am leaving for Phoenix then Chicago then London then Chennai. I am so excited I don't think I am going to make it through the end of summer school...
A little background on the trip:
I will be teaching with International Alliance for the Prevention of AIDS, a nonprofit group that was started by medical students looking for a practical way to make a difference in the AIDS epidemic.
This group teaches college students a curriculum about HIV/AIDS and prepares us to teach it to others overseas in India, where the spread of the virus has become a huge socioeconomic problem. This link has a few stats on the current issues and numbers of those infected.
A little background on the trip:
I will be teaching with International Alliance for the Prevention of AIDS, a nonprofit group that was started by medical students looking for a practical way to make a difference in the AIDS epidemic.
This group teaches college students a curriculum about HIV/AIDS and prepares us to teach it to others overseas in India, where the spread of the virus has become a huge socioeconomic problem. This link has a few stats on the current issues and numbers of those infected.
http://www.who.int/hiv/HIVCP_IND.pdf (from the World Health Organization)
Some of our lessons include immunology, basic biology, methods of transmission, prevention, and healthy living. And lets not forget my favorite, the condom demonstration. (The 10th graders at Tucson High thought it was…very informative. They were our guinea pig class. I think I learned more from them than they did from me)
Once in India, we are going to be traveling to different schools and organizations in Chennai and teaching different material, depending on the audience.
I can’t wait to be working and living with all the IAPA kids...even the ones from ASU. Everyone has some different talent and passion and they have really inspired me and made me realize how much more I have to learn in order to be a successful teacher.
Just for kicks
Here is my current packing list:
-Sunscreen SPF 1,000
-Mosquito net
-A gallon of bug spray
-A pretty hefty supply of doxycycline - malaria medication
-Another supply of Cipro (we wouldn’t another ‘Spring Break Mexico’ incident…)
-A case of Luna Bars, apparently I’ve been told I won’t like what is traditionally offered for breakfast. However as long as it isn’t goat testicles I think i'll try anything.
-Modest clothing. (No tank tops. No skirts. No tight shirts. Basically I had to buy a whole new wardrobe)
-12 or so camera memory cards
-A long book for the plane ride. Right now I have Eat Pray Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert. Anyone have any other suggestions? Lets face it, I have about 40 hours worth of travel to look forward to.
More details once we arrive in country :)
-S
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