Trip to the Beach

Thursday, August 31, 2006

Day to Day . . . .

Now that everyone has seen our marble house, we have a chance to share with you some the activities that fill our days here in India. Most of the week days are spent working with Maranatha. Nick works with another couple from the U.S. in the Media and Development Department. He gets to play with video cameras and learn how to edit and log film. I, on the other hand, work in the Volunteer Services Department. We organize the different projects and the volunteer groups that will be coming to participate on these projects.

But that’s work! In the evenings, we hang out in our marble house, cook, read, and sleep. Nothing exciting really! There are some evenings that we really get crazy and walk to the “Mega Mall” that is across the street from our little community. Usually we go there to eat. We really haven’t gone there to shop, except at the little grocery store that is in the basement. Sometimes we get tired of cooking at home, or we just don’t have anything in the house. So, we head for the food court at the Mega Mall. There we can find several different fast food Indian restaurants, some ice cream places, a couple Chinese places, and would you believe, Subway and McDonalds! And believe it or not, we actually eat at McDonalds occasionally. No beef is sold at McDonalds here in India! That’s right, no beef! Instead, they have a veggie burger, a chicken burger, and of course, the McFish sandwich.

Besides a decent food court, they have a movie theatre there as well. There are not very many English speaking movies, but when there is, we are quick to see it. There are even some Hindi movies that look really good, but unfortunately, there are not English sub-titles until it comes out on DVD.

When we aren’t posing as mall rats, there are about 5 to 10 malls within a 5 mile radius of our house, we enjoy a few other activities. Sometimes we hang out with other people from work, mostly people from the US or South America. And that is only because we all live in the same little community. None of the Indian employees live in our neighborhood. We enjoy hanging out together, laughing together, etc.

But the highlight of our week definitely falls on Tuesdays and Fridays. These are the days of the local vegetable market. Just to put it into prospective, it is basically the local farmers’ market. The only difference is that the men who are selling the produce probably did not grow it, but are more like middle men. We can find many vegetables that we are familiar with. Things like tomatoes, potatoes, onions, green beans, eggplant, beets, spinach, okra, mangoes, apples, limes, lemons, pears, bananas, cabbage, garlic, and ginger. Most of the vendors have the same items, so we get to go from stall to stall and find the best price per kilogram, half kilogram (ada), and quarter kilogram (pou). That is the Hindi word in parentheses. In addition to produce, you can buy eggs, spices in bulk, and many other items like clothes and other trinkets. When we go, we usually buy four or five different things, and only spend about $5.00. In the States, we would have spent close to four times that amount at the grocery store or farmers’ market.


The Spice Man....

One of many vegetable vendors....

Cabbages and cucumbers....

Garlic by the clove or by the bunch....

Even the cows enjoy the Vegetable Market....



And this is why.... This is some of the best food they get!



This is just a sampling of stuff that we can get here in India at the grocery store and the vegetable market. All of this probably cost us about $10 or $20!!!


There is one other activity that we have taken a liking to. Well, when I say we, I really mean Nick. He has taken it upon himself to feed and water a few stray dogs in the neighborhood. Please keep in mind, that there are countless stray dogs in India. They are everywhere. Of course, you have to watch for dogs with rabies, but so far, the ones we have semi adopted as our own seem healthy enough. We call them all “Bodark”, but that is a long story. As we observe the dogs in the neighborhood, we have learned that like gangs in cities, there are lines and territories that are not be crossed by strange dogs. The dogs that hang out in front of our house followed us to the office one morning, and the dogs that live by the office chased them away. Nick only feeds and waters a few dogs, but I swear they told all their friends about Nick’s Doggie Soup Kitchen! There is one young female who looks to be in heat these days, and we would love to steal one of her puppies and make it our own. Both of us want a dog so bad, but the problem is that pets are almost out of the question because we will be traveling so much.

Let me introduce you to our friends!

Brindle Bodark....

Gimpy Bodark....He has a bad back leg, so he hops on three legs!

Momma Bodark....This is the one that we are hoping has puppies!

4 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow, those dogs are sooo cool, why don't you just take a few upstairs and give them a bath, take them to the vet, make them yours?

5:00 AM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Great dogs!Seems like I remember a "Bois D'Arc" on my front porch when you were home!!
Mom D.

10:01 PM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey they are brendle like the Tank Dog...Dont forget him cuz you know he will never forget you...Luvs

7:27 PM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

looks like you guys are having fun! i love the cow and dog, they're awesome!
your friend, amanda ashburn

3:42 PM

 

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