Work Life So Far

Friday was my first day of work at Deep Griha. There were three other new volunteers and the four of us basically got a tour of the whole place and the slum community on Tadiwala Road, but I still want to go explore the community more. In the mornings, I generally go to Sassoon Hospital, the government run hospital in Pune, to help out with the ART treatment. My job is essentially to give the patients their CD4 report when they come in. It gets to be a bit boring, but at least I have patient contact. It's incredible how many people are lined up for ART treatment daily. There must be at least 40-50 each day.
Here's some pictures from Sassoon. The first one is of my roommate.


We usually get back to Tadiwala around lunchtime and eat lunch with the DISHA (Deep Griha's Integrated Service for HIV/AIDS) ladies. My work at Deep is mostly involved with DISHA, as is most people who are volunteering here. It is probably the most successful, most funded, and most elaborate program at the organization. The terrace is completely dedicated to clients who have tested positive. I spend most of my time with the clients there, and the rest in the office one floor below.
Yesterday, we went to Sahara, a hospice for HIV positive patients who essentially have no one to care for them. The hospice started out as a palliative care center, but they have now expanded to rehabilitation as well. One of the patients passed away while we were there. He had been so severely ill that he was taken to the hospital the day before. But because the family didn't want to have to pay for the treatment, they had him discharged and brought back to Sahara that day. He died shortly after. A patient in the slums of Tadiwala also passed away yesterday. One of the volunteers, Morgan, who has been here since about February, said that it was so sad to see the stigma that was still there. The brother and sister of the man who passed away, rather than mourning the loss of their brother, were telling the doctors to cover him with plastic so that they wouldn't catch HIV/AIDS. They had just been waiting for the man to die. It is so ridiculous how prevalent the stigma still is, even amongst family members. Here are some pictures from Sahara.




My research is also going pretty well, although I haven't begun data collection yet. I met with Dr. Sangre at Sassoon Hospital, and she told me I could get about 300 patients worth of data on the day of the clinic. Unfortunately the next clinic day will be in August, so I'll have to have some patience. In the meantime, I hope I can interview some doctors in the area to gain insight on their point of view about how their patients approach epilepsy and the treatment of it.

Arrival in Pune

It seems that I can never begin a trip smoothly. We left Baroda on Wednesday morning at 6am. Perhaps it wasn’t brightest idea to pull an all-nighter before a 13-hour drive to Pune. It was definitely worth it to stay awake with cousin/ sister once again. Groggy-eyed, I left the house, forgetting the packet of money that would be my lifeline in Pune. Don’t worry, I already patted myself on the back. To add to the worry about money, I ate something on the way that really upset my stomach. I couldn’t really eat anything much after that. And of course, my luck would have it that the motion sickness that hadn’t bothered me for years decided to make an appearance that day.
And yet, my sleepy, nauseated, worried, headachy state disappeared as we passed through the gorgeous hills. The drive was really amazing. While I definitely was asleep for much of it, as we went through the ghats of Khandala and Lonavla, all I could do was sit and stare out my window, jaw dropped and eyes wide. Sigh. I love India.
We arrived in Pune at around 7:30pm and checked into a hotel. After getting my cell phone (), we went to dinner on Main Street/ MG Road and then drove around Pune and checked out the place that I’d be staying at just to familiarize ourselves with the area. The next day, I met Pinky Aunty, one of Mamu’s old friends, and her family. I will always be amazed at the hospitality of people in India. It is just unbelievable. Mamu, Gowhar Mamu, and Saud then dropped me at Koreagon Gardens, where everyone involved with Deep Griha was celebrating the 32 anniversary of the organization. It was somewhat of a strange way to first be introduced to everyone, but at the same time, it was a great way to almost everyone who was either staffed or volunteered with Deep Griha. The party was mostly thank you speeches and awards for everyone followed by about 4-5 hours of singing and dance performances by the staff and volunteers. All the girls at the House did a really cute dance to the song Mahi Ve. We finally reached home at about 6pm.


My roommate, Malgosia, is great, but unfortunately she’s leaving next Saturday. She and one other girl are first year medical students from Canada. Most of the volunteers are from a Scotland or the UK, although there are a few from Canada and the US. Most students come through a program called Link, Development in Action, as couples, or independently. Everyone really is just great.

Last night in Baroda

It's 2:15am, and here I am, working on a secondary application on my last night in Baroda. Oh how I love the pre-med life. Four more hours until I leave for Pune though! On that note, I should get some sleep.

The Third Pilgrimage

Today I ate an entire meal, so much that I couldn't even finish, for 60 cents. I love India. Third Sunday in a row, our family went on picnic to the same place. It really has become a weekly pilgrimage of sorts, and yet I will never bore of it. It's different every time, even though we really have gone to the same exact places. Today, we went after the rains had fallen, and all of the dry, barren landscape we had seen just last week was green and lush. Our picnic spot from the first of these trips was completely filled with water. It was the most amazing weather to be out in nature. Speaking of being out in nature, I can fully call myself an Indian, as today, nature called, and I went.

Monkey business

Last weekend, my aunt's sister and their family had come to visit Baroda for Minna's birthday. They arrived on Friday night. On Saturday, we all went to one of Baroda's two museums. A few of the painting's really stuck out: the effect of the paintings changed as you moved around the room- similar to the Mona Lisa effect.
Later that day, we played some friendly badminton, and then went to eat some pani puri from a ladi in Fategunj. Forget the word sanitary. The dirt from the man's hand and the flies and insects simply enhance the taste ;). One by one, the ladiwala filled the small puris with potatoes dipped them in the water and served them to us. It really is an art. After that, as if I wasn't full already, we went to dinner and stuffed ourselves some more. Of course, the meal wasn't over until we had mawa ice cream in Sursagar. Oh how I love food. And oh how my plan to lose weight in India isn't working.
The next day, my cousin and some of the workers fixed the pipes on the roof where the water from the rains was accumulating. To do that, they climbed on a really tall scaffold. Of course, being a monkey myself, I couldn't help but resist climbing up there with them. Check out the pics (I'll put the link up soon). After that work was done, we headed out on another picnic. This time we stopped off at the camping ground we had checked out on our last picnic. After playing frisbee and dodgeball, we ate some delicious daal, and then headed to hawa mehl. (Check out the pictures http://picasaweb.google.com/saba.merchant/PicnicAtHawaMehelScenic) Hawa Mehl is an a structure located just above a lake on one side. There is always the best breeze there no matter when you go. When we had gone, the villagers were fishing down below.
That night was my last night at my Nani's house, so Minna and I pretty much stayed awake most of the night talking, monkeying around, and acting like the little children we are. The next day, after some shopping, I moved to my Amma's apartment, which is conveniently walking distance from my Nani's.

Picnic at Pawagadh

One of the traditions with my family on my Ammi's (Mom's) side is to go on picnics. On Sunday, we made cold coffee, packed some uncooked rice and daal, the frisbee, the ring, and of course the music. We left around 10:30 and headed to the area behind Pawagadh, a mountain about an hour away from our house in Baroda. And of course, in all the hungama (craziness), noone brought a camera. But I'll paint a picture. We parked the jeep on the side of a small road, and headed down to an area where, if it wasn't so dry and hot, a river would be flowing. The trees above us were filled with sleeping bats.

We set up a stove using three rocks, dry leaves and twigs in the middle. Soon the fires were going, and we began to cook. I had recently introduced Mamu to the acapella music of Penn Masala, and he insisted that we do it. Mamu and Sajju Mamu (two of my uncles) made us all laugh sooooooo hard, my tummy hurts just thinking about it. After our food digested a bit, we threw around a ball and frisbee for a little while, and then the uncles, my cousin Saud, and I went hiking. We found some of the most beautiful rocks: pure white with crystals forming on the side. Once we headed down, we had some cold coffee and played Estimate (a card game). Although we left the picnic spot after that, the day was still far from over.

On our way back, we stopped off to check out a new camping area owned by Mahipal Singh Yadav where we found a wooden flute made by some village locals. By the time we left, it was time for dinner. We ate the most delicious butter chicken at a pretty famous restaurant called Tandoor. After eating, when the music in the attached club began, my cousin Saud decided to go in and dance to his hearts content, and in doing so, make a complete food of himself. But if anyone asks, he's not my cousin ;).

First Friday: prayer and food

Friday is our day of prayer. So, after begging and persuading my little cousin (Minna) to come with me to the Masjid for Jummah prayer, we headed out in our rickshaw with Nani. There weren't as many people as I had expected, but I guess this is because another Masjid was just recently established in a different area. I was a bit disappointed with the prayer... there was no khutba (sermon) or anything that I could really understand very clearly. Same problem as usual with the language barrier of the Urdu we speak regularly, the Shakespearean, proper Urdu that the elders speak.

Later that day, my cousin took me around Baroda, and I met some of his friends from college. We talked about a lot of things; we went to his old schools; we went to a bookstore. When I met his friends, I realized that I have definitely started to speak with an Indian accent when I speak English. Yes, a FoB I am.

At Jummah, I met some people from the US that I knew. Later we went to dinner with them at Sasujee, a restaurant that serves Gujarati Thalis (basically a plate with about 10 different vegetarian dishes that you eat with chapati and rice). India is a place where they just keep feeding you and feeding you. I feel like a stuffed turkey. Although, really, I don't know what that would feel like. These waiters just kept forcing food on your plate, even if you told them you didn't want it. That's pretty much how it is with all my relatives here.

Storms and such

Lights out. Unfortunately it wasn't a choice. Although really, it wasn't so unfortunate either. As we sat around the dinner table eating noodles, the pitter patter of rain on the rooftop began, and soon enough, there was a storm abrewing :) The whole family went out to the veranda, eating and singing in the cool air, with misty drops seeping in. After the heat during the day, it was a great night. The type that calls for hot tea and bhajiye. It's amazing to see how much people wait for rain,and the celebration it is.

Arrival

11 days at my Nani's (maternal grandmother) and 11 at my Amma's (paternal grandmother). My days are set. Right now, I'm at my Nani's while my cousins still have vacations. After spending some time with my Dad's business friends, my family from my Dad's side came to pick me up from Ahmedabad, where I flew in from Dehli. I stayed with them the first night. It was so shocking to see Amma, lying on the bed, stick thin and face sunken. Its so hard to imagine life like that. Both my grandmothers have begun to talk about how they won't be here for long; but I guess they're at peace with it, and at this point in their lives, probably welcome it.
Anyway, after the first night, I went to my Nani's (this was Thursday). I can't really remember much of what I did the first day, but that's how time goes here. My little sis (Minna)and I pretty much laugh 24/7 and act like little kids all the time. Time goes like that.

Still in Chicago

The best way to start off a trip? Forget your visa at home. Yesterday, bags packed and ready to go, my parents and I headed to the airport. My Dad dropped us off and parked the car, while my Mom and I went the check in. A few minutes after I handed the agent my passport, she paged through it with a confused look. I didn't have a visa for India in that passport. Unknowingly, we left the house with my newest passport, without even considering that the visa may have been in my old, expired passport. Dad drove like a madman to pick it up from the house, but reached too late. Fortunately, we had the kindest agent who immediately booked me on a flight for today without even charging the change fee. Despite the stress, the extra day at home with my parents, really was a blessing after the hectic schedule I had for the last two weeks.