I think it is pretty safe to say that I am obsessed with various parts of the Indian culture. Just to name a few from the top of my list: Indian food, Indian clothing, and Indian designs. Not so much the Indian traffic… still not a fan of two-wheelers (motorcycles), cars, autorickshaws, and animal-pulled carts coming within inches of running over my toesies.
I’ve made my current goal to find out the secret of how to maintain or lose weight while devouring all the delicious goodies that surround me on a daily basis (I'm sure every woman's goal). The other day we went to Gupta’s, a small little snack joint, located off one of the streets we frequent. As we stood outside, Aaron had a fresh veg samosa while I had a dish called Masala Puri (hot pea gravy, mixture, spices, carrots, and tomatoes) which is considered an Indian “fast food”. We followed it with a delicious fried morsel that would ooze sugary syrup when you bit into it. Everything during this visit was soooo tasty… but of course, we got into some trouble with Poornima Jay the following day for eating at a place that is considered just one-step above street vendor. I promised the person who recommended this place that I would not repeat their name for fear of receiving a scolding. = ) I guess I should’ve been thinking about all of the raw veggies on my plate including the large portion of tomatoes and carrots (no parasites for me please), but how can you resist the distraction when the smell is so wonderful! As much as I would like to say I will stay away from this place, I may or may not be able to resist the temptation to gravitate toward this little area again for some yummy food when walking by. At work, it also seems like I am introduced to a new delicious dish every day. As I have mentioned before, the homemade dishes are the best and the staff will share their meals with others. It is a shame Aaron and I have nothing good to contribute to the luncheon, but we gladly offer to lend a hand if there is too much food left over! = ) The other day, Dr. Bhavana brought in a delicious bhath dish (rice with vegetables incorporating spices and red peppers, not green!) and today, Shalini brought in a very smooth coconut curry mixed with grated tamarind and grated dried red pepper. I am only jealous they get to eat this more than once a week! I also ate a thin, pale green, curly cucumber for a healthy and tasty midday snack. Aaron and I are discussing taking a cooking class at one of the local restaurants. Maybe I can learn how to make Akki Roti or Kasari, aka “South Indian Sweet”. For dinner, we went to a local Punjabi restaurant and had a veg paneer roll wrapped in buttered tandoori roti for our appetizer...mmmm. I promise to load pictures once I can remember to take the photos before consuming. And must start doing crunches!
I’ve made my current goal to find out the secret of how to maintain or lose weight while devouring all the delicious goodies that surround me on a daily basis (I'm sure every woman's goal). The other day we went to Gupta’s, a small little snack joint, located off one of the streets we frequent. As we stood outside, Aaron had a fresh veg samosa while I had a dish called Masala Puri (hot pea gravy, mixture, spices, carrots, and tomatoes) which is considered an Indian “fast food”. We followed it with a delicious fried morsel that would ooze sugary syrup when you bit into it. Everything during this visit was soooo tasty… but of course, we got into some trouble with Poornima Jay the following day for eating at a place that is considered just one-step above street vendor. I promised the person who recommended this place that I would not repeat their name for fear of receiving a scolding. = ) I guess I should’ve been thinking about all of the raw veggies on my plate including the large portion of tomatoes and carrots (no parasites for me please), but how can you resist the distraction when the smell is so wonderful! As much as I would like to say I will stay away from this place, I may or may not be able to resist the temptation to gravitate toward this little area again for some yummy food when walking by. At work, it also seems like I am introduced to a new delicious dish every day. As I have mentioned before, the homemade dishes are the best and the staff will share their meals with others. It is a shame Aaron and I have nothing good to contribute to the luncheon, but we gladly offer to lend a hand if there is too much food left over! = ) The other day, Dr. Bhavana brought in a delicious bhath dish (rice with vegetables incorporating spices and red peppers, not green!) and today, Shalini brought in a very smooth coconut curry mixed with grated tamarind and grated dried red pepper. I am only jealous they get to eat this more than once a week! I also ate a thin, pale green, curly cucumber for a healthy and tasty midday snack. Aaron and I are discussing taking a cooking class at one of the local restaurants. Maybe I can learn how to make Akki Roti or Kasari, aka “South Indian Sweet”. For dinner, we went to a local Punjabi restaurant and had a veg paneer roll wrapped in buttered tandoori roti for our appetizer...mmmm. I promise to load pictures once I can remember to take the photos before consuming. And must start doing crunches!
(Note: Title-lyrics from the musical Oliver. If you've seen it, that is exactly how I feel about trying all these new flavors...subtract the fact I am not a thin, starving child)
Clothes-shopping has been quite the adventure. I must first and foremost apologize to Aaron for the duration of these shopping trips. On one outing, I bought several outfits at one of the numerous clothing outfitters along the road. After my purchase, I brought them all home to later find out my shoulders couldn’t make it through any of the tops. The following day, I had to return all the items and pick out brand new ones. Both trips combined took well over an hour and a half. The second round worked out much better than the first as I liked all of my clothes significantly more. I chose one complete outfit with shirt, pants and scarf, which was adorned with tiny mirrors throughout the embroidered designs and also formed a thick band around the collar; I grabbed a few kurtas (shirt/dress without the pants) which received several compliments from the PHRI staff; the last item was some fabric, which I actually still haven’t figured out what I am supposed to do with quite yet. FabIndia, a clothing store owned by a westerner, gave me another fabulous selection with less ornate designs as well as the sizing I am more familiar with ...The pricing was somewhat higher, yet, the garments were still several times cheaper than anything offered back home…
Now to the important stuff… work. My current task has been to help create a registration and survey form that will be administered in the clinic. This has become very important as we cannot open the clinic without the registration forms, and I cannot get study subjects if the clinic is not open. Just when I think I might have the final draft, either Dr. Bhavana, Dr. Purnima, or I think of one more thing that needs to be altered in the form. During this process, it has been difficult for me to understand all of the customs and traditional thought which make some of the basic survey questions in my head, inappropriate for this population of women. There have been issues with figuring out the economic status of the women and even mentioning sexually transmitted disease or STD may or may not be confusing to some. Bhavana mentioned that many of these women don’t know what STD’s are and would have no idea as to the names of any of these diseases if we mentioned them. The names gonorrhea, herpes, trichomoniasis and chlamydia to name a few, all needed to be removed from the survey and left for other more general questions or fill-ins to answer. Luckily, we have counselors and clinicians that can advise and explain these diseases if necessary.
More good news! I was given additional funding for the project! Woohoo! Now if only customs would let the package with some of my reagents through...
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