Namaste from India!

I've never written a blog before but I figure there is no better time then now!

I've already been here for a full two weeks and  so much has happened!

The first few days here were rough. I was so consumed in trying to meet my basic needs (safe food & water), settling into my apartment and trying to not get ripped off - that it didn't really sink in that I was actually in INDIA until my first day of work.

I was living in an apartment with 6 people from China and 1 girl from Denmark for the first few days because my apartment wasn't ready yet. Once it was, I moved down a level into a better apartment. I am currently living with 5 other people - Jean from China, Remco from the Netherlands, Jamye from Canada, Katrine from Denmark and Ghendi from Egypt. The people I live with are amazing! We cook dinner together some nights which is nice after a day of work. The apartment is only a 15 minute rickshaw ride from where I work. I live in a gated community with a small park in the middle where kids play cricket and women gather around the shaded areas and fences. Outside the community there are a lot of markets where I can buy fruit and a small grocery store for all other food.

I am enjoying my work so far! I have been working at MAMTA Health Institute for Mother and Child on their new campaign called the 10K Club http://www.10kclub.org/. I work in an office with about 7 other people - I don't actually know who is permanently in that office since people are always coming and going! There is another intern in my office, Laura from New York, who is doing a research project for 3 months. Then there is Anika, my 26 year old supervisor, Siddarth a 40 something hilarious guy, Sanjay the conversationalist and Natasha who is the Public Health worker who gives good tips on life in New Delhi. There are several other offices on our floor and two other floors below mine (all MAMTA), which is very big for an NGO. I have been working on a few projects for them including: securing corporate partnerships for the 10K Club, creating promotional materials and organizing a fundraising event. I recently sat in on an meeting with a representative from London School of Economics and my supervisor Anika regarding a potential partnership between LSE and MAMTA. LSE would like to help in redesigning our business model and studying the interventions sites currently in place.  There are currently two sites under the 10K Club in place - one in Nihal Vihar and the other in Sikar. Even after our services have been removed the changes and health programs have sustained/maintained. This is an interesting observation since there are no monetary or short term benefits for the individuals at the intervention sites. The interventions focus on preventive long-term community health through evidence-based cost effective changes. I will be visiting some of the intervention sites within the next few weeks - which I am really looking forward to! The intervention sites have been identified as the areas in India with the highest maternal and child mortality rates. It will be a real eye opener when I go! In the office there are these "bus boys" that serve us coffee in the morning and the afternoon. They also do all the cleaning and clear our plates after lunch. The first time I was served coffee it felt so strange to be waited on like that! Most middle to upper class people have this kind of service at home - doing laundry, buying groceries, clearing plates, drivers, etc. Lunch is a very social time. Everyone in my office and the other offices (between 8-15) on my floor gather around a small square table and eat with their hands. Everyone brings their own bread and share their home-made delicious dishes. I have been going back and forth between ordering Indian food and bringing a lunch. My lunch has consisted of peanut butter and jam sandwiches and an apple - everyone always laughs at me! I have missed the availability of vegetables and strong coffee - that's for sure

an auto-rickshaw aka my ride to work

Getting around in this city is cheap but chaotic. No one follows the traffic rules or stays within the road lines... it's every mode of transportation for itself. The auto rickshaws are a lot of fun but you have to be firm and haggle a lot with them since they really try to rip foreigners off. The metro system is very clean and nice here, but it doesn't go to all parts of the city unfortunately. There is even a women's only section - which is very nice since there are so many men squished into the other carts.

Jantar Mantar

The first week I had a day off of work for republic day. I was still living in the other apartment at the time and went touring with my 6 roommates. We went to Connaught Place which is a circular series of white buildings with stores of western influence named after the Duke of Connaught. It is one of the largest financial, commercial and business centers in Delhi with tons of stores and bookshops. There was actually a McDonald's there - this was the first time during my trip I saw other foreigners. After touring around there we went to Jantar Mantar (Yantra Mantra) - red buildings of various shapes for astrology purposes built in the 1700's. People were actually taking pictures of us. I have noticed that when I am traveling with a guy - people ask him for permission to take the girl's picture. After touring here we went out for southern Indian food and then back home!

At Swagath enjoying Southern Indian food

That following weekend I went to Ammar Colony Market on the Saturday and then out to Swagath restaurant Saturday night. Swagath is apparently one of the best places to get Indian food in New Delhi. And it wasn't all talk - the food was phenomenal! There were  17 of us including my current housemates, Katrine's friend from home who lives in Delhi - and all of his friends. His friends were other students undergoing their Masters or recently finished and were interning at different companies, UN affiliates and for the embassy. It was an interesting group of people! Afterward we went to a member's only "country" club for awhile since one of the interns who lived in New Delhi for about 3 years was quite familiar with where to go. I was curious to see what such a place would be like in New Delhi! Sunday most people were tired from a long day Saturday but me and one of my housemates, Remco, were up for another day of exploring. We didn't make plans for the day - we decided to just let the day unfold. We hopped onto a cycle rickshaw and took it to the metro. Once we were on the metro we decided to get off at a random stop called the Khan market which is a mix of Indian and western stores. We bought some coffee and searched for a place to enjoy them. We asked a rickshaw driver where the nearest park was and he offered to take us there - just around the corner. It turned out that we were just around the corner from a large Indian monument called the Indian Gate. There were no other tourists there surprisingly, but the park was filled with locals.There was a large fountain with several levels, that children were climbing up. Remco decided to join the kids..everyone was staring at him! Afterward we hoped back on the metro - off to another random location. We stumbled upon INA market and Delli haat where there are restaurants offering food from all the different states of India and there are tons of scarf booths! I haven't purchased any scarves yet but I know where to find them now! uh-oh.

colors of the market

A street by ammar colony market

This weekend was jam packed! After work on Friday I went out with a few of the people from my apartment to a rooftop bar called Roxbury. It was mostly foreigners that live and work in New Delhi, and a few locals. It was great to see the nightlife in New Delhi. Saturday I went touring around with Remco and Jean to the Lotus Temple, a modern temple shaped like a lotus flower only built 30 years ago. There were a lot of tourists that time of day, but it was still a nice way to spend the afternoon. Afterward we all went to Khan market to grab a bite to eat and then headed home to get ready for the 24 hour adventure ahead! SO- Saturday night the 7 of us all traveled to Agra via train. Since we booked our tickets very last minute we were in the cheapest section....the sleeper section, which only cost about 4 Canadian dollars. The seven of us were on the top bunks, squished 2 to a bed for 3 hours. Well we thought it would be 3 hours - but of course Indian rail is very unpredictable, and we were delayed 3 hours! We were so excited to be going to Agra and taking in the state of the train, that the ride there was fun and the time passed quickly. The train had bars on the windows with many missing glass and the carts were filled with men (especially in our section). It was all good though - there were seven of us! Arriving there later than expected was actually a blessing since we arrived at 5 am instead of 2 am and a breakfast place called Joney's was open (it was the only thing listed in the Lonely Planet travel guide as being open at that hour). The staff were very friendly, recommending all the best foods and preparing them outside in the morning dark. After ordering nearly 8 different items and  filling up on coffee - we were off to the Taj Mahal. Around the perimeter there is a giant red brick gate that prevents you from getting or seeing in. After waiting for 30 minutes in line in the dark, the gates opened just after the first light broke. Once we entered it was a short walk through another giant gate into the gardens of the Taj Mahal. It was a combination of the morning fog lifting, the birds waking up, the quiet of so few people and the sun just breaking - that made that moment coming through the second gate and setting our eyes on  the Taj Mahal - an  absolutely breathtaking moment. All of us were dead silent, arms crossed, just staring in amazement, we couldn't believe we were there. We slowly made our way from the start of the gardens all the way to the Taj. We spent over 3 1/2  hours hanging out, slowly walking around. It was a perfect way to spend the morning... I'll never forget that day. The Taj Mahal has a romantic history behind it, standing as a symbol of eternal love. It was built around 1650 (taking nearly 20 years to build) by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. She passed away while giving birth to their 14th child.  The large white marble mausoleum houses her tomb. Afterward we went to a rooftop restaurant (where we were the only ones on the roof) overlooking the city of Agra with the Taj Mahal in the distance. We ordered tons of Indian dishes, naan and rice, and shared it amongst ourselves. We then went to Agra Fort which overlooks the river and Agra city. After a long and fulfilling day we hoped back on the train to New Delhi, this time with no delays.When we were in Agra waiting for our train, the train station was completely chaotic. With some trains having men and kids running after them, shoving as man people as possible into the carts. I saw a man with one foot and one arm hanging on the steps for dear life because there were so many people inside. It seemed like something out of a movie!

Taj Mahal at Sunrise

Relaxing at the Taj

Trying to be goofy

The gang in front of the Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal

Overlooking Agra City

I crashed super hard Sunday night and had to get up for work Monday. Unfortunately there was a water outage that morning so I didn't get to shower before work. Things like this are typical here - you never really know what will happen each day!

That's all for now!!

much love

another cow in the street