On the 3rd of November it was Diwali, the Indian festival of lights. Our overseas representative invited Holly, me and two other volunteers in Hyderabad over to his house to celebrate. This festival is basically like bonfire night to the extreme! Everyone buys their own fireworks and sets them off in the streets. We sat on the roof of the apartment block where we could see the whole city and the hundreds of fireworks all going off at the same time. It was incredible! Then we joined everyone else from the building out on the streets and set off our own crackers and sparklers. This wasn't quite so enjoyable because it was insanely loud and I was stressing out watching the children setting off the fireworks! Yes, this is apparently normal practice here. It was also like walking through a war zone being on the street because it was impossible to know when and where fireworks were going to go off! And people didn't seem to think it was necessary to tell you they had just lit a cracker right in front of you. Later in the week I found out that the hospital we work in had over 50 people admitted on Diwali due to eye injuries from fireworks! We stayed at their house for the whole weekend and ate lots of delicious food. And we ate with our hands for every meal which was an experience for Holly and me because we normally get spoons. I had a great time but it was nice to get back to our hostel room, I was actually missing it after two nights away!
The following weekend we went to a wedding so it was another excuse to wear our saris! The wedding was very different to what we're used to and not at all what I expected. It took place in a massive function hall where people can watch and have dinner in the next room. The ceremony actually lasts for hours and hours so people just come and pay their respects, have some food and then leave. The bride looked so beautiful! I met a thirteen year old boy with very good English, who also spoke another four languages, and I spent most of the evening talking to him about random things. I'm fairly sure I secured an invite to his birthday party in January. We stayed the night with a lady who works at the hospital, her house was incredible! The bed was so so comfortable, I was very close to trying to smuggle out the pillow the next morning. I didn't realise how much I miss my nice, fat pillow back home.
The next day our host, who couldn't come to the wedding, took us to the temple where the bride and groom were doing some rituals that always happen the day after a marriage. It wasn't a great first experience in a temple, it was so dirty and there were flies covering the place. There was also an embarrassing cultural misunderstanding. Our host was telling us that at a temple they put some holy water in your hand which you drink and then wipe your hand on your head. So naturally when I was offered some that's what I did. Except it wasn't water, it was milk. Everyone was sniggering as our host informed me that people don't do that with milk because it makes your hair really sticky! Very embarrassing, next time I will let Holly go first.
After the temple we went on a boat to a Buddha statue in the middle of a lake. We met some middle aged men from Nottingham on the boat which was very exciting at the time, I think I'm getting white person withdrawal. Then we went to the Birla temple which is on the top of a hill and completely made of white marble. It was definitely the most beautiful thing we've seen in India so far! Due to 'security reasons' you can't take and electronics in so I couldn't take my camera so I spent the whole trip wishing I could take photos of everything! It was a very touristy day; we saw massive total of six other white people.
Our work at the hospital has increased drastically in the last week, which is great, so we don't get nearly as much free time anymore. I have been spending time observing in the patient care areas which has been really interesting, and now we are planning training sessions to teach staff how to interact better with patients. When I was observing in one of the reception areas I saw a patient grab the security man by the collar and slap him across the face! It was all very dramatic.
Last week I was in a stationary shop by myself, having a nice conversation with the man behind the till, and then he asked me to take him back to Scotland with me. He ruined what was a perfectly pleasant chat!
On Thursday we went to visit a secondary eye care centre in a rural village. This was very interesting as it was the first time we had left Hyderabad since getting off the plane. I spent the journey looking out the window to see exactly what I expected India to be like! Cows and goats everywhere, women picking plants in fields, women carrying baskets on their heads, roads too small for anything but a motorbike etc.. I'm not sure whether the trip was worth the journey as we just got a tour and had lunch and the drive took three hours there and back! But it was certainly good to see a different side of India.
Yesterday we Holly and I decided to go and see a Bollywood movie in the cinema near the hospital. Unfortunately we didn't realise that the film was released the day before so when we arrived 10 minutes before it started, the film was completely sold out. Luckily a man beside us had extra tickets so he sold them to us! When we went in we couldn't find our seats because it was pitch black and in India row A is at the back so we got very confused. We just sat anywhere but about 45 minutes into the film we got asked to move. Indian films are very long! They are at least three hours so you get an interval in the middle. I enjoyed the film but three hours is a long time to watch people talking a foreign language with no subtitles.
I don't think I have anything else to report just now! On Thursday we are off to Hampi for a long weekend so I'm sure I will have lots of pictures etc to share next week!
The following weekend we went to a wedding so it was another excuse to wear our saris! The wedding was very different to what we're used to and not at all what I expected. It took place in a massive function hall where people can watch and have dinner in the next room. The ceremony actually lasts for hours and hours so people just come and pay their respects, have some food and then leave. The bride looked so beautiful! I met a thirteen year old boy with very good English, who also spoke another four languages, and I spent most of the evening talking to him about random things. I'm fairly sure I secured an invite to his birthday party in January. We stayed the night with a lady who works at the hospital, her house was incredible! The bed was so so comfortable, I was very close to trying to smuggle out the pillow the next morning. I didn't realise how much I miss my nice, fat pillow back home.
The next day our host, who couldn't come to the wedding, took us to the temple where the bride and groom were doing some rituals that always happen the day after a marriage. It wasn't a great first experience in a temple, it was so dirty and there were flies covering the place. There was also an embarrassing cultural misunderstanding. Our host was telling us that at a temple they put some holy water in your hand which you drink and then wipe your hand on your head. So naturally when I was offered some that's what I did. Except it wasn't water, it was milk. Everyone was sniggering as our host informed me that people don't do that with milk because it makes your hair really sticky! Very embarrassing, next time I will let Holly go first.
After the temple we went on a boat to a Buddha statue in the middle of a lake. We met some middle aged men from Nottingham on the boat which was very exciting at the time, I think I'm getting white person withdrawal. Then we went to the Birla temple which is on the top of a hill and completely made of white marble. It was definitely the most beautiful thing we've seen in India so far! Due to 'security reasons' you can't take and electronics in so I couldn't take my camera so I spent the whole trip wishing I could take photos of everything! It was a very touristy day; we saw massive total of six other white people.
Our work at the hospital has increased drastically in the last week, which is great, so we don't get nearly as much free time anymore. I have been spending time observing in the patient care areas which has been really interesting, and now we are planning training sessions to teach staff how to interact better with patients. When I was observing in one of the reception areas I saw a patient grab the security man by the collar and slap him across the face! It was all very dramatic.
Last week I was in a stationary shop by myself, having a nice conversation with the man behind the till, and then he asked me to take him back to Scotland with me. He ruined what was a perfectly pleasant chat!
On Thursday we went to visit a secondary eye care centre in a rural village. This was very interesting as it was the first time we had left Hyderabad since getting off the plane. I spent the journey looking out the window to see exactly what I expected India to be like! Cows and goats everywhere, women picking plants in fields, women carrying baskets on their heads, roads too small for anything but a motorbike etc.. I'm not sure whether the trip was worth the journey as we just got a tour and had lunch and the drive took three hours there and back! But it was certainly good to see a different side of India.
Yesterday we Holly and I decided to go and see a Bollywood movie in the cinema near the hospital. Unfortunately we didn't realise that the film was released the day before so when we arrived 10 minutes before it started, the film was completely sold out. Luckily a man beside us had extra tickets so he sold them to us! When we went in we couldn't find our seats because it was pitch black and in India row A is at the back so we got very confused. We just sat anywhere but about 45 minutes into the film we got asked to move. Indian films are very long! They are at least three hours so you get an interval in the middle. I enjoyed the film but three hours is a long time to watch people talking a foreign language with no subtitles.
I don't think I have anything else to report just now! On Thursday we are off to Hampi for a long weekend so I'm sure I will have lots of pictures etc to share next week!
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