Why did the tofu cross the road?: You'd have a happy life if you did the things you like!

Placement Discussion

I finally got to have a discussion about the work that I will be doing in Bhubaneswar. For now, it seems that my placement is as I thought. The Orissa Association for the Blind needs me to (as far as I understand) write an application with interfacing database that will match jobs and people based on their skill set... sounds simple right? Well, the catch is that the program has to be accessible for the blind.. meaning that visually impaired people will be using my program. I have been researching how to do this but I am unsure of their resources at the moment and I have no clue what will be compatible for them. If any of you geeks out there have had experience writing accessible applications please send me an email with any info/resources that seem related. (I don't even know what language/platforms I will be using so throw any random things at me.) MANY MANY THANKS.

During the discussion I was told about my accommodations. I will have a roommate and a room in a flat waiting for me. My roommate's name is Jenissa and she is a physio-therapist volunteer from The Philippines. I got to talk to her on the phone and found out that she loves to clean. I think we will be a perfect match! Also, she is required to travel a lot for her placement and is only home about ten days of the month so I feel that I am getting the ideal amount of company and privacy. Apparently we have a living room, a dining room AND a large kitchen. I can't wait to cook for myself. We have been eating out for two weeks straight now... I can't handle all the curry! I am very excited and relieved to have my living arrangements all figured out.

My new living room! very posh!

Can't wait to scrub that kitchen down!

Yoga

Yoga outside the tomb

I am happy to report that I have attended all but one of the yoga classes so far... even though they begin at 6:30am sharp! We get to practice in Lodi Gardens with Suguna our instructor who has lots of experience. It seems so surreal that I get to practice yoga in a park at sunrise in freaking India! Satruday was the best.... since it is cold at that time of day... (I would say the temperature is bouncing around zero) we practiced inside one of the tombs (circa 1400s) AND when we entered the tomb there was a woman on mat in the corner playing a flute. She was producing authenticate and ancient sounding melodies...it was all very mystical. I'm happy to be inside because it is much warmer than the grass and it muffles the sounds of the parakeets... they are so loud that I sometimes cannot hear my instructor.

We have been trying our hand at laughing yoga.. which is exactly what it sounds like. It is used to strengthen your stomach and it has the added benefit of putting you in a really good mood.... some of us recorded a video.

Trip to Old Delhi

Roof top in Old Delhi.

Busy street in Old Delhi from the rooftop.

All of the volunteers took a trip to Old Delhi on Saturday. We had a tour arranged and lead by VSO volunteers that have been in Delhi for some time. The old part of the city is really fascinating. There were many shops filled with everything you can image. It also happens to be the world's largest free market of spices. The aroma of all those spices was overwhelming at times... people were coughing and covering their faces with handkerchiefs. The smells were intense. It was also really interesting to watch the men carry HUGE bags of spice and load them onto wagons. The marketplace was soooo busy and the streets were so narrow that I found it ludicrous that cycle rickshaws and scooters were allowed on them... we were in the cycle rickshaw (as arranged for us) and brushing past pedestrians and at times getting our tires caught on other bikes and various objects.

The cycle rickshaw drivers were fighting over our business... it was chaos.

Mmmmmm... our richshaw driver stole some yummy fruit for us as we passed by... not sure what it was called.

On the trip we visited a Jain temple... which was quite beautiful... no pictures because they do not allow cameras inside... here were some of the other rules: No shoes allowed inside. No leather allowed inside. No women on their period allowed inside. No bags allowed inside and a few more that I forget. It was quite the list. Luckily it was the right time of month so I kicked my shoes off and explored. The walls were mainly mosaic scenes and there were many statues and some sort of electric drum thingy that scared the crap out of me when it was set off. Apparently some of the columns and art in the temple dated back to the ten century, It was awesome.

On the way to the Jain Temple.

We stopped for a bite on Parantha Gaaliye (which means Parantha Alley) and I had one awesome cashew nut parantha... which is a savory bread with whatever toppings you would like. They are fried and served hot with different chutneys. Sooo good and soooo perfectly oily. Go try one today!