Nausea heartburn indegestion upset stomach, diarrhea! 6 out of 7 of these describe my current health. Other than that, things are well. I was frustrated last night. Probably because I was exhausted from an entire day without fans constantly blowing on me or AC. It was probably 95-100 degrees. For me, the heat was bearable, but my host family struggled and kept trying to escape the heat.
We drove about 1.5 hours, which was only about 12km, to Dakshinachitra, a "museum" that showcased historical homes and artisans of South India. I had henna done! Pictures soon to come, once I have my wireless internet dongle. We also went to a beach and I walked in the Bay of Bengal for the first time. The water was warm and murky. It was a very dirty beach. Everybody thinks it's okay to litter everywhere. It's the "keep the ghetto the ghetto" mindset. This was the final straw for me yesterday, and I let it ruin my evening. I was very frustrated with India last night on our drive home, but I won't go into detail complaining about the things that were annoying me. Let's just say the drive home in the back of our van took 2 hours, I was tired, and we were stuck in the most obnoxious traffic. Picture what the roads would be like if there were no rules and no lines on the road. There were three buses which formed a Y-shape, and we were sandwiched in between the two buses at a diagonal and couldn't see anything. Everyone was laying on their horns, and so many people were just walking around the cars. We were stuck there with no idea what was causing the jam for about 10 minutes. I wanted to get out and take a picture, but I was stuck in the backseat of the van. But I'm over all of this now, today is a new day.
We also visited the Mahabalipuram relief, I will post pictures soon!
Today I woke up feeling sick and had some fun times on the toilet, then I was feeling so hungry that I came out of my room and asked for food right away. There were two spots set at the table, and I figured it was for the elders but I didn't care at this point. I sat down and asked the maid for toast, but she doesn't understand English very well. I requested, "Bread? Toast? Bread toast?" "Ahh, breadtoast!" She understood. Sure enough, a few minutes into my breadtoast, the grandma of the family came to eat her breakfast and instead of sitting next to me where the other plate was set, she went and got a plate for herself and sat diagonal to me. She didn't look mad at me, but confused as to why I wasn't still sleeping. I never talk to the elders, they don't speak English, but give them a nod and a smile whenever they shuffle by.
We're moving into the school soon, and apparently they do not have internet there except in teacher's offices which is why I'm getting a wireless dongle. Then I'll be able to upload photos. We're also not allowed to wear sleeveless tops or skirts, so I have to get a couple more dothis and kurtis. That's okay, a handmade dothi costs about $8, and a decent kurti is about $6. You can get much nicer ones, of course. They also have these super comfy Aladdin-looking pants that are very soft and only cost 150 rupees, which is about $2.50. I'm going to buy several of these because they're the most amazing comfy pants ever. I never want to wear jeans again.
Also, to scare you guys, one of the boys at the school died of "brain fever" yesterday. This is caused by meningitis or encephalitis. I didn't get my encephalitis shot because I thought I would have to pay out of pocket for it, and by the time I found out it was covered by my insurance it was too late because the vaccination is a series of 2 shots over 28 days. Encephalitis is carried by mosquitoes, but it's very very very rare that cases ever get that bad. It is definitely treatable, so don't worry. Only 1 in 250 cases actually develop into an illness.
I'm going to take another trip to the toilet now so you'll have to excuse me. Sending much love and good energies! Miss you all :)
We drove about 1.5 hours, which was only about 12km, to Dakshinachitra, a "museum" that showcased historical homes and artisans of South India. I had henna done! Pictures soon to come, once I have my wireless internet dongle. We also went to a beach and I walked in the Bay of Bengal for the first time. The water was warm and murky. It was a very dirty beach. Everybody thinks it's okay to litter everywhere. It's the "keep the ghetto the ghetto" mindset. This was the final straw for me yesterday, and I let it ruin my evening. I was very frustrated with India last night on our drive home, but I won't go into detail complaining about the things that were annoying me. Let's just say the drive home in the back of our van took 2 hours, I was tired, and we were stuck in the most obnoxious traffic. Picture what the roads would be like if there were no rules and no lines on the road. There were three buses which formed a Y-shape, and we were sandwiched in between the two buses at a diagonal and couldn't see anything. Everyone was laying on their horns, and so many people were just walking around the cars. We were stuck there with no idea what was causing the jam for about 10 minutes. I wanted to get out and take a picture, but I was stuck in the backseat of the van. But I'm over all of this now, today is a new day.
We also visited the Mahabalipuram relief, I will post pictures soon!
Today I woke up feeling sick and had some fun times on the toilet, then I was feeling so hungry that I came out of my room and asked for food right away. There were two spots set at the table, and I figured it was for the elders but I didn't care at this point. I sat down and asked the maid for toast, but she doesn't understand English very well. I requested, "Bread? Toast? Bread toast?" "Ahh, breadtoast!" She understood. Sure enough, a few minutes into my breadtoast, the grandma of the family came to eat her breakfast and instead of sitting next to me where the other plate was set, she went and got a plate for herself and sat diagonal to me. She didn't look mad at me, but confused as to why I wasn't still sleeping. I never talk to the elders, they don't speak English, but give them a nod and a smile whenever they shuffle by.
We're moving into the school soon, and apparently they do not have internet there except in teacher's offices which is why I'm getting a wireless dongle. Then I'll be able to upload photos. We're also not allowed to wear sleeveless tops or skirts, so I have to get a couple more dothis and kurtis. That's okay, a handmade dothi costs about $8, and a decent kurti is about $6. You can get much nicer ones, of course. They also have these super comfy Aladdin-looking pants that are very soft and only cost 150 rupees, which is about $2.50. I'm going to buy several of these because they're the most amazing comfy pants ever. I never want to wear jeans again.
Also, to scare you guys, one of the boys at the school died of "brain fever" yesterday. This is caused by meningitis or encephalitis. I didn't get my encephalitis shot because I thought I would have to pay out of pocket for it, and by the time I found out it was covered by my insurance it was too late because the vaccination is a series of 2 shots over 28 days. Encephalitis is carried by mosquitoes, but it's very very very rare that cases ever get that bad. It is definitely treatable, so don't worry. Only 1 in 250 cases actually develop into an illness.
I'm going to take another trip to the toilet now so you'll have to excuse me. Sending much love and good energies! Miss you all :)
Please don't get to sick...are you feeling better yet?
ReplyDeleteToday I am. A little stomach ache but no more "loose motions." I took some Immodium with Azithromycin and they worked quickly.
ReplyDeletesome of this sickness could be nerves and home sickness
ReplyDelete