Tuesday, September 06, 2005
September Update from Bangalore
Sunday, September 4, 2005
Vani, our former cook, had her baby girl today. She already has a boy so was very excited that it turned out to be a girl. Originally she was going to deliver in Oct., but the doctor changed the due date to the 12th of Sept. Unfortunately, she had barely three days off before the baby came.
Tuesday, September 6, 2005
Brought both Maya and Molly to the doctor today. No sooner do we start thinking, "Okay, the kids' health is getting better. Maybe they're building up immunity, etc., etc." then they start getting sick again. Molly had a high fever today and stayed home from school. I asked if the doctor could see both girls, and filled him in on Molly's coughing for the six months, the suspected pneumonia, then brief use of steroids to figure out whether it's asthma. I told him we were starting homeopathy, and he said if she were his kid, he'd put her on inhalers. Maya has an infection and is scratching like crazy. He sent us over to Manipal Hospital to swab for a culture. All told, from leaving the house at 4 pm to go to the doctor's appointment, it took three hours to get everything done. Badri met us at the lab at Manipal, next door to his work.
Wednesday, September 7, 2005
Woke to a very gray day. Molly and Charlie up by 6:45, and Maya, our little pre-teenager, sleeping in 'til 8:30! Our kolom/rangoli artist wowed us with her latest creation: a colorful rangoli with flowers in the middle outside our gate in honor of Ganesha's (the elephant god) birthday.
Took a nice walk in the occasional drizzle toward Temple Road, where people sell lots of produce and flowers. We bought flowers to put on our Ganesha statue at home, and flowers to put in Maya, Rita, Patricia, and Mala aunties' hair. Heavenly smelling jasmine. Landed up at the Spastic Society, where Badri had taken a Spanish lesson (the timings were inconvenient--something like 9-11 am on Sat & Sun a.m.--so he didn't continue classes). He remembered how nice the campus is, and he was right. The kids had a great time running around the walkways and grassy areas. There was a handicapped ramp leading up to a second story (first floor in India) and the kids loved walking up and running down that. The Spastic Society's goal is to integrate children with disabilities into society.
Amma and Appa (Patti & Thatha) arrived from Chennai tonight in time for Maya's birthday.
Thursday, September 8, 2005
Celebrated Maya's 5th birthday today. But we had a hard time getting her out of bed to start the date! The wiring in this house is funky, and there's one light in her and Molly's room that never goes on when you switch it on. Problem is, somehow it stays/gets switched on during the day, but the light doesn't kick in 'til the middle of the night. Anyway, Maya rolled out of bed around 9:30 this morning, and went into school at 10 (1 1/2 hours after I'd brought Molly).
Went out to TGIF, a chain restaurant (American, I believe) for ice cream and treats with Amma and Appa and all the kids. Had a great time, the kids dancing in the aisles. The hostess was great, taking Charlie into her arms and showing him around when he was getting restless. A great 5th birthday for Maya.
Saturday, September 10, 2005
Big day today. Went to Neev, the girls school, for its 100 day celebration. The place was packed with parents, grandparents, and children. They put together a wonderful slide show and computer show chronicling the three classes' activities. The highlight was when the students sang for us. Maya was at her singing and dramatic best standing front and center belting out "We Got the Whole World in Our Hands!"
We had Maya's party today, with The Little Mermaid theme. Rajan, the party man, had a great array of mermaid and ocean theme cutouts set up in the yard. Maya was very happy to have a few of her classmates from her old school, Canadian School, and her school buddies from Neev, as well as a few neighbors. I must say, I really enjoyed myself, not having to do all the work. The party man's wife, Kavita, organized games, and we had a mermaid cake made.
September 16-19, 2005
Traveled to Chickmagalur by three hour train ride. Chickmagalur is a coffee growing region with hills and valleys to the northwest of Bangalore. We came close to canceling this trip because most of the 5 of us were down with some form or other of a cold, but we decided to stick to the plan.
Mr. Girish picked us up in a hotel car for the one hour ride. Arrived at a beautiful time--nice afternoon breeze and sun starting to go down. Rode with the windows down, which we never do in Bangalore. Charlie's favorite phrase for the ride, "Bye bye train!!" Although the air is cleaner in Chickmagalur than in Bangalore, Molly still coughed her little brains out all three nights before falling asleep and early in the morning, just about when waking.
Stayed at the Taj Garden Retreat, a lovely place with bougainvillea, pepper trees, coffee plants and other beautiful greenery. The highlight of the long weekend was a couple hours spent in the pool. It was a beautiful sunny day and the kids had a great time splashing around in the kiddie pool.
Took one two hour car ride up about 6,000 feet in altitude to see a beautiful view of the valley below. Maya and Molly hadn't napped earlier, so they fell asleep in the back seat of the car while Badri, Charlie, and I looked around. Our driver, Mr. Girish, took us up to a waterfall and pointed out a tiger cave. Alas, we didn't get to see one in the flesh.
September 21, 2005
Natalie Conneely came over to visit today with her friend, Mary. They're both on a semester abroad program, traveling all over the world, and will spend a couple months in Cochin studying. I first met Natalie 15 years ago when I volunteered in Bolivia for an NGO working in healthcare. Her dad, Dudley, was the director of that NGO, Project Concern International (PCI), and their whole family took such good care of me for the year and a half I was in Bolivia. They were my home away from home. Dudley and Mary have ten children, and they always opened their doors and arms open for all the volunteers, both working for PCI and the Peace Corps in general (Natalie's mom and Dudley's wife, Mary Conneely, still works for the Peace Corps).
One really neat thing is that I first met Natalie when she was 5 years old, which is exactly how old Maya is now. When Natalie and her friend Mary arrived, Charlie and Molly were already asleep, but Maya was still up so they got to meet her.
Badri and I last saw Natalie and the rest of the Conneely's in 2000 while visiting San Francisco, soon before bringing Maya home from India. At that time, Natalie was 15, and now she's 20 and a junior in college. As she pointed out, when I was traveling on my own, her family took me in, and now that she's traveling, it was our turn to have her over. Unfortunately, she was only in Bangalore for one day. Hopefully she'll be able to take a long weekend from Cochin and come visit us. It's only an hour flight from here. It's too bad, too, that Sudha Chitti and Gopal Chittapa have moved from Cochin--I think Natalie would have really enjoyed meeting and spending time with them.
September 25, 2005
It's a small world, again and again. Yesterday we went to the Forum Mall so Badri could go to the computer store there. The kids had fun playing at the Kidzone, and Badri and I took turns shopping, he at the computer store, and I at a department store, Westside, for Molly's birthday clothes. Met a woman at the store, Westside, while in the checkout line. She was with her two sons, and we had half an hour waiting that gave us time to chat. Talked about Bangalore and Molly's asthma, as well as where we'd both lived in the states (she'd lived in Chicago for a while). I also met her mother while we were in line.
Today, we went to a different mall to look for a card reader for our digital camera, and who did we run into but the same woman, with her mom, two sons (3 and 6 years old), and this time also with her husband. Their names are Ashwini and Karthik, and wouldn't you know they live in the same complex down on Bannerghatta Road where Janaki Auntie and Babu Uncle live. We exchanged phone numbers and may get together sometime.
Friday, September 30, 2005
Went to a book reading tonight by Anita Nair, Mistress (introduction by Girish Karnad). Things started late because of the rain and heavy traffic. While we were waiting and watching some video clips of Kathakali dance (dance-drama from the Kerala region), I was thinking to myself, "I haven't written in the blog lately. Not feeling particularly inspired, like much is happening in my life this month." When Ms. Nair finished her reading, we were joking with the couple next to us. The woman introduced herself, Ammu Joseph, and her husband, Vasudev. Turns out, two of the paintings we bought last month were by Vasudev, who is a famous Indian artist and a Bangalore resident. Ammu Joseph is a journalist who writes about gender issues.
The reason Badri wanted to come tonight is because Girish Karnad is a bit like the Sam Shepard of India (actor/playwright), and we were talking about the fact that a lot of people probably came tonight to see him. At a couple points in the evening I saw Karnad by himself and thought, "Hmmm, people are too shy to talk to this guy." And sure enough, Badri's kicking himself tonight because he didn't go up and talk to him. But he did give his business card to the New York Times journalist, Saritha Rai.
Maya's birthday dinner at TGIFs
Maya and Molly's art studio at Neev
Amma in Mother's Day sari
Maya's 5th birthday party
Kelly with Natalie Conneely
"I LOVE strawberry yogurt!"
On a "plane ride"
Sunday, September 4, 2005
Vani, our former cook, had her baby girl today. She already has a boy so was very excited that it turned out to be a girl. Originally she was going to deliver in Oct., but the doctor changed the due date to the 12th of Sept. Unfortunately, she had barely three days off before the baby came.
Tuesday, September 6, 2005
Brought both Maya and Molly to the doctor today. No sooner do we start thinking, "Okay, the kids' health is getting better. Maybe they're building up immunity, etc., etc." then they start getting sick again. Molly had a high fever today and stayed home from school. I asked if the doctor could see both girls, and filled him in on Molly's coughing for the six months, the suspected pneumonia, then brief use of steroids to figure out whether it's asthma. I told him we were starting homeopathy, and he said if she were his kid, he'd put her on inhalers. Maya has an infection and is scratching like crazy. He sent us over to Manipal Hospital to swab for a culture. All told, from leaving the house at 4 pm to go to the doctor's appointment, it took three hours to get everything done. Badri met us at the lab at Manipal, next door to his work.
Wednesday, September 7, 2005
Woke to a very gray day. Molly and Charlie up by 6:45, and Maya, our little pre-teenager, sleeping in 'til 8:30! Our kolom/rangoli artist wowed us with her latest creation: a colorful rangoli with flowers in the middle outside our gate in honor of Ganesha's (the elephant god) birthday.
Took a nice walk in the occasional drizzle toward Temple Road, where people sell lots of produce and flowers. We bought flowers to put on our Ganesha statue at home, and flowers to put in Maya, Rita, Patricia, and Mala aunties' hair. Heavenly smelling jasmine. Landed up at the Spastic Society, where Badri had taken a Spanish lesson (the timings were inconvenient--something like 9-11 am on Sat & Sun a.m.--so he didn't continue classes). He remembered how nice the campus is, and he was right. The kids had a great time running around the walkways and grassy areas. There was a handicapped ramp leading up to a second story (first floor in India) and the kids loved walking up and running down that. The Spastic Society's goal is to integrate children with disabilities into society.
Amma and Appa (Patti & Thatha) arrived from Chennai tonight in time for Maya's birthday.
Thursday, September 8, 2005
Celebrated Maya's 5th birthday today. But we had a hard time getting her out of bed to start the date! The wiring in this house is funky, and there's one light in her and Molly's room that never goes on when you switch it on. Problem is, somehow it stays/gets switched on during the day, but the light doesn't kick in 'til the middle of the night. Anyway, Maya rolled out of bed around 9:30 this morning, and went into school at 10 (1 1/2 hours after I'd brought Molly).
Went out to TGIF, a chain restaurant (American, I believe) for ice cream and treats with Amma and Appa and all the kids. Had a great time, the kids dancing in the aisles. The hostess was great, taking Charlie into her arms and showing him around when he was getting restless. A great 5th birthday for Maya.
Saturday, September 10, 2005
Big day today. Went to Neev, the girls school, for its 100 day celebration. The place was packed with parents, grandparents, and children. They put together a wonderful slide show and computer show chronicling the three classes' activities. The highlight was when the students sang for us. Maya was at her singing and dramatic best standing front and center belting out "We Got the Whole World in Our Hands!"
We had Maya's party today, with The Little Mermaid theme. Rajan, the party man, had a great array of mermaid and ocean theme cutouts set up in the yard. Maya was very happy to have a few of her classmates from her old school, Canadian School, and her school buddies from Neev, as well as a few neighbors. I must say, I really enjoyed myself, not having to do all the work. The party man's wife, Kavita, organized games, and we had a mermaid cake made.
September 16-19, 2005
Traveled to Chickmagalur by three hour train ride. Chickmagalur is a coffee growing region with hills and valleys to the northwest of Bangalore. We came close to canceling this trip because most of the 5 of us were down with some form or other of a cold, but we decided to stick to the plan.
Mr. Girish picked us up in a hotel car for the one hour ride. Arrived at a beautiful time--nice afternoon breeze and sun starting to go down. Rode with the windows down, which we never do in Bangalore. Charlie's favorite phrase for the ride, "Bye bye train!!" Although the air is cleaner in Chickmagalur than in Bangalore, Molly still coughed her little brains out all three nights before falling asleep and early in the morning, just about when waking.
Stayed at the Taj Garden Retreat, a lovely place with bougainvillea, pepper trees, coffee plants and other beautiful greenery. The highlight of the long weekend was a couple hours spent in the pool. It was a beautiful sunny day and the kids had a great time splashing around in the kiddie pool.
Took one two hour car ride up about 6,000 feet in altitude to see a beautiful view of the valley below. Maya and Molly hadn't napped earlier, so they fell asleep in the back seat of the car while Badri, Charlie, and I looked around. Our driver, Mr. Girish, took us up to a waterfall and pointed out a tiger cave. Alas, we didn't get to see one in the flesh.
September 21, 2005
Natalie Conneely came over to visit today with her friend, Mary. They're both on a semester abroad program, traveling all over the world, and will spend a couple months in Cochin studying. I first met Natalie 15 years ago when I volunteered in Bolivia for an NGO working in healthcare. Her dad, Dudley, was the director of that NGO, Project Concern International (PCI), and their whole family took such good care of me for the year and a half I was in Bolivia. They were my home away from home. Dudley and Mary have ten children, and they always opened their doors and arms open for all the volunteers, both working for PCI and the Peace Corps in general (Natalie's mom and Dudley's wife, Mary Conneely, still works for the Peace Corps).
One really neat thing is that I first met Natalie when she was 5 years old, which is exactly how old Maya is now. When Natalie and her friend Mary arrived, Charlie and Molly were already asleep, but Maya was still up so they got to meet her.
Badri and I last saw Natalie and the rest of the Conneely's in 2000 while visiting San Francisco, soon before bringing Maya home from India. At that time, Natalie was 15, and now she's 20 and a junior in college. As she pointed out, when I was traveling on my own, her family took me in, and now that she's traveling, it was our turn to have her over. Unfortunately, she was only in Bangalore for one day. Hopefully she'll be able to take a long weekend from Cochin and come visit us. It's only an hour flight from here. It's too bad, too, that Sudha Chitti and Gopal Chittapa have moved from Cochin--I think Natalie would have really enjoyed meeting and spending time with them.
September 25, 2005
It's a small world, again and again. Yesterday we went to the Forum Mall so Badri could go to the computer store there. The kids had fun playing at the Kidzone, and Badri and I took turns shopping, he at the computer store, and I at a department store, Westside, for Molly's birthday clothes. Met a woman at the store, Westside, while in the checkout line. She was with her two sons, and we had half an hour waiting that gave us time to chat. Talked about Bangalore and Molly's asthma, as well as where we'd both lived in the states (she'd lived in Chicago for a while). I also met her mother while we were in line.
Today, we went to a different mall to look for a card reader for our digital camera, and who did we run into but the same woman, with her mom, two sons (3 and 6 years old), and this time also with her husband. Their names are Ashwini and Karthik, and wouldn't you know they live in the same complex down on Bannerghatta Road where Janaki Auntie and Babu Uncle live. We exchanged phone numbers and may get together sometime.
Friday, September 30, 2005
Went to a book reading tonight by Anita Nair, Mistress (introduction by Girish Karnad). Things started late because of the rain and heavy traffic. While we were waiting and watching some video clips of Kathakali dance (dance-drama from the Kerala region), I was thinking to myself, "I haven't written in the blog lately. Not feeling particularly inspired, like much is happening in my life this month." When Ms. Nair finished her reading, we were joking with the couple next to us. The woman introduced herself, Ammu Joseph, and her husband, Vasudev. Turns out, two of the paintings we bought last month were by Vasudev, who is a famous Indian artist and a Bangalore resident. Ammu Joseph is a journalist who writes about gender issues.
The reason Badri wanted to come tonight is because Girish Karnad is a bit like the Sam Shepard of India (actor/playwright), and we were talking about the fact that a lot of people probably came tonight to see him. At a couple points in the evening I saw Karnad by himself and thought, "Hmmm, people are too shy to talk to this guy." And sure enough, Badri's kicking himself tonight because he didn't go up and talk to him. But he did give his business card to the New York Times journalist, Saritha Rai.
Maya's birthday dinner at TGIFs
Maya and Molly's art studio at Neev
Amma in Mother's Day sari
Maya's 5th birthday party
Kelly with Natalie Conneely
"I LOVE strawberry yogurt!"
On a "plane ride"
# posted by Kelly @ 9:25 PM 
