Forgotten post from Cambodia - boat ride

I was cleaning out the Drafts folder of my inbox and came across this blog entry from a trip to Cambodia that I may or may not have already posted. As I was re-reading this story, I remembered another thing I wanted to share about Cambodia -

At the guesthouse where we stayed there are about 4 or 5 English movie channels on their cable TV. One afternoon I was channel surfing and EVERY English movie channel was playing a different Chuck Norris movie.

Here's the forgotten post:

As Jerry and I were walking toward the Night Market along the river, I said, "I really want to do a boat ride while we are here." Not five minutes later, a man came up to us and asked if we wanted to do a boat ride! $10 each for an hour-long trip. It was 4pm and the Night Market did not open until 5pm, so we agreed. I saw a pretty big boat and wondered how long we would have to wait until departure since I did not see any other people on the boat or even milling around. I asked and he said that we could leave now. So, we get on the boat and realize that we were the only passengers! We had the entire boat to ourselves. It was great. $20 for our own boat? Well, we leave shore and then a few minutes later he comes up and says something about needing to borrow $5... he'll pay us back at the end of the ride... This is not his boat... it belongs to his boss... and that he is a college student. So, I say, "Why don't I just pay you the $20 now?" He replies, "You just pay $5 now and then $15 at the end." Okay. (Dena and Jeremy - this totally reminded me of our ride up to the Getty Museum!!)

Later on, he comes back up to tell us some things about the river and the things we are looking at. And he says he we will be able to see Vietnam. Jerry is surprised because Vietnam is farther than an hour-long boar ride should take us. I have no sense of direction, so I just tell him to make sure to let me know when we can see Vietnam so I can take some pictures. But then he says he has to go because his sister is driving the boat and then something about how she does not know how to drive the boat. (Jenny - doesn't this remind you of our shared experiences in NOLA?) He leaves and Jerry and I start cracking up.

Several minutes pass and up he comes again and Jerry asks, "So, we will be able to see Vietnam?" Again, he says, "Yes," and then starts pointing to a distant shore and telling us what we are looking at is Vietnam. And that we should take pictures of the floating houses where they live. Jerry asks, "That's the country of Vietnam?" The guy starts chuckling and says that Vietnam is really far away. After a couple of clarifying questions, we realize that he uses the term Vietnam for the country AND any place where Vietnamese people live. Apparently, there is a group of Vietnamese people who have come from their country, live in these floating houses (since they cannot afford very much) and work in Phnom Penh.

I love boat rides. I love being on the water. So, regardless if we participated in some sort of under-the-table-operation, I had a great time. It was quiet and peaceful and a great way to fill an hour before our next activity.

One Towel Family

Yup, it's been a while. In honor or Labor Day, I decided to post something. Jerry and I have become a one-towel family. Yes, we share one towel. Why? Well, it all started in S Asia. In our flat, it would get so humid that if we left damp towels just anywhere, they would mildew pretty quickly. We found a place near the bathroom that had a hole (I think for wiring). It was in a good spot relative to our ceiling fan for faster drying. I put a chopstick in the hole and started putting our towels there. Well, the top towel would dry fine, but the bottom towel would still mildew so we started sharing a towel. We got so used to it that we still share a towel nine months after moving back to the US. It's great because it cuts down on laundry.

Anyone else share a towel with someone?

Forgotten joys

Jerry and I just came back from our first trip to West U Library (since we moved back to Houston), a place we used to frequent quite often before we moved overseas. I had sort of forgotten about what a great place the library is until a friend and I were swapping ways to be frugal and she mentioned getting books, CDs, and DVDs at the library. If there are local libraries in K, we did not run across any. There is a National Library there, but it is mostly for researchers and it looked pretty run-down.

Anyhow, back to our local library. It's great! And here are some reasons why:

1. It's quiet.
2. You can borrow up to 10 DVDs at a time per library card.
3. You can renew books, DVDs, etc online.
4. There are even CDs to borrow.
5. Usually, a book sale (to benefit the library) is going on and you can purchase hardbacks for $1 and paperbacks for $2. Today, I picked up a Dorothy Sayers mystery novel and Jerry picked up a book written by AND autographed by Kirk Douglas!
6. You can go to the online site and browse all kinds of media from all of the libraries in the county, click on what you want and when it's available, you get an email. Then you go to your local branch and all of your items are waiting for you on a shelf in an envelope with your name.
7. There are computers to browse the web.
8. They host book clubs. Once my schedule gets settled, I plan to join one hosted by the library.
   
9. They provide tables and chairs to sit in while reading through magazines. Not like at the grocery store where you have to stand in the aisle. One time, (I cannot believe I am about to tell this story...) Jerry and I were at Kroger and there was an outdoor furniture display in the middle of one of aisles near the magazines complete with comfy seating options, including a weather-proof love seat. Can you tell where this story is headed? Well, we chose several magazines and sat in the gazebo for about a hour, enjoying our mags and the outdoor furniture. It was kinda fun and no one said a word to us.

Any perks we left out?

USA living after S ASIA living

Well, we are back in the USA and thus, I have changed one word in the title of our blog. Did you notice it? Well, since this was my forum for sharing about our transition TO S Asia, I decided to keep it as my forum for our life FROM S Asia. Here's my first post on this new topic:

Let's go Krogering!

First, let me say that I love Kroger - especially the one near our house. It was recently renovated to compete with HEB's Buffalo Market and I like all of the additions, particularly the coffee shop on the second floor that looks over the fresh food section. Love it!

Anyway, my first trip there after moving back was a little harrowing. I'd been to Kroger during previous visits back to Houston, but this was the first time shopping for groceries other than snacks and drinks. I was all discombobulated while trying to figure out what a good price was for things like produce and fruit. It was really bothering me. (My sister sagely opined that maybe it was because in S Asia we were always having to worry about paying exorbitant prices because we were foreigners. And I was carrying this over to the fresh food section at Kroger.)

Plus, there are SO MANY choices for everything! From different brands to sizes to convenience packaging to caloric/fat content. Too many choices and the store is huge. We were at Kroger for over two hours, I think, and we did not even fill a basket.

Then, it was time to pay. We went to the self-scan machine and I got unreasonably upset again. Jerry and I used to have a rhythm and we'd forgotten it. Well, we were getting in each others' way and getting on each others' nerves. Needless to say, we have decided to use the live cashier until we get our act together.

That was our first visit. Subsequent visits have gone better, although I am trying to remaster the art of using coupons. That has been a little crazy - trying to match the coupons with what the stores have on sale and remembering that the stores come out with new ads on Wednesdays and the coupons come with the Sunday paper. And I had completely forgot about double and triple coupons. There is so much to relearn.

There's much more we're readjusting to and I hope to post something at least once a week.

P.S. If you have couponing tips, I am very open to your suggestions. Gotta be frugal!

Spicy!

I went with a group of friends to eat street food snacks tonight. One expat friend ate a few and then said that he wanted his next one to be super spicy.

Our local friend warned, "No, don't take it like that. It will offend you in the night."

ALL

Another movie-related post...

Remember this point?

The movies are censored for extreme violence or sexual content. A violent scene from Angels and Demons was cut and lots of scenes from The Reader were cut. Sometimes when we are deciding whether or not to go see a movie, Jerry asks himself, "Do I just want to wait to watch it on DVD so I can see the entire movie?"

Well, Inglourious Basterds is playing here and I asked Jerry if he wanted to go see it. His reply,

"It will probably be censored. I want to see ALL the violence."

Whereas my thought was, "It will probably be censored. Good. I would rather see it here." Well, we ended up going and sure enough, we could tell when scenes were cut out. But we were both surprised at how much we enjoyed the film, especially me, although I did close my eyes during all of the killing scenes.

My husband... His quote deserves to be on here twice.

"It will probably be censored. I want to see ALL the violence."

Let's Go to the Movies!

Let's go see the stars! Fred and Ginger - spinning madly! - who knows where these lyrics are from? :)

The movie experience here is a little different than in the US. Here are some of my observations:

1. Movie schedules change on Fridays, just like back home, but unlike the US, you cannot find out what is playing until Friday morning. Sometimes, you can find out on Thursday - but only from the website of one of the theaters, and the site is usually not working.
2. Ticket prices are based on day of the week, time of day, projected popularity of the movie and where you sit in the theater. For instance, a seat in the back row of popular Bollywood film showing late Sunday afternoon or evening will cost the most - maybe $5. But a seat on the front row of a not so popular Hollywood film on weekday morning could cost as little as $1.40.
3. Yes, the back row is the most expensive since people here think those seats are the best. The front row is the cheapest and there is no difference in cost between the 2nd highest row or the 2nd lowest row and those in between We always go for the middle and rarely is anyone in front of us unless the theater is packed.
4. So, yes, there are assigned seats and you get to pick from a diagram exactly where you want to sit. I like this alot! So, the early bird can buy his tickets and choose his seats and then roam around the mall for a little while without worrying about making a mad dash for seats when the theater doors open. (See #8)
   
5. Before each film showing, everyone has to stand for a film clip of famous vocalists singing the national anthem. It's quite pretty, but it is in Sanskrit, so only those who learn the meaning in school understand the lyrics.
   
6. There is an intermission at exactly the half-way mark of every movie. They call this the "interval". At one theater, during the break, on the screen was what looked like a filmed piece of scratch paper that had "INTER VEEL" on it. It was also in that particular theater that Jerry had to keep one eye on the screen and his other eye on the rat that was running around. (We have not been back to that theater.) Bollywood films tend to be 3+ hours, so I understand the need for the break, but there is even a break in a 1.5 hour film. During the interval, the theater staff come filing in with snacks and beverages to purchase - shouting their wares - just like at a sports game in the US. It's kinda funny, but nice, too. No need to go to the snack bar!
7. The movies are censored for extreme violence or sexual content. A violent scene from Angels and Demons was cut and lots of scenes from The Reader were cut. Sometimes when we are deciding whether or not to go see a movie, Jerry asks himself, "Do I just want to wait to watch it on DVD so I can see the entire movie?"
8. Theaters make more money the more showings they have. But here, it is sometimes at the cost of the credits. We have been to several movies where the movie ends, the credits start to roll and then it fades to black so they can get started with the next showing earlier. Is that even legal? And so because there is very little time between film showings, you are not allowed to enter the theater until the film is supposed to start. And sometimes not even until after the start time.
9. A popular movie snack is steamed corn. It comes in a small paper cup and you can add salt, butter or masala (Indian spices). It's quite tasty!
   

And now for an amusing movie story...
One Saturday morning we went the theater for the 10:45am showing of Horton Hears a Who. We got there at 10:30am to get tickets - plenty of time to get seats, snacks, etc since it was a Saturday morning - an unpopular movie-going time. We had double-checked the theater website to make sure the time was right, but when we got to the theater, we found out that the showing had been preponed to 10:15am. So, we were late instead of early! Yup, you read correctly - PREponed. It's a real word here. It's used when something is changed to an earlier time. Makes sense right? If things can be postponed, surely they can be preponed!

Kroger vs HEB

Whoa! It has been over month since I last posted. Gol-ly!

This has nothing to do with transitioning to life in S Asia, but I still wanted to share, since we have been anticipating the opening of the new HEB on Buffalo Speedway, which is in our neighborhood in Houston.

We went to the Grand Opening of HEB Buffalo Market and had a devil of a time finding a parking space. A couple of the reviews I read pointed out the small parking area. I feel sorry for the folks who want to eat at Buffalo Grille, but cannot find parking since they share the same lot. (By the way, we had breakfast at Buffalo Grille last Sunday and the food was WONDERFUL - I had forgotten how much we enjoy that place! Plus, I ran into one of my old students from my very first year of teaching. He is 25 now!! I had him in World History and he commented that it was a good class and I made it fun. I love running into old students!)

Back to HEB. It was fairly crowded and reminded Jerry of a circus atmosphere. There were lots of "stations" to visit. I was very impressed with the varieties of fresh bread, cheeses and meats. There were samples galore - my fav was probably the homemade mozzarella. We had planned to eat lunch at their Cafe on the Run (which was pretty small), but we had enough samples to fill us up.

The weekend before we went to the Kroger across the street that had its grand re-opening to compete with HEB. I was REALLY impressed and wondered how HEB could possible out-do Kroger. The samples were great, including a half-pint of Graeter's ice cream. (Side review: For the price, Ben and Jerry's is better. And for cheaper ice cream, Blue Bell will do for me. It was kinda funny that Blue Bell was on sale 2 half-gallons for $5. Everyone was eating the free Graeter's, but had Blue Bell in their carts!)

Back to Kroger vs. HEB. I thought the calif roll at Kroger was better than the sushi at HEB. Also, I did not like the seafood people at HEB who were shouting for customers to come to their area. It sounded like we were on the midway at a carnival. Also, the sales at Kroger were WAY better, except for the fresh lobster at HEB. See below for price. Kroger has really expanded their prepared food area. I look forward to eating some meals in the new upstairs dining area that overlooks the supermarket when we move back to Houston.

Bottom line - we'll keep doing our regular grocery shopping at Kroger, but if we need specialty items or the HEB flier has an exceptional sale, we will go there.

Competition is always good for the consumer. Here is what we had for lunch the day before we came back to S Asia:

steamed lobster: HEB - 5.99/lb
steamed asparagus: Kroger - .99/lb
bing cherries: Kroger - .99/lb.
mac n cheese mixed with cut up hot dogs - hotdogs were .55 for a 14oz Oscar Meyer at Kroger

P.S. I also ran into an old student at Kroger!

There is a first time for everything

I have a boil. It is on my arm. Near my wrist. It is gross and painful. When I think of boils, I think of the ten plagues from the Old Testament - remember Moses and Pharaoh? How is it that I have a boil?

But I do. And I have learned that lots of people get them here. It's because of the heat.

At least several times a day, I think to myself, "I have a boil. I can't believe I have a boil."

And at least several times a day, I hold up my arm to Jerry and say, "I have a boil."

I tried taking a picture, so you could see it, but the photo does not do justice to the real thing. I did not even know what boils looked like until I got one. It started off looking like a pimple, but then the skin around it swelled up, turned red and hurt like heck. I asked around and was told I have a boil.

I have a boil. I can't believe I have a boil.

Better than a bidet

One thing I will REALLY miss about living here is this:

Not the toilet, but the white hose-looking thing to the right. I do not know the official name for it, but I call it a sprayer. Its cultural use is to spray your bum after you go short toilet (pee) or long toilet (poop) instead of using toilet paper. I use the sprayer AND toilet paper. The sprayer for the bits and the rinse and then the toilet paper for the dry.

I think it is better than a bidet because you do not have to move to another contraption to get the "rinse" and you have control over where the stream is spraying as well as the intensity. I have asked Jerry if he can install one wherever we end up living when we move back to Houston. He has said, "Yes."

So, if you end up coming over to our place in Houston one day and need to go to the bathroom...

well, it's interesting to me

I find that my facebook status is usually about the weather. And I think - this is probably really boring to most people, but the reason I put it out there is that it is really fascinating to me how hot and humid it gets here. Yesterday the heat index was 153 degrees. Can you imagine that? Well, I can honestly say that not only can I imagine it - I have felt it and it is HOT! I was just telling someone who just moved here that I used to try to describe the heat, but now all I can say is, "It is hot; it is really hot."

This is for my sister - I found myself telling Jerry a couple of weeks ago, "I know I am spoiled, but I have endured alot!"

First Meal

Even though we will not be going home for another six weeks, Jerry and I have already talked about what our first meal will be when we get to Houston - Chick-fil-A milkshake and Popeye's Fried Chicken!

My husband said so

I went by myself to cancel our membership at BigFlix, a DVD rental place, primarily because we do not rent enough to justify the monthly fee and we have already lost one movie.

When I told the clerk I wanted to cancel, he tried to persuade me not to. Then I told him why and he tried to persuade me again. Then I said that I just wanted to cancel and then he tried to persuade me again. Finally, I had to resort to, "My husband says we are canceling." That did the trick.

It is pretty interesting how women are identified through their husbands and fathers. On almost any application and definitely any gov't application, if you are a woman, you have to write your father's name or husband's name and occupation. Women are commonly announced as "wife of" or "daughter of" so-and-so.

I could go on and on about the treatment of women, but it's my birthday!!! Hooray for me - I love being a woman!

No news is good news?

Yesterday, Jerry was reading the newspaper and it said something about how there would be no May 2nd edition because of the May 1st May Day holiday. And sure enough, there are no newspapers in our city today. And when I went to check the online edition of the usual newspaper I read, it will give me the news only for May 1st - yesterday.

This happened to me before when I tried to access the newspaper online and kept getting a past date even when I refreshed the page. I just thought it was something wrong with the server. Now I know.

I have never really heard of this ever before in any place ever.

Something funny not related to life in S Asia

Instead, it is about E Asia...

We have a friend from Hong Kong visiting right now. She asked what she could bring for us and Jerry requested current, popular Chinese action movies. She brought several VCDs and told us that when we watch them, we need to turn one speaker off.

WHAT??

Well, she went on to explain that we have to do that because the audio is in Mandarin AND Cantonese - one language on one speaker and the other language on the other speaker.

So before I came home Jerry was watching one of the movies with the right speaker off, so he could listen to the movie in Cantonese. But now that I am here, he is using his headphones and so the audio is coming only in his left ear!

Another Adventure in the Heat

We walked into our flat at around 8:30pm tonight and just as I approached the bedroom, the lights went out. Yup, a power cut. And what of our inverter, you say? Doesn't work. Well actually, the inverter works but the battery is near dead. Does it surprise you that things did not work out as planned with this whole inverter thing? Does not surprise me. Here's what happened next:

M: What do you think? Should we stay or try to find some A/C?
J: Well, we'll see. Maybe it will last only an hour.
M: Okay.

five minutes later...
M: Honey, a heat rash is developing on my finger and hands.
J: Okay, let's go.

Our plan was to find a coffee shop that still had power and bring our Skip-Bo with us and play cards until the power came back. We first went to Barista. No A/C. Then Cafe Coffee Day (CCD). No A/C. Then the mall (who had the 4-6 hour power cut over the weekend). A/C!! Hooray!! We went to the CCD on the food court level, ordered iced drinks and played Skip-Bo and then War. Our friend who has a working inverter let us know when the power came back on (10:00pm) and we went back to our flat where the temp was 95 degrees. We turned on the A/C, took a cold shower and watched a movie on TV called Outsourced, a film about an American guy who goes to India to train his outsourced replacement. It was a blessing to watch this character try to navigate the culture. We were able to laugh quite a bit since we are now "insiders" and it improved our moods about living here. We really needed that boost since this past week has been particularly frustrating and discouraging for us. Hooray for the right kind of movie just when we needed it, especially since Jerry was just flipping channels and happened upon it just as it was starting!

Not intended to elicit sympathy (for us)

I have a bit of time on my hands right now because I am unexpectedly at home instead of at work because of an upset stomach that is going on 4 hours. And here, I would say that my "stomach is paining" (one of these days I want to blog about new phrases I am learning).

Anyhow, I had some time to read the local news online and it's just crazy here. I kinda debated on whether or not to even share these things with you since I do not want to come across as someone to feel sorry for. Right now, I am lying in bed neath the comfort of a ceiling fan and A/C. But I want to help you understand what life is like here, so here goes...

THE WEATHER
Here is the high/low forecast for the next several days:
M - 108/79
T - 109/83
W - 107/80
R - 107/83
F - 107/83
Sa - 106/83
The discomfort index (sort of like a heat index, but includes more stuff than just humidity) was 148.6 yesterday. It was really HOT. And it is really humid here. I keep hearing that sweat cools you off, but in my experience, sweat makes me sticky, stinky, itchy and makes my eczema worse.

Anyhow, yesterday was also a day when most of the city lost power for hours. We went to the mall to get some A/C and the whole mall blacked out. That was weird. I was glad we were sitting inside a restaurant and not walking around. But I think that is why my stomach is paining today. Something I ate at the mall may have been affected by the blackout. The generators came on but only for the lights - no A/C. As we were walking around a bookstore later, we were sweating. And at my small group a few days before, we were all talking about how we were going to need to spend the weekends at the mall to get some A/C so we would not need to run up our own A/C costs at home. We may need to come up with a Plan B, C, D, etc.

A few excerpts from the newspaper:

Doctors said many were falling victim to the excessive heat. “People are being admitted with heat exhaustion, diarrhoea, hepatitis and fever,” said critical care expert Subrata Maitra.

Heat exhaustion, an initial stage of heat stroke, manifests itself through weakness, fatigue and a drop in blood pressure. "People should also try not to eat or drink at roadside stalls to avoid being afflicted with gastrointestinal ailments,” said Maitra.

Of the patients turning up at various gastroenterology clinics in the city, many are complaining of pain in the kidney or urinary bladder. “Crystals are formed in kidneys and urinary bladders because of inadequate intake of fluid in extreme heat. If left untreated, these crystals can grow into stones,” said surgical gastroenterologist Sanjay De Bakshi.

I really feel for the people who cannot afford electricity for fans or the luxury of A/C. And eating on the street is really cheap and lots of people do not have the money to do otherwise. Jerry and I are suffering, but certainly not to the extent of the average person.

And guess what? May will be hotter.

POLLUTION

I could write for days about the pollution, but I will limit myself to a recent news article. A school here in the middle of town noticed high absenteeism rates due to respiratory illnesses. So, as of last week, a surgical face mask is now a compulsory part of the school uniform. In their own words:

“So many people in this city are suffering from pollution-related lung cancer that it is scary. I also know of students who have developed breathing problems because of air pollution. The anti-pollution mask is not only for our protection but also a symbol of our protest (against official apathy),” says Abhishek Mundhra, a student of Class X.

Spandan Chatterjee, another Class X student, nods his head in approval. “I will carry the mask whenever I step out of home. If I am stuck in a traffic snarl, the mask will be my protection from noxious vehicle fumes.” Classmate Nakshatra Pain hopes the sight of students wearing masks to school would finally make the authorities sit up and take notice.

The school children are also planning to educate the slum children near their school about the effects of pollution and have plans to raise funds to buy masks for them as well.

I have read several articles about the pollution problem that report that between 65-80% of all of the people who live here have some sort of respiratory problem. Again, Jerry and I are able to limit the amount of time we walk around on the streets in the midst of the billowing black fumes, but long commutes by open-air bus, auto rickshaws and foot are a fact of life for most people.

ENTERTAINMENT

The Indian Premier League (for cricket) just kicked off its second season in SOUTH AFRICA. It's election time over here and because of the violence that surrounds elections, the league had to move all the games to ANOTHER COUNTRY or cancel the season. It's national election time and here they do it in five phases. During the first phase eleven people were killed. The phase in our city will be the day after my birthday - May 13th. Although there is typically no violence in this city during elections, I have been told we should stay at home that day. Anyway, there were too many security concerns regarding the safety of the spectators and the players, so the IPL got moved to another continent. People here LOVE cricket. It really crushed their spirits when the news broke that the IPL would not be playing any games in India. And last night, it was our own city's team that was playing their first game of the season but not many people got to watch it on TV because of the power outage.

Another thing that might happen is that the movie theaters may have to shut down. There is a dispute between Bollywood producers and the theaters about revenue-sharing. As of the beginning of this month, no new Bollywood movies have been shown. Bollywood cranks out way more films every year than Hollywood - think it is 1000 to 750. People love cricket, but even more people here love the Bollywood films. From today's paper:

“Yes we have already shut down half the screens because we have to cut operational costs and I have no qualms in admitting that we may shut down the entire property in the near future,” Shravan Shroff of Fame Cinemas told Metro. “It’s simple — there’s no supply of content and we are incurring losses every day.”

The last two weeks have seen average occupancy at the plexes plummeting to “10 to15 per cent”, proving yet again that the plexes can’t do without Bollywood, just as Bollywood can’t do without the plexes (that’s why there are no new releases on single screens either).

And things can only get worse. May 1 is the Friday when plexes in town may start shutting down if no solution is in sight. “I don’t see any talks happening between the producers and us. Their two main stars won’t even be in the country (Aamir will be on holiday in the US for two months and Shah Rukh will be in South Africa for the IPL). In such a scenario we would have to close down our properties,” explained Shravan.

So, with the heat and pollution (just two of many problems people face here), folks try to divert their attention to fun things like cricket and the cinema. But, the IPL cricket is gone and the cinema may follow.

But don't feel sorry for us (well, you can feel a little sorry for us), pray for the nationals who live here. Life here is tough already and it is exacerbated by heat, pollution and power cuts... When we first got here, we would say that we feel these discomforts more acutely than the nationals because we are used to a different standard and the people here grew up in these conditions. Well, I no longer feel that way. Just because they grew up here does not mean they are used to it or are able to endure. It is much harder for them.

Mitzi and Jerry are a little stunned that...

the forecast for Monday's high temp is 108 degrees.

It's hot here. I started drip sweating after standing in my living room for just two minutes. And just like last year, people keep saying, "Just wait til May. It will be hotter."

But this year, we are going to be a bit more prepared. This Saturday we are getting an inverter installed. An inverter is something like a battery that is connected to the electrical stuff in your flat. Usually, people have inverters that will allow one fan and one light to work in each room of the flat for about an hour. So, when the power goes out... you get the picture. Some buildings here have generators. Our does not. Some flats have inverters. Ours does not. Last year, the power outages almost got the best of me. There are more power cuts in summer than any other time because there is not enough electricity to meet the increased demand/need to use fans and A/Cs. Last summer, the power would go out and then after we could not stand it any longer, we would open the windows, but then the mosquitoes would come and bite me. They always stay away from Jerry and always bite me. It's just not fair.

Anyway, we are starting the process of getting the inverter installed this Saturday. I say starting the process because I have lived here long enough to know that it will most likely take at least a few sessions with the electrician before the inverter works. And I have decided that we will turn on only fans during the power outages because I would rather be in the dark if that means the fans can stay on a little longer without the lights using up the precious inverter battery. We don't need to SEE each other sweating!

This is what the table near us was eating...

Family Paper Dosa - never seen one before in my life until tonight!
(and the family was really nice about letting me AND my friend take pictures)

It will soon be Car-Hiding time!

National elections take place every five years here and 2009 is an election year. Guess what? The government can take your car for election duty! Your own private car! A policeman or party official can stop you on the street, take down your car information and then give you a paper telling you when and where to bring your car. And you have to do it! It is kinda like jury duty. You have to show up, but if you present a compelling reason why your car cannot be used, then you are excused (doctors usually don't have to give up their cars). And once you give your car, you are exempt from car duty for a while.

You get reimbursed for the use of your car, but I have heard that the cars usually come back trashed. And friends tell me that people will hide their cars for a while until after the election period. So, I started getting really worried until I found out that they typically target big cars and we have one of the smallest ones around!

This pic of our car was taken during one of the lighter monsoon floods last year

But still!!! Anyway, here is an article entitled "Car-pull on ballot eve - Wary owners shield private vehicles from police on the prowl" from a few years back about the whole thing.