back from rajshahi

Well, my trip to Rajshahi was a success! I saw several people, ate excellent iftars, did a little shopping and passed out some Eid gifts. I stayed with Molly and Scott (my former sitemates) and they are the hosts with the mosts!!! Molly even makes homemade bread in her teeny, tiny oven. I was also on the receiving end of the Eid gifts - I came home with 3 shalwar kameezes!

Roomie Carrie is again back in the 'Desh and hopefully surviving her first day back at work. Troy and Miranda are getting settled into their new digs next door and making it a home.



On the home front, Baby Jilli is home from the hospital and cute as can be (proof is in the pic)! Grandma F should be home soon to a very clean house. Mom, Dad, Cousin Adam and his son Brice went to her house and attacted one evening, so now Grandma can't get re-infected.

busy, busy, busy

It didn't seem like it at the time, but life has been busy since last I wrote. Since then, my Rana has come for a visit, my cousin Jamie has become a mommy again and I'm planning for a trip to Rajshahi this coming weekend. Here is a picture of the happy family. Baby's name is Jillian Faith and she was 7 pounds, 10 ounces and 20 inches long. For a baby-alone photo, check out St. Rita's Baby Connection website.

As for Rana, we had a pleasant time while he was in Dhaka. I made some kitchori (a rice and lentil dish) and almost had the spices right. I didn't make any if-tar stuff, but we picked some up at a nearby roadside stand before it was time. Tasty, but not homemade by a long shot. It was nice to just run around the town with him and just run errands.

As for my trip to Rajshahi, I found out yesterday that my office is changing the Durga Puga holiday to Thursday, so a three-day weekend is for me. So, I'm getting bus tickets and finding a place to stay while in Rajshahi. This should be fun, since this is the first time that I have been back since I was a volunteer.

Also, Roomie Carrie should be on a plane flying back to the 'Desh on Thursday (arriving here on Saturday), after a month hiatus. It'll be nice to have her back.

ramadan is here!

The moon has spoken and Ramadan has started. What this means for me is 1) no eating in the streets/public during the day, 2) some of my favorite places will only serve if-tar and no lunch or regular dinners, 3) I can hope for invites to if-tars. This time of year is great for visiting people in their homes and enjoying each others' company. The drawback is that its easier for people to become angry and clumsy, since they are food deprived and usually sleep deprived.
This is the breakdown of Ramadan, as I have observed:

• A person wakes up about an hour or so before the break of dawn. This is to eat breakfast and to pray. You know when this happens, due to each and every mosque either turns on a siren or employs boys to beat drums, microphone "Wake up, it's time to wake UP and eat breakfast!" around the neighborhood. Officially the fasting starts when you can tell the difference between a black thread and a white thread.
• Then you go back to sleep until its time to really get up and get ready for work. Alot of village people work from sunrise to sunset, so they just stay up.
• Then the waiting begins. Naps in the early afternoon are more prevelant, since that makes the time go faster and you had to get up early to make breakfast (more common for women who do all the cooking, that is).
• The cooking for if-tar starts. If-tar is the breaking of the fast. A woman must cook without tasting her food. Or if she does taste it, she must spit it back out and rinse her mouth out - without swallowing anything. That is one reason that I don't mind going to houses early, since I can be used as a taste-tester.
• Finally, when a person can't tell the difference between a black and a white thread, it's time to eat! Generally, people start with a glass of water or dates, since that is what the Prophet did to break his fasts. Alot of times, people will just take to the water and dates and then go pray, come back and finish their if-tar.
• A couple of hours later, dinner is served around 11:00 at night.
• The process begins again.

Something that is considered auspicious is to read the entire Qu'ran during this holy month. Some mosques will have it read over the loudspeaker for a couple of hours every evening, for those who are illiterate. That can be annoying for the non-Muslim living in the neighborhood, along with the siren and/or drum at 3:30 in the morning. I think that the drum about put me over the edge last year. This year, however, I didn't hear a single thing in my house. I am darn happy about that.

just checking in...

Many folks say, "Laura, how great that you have tailors to make clothes for you all the time and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg!" Then I have days like today, where my clothes don't fit well and think to myself, "Boy, I wish I had ready-made clothes again." This kameez (top) I'm wearing today is going back to the tailor and have the arms enlarged, since I'm fond of having feeling in my fingers all day long. Call me picky, but short sleeves that bite into your skin is not comfy. This is not today's 3-piece, but one of my Indian buys. Friend Danielle calls it my orange sherbert 3-piece and I don't think she's too off track!

Today, one of my Bangladeshi colleagues told me that he is going to Washington, DC for a conference and I'm trying to help him get all 'Westernized'. In other words, I'm writing his resume, seeing what he's presenting and un-Bangladeshi-fy it. I'm thinking that this should eat up some time and I like trying to up the professionalism of my colleagues. I'm hoping that I can talk him out of a flower picture with "Thank you" for the last picture on the PowerPoint presentation. For some reason, that is really popular here. Since he is actually presenting something there, I'm also going to let him practice and give constructive feedback. I have found that there are very few good presenters of PowerPoint and even fewer in Bangladesh. I've been to some that had every bell and whistle present and then some. The best part - I know he will appreciate it! He already told me so. I just hope that he feels the same afterwards!!!

OK, Grandma F is in St. Rita's hospital now and is getting treatment. Keep her on the prayer lists.

sunday at the office

Sooo, I have work to do today! In fact, two projects! Craziness all around. It's been raining like crazy since Thursday, so everything smells mildly mildew-y. Friday was dinner with my new neighbors, Troy and Miranda, and then a birthday party for Craig, fellow Saver and RPCV from my group. Saturday was waffles at Sally Ann's with RPCVs Wendy(B5) and Lela(B2) and a little shopping around Banani and pizza for lunch. What a good way to spend a rainy day. I went home afterwards and just crashed.

Ramadan should be starting soon, so my work schedule will have to change. My work week will still be Sunday thru Thursday, but the hours will be 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. with lunch for only those who want/need it. Then after the Eid vacation, the hours will be extended to compensate for the month of reduced hours. I'll see how that goes. I just might keep the regular hours all the way through, since I won't be fasting. However, I'm going to be subtle and try to get if-tar (breaking of the fast) invites as much as possible. And I'm going to learn how to make boot, which is a very tasty lentil that is always served for if-tar. You mix it with puffed rice (rice krispies) and some deep-fried veggies and enjoy. Yummy!

In family news, Dad's cousin Mark's ex-wife passed away last week. I think that she was only in her 40s, so it was very unexpected. So, please keep Mark and Austin (their son) on your prayer lists. Grandma F is still in the hospital at the moment and Cousin Jamie will be induced Friday (unless baby wants to make an earlier appearance), so she'll be making her way to the hospital too.

Other than that, everything else is quiet. Take care all.

back to normal or what passes for normal

Well, I got over the notorious 'change of season' cold that comes every two months in Bangladesh. That's what you get when you have 6 seasons. PCV Helyn has gone back to Naogoa to be at site with her hubby Peter. Danielle and Eric have decided to make a weekend trip to Naogoa to visit Helyn and Peter. This should be good, since they have a little Bangla between them and there will be very little English between here and there. Luckily for Danielle and Eric, Helyn and Peter are excellent hosts and they will get a true Bangladeshi experience that most foreigners won't ever get.

As for myself, RPCVs Wendy and Craig are having a belated birthday party for Craig on Friday. Then on Saturday, Wendy and I will be shopping for Wendy's Eid gifts and just to have some girl time. I think that we'll have a good time. Then it'll be back to the grind on Sunday.

An update at home... Grandma F. is in the hospital for dehydration. She got a nasty flu bug and lost too much fluid. Hopefully she'll get springed from the hospital soon. Keep her on your prayer lists. Take care and everyone have a good autumn weekend.

pics and plans

So, Rana came down to Dhaka for less than 24 hours this weekend - poor guy! 5 hours each way on a busride that is like a game of Dodgeball, but using buses, cars, Tata trucks, rickshaws, motorcycles, people and animals. An adventure every time! For those of you who have never seen a picture of him, here it is:

Ta-da! He looks sweaty since it was hotter than blue-blazes and no fan when I took this picture.

As for people in my life, the new foreigners of Danielle and Eric went to a fancy, smancy party and I wrapped Danielle into a sari that was very nice and really funky. Here are the folks that I'm talking about to the side. They are really a nice couple. He is doing an internship at ICDDR,B hospital (he plays with pooh and chlorea) and she is working an internship at the same place as me... thus, how we met.

Roomie Aliza left Saturday for America bright and early, so the house is very quiet. That makes PCV Helyn's visit even more wonderful than normal! She is here is Dhaka today and a little while more. Her husband PCV Peter is still in Naogoa and the neighbors promised to feed him well. Helyn says that she generally comes home from trips to find that Peter has gained weight from going next door and eating all the time.

Today, I chatted with the head guy at our office and he gave me some infomation about universities for grad school and put the thought of Public Policy with an international slant into my head. I'm checking out some of the universities he suggested and seeing if it's something that I can get behind and do.

molly minnis big 26

PCV Molly celebrated her birthday yesterday, along with RPCV Craig and Cousin Jamie. Unfortunately, I could only celebrate with Molly and not the others due to proximately problems. However, Molly celebrated well and may possibly have a life-hangover today to prove it. And yes, those balloons are connected to Molly's hair.

Good news! Rana is on the 1:00 bus to Dhaka, so he should show up at my house by 6:30 at the earliest. Yeah for me!!!

Take care and have fun, kids!
~Laura

back to dhaka

So, I finally made it back to the 'Desh in one piece. I had fun wrapping my luggage to prevent theft. Check out this on the left! It's like Saran wrap, but for your bags. It only cost 100 Rupees per bag (1:47, USD:IRs) and then you can fly with a little more piece of mind. The wrap makes it a bit harder for theives to get at you stuff, which Dhaka Airport is infamous for. Another fun thing I saw, happened while I was on the plane. I was sitting in my seat on the plane, minding my own business. I happen to look up and I see an inch-long cockroach scurrying around the doorframe in the cabin. I pointed it out to my seatmate and we both chuckled. I think that maybe I have lived here too long when cockroaches in airplanes don't really surprise me. Just a thought...

As for other fun things, I went to College Road to buy some medical books for my colleague. I don't know what I was expecting, but I think that I was expecting a more western style of book store than what I found. However, the guy featured in this picture was really helpful in finding the one book I ended up buying. He gave me a little stool to sit on after I had to go on a 2-km hunt for an ATM (ok, maybe not 2K, but it was really, really hot out!). He had a guy who worked for him hoof all around to find the book from other medical book shops in the surrounding area. Very nice of him. And then, after we finished our business, he got me a taxi and a decent price back to my hotel next to New Market. What a nice guy.

As for today's agenda, there isn't too much, with the hartal and all. The Awami League and 11-party alliance are having a hartal today to protest the rising petrol prices. So this makes the office pretty much dead. I think that tomorrow will be somewhat normal. Rana is coming in on Thursday (tomorrow) and leaving again on Friday. Bummer, but it can't be helped. He thinks that he can come for a longer stay after Ramadan break starts at school. Since I'll have to feed him during his stay here while he's fasting, I'm going to learn how to make kitchuri. This is lentils, rice, spices (tons of tumeric) all cooked together. It's kinda like comfort food here ~ good for rainy days and when you're sick. I hope this works out for him. Take care and leave comments! ~Laura

the vacation that wouldn't end....

Kolkata is a lovely city, but I've had enough for now. I have bought way too many shalwar kameez and saris, though I have my Puga, Eid and Christmas bought for, it's going to be a little hard to lug home. I think that I need to purchase a lovely jute bag to carry home some of my prizes. The kicker is the books that I'll be lugging back. There aren't too many really great book shops in Dhaka, so one of my colleagues asked me to bring back 5 medical books, but I only found 1 very thick one off his list. There should be a way that up-to-date medical books be brought into Bangladesh, however, there isn't. However, I'm going to look into this problem when I get back. I don't know if I can do anything, but who knows until I try and ask.

Mom was right, it's the touts that bother the heck out of person here. Every tourist looks like a mark. This isn't meant to scare off anyone who wants to visit Kolkata, in fact the opposite! I just want people to be more aware when they travel and to do it safely. Just be aware of the touts of India - they'll try for every Rupee in your pocket.

Well, I hope to leave for the airport by 7 this evening to be ready for my 9:40 p.m. flight. Damn Biman Airways and their inability to plan! grrr.... Ok, campers, off I go to drink another lassi and maybe to have a snack. Talk to you from Dhaka!