BIBLE STUDY-Yesterday turned out to be an absolutely fantastic day. I attended my first Bible study through my expat group. It turned out there were woman from South Africa, Japan, England, Germany, and then of course...Shirley from Minnesota all in one room. HA! Small world! An absolutely brilliant group of Christian woman who get together every Thursday afternoon from 2-4 pm for bible study, coffee, and a snack. It was really a breath of fresh air for me. I'm starting to slowly find my place in this new world. I walked in still feeling a bit down with lots of sad thoughts still in my head from earlier in the week, however after listening to their problems I was reminded I'm fine. We are doing just great!
BOWLING-
Last night I'm proud to say that after 3 weeks of getting together weekly to bowl we have now expanded to 2 lanes. We had 11 people at bowling expat group last night and really had a good time playing boys against girls.
BRUISES-
Just to make sure people keep coming back each week I decided to throw in some additional entertainment by completely wiping out. My foot went over the line and I hit the chicken grease that they must use on their bowling alley lanes and my feet went in the air quickly. Thankfully I just walked away to a few good laughs. It was simply a publicity stunt planned by Ben and I to keep people entertained from week to week.
Everyone here agrees that there are good days and bad days, but in the end the good days outweigh the bad. In just 5 weeks we have met so many wonderful people to be thankful for having in our lives. Socializing has never been more important than it is here in India. Getting together with others who are in a similar situation always provides a good laugh.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
What Keeps Me Ticking in India
Life down here is truly a rollercoaster of emotions. One minute I am fine and the next I'm crying for no reason. The days that are rough seem to usually get better as time goes on. Thankfully I have a really good network of girls down here that I can call and check in with who know exactly what I'm going through. Most of them have been here longer than a month and can give advice. I have really dived into yoga lately and am finding that truly relaxing. You will have to email me to learn about the "humming bee" that I learned in class Monday night. I am still trying to stay positive with my blog postings and in general while still reporting the truth. Overall we are still doing well. The small things are still bringing great joy to me. For example, today I finally located dill pickles in the grocery store. It is a different experience every week a person goes shopping as they don't always have the same items from week to week. A person can't get their hopes up on buying one thing vs. another as you don't know if you will be able to find it. Last week I bought the most delicious fresh mozzarella cheese imported from Italy that was reasonably priced. This week there was none to be found so I had to settle with Danish Brie, which I know Ben loves. I've moved into Level II of German and trying to make that my job to keep focus. I do the Delhi Times Suduko puzzle every morning to keep my mind sharp, but mostly it is for the sense of accomplishment. My new favorite activity is researching toaster oven recipes and then walking to the local fruit and vegetable stand to buy fresh ingredients. I want to make sugar cookies, but first I need to locate some vanilla extract. I have not seen any yet so I need to find a recipe with ingredients I can locate. Betty Crocker brownie mix turned out well the first time I made it! Today I made zuchhini dipped in egg better and coated with crushed cracker for lunch. MMM! I couldn't locate any Saltines down here, but found a decent substitute. Maybe I am actually eating healthier without much meat in my diet? Brace yourself for next Monday's blog after we spend the weekend at the Pushkar Camel Fair. Miss you all!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Month One Review
My one month review of India has lots of little thoughts racing through my brain. Tonight I just want to bring a few to your attention.
1) Escalator Fear-We have seen a high percentage of the population afraid to get on and off the mall escalators. Interesting!
2) Chipmunk/squirrel/gopher-In India I was expecting we would see snakes, lizards, spiders, etc. but mostly what we see are cows, stray dogs, and these little chipmunk/squirrel things that hop all over the place. Not what I was expecting.
3) Toilets-All my tour books made it sound like everywhere was going to have a hole in the floor to squat over. I have yet to see one of these. I have been in some pretty nasty, stinky, and dirty bathrooms while I'm here, but no hole spotting yet. I will keep you posted!
4) Meat-I was scared I was going to have to turn vegetarian down here, but we have successfully sniffed out edible meat. Not much beef, but German sausage and salami will hold us over until Xmas.
5) Charcoil Iron-I think I saw one at an antique store once, but to actually see woman using an iron that is heated with charcoil is amazing. There is a local ironing business in a hut down the street. The hut doesn't have electricity so they use this awesome charcoil iron that must weigh 20 pounds. Anyone ever seen one of these?
6) Can Opener-Most cans have pull tops on them, but this week I ran into problems with a pineapple can. We don't have a can opener in the apt. so I ventured down to the apt. kitchen. The boys said the kitchen didn't have a can opener either, but they were able to use a bottle opener to jab it open. I guess can openers are not so popular here.
7) "The Squat"-That is what I refer to the position that is VERY popular here. I think it is interesting to me because if I sat in the squatting position with my behind off the ground 2 inches my legs would fall asleep. EVERYONE here is constantly in this position. Men in round circle discussion in the middle of parks squatting and talking. People laying brick, working in the garden, or just sitting along the road. It must be a special trait found only in Indians. Maybe if I only weighed 98 pounds and had no fat on my legs I could squat like that too?
These unimportant details are constantly popping in my head. This new culture has really got me curious!
1) Escalator Fear-We have seen a high percentage of the population afraid to get on and off the mall escalators. Interesting!
2) Chipmunk/squirrel/gopher-In India I was expecting we would see snakes, lizards, spiders, etc. but mostly what we see are cows, stray dogs, and these little chipmunk/squirrel things that hop all over the place. Not what I was expecting.
3) Toilets-All my tour books made it sound like everywhere was going to have a hole in the floor to squat over. I have yet to see one of these. I have been in some pretty nasty, stinky, and dirty bathrooms while I'm here, but no hole spotting yet. I will keep you posted!
4) Meat-I was scared I was going to have to turn vegetarian down here, but we have successfully sniffed out edible meat. Not much beef, but German sausage and salami will hold us over until Xmas.
5) Charcoil Iron-I think I saw one at an antique store once, but to actually see woman using an iron that is heated with charcoil is amazing. There is a local ironing business in a hut down the street. The hut doesn't have electricity so they use this awesome charcoil iron that must weigh 20 pounds. Anyone ever seen one of these?
6) Can Opener-Most cans have pull tops on them, but this week I ran into problems with a pineapple can. We don't have a can opener in the apt. so I ventured down to the apt. kitchen. The boys said the kitchen didn't have a can opener either, but they were able to use a bottle opener to jab it open. I guess can openers are not so popular here.
7) "The Squat"-That is what I refer to the position that is VERY popular here. I think it is interesting to me because if I sat in the squatting position with my behind off the ground 2 inches my legs would fall asleep. EVERYONE here is constantly in this position. Men in round circle discussion in the middle of parks squatting and talking. People laying brick, working in the garden, or just sitting along the road. It must be a special trait found only in Indians. Maybe if I only weighed 98 pounds and had no fat on my legs I could squat like that too?
These unimportant details are constantly popping in my head. This new culture has really got me curious!
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