Indian Lavatorputer Room, Police Roadblock, Automobile Repair (Using A Roof)

I wish to introduce to you the office that I created for myself, out of necessity, at Amanbagh (patent pending). I have yet to name it but leading contenders are: The Indian Lavatorputer Room, the Post-Curry-CPU-o-Potty, and the Internet-Where-and-When-I-Need-It Facility. The pictured office has the following benefits: 1. Extreme multitasking, 2. Instant relief from Mahatma's Revenge while blogging, 3. No need to leave the office for any reason ever again.

And now a story that I previously neglected to include: During the drive from Jaipur to Alwar (the one during which Karin was horribly ill), we had been following a Jeepish car that had about 14 people inside and at least eight others on the roof. I had been marveling at how this mob of people was managing to stay on that tiny vehicle on a highway when we suddenly came upon a police checkpoint. The police waived the overloaded car over to the side of the road. I found myself pitying the poor driver who was obviously about to receive the fine of his life (or, more likely, pay a small bribe). The Jeep driver pulled over to the side of the road and, much to my surprise, beckoned for more people to get onto the roof. Apparently there was a bus stop next to the police roadblock and the police were just helping to get people where they wanted go - regardless of how insanely dangerous the mode of travel.

And one last story: While being driven in an Ambassador through Agra, our driver announced that he was having engine trouble. He pulled over and popped the hood. He and the guide messed around under the hood for a minute and then walked over to a stall at the side of the road. The driver then climbed up on a small platform and started ripping things off a makeshift roof that he found. He was, of course, fixing his engine. In India nothing goes to waste. Even a crumbling roof can be used to fix a car engine, for example. The picture below that of our driver creating car parts out of a roof is of the "engine" of his car. Do you see an engine there? To me it looks like someone made off with his engine and left the battery, some cooling hoses, and a water-bottle. But that, ladies and gentlemen, constitutes the entire propulsion system of this fine automobile.

D E L H I ( f i n a l e m e n t )

Delhi became our hub in the north. Karin had flown into Delhi and had returned to Delhi following her stint in the Himalayas. I had flown to Delhi from Mumbai to meet her there. Our itinerary together ended up being Delhi - Agra - Delhi - Varanasi - Delhi - Jaipur - Alwar - Delhi. That looks like a lot of Delhi but a good portion of the Delhi time was spent either traveling or relaxing. I now present to you Jaime and Karin's Daring Delhi Diary:

On February 28, we had arranged for a “half-day tour” of Delhi through the Oberoi Hotel. They had told us that we would have a guide and driver for 4 hours. We met the guide and began our trip to Old Delhi to see the Red Fort. Forts are a big draw in India. These are enormous structures that housed small cities. They were built to protect against the constantly-marauding armies that traveled through the region in the 15^th, 16^th, and 17^th centuries. They were constructed to the specifications of an emperor who would preside over the population that lived within. The Red Fort was built by the Moghuls in the 1600's. When it was originally erected, many of the structures were inlaid with gold and precious jewels. After centuries of plunder, every last bobble has been torn from every wall, floor, ceiling, and adornment. Many of the original buildings are still standing although the British Army took it over for decades and built unsightly barracks and other buildings within.

We also visited the largest mosque in India and various Ghandi (Mahatma and Indira) and Nehru memorials (there have been a lot of assassinations in India). The tour was going very well…. Then, after almost 2 hours, the guide announced that they were done. We politely reminded him that we had arranged for a 4 hour tour of Delhi. He informed us that 4 hours was based upon the time it takes when there is normal traffic in Delhi. Because it was Sunday there was no traffic at all. Our position was that we had arranged for the tour on a Sunday to avoid sitting in traffic for 2 hours. But he was adamant – and even refused our offer to pay him extra to show us the rest of Delhi. Apparently he had to be somewhere. After protesting briefly we decided to go our own way and to take it up with the hotel later on.

We had him let us off at The Imperial, a nice, centrally-located hotel. After a quick perusal of the hotel we made our way to an enormous Sikh Temple called Gurdwara Bangla Sahib. Five minutes later, we were among thousands of Sikhs. We were directed to an office where we were told to remove our shoes and to don bright orange headdresses . We then were directed to the main temple area. There was an enormous throng of people walking barefoot on wet marble. This was not pleasant for me. While interesting to see the wild rainbow of colorful turbans making its way around the compound, I could not stop thinking that I was now sharing fungal intimacies with 10,000+ people, many of whom may possibly live in less than ideal hygienic environments.

Once we were done appreciating those local customs, we made our way back to The Oberoi and complained about our guide and driver. Two minutes later, after apologies from the hotel staff, we were set up with another guide and driver for the rest of the day. We had a leisurely lunch and headed out. This time our guide was interested in showing us as much as possible until we had enough. Unfortunately we did not head out with him until almost 4:00 PM and most sites close at 5:30 PM. We rushed to the Lotus Temple, a Bahai place of worship, whose design symbolizes nine religions. The temple itself is quite nice to look at but the operation that brings thousands of people through the structure each day is really impressive.

From the temple we made our way to the Parliament Houses and the home of the President. The buildings are enormous and impressive and are overrun by monkeys. There were at least a dozen monkeys milling about when we got there. Apparently the powers that be have decided to co-exist with what are generally regarded as nuisances (the monkeys) rather than do anything drastic to be rid of them.

One amusing Delhi episode: Karin had two enormous bags from the Himalayas trip that we did not want to lug around India. We asked at the Oberoi if they would hold them for us and deliver them to us at the airport when we were leaving. The concierge suggested we use a service by the airport and gave us the details.

Thus, on our way to Varanasi, we packed the extra bags and took them to the Delhi airport. Upon arrival at the airport we went directly to the baggage check. It was in a small building to the side of a parking lot with zero security. I walked into a decrepit room with about 10 bags on shelves and no one at the wide-open door. I couldn't believe the Oberoi had suggested this. I thought to myself: A. Is someone really going to take our dirty laundry? B. If someone does take our dirty laundry, it will probably be put to very good use, and C. I am not lugging these two enormous bags around India for the next week. And so I paid the 22 Rupees (fifty cents) per bag, took the laughable receipt, tipped the guy who had shown me what to do (lest he decide to help himself to his own tip), and wished for the best.

Upon our return to pick up the bags 6 days later, almost everything was intact. In fact, we fared significantly better than I had expected. In case you are considering leaving any fine jewelry or electronics at the Delhi bag-check, I am going to go out on a limb here and suggest you find something more secure.

Amanbagh II, Holi and Kurta Pajama, The People's Court, Whale Watching

Now that Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) is appearing in the nude in Equus, exactly who will divert their attention to a blog about our travels and travails? The answer is everyone (now that I have mentioned the Naked Harry Potter)!

It's 4:00 PM in Delhi right now and I am feeling alert and energetic. Unfortunately I am not in that time zone. I am in San Diego, where it is the middle of the night. I don't know if I will be able to sleep anymore tonight. If not, I apologize in advance to my clients who may experience a somewhat lethargic interview later this morning.

And this just in: I received a letter from The People's Court upon my arrival in San Diego. They want to know if I might be interested in taking my Small Claims Case against our horrible movers to Judge Marilyn Milian. She films in New York... so perhaps we'll make a trip out of it (that would definitely be blogworthy!).

Now back to India: As mentioned in the post below, we continued our celebration of Holi on Day 2 of our stay at Amanbagh. Day 2 of Holi involves getting dressed up in Kurta Pajama and then covering everyone you can in color from head to toe. I snapped a few pics at the beginning of the fray and then a few at the end but I couldn't risk drenching the camera. Therefore the most intense part of the color war was not recorded.

Following the frenzied color exchange we all returned to Amanbagh to get cleaned up, relax, and have lunch. I had Indian food and Karin did not. In fact, I had Indian food for every meal from that time until we landed in Chicago (we were on a 15 hour American Airlines flight from Delhi to Chicago). We are both still enduring stomach issues.

Have I mentioned that travel in India is tough? Well, it is. I have traveled in Thailand, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, and all over Europe and North America, and I have never before felt like the traveling itself was difficult. While I thoroughly enjoyed India, found it at times fascinating, at times stunning, and at times enriching, it was, at times, difficult. There is a steep learning curve to travel in India and I think it took me almost a week on the ground and in the trenches to get up to speed. That being said, I definitely will return - especially now that I have learned the ropes (and I have Eric's credit card number).

We are scheduled to go whale-watching with my flying club (Flying Eagles) in a week. That trip involves flying private planes down to Mulege in Baja California, Mexico, on the Sea of Cortez. On Day 2 of the trip all of us fly from the Sea of Cortez side to the Pacific side and land at Laguna San Ignacio, a gray whale sanctuary. I have not done the trip before but I have seen the pictures of fellow Eagles kissing whales as they come out to greet their human guests. Looks incredible. After the whale watching the group (22 planes scheduled) flies back to Mulege for the night.

Hey, Rash just joined me in the kitchen (3:22 AM)! By the way, it's Rash's birthday tomorrow. We're babysitting but HM says we should go out for dinner. And not to Chuck E. Cheese (phew!).

Harry did offer to order Indian food for us after our arrival in San Diego. The offer alone set back Karin's recovery by a week.

Wonderful A M A N B A G H and the Celebration Of Holi

It is hard to imagine a more stark contrast between life inside Amanbagh and life everywhere else we have been on this trip. It is difficult to believe that what we saw yesterday exists in the same country as what we are witnessing today.

As RJ, a Delhi-based Equity-Fund Manager that we met here, said to me earlier (and I paraphrase), "If you spend 6 weeks in India riding the trains, witnessing the stark contrasts in this country, you cannot help but become a philosopher." To give you some idea of what I am speaking of, the tiny village we visited today has no electricity. Now take the image you have of that village, and imagine the opposite... That's where we are today.

Our trip to Amanbagh:


When Karin woke up on March 3, she was not well. We both attribute that to the highly-recommended, yet unfortunate, lunch we had on top of the city wall in Jaipur. We had arranged to be picked up at 10:30 AM to be taken to Amanbagh. But Karin was not feeling up to it. When the driver arrived, I asked if he would wait. I returned to the room and asked Karin if I should tell the driver that she would not be able to go at all that day. She was hesitant at first, but I spelled out just how therapeutic Aman would be and she agreed to go.

We made our way down to the waiting car. As you can see in the first picture of this post, she fashioned a cocoon for herself in the car in an effort to endure the 2 hour ride. Getting out of Jaipur was particularly unpleasant as traffic was a mess. Once we were on the highway the drive was fine - but Karin was not. She had us stop a couple of times on the way to get some fresh air (euphemism).

While Karin may not have seen much more than the inside of her green scarf, the drive was very interesting. We passed through a number of villages and shared the road with many different modes of transportation. Ubiquitous were cars and trucks with many people on the roof. When the roof is full they they hang outside the vehicles. We saw cars built for 6 with more than 20 people hanging on - tearing down the highway! Those ovepacked vehicles share the road with, among other things, enormous trucks, tiny tuk tuks, and camels. Of course cows and other animals often wander into the middle of the road as well. This was the first time I've ever felt like driving myself would be unpleasant.

The roads in India are chaotic and obstacles are ubiquitous and dynamic. People drive so aggressively that any tiny mistake is a guaranteed accident. And, in fact, our vehicles in Delhi and Varanasi did touch other vehicles more than once (in Varanasi our driver got out of the car and slapped the driver of a motorbike that he had hit).

Eventually, we turned off the major roads and onto unpaved and little-used roads. We drove through beautiful, barren landscapes dotted with tiny rural villages. The contrast from the loud, dangerous frenzy of urban India to the quiet rural landscape was wonderful.

Arrival at Amanbagh

Driving onto the Aman property is striking. From a distinctly harsh and rugged countryside with nothing more than tiny remote villages populating the miles around it, we entered a beautiful, manicured oasis. We drove up to what resembles a modern palace and were greeted by the waiting staff, who gave us refreshing towels, introduced themselves to us, and then took Karin to the room so that she could sleep.

Walking through this serene and immaculate setting after the constant bombardment of our senses over the past 2 weeks was fantastic.

Karin went straight to sleep and slept until late afternoon. I explored the property and did some reading. Pure relaxation.

We happen to be here for the celebration called Holi (also known as the Festival of Colours). Here is part of Wikipedia's description of Holi:

"On the first day, a bonfire is lit at night to signify burning Holika. On the second day, known as Dhulandi, people go around until afternoon throwing colored powder and water at each other. A special drink called thandai is prepared, sometimes containing bhang. People invite each other to their houses for feasts and celebrations later in the evening. "

On our first evening here, the hotel brought us to a neighboring village to celebrate Holi with the villagers. They built a huge bonfire in a field in the village. We were then given long poles with vegetation tied to the the end of each. We and the villagers stuck our poles into the raging bonfire - a ritual that is used to encourage a good harvest. Once the poles were burnt, the men of the village danced around the fire while the women made a circle of their own and a few young girls danced in the middle.


Following that Holi celebration (which would continue the next day), we returned to Amanbagh for dinner. Amanbagh has a Western Menu and an Indian menu. As much as we adore Indian food, and as much as we want to eat Indian food, we are both hesitant to do so at this point as our stomachs have been sending regular SOS pleas to us for the past few days.

So, at each meal, we go through serious soul searching: Do we dare test our biological and digestive prowess again? Or do we order the club sandwich? Do we take that precarious step into the culinary abyss at another attempt at gastronomic nirvana? Or do we have toast instead?

Karin has not risked eating Indian food in days. I, on the other hand, have had it almost every meal. And I have the digestive issues to prove it.

Following dinner we made our way to our haveli (what they call each of the living spaces here) and went to sleep.

I awoke early the next morning and went on a trek to a nearby former tiger-hunting area of the Maharajahs. Built into the rock was a seat where the Maharaja could sit with his rifle. He would then have dozens or more villagers form an enormous semi-circle around the animals in the wild. The villagers would bang drums and make noise to scare the animals closer and closer to the Maharajah's seat. They would close in the semi-circle so that the Maharahs would be able to effortlessly kill the prey of their choice. I think our guide said the practice was called Hakata. It was so effective a hunting technique that tigers are now extinct in the area.

During the hike through the serene and stunning countryside, we came upon monkeys, parrots, camels, parakeets, peacocks, and a host of other creatures (luckily for them the Maharajahs' egos were connected primarily to tigers and other big game). Once at the "throne", the guides brought out ginger chai and almond cookies and we sat on rocks enjoying what was once the Maharajahs' personal playground.


On the way back, we passed through a few villages and saw small structures that are used as lookout towers. The pic below is of a villager on guard for wild animals (no tigers to worry about mind you).

Present on the hike were two attorneys from Sao Paolo and an equity investment manager (and his lab) who spent the last 7 years in Hong Kong and who has recently moved to Delhi. I learned all about how the court system works in Brazil and something about Asian equity management. It was on this walk that I was also told about another part of the celebration of Holi - that being the drinking of bhang. While I could not get a definitive answer about what the drink is, it sounded to me like the "special lassi" that I had read about while researching our trip. What I was told is that everyone drinks it, but only around the time of Holi. I made a note-to-self to ask about it back at the hotel.


Following the trek, we all had to get ready for the big Holi celebration we were going to attend in another nearby village. Holi is also known as the Festival of Colors because on day 2 of the celebration everyone gets dressed in Kurta Pajamas and then sprays everyone around them with bright colors and water. And that's exactly what we did. We headed into the village in our pristine white kurta pajamas and had a huge color and water fight with the villagers. I think the villagers won but they have had centuries of practice. Karin had a particularly intense color exchange with one little girl and ended up much more colorful than the little girl.

Once we were sufficiently ensconced in color, everyone gathered in a circle, bongos were brought out, and the dancing began... men only, mind you. Seems like the men and women dance separately, much like in the more devout reaches of our own culture.

The dancing lasted a little while and then the guests (us) were brought before the Village Elders. The Elders had remained outside the fray and had no color on them. I was handed some color and was instructed to put color on the Elders. I walked from Elder to Elder and placed color on each of their faces. What qualifies me to do such a thing? Excellent question. Maybe the Village Elders like the blog?

Following the crazed Holi color-fight and celebration, we returned to Aman and went for lunch. Western or Indian? Indian or Western. True to form, I went Indian and Karin went Western. The rest of the afternoon was spent by the pool and in the library reading. Very enjoyable.

I should describe the pool and the library. The pool is magnificent. It is built out of turquoise marble and is enormous, beautiful, and surrounded by pink modified-Moghul architecture. The library is also a pleasure as it contains a fabulous collection of dozens of superb coffee-table books about Indian life, Indian art, Indian religion, Indian geography, Indian history, the Maharajas, and much more. It is a tremendous place to learn more about what we have been experiencing over the past weeks and what has transpired over the last few thousand years to evolve into modern India.

At 7:00 PM, Karin and I departed on a night-trek to a temple with our guide for Aarti, a fire ceremony performed twice daily, and at the end of holidays (such as Holi). We entered the temple and two men began an interactive drumming with each other. Each of them held a circular medal cymbal in one hand and a hammer in the other. They faced each other and would each raise one hand in unison. The one would strike the cymbal the other was holding and then they would alternate. The result was a deep trance-like rhythmic sound that filled the small marble structure.

Behind the two percussionists, an older bearded man appeared (we were later told he is a local religious leader and is 130 years old). He lifted a plate of candles and began waiving them around and chanting in a little worship room that we could partially see through a marble screen. He finished the ritual in that room and then came into ours. Once he had emerged, we could see that he had a school-bell in his other hand. As he waived the candles with one hand, he would ring the bell with the other. He went up to each of the gods that was represented in the room and waived his candles and rang his bell. Once he was done with the main temple room he went into another temple room. And then to a small worship area outside. And then to another across the street. And then to a different room across the street. Each time he would chant, waive his candles, and ring his bell, and all the while, the cymbal players continued with their own beat. Karin, for much of the ceremony, sat cross-legged on the floor with her eyes closed, in mediation.

Following the end of the ceremony, we walked back to the Aman and once again faced the Western vs. Indian Menu dilemma. True to form, Karin went Western (gnocchi) and I went Indian (amazing Rajasthani lamb dish).

This morning Karin is again not feeling 100%. She canceled her morning yoga and is taking it easy. I, on the other hand, am feeling strong and healthy.

We are leaving on a flight that departs from Delhi after midnight tonight. Our trip home will involve another 2 hour drive - this time to the Jaipur airport. Hopefully Karin is feeling better by the time we leave, late this afternoon. We will then be flying Jaipur-Delhi-Chicago-San Diego. Total flying time is a bit over 20 hours.

There is much more about this trip that I have yet to post. I expect to be able to catch up a bit between flights, though it will probably not be possible to post any pictures until we are back in San Diego.

Amanbaugh is highly recommended.

Jaipur, The Pink City: Last Frenetic Stop Before Amanbagh

We have arrived in Rajasthan. It's 6:15 AM on March 3, 2007. Yesterday we took an early morning flight from Delhi. Unfortunately there had been dense fog in the morning and when it cleared there was a backlog of airplanes trying to get clearances. We ended up waiting over 2 hours to get a clearance (to contact ground!) and our 30 minute flight ended up taking 3.5 hours. It's always something it seems.

After about an hour of waiting with the door closed, ready to taxi, the woman sitting next to Karin (I was by the window and she was in the middle seat), called a flight attendant over and sternly told her that she wanted to get off the plane because her meeting in Jaipur was going to be over by the time she got there. The FA was gracious and tried to calm her down but Karin's neighbor began getting really irate. The FA said she would work on it. From that point on, every time an FA came by, our neighbor would give her an earful. Finally, the pilot made an announcement over the PA and said that although he was sympathetic, it would be impossible to let people off because that would activate a bunch of security issues which would delay us significantly and might mean losing our place in the queue to get clearance (it had taken 2 hours to get from 35th to 2nd). The woman was incensed. She called over an FA and said that she would not allow the plane to take off if she was not permitted to exit immediately. The FA said they were working on it and eventually told her that security would be by to escort her off. Fifteen minutes later, the FA came by and whispered to our neighbor that she could leave. The woman was escorted off the plane and the door was closed. The pilot then came over the PA (in a thick Australian accent): Ladies and Gentlemen, We apologize for this delay. The passenger was allowed to deplane and we managed to keep our place in the queue. We will be taxiing in 2 minutes. Just so you know, that passenger did not advantage herself in any way. She was taken away by security and will be held until the plane lands in Jaipur and is cleared. It will be up to them how to handle her after that.

About 35 minutes later we were landing in Jaipur (note that driving or taking the train to Jaipur takes 5 to 6 hours on a clear day). Once in Jaipur we grabbed a cab (through the "government prepaid office") and headed to the Sheraton Rajputana. The hotel itself is nothing to blog home about but it was really hard to get anything so last-minute in Jaipur.

We had decided to do a walking tour of the old city that is laid out in Lonely Planet Rajasthan. I had a train ticket that I had to cancel and the concierge told us that the train station was just behind the hotel - "walking distance".

Karin, I apologize for that walk. While it only took 4 or 5 minutes, it was disgusting. When people, cows, dogs, monkeys, and goats use roads as lavatories, they require regular street cleaning. As street cleaning has apparently not yet come to Jaipur, pedestrian activity is to be avoided.

We arrived at the train station, and while there was not a word of English on any of the signs, a couple of people in line immediately offered to help me navigate and I quickly ended up in the correct line with the correct form and accurate instructions as to how to proceed. People here are are constantly offering assistance (not just the touts).

Once the ticket was canceled we grabbed a cab and headed to the New Gate of the Old City. We had lunch at Ganesh Restaurant, which was recommended by Lonely Planet. Tons of tourists use the Lonely Planet guide so the place was full of non-Indians - even though it did not even have an English menu. It was actually an open-air concept on top of the old city wall itself. Food was tasty but neither of us reacted well to it. I think that is going to be our last adventurous meal of the trip... particularly since we are soon heading to Amanbagh.

Following a tasty lunch, we headed into the bazaars of the Old City. There are hundreds and hundreds of tiny shops - most with someone outside trying to pull people inside. Karin was tiring of being constantly approached by shopkeepers and others trying to sell us silk and silver and saris and... sweets (had to find something that started with "s"). But I was getting into it. I was haggling over prices and kidding with them. It's fun to see how fast the prices plummet when walking away from a shop. The further into Jaipur we got, the fewer tourists we saw, and the less we were approached. I don't think Karin enjoyed that walk as much as I did.

As you might expect, cows are all over Jaipur... but so are monkeys. It's quite something to be surprised by a dozen monkeys that show up out of nowhere and sit down to take in the view.

The walking tour ended at what I am guessing is the only McDonald's in Jaipur. We checked out the menu (click on the pic to see Paneer Wrap and more) and used it as an emergency bathroom stop. We then crossed the street to negotiate for a ride back to the hotel. Our choices were a taxi-van or a tuk tuk type open motorized 3-wheeled vehicle. Since we had paid 50 Rupees for a taxi (Ambassador) coming to the Old City, we balked at the 150 Rupees that the taxi driver quoted us. He immediately went to 100 Rupees. We told him we would pay the 50 Rupees (~$1.15) that we had paid to get there. He balked at that. After a serious standoff he was at 80. We then turned to the tuk tuk driver who was offering to take us for 50 then 40. Karin took over this negotiation. She was really standing her ground. Eventually the tuk tuk went to 35 rupees ("lower than Indian price") and Karin had squeezed the taxi driver down to 60 Rupees. We agreed to the 60 and took the taxi. The tuk tuk driver, who had been negotiating hard to get our business shook my hand warmly and smiled after we told him we'd be taking the taxi instead. I think he had enjoyed the 3-way bargaining session.

As soon as we were back at the hotel, Karin hit the bed. I, on the other hand, hit the internet. For the third time since I arrived, we failed to muster enough of an appetite to actually have a real dinner.

Overall I really enjoyed Jaipur. The haggling was fun and I like interacting with the shopkeepers and Jaipurians, and especially with the cute kids that are always interested in talking to us. I could do without the begging and the touting and the horrendous smells (I'm gagging just mentioning them) but that is part of the cost of visiting these places and one learns how to minimize that exposure after a while.

Here is the blog plan: Since I neglected to post for a number of days, I have a backlog waiting to be added. I'm going to post about all that from Amanbagh over the next 3 days. This is going to be a welcome respite following the hectic pace at which our senses have been confronted over the past week and a bit.

The pictures posted here are of some of the shops we walked by, lunch in the Old City of Jaipur, the Jaipur McDonald's, and a busy Old City roundabout replete with vehicles speeding in every direction and cows.

The Reunion, Italian Dinner, Debate, Farewell

We're together! Amazing as it may seem, all of our planning actually worked out and we ended up in Delhi at the same place at the same time. When I pulled up at The Oberoi I grabbed my bags and started for the entrance - through the 30 or so guests and staff cajoling for cars. I hadn't seen Karin and Anjum standing outside but luckily Anjum spotted me and called out my name just before I disappeared into the abyss. Here's the scene:

I heard my name and turned to see Karin smiling in the distance. Our eyes met, and suddenly everyone went silent, stopped moving, and turned their attentions intently on us. Then some classic Bollywood tune started playing. All the men gathered behind me and all the women gathered behind Karin... and started dancing. Oh how they danced! Time slowed down and we started running into each other's arms. Karin's hair was blowing in the wind, her sarong falling particularly beautifully in the moonlight... and I looked dashing in my Armani suit and white tie. As the dancers became more and more frenzied, we ran faster and faster into each other's arms, culminating in an incredible passion-induced embrace that seemed to last only a moment but in fact went on well into the next number. I wish you could all have been there (can never hurt to have more back-up dancers, you know).

Well, it was great to see Karin - and Anjum. They were outside because Anjum was just about to leave. And leave she did. After three and a half weeks together, Anjum and Karin bid each other adieu and Anjum drove off, leaving Karin with me! We made our way into the hotel chatting about what her trip had been like.

We then went upstairs and [PORTION EDITED OUT IN THE NAME OF DECENCY BY THE INDIAN MINISTRY OF INTERNET DIGNITY AND BLOGWORTHINESS]. Harry came back from the spa soon thereafter and by 10:00 PM we were having dinner in the ITALIAN restaurant here. Karin and Harry are apparently done with Indian food for a long long time (that's what Karin thinks). Dinner was delish. Inspired by a particularly good pasta dish, Harry will be learning Italian next year and we intend to parlare solamente in italiano thereafter.

We discussed their impressions of the trip, of India, of capital punishment, and of legalization of drugs. Harry is going to send out an email eventually but here is a brief summary of what they (primarily Harry) expressed to me (correct me if I'm wrong) in the form of debate and dialogue:

1. The ratio of lack-of-comfort to difference-they-were-making was too high. While they were willing to endure being cold and wet, without toilets and plumbing and general rudimentary conveniences, they would have preferred to make those sacrifices somewhere even more remote, helping people who had even less access to health care. You just can't satisfy these people when it comes to helping people in need.

2. Harry had his fill of India.

3. Harry supports a basic libertarian view of how governments should be approaching legislation in general.

After an enjoyable meal and at around midnight, we gathered Harry's things and accompanied him to the lobby for his farewell scene (fewer dancers but still good energy). He then left for the airport for his 2:30 AM flight (international flights arrive and leave at crazy times in India - usually in the middle of the night).

By the time he left I had been totally exhausted for hours... following my 2 hour sleep the previous night (if you call 6AM to 8AM "night") and no nap! We got back to the room and I passed out. I think Karin was using the internet at the time. I slept for almost 6 hours! I think I have finally acclimatized.

It's 9:30 AM now. We will have breakfast and then will explore Delhi. We are scheduled to do a day trip to Agra tomorrow and then to leave for Jaisalmer in western Rajasthan the next day. Karin and I have not had a chance yet to finalize our itinerary but will do so by tonight.

Karin And I Are In The Same Country. Tout Story.

Landed in Mumbai at 1 AM (technically Feb 22). Eric's driver, Ram, picked me up at the airport and took me to Colaba, where Eric lives. Arrived here about 2 AM. Total travel time door to door (Del Mar-Colaba) is in the vicinity of 32 hours.

Tourists are constantly complaining about so-called "touts" in India. These are the locals - usually taxi drivers - that constantly and tenaciously accost foreigners to try to get hired. They are particularly aggressive around train stations and airports where tourists report having really awful and unrelenting experiences with them.

So... Eric had told me that his driver would be waiting with a sign outside the terminal. I collected my bags and headed out - around 1:30 AM. There were dozens of people out there - mostly taxi drivers. And at least 25 signs being held up with individuals' names. I went through each one carefully but my name was nowhere to be found. I waited a few minutes and then decided that I had to call Eric to see if anyone was actually at the airport to meet me. I returned to the terminal and went up to a taxi guy and asked how I make a local call. He pointed to a phone and said "You have to call from that blue phone. You have to put one Rupee in for it to work." I had no rupees. And to get one Rupee (about 2.2 cents) was going to be a big pain in the butt. So I just kind of stared at him for a moment with a confused and forlorn look on my face (which is exactly what I was feeling). After about 10 seconds he reached into his pocket and gave me a Rupee. My very first act in India was out-touting a tout! Or, as Eric puts it, I landed in India and immediately started begging.

I thanked him profusely, made the call, found Ram, and was driven to Eric's apartment. We chatted for an hour and now it's bedtime. It's great to be here. Total sleep over the past 35 hours is approximately 2 hours.

Above is a pic from the plane after leaving London Heathrow.

Beautiful, Productive Day In The Himalayas. Karin In Charge. Singing. Dancing. I'm Leaving Tomorrow.

I just received a call from Dr. Rash. Today was a gorgeous day in the Himalayas. The team saw over 150 patients and there were many interesting cases. Lots of scabies and rashes. A fair number of years-old untreated spinal fractures. And they are seeing more of the heart-breaking mental-retardation cases where there is little that can be done.

Only 6 people out of the entire team has avoided sickness. Of our Intrepid Trio, only Karin has stayed consistently strong. I have had Karin on a steady diet of hearty Indian fare for the past decade and I attribute her resilience to my own resolute commitment to banghan bharta, saag paneer, chicken tikka masala, and raita.

The other physician on the trip decided that, since the sickness was of unknown origin, they should treat for typhoid (a la Dr. House for those of you familiar). So everyone was put on antibiotics. Karin's thought that more of a wait and see approach might be better - as in wait and see who slips into a coma and then treat.

Karin also described an incredible hike they took from a high mountain pass. They all got our of their Jeeps at 10,000 feet and had a wild no-holds-barred snowball-fight with the drivers. They then hiked up an additional 1500 feet and arrived at a peak that was absolutely spectacular. Incredibly memorable experience.

The lead of the trip has now departed. I think that means that Karin is now in charge. She's so modest about these things that it's hard to be sure but I did the math and according to my calculations when #1 goes home, the assistant to #1 becomes #1. So, I haven't completed the proof yet but I'm pretty sure she's numero uno.

The other night they had a serious rain storm. Everyone retired to their tents for the night. Some time later, Prem the Sherpa unexpectedly came around to make sure everyone was dry. Prem, on the other hand, was going from tent to tent in a torrential rainfall without any rain-gear whatsoever. He was sopping wet. That, in the eyes of our Explorers, made him even cuter than before (he's Karin's height).

Evening activity has improved markedly since Harry reported on the (possibly) rabid dogs that they would name, play with, and run from. The staff have been getting together with everyone and playing music, singing and dancing. Apparently their Indian hosts are talented musicians and it makes for wonderful entertainment. Inevitably the staff asks the Medical Team to sing something they know from their culture. Karin reports that the group then sheepishly tries to figure out something they all know and ultimately are stuck singing childhood camp songs such as "Row Row Row Your Boat" and "Michael Row Your Boat Ashore". They all feel quite pathetic when it's their turn but they swallow their pride and do their part to expose the gathered Sherpas, cooks and other Indian staff to quality North American culture. I'm going to suggest that they move on to Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star and Hava Nagila tonight if they feel up to it.

Meanwhile, back in San Diego (where it's storming today), I am doing some last-minute planning and packing. I had sent this website out to some beautiful hotels in India to see if they might consider discounting our stay to become part of this noble, yet entertaining, effort. Aman has graciously offered to do just that and I'm waiting to hear from a couple of others.

And here is the message you will be confronted with if you try to log into the website for booking trains in India today:

We are currently facing problem with the credit card payment gateways at the moment. Your booking may or may not materialize due to the same.

Quick Emasculating Call From Karin

Karin called me this morning at 5:20 AM. Yes, I was in a deep sleep. Yes, it's Sunday. Yes, I was up in the middle of the night. No, it was not an emergency. Yes, I was ecstatic to hear from her.

My head was in a cloud, though, so she opted to call me back 2 hours later. Her purpose: to tell me to bring socks and feminine-hygiene products to India for her. The weather there was bad so everyone was packed into the kitchen-tent and I could barely make out what she was saying. I was, however, able to hear the entire group erupt into hysterical laughter when she chose a crowded kitchen-tent on a desolate mountain-side in the rugged and unforgiving Himalaya-sierra to instruct me to bring panty-liners to India. Yes, I felt emasculated. But I've recovered - as evidenced by my ability to write about it here.

I didn't get much more information because she was speaking on Harry's cell phone and roaming is about 10,000 Rupees per Himalayan minute. So all I can really tell you is that she's running low on... um... socks.

(OK, maybe I'm still recovering)

Obstacle Of The Day: Airlines In India No Longer Accepting Foreign-Issued Credit Cards

I have been trying to book my flight from Mumbai to Delhi for the past week. There are many airlines and many flights that are available. Unfortunately, due to a "widespread fraud" that the airlines encountered a month or two ago, they do not accept foreign-issued credit cards. Period. That leaves only going to a travel agent to book the flight. That would seem to be perfectly acceptable but travel agents double or even triple the fare when it comes to domestic Indian travel. Of course no one just comes out and tells you all of this. It's all discovered piecemeal by actually going to each website and going through the booking and registration process and then, after the very last step, when you click PURCHASE, it brings up some seemingly-benign message like "Input Correct Phone Number." In case it's not obvious to you, that is code for "we don't accept foreign credit cards." If it wasn't obvious to you, you might spend, say, an hour or so trying to figure out what the phone number should look like before you brace yourself and make the call to India to see what the problem is.

I finally did find an Indian agency that does not double the fare and is willing to accept my credit card if I will fax them a "Letter of Dispatch" and a photocopy of my credit card. I chatted with a helpful representative and she told me to fax the document ASAP and she would take care of it. Then I tried faxing. But it failed to go through... I think it took 11 attempts before it finally worked. And now the agency is unable to locate the fax.

I did find a great resource for researching travel planning in India: IndiaMike.com. It contains forums by people who are passionate about travel in the region and who are intimately familiar with the vagaries of Indian travel planning. Here are some of the forums I've been perusing:

Knowing the Indian Train - contains everything about classes, food, vendors, reservations, cancellations, etc.

Booking Indian Rail Tickets from abroad - self explanatory

Train Information - still more information about trains in India

Scams and Annoyances

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Contact With The Crew: Meditation, Knitting, Debating. The Scenery is STUNNING. They are FREEZING.

I received a call yesterday evening from Anjum's father. His message: The Himalayan Crew is leaving the hotel in 20 minutes. Call now or forget about speaking to them for a week. And he gave me exactly what I had been dreaming of: A phone number!

I immediately called Karin and caught her just as the Team was about to head off. After exchanging requisite Valentine's Day wishes, she gave me a quick run-down of what is going on. Yesterday the Medical Team delivered care to monks in a monastery. Apparently this was particularly enjoyable because the monks are very pleasant people (and oh so darn cute). Following the clinic, the team was treated to a meditation session. And, later on they all learned how to knit. Since wool is the primary source of what keeps people warm(ish), knitting is a crucial skill to have. Harry abstained from knitting as he finds knitting "unsexy" and, understandably, a potential threat to manhood everywhere. Thanks for standing up for us, Har.

Our Intrepid Trio (Karin, Anjum, Harry) have figured out that a grand total of 2 of the 6 Jeeps have heat. They are currently riding in Anoop's Jeep. Anoop has really got it goin' on... Not only does his Jeep have heat, but it has a CD player and an MP3 player (with USB port). During the drive yesterday they were actually warm (I'll get to how rare that is shortly) and were able to listen to U2, Aretha Franklin (and others) while driving through some of the most unbelievably beautiful Himalayan terrain. Having a decent ride makes it a lot easier to enjoy of course. The Intrepid Trio are worried that they will not be able to hold onto their coveted seats, however, as they are encouraged to move around between vehicles and mix with other team members.

At one point during the drive someone had asked Anoop what elevation they were at. Anoop responded: "Fifteen thousand meters." When one of the passengers questioned that estimate Anoop was adamant (note that Everest tops out at 8,850 meters and a Boeing 747 tops out at 12,500 meters). There was an uneasy silence in the Jeep for a little while... Until they passed a sign that read "1500 meters" and Anoop said "Oh, 1500 meters. Sorry. I make mistake." They are all friends again now.

While the drives are long and sometimes treacherous, they are not uncivilized. The team stops for regular tea breaks and chip breaks. Apparently Lays makes a Himalayan version of their chip that is extremely popular with the Explorers. Karin describes it as a modified-ketchup flavor. During yesterday's drive Anoop's passengers decided to debate some contemporary issues. Among them: capital punishment, gun control, legalization of drugs. If you wish to have your topic debated in the Himalayas by medical practitioners listening to soul or rock (or other) music while eating Himalayan Lays, please let me know and I will pass on your request.

The team will be at the next campsite for 6 nights. They expect it to be vvvery cccold. And speaking of cold, last night in the hotel Karin went to sleep wearing, among other things, long-johns, a thermal shirt, a turtleneck, wool socks, wool hat, wool gloves, with 3 blankets and a space-heater and was completely and utterly freezing. Freezing is an ongoing theme now. The buildings are not heated and even though everyone is constantly bundled up, the cold is never-ending and pervasive. And now they are traveling to an even more frigid area. Brrrrrr.

Contemporary India

I love that cool head-bob he does as he admires his masterpiece.

Holy Cow! Planning Travel In India Is Complicated.

Wikipedia on the Cow: In Hinduism, the cow is considered sacred and its protection is a recurrent theme in which she is symbolic of abundance, of the sanctity of all life and of the earth that gives much while asking nothing in return. Most Hindus respect the cow as a matriarchal figure for her gentle qualities and for providing nurturing milk and other products for a largely vegetarian diet. Hindus do not worship the cow, yet it holds an honored place in society, and most Hindus do not eat beef.

Jaime on travel planning: I am working on getting us to Jaisalmer in western Rajasthan. The problem is that there are no flights to Jaisalmer. There is a military airstrip but no commercial flights land there. So we will likely have to fly into Jodhpur and then train to Jaisalmer (so as to minimize Karin's time on the roads). Doesn't that sound simple? It's not. If you try booking a train you will find that none exists. Or maybe it does. Depends whom you talk to and which website you visit. And don't even bother trying to book a bus from here. And then there is the never-ending flow of warnings about hiring the wrong driver who will explain to you how your hotel burned down overnight and who will then drive in circles until you agree go to wherever his biggest kickback lies. India is a nonstop barrage of people trying to rip you off. Or maybe it's not. If they openly charge foreigners 5 or even 10 times as much for the same product or service, is it highway robbery? Of course! Or perhaps not. Perhaps I'm just being culturally insensitive.

I don't think I've ever been quite so bombarded with information (and that includes law school). At one point yesterday I had between 40 and 50 webpages open. I've planned trips to quite a few places in this world - including when I have prepared the actual flight plan - but this is something else. Getting a handle on traveling in India is like trying to install democracy in Iraq... The concept makes for a marvelous sound-bite but, in reality, is quite impossible (end of controversial analogy). Even after we have narrowed our trip down to one tiny region of India, the options are seemingly endless, the histories long and complicated, the accommodation choices practically infinite, and the means of travel labyrinthine (Connie: "Oh, quit your belly-aching Levine!").

The plan, as it stands, is the following: 1. Spend a couple of days exploring Delhi. 2. Do a day trip to Agra. 3. Fly as far as we can into western Rajasthan. 4. Visit Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Jaipur, and then finally end up in Alwar before we head back to Delhi.

Bad Weather, Hard Work, Harry In His Element (and XL2 success)

When I last spoke to Karin she was just coming off 12 hours of sleep following the hell-ride she had coming out of the mountains. She had done the Gravol-Dramamine thing (read sedation) in anticipation but even that wasn't working so she had doubled up... which did not work either. By the time she arrived at the hotel she was extremely nauseous and even more medicated and went straight to bed. Even after 12 hours of sleep she was still in a bit of a stupor.

When Team Himalaya had arrived at the home of the Ex-Health Minister, they had each been treated to a bindi and a garland. A bindi is the red decorative dot that is worn on the forehead. Wikipedia describes its religious significance as follows: The area between the eyebrows (where the bindi is placed) is said to be the sixth chakra, agni, the seat of "concealed wisdom". According to followers of Tantrism, this chakra is the exit point for kundalini energy. The bindi is said to retain energy and strengthen concentration. It is also said to protect against demons or bad luck.

The team then went to work seeing patients. Over the past 4 days, the Team has seen an average of 150 patients per day. Karin, for some unknown reason, had been advertised as a "child specialist" (she is a family doctor). She thus has been seeing children almost exclusively since our last report. What's interesting about these children is that they often come in without parents. Dr. Rash says it's quite something to have a 5 year old boy come in alone and to have a discussion with him about his condition, symptoms, and treatment options.

A number of the cases are of developmental delay and mental retardation. Those are particularly tough as there is very little that can be done for them. For many other patients the doctors are able to give a few samples of medication but it's frustrating because they know the patients will not follow up by securing more once the sample runs out. And for others the resources that the physicians have are too rudimentary to properly test and/or treat. For extreme diagnoses they get referred to a hospital in a city but there are many borderline cases where additional equipment would be welcome.

It's hard work. It got particularly rough when the weather turned and they were suddenly confronted by strong winds and pelting rain. Since Karin is in a supervisory role, she had no choice but to run between the tents where patients were being seen. Within a short time she was completely drenched.

Eventually the weather got so bad that they decided to wrap up early to get on the road to Bilaspur and then on to Manali. That's when they packed up, loaded up the bus, and had that terrible ride.

The celebration of Harry's birthday continued last night at the hotel. Harry, as he is wont to do, held court in the hotel bar. Most of the revelers went to bed at 10. Karin retired at 11. But Harry and the trip leaders were still going strong when she headed off. This morning Harry chose bed over breakfast.

Today the group will be seeing children in a mission-school. Sounds like they are all doing well and are seriously enjoying being back in a hotel. I have yet to hear of anyone that is overly-excited about getting back into the tents - at what will be even higher elevation and with significantly colder weather.

I do have one complaint about calling them at the hotels in India. Every time I call, a man typically answers and says "Hello?" I then say "Hello, may I speak to Karin....?" Then I hear "Hello? Hello?" as if they do not hear me. So I will say again, more loudly, "Hello! May I speak to Karin....?" Then they will say "Hello? Hello? Hello?" as if all they hear is dead air. And so it goes, back and forth, getting louder and louder. This usually goes on for a minute or two, until the phone is inexplicably passed to another person. The second person says "Hello?" and I say "May I speak to Karin..?" And they say "Certainly, just one moment please." As in, there was never anything wrong with the line! The first person obviously heard me but chose to keep on saying "Hello? Hello? Hello?" anyway. Anyone care to explain?

And in case anyone is interested, all went well in the XL2. There's a story there too but this isn't the right forum for it. If anyone wants to go flying, let me know.

Happy Birthday Harry!

Our Team will be driving back to Bilaspur from Kotdhar today. And it's Harry's birthday! Too bad I'll be missing that. I did get him a gift, though... I shall post a picture of it later today. Happy Birthday Harry!

I just called the hotel. Apparently they will be there in 20 minutes or so (it's 4:20 AM here so 5:50 PM there). Expect a hefty update later on today.

Update: Just spoke to Harry! Wished him a happy birthday. He sounds well. Karin is asleep as she became nauseous during the treacherous bus ride they took today. It had started raining so they expedited their departure. The tiny, poorly-maintained, cliff-side mountain roads that they were traversing then became wet and muddy. Overall it sounds like a really awful ride. And Karin doesn't do well even on good roads in decent vehicles and in stellar weather... so I imagine it was quite hellish for her.

Harry, Anjum, and Karin stayed up until midnight last night so as to kick off Harry's birthday properly. At midnight Karin brought out the Champagne and some other mini-bottle of something that she had been hauling around the Himalayas just for the occasion. Someone else got a plate of cookies together and even a candle for Harry to blow out. Harry's plan for the rest of today is to talk to many of you and to continue the celebration tonight.

Harry has continued with his triage duties but also took on organizing the chaotic manner in which people were gathering to get service. He came up with a system whereby he would have the staff write the names of individuals down and then he would call them when it was their turn. Unfortunately, Harry's Hindi isn't quite fluent yet, and the staff didn't have very good handwriting... In the end, Harry's name calling turned into serious sport. Each name he would call would bring howls of laughter. People were asking him to "Say my name next!" Eventually, the group figured out ways to get him to repeat names such as by saying "Who?" or by just not coming up for a while.

And then there were the people trying to sneak through his system. One particular group of 5 elderly women were slipping by and going to the tents without waiting for their names to be called. Harry would catch them and bring them back but they were relentless. Eventually Harry found a translator and explained to them exactly what was going on (read them the riot act). Thereafter, the 5 elderly women became Harry's enforcement team. I think he may bring them to Princeton in the fall to help handle the new pledges at his fraternity.

Their campsite was reasonably nice. It was at the top of a hill or mountain so the view was beautiful. Evening activity consisted of being entertained by stray dogs that roam the area (they even named a couple of them - Tripod and Mongoose). Apparently these dogs have somehow trained themselves and are a pleasure to be around. At one point a group of dogs did turn on Har however - growling and being aggressive - but Harry beat his chest and made it clear who was boss and they gave him no more trouble.

More later when I speak to Karin. If you feel like wishing Harry Happy Birthday call him at the Sagar View Hotel: 011-91-1978-223095 (it's GMT + 5:30 in Bilaspur).

Me, Me, Me, Me

I have nothing new to post about the Himalayan Explorers so I'm going to write about the sad life I lead when Karin is away. Basically, every day after work I come home and drown myself in a bottle of Scotch Whiskey while watching 3 to 5 hours of Home Shopping Network. I have now purchased 9 sets of Ginsu Knives and 14 self-realization programs. Once sufficiently plastered, I make my way to the bedroom and cry myself to sleep - either on the bed, if I'm lucky, or, more often, next to or under it.

Well, that may not be entirely true. Most of my non-work waking hours now are taken up with blogging, trip research and planning, and flying-related activities . I have been trying to squeeze in workouts but this blogging thing is time-consuming - at least while I'm still learning how to do it. I think I've done a total of one mini-workout since Karin left. Atrophy-city.

As for the flying... I'm being checked out in a Liberty XL2 this weekend. Being "checked-out" in an airplane involves sitting down with an instructor for a while and going over the basics of the plane and then going flying together in the plane. It's part training and part an opportunity for him to assess if my skills and knowledge are current. This will also serve as a biannual flight review. Since I haven't been doing a lot of flying on my own recently, I have a fair amount of studying to do to make sure I'm on top of everything.

Flying the XL2 is going to be good fun for me. It is going to be the first "modern" aircraft that I will be piloting on a regular basis. "Modern" in general aviation in 2007 refers primarily to what is happening in the cockpit - it is controlled with a stick instead of a yoke, many of the instruments are digital and integrated, and it takes advantage of the revolution we have seen in navigation and communications over the past couple of decades (think GPS, satellite communications, and computers). Most of the rental planes out there were manufactured in the 60's and 70's (I can tell you why if you're interested) so this is pretty exciting. Mind you, the plane itself is not exactly revolutionary. We all fly in planes whose aerodynamics and propulsion systems were cutting edge in the 50's and 60's - from the tiniest Cessnas to the 747's that we all know so well. The real advances to date have been the so-called glass panels that newer aircraft use (as opposed to the more traditional panels).

On Tuesday evening I flew to LA with my first flight instructor, Jim Norman. He now runs a charter business and has a couple of sweet pressurized planes. The flight was about 30 minutes each way with a 2 minute stop in LA.

Once again I have blogged my way out of a workout. But I did promise daily posts. So there you go.

India the Growth Engine; Team Himalaya Hits the Hinterland

This from the Feb 3-9, 2007 Economist Magazine: "The roar from Delhi is echoing across Asia... At some point this year India's growth rate could even outpace China's..."

Karin & I are on the explosive-economic-growth circuit. Vietnam (8.4%) last year and now India (9.2%). Visiting countries that have spent decades stagnating due to things like crushing over-regulation, communism, entrenched corruption, colonialization, fanatical religion, and general mismanagement, can be fascinating. These are countries of incredible potential whose populations have been held back by unfortunate political, religious and economic realities. Those same policies that lead to economic misery, in many cases serve to preserve such things as culture, centuries-old architecture, nature (once in a while) and low low prices! To be able to immerse oneself in a region just on the cusp of phenomenal development is extraordinary.

As expected, I have no new information from Team Himalaya. As promised, they have moved out of our purview and into the rugged and inhospitable Himalayan hinterland. I believe they are now in Harlok or Amarpur (Baged). These places are so remote they don't even register on the Internet! The question you're all asking is... If they don't exist on the Internet, can they actually be said to exist at all? The answer is no. As the age-old saying goes, "if it doesn't google, it doesn't exist." Clearly our Team has entered some kind of time-space continuum and all we can do is sit idly by and wait for them to emerge.

TB, Scabies, Where's Harry?

I spoke to Karin this morning. She called me around 6:30 AM. I answered and we agreed that I would call her back 5 mins later. Sooo... I went downstairs, turned on the computer, and got comfortable with the phone. Then I dialed. But it did not connect. So I dialed again. This time a recording came on in Hindi. I tried again... and again and again. Then I resorted to different numbers, different combinations... Twenty minutes later I was ready to murder both the phone and the innocent plant next to the phone. I gave up in frustration and called Cathy. Thankfully, she had the number. And it wasn't the one I that I had been calling. I had pulled 2 numbers off the internet for her hotel and neither worked. Sooo... I called Karin's hotel and actually got through to the front desk. Then I had to try to get the front desk person to understand her entire 17-letter last name. Oy vey. By the time I got through to her I had bruises on my forehead from banging my head against the table.

Their trip to the northeast involved a 4 hour train ride followed by a 5 hour bus ride. The train was comfortable but the bus was... less so. The bus covered 90 miles in 5 hours. For those of you less adept at mathematics, that comes to an average of 18 mph.

So far they have seen about 70 patients. Things started off slowly in Bilaspur, largely because the doc there had neglected to properly advertise the arrival of this crack team of American and Canadian do-gooders. But tomorrow, when they get to their first (apparently crappy) campsite, they will be seeing hundreds of people!

As for the team make-up, I have only been told that there are 5 or 6 Canucks, who hail from Queens, Dalhouse and UBC (universities in Canada). The rest are Americanos.

Harry has been doing triage! He takes people's blood pressure and pulse, and then any loose change he can find. Anjum, who speaks Urdu (did you know that Urdu = Hindi?), has been translating for many of the patients. When I called, Anjum was busy shaving the back of Harry's neck (doesn't anyone edit this thing?).

One bright spot for Harry is that he is one of only 3 men on the trip. And Karin does all the scheduling - so Harry gets to influence whom he works with, if-you-know-what-I-mean, and-I-think-you-do. As soon as that neck is cleanly shaven, WATCH OUT HIMACHAL PRADESH!

The hotel has no heat. Instead, they provide all the guests with giant blankets. I think it's time to let the hotelier know about this central heating invention that is sweeping the western world. I don't think it's just a fad.

And now two potential "contraction" stories: Yesterday, Karin was asked to see a family member of the owner of the hotel. She agreed and examined this woman without wearing a mask (foreshadowing). Now Karin thinks that the woman has TB. The second story involves Anjum and a very cute baby that was brought in. Oh how they played and played... just Anjum and the baby. It really was something. The baby, it turns out, has scabies.

And one last story. Apparently upon arrival at some destination, Harry was suddenly nowhere to be found. No one could figure out where he was. After careful, level-headed analysis, they decided Harry had been................ kidnapped! They eventually figured out that he had run off early to be first on the internet.

LINKS: There are links all over this blog, people. Apparently not everyone knows that words that show up in different colors are links. Try clicking on them. They will take you to interesting places. And yes, Roy, I actually know people who do not know about links!