Toe Infection

I do not know how this major event that happened in Kerala slipped my mind!!!

So, before we left for Kerala my big toe on my left foot became sore and red...I stubbed it somewhere on something and noticed one day that it was bleeding.  With all the crap on the streets of India, any number of things could have gotten in there. I would have just ignored it, but the fact that we are going to the Himalayas for 10 days was weighing on my mind.  I did not have the luxury of having a toe infection while hiking for 10 days...so, I decided that going to the doctor once I reached Kerala was the best idea.

After our 12 hour train ride...where I slept on the floor until 3:30am when a man tapped me and told me he was getting off the train so I could use his seat, we got to the airport and reached Trivandrum (very close to the most southern tip of India).  Hannah and I slept for the rest of the afternoon and evening after that night in a packed train with people who do not know what deodorant is used for...

So, we decided for the first day that we would shop around and just walk around the city.  The first thing on our agenda, though, was Geetha Hospital.

We walk in, the receptionist asked my name and I spelled it out for him, which was translated into Nikhil LeGare.  After about less than a minute I was called to see the doctor.  I sat down, showed him my toe.  He asked if it was "paining"and of course I confirmed, that yes, indeed, it was paining.  He pressed down on my toe, which hurt, and he started writing a prescription for me.  He wrote 3 separate prescriptions and sent me to the "Treatment Room".  I wish I could hook up my camera to this computer so I could upload a picture of the room!  It was very small with one examination table.  I hopped up on there and told Hannah and Mary Beth that they could not leave me alone in that room.
I freaked when I saw a needle...They then told me to lay down and turn over...I tried to protest and asked what the needle was for (I was nervous).  They told me it was a tetanus booster and they would not be able to put it in my arm...soooo I had to roll over and I clenched Hannah's hand as they injected me.  I started laughing because of the whole situation and they thought I was crying..

I got my "tablets"after that - an anti-biotic, some pills in case the anti-biotic made my stomach feel a little woozy, and then some casual pain killers.  My toe was really not "paining"THAT bad that I felt the need to take pain killers - but since they do not use labels on the medication, I had to just take all 3 pills for 3 consecutive days. 

I know you would be happy to know that I am 100% cured of my toe infection. The best part about that hospital visit was that 1. It lasted for no more than 20 minutes. and 2. It cost me 230 rupees (divide that by 49 and you get a grand total of $4.69.)

Long Time Overdue

SO I don't know where to begin so I will write about what is currently happening over here in India.

I am currently sitting in the "Transit Center"at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport.  We were supposed to fly out to Bagdogra to make our way to Darjeeling today..buuut since there is a "change in the seasons"today, our airplane was first downsized to hold only 135 passengers instead of 150, and when they tried to accommodate us on another flight, we learned that ONLY 2 flights go to Bagdogra airport a day, SO lucky us, we are staying overnight at the airport.  Mike (our volunteer coordinator) is on his way to Kolkata then on to Bagdogra - he is unaware that we are still in Hyderabad...
Well, at least the internet is complimentary here!! That is a plus!

Hannah and I went to Kerala last week as there was a nun convention at the convent - so we had to be out of there.  So, we went to visit Mary Beth in Trivandrum.  Kerala was beautiful.  Coconut trees are everywhere.  We stayed in a house there, and I literally felt like I was in the Jungle Book when I stepped outside.  We went to Kovalam Beach where we got burnt to crisps, but swimming in the Arabian Sea was awesome!!  We also went to a place to ride elephants.  We were driven to the location (not quite sure where it was....) and we were told to put our stuff in our little house that we would be staying in and to then meet the people at the entrance to go on a "trek".  Well, what we thought was going to be a nice little nature walk, turned out to be a nice little 10k.  Then it started to rain, so we had to wait another hour and a half to ride the elephants.  BUT once we finally did - it was pretty sweet.  Hannah and I rode together on Jaysree. She is a 36 year old elephant, the oldest elephant there is 89.  I guess they live to around 100 years...crazy.  We got to feed her afterwards and then go and see the 2 younger elephants, who are 8 and 9.  The 9 year old put his trunk on my head for a "blessing."

So, this week we will be hiking the Himalayas in Nepal and then Hannah and I head off to Goa for some beach time.  I return home on November 18th, juuust in time for the ND vs Army game.

I know that so much more has happened since I last wrote in here, buuuut this is what is going on at the moment sooo, here ya go!

Secunderbad

Where to begin...
Maaaany changes have happened since I last wrote on here.  Hannah and I moved out of Chandur for various reasons and we are now in Secunderbad at another convent.  The superior here is really very nice though, her name is Sister Alice.  There are only 10 girls that live in this home.  They are originally from Navajeevana which is the street home located about 10 minutes away. These girls speak English very well and are wonderful to be around.  Since there are only 10 of them, we are able to get to know them better and have an actual relationship with them.  I have a funny feeling it will be much harder for me to leave them than it was to leave Chandur.  There were just so many girls in Chandur (about 150) and they spoke such little English that it was tough to form an actual relationship with them, aside from being the American that lived with them.
SO Hannah and I, during the day, are going to be going to Navajeevana to be with the girls who are street children.  If you have seen Slumdog Millionaire you can get a good picture of the children we are with every day.  About 40 girls are residents there now.  The sisters there pick up girls off the street who are beggars, or who are caught up in the sex slave business that goes on unnoticed...The sisters literally save them.  Most of the girls they pick up, after a a bath, new clothes, and some meals, the parent(s) or a relative will come to claim them - but some girls are never claimed and become residents of this home.  They stay and live there until they are married or can live on their own with their own job.  The youngest is probably 2 or 3 and the oldest is 17.  I cannot think of any other word to use to describe the emotions I feel while I am there, other than the word "intense".  I really like it so far, we sing and dance and play hand games with the girls. Some speak a decent amount of English and others speak none at all. 
The girls who live where I live are from Navajeevana originally but have come here to live.  I think they really are the lucky ones.  It feels like a family here.  They all call me and Hannah "akka" which means big sister and I really feel like their older sister.  We help them with their homework and studies, it's fun.

My mom came in last week.  She is having quite an experience; it definitely is no vacation.    It is nice to have someone from home experiencing what I am experiencing - it really is an experience that words cannot justify.  I am currently listening to the song: Tumse Hi Tumse from the Bollywood movie Anjaana Anjaani. that was a great movie! Dancing and singing and many tears from all the characters.  The depiction of the Hudson river makes it look like the Caribbean.  And apparently there is a beautiful beach somewhere in Manhattan.  The way the portrayed all the while women were complete trash.  Hahah it was very entertaining to say the least.  That was our big trip out this weekend. 
We have yoga every morning at 10am with a Yoga teacher - it's very therapeutic; it feels like to actually do something resembling exercise.  I would attempt to run - but I would not be allowed to wear shorts soooo that is out of the question. 
Things are going reallllly well though.  I have moved my departure date up to November 18 so I will be able to go to the ND vs Army game on the 20th! :) I am SO EXCITED that I will be able to go to a game!! And it will be nice to be home.  Since I don't teach a set class anymore, I will be shifted around from now until I leave - so leaving earlier doesn't really matter at all.

Birthday in India!!

The day started out with 7am Mass, the usual.  It was a chaotic morning because there was confusion about whether or not the buses were "banned" again or not...but they were not supposed to the banned, so the celebration for Gratitude Day was on. I got to skype with my parents, which was very nice.  So, then I went outside to prepare my 10 girls to do their Irish Dance routine for the show andddd it happened that only 5 girls showed up - but they were excited to do it, so we went right ahead and practiced and they performed beautifully :) They were very cute.
After the show everyone was given wafer cookies as a treat.  I just can not get used to people throwing their trash everywhere...after the children left on the bus the place was full of cookie wrappers.  Anyway, Hannah and I ate with the teachers and I was given two cakes.  I cut the cake and was fed three pieces, one by Sister Lilly, one by Sister Teresa, and one by Hannah, strange but it's their custom I guess.
Another custom they have here is that the birthday person is supposed to give a party to everyone.  I had no idea what party to give, but it ended up being a very fun evening...
After Gratitude Day was over, Hannah and I went with the masters (male teachers) to Srinu's house and then to his field.  His family owns 10 acres of land  cotton fields and rice paddies, and they have a hut in the middle.  So, I brought a "beer party" to them. This was their first time ever drinking with females so they were very giddy about it.  Besides the fact that they kept trying to feed us fish, it was a very enjoyable evening.  Srinu's mother came out to the field and invited Hannah and me back to the field on Sunday to have chicken and beer and white water from 10 - 4.  So, we are set to go back to the field with the masters and Srinu's mother (who is only missing her 2 front teeth).
It was a very enjoyable birthday - one I never could have imagined!!!

Nalgonda with Srinu, Balu, & Hannah

Yesterday morning we got to sleep in until 8! Mass was supposed to be at 9:30am for Gratitude Day - apparently this is a very big deal here.  We went to breakfast and everyone had a plate of goodies at their place - I had a Taj Mahal key chain with some candies.  It was very cute.  We found out that Mass was post-poned until 7pm because the priest couldn't make it.  Also, we were supposed to have a big celebration with dancing and singing for the whole school - but the buses were "banned" which essentially means they are on strike - SO that was post-poned, it is supposed to happen on Monday, which is fine with me because it's my birthday :)
So, later in the day after lunch, Hannah and I went with 2 of the male teachers, Srinu and Balu to Nalgonda, on their bikes.  We went to help Balu fill out a Visa application form to come to the US.  The closest internet he could use was in Nalgonda (30 minutes away).  He was too afraid to ask the sisters if he could use their internet...so we went.  Hannah and I had quite a few laughs because A. His birthday is wrong on his passport B. The village he lives in is misspelled on his passport. C. He did not know his wife's birthday D. He did not even know which type of Visa he wanted.
So, we attempted at filling out the information, but we were timed out twice, and then I decided that we should probably just leave and we can try again some other time.  We left the little internet place and were on our way back home when I decided that I was hungry.  I was thinking that we would stop at a little cafe or something - but It's India! They don't really have "cafes" so we stopped at a Fast Food Stand. (see picture).  The food was actually pretty good! Definitely better than some of the Chinese food I've had back home (i.e. Golden Dragon in South Bend).  On our way back, the police were stopping everyone that passed by to check for their licenses, but the let us go by since we were Americans and guests of India.  Everything else was fine except when Srinu lost his phone somewhere along the road .... we had to go back to the place he thought he lost it and look for it. But sadly, we were unsuccessful. 

Outing with the teachers

Woke up at 5:29 to a phone call from one of the teachers...making sure I was awake and ready to go! I planned a trip to a dam called Nagarjuna Sagar with 12 of the teachers for Friday.  We had Friday and Saturday off last week since it was Ramzan (a Muslim Holiday) and then a big Hindu festival where they celebrate the god Ganeesh, the Elephant god.  So - we all rented a "sumo" like a jeep, only bigger, and a driver and we were on our way by 7:30.  It took about 2 hours to get there and only 2 of the 24 gates were open (see picture).  We were bummed, we wanted to see most of the gates open and flowing with water - but that did not put a damper on our day!  We then went to a church to sit on the grounds outside and have a late breakfast.  The teachers were all amazed because I do not know how to eat with my hands the way they do.  After breakfast we went down towards the Krishna River and we all put our feet it.  It was beautiful.  The rest of the day we went and saw waterfalls and other places around the river.  The Krishna River is one of India's largest rivers and runs west to east and empties out in the Bay of Bengal.
Just when I thought we were heading home we made another stop.  We went out on a small boat (see picture) and had a blast.  Then the men went swimming.  I wanted very much to go swimming since it was very hot outside, but I was in a Sari.  Everyone was asking if I knew how to swim and of course I was proclaiming that I knew how.  They only partially believed me, so, I tied my sari up and jumped in and swam.  It was very difficult with the amount of fabric the sari is - but everyone was impressed.

We stopped along the side of the road on our way home to eat dinner that the teachers prepared and then we made it home.  It was a great day.

Nagarjuna Sagar

All of us (except Balu, who is taking the picture)

This is Balu, my Indian Anna (Big brother) and I am his Chelli (little sister)

The boat that fit 8 of us

The next morning I woke up early to go to Secunderbad.  Nothing too exciting about that journey.  I met Hannah and we came back to Chandur together.  We went shopping with one of the sisters, Sister Mercy.  She was very nervous and reached for my hand every time we crossed the street.  Hannah was wearing a skirt that came down just below her knees at first and Sister Mercy looked in horror and asked if she had something that would cover her knees...she then put on capris and I burst into a fit of laughter.  Conservative does not even begin to describe life here.

We finally booked our flights to Bagdogra!! We are officially hiking the Himalayas from October 31 to November 9.  I am very excited!! Hannah and I are trying to plan what we are going to do while we are there besides hiking - we are thinking hang gliding, rock climbing, or white water rafting.... I will keep you updated on what we decide to do!

As for now, I am concentrating on teaching 10 3rd grade girls an Irish Step Dance routine... it is quite comical to watch. 

All for Notre Dame football

I woke up Saturday morning at 5:30, thinking that a half an hour would be enough time to get dressed and ready for my trip to Secunderbad. Well, of course today it took me a half an hour to get my saree tied properly. So I ran out of my “home” at 6:09 thinking I was going to miss the bus to nalgonda. Sister Lilly told me that the bus “leaves about 6:15 or 6:30” well, I don’t know why I was panicking about being late – I am running on Indian-time – which means everything is 15 later than when they tell you. So, I got to the bus stop at 6:25, waited 20 minutes, then got on the bus to Nalgonda. It was a nice morning – it was drizzling so the air was nice and cool. When I got to Nalgonda, I got off the bus, took an auto to the railway station. For a few minutes I thought the driver did not understand “train” because he was taking me down this little dirt road – but a minute later I saw the train station! I was very happy. My travels were very easy this morning. I got my ticket, waited for the train, met 2 women and 1 man who were talking to me. They saved me a seat on the train which was very nice and in the sleeper section of the train. I got a look at what we will be travelling in for the trip to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. Oh boy! Those 25 hours are going to be verrrrry interesting! Anyway, they tried talking to me during the 2 hour train ride, but they had very limited English, so we only spoke a few words to each other. They told me that they were teachers at the government school so we all had something in common – teaching in India! They were very nice though and made sure I made it off the train okay and over to track #1 to meet up with Mike. I met Mike and he almost walked right past me because I was in a saree and he was looking for me in my American clothes. We got to the house here in Secunderbad and Sister Alice greeted me with a very warm smile and hug. She is very sweet. I am laying down now, lunch is in 30 minutes and then the 10 girls that live here will get home from school. I am excited to see them again. They speak English so well compared to the girls that I live with. I met them once when I came to Hyderabad for the first time, with Brenda. That’s all for now.




This weekend was so much better than I could have ever imagined. I got here and the girls were just as awesome as I remembered. We sang and danced and had a wonderful time. I went out in Secunderbad with Mike and John (the tech guy at this convent) to a computer warehouse. It was cluttered and just crazy but I did not expect anything less – we’re in India! We figured out how to play the ND game simulcast and we had to also download software for the computer to play a DVD that I brought for the girls to watch (Beauty and the Beast). They loved it! They also loved the ice cream that Mike and I brought for them – although I think I enjoyed that a little more than they did (if you know how much I love ice cream). So after the movie ended at 10pm the girls went to bed and I played with the German Shepherd that they have here, named Dolly. I wasted time until 1am – KICKOFF! I was extremely happy I was able to watch Notre Dame beat Purdue here, in India. I was up until 4:45, only to wake up to the girls at 6:45! Today was worth every single minute I was awake though. We had Mass in English!! The readings, the music, the homily – all were in English! It was the first English Mass I have been to since July 4. After Mass I helped the girls with their homework and hung out with them. I went to a bookstore across town in Hyderabad with Mike and picked up some books – one that my brother Stevie is going to want to read when I get home – a biography on Lionel Messi! (Steve you should be proud of me for buying it!) I also bought a chocolate bar -and only after I took a bite out of it did I realize that there were tiny worms crawling all through out the chocolate. I immediately spit it out and watched to vomit , but I held it together. So, so, SO gross. After that traumatic experience Mike and I went for a walk to a small park where there are a Catholic chapel, a Sikh temple, a Muslim mosque, and a Hindu temple all right beside each other. I went into each, which was just very interesting – try finding a place like that in the States! We walked back to the convent only to walk with Sister Geneva (I am not quite sure of the spelling of her name) up to a Buddhist Temple. I originally did not want to go; I wanted to stay home with the girls and relax, but I went. I am extremely happy that I went. Seeing this temple was one of the greatest experiences I have had so far. I can’t explain in words how beautiful it was when we saw it. There were many stairs to climb after a 15 minute walk that was all uphill, once I got to the top I saw all of Hyderabad and Secunderbad and the mountains in the distance. A mantra was playing all along the staircase and inside the temple. It was the most calming experience that I wanted to sit down and meditate right then and there. The sights were so incredible I had to stop thinking about everything and just take it in. Of course I didn’t have my camera, but I will go back next weekend when I come again for the ND – Michigan game! When we returned we ate supper and the girls put on a small program for us in which they dedicated a song to me! It made me so happy and I felt so loved. They are all begging me to come back and I am only more than happy and anxious to come back here! I love Chandur, and I am very happy I am there, but these girls are wonderful as well. Seeing Secunderbad, there is so much I would be able to do if I was living here. Stores are right down the street, as it is in a city. Anything I need is an auto ride away…but I think that living in Chandur is much more the experience I was seeking when I applied to come here. Chandur is a small village where everyone knows everyone else. There isn’t much in Chandur, and it is visibly much poorer than Secunderbad, but I do love it. Chandur is my home in India, I could not imagine leaving for longer than a week.

India amazes me more and more each day. I look back on the past 24 hours and I have had so many experiences that I would never think of having. I encourage everyone to come to this country. It is truly beautiful and breathtaking in more than one way. The sights, the smells – everything just hits your senses in ways that you can never experience in America. I am sure in other 3rd world countries it may be the same as it is here, but you can not get this experience or anything like it in America.

I have been writing this blog in three stages.  I will now report my journey home from Secunderbad...
I woke up at 4:45, left the house at 5:15 and got to the train station - it was packed.  My train was scheduled to leave at 7am so I got in line to purchase a general ticket because I did not make a reservation.  Note to self: from now on...pay the 10 extra rupees to get a reserved seat.  I got on the train at 6:15 and it was already jam-packed.  I was in the first car which was a "ladies only" car.  I ended up sitting on the floor of the train since when the train started to move (when it finally left the station at 7:45) I was falling out of my seat.  We stopped many times on the tracks for reasons I will never know.  No one seemed to be bothered by it though.  I fell asleep clutching my backpack only to be awoken by a lady tapping me on the back to tell me that a child threw up and the liquid was coming towards me. Awesome.  So, I sat on the 3 inches of the bench that was available for the rest of the 3 hours train ride that should only have taken 2 hours.  The bus ride back from Nalgonda to Chandur was less eventful - but a man who was visibly drunk sat next to me and tried talking to me the whole time he was on the bus - gratefully he was only on the bus for 15 minutes.  I tired to look away and act extremely uninterested as he was trying to explain the "Channel of Life" to me, whatever that meant.  Then he wanted my phone number. I said no.  He got off the bus. Other than that I arrived safely to Chandur to come home to the power out - no surprises there.  It finally came on, as it has been out since last night apparently. They had no power or water...the water will come back on tomorrow morning.
 
Can't wait to go back to Secunderbad on Saturday for the Michigan game.