Our 2nd Indian trip

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Our second Indian trip begins on Saturday August 29, 2009. We start by flying to New Delhi (C)and then Driving to Rishikesh (B) staying overnight and then to Auli (A).

Auli, Uttaranchal A on the Map

Auli in the Indian state of Uttarakhand is renowned for the fascinating ski resorts and stunning natural vistas. Bounded by the snowy peaks of the mighty Himalayas, this hilly terrain offers the enchanting sceneries of oak fringed slopes and coniferous forests. At an average height of 2800 meters, this might be the single spot where the visitors would get the unusual opportunity of a nice promenade.

Walking through the misty slope provides one with the imposing spectacles of some of the lofty mountain ranges like Nanda devi, Mana Paravat and Kamat Kamet. Besides this snowy miracles, the boulevards through the slopes offers marvelous views of gorgeous apple orchards and fine deodar trees, which makes one’s morning stride a precious experience.

Auli proffers a credible past that dates back to the 8th century. It is believed that this pretty locale is blessed with the sacred visit of Sankaracharya. As a toddler in the tourism arena, Auli proffers an unspoiled ambiance. The harsh frosty storms, the sylvan peaks and the long stretch of snowy valleys would make idyllic surroundings for a skier. Aptly called as the haven for skiing activities, this hilly resort is turned to be the only tourist destination where skiing is the most sought after past time.

The erstwhile training ground of the Indo-Tibetan Police Force, Auli has gained the status of a popular hill resort with in a short span of time. The sheer inclines of Auli are a hot spot of courageous men who dare to explore the demanding environs. The snowcapped mountain ranges, the screech of the winds and the entertaining skiing, Auli is bestowed with all that is enough to thrill the onlookers. The nature at its full bloom gives a feeling of an awe inspiring time, which cannot be wiped out from our wildest dreams.

After 4 days we head back to Rishikesh and spend another day there.

Rishikesh - B on the map
A sacred town at the convergence of rivers Ganges and Chandrabh aga, Rishik esh is a naturally attractive place at the foothills of the lower Himalayas in the state of Uttaranchal in India. The importance of this holy city lies in the fact that it serves as a gateway to other religiously important centers like Kedarnath, Gangotri, Badrinath and Yamunotri.

Rishikesh, literally means Lord of the Senses, stands for Lord Vishnu and the city is blessed with the flowing of Holy Ganges. The city is a hub of many ancient and new temples, attracting thousands of pilgrims through out the year. The popular belief of Hindu devotees is that performing austerities in this holy town and offering prayers in the holy temples brings the much needed attainment of ‘Mukthi’, the salvation.

The main attractions in this exciting touri st and religious spot include Gita Bhavan, Nilkanth Mahadev, Lakshman Jhula, Swarga Ashram and Triveni Ghat, all the places having great religious importance. Rishikesh and other nearby places like Dehradun and Mussoorie makes a good interesting and amazing excursion plan.

Rishkesh is renowned for numerous Yoga centers, and perfectly termed as the World Capital of Yoga, which offers training of Yoga and other spiritual activities. This is a place to attain peace and tranquility. Many water sports activities like white water rafting and adventurous activities like wild forest trekking can be undertaken in Rishikesh.

The tourists who look for spiritual holidays as well as seclusion ar e welcomed at the lap of Rishikesh, with all its natural beauty and God’s gifts. It offers its visitors with experiences which nobody can forget for a lifetime. The sacred pilgrimage to four holy shrines starts from Rishikesh.

Agra - D on the map
Famed with one of the Seven Wonders of the World - Taj Mahal, Agra is one of the most popular tourist destinations in India. Agra is a virtual fort of history and architecture located in the state of Uttar Pardesh in India. Historical monuments, architectural grandeur ventures and the beauty of marbles, Agra thrives as the best picnic spot in India.

Agra, a medieval city, was assumed to be built in 1475 had been found its place even in the epic Mahabharatha as Agraban (means paradise). The renowned second century geographer Ptolemy spotted this place as Agra in his world map. Agra was the capital of many dynasties including Lodhi and Mughals.

Located at the banks of River Yamuna, Agra offers the tourists the richest of the man made beauties including three UNESCO World Heritage Sites - Agra forts, Fatehpur Sikri and Taj Mahal. It is the haven of Mughal art, culture and architecture.

Agra is the foremost tourist spot all over India and has been equipped with all kinds of infrastructure facilities for tourists. The city with multi colored illuminations providing a marvelous view at night offer hearty welcome to its tourists. Many high standard hotels and resorts add the enjoyment of the vacation and picnic to its pinnacle in Agra.

Tuesday March 17th 2009 - just a typical day

I apologize to all of you who are anxiously awaiting an update. I'll start with today and work my way back to the beginning of the year.

Today I needed to go to the fruit market and supermarket.


The fruit market is interesting . . . they put their bad fruits in a crate and then the goat herder will come along and his goats will eat the fruit. Shopping in India is NOT like anything in America.


They have: watermelons, apples, oranges, grapes (both green and black), coconut, cantelope, bananas and chickoo - and Indian fruit that makes the most wonderful ice cream. The chickoo is next to the scale and looks like a potato. If you look closely - near the top to the right of the watermelon - you will see a picture of their god.


Here is the chicken shop. The man in the yellowish shirt is standing in front of it. The green stacks are eggs with green dividers. I didn't stop today - but I'll get more pictures later.


This is the supermarket I go to. It seems like every time I go I found something that I wouldn't think they could possibly have.



They carry my purchases to my car. While you are at the market you can take a moment to worship your favorite god. Ganesh is featured here - the elephant god.

Watch out for the stray dog sunning himself in the middle of the road.

Then my driver carries them to my elevator. Thankfully I only have a few feet to my front door. I come home and power is out. At least we have fans and the TV's (to do school) - but even though it's only 75 right now - it's sticky today. The high's have been creeping up to the high 90's now.

Today we are doing school for the rest of the day. Here is Joanna.


Sam is currently napping. He's figured out how to stand up in his pack'n'play and so now it's harder to get him down.

Next (or before this) a Sunday picnic BBQ with KBC.

Sunday March 15th - A KBC BBQ

On Sunday the 15th we had a picnic with our church (KBC) to say farewell to the Smith's (going to the states for furlough) and Silas.






Silas is graduating Monday from the Pastor Training Institute and is going back to Myanmar (Burma) to plant a church. Silas was Sam's buddy and he would tease the girls that he was going to take Sam home with him for the night. Madeline was NOT happy with this idea and she let him know



.

Madeline hung out with Hannah - her best bud.



The girls will miss Abby as she is going back to the states with her family for 3 months.


Madeline and Hannah with an impromptu "tea party" Caleb - Hannah's brother tried to help.


Not all the pictures are mine. Thanks Caroline.

KBC Camp in Panchgani, India. 2/27-3/1 2009

I'm posting a slideshow - the pictures speak for themselves.

January Pictures

Merry Christmas Everyone!

It's an hour before Christmas day and I thought I would do the equivalent of a Christmas letter - blogstyle.

The cookout with our church was fun. The Burmese students spent most of the day cooking/preparing the meal. We had chicken and beef kabobs, tons of rice and some other things that I'm not sure exactly what it was - but it was good. We talked and then sang Christmas songs. We stayed 4 hours. Sam is quickly becoming a favorite with the college students. As soon as he is fed it seems he is whisked away by someone. I spend most of the time just making sure where he is and seems likes it's a different person every time. Sometimes even when things change - some things stay the same. Same thing would have happened at our church.

I was clearing off our video camera to make sure that we had plenty of space for Christmas video and was watching some of Sam's birth. I didn't realize we had gotten Mom planting flowers with the girls and then at the hospital she and Joanna had made a "bet". Mom said he would have brown hair and Joanna said he would have black hair. Mom kept saying "you're right Joanna" and I didn't get it until Joanna told me the whole story. I was crying.

Tomorrow will be busy. We are opening presents in the morning and then going to a hotel for lunch (same one we did Thanksgiving at). All of the Cummins Ex-Pats are meeting. Then for dinner we are going to someone's house (another ex-pat) and having Christmas dinner. There should be kids there that night - so I'm hoping Joanna and Madeline meet some new friends.

I'll post more tomorrow.

Merry Christmas.

Scott, Dawn, Joanna, Madeline and Samuel Zook

Fireworks . . . in December?

Last night during dinner we heard an unusual boom and quickly were informed (by the girls of course) that fireworks were going off. Fireworks in India do not have any of the regulations as they do in the states. They were being lit off quite close to a neighboring building and no one seemed to bat an eyelash at it. We were just thankful it wasn't our building that was next to them. The girls were excited and after dinner we headed out to the deck to watch them. By this time it seemed that they were having problems because after an explanation of what a "dud" was - Joanna proceeded to count 29 of them before some real ones were lit off.

We had another enjoyable Sunday. It is wonderful to meet with Christians every week and we miss the weekly Bible Studies that are cancelled until next year. We have a nice time of fellowship as we eat dinner after church every Sunday. Home-cooked Indian food is soo different from what you will get in a restaurant in the states.

I'm starting to branch out. I've been using pre-prepared dinners that all you cook is the rice and then heat up the sauce. Last night I had picked up a packet that all you had to add was water & chicken - when I looked at the ingredient list - it was just spices and oil. Everything else I made from scratch :) I've also developed a fondness for sauces with coconut milk in them - VERY good!

Not much is happeneing this week. Scott was just contacted about having a formal Indian welcoming ceremony. We shall see about that one - should be worth another blog entry.

Joanna's birthday is Saturday and I've invited 6 kids over to spend the afternoon. 4 of the 6 are boys and not her age, so not sure what they are going to do. I don't think I'm going to do a "real" party since she already had one - but we can do pizza and a playdate.

Dawn

Don't panic

We where with out land line phone (and subsequently DSL Internet) since about 4 pm on Saturday. We will resume our regularly scheduled blog posts....what...we don't adhere to a regular schedule on this blog....well never mind...I am sure you get the idea.

Anyway, allow me to summarize the event thus far (since our last post):

1. Great Sunday meeting at Keruso Bible Church. Good message (about the genealogies in Nehemiah...no kidding)

2. Invited some friends in the church to visit our house on Tuesday. Very excited to get to do this as these folks have a little girl of just the right age.

3. This morning Dawn is sick with some stomach flu. (thankfully, she only has vomitted once, so she is keeping hydrated but she seems to have some fever with it too).

4. I am staying home today to feed and school kids and take care of Dawn as she requires. (If you didn't guess this is the husband writing this, very happy that the net is back on).

cheers

The good days, the bad days and the mundane days.

I have to be inspired to write here. So when life is not that interesting or less than pleasant it's hard to write and be dull and depressing. Questions and comments inspire me :) Or if I come up with a particularly catchy title. So if you want more information - ask away.

The good, the bad and the mundane. Seems like life reflects life back home.

Life in India is good when:

The baby sleeps right when you want him to and takes nice LONG naps.
The girls spend all day playing with minimal fighting and don't trash the place.
They focus on school and do everything without balking.
They are thrilled to be able to cout to 5 in Hindi. (If we can get them to 9 they will be useful if anyone needs to call customer service. Thanks Adriane for that one.)
The girls actually eat Indian food and ask for seconds.
You have a maid come in and wash your floors and bathrooms every weekday.
Your maid teaches you how to make Chipatti's (similar to a tortilla)
You discover cooking with gas is a piece of cake.
You get a little more settled every day.
You find something imported at the store that's just like home! Cause for rejoicing!
They have Kentucky Fried Chicken in India.
They have Papa John's in India - and they DELIVER to your building.
You meet other people in your building complex from the states that have kids too.
You hear from people back home and know you haven't fallen off the face of the earth.
You think the next 49 weeks will be a piece of cake.

Life in India is bad when:

The baby is fussy ALL day long and doesn't want to do anything but eat
The girls fight all day long and trash the place.
When the girls aren't fighting they are playing with the baby - even when you've just gotten him to sleep.
They look at you like a deer in headlights when you ask them to pick up and frustration turns to anger lightening quick.
You are so tired you want to curl up in a ball and just hibernate for the next year.
Your whole body just aches.
You have to stop at 2 different stores just to buy bread and milk.
You want to cry, but if you start don't think you will ever stop.
Just about everyone is hard to understand - and they think the same of you.
You can't sit around and eat bon-bons while someone else cleans your house - so you spend each afternoon trying to do as much as the maid does.
You don't have the right kind of flour to make Chipatti's correctly - and you had no idea there was more than 1 kind of flour.
You still have piles of stuff on every horizontal surface and despair that you will ever get it all put away.
You fail to do the calculations on the prized imported item at the store - only to discover you paid $11 for a normal sized container of parmesan cheese.
Philidelphia cream cheese is $6. Thank goodness I didn't buy it.
It's the middle of the day and I can't talk to anyone because it's the middle of the night back home.
I'm too exhausted at night to stay awake to talk to anyone back home.
It's the beginning of week 3 and how am I ever going to survive the next 49 weeks.

Life in India is mundane too.

We get up.
We call people back home.
We try to get the girls to clean up, get dressed and start school
It's lunchtime before I know it.
The maid shows up and the race to clean begins.
We try to finish school
Madeline will occasionally nap in the afternoon
The maid leaves and it's time to start dinner.
Dinner is a pre-packaged Indian dish (think indian food in an MRE type package) and I heat it up and make rice to go with it.
We spend some more time on the computer with people back home.
We put the kids to bed.
We stay up a bit longer and fall into bed - only to do it again tomorrow.

Thanks to all who have emailed, posted on here or on facebook, chatted on here, facebook or skype. Scott now knows what he has to get to get our Indiana phone # working over here. I will let you know when it's up and running.

I love hearing from everyone.

Dawn

We are all fine.

We didn't even know anything about the turmoil in Mumbai until my mother-in-law told us when we woke up this morning. India is about to have elections and there are some groups stirred up hoping to impact the outcome of those elections. Pune is a small (by Indian standards) and likelihood of us being in danger is minimal.

We are taking precautions and are being safe.

We are looking forward to our first Thanksgiving in Pune.

I'll post more as we know it.

Dawn

Random Thoughts

I'm up at 5:30 again this morning. I think my body just doesn't like the rock hard mattress, but I have an egg carton mattress pad coming in our shipment later today. I'm also learning to enjoy the quiet of early morning. The kids are getting up later and later as they adjust to the new time zone. Maddie came to me yesterday and said she got up early to watch the sun rise. We have a gorgeous view of it every morning from our kitchen window.

I found a book about how to adjust to moving among my Mom's things. It is very good and helpful - I just can't read it without crying. I can almost hear her telling me the exact same thing. I'm starting to miss her very much.

One of the hardest things to adjust to is feeling incompetent at everything. I haven't figured out where to go grocery shopping yet. I'm having to re-learn basic household chores: dishes, laundry, cooking & grocery shopping.

The girls have been having a dietary rebellion. Joanna is the leader. She is insisting that she doesn't like something - without tasting it. We've been gracious up until this point - and I'm not overly fond of Indian food either - but she is learning to at least try something before declaring "I don't like this so much".

Our first Sunday at church went very well. I think Madeline was nervous because she pretty much just sat there for the first 30 minutes taking everything in. Sam was somewhat fussy but eventually fell asleep for all of 20 minutes or so. The service was similar to back home - just in a small room and nothing for the kids. Joanna and I got into a funny situation. She was reading a book and asked me what a word was. It was "whisper". When I told her she thought I was telling her to whisper and we went back and forth. I don't think she ever caught on.

Today will be another adventure in unpacking. This time a whole lot more than 11 suitcases.

Continue to pray. It's easy to get discouraged and exhausted and overwhelmed.

Dawn

Did you think we fell off the face of the earth?

well . . . we just fell off the grid - the power grid. Welcome to India.

Wednesday morning we lost power for a few hours and that knocked off my internet. Then @ 4 PM that afternoon we lost power again. Unusual for the second time in a day I thought but since it was my third day - I could go with the flow. And I kept waiting . . . and waiting . . . and waiting. Power eventually came back on Thursday night. I was over 24 hours without it! Now the explanation is typical - even for the US. They were putting in sewer lines for a new apartment building next door and they don't have a call before you dig program.

I do have a battery backup that will run a fan in every bedroom and the living room, the lights, certain outlets including the TV.

The high on Thursday was 91.


I went grocery shopping Thursday morning and was at least trying to buy the essentials so I can cook. I couldn't buy many perishables with the power outage, so I still can't cook - but at least I have staples such as flour (which isn't called flour) and sugar and spaghetti (Joanna's favorite) I even found Parmesan cheese! I went to the "western" store - so I will post again when I go to a real indian store.

Wednesday also brought a new indian thing in my life. A maid. I quickly learned that the floors (tile & laminate hardwood) get dusty and gritty very quickly. The kids' feet were black from just walking in our own apartment. There was no way with unpacking and trying to adjust that I was going to be able to do it. The maid for another ex-pat (ex-patriot, i.e. foreigner) couple was looking for more hours - so we hired her on a temporary basis. She gets paid 4000 rupees a month for working 4 hours 5 days a week. Translation: @ 40 rupees to the $ it's $100 a month. Right now the rupee is 50 to the $.

I still have yet to cook a meal (unless ramen noodles count). When they came to show us the stove - we have to turn the gas on from the container on every time we cook. They told us to open the window next to the stove and DON'T turn on the light. Needless to say I'm still working on the courage to use the stove. We had Papa John's delivery the first 2 nights and an oriental place the third. Thursday night we ventured out with the kids. There was a home store next to McDonalds - what more could you ask for (Joanna could). We were buying a dryer. Well . . . drying rack really. It even fit in our car. Then our first experience at an Indian McDonalds. No chicken nuggets, no hamburgers (of course). I was smart enough to get a McChicken with no sauce. Scott didn't have the foresight to do the same with the kids happy meals. Joanna and Maddie both just balked and refused to touch it. Joanna did pick at the top of the bun and Maddie took one bite. At this point jet lag was starting to catch up with me and I didn't care because personally it wouldn't have been hugely appealing either. Scott did his best to get them to eat and Joanna eventually at about 1/3 of her chicken after he scraped off all of the sauce. The french fries were good.

That's pretty much the latest. I have power. I have internet. I had 3 kids that slept til 6 AM. Life is good in India - right now. Today is adventures in laundry now that I have a drying rack. I do have a relatively new Neptune washing machine - even more high tech than my one at home.

I'll keep you posted.

Love and prayers - I miss you all.

Dawn

We have moved in and have internet!

Now the blow by blow.

Everything started out very well with a nice breakfast at my in-laws and then we headed to the new Indianapolis Airport where the "fun" began and hasn't really ended. We checked in only to find that our 11 pieces of luggage could not be checked to Mumbai due to our extended layover in Amsterdam. We took what we could get and headed through check-in with our 5 carry on's, 5 personal bags (containing 3 laptops), diaper bag, camera bag, 2 car seats, stroller and 5 jackets. We made it just in time to start boarding and the flight to Detroit was uneventful - except for the fact that we had 20 minutes to make it to our connecting flight to Amsterdam. We were rushing and the plane was full and tried to get the kids and us settled ASAP. The kids were very good through the flight and the personalized entertainment center saved us many a headache. We also experienced our first medical emergency on a flight. I'm not sure what the problem was - but was interesting.

We arrived on-time in the Amsterdam airport and Scott went to check on our luggage to see if there was any way we could re-check it in. The kids were exhausted and I was trying to get them to rest while we waited when . . . Maddie threw up all over. We then began the arduous process of trying to leave the airport. We had a stroller, a train of carry-ons and 4 carts of luggage and a sick child. Thankfully Sam fell asleep right before Maddie threw up and slept the entire time. We would push a couple of carts, then go back for the rest throughout immigration and customs - then Scott saw a sign for baggage storage and we ended up getting lockers for the luggage. The kids and I waited for about 45 minutes and I found that the diaper baggies to hold dirty diapers also double well for a puking child. The kids and I proceeded on the shuttle to the hotel while Scott took the final load to store. We immediately went to bed as soon as the sun was coming up. We slept for about 8 hours and then had a very short Saturday - about 6 hours before going back to bed. We really didn't sleep well that night and Maddie was still throwing up. We even talked about delaying the trip and staying an extra day in Amsterdam - but decided not to. We left for the airport @ 6:15 local time right after Maddie threw up for the final time.

We arrived in plenty of time to get the luggage and get checked in. We were just headed to immigration when we were stopped by a KLM customer (NO)service. The lady was incredulous that Scott was pulling 5 carry-ons and told us we were taking too much baggage and we would have to check it. We had just spent $300 paying for an extra bag and I was not pleased. I tried to tell her that I had read the allowance on the internet and that it was within the limit and she just said she would call ahead to the gate to make sure they were informed. I was soo upset I couldn't decide if I wanted to throw up - or just cry. When we got to the gate we were of course told we had too much. I was arguing that we had 5 paying passengers and got it whittled down to 1 bag - when we asked how much - she said - no charge. What a relief! If we would have just asked in the beginning - there wouldn't have been a fuss. We ended up gate checking 4 of our 5 carry-ons and proceeded to Mumbai. The flight was uneventful except for our 2nd back-to-back medical emergency - they couldn't wake one of the passengers. We were close enough to this one to see that he was ok. Then we got to chaos. We had at least 3 porters eager to please (i.e. get paid) and our luggage was taken through customs and re-checked for the flight for Pune. The biggest obstacles were the customs guy not having a clue what caulk was and they were upset that we were leaving a "secured" area without our bags - but the porters helped us out of that one too. Even with just under 1/2 of our carry-ons still took 2 cars to the hotel that night. We had a decent nights sleep followed by a 24 minute flight to Pune. We were greeted by more porters - but this set didn't have quite the $$ signs in their eyes. We left the airport in 3 cars and found out through phone calls that someone could meet us with keys at our new apartment. We eagerly agreed and the drivers hauled everything up (using elevators of course) 8 floors.

Hindsight is - we should have stayed @ the hotel that night. Nesting instinct kicked into overdrive and I started unpacking immediately. By about 4 all the kids were asleep and Scott was too. We had NO food in the house (except a can of chicken soup that my friend Wendy convinced me to take - thanks Wendy). In addition to no food we had to local currency - which all the delivery places required. So Scott in a hazy sleep deprived state ventured out to get money and at least some basics. We couldn't figure out the gas stove - so our options were limited. Ramen anyone?

The night was rough - I just took Sam to bed with us and he was content as long as he was nursing. Then about 2 the girls started getting up saying they weren't tired. We tried to tell them to go back to bed. I think Joanna got dressed about 3ish and finally Scott went to lay down with them. As long as someone was with them - they would stay in bed. We ended up sleeping til 7 (interrupted of course) and then Scott headed off to work - a waiting cell phone was too much to pass up on.

Day 2 was in some ways rougher. I had most of the toys unpacked - so the girls were in hog heaven. I decided (soo unwisely) that Sam's problem was lack of a schedule. I decided I wasn't going to feed him except every 3 hours. I got him to sleep and about every 15-20 minutes he would start crying. Walking him in the stroller helped until about 10ish - I dutifully fed him, he played for awhile and then was tired and the battle that lasted the next 3 hours began. He screamed for what seemed like an eternity. Every time I put him down, every time I tried to get him to sleep. Finally 2:30 into this I gave in and fed him again. He fell asleep 1/2 way through but only for an hour. Finally after a round of baby food he finally conked out.

I'm turning into a pumpkin. Day 2 down - many more to come. We are working on getting a driver and our shipment so many more adventures ahead.

Dawn

We are now in Mumbai (Bombay to all you Americans...)

We just got through the ordeal at the airport. Bag porters are nice for when you got lots of luggage, except for the over paying....

In any event we are set up to go to Pune in the morning. Maddie is doing better. Everyone is trying to rest while Daddy is typing on the blog and confirming our ground transport in Pune......cheers

We just flew in to Amsterdam

Daddy's arms are tired
Maddie had an upset tummy (very upset..... :-(

We are getting there.....Just got confirmation that our apartment will be available. Also our air shipment has arrived in Mumbai....lots to do when we get there. We leave Schiphol Airport at 10 am tomorrow morning. (it is now almost 11 pm here, so long and good night....or is that afternoon?)

Move Postponed

Our move has been postponed until November 13th. See my Zook family news site for more details.

Our new "house"

I know some of you have been waiting to hear about our new home. We have one picked out and here are pictures. I am going to get my oven! Scott's going to post additional pictures soon - so keep checking the slideshow for more pictures.

Back again in Pune.....

Scott here: I arrived in Mumbai on schedule Sunday evening. There was a mix up in the booking of the hotel as there are two Hyatt hotels in town here. I asked for the airport hotel (the Hyatt Regency, evidently), but got put up in the Grand Hyatt. The domestic flight from Mumbai to Pune is a very short affair (less than 1/2 hour). I actually spent at least as much time in the air terminal as on the plane. It is hotter outside during the day than it has been at home, but not unbearable yet.

Not much has changed in a year, but you do see some new shops (including the Papa John's pizza that was under construction last year) open. India has very much maintained it's shocking mix of prosperity and poverty mixed with the tangled mass of humanity. I am still dumbfounded at the practices on the various construction sites. On the way to the office, yesterday, I caught site of a man standing on about a 7 - 8 in ledge on the third (or is that second) floor of a building. No rail, no safety straps of any kind. Reaching over his head to his full extension, white washing the trim of the building he was in. The tin shacks, the stray dogs, beggars and children, all of it is still here.

I got to go look at housing today. All seemed like nice places in their own rights, however, no one wants to provide a full power back up, so this is making me nervous regarding frozen and refrigerated goods. So goes the conventional experience here in India. They say the power cut offs are getting fewer and fewer, but in this new hotel I am staying in, I counted at least 6 times the lights dimmed out until the back up engaged.

About the hotel, this time I am staying in a new place called the "O". Very modern feel, very abstract artish. The room is comfortable (nice bath tub). They have ok broadband (only 256kbs :-( ), which is good enough for Skype. They have 2 restaurants (I have only so far eaten at the breakfast buffet and then a couple of meals all from the main one. The other is a Japanese themed place that I have yet to explore.

I got in contact with the same missionaries that we visited with last time. They have a church picnic planned for this Sunday, so I will be trying to join them if I can (kind of depends on the driver).

Unfortunately, the one expat couple whom we met last year is currently on vacation, but will return before I have to leave, so they did invite me for dinner on Oct. 9. I have a bunch of stuff we plan to leave with them in preparation to our landing with the kids.

That's all for now. My wife and I will be discussing the housing options this evening.

Halloween is IT!

Scott's official start date is November 3rd. We will most likely travel on Halloween and be in Pune on November 1st. Scott leaves for a combination house hunting/orientation trip September 27th (or close to it - plane ticket still has to be bought).

Lot's to do in the next 6 weeks.

I'll post more as we know it.

Dawn

Visa's Come Tomorrow!

The visa's have been our biggest obstacle so far. They should be overnighted and arrive tomorrow. Scott is having a teleconference tomorrow to determine our initial itinerary. We also found a possible buyer for our cars (an Indian doing an Ex-pat assignment here).

We are planning on doing much of our communication via Skype - an internet phone company. If anyone would like to install the program and contact us - email me and if we like you :) we'll let you know our user name. Our phone number will also work - just double check the time before you call :)

There is also a way that we can get mail and small packages - I will let you know more details as they become available.

I'll update again tomorrw.

Dawn