hold on kids, its a long one

greeting from kerala! i would like to apologize for my lack of bloggage lately. the last two days have been a bit of a blur. thankfully, i've heard that some of you have been reading jeremy's blog (some may have even confused it with my own- sweet cindy lou). so, at least you knew that we have arrived safely...and that jeremy enjoys using squattys san tp. hey, when in rome, right? anyway, in all fairness i did attempt to get on the world wide web once my first day but actually fell asleep while sitting up at the computer. that jet lag is a real jerk. thankfully i am rested and adjusted to the time zone and feel like a brand new person.

so not sure where to start. guess i'll give you some highlights.

the travel here is a blur or flights, half watched movies, delirious laughter with jeremy, swollen feet and legs (seriously, even know i'm wondering if i have elephantitus- not cute), and airplane food. the clear highlight of the trip was during our last leg from buhrain to kochi. we checked in and walked downstairs to a room we stayed in until boarding. little room- lot of people. first thing we noticed- we were the only non-indians. and we stood out for more reasons that just blue eyes and western clothes. first off, i was the only woman not in a sari. not that unexpected. the second thing we noticed, every. man. had. a. mustache. every single one. if they were too young for the full fledged stache, they proudly rocked the dirt stache. it was seriously like being in an alternate reality. a reality full of cops and cliche 80's movies. it was amazing. again, every single man. another highlight is the fact that one we were on the plane, they flight attendants walked down the aisle with not one, not two, but FOUR can of air freshener. for a spilt moment we thought that it was poisoness gas of some kind and our end had come, but once we smelt the flowery freshness we were eternally gratefully. a full day of travel does not bode well with the olfactory glands. nor does the decision not to utilize deodorant (not on my behalf don't worry). but finally we arrived. and our new best friend (mustached of course) biji picked us up and took us to our new home.

let see- i'll include pictures of our house at a later point. but for now i'll just say that i love it. i love the small firm cot i sleep on in the middle of the room between two roommates, i love the cold shower next to the toilet, i reeeeallly love the western toilet (an unexpected surprise). it is nothing like i thought it would be, but it is perfect for us. sadly, jeremy cannot live with us, but he is comfortable with living with boys. the best part is the family that lives underneath us. couldn't be nicer or more welcoming. they have two younger girls that enjoy hanging out with us. surreal moment last night when our power was out (regular occurrence) we sat outside enjoying the cooling downpour and listening to the family below us sing songs in malayaam for the power to come back on. simply amazing. moments like that are hard to describe, but mainly fill me with joy and awe for this new country i am proud to call home, and reaffirm that by being here, i have made the complete correct decision. and couldn't be happier.

yesterday was a bit of a field trip. a field trip including thrown monkey poo. amazing. we first visited a home that takes in indian that have nowhere else to turn. currently they house over 300 people. a lot of the people suffered from pychiatric illness and there were also a lot of widows. the guy that ran it was amazing. mostly for the fact that they have no money saved up and simply trust that each day god will provide. incredible faith. we saw the first stone of the facility and learned that it was laid by none other than mother tersea herself. that woman is my hero. second we went back to anthripally waterfalls. i had visited there last january but this time its involved in a bit of a political struggle. they are trying to dam the waterfalls in attempts to get more electricity but this action would have devastating consequences on many involved including farmers and indigenous tribes living in the forest. but all of these facts have been hidden in attempts to get the project approved. we met peaceful protesters who are sitting by the falls for 100 days in attempts to thwart this from occurring. the women we met was amazing. she spoke not a word of english, but gladly held our hands and touched our faced and referred to us as her daughters. she is well known in the community, has held many other protests before, started the first shop by the falls, and is overall held with great respect and admiration. she is not one that i'll soon forget.

in other news, the food is fantastic and the weather is so hot. we wake up sweating and go to sleep the same. currently though we are in a air conditioned room and i might move in here. seriously, its not that bad, but it will take some getting used to. the rains aren't too bad, and are actually a welcome cooling factor. the food however i can't say enough about. so. good. and i love eating with my hands again. cindy lou, you will be proud that i am eating only with my right hand (difficult for a lefty) and actually succeeding with it. it helps that we don't use utensils so it's literally just shoving good in my mouth. amazing, delightful food in my mouth. eating vegetarian here is much easier than back home and tastes far better.

finally, i have no started to work with CASP yet. i am going to met my boss today though and i'm attending a lecture by him today. i cannot wait to get started with my HIV work. being here and not yet doing it yet has been something of a test in patience. it will really make me feel connected with the culture and validate my existence and work here. there are actually two masters of public health students from michagin. their project is a little different form mine, as they are more focused on micro insurance and health care but hopefully we can team up for my policy recommendation and we are planning a day trip on the mobile health clinics together. having them here makes me really excited about the public health aspect. we have gotten to attend several lectures by professors here. really interesting stuff (as long as you don't try to sit in them during your first jet lagged day here). today we are attending a lecture about dalit issues, the communist party and conflict resolution. i think you learn so much more about a culture when you are learning about it in country.

alright, thanks to the ac, this post has become amazingly long. but i do feel like i've caught you all up to my fantastic indian life thus far. stay tuned, i'll be a better blogger from here on out. love and miss you all.