baby steps

first impressions mash-up

i am taking the easy way out.
jet-lag, over stimulation, anxiety, awesomeness, etc can wipe a girl out. these are some snippets from the rampant emails and chats ive been sending since i still cant manage to sleep... in no particular order of course.

"its not home, or even close"

"i did sleep
i had a grilled cheese
i took two taxis"

"i wish i knew how to feel, or what to do..."

"dude, the whistling is crazy...
i think it must be an animal.
i thought for a while that it was a traffic cop, like imagining him standing in the middle of a circle, you know, italian style, with a whistle. but its freaking loud. and theres actually not much traffic at 4am so i really do think its a fauna."

"yeah, yesterday i cried and cried and cried"

"so strange!

there was a little packet here of shampoo... then i opened it and it was black like dye...

my hair seems fine though."

"time
and doing
its been a rollercoaster
maybe not
i havent hit a high yet
so no rollercoaster
maybe today
free fall"

"theres lots of noise for sure"

"hell, i havent even been here for 24 hrs... "

"the flight was good.
i missed dinner fell asleep didnt drink enough. there was a strike and they had to pull metal steps up to the plane"

hello delhi

im here...! homesick and scared, and nervous, and tired.
nice things abound though, the guest house is lovely, and there is ample wireless, bottled water after 730am and chai.

the first 24 hours are past, and so far so good, if a little rough. im not even trying to force the time adjustment yet, ill save that for mumbai.

i feel like ive been saying goodbye for the last 6 months... since making the decision to go to india almost 4 months ago, ive left three places incredibly dear to me. leaving is/was really hard. at the same time, it wasnt so bad. i cant imagine turning down an amazing opportunity like this. and it is nice to finally be here, and not have it looming in the future as it really has been for, like i mentioned before, the last 4 months.

and today i found out that unless granted an extension, my grant will expire exactly 9 months from my arrival in india. to the day. a little perspective...

anyway, the flight was split into two parts, something i am entirely grateful for. part one was great, dulles to amsterdam. saying the last goodbye to my parents was not fun, and i went through security a crying mess.
but i love dulles airport:

i like amsterdam too, i love the netherlands. its a beautiful country. it was tempting to just leave the airport, and for about 5 minutes i really considered it. but instead, i left the most beautiful, rainy, grey amsterdam morning, all the comforts of schiphol, and my huge bottle of evian behind:


the second flight was only about 8hrs, which is why the layover helps immensely. after being told the 747 was full, it turned out to be a third empty in economy leaving a spare seat between me and the gentleman on the aisle. i sort of lost track of what time it was supposed to be at that point and completely passed out. missing dinner, which was problematic because that also meant missing a drink. for some annoying reason, for that flight security was at boarding, with no water, or any liquid beyond.

upon arrival in delhi, the klm crew made this announcement. 'ladies and gentlemen, we have been informed that there is just now a strike of the people that bring the walkway to the plane. we will wait for escalator to come to the plane, maybe another 20 minutes'. walking down a metal staircase onto the plane parking space in no apparent instruction or direction was perhaps the most appropriate way to enter india as a first-timer. the sight of the jumbo plane so close, was incredible. i think it also relieved me of any remaining desire to be 'that guy that helps the planes park', which was a definitely a childhood career ambition for a while.

delhi airport is undergoing some serious renovations, there were at least signs suggesting that. as for degree of aggravation in line at passport control, delhi vs jfk, delhi loses! the line was long, and pushy, but simple lack of attitude made it bearable. baggage collection was a mess, but after all that, customs could care less that i had two cameras, a laptop, one extra bag, and an arsenal of otc remedies. at 2am, they were happy even.

it got me thinking that this might be ok afterall. the ride to the guest house was scary, i was bewildered, it was silent, we were on a highway with a cow, we were driving though what looked like a war zone (i found out in the daylight it was a huge mess of an infrastructure construction) and i was so dehydrated my brain hurt.

and then we arrived at the loveliest guest house ever. and i totally lost it. by 3am, i discovered the internet worked and that alone induced a few hours sleep.

by morning i had a two bottles of water, a new room with working plumbing, the light of day to see what was outside, and a working power adapter. the taxi ride to the fulbright office was mind blowing, and the staff there were so warm and reassuring.

all in less than 14 hrs post arrival.

so yes, hello delhi.

i learned to drive in new jersey

rt 1




nj tnpk/linden co-gen plant




washington rd

development planning

take that, delhi belly

knowing that probably half of this will go unused, im still glad to feel well-armed against whatever may come my way. i keep thinking i could cut this amount in half, but what would be the fun of that? at this rate i can open my own store...to compensate, im taking an uncharacteristically small amount of clothing and shoes. priorities.

timing is everything

the indian consulate that handles most of the north atlantic region is in new york city. recently, all indian visa applications have been outsourced to a separate agency, cutting line time, headache, and hassle. still, nothing is seamless, and it does pay to get there early. perhaps not at 7am, but by 7:30, there was a small line. the office opens at 9am, and being first in line is nice. and you are in a better position to get the visa when they re-open for pickup at 4:30pm. it makes for a very long day, but if the weather is decent, its more than tolerable.


it also pays to have paperwork organized, in hand, with duplicate proof-of-addresses, photos, etc. although they are quite happy to make a photocopy of any original document you cant part with. there are several computer stations available to fill out the on-line application, although its not so fun to wait for 2 hours to use a computer lab and get back in line. being anally organized allowed me to walk out fifteen minutes later, sans passport, with a receipt for pickup. although i had been waiting since 7. i probably could have queued up at 8:30 and not been in too much trouble, as it was a dismal february tuesday and the crowd seemed atypically small.

and killing time in new york is fairly easy.
the forecast called for a lovely wintry mix, driving rain in the morning, and highs of 35f. somehow, it maintained a balmy 40ish-ness all day, without any substantial rain or wind.


all in all, i walked about 13 miles, more or less by choice. i picked up some fun stuff for the trip, was awed by the institution that is b&h photo, and spent some quality time in the nj transit lounge checking my passport status. with the new outsourcing system, the passports can be tracked by number online, and arriving for pickup with out first confirming status is apparently discouraged. its not fun to haul up to central park unless you know youre going to walk out with your visa, and you will also be asked, repeatedly, if you have tracked your passport.

after that its a breeze. you simply sign, and your passport is returned, visa and all. my neighbors in line seemed to be at ease with the whole thing too. much less painful than the nj dmv.

serendipitously, the laptop i was hoping would get me though the next nine months was somehow upgraded in system components, not price, and in stock. crossing get-new-laptop off the list, and avoiding fed-ex delivery anxiety. timing was incredible.

still the best part of the day was this:



this man is spectacular not because of his long flowing hair, his pleather windpants, or even his flashing electric violin. but simply because he was playing britney spears 'baby, one more time' with a vigor i cant do justice in describing.

all in all, not bad.

why everything is for sale

the main point of this blog is to record the daily process of fulfilling my grant. before, during, and after. this is important to me for two reasons: first, keeping in touch. its like a super deluxe mass email, only its at-will, and wont fill your inbox. second, i can use it to create my mandatory monthly reports, something im sure i would rather do last minute, but would be better with piecemeal observation. these benefits outweigh my instinctual reluctance and apprehension to 'blogging' so i hope i get in the habit of making an effort. and because these reasons are more or less self-serving, i hope to make it a good show.
also, i learned some good tips from past grantees blogs and hope to make this somewhat useful for whomever is in my position next year.

anyway, right now things are mostly chaotic. pre-departure organizing has been an adventure in communications and paperwork, and thats just the bureaucratic side of things. the to-do list is tiring and long. one task of this weekend is to purge. you would be surprised at the interest in a moving sale on a weather-threatened saturday morning.
its not just me, 'home' home is moving too.
packing lightly is always a good thing, and double relocating is all the more reason. just as long as the 'trash and give away' pile remains bigger than the 'keep' pile, its progress.


maybe not everything though.

snowed in

after the last two years of boston winters under the influence of global warming and spending the majority of this years on a west coast beach, it was nice to wake up to this:



the forecasted blizzard was actually nothing but 6 inches of soft pretty mess. doctors and shots were still open so i can check hep A off the list. according to the cdc, its a good idea to get lots of shots before you go on a trip like this. while my doctor may not agree, id rather be overly safe. hep A breeds in places with unsanitary conditions, fancy bars in new york, and is quickly passed through food and water. at the least it will screw up your liver. so my left shoulder takes one for team healthy.

with love, from mom

its time to start packing. or at least unpacking things to pack. this is my favorite so far:


i really cant imagine another situation in which my mother would so enthusiastically gift me a set of hypodermic syringes.