Here's an excerpt from my journal written Saturday evening after just one night here:
Gorgeous tropical scenery here. Fantastic people here. Rigorous academics and global values embodied here.
And living is, well . . . basic. Since I've been here I've barely looked in a mirror (its all clouded and very small in a dimly lit bathroom) and haven't yet taken a shower. When I do it will be by pouring water - with any luck warm water - over me with a cup from a bucket while I sit on a stool in an indented area of the bathroom. Neither of us are really looking forward to it! I pulled my hair back and didn't even think about it all day. Rather freeing.
Also, we get hungry between meals and keep forgetting what time to go; they seem so much later than we would ordinarily eat. We missed morning tea today since we didn't know about it, but have made it early to every meal and snack since! First ones there!
As we were walking from the school building to dinner tonight, we heard the children give a shout in the dining hall and realized the lights were all out. Everyone seemed to quickly take it all in stride and the aunties lit candles at each table. After eating we began to walk back to our room with flashlights but no umbrella. Auntie Roj insisted on walking us all the way back to give us shelter. So nice.
We changed into pjs and then realized our toilet was leaking from the tank. We tried to call Aniish from the phone in the courtyard but the phone didn’t work (of course) because we have no electricity! Then we found a solar powered phone but the recorded operator on the phone was speaking Hindi (of course) which made us laugh.
So we put more clothes on to go back out, and when we picked up our umbrellas a lizard and a giant cockroach scrambled out and scurried up the wall and onto the ceiling. Disgusting! But what to do?
Now we have rain, no electricity, no phone, broken plumbing, a lizard AND a cockroach!
My journal continues with the rest of the evening including enlisting the plumbing helper to chase the bugs away for us. We also received the assurance of a new room starting tomorrow night.
After these escapades, as we lay in our respective small beds with flashlights, we started laughing and giggling uncontrollably and talking about the crazy silly unbelievable things that have happened so far on this trip. We decided to make a list. It was all funny enough to pass the time in the dark. Oh my, just what do we have in store here?
