Goa now seems miles away (which in fact it is, an hour plane ride and 4 hours in a car to be exact, to the middle of...lets just call it rural India).
There is not too much to report from our time there, it was relaxing and beautiful. We got there by train and it was a gorgeous ride, our tour hotel was fine (we finally got some much needed AC!) and had a pool. We thought we wouldn't use the pool at all and just hang at the beach, but after about 30 minutes and numerous people asking to take our picture and trying to sell us stuff, we opted for the seclusion of the pool!
A little about beaches in India. Indians don't really go to the beach...well they do, but not like we do. They go and STAND fully clothed and just hang out. You look at the beach and there are just groups of people standing around in the 90 degree weather...if the occasional man does get in (because 85% of people in public are men, we don't know where all the women are hiding (well, we do, they are at home)), he does so in his underwear and then proceeds to walk around. They don't wear swimsuits! We also observed that if women swim in pools, they wear their clothes...no swimsuits either, I guess because of not wanting to show skin but it just is bizarre to see men in underwear and women fully clothed, another example of gender inequality here.
We had some great seafood and actually went out in Goa to a club called Tito's - apparently one of the most famous in India. Did some last minute shopping and just enjoyed sunsets and hangin at the beach...sadly no sightings of Jason Borne or his bridge. (FYI - Goa is in fact an Indian state made up of lots of little towns, so it would take a long time to track down that bridge :))
After separating from my last bit of America (known as Ashley), I made it to Jamkhed! Settling in great, my room is better than expected and it already feels homey, minus very blank walls but I'm hoping to get something to put up on it. Of course, I unpacked everything the first night, didn't take long! I am taking over the room of a doctor that was here for a year and just left so it is very nice (comparatively speaking...of course). I actually have a TV! And of the 500 channels I get via satellite, at least 6 are in English (Yes and Yes, Ash). I have had a couple of really good meetings so far and actually spent a full day working today! I have been excited to jump right in...there is A LOT to do. Today I read CRHP's Strategic Plan for the next 5 years and worked on an outline of projects. There are a bunch of people right here including a couple Americans, brits, Canadians, and brazilians, so there are always people to eat meals with, etc.
It is great being back! There have been some improvements in the dining hall, some of the outside area, and communications, but it also feels like I never left!
1 comment:
Love the blog!
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