Hiatus time again. Why? Because tomorrow I'm going home for Christmas, hooray! (well, technically I leave on Sunday but at 2 a.m. so have to get to the airport tomorrow).
I am soooo excited but slightly nervous that I'm going to freeze after having been through 2 Delhi summers. Today on Boston.com there is this headline: Boston temps to near zero.
Uh-oh. Well I guess that means I'll just have to drink lots of hot chocolate (haven't had that in forever, yummmm) and sit by the fire in a big sweater.
I hope it is a white Christmas...although I wonder how long it will take me into shoveling before I'm pining for the non-snowy Delhi winters.
So, will be back in the new year for my final few months of life in India.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
fun with words!
Just have to share some fun Indian-English isms today.
First, last week one of the girls in my office asked if it was okay if they turned on the AC for a bit (the switch is behind my desk which is why she had to ask me) because they wanted to get the air circulating. Why did they want to get the air circulating? Because they were "suffering from suffocation". Those are the actual words she used.
And then today I was sent a text message from one of my staff saying they would be late (yes, people text in late or sick here, they don't call) because her car had been "punctured". That means that they got a flat tire. The bit I really like is that they always say that the car is punctured, not the tire, the entire car...and they spell it punchured.
And finally...on a different note. Obviously it isn't that cold here if we had the AC on for a bit last week, but it definitely gets cold at night, around 45-50. Cold, but not freezing. So last Saturday I was at the office and smelled exhaust and realized that our company driver had (once again) started the car directly in front of the office door and the exhaust was heading right in the door directly to my desk. So I (once again) told him to a. not let the car idle and b. not to turn it on in front of the door. At this point I was informed that he had to let it idle for a few minutes in the "winter" before driving because it is so cold.
I decided not to argue that point but I cannot help but think of those freezy cold Boston and Toronto mornings when I had to let my car warm up. Definitely a few degrees colder than 45 or 50. Oh well, its all a matter of perspective, it is crazy hot in the summer so the cold seems that much colder.
First, last week one of the girls in my office asked if it was okay if they turned on the AC for a bit (the switch is behind my desk which is why she had to ask me) because they wanted to get the air circulating. Why did they want to get the air circulating? Because they were "suffering from suffocation". Those are the actual words she used.
And then today I was sent a text message from one of my staff saying they would be late (yes, people text in late or sick here, they don't call) because her car had been "punctured". That means that they got a flat tire. The bit I really like is that they always say that the car is punctured, not the tire, the entire car...and they spell it punchured.
And finally...on a different note. Obviously it isn't that cold here if we had the AC on for a bit last week, but it definitely gets cold at night, around 45-50. Cold, but not freezing. So last Saturday I was at the office and smelled exhaust and realized that our company driver had (once again) started the car directly in front of the office door and the exhaust was heading right in the door directly to my desk. So I (once again) told him to a. not let the car idle and b. not to turn it on in front of the door. At this point I was informed that he had to let it idle for a few minutes in the "winter" before driving because it is so cold.
I decided not to argue that point but I cannot help but think of those freezy cold Boston and Toronto mornings when I had to let my car warm up. Definitely a few degrees colder than 45 or 50. Oh well, its all a matter of perspective, it is crazy hot in the summer so the cold seems that much colder.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Peacock run!
This morning I was out for my morning walk (which I've been really bad about doing lately because my bed is so nice and warm!) and I had two shocking things happen.
First it was raining. Well, not exactly raining, more like drizzling very lightly, light enough that I could be outside with no problem. But that is a big deal in December here; the last time it rained was Nov 11th and I didn't think I'd see another drop 'til at least Jan.
Second, I had a peacock run right in front of me! It seriously shocked me, I mean it was about 1 foot in front of me, I practically tripped over it. She seemed lost...but no, 2 minutes later another one joined her and they just walked around with me. Peacocks are the national bird of India so there are lots of them in the country but not tons in the city and definitely not in a neighborhood. I've decided that this is a good sign for the day.
First it was raining. Well, not exactly raining, more like drizzling very lightly, light enough that I could be outside with no problem. But that is a big deal in December here; the last time it rained was Nov 11th and I didn't think I'd see another drop 'til at least Jan.
Second, I had a peacock run right in front of me! It seriously shocked me, I mean it was about 1 foot in front of me, I practically tripped over it. She seemed lost...but no, 2 minutes later another one joined her and they just walked around with me. Peacocks are the national bird of India so there are lots of them in the country but not tons in the city and definitely not in a neighborhood. I've decided that this is a good sign for the day.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
I think I've been here too long...
It is fairly common here for every shop, restaurant, etc., to have a guard standing at the door. They check bags, keep out the rif-raf and, most importantly, open the door for you. I have gotten so used to always having the door opened for me that this weekend when I was at the mall with a friend we went to a shop and the guard didn't see us so I stood there for about 3 seconds waiting for him to open the door. Then it occurred to me that I could open the door for myself. Clearly I've been here too long if I'm 100% used to having the door opened for myself. Oh dear. I'll have to get myself out of that habit quickly.
On another note, I find that the closer I get to going home (I'm going home for the holidays - hooray!) the less patience I have for the little Indian annoyances. Like going to the movies and people talking through the entire movie; the non-stop honking, etc., etc. Normally I can put up with these things fairly well but over the past few days it has just been driving me absolutely insane. I mean really, if you are stopped dead in traffic and cannot move, how does honking help? And why go to a movie if you are going to talk, and text, and generally pay no attention? So frustrating.
But India does make an effort to balance out the frustrations with some good stuff; I saw an elephant Saturday morning, the second Saturday in a row I've seen one. In India elephants mean luck and I have to say that I had great days both Saturdays...maybe it is the elephant, maybe not, but it is such fun to see them...almost makes me not hear the honking...almost.
On another note, I find that the closer I get to going home (I'm going home for the holidays - hooray!) the less patience I have for the little Indian annoyances. Like going to the movies and people talking through the entire movie; the non-stop honking, etc., etc. Normally I can put up with these things fairly well but over the past few days it has just been driving me absolutely insane. I mean really, if you are stopped dead in traffic and cannot move, how does honking help? And why go to a movie if you are going to talk, and text, and generally pay no attention? So frustrating.
But India does make an effort to balance out the frustrations with some good stuff; I saw an elephant Saturday morning, the second Saturday in a row I've seen one. In India elephants mean luck and I have to say that I had great days both Saturdays...maybe it is the elephant, maybe not, but it is such fun to see them...almost makes me not hear the honking...almost.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
smelly breath
Last Friday night I was out for dinner pretty late. On the way home the police had the road blocked off in this one area and were stopping every car. I didn't think much about it because I was in a very nice area of town near all the Embassies and quite often there are road blocks set up for some reason or other.
The police asked my driver where we were coming from and then asked him another question which I didn't understand. They then rolled up a piece up paper kind of like a funnel and had him blow into it...then the cop smelled the paper. The stop was to check for drunk drivers. A good idea on a Friday night, but I'm not entirely sure how effective that technique is; especially since they seem to have only one paper...if someone is really drunk wouldn't the smell of booze stay on the paper for all future drivers?
Strangely they didn't ask my driver to see his license, they just asked where were had been and where we were going. Given how corrupt the police are here I can't help but wonder if you did have alcohol on your breath if you could buy your way out of it? Well, luckily my driver was 100% clean; he doesn't drink at all so I know that I never have to worry about that.
Just another one of the many things that is just not quite what you expect over here.
The police asked my driver where we were coming from and then asked him another question which I didn't understand. They then rolled up a piece up paper kind of like a funnel and had him blow into it...then the cop smelled the paper. The stop was to check for drunk drivers. A good idea on a Friday night, but I'm not entirely sure how effective that technique is; especially since they seem to have only one paper...if someone is really drunk wouldn't the smell of booze stay on the paper for all future drivers?
Strangely they didn't ask my driver to see his license, they just asked where were had been and where we were going. Given how corrupt the police are here I can't help but wonder if you did have alcohol on your breath if you could buy your way out of it? Well, luckily my driver was 100% clean; he doesn't drink at all so I know that I never have to worry about that.
Just another one of the many things that is just not quite what you expect over here.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
old fashioned popcorn
Last week I was in my car and thought I saw something on the side of the road but wasn't sure if I had seen it correctly so decided not to blog about it just in case I was wrong. On Saturday I saw it again and had seen correctly the first time.
What was this interesting sight?
Real old fashioned popcorn.
There was a man with a cart and on the cart he had peanuts for sale and some other nuts and he also had a ton of popcorn kernels. On one side of the cart there was a big pan...kind of the size of a wok...on a little fire. He would put kernels in and pop them over the fire and then put them into a small little bag for people. Now that is fresh popcorn.
I'm surprised I didn't notice it last year. Its a great idea for these cold Delhi nights (it actually gets quite cold at night...but the days are perfect). They only pop a little bit at a time so it is always fresh and warm. I almost bought some...probably the only street food in Delhi that I can be sure it 100% safe to eat...but I was in my car so couldn't exactly stop.
Will be tough to buy movie theatre popcorn now after remembering what real fresh popcorn is like.
Oh...and I saw an elephant walking down the street Saturday morning. Totally unrelated but seriously made my day!
What was this interesting sight?
Real old fashioned popcorn.
There was a man with a cart and on the cart he had peanuts for sale and some other nuts and he also had a ton of popcorn kernels. On one side of the cart there was a big pan...kind of the size of a wok...on a little fire. He would put kernels in and pop them over the fire and then put them into a small little bag for people. Now that is fresh popcorn.
I'm surprised I didn't notice it last year. Its a great idea for these cold Delhi nights (it actually gets quite cold at night...but the days are perfect). They only pop a little bit at a time so it is always fresh and warm. I almost bought some...probably the only street food in Delhi that I can be sure it 100% safe to eat...but I was in my car so couldn't exactly stop.
Will be tough to buy movie theatre popcorn now after remembering what real fresh popcorn is like.
Oh...and I saw an elephant walking down the street Saturday morning. Totally unrelated but seriously made my day!
Thursday, December 3, 2009
batty birds
The one downfall of visiting the backwaters in a houseboat is that you can't walk around at all other than the 10 feet from the seating area to the bedroom. So what does one do to get the juices flowing again? Goes to a bird sanctuary of course.
After leaving our houseboat we drove about an hour to the northern part of a big lake in Kerala. The ocean meets this lake which then feeds the canals and streams in the backwaters. There wasn't much to do so we relaxed and watched the fishermen come by and check their catch all day. We also watched this plant; we think it was African moss; float back and forth; it was kind of mesmerizing. I also did some flower photography...the new flower on the right is from there.
The next morning we were up bright and early for a visit to the bird sanctuary. It was a hot morning and was quite humid on the walk so it was good that we were up and about so early because we were getting quite toasty! It was (depending on who you asked) a 3 or 4 km walk, nice and muddy in spots...our shoes were quite messy. We started by seeing a bunch of bats...creepy...there were quite a few herons around including one that was grey but its wings were white underneath which was just so cool when they were flying. There was a hawk type bird, and a kingfisher (or so our guide says...I couldn't find it) and various other birds flitting around. Oh, and a turtle. Oh, and we saw an elephant while we were driving there; he was walking down the street with his owner.
Due to the fact that it was so humid I didn't get many photos...my camera kept getting confused on what to focus on. But I do have a few.
The first is a fuzzy shot (because I was walking) of Carrie and our guide. You can see how green and lush it was. Kind of rain-foresty...not that I've ever been to a rainforest.
And the second is one of the grey, but with white wings, birds hanging out on a little bridge to nowhere. Never managed to get a picture of one in flight...they moved too quickly.
After leaving our houseboat we drove about an hour to the northern part of a big lake in Kerala. The ocean meets this lake which then feeds the canals and streams in the backwaters. There wasn't much to do so we relaxed and watched the fishermen come by and check their catch all day. We also watched this plant; we think it was African moss; float back and forth; it was kind of mesmerizing. I also did some flower photography...the new flower on the right is from there.
The next morning we were up bright and early for a visit to the bird sanctuary. It was a hot morning and was quite humid on the walk so it was good that we were up and about so early because we were getting quite toasty! It was (depending on who you asked) a 3 or 4 km walk, nice and muddy in spots...our shoes were quite messy. We started by seeing a bunch of bats...creepy...there were quite a few herons around including one that was grey but its wings were white underneath which was just so cool when they were flying. There was a hawk type bird, and a kingfisher (or so our guide says...I couldn't find it) and various other birds flitting around. Oh, and a turtle. Oh, and we saw an elephant while we were driving there; he was walking down the street with his owner.
Due to the fact that it was so humid I didn't get many photos...my camera kept getting confused on what to focus on. But I do have a few.
The first is a fuzzy shot (because I was walking) of Carrie and our guide. You can see how green and lush it was. Kind of rain-foresty...not that I've ever been to a rainforest.
And the second is one of the grey, but with white wings, birds hanging out on a little bridge to nowhere. Never managed to get a picture of one in flight...they moved too quickly.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
doing laundry and seeing stars
So what did we see while cruising through the backwaters? We saw life going on around us.
We saw men working in rice paddies and learned that apparently a lot of the canals in the backwaters were created; land was filled to create rice paddies.
We saw people using the water for everything imaginable...
Bathing
Brushing teeth
Doing laundry. Lots and lots of laundry was being done in the water; women (and a few men) standing in the water rinsing it out and then banging it on the rocks (I think the banging gets out the dirt?).
The water is truly life in the backwaters; it is used for everything. We were told we could go swimming if we wanted...we politely declined after seeing how much goes into the water.
We just enjoyed watching people living their lives in such a simple way. There were lots of boats, in addition to houseboats, going around. Small little canoes for individual travelers; larger boats for deliveries; and boats for public transport. Some small, just crossing from one side for a canal to another (there were a few bridges around but not many); some larger for longer rides. On all of the larger boats we noticed that men sat in the front and women in the back always. Didn't look like there were markers dividing them; that's just how people sat.
We docked just before a spectacular sunset. After the sunset I lay down for a bit and just looked up at the sky. Living in a big city you rarely see stars...living in a city as polluted as Delhi you never see stars...so it was so nice to just lay down and look up and see all the stars.
Sigh...so relaxing.
Picture time! First we have a small little shuttle boat going across one of the canals. And then you have a woman doing her laundry.
We saw men working in rice paddies and learned that apparently a lot of the canals in the backwaters were created; land was filled to create rice paddies.
We saw people using the water for everything imaginable...
Bathing
Brushing teeth
Doing laundry. Lots and lots of laundry was being done in the water; women (and a few men) standing in the water rinsing it out and then banging it on the rocks (I think the banging gets out the dirt?).
The water is truly life in the backwaters; it is used for everything. We were told we could go swimming if we wanted...we politely declined after seeing how much goes into the water.
We just enjoyed watching people living their lives in such a simple way. There were lots of boats, in addition to houseboats, going around. Small little canoes for individual travelers; larger boats for deliveries; and boats for public transport. Some small, just crossing from one side for a canal to another (there were a few bridges around but not many); some larger for longer rides. On all of the larger boats we noticed that men sat in the front and women in the back always. Didn't look like there were markers dividing them; that's just how people sat.
We docked just before a spectacular sunset. After the sunset I lay down for a bit and just looked up at the sky. Living in a big city you rarely see stars...living in a city as polluted as Delhi you never see stars...so it was so nice to just lay down and look up and see all the stars.
Sigh...so relaxing.
Picture time! First we have a small little shuttle boat going across one of the canals. And then you have a woman doing her laundry.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Happiness is...
I think that my favorite place in India is the Kerala backwaters. It is so relaxing and you feel like you are stepping into another world. I was thrilled to go back and, once again, I had a bit of a different experience than my first visit. On my first visit I stayed in a "floating cottage", which basically was a small island with a few little cottages that were in fact floating, and we took a boat ride around that area. This time I went further south and stayed on a houseboat.
The houseboats are all former cargo boats that are no longer needed and have been re-purposed into houseboats for tourism. We got on the boat around noon and after a little intro (including "there is a TV there, but only Indians ever use it" from an Indian, who was right...we didn't turn it on) we set sail.
The houseboat was cute and simple and had everything you could need. We had 3 staff; a chef, a captain and an engineer, all of whom wore traditional clothing and walked around barefoot...which I thought was a great idea and did as well. The captain sat in front of the boat and navigated while the engineer and chef sat in back. There was a little string next to the captain's chair which connected to a bell in the back so he could signal the engineer to adjust the engine speed.
We would 'dock' for our meals - which meant pulling up somewhere and tying the boat to a tree - and the meals were awesome. We asked them to take into account our western stomachs and not go too spicy and they didn't. I'm not going to bore you with a play by play of every meal but we did have a banana curry (or so they said, didn't taste like bananas but they said it was) at lunch that was delish; and a traditional southern breakfast which was hard boiled eggs in a curry over rice noodles. Sound strange? It was, but it was also really yummy. Tomorrow I'll talk about what we actually saw but for today 3 houseboat pictures...
The first is of a whole houseboat...not ours, but one just like ours to give you an idea of what it looks like. If you click on it for a larger view you can just see a man on the front with a black umbrella...that is the captain.
The second is of men building one. The material they are using is called coir which is a material taken from coconuts - they use every bit of the coconuts down in Kerala; milk for drinking, oil for cooking and coir is a really strong material for ropes that they use for many different purposes. All of the houseboats are made from bamboo and coir and almost all of the building is done by hand.
And the third picture is where we sat taking in the view as we cruised through the backwaters.
The houseboats are all former cargo boats that are no longer needed and have been re-purposed into houseboats for tourism. We got on the boat around noon and after a little intro (including "there is a TV there, but only Indians ever use it" from an Indian, who was right...we didn't turn it on) we set sail.
The houseboat was cute and simple and had everything you could need. We had 3 staff; a chef, a captain and an engineer, all of whom wore traditional clothing and walked around barefoot...which I thought was a great idea and did as well. The captain sat in front of the boat and navigated while the engineer and chef sat in back. There was a little string next to the captain's chair which connected to a bell in the back so he could signal the engineer to adjust the engine speed.
We would 'dock' for our meals - which meant pulling up somewhere and tying the boat to a tree - and the meals were awesome. We asked them to take into account our western stomachs and not go too spicy and they didn't. I'm not going to bore you with a play by play of every meal but we did have a banana curry (or so they said, didn't taste like bananas but they said it was) at lunch that was delish; and a traditional southern breakfast which was hard boiled eggs in a curry over rice noodles. Sound strange? It was, but it was also really yummy. Tomorrow I'll talk about what we actually saw but for today 3 houseboat pictures...
The first is of a whole houseboat...not ours, but one just like ours to give you an idea of what it looks like. If you click on it for a larger view you can just see a man on the front with a black umbrella...that is the captain.
The second is of men building one. The material they are using is called coir which is a material taken from coconuts - they use every bit of the coconuts down in Kerala; milk for drinking, oil for cooking and coir is a really strong material for ropes that they use for many different purposes. All of the houseboats are made from bamboo and coir and almost all of the building is done by hand.
And the third picture is where we sat taking in the view as we cruised through the backwaters.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
