Tired but Alive!

Hello Friends,

So I have decided to revive this blog. It's been a while since I posted anything but only because life has gotten crazy and wonderful!

For those who don't know, I am currently working as research coordinator for an International TB project in Montreal. In short, I work for Dr. Dick Menzies who is doing a cost-effectiveness study of various TB control strategies to convince investors where to invest their money.

I'm coordinating the substudy which is evaluating TB patients' and health systems costs globally. Basically, we need to know how much money is currently being spent, to know how cost-effective these strategies (namely new vaccine, new diagnostic or new treatment) will be.

So... getting to the interesting part... I get to do tons of fabulous travelling!

So far, I have travelled to Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg, Lilongwe (Malawi), Amsterdam and the Hague...

And in the next couple months I will be travelling to... Beijing, Changsha (China), Chennai, Bombay, Hamburg, and London.

It's been an incredible experience thus far... albeit exhausting... and I realized I should really be recording my experiences at the various sites.

So I will try and wrap up my trips so far, and if you're interested, stay tuned for further postings on China, India, and Europe.

Crazy and Happy as always...
Nami

Mango Madness!!!

It's mango season in Bombay, and I'm loving it!!! It's also melon and grape season which is even better! It's amazing how fruit acts as such an identifier here for a change in season. The fruit-wallas (walla = worker... taxi-walla, dude-walla (milkman)...) roll around their wooden carts or carry their baskets on their heads, and like a tidal wave, the new crop rolls in and the old crop disappears. In the winter, guava was definitely my favorite fruit, and you could smell that intoxicating sweet scent around every corner, with little green balls waiting to greet you, sometimes 5 carts in a row. But now you'd be hard pressed to find a single guava. It's very different from back home, where you find most fruit year-round, since most of it is imported. And therefore we miss out on the thrill of following fruit through the seasons; the excitement of seeing mangoes slowly invading every stall, or watermelon towers being built like small fortresses.

Actually, over 70% of India's population still works in agriculture and it still controls much of the economy. On my recent trip I was on a bus going from Kajuraho to Orchha, and had a very interesting conversation with the elderly man sitting next me. It went something like this:

"Where are you from?"
-Canada
"Is your father in service or agriculture?"
-ummm... service
"So he does not own any agricutural land?"
-no
(confused look on the man's face)
"What are the major crops of your country?"
(embarassed look on my face for not really knowing the answer)
-i'm not really sure but i think wheat, corn and other grains
"When do you harvest them?"
-I think ususally in october (with sukkot and halloween as my only real clue)

It was a really funny conversation, because he actually expected me to know the answers to these questions. How often do you discuss agriculture with someone in the West? We are so disconnected from the food we eat and the food that is being grown in our country. All we know is IGA, Provigo, Loblaws... cash or credit. It's quite interesting actually. And frankly a little scary.

O.k. that's my thought for the day. If you haven't figured it out yet, I am back in Bombay and back at work. It gets hotter and hotter every day, but my body is slowly adjusting. I have moved into a new apartment with my friend Isabel. All the other volunteers from my group left. It's weird being here without them, but kind of nice, since now I feel more idependent. My new apartment is much more comfortable, and for some reason, I am feeling much more comfortable spending time alone. The other apartment was big and cold and when no one was home, it felt so empty. Where you live really has an effect on your emotional well being.

Work is going really well. While I was away the project really took off and now we are collaborating with another NGO to create a health information system, under the rubric of a community GIS which the other NGO is planning. I set the whole thing up, and it's an amazing feeling to see that it's all coming together. Dr. Shanti keeps telling me none of this would have happened had I not been here... I really feel good about it.

For those who keep asking... I leave India on July 7 to go to Israel and I return to Montreal on August 10 after a quick stop in Germany to see Ali and Ari.

O.k., off to have my second mango of the day... mmmmmmmm!!!

I'll enjoy it doubly for all of you!

kisses, nams

Walking on Clouds

“It takes a village to raise a child”… Interestingly enough, it also takes a village to get two Jewish girls up a mountain! Andrea and I… and our guide, 2 cooks, 2 porters, dzo man, and 4 dzos (cross-breed between a yak and a cow)… have just returned from an 8 day trek in the Himalayan Range.

We did our trek in the mountains of West Sikkim, making our way up to the area surrounding the third highest peak in the world – Mt. Khangchendzhonga (try saying that three times!) Sikkim is a fascinating state in the Northeast of India that jets out and is wedged between three countries: Nepal, China (Tibet), and Bhutan. It only became part of India in 1975 and therefore still retains a very distinct culture, more similar to that of Nepal or Tibet.

Our caravan departed from Yuksom (1780m) and ended in Dzongri (4200m). We walked a total of about 100 km in 6 days, with plenty of time to rest and acclimatize to the change in altitude. One of our stops along the way was in the town of Tshoka; a small Tibetan village with 11 houses, a beautiful temple (gompa), and many animals. There we drank “tungbah” (millet beer served in a wood mug and drunk out of a bamboo straw) with the local people.

The higher we got, the more difficult the walking became. Partly because there was more and more snow as we climbed higher and higher, and also because it became quite difficult to breathe. We spent almost two days exploring Dzongri and it snowed the entire time. It was a shocking change from the smothering Bombay heat.

The trek was pretty hardcore and definitely the most difficult hiking I have ever done. However the entire experience was marvelous. It was some of the best service I have had since I arrived in India. All we did was walk and the rest was taken care of. We couldn’t stop laughing how we were the princesses of the forest! We were woken every morning at 6:00 am with tea. Around 6:30 am someone would bring us hot washing water. At 7:00 am we moseyed down to our set table and breakfast was served. It always included cereal (my favorite was the hot cream of wheat with cashews, coconut and golden raisins), eggs, and toast or pancakes. We then would start walking around 7:45 am, but we would quickly be passed by our caravan who would start preparing lunch for us midway. Wangchuk, our guide and the cutest sherpa ever, was always with us explaining the flora and fauna and all sorts of interesting stories about sherpas and the Himalayas. We even got to meet Tenzing Norgay’s son. For those who don’t know, Tenzing Norgay was the first man to ever climb Mount Everest as the Sherpa of Sir Edmund Hilary. He is a National Hero in these parts. So a hot lunch would be waiting for us midway and as we would approach the lunch area, one of the porters would rush to us with warm juice. When we got to our campsite, tea would be waiting with a yummy snack. We must have had an average of 8 cups of tea every day. Primarily because it was soooo cold, but also because it was so good (we took the trek out of Darjeeling so we had premium Darjeeling tea!) Dinner was the best and always had a hot soup and dessert. After dinner we were usually too cold to stay up any later, so we would quickly get into all our warm clothes and cozy up in our sleeping bags and fall asleep after a couple rounds of rummi.

The mountain views from Dzongri were spectacular, as you can see from the picture. It actually takes your breath away standing on top of the mountain with some of the highest peaks in the world surrounding you. And at that moment you feel such a sense of accomplishment for climbing all that way to experience that one moment of pure ecstasy. Have you ever walked on the clouds? I have now! Sitting in a yak hut in Dzongri, you could actually see the clouds rolling in. It was just awesome.

Hope you like the pictures I’ve included of our caravan (minus a couple dzos in the picture who just joined us walking), Andrea and I on the peak, Andrea and I sitting at our breakfast table and the team back in Yuksom minus our dzo man, one porter, and of course our adorable dzo!

We are now in Darjeeling, a beautiful hill station that was built by the British with some of the best tea in the world, and amazing views of the Himalayas (though now they seem so far away). It’s the most adorable little town and the people are so amazing. I hate to say it, but they are so much more chilled out than the rest of India. Next we are off to Varanasi which will be a great shock since it’s hot, and chaotic, and a holy city where they burn dead bodies on the Ganges. Back to India!!!

Today we went for high tea at the oldest hotel in Darjeeling and it was tres chic. We were surrounded by a garden of orchids, which are indigenous to this region. It was really a throw back to Colonial days, but it was nice to see that now most of the guests are Indians.

If you’ve read this far, I’m impressed, and I’ll be even more impressed if you post replies on the blog!

Miss you all and thinking of you always! The world is a beautiful place but there’s no place like home. A bientot!

Birthdays

Back home, if it is your birthday, you usually expect someone to take you for dinner, or to buy you a gift. Not here! Today was Sushma's birthday and she brought chocolates for everyone. And that is generally what everyone does. They bring gifts for others on their birthday. Actually about a month back i was invited to a swanky new restaurant for my friends birthday. Back home, that usually means everyone is splitting the bill, and the birthday boy/girl will almost never pay for him/herself. But the birthday boy picked up the bill for all of us. And that was just the normal thing to do. Just another "only in india" moment i wanted to share :o)

Friday Afternoon Daydreaming

This blog was a really good idea. Because it is like keeping a journal that you can all share with me. This past week I have been thinking a lot about the work I have been doing here and feeling anxious about the fact that time is running out. I have about a month and a half left in my work placement and time just keeps moving faster and faster. I never write much about my work because it is less glamorous than the elephants and beggars but my work has been extremely interesting for me and really the core of my experience here.

I am trying to establish a Geographic Information System for public health work in my organization. So I am doing training, as well as trying to acquire basic data (maps), as well as trying to sensitize the organization to the value of GIS, and establish contacts with other GIS users in Bombay. (Apart from that I am helping in other projects, including updating their website).

Last week I had a very important breakthrough, and an exciting accomplishment for me personally. I went to present to the Executive Health Officer of the Bombay Municipal Corporation (city government) on the importance of GIS for Public Health. Without realizing it, I have become Bombay's expert on GIS for Public Health. It makes me laugh every time I think about it. I can still remember my first GIS course. I practically failed, because it seemed so complicated and irrelevant. And now I am advising the health department of one of the biggest cities in the world to adopt it.

When I first arrived to SNEHA I had trouble swallowing this respect and authority I was given. "Who me!? What do I know!?" I couldn't accept that they would actually put so much faith into my expertise or abilities. In university, we take classes, and learn skills, but never think we will one day be advising on these very topics. But our professors sneakily turn us into experts, and then we are put in a position where we have to live up to our expertise.

I am not trying to make myself seem important. In fact, I still think I am the girl in the GIS introduction class... lost and confused. But SNEHA didn't give me a choice. They made me realize that although I may not feel like an expert, my experiences and education have made me into one and it is my duty to share that knowledge and live up to that responsibility.

This is a very Indian attitude, which at first confused me, but now amazes me and excites me. People are not afraid to take chances. If they have a good feeling about you, they will just go with it. Maybe you will fail, but you might succeed, and everything is learnt through trial and error. This is how my friend became responsible for a $30 000 grant at the age of 26. This is how my other friend became head photographer for a marketing agency, with four photographers below her, raising the profits by almost 100%, without ever taking a single photography class. This is how I have been offered positions with 3 different organizations, as well as the Bombay Municipal Corporation, since I got here.

In North America people are so restricted by the "process". There are certain pre-ordained steps one must follow to reach a certain position, a certain job, a certain school. You are only what your C.V. says about you.

Working here has taught me it does not always have to be that way. True, it might take a little longer, but people are always willing to take risks and everyone has this amazing attitude that anything is possible.
And when someone is giving you a chance and believes in you, you work harder because you do not want to disappoint them. Opposed to the people who are simply going through the "steps", the "jobs", the "certification", to get to their ultimate goal.

Obviously that happens here to, but I have witnessed a lot of courage amongst organizations to go with their gut feeling and take risks. And it is very exciting and very inspiring.

Not to scare anyone (namely Mr. and Mrs. Kincler)... But sometimes this fact makes me want to stay here to continue working for some time. I have spearheaded a project that can really make a difference, and have set in motion a trend that can only grow and expand. SNEHA will be the pioneers in Health GIS in Bombay. And there is so much potential for projects and work to be done. Not only with SNEHA but with other organizations as well.

I was offered to go work with an organization in Pune called Shelter Associates. They do poverty mapping which is essentially mapping of slum communities. It is also that the topics and issues organizations are dealing with here are in no way comparable to any local issue I could tackle back home. Slums, poverty, neonatal mortality, resource allocation, garbage, planning... the list goes on and on.

O.k... I am not staying as of yet, but it's just something I have been thinking about. Internships like this are very rewarding, but what happens at the end? All the contacts, all the efforts, all the knowledge gained is packed up and you just leave it and move on. You will use these resources for future work, but it isn't the same. You will have to go somewhere else and rebuild all these networks. It takes time to learn about a place and find your groove. I just sometimes feel it is a waste to just leave now.

Also Bombay is such an exciting place to be... the convergence of technology, and economic expansion, with the still vital issues of poverty and slums and a lack in basic infrastructure, makes for the most amazing laboratory.

Feeling good, feeling excited.

And that is all for my friday afternoon daydreaming.

Have a wonderful weekend :)

Only in India

Every day there are little things that happen that I want to write home about. Things that make me say, “nobody would even believe it if I told them” or “only in India”. Things that make you smile and think. “Only in India” do the trucks play a Bollywood tune as the signal for backing up. The streets are generally a concert of surprises. Aside from the incessant honking which you eventually learn to drain out, there are the street vendors yelling out the items they have on offer, each to a different tune, at a different pitch… “madam, shoes… shoes, madam… 100 rupees” or “chaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii” or some have these honkers that they just use instead of yelling out. And then there are the crows cawing, picking at the piles of garbage, which is lying out on almost every corner. And you’re almost sure to have a beggar pop into the picture every now and then. If the beggar is old, they will have that faint, desperate murmur. If it is children beggars they will pester you in that high pitch playful voice; “didi, two rupees, two rupees”, “guri, what is your name?”, “one dollar, one dollar”… they sometimes even break into song with some clever words changed to ask for money. My favorite is their rendition of jingle bells. Children can be the most aggressive because they are the naughtiest and most mischievous. Once, in town, these girls were asking me for money and I said no and walked ahead, but they continued to follow me with great perseverance (which is most common). When I pulled a granola out of my bag though, they attacked... I had two 7-10 year old girls hanging from my arms like monkeys, swatting at the granola bar... It was really crazy! I might have given it to them and admitted defeat had I not been so hungry (yes, Ariel!) but I just kept trying to shake them off. Finally as one of them was literally strangling me, hanging from my neck, my friend whipped out a mentos pack and threw it... they ran to fetch it... laughed at the guris (foreigners) who they had successfully freaked out, and walked away to enjoy their treasure. If it is someone who has been injured or is handicapped (most likely mutilated at birth by his beggar master) he will just jingle his box of coins at you and when you turn around, he’ll point to the mutilated part of his body, and then jingle the box again. Oh! And my all time favorite are the hijras/eunuchs. Actually I can’t stand them. This is a community of hermaphrodites (some are born that way, some are castrated, some are just cross dressers) that have existed in India for centuries and are considered to be very “auspicious” (this is the all time favorite Indian word… everything is either auspicious or not auspicious). So people usually will give them money, because they will otherwise put a curse on you. So they can be extremely aggressive. Sometimes they travel in packs and they’ll march onto the train like they own the place and start walking up to the passengers clapping in their faces and then sticking out their hand. Once I was coming home from work and one approached me in my rickshaw and would not relent, he/she kept clapping in my face and then actually put his/her hand on my leg… I got so angry and yelled “chal haat” (get lost!) but nothing phases them… he/she just kackled and walked away.

Wow! I had no idea I could write so much about the beggars. But now that I think of it, I could go on for pages. Each is so unique and the whole world that surrounds them is devastating and fascinating.

I will start posting little tidbits like these every couple days. So stay tuned… cause the stories never end!