Catfish, Hushpuppies, and Enchiladas--or how I can't find the ipad charger.

My intention was to blog each morning...but then the ipad battery died and I keep leaving the charger in a bag in the car at night!

Today we are in New Mexico, headed to Arizona.  Yesterday we stayed in Amarillo, TX, the day before in Oklahoma after driving through Arkansas.  I (Legs), tried catfish for the first time and had some amazing hushpuppies in Oklahoma (I thought of you Dad...they even offered me collard greens but I just couldn't take it that far).  I have been waiting to eat enchiladas until we hit Texas but our hotel in Amarillo had a nice dinner so we missed our chance in TX and made up for it in New Mexico.  However, they sent us to the best 'New Mexican' restaurant rather than the best 'Mexican' restaurant and it wasn't quite what I was looking for.  It was tasty, but it was definitely American-Mexican food.  Thumper figured out that we order things from the server and each time she came by our table he'd smile really big and say, "I want more water.  I want more milk."  We are still working on manners :-)

Thumper is also learning how to get what he wants...quickly.  When he feels he has been in the car long enough he will start by saying, "Not going in car too long mama?" and when I tell him that we have a few more hours to go he says, "I need a diaper change mama...I go poop mama" and then starts screaming until we pull over to discover that he just wanted to get out of the car.  He has been a trooper though and some days are a little better than others.  He has his own semi truck to play with and he really likes watching all the big rigs go by.  We stop at Pilot gas stations so he can stretch his legs and watch the trucks in the parking lot.  Depending on his mood, he cries when one he really likes gets back on the road, it's very sweet.

It has been amazing driving through the country.  The days can be long with a toddler, a dog, and a pregnant lady...but Pancho still manages to rub my back at night and we both enjoy talking all day as we drive through the open spaces we've been dreaming about.  So far, we feel like we could live in Albuquerque, Oklahoma City, or Hendersonville, NC---although, the further West we get the more at home we feel.

Tonight we will stay outside of Phoenix with an old college friend of mine who we can't wait to see!  We will stop for lunch with Pancho's Marine Corps buddy and his wife and then we are off to visit the Grand Canyon.  Don't think the government shutdown will stop us, we have a plan.  The Grand Canyon is not all National Park land, in fact, a good portion is on Native American land which is not closed.  SO, we are going to the Hualapai reservation to visit the Grand Canyon West and will spend two nights in the area so we can have a full day to take in nature and see our second of many wonders of the world (remember or trip to the Taj Mahal this spring)!

After the Grand Canyon we are off to Southern California to see the ocean (a wonder of the world in my opinion--I've been day dreaming of the ocean for almost two years now) and Pancho's best friend from High School.  They have a big family of their own and are still making space for our crew to stay the night.  We are so grateful to have such wonderful friends!

Once we hit the westernmost states we will head North...not quite sure where we will be stopping along the way other than my wonderful cousin's house near Sacramento.  Just about one more week of road trip before we get to settle back into small town life and get ready for another baby!

As Pancho says, 'happy travels!'

Road Trip!

We left DC and somehow managed to fit everything in our car for our next big adventure! On day one we made it to North Carolina and stayed with my wonderful aunt and uncle who welcomed our crew with open arms and BBQ. We got to visit and enjoy coffee in rocking chairs on the porch looking out at trees and listening to crickets. Thumper ran free in the grass and played with every new toy he could find--he even got to pick one out to take with on the trip. It was so nice to see family, the first family we have seen in nine months, and we are grateful for their love and extreme hospitality! The next day we headed onward to Tennessee and stopped a little before Nashville. We gained an hour from Central time and tried to visit a state park (yes, those are still open!), but we got there three minutes before closing time and had to settle for subway and TV. The countryside here is beautiful and we saw the most amazing sunset over the corn fields last night.

In other news, I got in to see a doctor before we left DC and everything is going well! We will do a growth scan once we get settled in WA and I continue to monitor my blood sugars. It was a very reassuring visit and I was happy to be asked those follow up questions when I mentioned frequent Braxton hicks and lower back pain...in India I was told to lift with my knees, not my back, instead of say, trying to rule out pre-term labor :)

Pancho is still hoping to run an ultra marathon this fall (anything bigger than 26.2miles) and has been running each morning we have been back...which gives me time to blog before Thumper opens his eyes! Maybe this trip will be better documented than the last...stay tuned!

Back in the US

So, it has been a while and a whole lot has happened!  Due to medical reasons we left Hyderabad for good. It was a very hard decision and a long and stressful process once we made the decision. With no formal onward assignment, they landed us in DC for a few weeks before we head home and start maternity leave. We don't know where we are going next but are looking forward to some time to just be a family and get the medical care we need. The trip home was a grand 42 hours complete with pet complications but we made it! There were many things we were looking forward to in the US (and we have surely been taking advantage of since our return) but we have found ourselves unexpectedly dealing with reverse culture shock. It is neither good nor bad but it leaves me, legs, feeling a little lost in the world.

We decided to buy a car and road trip home--this time we will go South. I don't think anyone, in any culture, enjoys the car buying process! We survived and came out with a Subaru that looks just like our old Hyundai but with four doors; the Hyundai we drove from West to East, along the Northern route, when we started this adventure almost two years ago. I've had a few breakdowns since being back, for a variety of reasons--mostly that we have been struggling for a few months now and I just keep getting more pregnant which doesn't make any of it easier to deal with--and Pancho bought me a prenatal massage, took me and Thumper to a French bistro for lunch, and went with me to pick out a few new fall sweaters. I sure am lucky.

I am hoping to see a doctor before we start our road trip but not having an address, state of residence, onward assignment, or actual medical records from India, it is challenging to set these things up!  We aren't sure when we are going to start our trip but hopefully it will be this week...pending the government shutdown decision.

Thumper is a whole new little boy being able to run free in the grass, ride the metro, and go outside without being touched or photographed. He gets excited each time an airplane goes by and keeps asking to walk to the local fire station. It looks like a trip to Gravelly Point Park is in order this evening!

Making a Babies R Us registry again and trying to decide on a color of Ergo baby carrier makes me happy in the short term and seeing the rest of the country with just my little family in our new car promises to be healing. The Grand Canyon is on my bucket list!

India, it's not you, it's me...

This post has been a long time coming.  No, we are not breaking up with India.  In fact, we are apologizing and starting a fresh relationship.

See, the truth is, while India has definitely been an adjustment, the problem isn't the country or the people.  I, legs, have realized that there are other factors about my job that have really affected our morale at post.  Recognizing that the organizational culture might or might not fit our family's needs has been very hard--particularly because of how much time and effort I put in to get here.  It doesn't mean that we want to leave, it just means that we are finding our selves particularly introspective trying to identify what is important to us right now and how we can get our needs met while pursuing this career.  Either way, in the end, it's not you, India, it's me and I'm sorry.

India is different but it is truly incredible.  Once you find your place in Hyderabad the city becomes that much more familiar.  I drive just about anywhere now and that freedom has been huge for us.  Yesterday, we ran errands all over the city and it was *almost* like any other weekend in the States.  I posted a while back about our relationship with our driver and yesterday he invited us to spend a very special holiday with his joint family in their home.  It was that much more special for us after really starting over with India.  Again, we are reminded why we wanted to live this life despite the challenges.  The only question in the next few years is whether or not the culture of the agency is a good fit for us.  But isn't that the question everywhere we work?

Mehindi done at the Eid festival by our friend's nieces...I was surrounded by women, all of us sitting on the floor in saris or kurtas, little kids watching intently as the girls did both of my hands...lots of giggling...amazing.

Well, We're Back in India

Our recent trip to Bankok was, quite simply, amazing!  We went out to some wonderful restaurants, ate incredible street food, enjoyed massages nearly every day for around $10/hr, toured exquisite Buddhist temples, and took in the scenery along a never ending expanse of canals from long tail boats.  Thailand was a remarkable mixture of rugged, cultural experiences and beautiful upscale living.  The Thai people were very friendly, and helped to make our stay a memorable one.

We stayed on the 55th floor at the Lebua Tower hotel, which just so happens to be the hotel at which The Hangover 2 was filmed.  The staff was completely over the top nice, and they all loved to interact with Thumper.  It wasn't long before he was saying, "Kap kun krap!" and "Sawatdee krap!" which is thank you, and hello/goodbye, respectively, for a male speaker in Thai.  We arranged a date night, using a baby sitter provided by the hotel, and Legs and I got to enjoy a fabulous dinner on the 52 floor outdoor restaurant.  The view from our table of Bangkok and the river was breathtaking.

All of that relaxation and adventurous traveler spirit was soon smashed to pieces when we returned to good ol' Hyderabad.  The other day I had taken Thumper to a birthday party for one of his classmates, and I was surprised to see a quaint little outdoor setting of straw bales, large paper mache animals, and more toddler toys than I could count.  I thought, "This looks like my kind of birthday party."  However, it seems like always is the case, India manages to come so close to awesome, and then someone said, "Meh, this'll do."

As Thumper ran around playing, I realized that not all of the animals were fake.  There, terrified for their lives, caught in a gaggle of screaming toddlers were three live chickens, each with about a 4 foot length of ribbon tied around one leg.  Kids were grabbing the 'leashes' and tugging, yanking, and swinging the chickens around as they pleased.  The kids were laughing hysterically, the parents smiled in amusement, and some of the nannies even got in on the fun.  I just couldn't bring myself to understand how no one there cared about what they were doing to those poor little animals.  Even Thumper looked upset at seeing the chickens so clearly distressed.

After leaving the party we were stopped at an intersection and I heard a loud thumping on the car door.  I looked over to see an older man hitting our car with a stick.  I looked at him trying to convey with my facial expression that I'd like him to stop, and he held out his hand asking for money.  I shook my head no; however, I'm not really sure if it was in disbelief that this was his strategy for getting money, or if I was genuinely telling him, "No, not today sir."  I looked at our driver, both of us shared a light chuckle, and then back at the intersection only to hear the banging again.  This time I tried to put on my mean face and shook my head no again, but he just put out his hand and gave me the same deer-in-the-headlights look.  As soon as I looked away again, there was the banging on the door.  This time I skipped the mean face and got out of the car, snatched the stick from his hands, and threw it out into the intersection.  Without a word, I got back in the car, the police officer in the intersection directing traffic waved us on, and we drove away.

Happy Travels!

Pancho

Bad Words and Chocolate

Not much has happened in the couple of weeks since we returned from Singapore except for a few parenthood moments that are definitely worth sharing.  Oh and the fumigation that happens every week, only now we have pictures.

Every so often we go to a nearby handicraft store to pick up some hand made souvenirs and enjoy chatting with the family who owns the store.  They recognize our car and wave when we pass on our way to other places during the week.  We stopped by last weekend and had Thumper with us for the first time.  The three of us were pursuing the items on the first floor when Thumper and I caught a glimpse of a backroom full of beautiful jewelry.  We wandered back and the gentleman working at the counter invited Thumper to sit on the glass case and play with a calculator.  Thumper was having a blast and the man told me I could go upstairs to shop if I'd like and he and another gentleman would watch Thumper.  Since Pancho was in eyesight I agreed, told Pancho I was headed upstairs, and went to go look at all of the gorgeous scarves, embroidered fabric, and carpets.  Upstairs, I met a man who had questions about travel to the United States and I happily provided information about the visa application process and requirements for non-immigrant travel to the U.S.  Not more than 15 minutes had passed before I returned back downstairs to a smiling face covered in chocolate.  I asked Pancho what happened and he nonchalantly told me they had give Thumper some chocolate.  Okay, fine, I thought.  Thumper has had chocolate before and he often gets a treat after dinner.  A treat the size of one jelly candy, or half of a banana muffin, two bites of ice cream...you get the gist.  I went to go wipe off his face and he said, "mama, chocolate all done!  More!!" just as the second gentleman returned with a full size chocolate bar from the store next door.  I realized that my not yet two year old son had just been given an entire adult-sized chocolate bar, consumed it in 15 minutes, and been offered a second approximately 20 minutes before nap time.  One of those moments that's funny, but only for a few hours, it's not funny anymore when nap time doesn't happen and you have dinner plans!

This weekend Thumper is off chocolate and convinced that fresh fruit is a treat.  I think we've made progress.  This morning the three of us were sitting in the living room waking up, Pancho and I with a little coffee, Thumper with a little milk.  Thumper was riding his bike all around talking about how he wants to name his baby brother or sister, "Orange," while Pancho and I were talking about life.  Pancho blurted out a "holy shit" in response to something I said and all of a sudden, just two weeks before his second birthday, our little sponge continues his bike ride yelling, "holy shiiiiit, holy shiiiiit, holy COW, holy shiiiit mama hahahahaha!"  So, of course we started laughing which only made him do it more.  We had our first talk about bad words and how daddy should have said "holy cow" and it appears as though he's forgotten the curse word for now.  Or he's just waiting to use it again :-)

Now, unrelated to parenting (mostly), I will leave you with a picture of what it looks like after two guys with shop vacs stroll through the courtyards of a building on their weekly mission to keep the bugs away.  This happens at restaurants, through the streets at times, and with less fog it happens on the airplane upon landing.  At least we feel more protected against Malaria and Dengue?

Singapore Part 2

A few funny highlights from Legs...

Our flight left Hyderabad at 11PM and arrived in Singapore at 6:15AM the next day...we both thought Thumper would sleep the whole way but he sure didn't!  During take off and landing he yelled, "Pilots driving TOO fast!"

Thank goodness the hotel let us check in early and we all crashed until the afternoon.  Like Pancho mentioned, we had our fair share of Starbucks, and with a good nap and some caffeine we set off to the Botanic Gardens.  We waited for green crossing lights, saw no burning trash, weren't concerned about being hit by a car, auto rickshaw, motorcycle, or cow, and headed straight for a big lake with lots of fish and turtles (see pictures from Pancho's post).  Pancho left out my favorite picture of an intersection in Singapore...note the differences.

Singapore

Hyderabad

We got to the lake and Thumper couldn't take his eyes off all the kids throwing bread to the fish and turtles.  Except I don't think he understood that they were throwing bread and he immediately took off his sunglasses and threw them in the lake.  They sank to the bottom and he frowned and said, "mama, glasses?"  But, losing his glasses did not deter him and at the next lake he promptly threw in his plastic construction toy; however, this item floated and Pancho did some crazy acrobatics to retrieve it from the pond.

The purpose of our trip was for medical care and to quote the Zac Brown Band, "There's no dollar sign on a piece of mind, this I've come to know."  The facility was clean, the doctor was amazing, people listened to me and didn't just talk to Pancho, I had all of my questions answered, it wasn't invasive, and we got to see our little baby moving around on the ultrasound screen as a whole family.  The doctor even printed Thumper his own picture of the baby which he immediately put up to my stomach and said, "mama, baby sister!" To be clear, we don't know the gender yet but Thumper keeps saying "girl" and "baby sister" whenever we ask him what he thinks :-)

We returned to India refreshed on so many different levels.  Pancho speaks for the both of us about the new perspective we gained from this experience.  Singapore made us realize that the world is a big place...some places we will like, some we won't, but they aren't all good and they aren't all bad.  The great thing about this job is that you get to try something new every two years.  We have learned so much about ourselves and our family through this experience in India and we look forward to taking all of those lessons to heart when we bid for our next post.  I'm sure at our next post we will continue to learn and ultimately that's why we joined the Foreign Service...to learn about ourselves and to learn about others.

There are hard times when we miss family and familiarity of Western culture.  I broke down in tears the last time I left the doctor's office here after I had been walked in on twice while getting blood drawn...It wasn't that I didn't have privacy, it was that the other patients came in just to stare at me and they didn't leave until they were forcefully asked to do so.  Combined with everything else that had happened at the doctor visit I left with tears streaming.  I got to the car and our driver asked me what happened.  He listened and reassured me.  When we got out of the car he said, "You know you can ALWAYS take me with you to any appointment, you are not alone here...you are my sister."  I have never felt so comforted by someone I've known for such little time.  He is one of our best friends here and he is the reason why we chose this life.

Singapore

We had the most unbelievably amazing trip to Singapore.  Originally it was only going to be Legs to have a 12-week ultrasound, but at the last minute we bought tickets for Thumper and I too.  We are so incredibly happy that we all decided to go, because that one trip renewed our excitement for travelling the world, and Legs, Thumper, and I were able to see our new little person and hear their heartbeat for the first time together.

In the past few months Legs and I have really contemplated whether or not the Foreign Service lifestyle is right for us.  It would be an understatement to say that India is not what we anticipated.  It has been a very difficult adjustment for us here, and we constantly wonder whether living in India is a good experience for our family as a whole, a bad experience, or somewhere in between.

Travelling to new places is one of the things that brought Legs and I together in the first place, but after this post we've both started to wonder if maybe we're getting older and less capable of adapting to foreign environments.  Perhaps having a child has changed our mindset, and we just want things to be the way that's familiar.  Could we have been lulled into a false sense of enjoyment on our previous journeys because they were all relatively short-term?  Sometimes being a tourist in a new city gives you just the right amount of time to find all of the positives, and conveniently gloss over all of the negatives.

Singapore seemed to completely wash away those fears about whether or not we want to try another post.  I guess it may depend on where that next post is, but, nonetheless, we certainly want to find out.  Stepping off the plane was like stepping into a different dimension.  There was beautiful greenery everywhere, it was almost deafening how quite the streets were without all of the honking, I felt as free as a bird walking down the sidewalk without being pushed and yelled at to buy something, I felt safe in a city where there were rules like no littering or jaywalking and people obeyed them, I felt adventurous drinking tap water for the first time in 4 months, and I probably drank 10+ shots of Starbucks espresso in the three days we were there.

All of the things I just mentioned could just be 'developed country' things that we've been missing, but there were also many cultural things about Singapore that made our stay that much more amazing.  The city was extremely diverse and we regularly heard languages from all over the world, the people were some of the friendliest I've ever encountered, there was tons of natural green space interspersed throughout the city, and Singapore is innovative and efficient with it's public resources.  There were tons of things that we would have loved to do while we were there, like a night safari, a trip to the aquarium, or take a ride in the Singapore Flyer, but all we managed to do was a night cruise through Marina Bay and a beautiful walk through the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

It's hard to say what our impression of Singapore would have been had we traveled there directly from the U.S., but, what I can say is, it was a wonderful modern city reprieve from life in Hyderabad.  I'm still convinced that we would have loved Singapore either way, and I would absolutely recommend visiting if you're ever in the area.  Thank you for a delightful trip Singapore!

Here are some pictures from our trip:

Happy Travels!

Pancho

There's Babies in Them There Trees!

It's been awhile, and I've got some stuff to talk about.  We're having another baby, I seem to be doing pretty well at golf, I saved an injured street dog named Banjara, I'm learning a bit of Hindi, and the locals are beginning to love us for all of our American candy, thanks to Grandpa Harvest.

Of course the biggest and most exciting news of all is that we're having another baby.  Legs and I are totally stoked, and Thumper seems pretty happy about it too.  Bambi knows all too well what happens when we bring another member into the pack, so I think he's a little worried about moving down another notch on the totem pole, but he's being his naturally weird self and sleeping on Legs' belly every chance he gets.  We might as well quit using pregnancy tests, and just ask Bambi, or Thumper for that matter.  Before we found out about the pregnancy, Legs was putting Thumper to bed one night and he lifted up her shirt, put his hand on her stomach, and said, "Baby."  Who knows how he figured that one out!?  I'll just leave it at, he's a genius.

My weekly golf game has become one of my favorite pastimes.  I, and two other 'trailing spouses', go golfing once per week, and we have a blast.  It's pretty crazy golfing in the insanely hot weather here, but, nonetheless, we still manage to enjoy ourselves.  Today it was 109 degrees when I got home.  We can't really make it past nine holes now, but maybe in the rainy season we'll get through the entire course.  Last week we were playing the last hole, and I was about to tee off before my caddy said, "Sir, play left.  Baby."  I didn't exactly understand what he was saying until we realized that he was pointing at a baby hanging from a tree roughly 150 yards away, sleeping in a sort-of hammock.  I couldn't help but take a picture to share with everyone, all that is India...

Can you see it yet?

Yup, that's a baby in the tree.

A few days ago I was walking Bambi around the block in the morning, and as we were strolling past some burning trash I saw a dog laying on the side of the street, not even flinching as cars and people passed.  I could see the dog's chest rising and falling as it breathed, so I knew it was alive.  I tried to check it out as best I could with Bambi going crazy on the leash, and saw that it suffered a pretty bad head wound, most likely from a car.  I took Bambi home, and decided to just go with my inner animal-lover and took Bambi's crate down to the dog so I could take it to a vet.

At first the dog didn't really react as I tried to pick it up, but then, to my amazement, it got up and ran about 15 feet around a corner to get away from me.  I think that was the last little bit of strength she had because when I followed her and tried again, she didn't even budge.  I tried to get a man walking past to help me, but he looked at the dog, shook his hand, and said, "Bah!"

I carried the crate and dog, who I started calling Banjara, home as fast as I could because Legs needed to leave for work.  She just smiled and tried to look supportive, but I know deep down she was scared shitless that I was going to want to keep Banjara.  I can't wait until Thumper tries that one!

I took the dog to our local vet and when I explained what happened they all looked at me like I was crazy, but they started treating her anyway.  She had a pretty severe wound on her head and eye, so bad that you could actually see part of her skull.  They gave her some pain medicine, lots of fluids, and cleaned her up, and that night I was able to take her home.  I found an animal shelter that also provides free veterinary care, so I arranged to take Banjara there the next day.  She stayed the night with us, sleeping in the crate the whole time before I dropped her off.  Even though everyone looked at me like I had lost my mind, I thought it was completely worth it to see the dog start to recover, and also to see Thumper learn about caring for all living things.  The whole time Banjara was here, Thumper would say, "See dog!  Dog sad.  Dog happy!  Dog hurt.  Dog happy!"  In case you're wondering, Banjara means nomad in Hindi.

Here's Banjara recovering with her IV fluids and muzzle.

Hindi class is going quite well.  I have a long ways to go before I can actually have a conversation with someone in Hindi, but I'm able to use more and more words when communicating around town, and people usually get a kick out it if I say anything at all in Hindi.  The caddies at the golf course love it when I say the colors of the flags.  I think I made my Hindi teacher's day when I was able to write and pronounce the whole Hindi alphabet on my own.  Small steps to big gains  :-)

We received some care packages recently, and Legs actually had to arrange a different ride home because there were too many boxes to fit in the car she was sharing.  It sure was nice to get so many goodies, but we now have enough candy to stop hunger in India.  We've been "improving India-US relations" by giving lots of it out to the guards, kids, and Legs' co-workers.  It's tough work being a diplomat, but someone's got to do it.  Maybe we should have just sent a bunch of gummy bears and salt water taffy to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria.  Who can do anything but smile with a mouthful of gummy bears?

Happy Travels!

Pancho

Summertime in India

It's been far too long since our last post, and we're sorry for our brief hiatus.  We are still adjusting to India and our new lives here.  Thumper is thoroughly enjoying his new school, and I'm having a blast attending it with him.  Legs is extremely busy at work, but is taking great pleasure in her job.  Her occupation doesn't require much work outside of business hours, so the evenings and weekends tend to be our time as a family. Bambi is, well, Bambi.

We feel like we really lucked out with Thumper's school here.  It's somewhat structured, in that they have different rooms dedicated to different activities, like drama, music, art, and dance.  He loves to play with the other kids in his class, and he's become very comfortable leaving me in the lobby while he builds his reputation.  His teachers are absolutely phenomenal with all of the kids; they are extremely patient, joyful, and caring.

Thumper's vocabulary is growing like crazy, and he's started to string together 2, 3, and 4 word sentences.  Along with his expanding vocabulary, he's becoming quite independent and stubborn in his ways, and he's mastered the art of the limp, screaming tantrum.  I feel like watching him change as he grows is an absolute joy, and I can't help but smile when his eyes well up with tears, his lips begin to quiver, and there's a slight stillness before his body goes limp and he screams with all his might because he wanted another treat, or he wanted to put the brush on the floor instead of on the table, or he wanted Mama to sit in this chair instead of that chair.  I'm sure the complexity of the problems will change with time, but he'll always be this special and perfect little person to me.

Leg's is working like crazy with the busy season for students traveling to the U.S. and also parents traveling to visit their children who are graduating from universities all across America.  She is constantly moved by some of the happy stories she hears, and also saddened by some of the more unfortunate tales.  Our laws for  traveling to the United States are what they are, and it's Leg's job to uphold those laws regardless of her personal feelings toward the situation.  Overall, I think this is a deeply fulfilling career for Legs, and I'm proud of the work that she has put into her profession to give us the opportunity to travel the world and experience different cultures in a way that we never really thought possible.

Bambi seems to be adjusting quite nicely to India.  He lounges around on the couches and tile floors enjoying a sliver of sunshine through the window if he's cold, or the cool breeze from one of the AC's if he's hot.  We try to stay away from all of the trash-dogs, because I don't think Bambi would fare to well in a fight.  During the day, it's all he can do to make it around the block in the heat, but I think he's happy just relaxing in our house most of the time.

I've managed to fill my time with some fun activities.  I'm still taking Hindi classes at the consulate; however, it's only for 2 hours per week and everyone else has dropped out.  Basically I get to meet with the teacher for one-on-one sessions to practice the lessons from the textbook.  Slowly, but surely, I'm learning more each week.  I've also been golfing once per week with another stay-at-home dad at the consulate.  We're both pretty much equally horrible at golf, so it makes for some fun outings.  It's really nice to get outdoors away from all of the traffic and noise in the city.

Overall, we're beginning to find routines that work for us here, and that's a tremendous help in adjusting to our new lives.  We are still very homesick though, and can't wait until we get the opportunity to come home for a visit.  It's just been too long since we've seen all of our family, and I can't even believe that the last time most people saw Thumper he wasn't even crawling!

Happy Travels!

Pancho

India: In-dee-uh; verb-move, change, or occur in the dramatically changeable manner of a roller coaster

It's been awhile, so I'll take you back a few weeks.  I was sitting on the toilet flicking ants off my feet in the middle of the night doing what you do in India.  Try your hardest to fight off all of the bacteria, viruses, dirt, grime, filth, and rot that seem to seep their way into anything and everything here.  After several trips back and forth from the bathroom to the bed, I finally felt like I was 'done'.  Unfortunately, I was wrong.  Whatever I had simply shifted its focus and I started vomiting harder than I'd ever vomited before.  After four years in the Marine Corps, and even getting my name on a plaque at a bar (Big Helyn's), that's a pretty profound statement for me to make.  I remember having this weird moment of clarity between heaves, likely a result of being mildly dehydrated, sleep-deprived, and having a fever, and I was staring into the toilet thinking, "How could there be so much food in my stomach?  That's what's making me sick.  I'm eating too much food."  After the fact, I thought my prognosis was pretty funny.  I'm glad I didn't decide to become a doctor, because I'm clearly not ballooning up over here.  In fact, I'm down to around 180 lbs, and wearing the same size jeans I wore in high school.  Fortunately, I recovered quickly and was back to my usual self in a couple days.

After recovering from my first bout with 'Delhi Belly', I was feeling healthy, but watching what I ate a little more carefully.  I was also getting very excited for our upcoming trip to New Delhi and Agra.  We were planning to stay at a really nice hotel, and I was eager to seek out some adventures with Thumper in a new city.  The morning of our departure I woke up freezing and feeling a little off.  At first I thought maybe I was just feeling off because it was 3 am, and we were getting ready to travel for the first time in India.  Once again Dr. Pancho was horribly wrong.  My immune system was fighting with everything it had at another stupid, stupid, stupid, STUPID case of 'Dehli Belly'.  You can imagine how much fun it is to wake up a two-year-old at 3 am and take them on an hour-long drive, followed by a two-hour flight, followed by another hour-long drive, all the while it's between 90 and 105 degrees.  Now do it while you're running a fever and have explosive diarrhea.  Welcome to India!

I just needed to get all of that out of my system...no pun intended.  I spent an entire day and a half hunkered down with Thumper in the hotel room, and thoroughly missed out on seeing any of New Delhi, but I recovered quickly again, and was feeling better by the time we got in the car for the four-hour drive to Agra. It was absolutely amazing to drive through farmland and open fields.  Legs and I spent the entire time daydreaming about Eastern Washington and the Pacific Northwest.

In Agra, we stayed in a phenomenal hotel that actually had a view of the Taj Mahal. We hired a tour guide to take us through the Taj Mahal in the evening, and we got to see one of the most spectacular monuments in the world at sunset.  The river running behind the Taj Mahal, the wild monkeys climbing walls and pillars everywhere, the mosque next to the palace, it all created a stunning environment that will never be replicated anywhere.  There was such a peacefulness walking through the palace gardens, and simply standing and looking out over the river was wonderful.

So, the roller-coaster continues in India.  It amazes me how I could go from feeling so crappy, and disgruntled to feeling such tranquility in a single trip.  Thumper, Legs, and I had a beautiful time at our hotel, and at the Taj Mahal.  Our stay in Agra and the time we got to spend together absolutely made up for all of the inconveniences along the way.  I'm sure that we'll continue to swing back and forth from thoroughly enjoying the adventure we're on, to missing home with all of our hearts.

Happy Travels!

Pancho

Jerky for Dinner

That's right.  Reeses, Teddy Grams, Elk Jerky, and more candy.  That is what we will have for dinner every night this week thanks to some AMAZING family who have turned these frowns upside down :-)  Well, the care package, the encouraging phone calls, and then supportive e-mails from friends and family are really what did the trick.  Today is an 'up' day on my roller coaster.  I won't bore you with the details but last week was a rough one (to include two death notifications within 24hrs after I got the after-hours phone for the first time) but we got massages at the end of the week, spent time with friends in the Old City over the weekend, and had some time to ourselves to just be.  Needless to say, all of your support has made such a difference and we can't thank you enough for your love as it follows us around the world.  

Missing Home

Pancho and I have been feeling particularly homesick today.  There are parts of this lifestyle that are incredible (getting paid to live and work in other countries) and there are parts of this lifestyle that are at times hard (living and working in other countries).  India has been wonderful so far but for us country kids from rural Pacific Northwest, the constant crowds, buildings for days, pollution, lack of freedom for women, and the isolation that comes from not being able to drive ourselves anywhere starts to take its toll.  We daydreamed today about owning our own home in the country, living within reasonable travel distance from family (ok, half way around the world might be just a little too far!), and enjoying a slower-paced life.  We got on the computer and looked through pictures from the last seven years and could almost feel the Yakima River.

That said, at the end of the day I sat outside with Thumper and watched kids clean themselves off from the Holi celebration while the call to prayer wafted through the hot evening air from the local mosque and I was overwhelmed with happiness.

Ups and downs....

We welcome any pictures of the Pacific Northwest you have lying around as we decorate our space and try to remind ourselves of home!

Allergies and the Crazy Girl

A few quick notes to make you smile.

#1:  Our driver says they just burn leaves here but the piles of burning trash I see everywhere indicate otherwise.  I realized today that I'm not getting sick, I don't have a cold, I am just sensitive to the extreme car pollution on the roads and all the smoke in the air from the burning piles of garbage.  I thought I was just allergic to pollens!  On a similar note, they fumigated the courtyard of our building and I looked out the window to see nothing but fog and thought the apartment was on fire.  Don't worry, just spraying for mosquitoes.  Our air conditioner caught on fire last weekend and that wasn't nearly as smokey. 

Burning Trash

#2: On the way to work this morning I saw a girl I'd seen before sitting on the median of the road next to a burning tire.  I asked our driver why she's always sitting there and if she asks for money.  He laughed and said, "No, no, no, she is not asking for money, she is crazy!"  I asked if she stays somewhere nearby and he said, "No, she is not staying anywhere, even she does not know what she is doing!"

#3: There is a new cafeteria at work operated by a nearby restaurant and I can get a huge plate of rice, noodles, chicken, or Chinese vegetable ball things for $1.  Street food cooked in a totally sanitary kitchen at the Consulate.  A.mazing.

#4:  Thumper is really trying hard to say "fork," "Foster," "fan," "sit," "shirt," and "sure," but it just isn't working for him yet... he can, however, say "I like juuuuice," and he runs through the house screaming it over and over :-)

It's late and I can't pull together a coherent blog post so I leave you with those pearls from our Hyderabad experience.  Next time Pancho or I will write about Thumper's Kangaroo debut, our trip to Golkonda Fort during which Pancho experienced a pickpocket attempt, and our first Holi festival which will happen next week.  Missing you all!

Legs

Oh, India.

This morning I left for a short 5 km run to a local park.  It was early, so traffic wasn't too bad; however, I did have a car, driving the wrong direction on the road, cut me off, then stop right in front of me so they could load up some supplies from a store.  As they got out of the car, they looked at me like I was the crazy one because I was running for no apparent reason.  A few minutes later I had a Tuk Tuk cut me off in the same manner so that he could give me a ride.  He yelled, "Sir! Sir!" as me motioned to the seat with his hand.  I shook my head and kept running, and I think I literally blew his mind.  He's probably still sitting there trying to figure out what had happened, and perhaps thinking he should find a new job since he couldn't even talk a Westerner into his taxi, who, clearly, was in desperate need of a ride.

Like we've said before, India is full of extremes in every direction.  Poverty meets luxury.  Chaos meets tranquility.  Beauty meets trash.  On the way to the park this morning I ran by all sorts of people sleeping on the side of the street, just waking up to start their work day.  Having grown up in the United Sates, it seems so foreign to see people who work a full day cleaning, or in construction, or perhaps trash removal, and they have no place to go but to the small grassy median in a round-a-bout.  They get water from a large tanker truck that stops and opens a faucet for them to fill their water bottles, and they likely work all day so they can afford a meal that evening.  

As I pass all of the homeless workers outside and step through the gates to the park, it's as if I cross some threshold into a different reality.  Inside the park, well-dressed Indians are everywhere practicing yoga, or doing odd exercises as they walk along the well-manicured gravel path.  I could hear people in the distance laughing and yelling as they played some game, probably cricket.  The park was like a sanctuary from the injustice outside.  It was almost depressing as I neared the gate on my way home, and I knew that I had to leave this safe, blind, oblivious place and, once again, run through the smoke from burning trash, run past the people lining up for water, run through the wafting urine.

I'd be lying if I said that I didn't dislike the portion of my run from our house to the park.  It's as if I'm a little kid getting ready to sprint from one 'safe base' to another.  It's hard to face the reality that we live in such luxurious conditions while people struggle to get through each day.  The worst part of it all is that no one here seems to strive for anything better for themselves.  Just as the wealthy people blindly go about their day in the pockets of solitude, the poor people go about their day everywhere else.  It seems as though no one here has any desire to 'learn to fish', they just want 'fish'.

Happy Travels!

Pancho

Three Weeks In...We Got This

We are adjusting extremely well to life in India.  There are many times throughout a typical day where I stop and stare at someone or something, trying to figure out if I'm actually seeing what I think I'm seeing, but for the most part life is fun.  This morning while I was taking Bambi for his usual walk, I saw a lady heading up a dirt path, leaving a partially constructed building.  She looked to be some type of hired help, like a nanny or housekeeper, and, a child, who I assume to be her son, came running out after her.  He was screaming through sobs and gasps that he wanted his mama to stay at home with him and play all day long.  (I don't actually have a clue what he was saying.  He was maybe 2 years old and was probably trying to speak Hindi or Telugu.)  Since we're sort of going through a similar phase with Thumper, I was curious to see what she would do to calm her little half pint and how she would send him back into their dilapidated house a happy little camper.  Much to my amazement, she picked up the closest stick she could find and threw it as hard as she could at the little boy.  The Hindi rolled off her tongue with fire, and that little boy wasn't quite sure if he should dodge the stick, or let it hit him for having the audacity to ask his mother to stay home.  Luckily the stick missed him anyway, he hurried away crying, and scampered into their shell of a house.  She, on the other hand, nodded and strolled by me as if this were a perfectly normal occurrence.

On a much more serious note, the city suffered quite a tragedy last week.  We were perfectly safe throughout the event; however, it was quite scary having something like this happen so close to 'home'.  It was touching to see many people offering aid, comfort, and whatever resources they could to help victims of the bomb blasts.  I've heard many stories about people lining up to donate blood at hospitals, including outreach on Facebook for specific types of blood in short supply.  It is important to remind ourselves that this is not a normal occurrence here, and the local population was likely just as frightened as we were.  During terrorist attacks like this one, cell service is often cut off to prevent further communication between terrorists and also prevent further explosive detonations via cell phone triggers.  As a result, it may be difficult for us to contact everyone immediately to let people know that we are okay, however, the internet proved very useful for notification purposes last week.  If you weren't part of the email list or on our Facebook page, and want to be, please let us know.

Happy Travels!

Pancho

5k in Hyderabad

Well we managed to get out of bed bright and early this morning for some much needed exercise!  We joined some colleagues and a group of expats working for Deloitte and did our first 5k in Hyderabad!  The sun was still rising and it was already hot out...I understand why the race started at 7AM.  Unfortunately our jogger stroller is on a boat somewhere between the US and India so we put Thumper in the backpack and tried to jog for the first mile.  Thumper wasn't having much fun bouncing around and pretty quickly started tapping Pancho's back saying "all done Dada, all done!"  So we walked the rest of the way but it was just as fun.  

The race was along the Hussain Sagar Lake which is one of Hyderabad's 'places to see' and it was beautiful.  The smell was a little over powering at times and once you get to the shore you quickly realize that this lake is not for swimming but from afar it is wonderful.  In the middle of the lake there is a large statue of Buddha and I believe there are boats you can hire to take you out to the center....we aren't quite up for that yet.

Before the race started a few Indians tried taking pictures of Thumper with their cell phones and I politely said, "no photos, please."  It wasn't working very well and I was just getting frustrated.  We had been warned that this happens and had decided that we'd rather people not photograph him without our consent.  Then the race started.  I wouldn't be surprised if our pictures are on Facebook pages throughout the country.  People were taking pictures of us left and right.  People who looked like they were the race organizers, people in plain clothes, there were video cameras from news stations that jogged with us a while as we nervously smiled and kept going.  We have now decided that we will go crazy trying to keep Thumper out of photos...and have succumbed to India's curiosity.  Look for us on TV24 :-)  I did discover that my Telugu is much better when I'm angry and I got my point across with one photographer who just wouldn't stop even after we gave him a few polite smiles.

All in all, the race was fun and it was great to get out and see more of the city.  Below are some photos from the morning.

Backing up a little, we have finally adjusted to India time and have pretty much settled into our apartment.  We won't get our stuff from Seattle for about a month or so but we are slowly acquiring things that make this place more like home...a mango tree, a guava tree...you know.  We also found a great cheap framing store and just got a bunch of photos framed so hopefully we'll get them on the walls soon.

We have hired a driver as well as a housekeeper who helps watch Thumper and cooks South Indian food twice per week.  They are both awesome so far and life is so much easier with their help.  Hiring people to help us has been a challenge for us personally but it really is culturally how it works.  Not to mention, I am terrified of driving here and there are no street signs or addresses so without help we would be in trouble. 

Pancho, Thumper, and I have crossed the street on foot FOUR times by ourselves!  I will get a picture on here soon that shows why that's such a big deal.  Here is an example of what the roads in our area look like.  Imagine crossing I-90 one lane at a time by simply putting your hand out and hoping the buses stop.  Okay, they're only going about 40mph but it's crazy nonetheless.  

I love my job and am slowly getting up to speed with my interviews.  I'm doing about half of what my colleagues are currently doing but you have to start somewhere!  I've done one full day of Telugu interviews and am starting to get back into the language groove.  Our driver laughed a little when I told him I would be doing interviews in Telugu :-)

We are doing great and are really enjoying all that India has to offer!  It has definitely been the biggest cultural shock I've experienced and I'm sure there will be both good and bad days to come but for now we can't believe we get paid to do this!

Legs

Hussain Sagar Lake

Buddha Statue

Let the race begin!

Along the route...

Public Urination...totally common

Trail next to the lake.  We were running on the road.

Also along the route...don't worry, it's non ionizing radiation.

Around 2009 we made a 'visulization' list of where we wanted to be in the next couple of years.  It included having a baby, moving somewhere hot, moving somewhere with palm trees, living abroad, and having a motorcycle (that one was Pancho's and he's pretty close to convincing me that it's safe???).   Look where we are now...Thumper came, India is hot and there are palm trees.  Pancho almost has a motorcycle.

Note the thick black bunch of cables entering the top floor bedroom in the green building.

Before Landing We Will Be Fumigating The Plane

We have arrived in Hyderabad, and may well have stepped right off of planet Earth and landed somewhere between Jupiter and Saturn.  As our plane prepared for landing, an announcement was made over the intercom  "As per India country regulations we will be fumigating the plane prior to landing.  If you are concerned with any health risks related to pesticides, please use your shirt or a cloth to cover your mouth."  Legs and I looked at each other puzzled, wondering if we heard that correctly, and then sure enough a flight attendant came walking down the aisle with two bug bombs filling the cabin with pesticide.  Legs and I frantically reached for things to cover Thumper's face, smothering the poor kid with with a napkin and sweatshirt as he squirmed around, probably thinking that mom and dad had finally lost it.  Since we were confined to our airplane seats we just sat and inhaled the pesticides and had our first realization that we are definitely not in the U.S. anymore.

India is an absolute mishmash of stunning beauty and, well, trash.  There are 'landfills' all over the place and people, generally hired help dressed in immaculate and vibrant saris, in the area carry trash to the landfill and throw it in.  It seems like everywhere you are confronted with every type of extreme.  Only in India can you find a massive mansion overlooking a giant pile of burning trash while children play around the garbage-fire, occasionally picking something up and doing what all kids do...put it in their mouth!

For the most part, people have been extremely friendly here, and not in the 'traveling to Mexico where everyone just wants a few pesos from you' kind of friendly.  Most people seem genuinely interested in us crazy white people that have come to visit their wild little piece of land.  The consulate community, both Americans and locally hired staff, has been absolutely amazing in welcoming us, and providing resources to get us adjusted as quickly as possible.  This will certainly be a learning experience for Legs, Thumper, Bambi, and I, which is exactly what we wanted.  To be out of our element, nervous or scared at times, yet still wholeheartedly accept this new way of life and embrace the human connections we make along the way.

There aren't many, but here a few pictures of the area...

Some of the urban sprawl of Hyderabad 

A nice little park

Thumper and I walking down the street

An infamous Tuk Tuk, which Thumper says every time he sees one

Happy Travels!

Pancho

The Movers Are Here

My oh my!  One month since my last post.  I'm sorry I haven't written more but we're starting our journey in a few days and I've been busy!!!  I'll try to recap the last month in a relatively short and sweet summary.  This will be my last post until we are reunited with our things in India in a few weeks.

We finished up a wonderful month-long visit from Grandma Mir Mir around the beginning of the month, and Thumper was so sad to see her go.  She soaked up the valuable time she had with Thumper, and I think they developed a truly deep bond.  It's difficult for us, as we leave on this amazing adventure abroad, to accept the fact that Thumper will miss out on many family interactions he would otherwise get if we were content with settling down and living the American Suburban Dream right now.  Don't get me wrong, living in a cute little 3 bedroom house with a garden and garage along with 2.5 kids, driving distance from the weekend family barbecues or other family gatherings sounds absolutely incredible sometimes.  I remind myself that, when growing up, the relatives with which I felt closest were not always the ones I saw everyday, or even every year.  They were the ones that valued their time with me, and respected me, even as a little kid.  Thumper will know and love his family whether he is in India, Indonesia, Iceland, Ireland, or any other country around the world.

During the last week of Grandma Mir Mir's visit, I took my first NERC Reliability Coordinator Exam and, unfortunately, failed.  I scored a 94 out of 125, and 96 out of 125 is passing.  At that point I decided that I'd make Legs', Thumper's, and my life a nightmare for the next two weeks while I studied for a similar test, the NERC Balancing, Interchange, and Transmission Operator Exam, which I'd take less than two weeks before our departure date because I wasn't ready to give up on what I had worked toward for over a year while staying at home with Thumper.  I had to take a different NERC test because there is a 42 day waiting period after failing an exam, and since it is a North American specific exam there would be no way to test in India.  I crammed like crazy for those two weeks during the day when Thumper napped, in the evenings when Legs took Thumper, and also at night after Thumper went to bed.  Exactly one week ago today I took the NERC exam and passed with a score of 105 out of 125!  It was such a relief to pass that exam before we leave for India!

I'd love to finish this recap, but the movers are here!!!  We'll be out of touch for a couple weeks, and the next time you hear from us we'll be on the other side of the world!  I'll just have to get you all caught up next time.

Happy Travels!

Pancho