Realizations and perceptions

Even through it’s only a few days in, I feel like I’m starting to get a handle on the routine here. I usually stir awake around 5am when the morning prayer happens, and then doze for a bit before jumping into a cold shower, then enjoy some coffee, bread and jam, and head off to the VSO office. Amazingly, the VSO team here have timetabled every day for us for the next month(!) and our day usually starts at the office, then a trip somewhere or information session, followed by our Bengali language classes in the Banani district (north east of Lalmatia). Note: Bengali is hard! More on this later. I also found out this week that there is a home stay as part of the one month induction period so I’ll be staying with a Bangladeshi family for ten days as of October 17. I’ve never done anything like that before but even though it’s a bit daunting, I need to embrace it. It’s not every day you get a chance to do something like that so we’ll see what happens… Watch this space!

The other good thing about finding my groove is that I feel more connected to the outside world. The first few days felt like I was in a time vacuum; I had no concept of time or day, never mind what’s going on in the world. Getting my email access back (even though the Internet is painfully slow), Facebook and getting a Bangladeshi mobile phone, means I can keep in touch with my beloved friends and family. The time difference is a bit annoying but I love waking up to messages from everyone.

So far this week, we’ve had a lot of hospital tours across the city which means endless hours in traffic which has been exhausting. The reality of these visits has compounded the extremes of wealth here. On Monday we went to the Apollo Hospital which had huge suites, AC, modern equipment, basically everything you’d expect to see in a North American hospital – obviously geared towards the diplomat set. But today, we went to the Cholera and Diarrhea hospital (I kid you not). Patients were scattered everywhere, and the place seemed like it was stuck in a time warp, thirty years behind. However, the doctor we met gave us a fantastic and informative session, plus allowed us to get any outstanding vaccines so I am now proudly immune to Rabies!
Something not on the agenda today was the arrival of two British girls. We thought one was coming this week along with a girl from Uganda, but to my delight, we got yet another girl and she even went to Edinburgh University. Yeah! One of them is staying in Dhaka and one isn’t, but it seems they haven’t put the two of us staying here together, even though out of ten volunteers here, there are only two girls staying in city. Powers of persuasion might need to come into play here… us Edinburghers need to stick together!

Anyway, last night was a pivotal point for me this week. I met up with my new Bengali actor/model friend and he picked me up outside the Lalmatia Women’s in a CNG to go for a bite to eat. We sped through the streets of Lalmatia along to Dhanmondi (a busier area nearby with lots of shops and restaurants) to a cool little place with views over the river. After something to eat, we met up with two of his friends in a bar, a quick walk away. Bar meaning = bar with no alcohol. Very strange. Nevertheless, his friends were both from London and their band just got signed to a Bengali record label! We chatted about all things British and I showed off my many accent skills to them – needless to say, I was a hit. Ha-ha. After hanging out at the second bar, we got a rickshaw over to another café and my actor/model friend was educating me on Islam as we whirled past the mosque area through the buzzing night streets. The guys guided me across the ten lane(!) junction; cars, rickshaws, CNGs and buses all flying around us, and we quickly arrived at the café. I had some masala tea for the first time (amazing) and we had great conversation about cultural differences, and the ways of Bengali and Muslim life. Totally interesting. I loved being the only foreigner; listening, sharing ideas, thoughts, beliefs, and truly being a part of the inner Bangladeshi social circle, not a watered down expat version.

I couldn’t sleep when I got home. Everything here is so alive. It makes me feel alive. It scares the hell out of me but that’s exactly why I’m here. I don’t know if my senses have ever been so stimulated. I wonder where I’ll go after living here…