We are definitely feeling like we are more into a routine now, but I for one am not pleased with the routine itself. The first two weeks we were here, the three of us were more or less guided around town, into the CFI office, and through some introductory field work in villages. This had its pros and cons, but we had a general idea of what we were doing for the day, and we were occupied with the task of getting to where we needed to go. Now, there does not seem to be any criteria or even requirement to work, it really all depends on our personal motivation to get going and take on a task. Don't get me wrong, I am motivated in just being here...I am so eager to learn more about the medical world, as well as the different aspects of social work. And I am learning, and contemplating, and questioning things I had never questioned before. It's good. The amount of personal reflection I go through in one day is amazing, and I could not get this kind of experience anywhere else. I will share more of this personal reflection later, but the point I am trying to make is that it's like I just showed up for the first day of kindergarten, and there is no teacher. I get to school with my lunch pail and I'm so jazzed to color with crayons and eat paste, take a nap, and learn my left from right, but there is no one there to tell me what to do. Now, as exciting as that freedom may sound, it can become chaos very fast. It would just be nice to have some direction on a daily basis, as opposed to a few suggestions of what to do in the day. This is one thing I definitely need prayer for, in that I would have tolerance for the way they do things and that I would learn to take initiative on things even though I don't know how to do them. It is hard to explain just how different it is here, with all the cultural challenges, climate, religion, and the STARING. We were always taught not to stare in the states, and sometimes it frustrates the heck out of me when every person on the block is looking directly at me with no expression at all. Just something to get used to...
Anyway, I also wanted to share a little bit about our adventure to Alibag, a town on the Arabian Sea about 20 km away from Pen. Last Saturday, Kelly and I (Jessica was not feelin' fine) hopped on a bus headed for Alibag, costing us each a whopping 20 rupees. *Just a reminder, 1$ = ~45 rupees * It was so great to get out of our town for a few hours and just explore. We ate lunch in a nice restaurant, had some kabobs and other delicious food, and the best part: a cold, refreshing 650 mL Fosters! All for about 350 rupees each. Then we made our way to the beach, took some pictures, gathered some shells, and took turns swimming/watching our bags. We had a blast, and nice to get some salt on the skin that wasn't from sweat ;] Here are a few pictures:
This was actually take in Murud, a smaller town a few km south:
Playin ball with some locals:
Sunset from our balcony in Pen:
Let 'er fly,
Reid
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