In Mussoorie

Hello all! I'm now in Mussoorie after finally getting my FRO paperwork complete. It's beautiful here--very lush pine forests with moss and ferns growing everywhere. I'm staying in Landour Bazar with two other Fulbright researchers. We're about a twenty minute walk from the school where we are taking Hindi classes.

Today I hoped on a bus to Mussoorie around 10:00 AM and got the the language school around 11:30 AM. I started classes at 12:10 and finished up at 3:10. I'm taking 3 hours of private Hindi tutoring per day for roughly 25 US dollars! The rent will also be pretty good--I'll probably end up paying around 100 US dollars for the three weeks that I'm sharing the apartment with Nick and Victoria. The apartments I should say--we're splitting two. The apartment that Victoria and I share over looks the hills and it is an amazing view. I'll post pictures when I unpack my stuff. The quality of the Hindi classes is also amazing, but it was hard for me to take full advantage today when I just got into town. In case you don't know, I'm taking classes at the Landour Language School, which has been teaching Hindi for over 100 years. Mussoorie is also a famous hill station, so it's a great place for me to wait out the monsoon weather in Dehradun.

Also, my USB modem is not working as well as I hoped it might. So that could cut down on my ability to communicate via skype. I'll have more updates on this possible catastrophe later. If worse comes to worse, I might just get a new USB modem seeing as carriers are so unreliable. It would be good to have a backup just in case.

My first class is at 12:10 again tomorrow. So if anyone wants to try to talk tomorrow morning (tonight for you guys) then let me know!

Kal malenge (sp?)

Erica

Some pictures that I forgot to add to the last post...

My first attempt at chapatis. The vegetable is pumpkin or kaddu.
The view of the mountains from my bedroom.
The area around my house. You can make out the mountains as well.

So, What AM I doing here...?

So it seems after talking to a couple friends back home that many people are out of the loop with regards to what I am doing in India. I've decided to post my original proposal, although my goals have changed a little bit since writing this...

Statement of Purpose:

is project is a descriptive study of medicinal plant usage among women during pregnancy in the Garhwal region of the northwestern Himalayas. Although many studies have detailed medicinal plant usage in Garhwal, no previous study has focused on maternal health. The purpose of this survey is to both fill a gap in medicinal plant literature and provide information to strengthen local maternal health care in a region with severely limited access to primary health care.

My project has changed a bit since then. I am more interested now in the interplay between hospitalized medicine and local medicine. Particularly, attitudes that women have towards both. I also am interested in the chemical components of these plants; I think that it's likely that many women are supplementing their diet with iron, carotene, protein, and fats.

And yes--this is a Fulbright. I hadn't wanted to throw the name around too much, but this seems to actually have caused a lot of confusion for some people. It's great. I have a lot of money to both travel, eat well, and do good research. It's really a pretty amazing quality of life.

I'm feeling a lot better for the first time in a couple of days. My stomach has calmed down and I feel much more alert. Today it was also sunny for the first time, so I could again see the Himalayas from my window. I also decided to go into town and do some shopping.

My house is in Chanderbani, a borough of Dehradun. It's pretty busy, but much more green than the rest of the city. There are mostly retired army people and faculty from the Wildlife Institute living in the area. It has a suburban feel, except that there are a lot of cows grazing around my house. Also, it's much closer to the city than most suburban towns in America. Some people say that it is in Dehradun and others disagree. It seems to just not be an insane part of Dehradun from what I can tell.

So I walked to the big tuk tuk stop where I can get to the center of Dehradun for 10 rupees. I was walking and looking at the mountains with wonder and then stepped into fresh cow shit. I'm pretty sure that I saw the cow that did it too. I then had to walk back to the house and wash off. It is only about a ten minute walk to the tuk tuk stop.

I took the tuk tuk as far as it would go, which is right by the best bookstore in Dehradun. It had been my intent to get a book that was published on women's health in garhwal, but the didn't have it. I might have to order it online. Instead I got:

Siddhartha by Herman Hesse

Lives in the Wilderness (a compilation of Verrier Elwin's, Jim Corbett's and Salim Ali's autobiographies. I'm going to bring it out into the mountains with me and feel very equal to great minds, I'm sure.)

My Story by Kamala Das

Recipes from Uttaranchal (Uttarakhand)

Uttarakhand State Map

Flowers of the Himalayas by Adam Stainton (My adviser came over this evening and when I showed him this book, he got really excited. My version is the supplemental. He has the full two volume set at home. Baller.)

There was a very old, very quiet woman in a purple sari at the bookstore. When I asked her about a book on women's health/sociology she said, "not much. not much." She then proceeded to produce several very interesting books on women in India, but none was the particular book on women's health issues in Uttarakhand. I guess it's kinda a downer. But I managed to keep myself to only one of her suggestions, which was Kamala Das' autobiography.

Apparently a drunkard followed Britain home while I was gone, because she called me when I was in the bookstore telling me that this guy had demanded to know if she was married. She didn't get all of this information from him, but from Didi who spoke to him at the front gate. Britain was understandably upset. I decided to cut my errands short and just try to figure out if I could get some coffee from the coffee shop adjacent to the bookstore. When I asked if I could get beans, the young man getting his coffee next to me said, "I don't think you'll get them in Dehradun." They staff at the coffee shop agreed. They offered me to sell me their beans, but said that they would be special ordered.

Why can't I get coffee beans in Dehradun? Why can't a place that sells brewed coffee sell me the beans that they are using? India grows amazing coffee and they export it all! It is colonization all over again if America and Europe get all of India's coffee!

When I got back home, everything had calmed down a bit. I was nervous when I first talked to Britain. But once I got the full story, I wasn't too surprised. I think that I'm more used to such ridiculousness from living in Jaipur. Jannat--Didi's husband--told me that the police have been told, but that the guy was just a drunk and probably won't remember anything. Sad to say, Shazia told me that this type of thing happens to her all the time. It seems that Dehradun has less overt harassment than Jaipur, but a lot of men just can't control themselves around young women. Fortunately, Didi and Jannat live in the house and there is a security guard who is paid to watch our street. So I do feel safe here.

Dr. Uniyal came over this evening to make sure that we were okay. He thought that I had been here as well, but seemed to be fine with me leaving Britain on her own to purchase "Flowers of the Himalayas." When he got the full story from Britain, he just said: "If somebody comes up to you like this, you just go out into the street and tell them to leave. You must always be fighting. Always fighting if you are going to go about your work." He has two daughters, so maybe he knows this pretty well by now.

I'm going to go to get my paperwork done tomorrow. Then I can go take my language lessons up in Mussorie!

What I have learned since returning to India...

1. Gatorade did not put high fructose corn syrup into their drinks as a way to make Americans fat. They put high fructose corn syrup in their drinks as an act of humanism. I have been drinkingoral rehydration salts mixed with water after some intestinal complaints. They taste like a sad ocean. I'm sure that if gatorade wasn't sweet, then thousands of hung-over college students would die every year from dehydration.

2. Minnesota and Kashmir are essentially the same... "same, same but different." I showed a picture of Carleton to my house's caretaker. She liked the photo a lot, and definitely understood that the picture was in America. But she kept on looking at it and saying, "Kashmir."

3. If you are white, you can blame everything on the spicy food and hot weather. Each time that I don't want to do something, I just say: "Oh, I'm very tired from getting used to the weather." This is actually pretty true--it is monsooning here and I'm not used to that. But it is a lot easier than saying, "I am tired of listening to Hindi and I want to go home and listen to Nicki Minaj."

4. Paperwork is only valid if it has taken at least five days to complete. I am still waiting to be registered in India.

____________________________________________________________________

I've been kinda sick for the past two days. It's made it difficult to go outside. It has also been very cloudy from the monsoons. So it is impossible not to feel a little down right now. However, I think when I start Hindi classes it will keep my occupied.

I am very thankful that I have this nice, big house to relax in while I transition to being in India. It isn't as crazy as Jaipur here, but going outside or just getting some vegetables can be a tiring experience. I feel that other people here are getting used to India faster than I am. But they also weren't just taking the MCAT, working a crazy job, applying to med school, moving their boyfriend to Michigan, visiting parents in Maine, and then flying out of Detroit. I definitely could have used some more rest before leaving. But it's of my own making, I don't think I've ever really slowed down.

I know that it will get better and it already has begun to get better. I also think that it would be better if I could get some decent coffee. India grow so much coffee, but it is all exported!

I am glad that I don't have to dive into research. Although my adviser is probably going to have a heart attack soon. He is VERY supportive, but also very impatient. I think he is a bit stressed that I won't be happy with my final results or something like that. Honestly, I'm just trying not to poop more than five-times-per-day. Everything probably seems very straight-forward to him, but I'm going through a huge internal and external adjustment. It is difficult to address our different perspectives, because Indians have a very indirect way of communicating. I'm not sure how to say, "I appreciate your feeling of urgency, but I have nine months and this month is devoted to my digestive system." Fortunately, the director of the Fulbright program here understands my situation and told me to just blame Fulbright for my cautious approach to research. Also, his PhD student--Shazia--also understands that I need to adjust. She told me to just do what I want and trust that he'll calm down when he sees that I know what I'm doing. Little does she know, I have no idea what I'm doing! But the sentiment is very much appreciated.

Overall, I am extremely lucky to have such a supportive adviser. Most Fulbrighters have the opposite. I have no desire to miss the opportunity to have an academic in India supporting my research. He also can help me to access some very rural and interesting parts of the state, which will be fantastic to visit. I'm excited to begin my field work, but first I need to stay hydrated and sleep.

Tori tori hindi bolti hoon

The culture shock has largely worn off, but instead of panicking, I feel like I am in a bit of a haze. It's difficult speaking Hindi again after four years off. Also, I went to the FRO yesterday and it will take them a week to look over our paper work and give us the appropriate stamp in our passport. Given the random nature of Indian paperwork, I debated putting a unicorn sticker in my passport with the hopes that no one would question it. Britain pointed out that this could potentially work or potentially get me thrown in jail when I try to leave the country for med school interviews. I decided to wait the week.

The main problem with waiting a week is that I have to put off my Hindi lessons for a week, because I can't even go an hour away until I get my paperwork completed. Fortunately, this is actually on schedule, so I am just starting my lessons on time rather than early. The German in me is very distraught over this, but I'm just hoping that India doesn't take over and delay my plans by a few more weeks. It feels very disabling to not have the little Hindi that I used to have. But Didi (the woman who takes care of the house where I live) only speaks Hindi, so I am getting better at it. She does seem to notice that it's improving. I can understand enough of her Hindi to understand when she's telling people that I don't speak Hindi in the marketplace. That's fine with me--she speaks Hindi and Bengali fluently, so she's far ahead of me language-wise.

The house is beautiful and it is starting to feel like home. Another Fulbright researcher is going to join me in a little more than a month, so it will feel even cozier then. I am a bit concerned that there seems to be absolutely no heating in the house. I knew that this was the case with most houses in Dehradun, but I also heard that some places do have a wood stove. We'll see what happens in the Winter.

I feel a little bit between a rock and a hard place--my adviser would like me to start field work once the rains are over. But I feel that I'll need a lot of time to study Hindi and to get comfortable with being back in India. Maybe I'll relearn Hindi a lot faster than I think, but I'm not amazing at languages by any means. I'm going to try to start going over research methods and figuring out what I want to include in my surveys. The hardest thing will be trying to get a consent form in Hindi. There are a couple of PhD students who do socio-economic research at the Wildlife Institute of India, so I'm hoping that a few of them have a consent form that I can modify.

The mists cleared for the first time today and I was able to actually see the Himalayas from Dehradun. I'm very excited for monsoon season to be over, because it will make the valley feel much more open.

It might seem that I'm a bit down right now. Actually, I feel really good. I'm just mulling over a lot of things. There is a lot of down time right now and I'm trying to decide how I want to dive into research. It is very daunting and I hope that some of you can offer some advice. I also hope that I get my camera in the mail soon and I can start posting some pictures.

Love,

Erica

Culture Shock 2.0

Hello all,

I'm sorry to everyone who has seemed a little worried about me since I reached Dehradun. I have been experiencing my first real culture shock since returning to India. Is it possible to have culture shock if you're expecting the new culture? The answer is: yes. Rather than spinning around as I did when I got to Jaipur four years ago, I've found myself saying: "You knew this would happen, just experience it and get through it." For example, I've been trying to register at the Police Station as a foreign researcher. Putting my Indian paperwork together and additionally complying with the US Embassy's specific demands took the better part of a day. Not to mention that it has caused considerable stress that Monday is Krishna's birthday, therefore I can't go to the police station. I think my adviser had a heart attack when he remembered that. This is a process that has no official list of requirements and officials in each city can determine what they want that particular day.

I wouldn't care about getting registered so much if it weren't for the fact that I'm impatient to get up to the Landour Language School and begin my Hindi lessons. Fortunately, Indians are as understanding of their bureaucracy as much as I am unprepared for it. As a result, the Principle of the school has been very understanding regarding my hold up. Did I expect all of this? Yes. But is it still shocking? Definitely!

I also found out where I'll be living. I keep on saying that it is embarrassingly nice. It is the home of a professor at the Wildlife Institute who is in Nepal for the next three years. I can't get over that I will be living there when I was previously living in an apartment that was so old that squirrels consistently chewed through the walls in the cabinets. Fortunately, it seems that another Fulbright grantee will be sharing the place with me, so I won't be lonely when I'm there.

The biggest culture shock came when I went into Dehradun yesterday. The city has grown a great deal since it became the capital of Uttarakhand (which is only about 10-years-old.) There are far wider streets than most of India. This is probably because it is a relatively newer city. But even those streets are packed with cars, motorcycles and people. Everyone says that the infrastructure has not grown as fast as the city and they are completely right. I was totally overwhelmed in every way. A lot of people to watch out for, a lot of smells, and horns honking all of the time.

The good part is that this is not really a tourist place. There were a couple of tourists in the city, but really not nearly as many as in Jaipur. Also people are much calmer here than in Jaipur. There was less shoving and yelling. I also wasn't cat called or groped once! This is a big deal for me! Rajasthan was really awful that way, it is probably the reason that it took me so long to come back to India. I don't know what I would have done if I had been harassed, because I was completely emotionally and psychologically exhausted when I got back to the guest house. I think I also had heat exhaustion, because I started dry heaving a little bit. But that also could have been from stress. I really thought that the immersion wouldn't be that bad this time. But I guess that even the Reading Terminal Market on a Saturday afternoon didn't prepare me for the over stimulation that is India.

Through all of this, I had an amazing guide. There is a PhD student at the Institute who has been a facilitator during my first few days. She helped me get a phone, internet, all my paperwork together, and she took me into the city to get things for the house. I needed pots, pans, dishes, and sheets, because it is almost completely empty. She keeps on saying that I am "Princess Erica," because the house is so nice. I keep telling her that I am not used to this, but it is hard for me to explain West Philly to someone who has never been to an American city. Not that West Philly isn't nice, but I don't know her well enough to explain how American students often live on their own in less-than-suburban neighborhoods. I am seriously embarrassed over how much money the Fulbright gives us. But when I mentioned this to the Director of the Indian branch, he told me that I would be in no way living in such a nice place if I weren't living in Dehradun. I have to remember that people living in Chennai and Pune has the same budget that I have. I believe they are much more stressed about finances. Most importantly, I should remember how much debt I will be going into as a Med student and that I should just enjoy my palace before I have to do battle with squirrels again.

Thank you to all for reading. Don't worry too much about my culture shock. I had a pretty bad panic yesterday when I was crying for about an hour, but I think that's healthy. I ended up sleeping for about ten hours after that, which was about the same as I slept the past three days put together. I'll try to keep everyone updated, especially as I transition to Mussorrie and begin my language classes.

Successfully in Dehradun!

As I write this, the lights have all gone out in the computer lab at the Wildlife Institute where I am staying. So I am getting a pretty accurate reintroduction to India after being in a five-star hotel in Delhi for orientation. I am staying at the guest hostel in the Wildlife Institute for now, but I'm going to try to head up to the Landour Language School, which is about an hour away within a couple of days. My Hindi is pretty disastrous at this point, so I need to fit in some intensive language lessons before starting field work in mid-September. It seems that I'll be based out of Joshimath for my field work, which is great because there are numerous PhD students out there doing socio-economic research like myself. So I have been lead to believe that making surveys, finding translators and so forth will be relatively easy given that I've never done this before.

I like Dehradun a lot and I like where I am staying. I am beginning to get a little homesick, but I think that could also be from the fact that I haven't really spoken to anyone back home for days. I'm hoping that I can work out my wireless situation and become more accessible. Also, I have gotten more than four hours of sleep for the past three nights, so I feel like I'm going a little crazy. Hopefully, I will not feel so homesick once I adjust to the time difference.

I'm in Delhi and getting ready to go to Dehradun

Hello,

I tried to post when I arrived in Delhi, but I guess it did not go up for some reason. I've been in Delhi for orientation over the past two days and I haven't had a lot of time to explore or to write. Myself and three others are getting on a train around midnight to take us up north. So I'll be in Dehradun in about 9 hours (hopefully.)

I'll post pictures when I arrive!

Erica

Thanks for looking!

I am currently preparing to leave tomorrow, August 14th for Delhi. I'll arrive in Dehradun on August 18th. Nothing too much to say right now, but keep looking for updates when I arrive!

Thanks!

Erica