Solving transport problems, learning lessons about help, and local vegetables

May 20, 2016

Having reliable internet has been terrific. We have talked with family members in NY, WY, and SC. Hope to talk with Ron’s sis and brother-in-love in RI soon.

Ron is feeling better. He went back on Cipro, a strong antibiotic after his stomach didn’t feel right.  We are now exploring buying a car and hiring a driver. The heat is brutal here. This week we broke a 100 yr old record for high temperature. Riding in an auto rickshaw in this heat makes you feel like you are cruising through hell. In addition there is terrible air pollution here and when riding in the auto rickshaw we are right at the level to be breathing exhaust from all the various vehicles.  We got a lead on a driver from a friend at CEPT and I met with him initially. Ron called him back to explore other ways to meet our needs and his and we are now in the process of drafting an agreement where we will buy a vehicle and he will work full time as our driver.  When we leave to return home at the end of the project, the driver will have first option on buying the car. Rahul is coming by tonight to review the agreement and tomorrow our neighbors are taking us to the car dealer they use.

The adjustment here has been difficult, much more so than Rep of GA where the embassy handed everything to us on a platter.  It was 11 years ago when we went to Sri Lanka and somehow it seems like it was easier but I may be mistaken. I do remember some initial problems with the house but our landlady lived next door and was very responsive. And I quickly found a driver who I used the entire time I was there. He was a wonderful resource, helping me find good stores to buy furnishings for the house, etc. We both have been sick which hasn’t helped but I remember I got the flu right after arrival in SL and was sick for over a week. The good news is we haven’t been sick at the same time and can be supportive of each other. When one of us is having a difficult time the other one jumps in to lift the spirits.

Ron has been a huge help in the kitchen. I have a difficult time with the heat so we have very simple meals. In Sri Lanka our housekeeper was also our cook. My next door neighbor here loves to cook. She has two kitchens fully equipped. She even has a traditional stove/oven which is unheard of here mostly. Usually kitchens have a two or three gas burner stove top device that sits on the counter. She sends meals over frequently, almost daily. Often it is a small serving for my lunch but today she sent over fresh puri, potatoes and another veg dish I haven’t been able to figure out but who cares. She is a great cook. So between her offerings and our small meals we are fed. I want to hire a cook but must first determine how Kamla would feel about it. I do not want to offend her. Her entire family has been so incredibly kind to us. 

We are a bit overwhelmed with Sankar, our housekeeper and his family. They slept here for two nights because he is quite sick. I sent him to bed two days ago and he didn’t leave. So all three of them slept here. In the morning when I come down to pull breakfast together Hosha is making chai for the three of them and we get in each other’s way. I realized how much I like having the house to myself part of the day. I told Sankar yesterday he had to go to the doc and get proper meds so he could get well. With these high temps I invited them to stay in the back bedroom and watch tv to avoid the heat at their home which I can only assume is a hovel with no running water and electricity. That is an assumption on my part but he showers here in the servants’ shower and he washes his clothes here which is why I made the assumption. He also recharges his phone here.  So I am hopeful the heat wave will break this weekend and he will get well so life can return to how it was before. If the heat wave breaks it will drop to 112 or 111 or something similar. We won’t see 80’s until winter in Nov or Dec.

Yesterday Sankar was gone for hours to the hospital and required an IV. He returned last night for a second one and came home with a fist full of pills. I saw at least three or four different meds. This morning he returned for another IV. I have no idea what is wrong with him but am glad he is getting care. He was able to do his chores today which he couldn’t do yesterday. I insisted that he rest but as I mentioned before he is a real butt head and insists on working.  Hosha took over for him yesterday but she left after chai this morning. The temps are supposed to drop back down to 111 this weekend so I  am hopeful he will be recovered enough to move back home. It doesn’t cool off much at night. The night temps are dropping to 85-90 not counting any radiant heat. I also want to break the afternoon tv habit when the temps drop.

Sankar’s family has been getting a little too comfortable here. They started bringing in fruit to ‘share’. The straw that broke the camel’s back was when our neighbor sent over a lunch of fish in a red sauce and rice. It was such a large serving I decided Ron and I would have it for supper. Our refrigerator was acting up so I put my meds and a few other things in the basement refrig. I went downstairs to get something and there sat Hosha and Sankar’s daughter eating our dinner on the floor in front of the refrig.. She giggled and pointed to it. I had shocked look on my face and said ‘you are eating my dinner’. She really doesn’t understand English. She started to put it away but I told her to finish it. You see, they eat with their hands and instead of getting a plate and taking a portion she had her hands in the entire container and I had no interest in eating after her. I am so cautious around food here after both of us having had diarrhea a couple of times. She then took a nap and left later in the day with the daughter to go sari blouse shopping. I told her not to come back until the next day but I don’t think she understood.

Sankar was gone from 11 when he went to the hospital for his third IV. He got back around 4:30. It turned out he had heat stroke requiring multiple IV’s. He had fallen asleep at the hospital so had a good nap. When he came back I asked him to sit down. I said ‘we have a problem’. I told him his job was from 9-12 and 6-8 and staying here all day watching tv and napping and spending the night was too much. We needed him and his family to return to their house. He immediately understood and said ’no problem’ multiple times. The he said in perfect English ‘get out!’ and we both laughed. I told him he could continue to shower here and wash his clothes here but no more tv all afternoon, no more spending the night. I needed to be very clear.

In my effort to be generous, I am as much at fault as they were but I will never understand why Hosha thought it was okay to eat our food. She and he had been clothes shopping so they are no destitute. Anyway that issue was resolved easily. We went out to one of our favorite restaurants near our former hotel and had a good meal then went grocery shopping afterwards because we were going car shopping today.

Overall it does feel like we have made progress in terms of settling in. We are more relaxed.  If the car/driver happens it will be transformative. I do not leave the house in this heat as it is quite dangerous. Heat stroke is common here and so are deaths from heat stroke. With an AC car I will be able to come and go much easier. We have our fingers crossed.

It is difficult to read the Times of India, Daily there are reports of multiple suicides. Yesterday two children killed themselves because of grades or test scores. One hung himself and a girl immolated herself. There were other reports but it is so common as to be completely unsettling. Daily there are multiple reports of corruption in every sector. It is grim reading. It also is difficult because we do not know many of the words used here.

May 23, 2016

We had a great weekend. We drafted an agreement with Rahul, the driver we intend to hire. He came over after work on Friday and said he wanted to show the agreement to his grandfather then get back to use. We negotiated the terms and his salary to everyone’s satisfaction. Saturday morning Ron went next door to see when we would be going car shopping. Amit said they will be here in 15 minutes with a model, take you for a test drive and show you the costs then they will brig another model and do the same. Hey I like this!

We ended up buying a new small Hyundai with a two year warranty which is perfect. Amit managed to negotiate the price with a 50,000 rupee discount since his family and his business buy all their cars for this dealer and Amit is friends with the general manager. What a dealership. We were impressed with how clean and well maintained it was. You could have eaten off the floor in the show room. When I commented on how many people were car shopping the general manager said they were the biggest and sold 400 units a month and had sold 900 in December. WOW! Ron got some hubcaps he wanted at no extra charge since we were paying cash. The dealership takes care of everything: getting insurance coverage, taxes, etc. We will take possession within two weeks. Rahul will start June 2.

On Sunday we decided it was time to start exploring Ahmedabad. For our first outing we visited an open air museum of Gandhi’s ashram where he lived from 1917-1930 during the long struggle for India’s independence from Britain. He reportedly said he chose this spot because it lay between a jail and a cemetery and any non-violent resister was bound to end up in one or the other. There were numerous outbuildings in this lovely shady setting next to the Sabarmati River which flows between old town and new town Ahmedabad. The ashram has an open air museum which presents an informative narrative of Gandhi’s life and teachings.

It is from this spot where Gandhi and 78 others on March 12 1930 set out on the famous Salt March to Dandi, on the Gulf of Cambay in a symbolic protest against a tax imposed by the British on salt. Gandhi vowed he would not return to the ashram until India gained independence. Sixty thousand people were arrested during this 240 mile march for civil disobedience.  Eleven years ago when we were living in Sri Lanka we visited Dandi with our friend Raju Gupta when Ron did a professional exchange with Raju . We rode a camel on the beach where the march ended.

It was hot yesterday and the museum was open air so sweat was rolling down my back. At one point a family asked if they could take our photo with their children. It was a reminder of how few tourists from the west come to Ahmedabad. We were flattered to be asked and the older son shook my hand afterwards. Very sweet gesture.

I have discovered that just about everything here takes longer than we expect. I am keenly aware of this in the kitchen. It took me two hours to clean, chop and sauté veggies today for dinner and Ron’s lunch. That was one onion, one red and one yellow pepper, two small eggplants, one carrot and a large handful of mushrooms. If anyone wants to know what I miss about the US I would easily say our fabulous produce. It is not unusual to go to the grocery store here and leave without buying vegetables because they are in such sorry condition. Forget those prewashed, peeled packages of veggies so readily available at home. The mushrooms are like cardboard and are so dirty it takes an inordinate amount of time to clean them. Our carrots at home are prewashed; not here, dirt is still clinging to them. Beets are just as dirty and sometimes too squishy to bother as are the carrots at times. Same with cauliflower or broccoli. It is rare to find lettuce and if you do it will be iceberg. I make moong bean sprouts to use as salad. Crisp veggies are a real find and a rarity here. The potatoes are delicious however, somewhat like Yukon Gold potatoes, loaded with a sweet flavor. The red onions are also delicious and are the only onions I have seen besides green onions..