I am really searching for reasons to love India. I feel almost ashamed for not reporting a better time here. So many people are hoping and practically expecting me to be having a wonderful experience. But sadly...that hasn't been the case. After living in a hotel for 6 weeks, acquiring a bacterial infection in my gut, spending a month to set up house, Glen away on business trips...it has finally culminated in me testing positive for Dengue Fever. It's an acute febrile illness transmitted by mosquitos. It is accurately nicknamed the 'bone-crushing disease' because of the deep, hollowed-out ache one feels in joints and bones. Mine has taken place in my hips. Luckily the pain subsided once my fever broke. Now I am just feeling miserably fatigued with no appetite. The scary part is that it can be a fatal illness if my platelets start to drop and I start bleeding internally. I'm required to get my blood checked every day for the next 3 days. If my platelets fall below a certain number (75,000) I buy my admission ticket to the hospital. As it is, my platelets are on the low end of normal to begin with so there's not a lot of wiggle room. Glen's bosses are on high alert and on stand-by to evacuate me to another hospital in another country if necessary. It sounds a bit dramatic but it's also very nice to know that we have their full support and they are ready to rally for us.
So stay tuned. I'm ready to kick this thing's ass and start having some fun damn it!
Friday, October 8, 2010
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Home Sweet Home
Wow. What. A. Week. It has been a long time coming getting into this house. All in all it has taken over a month to get paperwork signed, keys handed over, and initial inspection and repairs to be done. One month! Just this past week alone I've had the plumbers come 3 times for the same problem. And it wasn't a problem that I could just live with. Water leaked out of all 3 toilets whenever they were flushed. Ew. Not ok by my standards. I had to get an internet connection established. Appliances were delivered...fridge, washer, and water purifier. Then the next day the appliance guys had to come install them. Again, 3 different guys for 3 different appliances. I swear there's a guy for every minute job here. We also ordered bedroom furniture 3 weeks ago and they kept telling us 'it'll be there tomorrow'. Which meant a week from now. So frustrating when I have to call and yell at people, then drive over to the store and yell at them to their face. I'm getting quite aggressive here. All in all it has not come together smoothly. But still, I suppose it could have been worse. We were blessed to have Amrita as our relocation assistant who has made this transition as easy as possible for us. She has been our lifeline to Delhi. She has shown us where to buy groceries, taken us to local markets, called to make sure we were ok, tells us what places to avoid, she even called last night to tell us to make sure to buy beer at the grocery store and start drinking at home before we go out because beer is really expensive at the bars. Awww...I knew we had a connection. We basically couldn't have done this without her. And our driver is not only our driver but he's also my personal translator and city guide. I'll just tell him what I need and he'll take me to some local market. He also tries to get me good deals instead of the 'white person' price. He really looks after me, which is really nice because this place can be a little hostile. He even cleaned off my hands once when I slipped and fell in some mud. Talk about feeling 3 years old again.
But still the things that are difficult are unique to this country. It's not an easy country to live in. I knew that before we came but it's really starting to sink in now. We went to a Welcome Bash dinner party last Saturday which was thrown by this network of expats that we joined. It was nice to meet a fellow American. I'm finding a lot of comraderie with the other expat wives. It's nice to feel validated and not like I'm crazy. Turns out everyone goes through this harsh 'culture shock' when they first get here. It's nice to hear we're not the only ones. And we've spoken to a lot of people who have been here for years. It's reassuring to hear that it does indeed get better. Friends are going to be key. Though I'm a little apprehensive to just go to the gym every day and/or meet up with the ladies for coffee. Don't get me wrong...those things will be nice. I've loved having all this free time. I've just missed nursing...or at least doing something...meaningful. Besides making good dinners for Glen. Which apparently I'll get kicked out of that role as well. So far we've managed to hire a driver. I hired a garbage man....yeah you heard me. He walks straight into my house every morning and collects the trash. But we'll also be hiring a maid and a cook. We're considering hiring our driver's wife since her current job will be ending in a month anyways. And she cooks too. She's already made me nice lunches...aloo (potato), poori (hand made bread thingy), and raita (yogurt/cucumber thingy to cool the palate). I've thought about doing without 'staff' but already we've scrubbed the floors 3 times and they just do NOT get clean. It's so dusty here. And since I'd still like to cook a little bit it will be nice to have her around to cook the local Indian food.
We were finally able to move in yesterday. We spent the entire day cleaning...well Glen did most of it as I was starting to feel ill. He did a marathon of bathroom cleaning and floor mopping. We had to get it done before his friend Thor arrived...which is today. We went to the grocery store to stock up on a few staple items. Anything imported is extremely expensive. But if you don't get the import you take a chance on it tasting really strange. Most chips, even Doritos taste strange if not imported. When I want a Dorito, I want it to taste like a damn Dorito. So we're making do with the limited selections. We bought some celebratory wine and champagne. $30 each. Imported. You do NOT want to drink Indian wine. No bueno. For dinner we treated ourselves to Pizza Hut pizza, Kingfisher beer, and the Hot Tub Time Machine. Hysterical. But only because I love the 80's. During the movie though I was noticing I was having body aches. So much for christening the new abode. We went to bed. Glen couldn't fall asleep because the air conditioner was too loud. I couldn't stay asleep because unbeknownst to me I was developing a fever. I ended up staying up all night with the shivers. Just in time to meet Glen's lovely friend Thor. So much for being a good hostess. =(
Overall...I'm relieved to be out of that damn hotel. It was our safety bubble for a while but I'm ready to do this on our own. We have a place to call home again. And right now I can't think of anything better than that.
But still the things that are difficult are unique to this country. It's not an easy country to live in. I knew that before we came but it's really starting to sink in now. We went to a Welcome Bash dinner party last Saturday which was thrown by this network of expats that we joined. It was nice to meet a fellow American. I'm finding a lot of comraderie with the other expat wives. It's nice to feel validated and not like I'm crazy. Turns out everyone goes through this harsh 'culture shock' when they first get here. It's nice to hear we're not the only ones. And we've spoken to a lot of people who have been here for years. It's reassuring to hear that it does indeed get better. Friends are going to be key. Though I'm a little apprehensive to just go to the gym every day and/or meet up with the ladies for coffee. Don't get me wrong...those things will be nice. I've loved having all this free time. I've just missed nursing...or at least doing something...meaningful. Besides making good dinners for Glen. Which apparently I'll get kicked out of that role as well. So far we've managed to hire a driver. I hired a garbage man....yeah you heard me. He walks straight into my house every morning and collects the trash. But we'll also be hiring a maid and a cook. We're considering hiring our driver's wife since her current job will be ending in a month anyways. And she cooks too. She's already made me nice lunches...aloo (potato), poori (hand made bread thingy), and raita (yogurt/cucumber thingy to cool the palate). I've thought about doing without 'staff' but already we've scrubbed the floors 3 times and they just do NOT get clean. It's so dusty here. And since I'd still like to cook a little bit it will be nice to have her around to cook the local Indian food.
We were finally able to move in yesterday. We spent the entire day cleaning...well Glen did most of it as I was starting to feel ill. He did a marathon of bathroom cleaning and floor mopping. We had to get it done before his friend Thor arrived...which is today. We went to the grocery store to stock up on a few staple items. Anything imported is extremely expensive. But if you don't get the import you take a chance on it tasting really strange. Most chips, even Doritos taste strange if not imported. When I want a Dorito, I want it to taste like a damn Dorito. So we're making do with the limited selections. We bought some celebratory wine and champagne. $30 each. Imported. You do NOT want to drink Indian wine. No bueno. For dinner we treated ourselves to Pizza Hut pizza, Kingfisher beer, and the Hot Tub Time Machine. Hysterical. But only because I love the 80's. During the movie though I was noticing I was having body aches. So much for christening the new abode. We went to bed. Glen couldn't fall asleep because the air conditioner was too loud. I couldn't stay asleep because unbeknownst to me I was developing a fever. I ended up staying up all night with the shivers. Just in time to meet Glen's lovely friend Thor. So much for being a good hostess. =(
Overall...I'm relieved to be out of that damn hotel. It was our safety bubble for a while but I'm ready to do this on our own. We have a place to call home again. And right now I can't think of anything better than that.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Day to day...
so i figured it was about time i contributed again...but life has been so hectic over the past few weeks. my usual day starts at 7.30 with the evil alarm clock, shower, change, text the waiting driver, hop in the car, say g'mornings to Vinay, small talk about the weather and traffic, turn on the laptop, try to login in while Vinay slams the brakes on, we hit a pothole/bike/pedestrian/tuk-tuk, delete, try to login again, curse, get slightly car sick, log in...rinse and repeat.
90 minutes and many more potholes and traffic jams later we eventually arrive at work. by this point with all of the honking and traffic, my stress levels are as raised as my heckles, which isnt helped by a daily 2 hour phone meeting with the 'supplier from hell', voices raised, heads shaken, stress, worry, frustration. the next 8-10 hours are a blur of meetings, phone calls, more meetings, missed deadlines, forgotten promises, and about 300 emails. emails are a curse here, the philosophy is that if you don't copy everybody and your boss on every conversational email then obviously he will think that you are not working hard.
lunch is a free daily curry with the team, only permeated on a friday when i allow myself a Subway from the food court next door. spicy food and me havent always had a good relationship...we are getting friendlier, but im not sure i will ever enjoy lunch as much as i try to make out, but im a big advocate of 'when in rome...'
then its back into the car for 90 minutes more of potholes, traffic, honking, small talk with Vinay (which i suck at...Jenn is the ideal car companion for that), finally arriving at the 'devil hotel' around 8pm+, up to room 1203 for a much needed hug and a 'hows your day...' from the future wife.
It seems crass to complain about anything with all of the poverty and sights we see on the roads and around Delhi, and i think we/i are still adjusting to our new daily routines, and coming back to the hotel from hell doesnt help...we have almost moved into our new/own apartment, and we are both placing great significance and hope on moving in. we are home bodies at heart, and all of this change and newness without a solid oasis-ary base is difficult. the phrase...'it will be fine once we get our own place' has been muttered many many a time. once a week i have to travel around india with work for 2-3 days. i hate leaving jenn stuck in the hotel, i hate early morning flights, long drives, and late nights, but more so i hate leaving jenn alone. she is doing incredibly well, and its a different jenn to that which could only walk 100 yards down the street 5 weeks ago before wanting to go back to the safety of the hotel. this is all not easy, we are getting there, slowly...and at India's pace, not our own, but we are getting there. fingers crossed we move into our own place on wednesday, and im sure 'it will all be fine once we get our own place'.
right now, i have a plane to catch to Chennai to go and look at a forging manufacturer...
90 minutes and many more potholes and traffic jams later we eventually arrive at work. by this point with all of the honking and traffic, my stress levels are as raised as my heckles, which isnt helped by a daily 2 hour phone meeting with the 'supplier from hell', voices raised, heads shaken, stress, worry, frustration. the next 8-10 hours are a blur of meetings, phone calls, more meetings, missed deadlines, forgotten promises, and about 300 emails. emails are a curse here, the philosophy is that if you don't copy everybody and your boss on every conversational email then obviously he will think that you are not working hard.
lunch is a free daily curry with the team, only permeated on a friday when i allow myself a Subway from the food court next door. spicy food and me havent always had a good relationship...we are getting friendlier, but im not sure i will ever enjoy lunch as much as i try to make out, but im a big advocate of 'when in rome...'
then its back into the car for 90 minutes more of potholes, traffic, honking, small talk with Vinay (which i suck at...Jenn is the ideal car companion for that), finally arriving at the 'devil hotel' around 8pm+, up to room 1203 for a much needed hug and a 'hows your day...' from the future wife.
It seems crass to complain about anything with all of the poverty and sights we see on the roads and around Delhi, and i think we/i are still adjusting to our new daily routines, and coming back to the hotel from hell doesnt help...we have almost moved into our new/own apartment, and we are both placing great significance and hope on moving in. we are home bodies at heart, and all of this change and newness without a solid oasis-ary base is difficult. the phrase...'it will be fine once we get our own place' has been muttered many many a time. once a week i have to travel around india with work for 2-3 days. i hate leaving jenn stuck in the hotel, i hate early morning flights, long drives, and late nights, but more so i hate leaving jenn alone. she is doing incredibly well, and its a different jenn to that which could only walk 100 yards down the street 5 weeks ago before wanting to go back to the safety of the hotel. this is all not easy, we are getting there, slowly...and at India's pace, not our own, but we are getting there. fingers crossed we move into our own place on wednesday, and im sure 'it will all be fine once we get our own place'.
right now, i have a plane to catch to Chennai to go and look at a forging manufacturer...
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Only in India...
We've only been here a little over a month and have found some rather odd things we need to get used to. My major beef (pun intended) with living here is I miss eating red meat. Because of the Hindu religion, cows are sacred and allowed to roam freely. Humans are to respect them. Same goes for monkey and rats!
Only in India...
 |
| McDonald's doesn't serve beef. I really don't see what the problem is. |
Only in India...
 |
| Americans want to be tan. Indians want to be white. |
Only in India...
 |
| You can find yourself a bride or groom according to your specifications. |
Only in India...
 |
| You can find a loved one that may have gone missing months ago. |
And last but not least....Delhi was awarded to host the CommonWealth Games 7 years ago. S-E-V-E-N Y-E-A-R-S ago!!! It could have been an amazing opportunity for them to shine. But no, the Games are scheduled to begin in less than 2 weeks and there is still construction being done, rubbish and debris lining the streets, homeless people sleeping and pissing in the streets, not to mention the stadiums in which the Games are to be played in aren't even safety approved yet. They blame the monsoon season on delaying construction....as if this is the first year they didn't predict a monsoon season. It's the same time frame every year folks! Plan for it, you knew it was coming. It should have been completed a year ago. Wow India, you are so silly. Indians are really good at ruining their own reputation.
Only in India...
 |
| Crap |
 |
| Crap |
 |
| More crap |
 |
| The main pedestrian bridge to the main stadium collapses. No wonder some athletes refuse to come! |
Friday, September 17, 2010
Took it in the behind.
Ergh! It was only a matter of time before our brand new yet-to-be-named car got a dent in it. When we approached our car this morning I was remarking on how new it looked, how there are no dents or even scratches in it yet. But given the snarly, unwavering traffic... today we mark our first dent. With the proud demarcation lines of the headlight of a tuk-tuk in the rear end. Instead of being completely startled, Glen and I felt kind of initiated....as if it was a right of passage. Our first Delhi dent. Awww. And thankfully no one was hurt in our tour bus/double tuk-tuk/passenger vehicle pile up.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Unsettled
There are days when I wish I were back home. Sometimes it would be nice to walk into my favorite restaurant where they know me by name. I wouldn't need a menu because they'd know exactly what I want to order. Sometimes it would be nice to go for a long walk around the lake with my dog. Sometimes it would be nice to walk into work where there are familiar faces saying hello. Sometimes it would be great to just pick up a phone and call a girlfriend to meet for lunch. Sometimes it would be nice to go for a drive without GPS or without having to beckon our driver. Sometimes it would be nice to know exactly where I was going on any given day be it the grocery store or furniture shopping. But sometimes I think I'm just getting sick of living out of a suitcase. It's been nearly 2 months of wearing the same clothes over and over again. Maybe it's cabin fever. Maybe I'm getting sick of the hotel food. Maybe I'm just homesick. Friends at home are having babies and I feel like I'm missing out. It kills me inside not to be there. It doesn't help that it takes forever to get anything done around here. We decided over a week ago on a place we want to rent and still the papers are being bounced from the landlord to the company's desk to the relocation assistants desk and back again. When they say it'll be ready to sign on Monday, they really mean Friday....of next week. No joke. And I can't get a phone or a bank account or basically anything until I have an address. My autonomy is out the window and it's a frustrating feeling. Glen has been wonderful though and I hate venting my frustrations to him because he feels completely responsible for uprooting me and bringing me here. But as for now, he's all I have here. He has enough to worry about with starting this new position and trying to make sure everything with finding a home and staff goes smoothly, let alone worry about how I'm doing. I'm sure that things will get better once we have a home and have our furniture back. Then we can fill it with all of our stuff. I can start to hopefully look for work again or at least volunteer. I need a focus and my brain is turning to mush since I quit work 8 months ago. I'm looking into yoga as well. What better place to get really good at yoga? I'm hoping it will keep my mind and body strong. And we found an ex-pat network here. I have yet to meet another American though, mostly Australian and British folk so far. But I've only been to one meeting. As for today...I'm just going to reflect on why I wanted to come here in the first place. I know it's going to be such an enriching experience I just have to get through the growing pains. One day at a time...
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Delhi - New and Old
We ventured out of our bubble! So anybody that has lived out of a suitcase for 6 weeks and has been couped up in a hotel (so what if it was self imposed...it's friggin' scary out there!) for nearly 2 weeks would get a little cabin fever. Glen decided it was time to experience Delhi by tuk-tuk. No, not the safest mode of transportation but hey...when in Rome...(damn, I picked the wrong city to move to!) Our first stop was the India Gate followed by the Prime Minister's palace followed by the Red Fort (17th century). Cool shit.
 |
India Gate        |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)